Molly

Biodata

Background / History

Moving into the church

Molly was raised by Mrs. Anderson, a single mother whose business left her little time with her daughter. Resentful of her mother’s nagging and dissatisfied with school, Molly adopted a punk appearance and planned to join a neighborhood gang. After hearing about Leon’s success tutoring Toby, Mrs. Anderson brought Molly to Pastor Borg’s church for help 32 33 34.

Molly immediately became attracted to Leon, also known as Lin Rui, and hurried to remove the makeup and accessories she had deliberately worn to make a bad impression. Her mother proposed that Lin Rui date her to encourage better behavior. He declined to force a romance, instead agreeing to protect Molly and treat her as a younger sister 33.

Mrs. Anderson arranged for Molly to live at the church, attend school in the mornings, and join Lin Rui at the gym in the afternoons. She paid him $500 for looking after her, triggering his quest, “The Girl’s Redemption.” Molly received her own room, but soon tried to spend the night in his; he refused and sent her back to bed 33 34.

First visit to Nightmare Space

That night, Molly was drawn into Nightmare Space and accompanied Lin Rui and Master Borg on patrol. Lin Rui showed her people corrupted by darkness, warning that gang involvement could cost her autonomy and dignity. After witnessing him destroy a charging monster with a flaming sword, she admitted that joining a gang had mainly seemed like a fun way to rebel against her mother 34.

The next morning, Molly remembered little beyond a frightening dream involving Leon. Nevertheless, she apologized to her mother and abandoned her gang plans. Her determination to make Leon her boyfriend remained unchanged 35.

The gym attack

Molly brought classmates to the church gym intending to show off her supposed “boyfriend.” Their criticism of the equipment embarrassed her, but Lin Rui impressed them with a 150-kilogram squat 36.

When George’s gang entered, one thug recognized Molly and mentioned her earlier promise to join them. George ordered her captured and threatened sexual violence. She fled down a corridor, only to find the exits sealed, and was carried back into the gym 37 38.

Distracted by the sight of his defeated leader, her captor loosened his grip. Molly broke free, kicked him in the groin, and then kicked the fallen George. When police arrived, she quickly adopted a frightened demeanor and later reported the gang’s assault and threats. Surveillance footage established that the gang had initiated the violence, and Mrs. Anderson’s lawyer helped secure the students’ release 38 39.

Magical guidance and reform

Molly correctly noticed that Lin Rui was planning something after he discussed the gym’s new youth project with Pastor Borg. Expecting a prank, she inspected her chair, food, bedding, and room for traps 43 44.

Instead, Lin Rui used Suggestion Technique on her in Nightmare Space. Rather than giving the blunt commands he had used on Toby, he established broad boundaries suited to Molly’s intelligence and independence 41 44:

• She could rebel, but not act without restraint.
• She could choose her own path, but needed to develop her abilities.
• She could retain her personality, but not harm other people’s interests 44.

Molly resisted only mildly. On waking, she could barely remember the dream but felt unusually peaceful. School no longer seemed like a cage, and she began to regard learning useful things as part of growing up 44 45.

George’s gang subsequently planned retaliation against Lin Rui and Toby and intended to force Molly back into their control. George and three companions died after Lin Rui confronted them through Nightmare Space 46 47 48.

Following their deaths, Molly spread a school rumor that Leon was the Bronx’s newest mob boss. She later admitted responsibility to her mother, explaining that living with him felt more exciting than joining a gang 50.

Appearance

• Build and features: Small and slight, with delicate facial features 34 38.
• Original style: A half-shaved, dyed punk hairstyle, heavy dark eye makeup, earrings, and other accessories. Her distinctive hair was well known at school 33 34.
• Tattoos: Stick-on rather than permanent; she also explained that her ears had been pierced when she was little 34.
• Nightmare Space appearance: On her first visit, she wore a plain dress and had long black hair without her waking-world dye or heavy makeup 34.
• Later style: She shaved off the remaining punk hairstyle, wore a playful short wig, and adopted dresses in place of her earlier hoodie-based look 46 50.

Personality

Molly is clever, stubborn, mischievous, and highly sensitive to other people’s expressions. Her rebellious behavior initially centered on rejecting school and her mother’s restrictions rather than a firm commitment to gang life. Confronted with actual gang violence, her swagger gave way to fear and an urgent search for escape 34 37 44.

She is also concerned with appearances and social prestige. She wanted to parade Leon at school as her boyfriend and became embarrassed when her classmates belittled his gym. Although she openly pursued him, she sometimes denied her attraction when her mother exposed it 33 35 36.

Lin Rui’s suggestions softened her hostility toward school without removing her playful streak. Her later mob-boss rumor shows that she retained her taste for mischief and excitement after abandoning her gang ambitions 45 50.

Abilities & Skills

Social perception

• Recognizes subtle changes in expression and attention; she correctly deduced that Lin Rui was preparing a plan involving her 44.
• Understands pranks well enough to search systematically for possible traps 44.

Improvisation and acting

• Produced tears within seconds and presented herself as frightened when police entered the gym 38.
• Encouraged the classmate who called emergency services to give a complete account, praising him as a hero 38.

Opportunistic self-defense

• Escaped a distracted captor and disabled him with a kick to the groin 38.
• Has limited physical strength: she could not lift a ten-kilogram weight plate, and her later kicks to George’s legs caused no meaningful damage 36 38.

Relationships

• Mrs. Anderson — Mother and primary caregiver. Their conflict over Molly’s behavior prompted the church arrangement; Molly later apologized and became more receptive to her mother’s concerns 33 35 45.
• Lin Rui / Leon — Caretaker, mentor, and romantic interest. Molly calls him her boyfriend, but he explicitly frames his responsibility as looking after a younger sister rather than entering a forced relationship 33 34 36 38.
• Essen Borg — Church host and protective adult. He provides Molly with a separate room and supports Lin Rui’s efforts to guide her 33 34 44.
• Toby — Fellow student under Lin Rui’s guidance. They share the gym confrontation and enthusiastically recount it afterward 38 40.
• George — Gang leader associated with Molly’s abandoned recruitment plans. He threatens her during the gym attack and later approves plans to force her back into the gang 37 46.

Notable Quotes

“I was just sick of my mother’s nagging and wanted to go against her.” 34

“I used to think school was a cage, but today I feel like... learning something useful is a necessary part of growing up.” 45

“But living with Leon now... feels even more exciting.” 50