5 - The Protagonist Exits Here

Chapter 5

'What do you mean, 100%? Island Man?'

According to the statistics of the Comments Fairy, Edin is definitely an Island Man.

If 'Namju' is short for male lead, then 'Seomnam' is... a man who lives on an island?

"Edin, have you ever lived on an island?"

"No. I haven't been to the sea."

"Then do you know what an Island Man is?"

"Huh? Some Man?"

└[Oh my, Some Man???]

└[Are you subtly trying to establish Some Man?]

└[It's so cute how the kids are flirting lol]

'Some Man' has another meaning?

I'm trying to understand through context, but the expressions they use are like a foreign language. Well, it is the language of the Fairy Kingdom, so it is a foreign language.

They were getting excited with stories only they knew, so I was about to stop listening to the Comments and play with the girl next to me.

└[You're unlucky if you don't know how delicious brown-haired Namju is]

...Brown hair is delicious?

'Aren't Fairies supposed to live on bait?!'

Bait. Like the kind used for fishing.

It probably doesn't taste good, but the Comments Fairies always pick up bait.

I thought their diet was unique, but what does it mean to eat the male lead?

'Was the talk about staple food earlier about eating the male lead?'

Bait is a snack or special meal, and this is their staple food?!

└[No, why are we creating cannibalism]

└[We eat tteokbokki, pizza, chicken, bossam, jokbal, suyuk, soy sauce crab, hamburger, sweet and sour pork, jjambong, yukhoe, budae jjigae, ramen, donuts, and ice vanilla latte]

└[You really eat well]

Every example they give is a food name I've never heard before.

'So... they eat anything and everything?'

└[Shh! Don't let them know we're pigs!]

I've never seen a Comments Fairy in person, so I imagined them as small fairies.

The image of the Comments Fairy in my head is gradually turning into a huge monster. Maybe I should have named them Comments Monsters.

└[Too harsh]

└[No, we don't eat Namju~~]

└[Mmm, everything is delicious, nom nom, slurrrp]

Even among the Comments Fairies, their words didn't match, with some trying to clear up misunderstandings and others encouraging them.

I had to fall into terror for a while until I understood that 'delicious' was just a figurative expression.

* * *

As I spent similar days in the orphanage, even the Comments Fairies, who liked excitement, became less frequent.

In their words, it was the 'daily life part.'

If there was nothing to say, the Comments Fairies seemed to go off to meet other protagonists.

So, when my ears became quiet, an incident occurred that stirred up the Comments Fairies again.

"Why are you all gathered here?"

"The Director brought a boy earlier."

The children who witnessed the arrival of a new child couldn't contain their curiosity and were peeking in front of the Director's office.

'It was only recently that the stingy Director was grumbling about having too many mouths to feed.'

But seeing that she brought in a new child, it seemed that our orphanage had a little more financial leeway.

'I feel the reward here for making a good impression on the visiting sponsors.'

Because one more child could safely enter a protective facility.

Although the Director is stingy... it would be much better than wandering around from place to place at a young age.

The Comments Fairies also began to gather in groups of three or five, like the children, at the appearance of a new person.

Of course, I didn't see them gathering, but it felt like that because the sound of the Comments I heard was getting louder.

└[Oh, a transfer student position in a school setting? This is totally a heroine appearance scene]

└[You watch too much anime]

The Fairies were looking forward to the appearance of a new male lead candidate. If they appear in the middle like this, there's a high probability they'll become the male lead, or so they say.

I don't know about the necessity of a male lead. I was also curious about the new face, so I waited next to the children for the Director's office door to open.

Soon, the door opened, and the Teacher who came out with the rumored new child immediately found me.

"Rose. You're here."

"Were you looking for me?"

"This child came in today, and I was wondering if you could show him around the orphanage."

"...Of course!"

Do you see me as a guide because I was in charge of guiding the orphanage whenever sponsors came?!

└[I don't like that guy; let's get rid of him.]

└[That guy who favors problem children?]

└[He's definitely embezzling]

Why is embezzlement suddenly popping up?

└[Romance Fantasy Orphanage Special: They gamble, abuse, or traffic people with the embezzled money.]

What scary things are you saying!

I can see that he's not a diligent Teacher, but I have to make a good impression right now.

I regretted peeking and smiled at the child behind the Teacher.

"Hello! What's your name..."

Have I become assimilated with them because I've listened to the Comments Fairies so much? My eyes went to his hair before his face.

No, to be exact, I can't see anything but his hair because his shaggy hair covers his eyes.

'Red hair?'

Before Regression, I had reddish-orange hair, and many of my friends had reddish-brown hair.

But seeing such bright red hair was rare, even when I recalled my memories of the past dozen years.

└[Red hair?? It's the male lead]

└[What color are his eyes?]

His bangs are long, so I can't see his eyes well...

└[Originally, the ones with covered faces are the most handsome]

Ignoring the Comments that were obsessed with appearance, I smiled as kindly as possible.

"I'm Rose. What's your name?"

"...Leon."

His voice was hoarse, as if he had suffered a lot.

He was taller than the petite Edin, but he seemed smaller than me because he was shrinking.

'I've been through all sorts of things and came back to the orphanage, so I feel like I'm resting, but it must be unsettling for the child.'

It's better to give these children time to adjust first.

There are no children in the orphanage without a story. Even if you're curious, excessive attention is forbidden.

It was rude to ask how he ended up here.

└[He's the lost son of a Grand Duke, Duke, or someone related to them, right?]

The Comments Fairies acted as if they knew the child's past.

'A child isn't a lost item, and it doesn't happen often that a child is lost! Especially not in noble families.'

The Fairies asked me if I was a princess or a duchess, so this is probably just something they're saying without any credibility.

└[Clichés aren't clichés for no reason]

Cliché or whatever. When I think about it, nothing they've said so far has been right.

I was sure that the cliché they were talking about wouldn't exist here, and I held out my hand to my new friend, Leon.

* * *

"Can't you talk?"

"......"

"Ba-bo. Stupid."

"......"

I heard Jeff bothering someone again, so I came out into the hallway and saw that Leon had become the new target.

I used to get a little excited by Jeff's childish provocations, but now I've become skilled at responding to his level.

"Jeff. Haven't you heard that saying?"

"What?"

"Only fools see fools."

Jeff flinched and couldn't answer right away.

It meant that he, who had been calling Leon a fool, was a fool himself.

"I'm a genius, so I only see geniuses? Do you see Leon as a fool? I see him as a genius."

"What! You ba..."

Jeff was about to shout 'fool,' but he remembered what I had said earlier and hesitated for a moment.

"You genius!"

"Yes. I'm a genius."

I readily accepted the compliment and stuck out my tongue.

Jeff, who ended up praising me as a genius without getting anything in return, looked resentful but couldn't think of anything to say and just huffed.

"Hey. This is no fun. Let's go!"

Jeff took his group of friends and left, and the hallway became quiet in an instant.

'Fool.'

I was proud of myself for handling another incident, and the Comments Fairy inevitably chimed in to praise my actions.

└[Wow, the female lead fights really childishly]

└[The dialogue is exactly the same as when I used to fight with my younger sibling, it gave me chills.]

Is that a compliment?

└[Are you having fun arguing with a child when you're mentally an adult? If you're going to act like a child, why bother with the Regression setting? I'm dropping this here.]

└[The professional dropper is here again]

Is that not a compliment?

└[If they say 'fool,' you should counter with 'treasure of the sea,' and if they say 'genius,' you should counter with 'the unluckiest guy in the world' for a real kids' fight]

└[Isn't that too much of a traditional proverb?]

The Comments Fairies often taught me how to win childish arguments like this.

'I should use that later. Noted.'

While my combat power was increasing, Leon went to the corner of the hallway and crouched down like a child with a story. He was about to go to his usual dark spot today when he was caught by Jeff.

'It's been a few days, but he still can't adjust.'

He only stays in the corner as if cutting himself off from everyone around him, so Jeff bothered Leon a few times but quickly lost interest and left.

The one who shows the most interest in Leon, who keeps his distance from everyone, is... our Comments Fairies.

└[The female lead is the only one allowed into the male lead's heart that no one else is allowed into, a Michelin-star cliché]

└[Quickly build up the romance narrative, I'm getting dizzy]

'......'