Madame Brown didn’t know what Scarlet and Mr. Hong had discussed during their private versation, but she leasantly surprised when she learhat Scarlet had decided to be adopted by Mr. Hong.

  She had always believed Scarlet would flourish if she weren’t fio the orphanage. Despite the limitations, Scarlet had mao build a career as a and had raised the orphanage’s profile through petitions and interviews with the loews. The orphanage now had enough funds to improve the children’s quality of life, and some of the ill children could even undergo operations tain their heath. There were also extra supplies to support some of the poorer orphanage she had es with.

  This sweet girl had even sidered donating half of her book earnings to the orphanage!

  Madame Brown wished the best for this remarkable little girl. Scarlet was intelligent, and if Mr. Hong had mao persuade her to accept his offer of adoption, Madame Brown would respect her decision - with a few terms and ditions, of course.

  “So, Mr. Hong.” Madame Brown said, pg the adoption agreement in front of him, “here are the details if you wish to adopt Scarlet. We’ll make regur visits after she moves in with you, and we might not always call ahead. We want to see the most natural ditions of our child’s living situation.”

  “No problem at all.” Mr. Hong skimmed though the dot and then tucked it into his bag. “I’ll prepare the supp dots aurn with everything in order ime. I’ll even send you a monthly report with pictures of Scarlet if that would put your mind at ease. For now, I’m off to find ae agent to secure a better house.”

  Notig the puzzled expression on Madame Brown’s face, he added, “I’m currently living with my uncle in an apartment that’s suitable for two blokes but definitely not for a young girl. I’m pnning to buy a house with a garden or at least a wn, and it’ll be close to a library for her to visit...”

  Mr. Hong shared his pns, and Madame Brown could see the siy in his eyes. He backed up his words with as, settling all the paperwork and purchasing a new house within a month. He even provided a list of private tutors for Scarlet to choose from, acc to her preferences. Madame Brown was very pleased.

  On Scarlet’s st day at the orphanage, she said her goodbyes to the children and staff before heading to the director’s office. She left most of her belongings behind, taking only her notebooks filled with novel plots. The staff could use her cloths and other items as spare in case, unfortunately, a new child arrived.

  Madame Brown waited in her office with the adoption dots, and together with Mr. Hong, they would sooo the relevament to finalize everything with the necessary stamps and signatures. After that, she would officially bee a member of the Hong family - if she chose to call Mr. Hong her dad.

  On their way to the gover offices, Mr. Hong asked from the driver’s seat, “Scarlet, would you like to keep your name, or would you prefer a new one?”

  Scarlet hadn’t given that much thought. After a moment of refle, she turo Madame Broas sittio her. “Why was I named Scarlet Smith? Most of the kids in the orphanage have your st name, so why am I Scarlet Smith and not Scarlet Brown?”

  “Well,” Madame Brown began, “when we found you on our doorstep one summer night, you were ed in a scarlet scarf with a hat simply said ‘Smith’.”

  “That’s it?”

  “Yes, nothing else - no address, no phone number, nothing except the scarf. We kept it with you, but after a few washes, it became so worn out that we had to throw it away.”

  “So, this is my only clue if I ever decide to seary ins...But ‘Smith’ is a on surname, so it probably won’t lead to much.” Scarlet shrugged and then turo Mr. Hong, “ I add your suro mine?”

  “So, Smith will be your middle name?” Mr. Hong asked, “Scarlet Smith Hong...It sounds quite...red, doesn’t it?”

  “Huh?”

  “Well, ‘scarlet’ is, of course, red. And while ‘Hong’ might not be the same character, it has the same pronunciation as the word for ‘red’ in both Mandarin and tonese. As for ‘Smith’, it’s inally referred to a goldsmith or bcksmith. Metals o be heated until they’re red-hot to be fed, don’t they?”

  e to think about it, ‘Akahime’ was my code name in my previous life because I had red hair due to my bond with the Harvesting Fox, known for its red coat...Too many red elements. Does that mean something? Scarlet wondered if Mr. Hong was thinking the same thing; he’d bee somewhat superstitious after the jade pendant i and finishing her book.

  “Well, perhaps it means red is your lucky colour!” Madame Brown suggested with a smile.

  Scarlet pohis for a moment, then shrugged it off.

  The adoption process went smoothly, and soon Scarlet followed Mr. Hong to their new home.

  “Wele home!” Mr. Hong announced as he showed Scarlet around. “Here’s the dining room, the kit, the bathroom, the storeroom, and the guestroom. Our bedrooms are upstairs - here’s mine, and here’s YOURS!”

  The room was simple and pin but thoughtfully furnished with a desk, chairs, and a bed frame suited to her height. “I thought you’d like to decorate it to your taste, so I left it untouched. I also bought you a few clothes, but I re you’d prefer to choose your own. Want to go shopping now or ter?”

  “Later,” Scarlet replied with a smile at the nervous man, “We should probably get our bank cards sorted first, and I expect that’ll take some time. Let’s just take it slow – o worry.”

  Kyle Hong finally exhaled the breath he’d been holding, kneeling down to look Scarlet in the eye. “I know you’re an adult, probably even older than me in your previous life. But it’s still hard to remind myself that this little girl in front of me is actually a powerful adult...Anyway, you call me Kyle, and I’m your family in this world now.”

  “I know, and I feel it.” Scarlet stretched out her arms and hugged the young man before her, “Actually, if you don’t mind having an overly mature daughter, I’d prefer to call you dad.”

  “Of course I’d love that!” Kyle hugged her tightly iurn.

  He had been talking with Scarlet throughout the process of s dots, either face-to-face or over the phone. Naturally, he noticed something off about the girl. Perhaps her memories of her previous life had impacted her so deeply that she struggled to find her p this world. It was as though she didn’t feel like she truly fit in anywhere within the orphanage, despite the fact that everyohere loved her. That might have been why she agreed to be adopted - to form a bond with someone in this world and to find a pce where she could fully rex. And he was more than willing to be that bond, to protect her and help her in any way he could.

  They spent a few days settling iing to know each other better, and adjusting to their new life together. As Scarlet began to feel more rexed, so did Kyle. They eventually decided to invite Uncle over for a visit.

  “So, this is the girl you adopted!” Uncle excimed as he arrived with a box of books, “I heard you’re ied in folklore and legends. I hope you’ll like these books! Oh, and here’s a red packet!”

  Scarlet was touched as she accepted the books and carefully received the red packet. In ese culture, it’s ary for elders to give red packets to the younger geion as a blessing, whether they’re blood retives or not. It’s a gesture of deep affe.

  “Now that you’ve accepted my red packet, how will you address me?” Uncle asked in a teasing toesting her out.

  “Great Uncle?”

  Uncle thought for a moment, “Acceptable. Kyle, you really ought to teach her how to address us properly in ese. English is far too vague when it es to addressiives.”

  “Sure, I will.” Kyle replied with a smile as he weled Uncle into the house, but he made a funny face at Scarlet, silently tellio “just ignore him and do as you like”.

  The TV was switched on, providing background noise as the three of them gathered i, watg Kyle cook dinner. Scarlet mostly remained quiet while Kyle and Uncle chatted.

  “Have you told your parents that you’ve adopted a child?” Uncle asked.

  “No...I’ll let them know ter.”

  “Alright, if you say so.”

  “By the way, I’m thinking about getting a stable job.”

  “Sure, if that’s what you want. What kind of job are you looking for? Maybe I help.”

  “I’m not sure...Nothied to w or medie, as I know nothing about either. And not atant - I’m not that good with numbers, and I suppose you need some sort of lice to bee an atant?”

  “Yes, you do need a lise. You’re certainly qualified to be a salesman or work in an office, but I don’t think that would suit you. Think about the skills you’ve acquired. You didn’t grow up learning nothing, did you?”

  “Uhm...car rag? I’ve won a few Asian petitions. Wiing? Cocktail making? Pub or club ma?”

  “No, I don’t think those are quite suitable for a dad’s occupation. Any others?”

  “Piano? I’m quite good at piano –I've got a performance-level certifiy guitar’s not bad either.”

  “Then why not bee a piano teacher or tutor? You could do home lessons, go to people’s houses and teach their kids piano.”

  “That sounds like a good idea...Hey, maybe I could even ask if I could bring Scarlet along!”

  “Wait, why bring her along? Isn’t she supposed to be at school?”

  “No, she’s skipped grades, so officially, she’s graduated from primary and should be attending sedary school.”

  “...What did you say?” Uncle was shocked and turo see Scarlet quietly writing a series of sentences in a notebook. “You mean she’s a genius?”

  “Well...you could say that,” Kyle replied, slightly struggling as he couldn't expin that Scarlet had memories from a previous life. “Don’t worry about her future - she’s been publishing novels si year, and they’ve been quite popur in the children’s book se. She’s drafting her book now, so don’t touch her notebook, alright? It’s a secret until it’s published.”

  Uncle mouthed a silent “wow”.

  A few days ter, Uncle bought Scarlet’s book and asked for her autograph, which she carefully signed on the first page with her newly bought fountain pen, using a ade maple-coloured ink.

  Life gradually improved as Kyle’s schedule filled up with booking from parents, drawn by his talent for teag piano. Scarlet, too, began earning money, as she was remarkably skilled in g for infants and younger children, even advice to parents. Her assistance was a great relief to many who couldn’t afford full-time nannies.

  One day, after finishing her research, Scarlet made a decision.

  “I want to go to Sd.”

  “Why’s that?” Kyle asked, gng at the map in her hand and the stack of papers clipped together like a tiny book.

  “I’m sure you’ve read my book, so you know about the cept of bonding with spirits, right?”

  “Yes...Oh! So, you’re trying to bond with another spirit!” The pieces clicked into pce for Kyle, who had always known Scarlet was searg for something, though he hadn’t knowly what. “But why Sd? ’t it be any church raveyard?”

  “I’ve tried churches, but it doesn’t feel right. And I’m not about to go wandering around graveyards looking for someone else’s aors. I prefer something natural, something non-human.”

  “Non-human?” Kyle noticed some words scrawled on the papers, “Legends? King Arthur? No, you said non-human...the sword? Excalibur? ht, antiques are supposed to house spirits, especially those tied t beliefs. So, yoing to bond with a sword’s spirit?”

  “It does sound possible, but I’m not sure such a sword eve, or if I could actually locate its spirit. Plus, it’s too famous, I’d prefer something more...subtle.”

  “Huh?”

  “Have you ever heard of the Queen of the Shadowy nd, the teacher of all heroes iic mythology?”

  Scarlet noticed Kyle looked even more perplexed than before.