Chapter 7

I wasn't sure if Ruby had been reborn.

But I knew for sure that if she had, with her deranged and malicious personality, she would eventually come back for revenge.

Deep down, I almost *looked forward* to her return.

But to my disappointment, the next six years were uneventful.

In those six years, I accomplished a lot.

I quit my old job and, leveraging my foreknowledge, opened my own restaurant.

I also borrowed a lot of money and invested in old properties, just waiting for them to skyrocket in value.

And throughout those six years, I had kept tabs on Ruby.

She was no different from the other children at the orphanage.

They ate together, played together.

If anything was different, it was that the other children often picked on her.

They would snatch her food when adults weren't looking, make her do extra chores.

They would even drag her into deserted corners and beat her up.

She often came back with bruises and scars, seeking help, but no one bothered to intervene.

She became the lowest of the low in the entire orphanage.

When I heard the news, I gave a bag of candy to Tommy, the neighbor's kid.

He happily ran off.

His grandmother lived near the orphanage, and he often went there to play.

Once, he saw me near the orphanage, and noticing my look of disgust towards Ruby, he bravely approached me and asked, "Auntie, don't you like that little girl?"

I nodded. "No, I don't."

He was often fed candy by me. Hearing my words, he immediately rushed into the orphanage and gave Ruby a hard slap.

Tommy was a wily kid; he'd deliver a quick slap and then vanish in a flash.

When he returned to me, I promptly handed him a handful of candy.

His eyes lit up, and with that, a new world opened for him.

We reached an unspoken agreement.

He was responsible for bullying, and I was responsible for the candy.

Tommy, eager for more sweets, even roped in other kids at the orphanage who hadn't tasted candy before.

I was more than happy to see this play out.