His innocent wife is a dangerous hacker. Chapter 882 Little One

Meanwhile, Leo and Emilio had wandered toward the boys’ dormitory. The atmosphere there was completely different.

Instead of dolls and ribbons, the shelves were filled with toy cars, dinosaurs, footballs, building blocks, comic books and handmade airplanes. The walls were decorated with drawings of spaceships, superheroes and fierce-looking dragons.

A little boy immediately grabbed Leo’s wrist. "Mister! This is my bed!"

Before Leo could answer, another boy interrupted. "No! Come see mine first!"

Within seconds, three boys were proudly showing him their pillows, blankets, collections of toy cars and even a tiny plastic dinosaur with a missing tail.

"This is Rex," one little boy said proudly, holding up the dinosaur. "He protects me at night."

Leo looked at the dinosaur with complete seriousness. "He looks very brave."

The boy nodded solemnly. "He is. He scared away a monster once."

"Did he?"

"Yes. It was a big one but Rex is very fierce."

Leo nodded slowly, his expression perfectly serious. "I can tell."

The boy beamed.

While the other boys continued surrounding Leo, excitedly showing him their toys and proudly explaining the rules of their favorite games, Leo’s attention slowly drifted toward the quietest corner of the room.

A little boy was sitting alone on the edge of a small bed.

He looked around four years old, perhaps a little younger with neatly cut black hair and an unusually fair, delicate face. His clothes were simple and clearly old, a faded yellow T-shirt and a pair of comfortable trousers that had been washed so many times that the fabric had begun to lose its original color. His small feet didn’t quite reach the floor and he sat perfectly still, his legs dangling over the edge of the mattress.

But it wasn’t his clothes that caught Leo’s attention.

It was his eyes.

They were far too serious for such a young child. He held a small cardboard box carefully in his lap. He wasn’t playing with it. He wasn’t opening it either. He simply stared at it with deep concentration, as though whatever was inside was important enough to occupy his entire little world.

Leo watched him for a few seconds.

Perhaps sensing the gaze on him, the boy slowly lifted his head.

Their eyes met.

The little boy blinked.

His expression remained strangely calm.

Then, without saying anything, he lowered his eyes again and returned his attention to the cardboard box.

Leo’s brows lifted slightly. There was something unusual about him.

One of the boys standing nearby noticed where Leo was looking and quietly leaned closer.

"That’s him."

Leo glanced down at the child. "Who?"

The little boy whispered as though he was sharing an important secret. "Him." He pointed discreetly toward the quiet child. "He’s been here for two months."

Leo looked at him again. "You mean he came here two months ago?"

The little boy nodded. "Yes." Then he added innocently, "He doesn’t talk much. He likes staying alone."

Leo’s expression softened slightly. "Two months..." He repeated quietly.

The boy beside him nodded again. "Sometimes he sits there all day."

"Does he play with you?"

The little boy shook his head. "No. He doesn’t like playing. He just looks at his box."

Leo glanced toward the child once more. The little boy was still sitting there quietly, his small fingers resting around the cardboard box as if protecting it. Leo couldn’t help wondering what could possibly be inside that little box that had captured the attention of a four-year-old so completely.

He looked at the child for another moment before quietly asking, "What’s his name?"

The boy shrugged. "I don’t know."

Leo’s eyes narrowed slightly. "You don’t know his name?"

The child shook his head. "Everyone calls him Little One."

Leo’s expression changed.

A four-year-old child shouldn’t have to be known simply as Little One.

Leo slowly walked toward him. The little boy noticed the approaching footsteps and looked up again. This time, however, he didn’t immediately look away. He simply watched Leo silently.

Leo stopped a short distance away and crouched down so they were at the same level.

"What are you looking at?"

The boy glanced down at the cardboard box. Then back at Leo. He didn’t answer.

Leo didn’t pressure him. Instead, he gave him a small, calm smile. "Can I see?"

The little boy tightened his tiny fingers around the box. For the first time, a faint protective expression appeared in his eyes. Leo immediately understood. This cardboard box was important to him.

So Leo simply nodded.

"That’s okay. You don’t have to show me."

He sat down on the floor beside the bed, keeping a respectful distance without saying anything.

Minutes passed.

Then, slowly, the little boy’s grip on the box loosened.

His small fingers moved hesitantly toward the lid. He lifted it just an inch, peeking inside as if checking that whatever was in there was still safe. Then he looked at Leo.

For a long moment, the little boy studied him.

Then, slowly, he turned the box around so Leo could see inside.

Leo’s breath caught.

Inside the box was a single small object, a worn, faded photograph of a woman. She had dark hair and a soft smile that looked like she was about to laugh. Her arm was wrapped around a tiny baby wrapped in a white blanket. The photograph was creased and yellowed around the edges, as though it had been folded and unfolded many times.

"That’s my mumma."

The boy’s voice was barely a whisper.

Leo looked at the child, his heart tightening as he had a faint guess in his heart. "Your mumma is beautiful."

The little boy nodded, his small fingers brushing gently across the photograph. "She used to hold me like this." He paused, his voice growing even lower. "But she’s gone now."

Leo nodded slowly. "I understand."

The boy looked at him.

"Your mumma is gone too?"

"No," Leo said gently. "But I know what it’s like to miss someone."

The little boy stared at him for a long moment. Then, slowly, he closed the box and hugged it against his chest.

"Her name was Lila."

"That’s a lovely name."

The little boy nodded. "She gave me my name too."

Leo tilted his head slightly. "What’s your name?"

The boy looked down at the box, then back at Leo.

"...Eli."

Leo smiled softly. "It’s nice to meet you, Eli."

For the first time, a tiny, hesitant smile flickered across the boy’s face.