Born in Japan, she was orphaned at a young age when her parents died. Brought to an orphanage in the United States, she befriended another orphan named Yu Ominae for a number of years before she was subsequently adopted by her American relatives. When she was at the orphanage, she felt reclusive since she didn't befriend any of the orphans except Yu because he was nice to her. After studying in the United States, Rie was eventually admitted into Cornell University with a degree in Linguistics, with a specialty in ancient languages at the age of 16, being hailed as a genius.