Mr. Elderstone watched the two men with a sly smile. He knew they had arrived too late. This time, he had thoroughly locked down all information, leaving Mr. Grant no chance to overturn the situation.
“You’ve come at just the right time,” he said calmly. “I have found the master’s daughter, Aurora. She will become the new head of our family.”
Mio’s face darkened at these words. “Mr. Elderstone, this is no small matter. The master has never married all these years. Where could this child have come from? What if someone is pretending?”
“That’s right,” Mr. Grant chimed in, his tone sharp. “Bramwell Elderstone, how could you make such a decision without consulting us first? And to inject her with FT2 without confirmation-what if she isn’t the master’s daughter? What then?”
“Whether or not she is the master’s daughter is quite obvious,” Mr. Elderstone replied confidently. “Once you see her face, you’ll know. She looks exactly like the master, as if carved from the same mold.
“Besides, even the master himself has acknowledged her. Is there any room for doubt? I care more than anyone whether she is truly of the master’s bloodline. That cannot be faked.”
“Where is she now?” Mio asked.
“She just received the FT2 injection and is currently asleep. I was planning to inform the family after she woke up, but it seems your sources are unusually quick. I haven’t even said a word, yet you already know.” Mr. Elderstone’s tone hinted at suspicion.
“She’s already been injected?” Mio’s voice grew tense. “Bramwell Elderstone, didn’t we agree that I would inherit the position of family head?”
“I agreed to that before because I didn’t know she existed,” Elderstone replied coldly. “Now that we know she’s here, isn’t it natural for the master’s daughter to inherit the position?”
Mr. Grant’s patience was wearing thin. “She grew up in the outside world. Every family head has been raised with proper training since childhood. You can’t just bring in some random woman to become the head of the family. Do you think the rest of the clan will accept that?”
“She will provide a flawless explanation for all of you,” Mr. Elderstone said. With that, he turned and walked into the room.
Mio had waited for this moment for years. Tina was on the verge of death, and he had finally been poised to take over the family business. Yet, before he could even celebrate, Aurora had returned.
Some people in this world seemed to get everything they wanted effortlessly. For Mio, it was painfully unfair. What did all his years of effort amount to now?
“Mr. Grant, what do we do?” Mio asked bitterly.
“Let’s go back and make a plan,” Mr. Grant replied, his tone measured. “Don’t worry. Becoming the head of this family won’t be so easy for her.”
Mr. Grant’s motivations had evolved over time. What he wanted now was his own benefit. If Mio were to take control, it would maximize his interests. A woman had been at the helm for too long. He was determined to rewrite history and end that tradition during his lifetime.
Aurora lay quietly on the operating table. A slight sting in her arm made her wince as a cold liquid was injected into her veins. Her body felt no other sensation, and within ten minutes, her eyes closed, and she drifted into unconsciousness.
A single tear rolled down her cheek. Julian, wait for me.
Mr. Elderstone stood nearby, his gaze fixed on her delicate face, which bore an uncanny resemblance to someone from the past. He couldn’t help but feel moved.
Aurora looked so much like her grandmother, Seraphina. The scene before him was too familiar, bringing back memories from decades ago when he had been a young man in his twenties.
The Elderstone family had served the Walsh family for generations. From his earliest years, Bramwell Elderstone had carried a secret in his heart-a secret no one ever knew.
He had loved Seraphina, the gentle and well-mannered mistress of the house. He had grown up alongside her, managing the family’s affairs by her side.
Seraphina had been raised to follow strict rules her entire life, never stepping out of line. She grew into adulthood under the weight of the family’s expectations, and when she took over as head of the family, she faced her greatest challenge: choosing a husband.
Bound by the family’s rigid traditions, Seraphina found the idea terrifying. She couldn’t bring herself to love any man. Yet, as head of the family, she needed an heir. She had no choice but to take that step and find someone to help her conceive a child.
During that time, Seraphina was often anxious. “Bramwell Elderstone, wouldn’t it be fine if I stayed single? I don’t want to find a man,” she would say, her voice tinged with unease.
“Madam, that won’t do,” he would reply. “It’s the family’s rule. If you don’t have a child, who will take over the family in the future?”
Though he loved her deeply, Bramwell knew their relationship could never be. His position as a servant meant he had to keep his feelings hidden forever.
“You’re right,” she would sigh. “But all the men I meet are awful. I don’t want any of them.”
Under the relentless pressure of the family, Seraphina finally relented. She decided to find a man, thinking she could simply conceive and move on. But fate had other plans.
She met a man who was a foreign student-handsome, sunny, and full of life. Seraphina, warm and gentle by nature, fell for him during a chance encounter on a rainy day. Their story began like a fairy tale, but its ending was all too familiar.
Seraphina fell in love with him. Not only did they have a child together, but she also dreamed of spending the rest of her life with him.
However, the family’s rules loomed large. At most, she could stay with him for five years. After that, she would have to leave.
On the day she left, she prepared his favorite meal, just as she always did. She left the house as if going for a walk, and he kissed her goodbye, telling her to come back soon.
But Seraphina never returned. Bramwell Elderstone had been the one to bring her home, finding her crying uncontrollably.
“Bramwell Elderstone, I don’t want to leave him,” she sobbed, leaning against him.
Her pain was his pain, but he could do nothing. For years, he had silently watched as her little family lived in happiness.
“Madam, you must forget him,” he urged her gently.
“I can’t. He loves me so much. How can I forget him?” she cried.
“If you don’t let go, you’ll only suffer more. And the family won’t leave you alone,” he warned.
“Forgetting… is easier said than done,” she murmured.
Eventually, under the family’s pressure, Seraphina was forced to take an injection that erased her memories of the man she loved. She returned to the family, living the rest of her days without ever truly smiling again.
Bramwell Elderstone never married. He stayed by her side until her final moments. On her deathbed, she held his hand and said, “The thing I regret most in this life is being born into this family.”
Her words were filled with bitterness, and Bramwell understood them all too well. But as a servant, what could he do? The only thing he could do was continue to serve the family and protect her legacy.
From that day on, he hoped someone would come along to abolish the family’s unjust traditions, to end the cycle of heartbreak. He waited for a long, long time.
Then Aurora appeared-a child raised outside the family, yet more determined and fearless than Seraphina or Tina.
She was willing to risk everything, even her love, to destroy the family’s oppressive ways.
Stubborn girl. I hope you can accomplish what your grandmother and mother could not. If you succeed, Seraphina can finally rest in peace.