"You don't have to worry, Aubrey. No one in the Reinhold Family ancestor underwent heavenly punishment so we don't know if it is real or not. As long as you stated your wish beside the well, the guardian could hear it and message the god. The god will grant your wish, either your wish is fake or real and possible or impossible" Grandpa France said like he himself believed the traditions but that's not the case. He just doesn't want Aubrey being pressured because of heavenly punishment.
"I'm sorry, Mom. I didn't know that there will be such heavenly punishment but let's not think of it or else it might happen. They said, the more you thought about it, the bigger the possibility" Amelio stated. This led the adults changed topics into business but Grandma Amy is silent like she's very uncomfortable and eager to do traditions right now in order to find out if the heavenly punishment is real or not.
"Grandma, who resides beside the Sue Mansion?" Aubrey asked. She knows that her grandma is still thinking of the heavenly punishment so she decided to divert her attention to something else.
Her attempt succeeded, "Oh! They are the Conrad Family. They are most influential family in the region. There's no need to be scared of them. Our business is already widely known nation wide and soon aiming it into an empire. Even though, I sound like I am looking down on Conrad Family but I just honestly stated a fact!" she proudly said while justifying her statement about Conrad Family.
"Grandma, I don't care about their influence nor business. I wanted to know about each member of Conrad Family" she furrowed brows after hearing her grandma's words but eased up after hearing her the last of her words. She doesn't like other people criticizing a person without knowing who they are as a person, not as a tool or thing for business.
"Oh! They are good-looking people. Frederick Bent Conrad owned the Conrad Pharmaceutical Company while his wife is Elise Deritt who owned a jewelry company. They both inherited their family's business that's why it flourish! They also have two sons: Elric and Cedric. Elric is the heir of Frederick while Cedric is the heir of Elise so the brother get along with each other without scheming of getting the other's birth right" she stated each member of Conrad Family.
"Oh!" she exclaimed but realized something from her grandma's words.
"Don't worry, Grandma! I wouldn't seized position of heir from my twin brother Andrew! Because I want to get it by handling it by myself!" she continued then looked at her grandma's reaction. Indeed! That's what her grandma's intention but her worries vanished when she heard of Aubrey's words.
"Good! You're really sensible like your twin brother!" she praised. Well, there is also a family tradition on Sue Family and that is not to let the daughter be the heir of family business because of their belief that man is better at handling businesses. Fortunately, Aubrey isn't the type child who is eager to seize the business like other aristocrat children.
"Dad! Grandma! Grandpa! I'm back!" a seven year's old boy called them while forgetting about Aubrey's presence. They're twins but doesn't get along each other because of her grandma's influenced that man should be one who handle family business.
Aubrey turned silent when Andrew came in. He greeted them but not Aubrey. Aubrey initiated the greetings but Andrew doesn't greet her back.
Aubrey inwardly sighed. She just wanted to get along with her twin brother but every time she approached him, he will get annoyed or irritated and sometimes will get angry. She just let him be. Anyway, she's used to it!
"Your twin sister will be having a wishing well tradition tomorrow. You should be present as her brother" Grandpa France stated. Once Grandpa France opened his mouth, Grandma Amy and Andrew will obey.
"Elder brother, have you done the wishing well tradition?" she asked as she remembered that Andrew was not with her before turning seven.
"You're elder brother is already done with wishing well tradition" Amelio replied while realizing that he often disregarded Aubrey's presence.
"Your father was the one who initiated the wishing well tradition before he went to business trip" Grandma Amy stated and that words sounded like her twin brother is important than her. Amelio was about to explain but he was caught off guard on Aubrey's next question.
"Oh, Then, father. If Grandma didn't talk about the wishing well tradition, when will you hold the wishing well tradition for me?" she nonchantly asked but for the people who heard it, it was like a bomb! They stayed silent.
"My friend invited me tonight for pajama party when she heard that I will be staying here for awhile. I already accepted it. Anyway, the wishing well tradition will be before dusk right?" she changed the topic but the topic is like an excuse for her.
Inwardly, she's crying! She thought that she already has someone who see her worth when her grandma said those words earlier before dinner and when she heard Nanny Min's words about grandma's eagerness to have a girl as a grandchild but everything is a facade.
She stood up without finishing her meal as well as without allowing her father to decline her friend's invitation.
She headed towards her room. She locked herself up and reminiscing the memories of her mother. Her mother is a Military General. She left them behind because that time, her mother decided to go to Country P in order to find her parents but the yacht exploded! She just have the solo picture of her mother who was dressed up as a military general while holding hands with her father.
Every time she felt sad, she looked at the picture and imagined her mother's warmth embrace.
She packed her things but the door opened and her twin brother is leaning on the door frame.
"Where are you going?" he asked with heavy tone like she doesn't belong to Reinhold Family.
"To my friend" she casually replied.
"Friend? You just have arrived so I know that you don't have a friend here" Andrew heavily replied like a policeman interrogating a suspect.
"And so what?"
Andrew frowned. He doesn't know why his twin sister is getting far away from him. He didn't do anything wrong except being wary of her if she decided on seizing the position as heir because of her grandma's warnings.
Ever since the Reinhold Family announced him as heir, his twin sister is getting farther away from him. He wanted to ask her why but her grandma told him about the seizing-heir position incident of many aristocrat families and suspected that his twin sister is jealous and mad at him. From then on, his wariness heightened until without realizing that Aubrey felt that she doesn't belong to Reinhold Family anymore.
After saying 'so-what', it rains cats and dogs outside. She looked up the sky. It is dark like her gloomy life.
"You couldn't attend the pajama party anymore. It rains outside" he also looked up the sky then diverted his eyes towards his twin sister. He was stunned to her eyes are lifeless. He stared at her longer and had a good look on childish little angelic face of Aubrey. It was almost perfect if only she smiles, it will be a real perfect picture of an angel.
Aubrey felt Andrew's gaze and she looked at his eyes. Her widened when she saw confusion, sadness and worries within those eyes.
"Elder Brother..." she called.
Andrew came back to normal after hearing her call.
"If... Only if... If I am boy, will they ever look at me like the way you look at me right now? Will they know my worth as their child, but not as a tool for business nor suspect of seizing the position as heir? Will they no longer forget me?" she asked expressionlessly like her mouth have its own mind.
Andrew was stunned! This is the first time that his twin sister opened up to him. Her voice and words are full of sadness and longing for real affection of a family.
He was silent. He couldn't answer his question because he also doesn't know the answer. All he knows that, he should be wary of his twin sister but her wariness was shakened after hearing those questions.
Then, Aubrey smiled at him. "Andrew, I don't want the position as heir. I'm still a child who should be innocent of cruelty of the world but mind matured because of people around me" she expressed her thoughts and feelings.
His mouth wanted to speak but swallowed down. Then, he realized that his twin sister was abandoned and he's one of those people who abandoned her. He felt heavy on his chest and his eyes almost moist but held on.
"Andrew, is it difficult to see me as sister and not as your enemy for heir position?" she asked again but her tone was expressionless.
He wanted to answer it but no words came out of his mouth.
And, she smiles again. "What I wanted to become is like mother. She's strong and brave. There was also a woman who saved me when I was kidnapped. I was weak that time so I couldn't see her face but I heard her worried but warmth voice. I wanted to become the strongest woman in the world and use the strength to save the victims. I'll use logical reasoning to save the suspects but punished the real criminals. I wanted to become like that, Andrew. So, have you ever think I would seize the heir position with this mindset?"
His eyes widened! "What?! You want to be a soldier?! No! You're not allowed to take mother's footsteps!" he exclaimed.
"Then, you also wanted me to become who I don't want. to be?" she asked while seriously looked straightly to his eyes.