Vasili remembered Bertha accidentally finding this child named Sherina being bullied by street children. They took the money from this girl singing while playing guitarlele on the streets. Sometimes they evict this poor child on the grounds that the main highway area was their territory.
Sherina had no parents, and she had no protection from any orphanage. Since birth, she has been taken in by the street man who lived like to drink and gamble. This man hid the fact that he took outcast children, forced them to be a beggar, and gave the money to the man.
Sherina has been living like that ever since she started learning to walk and thinks that her life was normal. She was lucky that Bertha found her when the kind woman was shopping at the market.
Out of pity, Bertha brought the child to this castle for her to take care of. At that time, Vasili was still living in New York under his identity as Axelard Cavendish.
When he heard Bertha's request to take care of Sherina in the castle and adopt her as her daughter, Vasili agreed without a second thought.
He even teleported straight back to England to see the little girl who would become a member of the Hammilton family. He wanted to know if this kid was able to keep his unique identity a secret or not.
By the time he looked at the tiny round eyes on the little girl, Vasili's heart had melted at that moment. This child reminded him of Tatiana, Lord Peskhov's wife, when she was a toddler.
The blue king himself took care of Tatiana and treated her like a little sister. He watched the girl grow up to fall in love with Zygfried Peskhov.
Seeing Zyg's treatment of Tatiana like a precious pearl, Vasili felt extremely happy. There is a sense of pride in seeing the child he cares for grow into a fine lady and meet her true love who could protect her and make her happy.
Because of his condition that cannot age, Vasili couldn't help but view other people as a child. As long as he has not met his true love, Vasili would not be able to fall in love and only sees all the opposite sex as younger sisters.
Likewise, at this time. Vasili felt like a brother and a father as soon as he looked back at Sherina's tiny face. He knew all about the child's suffering and wanted to protect her and give his best as if he wanted to dote on his little sister.
"Is her name Sherina?"
Rothbert looked surprised at Vasili's question. How did the master know the name of the daughter his wife had just brought home? Isn't this the first time they've met?
"Yes, master. Her name is Sherina, and she's only been living here for a few days. We plan to adopt her as our child. Dietrich also agrees."
"That's right," added Dietrich, Rothbart's only son. "I like having a little sister."
Vasili nodded in understanding and offered the clueless little girl a warm smile.
"Nice to meet you, Sherina. From now on, you will live here and become a member of our family. Feel free to let me know if someone is bullying you out there. Okay?"
The little girl nodded in shyness and showed a sweet smile.
"But, master. How do you know?" Rothbert was astonished by his master's attitude. The man didn't even seem surprised when he heard he was planning to adopt this child.
"Because I remember you adopted her ten years ago… I mean now."
"..." Rothbert didn't comment for a while as he was trying to digest the master's sentence. "Excuse me, sir. But I'm afraid I don't get what you mean."
"Never mind. Would you mind coming to my office after you finish your family gathering? There are many things I want to ask."
"I can see you now, master."
"I thought you guys were celebrating Christmas."
"We always celebrate Christmas every year, but you wake up from the deep slumber after ten years have passed. For us, your return is far more important than any other annual event."
Vasili smiled proudly to have Rothbert as his assistant. "I'm sorry Bertha, looks like I'll be borrowing your husband tonight."
"Don't worry, master. We are delighted to see you back again," answered Bertha politely.
Vasili and Rothbert both walked towards Vasili's study. After the door closed tightly, Vasili started a conversation.
"So what exactly happened to me? How could I have died ten years ago?"
"You don't remember? It's highly impossible for you to forget the events of the past despite experiencing 'death' for decades."
"I haven't forgotten anything. But I'm pretty sure I'm still alive until 2047. At that time, I faked Vasili's death and changed my name. I'm currently using the name Axelard Cavendish and living in Seattle."
"The year 2047? What are you talking about?"
"That's why I'm currently looking for the answer. I still remember I took Tatiana as her guardian to marry Zig. I also remember I used the name Vasili when Zig and Tatiana adopted me. When I was still feeling heavy parting with my adopted daughter, I agreed to be their adopted son.
A few months later, Alexsei appeared, and we became brothers. I also remember that Alexsei died in an accident." From this point, Vasili's story confused Rothbert. "Then I mentored Alexis to maintain his family business. After that…"
"Master, you are wrong." Rothbert decided to cut his master's words carefully. "Mister Alexsei didn't die in an accident. He died due to your cold energy."
That was not what he expected to hear. "What? How did that happen?"
"That's because Mr. Alexsei killed you by stabbing your heart."
WHAT?? How? Why doesn't Vasili remember this incident at all?!
What happened to him?
"Master… do you really not remember it?"
Vasili was too shocked even to speak. He couldn't think nor move as he tried to digest everything his assistant told.
What the hell had happened to him!?