[Note: The past event ntioned in this chapter was of the previous tiline, as Chloe acted differently in this ti line after she Transmigrated back to the young age of 11.]
At the corner of the turn, Chloe stood quietly, observing Aiden's silhouette coming toward her. He was just outside the gate of the ceremony hall. She had already noticed this additional figure, another person walking with Aiden.
From the figure's outline alone, she could tell it was a woman. Chloe quickly assud that this must be one of Aiden's relatives, soone who had co to attend the ceremony with him. As she observed them walking together, Chloe couldn't help but feel a deep sense of sadness wash over her. The reality that no one was coming for her hit her hard.
Even so, she reminded herself that she couldn't let small things like this get under her skin. She knew she had to maintain her composure. It wasn't as though she hadn't accepted her fate by now. She had long since co to terms with the fact that no one would be there to accompany her to events like these. The very idea of her father attending the ceremony, though, made her stomach churn.
She knew too well how he had treated her mother in the past, and she could never forget what he had said to he when she was 13, from that day on Chloe could never get along with a man nad Anderes Shade.
Chloe doubted that man even knew she had an entrance ceremony today. He probably didn't care enough to even acknowledge such an event. Since her birth, he had branded her as a failure. Her father had always wanted a boy, and her arrival into the world had been a disappointnt to him. In his eyes, she was nothing more than a mistake.
To make matters worse, after her birth, complications caused her mother to lose the ability to bear any more children. This only fueled her father's neglect and resentnt, neglecting her mother entirely, leaving her sick and heartbroken.
She couldn't even rember the ti when she last saw him, it must when she was a child and after that, she had never seen him.
Her mother had suffered greatly after Chloe was born. She wasn't in good health, and over ti, her condition worsened. Chloe's father, instead of standing by his wife's side, distanced himself further, completely ignoring her in her ti of need. Chloe had been too young to understand why her mother was always bedridden, or why her father never seed to be around.
But even at a tender age, Chloe could feel her father's coldness as he was not around. She sensed that he didn't care for her at all.
She would sit by her bedside, watching her mother's pale face, wondering why her father never ca to visit, never played with her as other fathers did. From an early age, Chloe sensed that her father didn't love her. It wasn't just a child's imagination—she was right. Her father's absence spoke volus.
By the ti she turned nine, her mother had succumbed to a deep sickness, worsened by the depression that had slowly consud her over the years.
The sickness had ravaged her body, but it was the intense depression that had truly taken its toll. By then, her mother had little will to live. Chloe would later learn from the maids that, ever since her father realized she could no longer bear children, he had brought another woman into their ho.
The news of his betrayal spread quickly, and Chloe discovered that this other woman had given him two sons. The revelation shattered Chloe's world. The man her mother had loved so deeply, the man she had always spoken of with affection, had turned into a stranger—cold, heartless, and uncaring.
The discovery that her father had replaced her mother with another woman, and that he had two other children, both healthy and strong—the boys her father had always wanted, made Chloe resent him even more. It wasn't just about the betrayal anymore; it was the realization that the man her mother had devoted her life to had never truly cared for them. Young Chloe began to resent him with hatred.
Before her mother passed away, she finally answered a question that had always haunted Chloe: why doesn't her father ever visit us? The truth broke young Chloe's heart. Her mother had explained everything—how her father had changed, how he no longer cared for them, how he had moved on with his life. From that mont on, Chloe began to hate him.
But even on her deathbed, her mother made her promise not to hold onto that hatred for what he had done. She told Chloe that her father wasn't always like this, that there was once a ti when he was different. He had changed, yes, but that didn't an all n were like him. Chloe's mother wanted her to experience love, not bitterness.
Her happiest monts, she said, were spent with Chloe's father before everything went wrong. She urged her daughter to find soone who would love her with all his heart, unlike him.
Chloe reluctantly agreed, deciding not to hate her father entirely. But she didn't like him either. There was nothing in her mother's final words that said she had to love him. Her mother had simply asked her to let go of the hatred, but Chloe knew she couldn't forgive him entirely—not after everything that had happened.
However, she didn't forget the promise, that one day she would find soone who would love her the way her mother had wanted for her. Soone who would cherish her with all his heart.
What young Chloe didn't realize at the ti was that her mother had asked her to hold back her hatred for a reason. Anderes Shade, her father, was an influential and powerful man. He had connections, resources, and an intimidating presence in the world. Her mother knew that if Chloe acted on her anger, it could lead to dangerous consequences.
She feared that her daughter, with her impulsive nature, might try to seek revenge, and that path would only bring destruction. Chloe's mother wanted to protect her from such a fate.
Despite everything, there had been a glimr of truth in what her mother said. Chloe's mother had truly wanted her to experience love and happiness. She didn't want her daughter's life to be consud by bitterness. Chloe's mother knew that without love, her daughter's life would be empty and hollow. Her final wish was for Chloe to find happiness, to live a life full of joy, not sorrow.
Those were her mother's last words to her, spoken with her dying breath.
But at her mother's funeral, it was clear just how little anyone else cared. Only a few maids were present, along with a heartbroken Chloe. Her father didn't even bother to show up. He couldn't be bothered to attend his own wife's funeral. That, for Chloe, was the final blow. She had forgiven him once, after her mother's plea, but this was sothing she could never forgive.
From that day forward, Chloe despised him.
Chloe's life beca a dull and lonely existence. The only people she spoke to were the maids who brought her food and took care of her basic needs. She lived in silence, her world growing smaller and smaller as the years passed. Then, when she turned 13, sothing unexpected happened. Her father, Anderes Shade, called for her to join him for dinner at the family dining table.
For the first ti in her life, Chloe had been invited to dine with her father. Despite everything, she couldn't help but feel a flicker of excitent. Could it be that her father had finally realized his mistakes? Maybe this dinner was his way of making ands, of apologizing for not attending her mother's funeral.
She allowed herself to imagine the possibility, though she still despised him, there was so hope. "Hmph! How could I forgive him that easily?" she thought. "Mother asked to forgive him for his past mistakes, but I can't overlook the fact that he didn't attend her funeral." Even so, deep down, Chloe knew that she was still a child who longed for her father's love.
A simple apology—anything heartfelt—might be enough for her to forgive him.
When she arrived at dinner, she was t with two unfamiliar boys who were taller than her and a woman with brown hair and eyes. The woman was attractive but couldn't compare to Chloe's mother. Chloe wasn't pleased. These were the people who had replaced her mother. She felt out of place and intimidated, realizing that these boys were her father's other children.
Sitting quietly at the side of the table, Chloe noticed how lavish the spread of food was. She had never seen such a luxurious feast. In comparison to the als she had in her room, this was sothing else entirely. The realization of how differently she had been treated sank in, but she pushed it aside.
She still held onto the hope that her father had invited her to apologize, that today would mark a new beginning.
The man she had only seen in photographs finally arrived and took his seat at the head of the table. It felt surreal like she was in a dream. But the atmosphere at the table was nothing like she had imagined. Anderes said only one word: "Eat." And with that, everyone at the table began to eat in silence.
Chloe, who was used to chatting during als with the maids, found the silence uncomfortable. She realized that she preferred the simpler als in her room. Still, she clung to the hope that her father would speak to her after the al, that he would ask for her forgiveness.
Once the al was over, Anderes finally turned to look at her. He stared at his daughter, assessing her small, delicate fra. His mood darkened. He had once thought of giving her a chance to follow in her brothers, but now, seeing her, he knew she would be nothing but a burden.
He spoke coldly, his voice void of any warmth. "Are you the daughter of Carlia?"
Chloe's heart sank listening to the tone of his voice. Nervously, she replied, "Yes, she is my mother." Her love for her mother was evident in her voice.
Anderes, feeling bored, continued in an emotionless tone. "I see. I don't need anything from you. I had considered giving you a chance, but seeing you now, I've changed my mind. You're a failure, just like your mother."
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