Listening silently, Sophie's heart ached in the same way at that moment.
"When I see you, it's like seeing myself!" Victoria went on, letting out a pained laugh. "In the past, I couldn't see my own shortcomings, and yet I hated you—who was practically my exact copy! It's truly ridiculous. It feels like a deliberate joke arranged by heaven. Only when I found out you were my daughter did I realize what an absurd mistake I had made!"
Charles listened in silence to the conversation between mother and daughter. He kept his head lowered, his expression grave and solemn throughout.
"Seeing you makes me so sad… truly so sad…" Victoria's tears had already soaked the front of her blouse. "I hate myself for being so foolish back then—for abandoning my own flesh-and-blood daughter just for the sake of a husband who never truly loved me. I was nothing but an idiot!"
