In her past life, the moment Esther shed a tear, Iris would have been so guilt-ridden that she would have dropped to her knees to apologize.
On the other hand, the moment Wendel heard those words, it was as if he had been injected with adrenaline.
His expression turned serious, and he spoke with righteous indignation.
"Even if Esther misunderstood you, your words were too harsh! Esther is sensitive—she’ll be upset for days because of this. You need to apologize! Besides, she’s younger than you. It’s only natural for you to give in to her."
A wave of bitterness surged in Iris’ heart.
Two lifetimes had passed, and yet Wendel still didn’t remember—Esther was actually three months older than her. She was the youngest in the family, not Esther.
But at this moment, she had no interest in arguing over such trivial facts.
She refused to back down. Glaring at him, she enunciated each word clearly.
"I. Will. Not. Apologize."
Tension filled the air. The three of them stood in silence, locked in a standoff.
"What’s going on here? Why aren’t you all in bed at this hour?"
Their adoptive mother and father emerged from their room, looking concerned.
Wendel brushed them off. "Dad, Mom, go back to sleep. This doesn’t concern you."
The moment their adoptive parents appeared, Esther reacted instinctively—her tears started falling again.
"Mom, Dad... please don’t worry, really, everything’s fine..."
Hearing her beloved adopted daughter cry, the adoptive mother’s heart twisted in pain. She rushed forward to comfort her.
"Who bullied you? Tell me! I’ll stand up for you!"
Esther sniffled. "It’s nothing... Iris didn’t mean it..."
The moment Iris’ name was mentioned, a cold glint flashed in their adoptive mother’s eyes.
"You shameless thing!" Stella shrieked.
She grabbed Iris and, without hesitation, slapped her hard across the face.
She cursed furiously, "We took you in to shield Wendel from misfortune, not so you could turn our family upside down! Who do you think you are, daring to bully Esther?"
"You were almost killed by human traffickers back then. If not for me, you would’ve been dead long ago! You owe me a debt of gratitude you can never repay! And now, you dare cause trouble in our home?"
Holding her stinging, swollen cheek, Iris felt a deep, suffocating grievance rise in her chest.
These words had been drilled into her since childhood.