Chapter 39: I Don't Want to Disappoint Father
"Mother, I want to go into business!"
Summoning all his courage, Nasdaq Ator solemnly declared this to his biological mother, Daria Golly.
Golly, heavily pregnant at seven months, looked in disbelief at her son, who was only ten years old and the eldest child of the Nasdaq family.
Seeing the determination on his face, she knew he wasn't joking—he was completely serious.
But…
"Why is that, little Ator? Can you tell Mama your reason?"
Golly spoke softly. She had long sky-blue hair, a gentle and beautiful face, and, even sitting, carried an elegant grace worthy of a princess.
She really couldn't understand his thinking.
Starting a business at ten? Even if Ator had some natural talent for it, wasn't it a bit too early?
She didn't intend to refuse him outright, though. Partly because he was her own child—and partly because of the Nasdaq family's atmosphere.
Compared to his younger brother, Alisan, Ator looked more like their father, Ross. But he'd inherited his mother's blue hair, and his black eyes behind glasses gave him the look of a scholarly young gentleman.
Standing there, a little shy, his 160 cm frame seemed even smaller before her.
Finally, he managed to squeeze out a sentence:
"I just… don't want to disappoint Father…"
When he looked up, he saw his mother waiting patiently, her eyes full of loving understanding, as though she could see straight through his tangled feelings.
Under that gaze, Ator felt his heart slowly unclench, and he spoke again:
"Mother, as the eldest son of the Nasdaq family, by your and my grandfathers' words, I'm supposed to inherit Father's position and lead the family. But I really don't have any desire for that at all!"
As he spoke, he carefully took two objects from his pocket: a gold Bailey coin and a golden pocket watch.
Golly recognized them at once. They were gifts she and Ross had given Ator when they'd visited the mysterious Sky Island.
"You know… since I was little, I've always loved shiny things—whether gemstones or gold. Just holding them makes me so happy!"
Of course, that was only part of it. Even more important was that these were gifts from his parents. But the happiness was real—those gleaming treasures had fascinated him for as long as he could remember.
When he finished, he looked nervously up at her, hoping she would accept this explanation.
But clearly, Golly wasn't buying it. Instead, she slowly rose, stepped over, and gently pulled him into her arms. Her voice grew soft but carried a hint of reproach:
"It's because of your father, isn't it? Oh, Ator… I know how thoughtful you are. You're trying to share the burden of your foolish father, who's always too busy to spend time with you, hoping he might finally look up and see you again.
I know what you're worried about. But you should never feel you have to hide things from your own mother. I will always support you, my dear son."
She couldn't help but scold Ross a little. In the past, when there were fewer people on the Sky Island, her father's steward helped manage things, so Ross could relax and spend time with her and the children.
But as more people settled there, the responsibilities multiplied, and free days became a rarity.
Since the birth of their fourth child, even the time Ross spent with their beloved daughter, Mona, had dwindled. He'd just hand her over to the grandparents and rush away again.
Now, he only managed a weekly check-in to supervise and encourage Alisan's relentless training.
As for Ator, who spent all his time studying economics… weeks could go by without so much as a glimpse of his father.
Communication between father and son was so important. Otherwise, each would inevitably start imagining things.
Ator was exactly like that. He worried his father was disappointed in him for only ever reading books—and he longed for the day Ross would be proud of something he accomplished.
Those two little objects—Golly saw them every morning on his bedside, quietly lying there, always keeping him company.
That was what he wanted. But as a father, Ross had been neglectful.
"Mama…"
Ator buried his face against her chest, tears streaming uncontrollably. His throat felt tight.
He hadn't meant to cry. But her gentle words struck straight at his heart, and all at once, his carefully held composure crumbled. The tears wouldn't stop.
"There, there… Ator, Mama will always support you. I'll talk to your father about this tonight—"
"No!"
Before she could finish, Ator stubbornly interrupted her.
He seemed to realize that he had gotten a little too emotional, and quickly pulled away from her embrace. Wiping his tears, he spoke in a choked voice:
"I'm sorry, Mother… but I don't want Father to know about this yet. I'm worried he'll think I'm just being irresponsible. Please… could you wait to tell him until after I've succeeded?"
"I just… I just… I just…"
Ator stammered, unable to find the words in the confusion swirling through his mind. He could only look at his mother with an anxious, pleading expression.
In response, she gently laid her hand on his head, calming his nerves. He stood there, quietly sobbing.
"All right, all right… don't worry. Mama won't tell that foolish father of yours. I completely support you."
Golly smiled as she spoke, though her smile was tinged with sorrow. Her heart ached for this thoughtful, burdened child of hers.
She should have noticed all this sooner—and talked to Ross about it.
As Ross's first wife, she had been by his side the longest and knew exactly what kind of man he was.
If he knew about this, he would definitely make time to sit down and talk with Ator, and he would find more moments, even in passing, to be there for him—until the day Ator could truly stand on his own.
But life offered no do-overs. Things had already reached this point. As his mother, the only thing Golly could do now was support him—and quietly tell Ross later not to interfere.
Ator was starting to develop his own sense of pride, realizing that only through his own efforts could he earn the recognition he longed for. That was the price of growing up: even in front of his mother, he would sometimes feel the need to hide parts of himself.
As parents, they should have never let it come to this.
"By the way," Golly said, gently changing the subject, "since you want to go into business, would you be willing to share your ideas and plans with me?"
She wanted to guide him before he made any mistakes. After all, business was no child's game.
But soon she discovered that her son was far from clueless—he had a truly remarkable head for commerce!
"Mm-hm! I've been preparing for a long time. This is my first draft business plan—let me explain!"
As he spoke, Ator pulled a notebook from his pocket, opened it, and began to talk with eager enthusiasm:
"I've already reached out to Brother Sakazuki. He helped me gather information on the older brothers who are currently stationed in the North Sea and South Sea. I've also established contact with them…"
He was actually planning to leverage military connections for business!