The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

"BUT why did Mom not mention anything about EMMA before?" Astrid asked referring to when their parents told them the truth about their past.

"Well, I never thought that it's important. After all, it's already unrelated to me or us. If I had known that you would end up as its new ambassador, of course I would have said something," Emmy answered. "But what product of EMMA are you going to promote? Is it the clothes or the bags?"

She personally thought that a clothing line targeted towards the youth of today would suit Astrid. If her son started to advertise something like that, she had no doubt that EMMA's sale would definitely increased. That's not just her bias as Astrid's mother. Her son just had that physique that made anything he wore stylish and trendy.

If her mother was alive to this day, she would have definitely enjoyed dressing Astrid up like a doll. Maybe Astrid would have started being EMMA's model the moment he learned how to walk.

Emmy shook his head. There's no use of thinking about things that could have been. Because there's no chance that it would ever happen.

"No, it's not for a clothing line, it's for a new perfume line that they would launch soon," Astrid said.

Emmy didn't expect that but soon nodded. If it's a perfume line, she could also see how that would suit Astrid. "I know that you will do your best, so I could only wish for things to go well."

"Don't worry, Mom. Even if there's some bump along the way, I'm sure I can get over it safely," Astrid said confidently.

Reas nodded on the side, as if silently telling their parents that he would be here to give support to Astrid.

"I'm sure you will do well," Gage said. "But if someone tried to bully you, never hesitate to bully them back."

"Hey, what are you teaching our kids," Emmy said in a berating tone. But still added, "Just do it secretly so people won't suspect you."

Astrid and Reas looked at each other and then burst out laughing.

After a while, their mother asked;

"How is Casey? Is he doing well?"

Astrid looked at his mother. The other must have been wanting to ask about Cassius since earlier. She probably held herself back because knowing how he and Reas met the Grimaldis was much more important.

"He's doing fine, I think. A bit too quick to act close to people though. He seemed to be in good health as well. And he dotes on his nephew a lot," Astrid answered.

Emmy was truly relieved hearing that her younger brother was doing fine. She honestly didn't know what she would do if Casey turned into a gloomy adult after 20 years. Because it meant that he wasn't able to move on from her 'death'.

She actually thought of the possibility that their father told him that her 'death' was just a ruse and that she was still alive. But if that was the case, based on Casey's personality, the other would have definitely find ways to find her. The fact that that didn't happen must mean that Casey already assumed that she was 'dead'.

"This kid, is his name Nicol?" she asked, referring to the nephew that he hadn't yet met or probably never would. "How old is he?"

"I think seven, right?" Astrid said, glancing at Reas for confirmation.

"Yeah, he looked about seven," the other agreed.

Emmy was slightly surprised because this nephew was actually much younger than she expected. "Does he look like Tommy? I mean- Thomas?"

For her mother to still call the other by his nickname despite what the other did, or rather didn't do, in the past, she must still consider Thomas as her older brother. – Astrid thought.

"Thankfully, he doesn't," Astrid said honestly. "Compared to his father's temperament, Nikki is a very bright and cute kid. He's more similar to Cassius actually."

Emmy chuckled. It seemed that Astrid had taken a liking to this cousin. Well, even though the twins couldn't reveal their real identity, of course it's much better to get along with their cousin.

Their talk lasted for an hour more before their parents ended the conversation, saying that Astrid and Reas still had school tomorrow.

"Well, that went better than expected," Astrid said after closing the Terminal.

"Yeah. I thought we'd be scolded for at least two hours," Reas agreed.

Astrid nodded. This was because every time the two of them did something that warrant scolding, their mother would scold them for that long. So, barely being scolded like this was almost a miracle to them.

"Mom, I think she changed," Astrid said.

Reas turned to him. "What do you mean?"

"When Mom and Dad agreed for us to go to the capital to study and pursue our dreams, I could feel that Mom was still conflicted about it," Astrid explained. "But when we were talking to them just now, it's clear that that's no longer the case. She's no longer against us being a soldier or being an actor. Supporting us probably took precedents more than anything, including scolding us."

Reas had a thoughtful look on his face. Then, he nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I kind of notice that too."

"Both Mom and Dad probably saw just how hard we worked since we arrived here at the capital," Astrid said.

"Well, I don't know about me, but they certainly saw how hard your worked," Reas said referring to the works Astrid had been in since officially becoming an actor.

"Hey, of course, you worked hard too," Astrid quickly denied. "You're at the top of your department during your training period. Not all aspiring soldiers could do that."

"Okay, let's stop praising each other. It's giving me goosebumps," Reas sais, the tips of his ears slightly turning red. Then, he stood up. "I'm going for a run. Don't wait for me."

Astrid nodded. After Reas left, a video call notification rang from his Terminal again. He thought that it was his parents, thinking that the two had forgotten to tell them something. But when he opened his Terminal, he was a bit surprised to see the name on the screen.

It was none other than Wulfric.