On the other side of the world. London, the capital of England.
This was the gathering place of the Shiina family. The reason they ranked last among the four great conglomerates was that the bulk of their power resided in the UK, while their control in Japan was relatively small. They maintained their status through the high-end art trade.
The current head of the Shiina family had three daughters but not a single son, effectively severing the main paternal bloodline. However, the patriarch didn't mind much. What truly gave him a headache was that each of his three daughters had given birth to exactly one daughter. It was truly uncanny.
This fact nearly drove the head of the Shiina family to the brink of insanity. It was bad enough he only had three daughters, but why did they have to give him three granddaughters in return? Was heaven trying to extinguish the Shiina name? Not a single boy was granted to him. He nearly withdrew from the world in a fit of depression...
The daughter of his eldest child was named Shiina Mashiro. This girl was a source of pride, as her artistic talent was nearly peerless. Every time Mashiro painted, her work could be sold for astronomical prices. A single painting fetched no less than $300 million USD, and she could produce up to 20 pieces a day.
This meant that if Mashiro wished, she could generate a daily wealth of no less than $60 billion USD—equivalent to approximately 867.18 trillion Yen. One could say that 30% of the entire Shiina family's income depended on Mashiro's brush. Consequently, the patriarch always sided with his eldest granddaughter in all matters. Indirectly, this sparked deep resentment from his second daughter.
The child of the second daughter was named Shiina Mahiru, a girl with excellent talent in all fields. Unfortunately, she stood in the shadow of a monster who could create miracles worth 800 trillion a day. This made Mahiru appear increasingly "unsatisfactory" in the eyes of her own mother.
The second daughter frequently had violent arguments with her husband over this, eventually leading to a divorce. Before the split, the mother went as far as claiming she didn't even want Mahiru as her biological daughter. Unable to stand the sight of it, the patriarch finally intervened.
"If the two of you, as biological parents, do not raise Mahiru to adulthood, don't expect to receive a single cent of my inheritance!" the head of the Shiina family threatened the two useless juniors.
The conflict subsided, but the couple's hearts were no longer united. Even when forced together, they lived separate lives. Mahiru's father engaged in affairs—a common occurrence in such circles.
Years ago, while the second daughter was pregnant with Mahiru, that scoundrel of a son-in-law had often "strayed" because he couldn't handle the loneliness. The patriarch hid this so that Mahiru's mother could focus on her pregnancy. Unfortunately, the secret eventually came out. A massive fight ensued, and the mother even considered aborting the child in a fit of rage.
Exasperated, the patriarch kicked the philandering son-in-law out without a penny. To his surprise, his naive second daughter still wanted to forgive the man. She used Mahiru as "bait" to lure her husband back. Unfortunately, the man's affair had already produced a favored son, so he didn't care about Mahiru at all. As a result, the second daughter took out all her pent-up anger on Mahiru.
This caused Mahiru to grow up with deep-seated insecurities, especially when facing her mother and her more genius cousin, Shiina Mashiro.
The patriarch had considered taking Mahiru in to raise her himself. Seeing his second daughter's behavior, he knew the child wouldn't be cared for properly. But alas, over the years, his foolish daughter remained oblivious, still trying to use Mahiru as a tool to win back her husband. The patriarch finally washed his hands of them; he was already one foot in the grave and didn't want to meddle in their mess anymore!
Meanwhile, the third daughter was named Shiina Yuna, the mother of Shiina Hiyori. She was the most open-minded of them all. She desired neither wealth nor power; she found a good man who loved her, renounced the family's luxuries, and moved to Japan. To her, that was better than being trapped in family intrigues.
"Haaah..." The head of the Shiina family sighed sadly from his grand chair. It had been a long time since he had seen his third granddaughter—the sweet little girl who always called him "Grandpa."
He smiled resignedly. Yuna's separation from the family was actually a blessing, as it kept her from falling into the same traps as the second daughter. For years, he had secretly funneled resources to Yuna in Japan. He especially helped her husband behind the scenes so his third daughter could live a decent life. However, his assistance was too conspicuous to be hidden from Yuna.
Resigned, Yuna reciprocated by bringing her daughter, Hiyori, to visit her father every holiday to soothe his loneliness. The patriarch adored Hiyori because, among his three granddaughters, she was the only one who called him "Grandpa" in the sweetest way.
The second granddaughter, Mahiru, had been taken somewhere by her mother; he hadn't seen her in ages. The eldest, Mashiro, was a silent child; from birth until now, the number of times she had called him "Grandpa" didn't even reach 20... Don't ask how he remembered so accurately; the reader will understand when they become a grandfather themselves.
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Elsewhere. A room of pure white.
Mashiro was lying on the floor, drawing. All around her, sketches were scattered everywhere. Do not underestimate those papers on the floor; every single sheet was worth no less than $300 million USD.
Truthfully, Mashiro was getting bored of painting. She tossed her pencil aside, lay flat on her back in an 'X' shape on the floor, and murmured softly.
"Baumkuchen cake~"
A maid standing behind her seemed to have expected this. She took out a beautiful gift box containing Baumkuchen, Mashiro's favorite dessert.
Mashiro's eyes sparkled.
"Aaa~"
She opened her mouth, signaling to be fed. She was too lazy to move. Accustomed to this, the maid began to feed her.
After chewing the cake, Mashiro seemed to regain her energy. For years, she had generated incredible income for the family, leading her mother—and even the patriarch—to demand that she paint without end.
The head maid shook her head. She was just a servant; what right did she have to feel pity? A figure who could earn 800 trillion a day didn't need sympathy from an ordinary person like her. A flash of envy flickered in her eyes, but she quickly suppressed it and returned to her duties.
Mashiro noticed the maid's emotional shift but didn't care. Her mind was currently filled with the words of her cousin, Hiyori.
"If you really don't want to paint anymore, then stop. Go do what you want to do."
Once the maid left, Mashiro threw her pencil, crawled under the bed, and pulled out a book. It was a manga given to her by Hiyori. Fearing that Mashiro was too lonely, Hiyori had sent her many manga and novels.
Mashiro had fallen in love with manga; she even wanted to become a mangaka. She hugged the book she had read countless times. Hiyori had given it to her a year ago, before her cousin entered the secluded Advanced Nurturing High School.
Mashiro had opened that book many times and remained fascinated. She wanted to be a comic artist. She wanted to go to Japan to see Hiyori. She wanted to leave this room. She didn't want to paint anymore...
Mashiro clutched the manga tightly to her chest and made a decision.
"I've decided. I'm not painting anymore..."
Would you like me to adjust the tone to be more formal, or perhaps help you write the next chapter of this story?