Alan turned and went back to his bedroom. The sound of Zenith's slightly heavier breathing due to her pregnancy echoed in his ears. He leaned against the door and a mocking smile appeared on his face.
'Paul is impeccable when it comes to his family… but he's as terrible as ever when it comes to managing his lower half. And Lilia… it's hard to absolve her of blame either.'
He shook his head.
'Participation rating?'
Smoke and dust appeared.
[Current Stage: Childhood. Cumulative Participation Rating: 70 points.]
Alan fell silent as he looked at the 70-point rating.
That's right. For the past six months, his participation rating had completely stagnated. No matter how much he raised his favorability with Rudeus and Sylphie, it was of no use. Perhaps, as the system had said, his relationship with the two children had reached a threshold that was difficult to break through.
He needed to find a breakthrough to earn points from someone else.
This was the fundamental reason why he had chosen not to disturb the two of them.
'The infidelity incident, the births of Aisha and Norn… the participation rating should go up this time, right?'
Alan's inner voice was a bit urgent. His previous points had come too easily, but they had mainly been from Roxy. Under the constant flapping of the butterfly's wings, his score had soared in a short time.
But after he returned to the Greyrat household, the glorious rise in points had come to a halt.
The ability of satellite positioning was too important in this world without cell phones, especially after the Great Displacement.
[There will certainly be an opportunity for your score to rise, but whether the host can make the best choice, and how much you can ultimately get, will depend on your own abilities~]
The system's characters had a mischievous, teasing quality, which made Alan's mouth twitch.
'Wait, why do I feel like you're a little excited? Are you happy because you're about to have some fun at my expense again?'
The characters bounced cheerfully in front of Alan.
[Absolutely not~]
'I have to accumulate enough points this time… getting a perfect score is going to be tough. Looking back, my previous judgment was too naive… No wonder the reward for a perfect score is so good; it's so hard to push past 60 points.'
[Do you need a hint?]
'Yes!'
[Acquiring a rating above 60 points mainly depends on the host's deep participation in the major events of Mushoku Tensei.]
'…Deep participation?'
Alan blinked, and the "spectator" string in his mind was suddenly plucked. A grin spread across his face, and he quickly said.
'Speaking of which, if I go to the door right now, and the moment Paul finishes, I suddenly appear and scare him impotent, would that count as deep participation? Look, this way, Aisha's birth is guaranteed, Paul is prevented from cheating in the future, Zenith gets her revenge on this scumbag, and it serves as a warning to Rudeus that psychological problems can also lead to impotence, so he can prepare early! Four birds with one stone!'
[…And then the next day, Paul will send your sorry ass back to James.]
'??'
—
The snow in the winter of Armored Dragon Year 412 was particularly persistent. Whenever there was a slight sign of it letting up, another flurry would arrive.
In this back-and-forth process, Lilia realized she was pregnant.
This was something that couldn't be hidden.
So, she chose a time after dinner. After clearing the plates from the table and taking them to the kitchen, before even washing them, she turned around and came out to face everyone.
This action drew the attention of everyone at the dinner table, who had been chatting amongst themselves.
Zenith blinked.
"By the way… Lilia, are you not feeling well today? I noticed your face looked a bit pale during dinner."
Lilia quickly glanced at Paul, who was looking at her in surprise from the side of the table, and avoided Rudeus and Alan's gazes. She took a deep breath. Her eyes behind her glasses were very calm as she bowed her head to Zenith.
"…I am very sorry. I am pregnant."
The smile on Zenith's face froze for a moment, then slowly faded. The news didn't register with her right away.
But Paul's expression at the side changed drastically.
Rudeus stared blankly, his gaze shifting back and forth between Zenith and the feigning-calm Lilia.
As for Alan, he had already slipped away from the dinner table the moment Lilia had walked over. He went to the side wall and leaned against it, assuming the posture of an outsider.
'In the original story, Paul is about to kowtow and apologize, and Rudeus will be the key figure in resolving this family drama. He will first shift all the blame to Paul, then give Zenith a way to save face, and then verbally guide Zenith to force her to accept the fact of Paul's infidelity and welcome a new member to the Greyrat family.'
'To be honest, this way of handling it is quite… Zenith, as the sole victim of this incident, had Rudeus completely impose his ideas on her, forcing her to resolve this dispute in a way she had no choice but to accept.'
'In the end, a world where only the victim gets hurt is achieved.'
'Although Rudeus did apologize to Zenith afterward, it seemed rather hypocritical.'
'After all, he had already forced Zenith to make a promise, hadn't he?'
'Regardless of how Rudeus handles the problem… I definitely have to avoid the storm center of the conflict right now. No matter what is said, Zenith won't listen. As for the key to increasing my score, it will be after the fact, when Zenith has calmed down. I'll bring Rudeus, or even better, the whole family, to talk to Zenith, and then…'
Just as Alan was calculating, smoke and dust appeared.
[Instant Quest Issued: Lilia's Moment of Need.]
[Quest Reminder: The outwardly calm Lilia is already filled with despair. She is prepared to be kicked out of the house in the middle of winter, and she accepts that making the wrong choice will result in due punishment. But at this moment, Rudeus has not yet acted… The time for the host to perform has arrived!]
[Quest Reward: If handled properly, you will gain the gratitude of the entire Greyrat family and replace Rudeus's 'status' in the original storyline with regard to Aisha. Participation Rating reward: 20 points.]
[If handled improperly, 0 points.]
[At this crossroads of fate, among the countless choices, can the host choose the most appropriate action for the current situation? Can you achieve the salvation of Lilia's heart?]
[Quest Start!]
Alan's entire face stiffened as he looked at the jubilant characters.
His expression was even more dramatic than Paul's. He was shocked in every sense of the word.
'What the hell is this "salvation of Lilia"?! Shouldn't the focus be on helping Zenith?! Crap! You were waiting for me with this, weren't you?! What the hell am I supposed to do? Are you sure this won't get me kicked out of the house along with Lilia?
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