[That's why I said there are countless choices~ You can certainly proceed according to your original plan.]
'Then why did you mention Lilia? As if I can actually help her?'
[Can't you?]
'You're pushing me into a fire pit!'
[The butterfly's wings never stop beating. Your very existence, isn't that helping her?]
[Look up.]
[Alan.]
Alan froze. As if sensing something, he slowly raised his head.
At the dinner table, Zenith and Rudeus had at some point turned their gazes towards him. And Paul, with a strange expression of astonishment, shock, disbelief, and even a hint of pain, also had his eyes locked firmly on Alan.
A tangible sense of 'accusation' surrounded the 'outsider.'
Alan's mouth hung open as he helplessly met their gazes.
It was obvious. His immediate retreat from the dinner table after the incident + his rich and conflicted facial expressions + his seemingly prepared posture had instantly drawn everyone's suspicion to this character who did not belong in the original storyline.
And this extra male in the house—he didn't look like a child to begin with. In this world of early maturity, he was already close to ten years old, fully developed under his swordsman template, his manhood even standing firm as iron when he used his battle aura, and even…
There was his 'prior conviction' in Rudeus's eyes of his not-so-normal interactions with Mrs. Somar.
[I was right, wasn't I? The situation now is…]
Alan, looking at everyone's expressions, dazedly answered the system's question. But because he was so astonished, he couldn't help but say it out loud.
"The situation now is… I'm a dad again?"
As his voice fell, a dead silence filled the room.
At this moment, Lilia, who had been looking down, finally noticed that the atmosphere was not right. She looked up in confusion at everyone's dramatic expressions, and followed their gazes to Alan by the wall, who was hastily covering his mouth.
Their eyes met.
There was only the sound of the candle licking at the air.
[Turning the tide!]
[At this very moment, among the thousands of choices, the host, with his solid charisma, has instantly curbed the dispute from the original storyline, sparing Paul the embarrassment of being slapped, cowering on the ground, and losing his dignity as the head of the family.]
[You are Paul's god!]
'Get lost!!!!!'
Alan looked at Lilia's confused and blank expression, his mind a complete blank.
'What is all this!!'
Just then, under Alan's stunned gaze, Zenith propped herself up. She stared at Alan in a daze, then let out a bitter laugh.
"Alan… I didn't expect you to be the first one to stand up."
Alan felt his hair stand on end. He glanced at Paul in shock. The latter just looked at Alan with a horrified and bewildered expression, as if he had no idea what was going on.
Then Zenith moved. She sighed softly and stood up.
The sound of the chair scraping was particularly harsh in the silent atmosphere.
And then.
SLAP!
A loud slap echoed. Zenith didn't even look at Paul; she just swung her hand and slapped him across the face.
Paul held his face and turned to Zenith in astonishment.
Zenith stared back at him coldly.
"Paul, how long are you going to hide behind a child? Don't you even have the courage to take responsibility? How long are you going to react to Alan's completely nonsensical words?"
Paul was stunned for a moment before his reason returned.
'How could Alan possibly be involved with Lilia? What's wrong with me… Was I so flustered that I lost the dignity a man should have?'
His face instantly fell into despair. He clutched his head, about to confess his mistake.
But then he heard Zenith's words, as light and untethered as a hydrogen balloon.
"…Forget it. In your eyes, the promise you once made to me was just empty talk."
Zenith left these words and walked upstairs without looking back, returning to her bedroom. With the sound of the door slamming shut, Rudeus finally came back to his senses.
Because of Alan's intervention, his attention had clearly been diverted. Before he could do anything, Zenith was already gone.
Lilia had lowered her head again. She realized that Alan's outburst was just a clumsy attempt to do something in a sudden situation. But Zenith's departure left her at a complete loss.
She had been prepared to be yelled at, beaten, and even kicked out of the house immediately by Zenith. She had never expected this result.
Zenith had just left. Why?
Paul had his hands clutching his head and was helplessly banging it on the table, looking as if the sky had fallen.
Watching this scene, the failed-father Alan was in a state of shock.
The current situation was completely different from the original plot!
Why did Rudeus have the opportunity to get involved in the original plot?
It was because Zenith, after getting angry and seeing Paul's spinelessness, had immediately asserted her position as the mistress of the house and called a family meeting. This was what gave Rudeus the chance to speak up for Lilia.
But now, Zenith, who was supposed to call the family meeting, had gone straight back to her bedroom?
What was happening?
After replaying the events in his head, Alan came to a faint conclusion.
It was his act of taking the blame that had caused a chain reaction. Paul, who should have immediately admitted his龌龊 actions, had hesitated because of his confusion. As a result, Alan had spoken first, but his hasty admission of fatherhood was completely illogical. And since Alan was staring straight at Paul, Zenith had instantly confirmed that the culprit was her husband.
Up to this point, Paul hadn't even shown any intention of admitting his actions.
Zenith was very disappointed in him.
In the original work, Zenith had confessed that she had been pushed to the brink at that time, her heart filled with anger. If she had lost control even a little, she might have screamed for Lilia to get out, or…
Announced her own departure.
And her reaction just now seemed to be the latter… Zenith might even be packing her things right now!
This plotline had completely deviated from the original!
At this thought, Alan immediately looked at Rudeus, his words coming out in a rush.
"Rudeus, do something! Madam is not in a good state right now!"
Rudeus came back to his senses, hesitated for a moment, then glanced at the ashen-faced Lilia.
"…The only way now is to shift all the responsibility onto Father… That way, there might still be a chance to keep Lilia here."
Hearing Rudeus's words, Alan was overcome with anger. He kicked Rudeus out of his chair, grabbed him by the collar, and lifted him up, saying word by word.
"Are you crazy!! If you still do that, you might make her feel like she's the extra one in the family! Do you still think you're playing some family game at a time like this? Everyone lives happily ever after? Let Madam bear it all by herself?! How is she supposed to bear it? By leaving the family herself?!"
It was the first time Rudeus had seen Alan so intimidating. He couldn't help but shrink back.
"Then should we kick Lilia out? But if we just kick her out, she'll die on the road. It's freezing outside… Wait, Alan, aren't you good with pretty words? Hurry up and think of a way to make Mother stay!"
Lilia lowered her gaze and glanced at Paul, who was still slumped over the table, futilely pulling his hair. Her eyes dimmed for a moment, but the words instantly tumbled from her lips.
"The one who should leave is me… This is the punishment I deserve. I'm sorry, please, you must let…"
"Lilia, I think we should calm down first…"
"Enough!!"
Alan's suppressed roar cut off Rudeus and Lilia's words.
He took a deep breath, looked towards the stairs, and his thoughts raced.
'In the original plot, the reason Zenith accepted Lilia was because she saw how much her son, Rudeus, valued the family. So does Rudeus need to show his devotion to the family again here?'
'No! That's not the fundamental reason… The fundamental reason is the 'family's attitude'! She couldn't bear to see the family-loving Rudeus sad. In the end, it's because she is fundamentally a person who cares deeply about her family. As they say, birds of a feather flock together.'
He glanced at Paul, who was slumped on the table as if the world had ended.
'Paul is also reacting like this, in a state of world-ending panic, because he realizes the family might fall apart. He's completely incapable of making any rational judgment because the scumbag is too panicked to think straight.'
'Caring about family… If we start from that point… then the best way to turn this around is…'
Alan narrowed his eyes, a look of understanding flashing across them. He spoke quickly.
"Rudeus, do you really think your mother has the perseverance to let go of this life? Or, do you think she doesn't know her own husband at all?"
Paul suddenly lifted his head from the table and stared blankly at the two of them.
Rudeus, on the other hand, just watched Alan quietly. He could feel that the other had a solution, and now was the time to listen, not to interrupt.
As expected, Alan had no intention of getting an answer from Rudeus. He answered his own question at a rapid pace.
"You know very well she can't bear to leave. And I understand your thoughts too. You can't bear to see a pregnant Lilia kicked out of the house to die in the cold, so you quickly shift the blame. Whether it's Uncle, the one who did wrong, or me, the one who had the opportunity, it doesn't matter. As long as there's someone to draw Madam's current resentment, you think the matter can be lightly put to rest, right?"
Rudeus blinked. That was exactly what he had been thinking.
Alan met his gaze, his expression sincere.
"Your method might work, but you're completely ignoring Madam's feelings. You're essentially imposing your will on her, making the choice for her. Rudeus, ask yourself, is that right?"
Rudeus's eyes wavered.
"I'm telling you, it's not right. The one who is wrong is Uncle, not Madam! She, Zenith, is a complete victim. What right do you have to make the choice for her??"
Paul, at the side, opened his mouth in astonishment, about to say something, but Alan slammed his hand on the table, startling him. Lilia, drawn by the sound, looked over at Alan, her face ashen.
Alan, however, looked around at the three of them.
"Uncle is concerned with how to prevent this family from breaking apart. Rudeus is concerned with not wanting to face the situation of Lilia being kicked out. And Lilia is concerned with how to quickly rid herself of her guilt and accept her punishment, her judgment."
"The three of you are now completely considering the problem from your own selfish perspectives, trying to solve your own inner 'dilemmas,' and not a single one of you is putting yourselves in Zenith's shoes. Is that really okay?"
The three of them were stunned.
Alan held out his hand, palm up, in front of them, and ticked off points on his fingers.
"Right now, there are five things Uncle and Lilia need to do:"
"One: Get rid of your selfish thoughts and put yourselves in Madam's position, instead of subconsciously thinking about how to steer the situation towards the outcome you want."
"Two: Go upstairs to Madam, kneel, and apologize, begging her to give you a chance to speak."
"Three: Express what this family means to you, whether you like the current family atmosphere, and what you hope this family will be like in the future."
"Four: Beg for Madam's forgiveness and make a promise to her about your future."
Under Paul and Lilia's slowly returning gazes, Alan folded down his last finger and tilted his head to look at the stunned Rudeus.
"Finally! Hand the power of choice back to the victim! Await Madam's judgment on the two of you! Instead of having someone step in and force her to make a decision. That is the greatest respect you can show her."
"Do you understand? Making Zenith, a living person, feel valued by this family, cherished by her family, and helping her regain her hope for 'family'—that is the only thing you can do. That is the best choice to save the current situation. Not ignoring the victim's feelings and each thinking about how to achieve the outcome you want! Forcing a victim to accept the bitter consequences and digest them on her own… I just want to ask you, who the fuck did wrong?! Huh?!!"
Alan, his voice suppressed, fired off his words like a machine gun at Paul and Lilia. Then his expression suddenly turned cold, and he stopped paying attention to the variously-faced Paul and Lilia. He slowly turned his head and took a deep look at Rudeus.
'At this point, the setup is complete… Make Zenith feel that her family is valued, and guide the situation back to the original plot, where Zenith accepts Lilia because of her family's attitude.'
'This is the optimal solution to the current predicament.'
Alan raised his hand and pointed at the stairs.
"Go. Any later, and she'll probably have finished packing."
But Rudeus, who had just exchanged a look with Alan, suddenly smiled silently.
'Alan is the same as ever… such nice-sounding pretty words.'
'Then next… to cooperate with his plan, what I should do is…'
Rudeus's smile faded. He turned to look at Paul, who was taking deep breaths, preparing himself mentally, and Lilia, who was clutching the corner of her clothes, looking extremely conflicted, almost on the verge of tears.
"I think Alan is right. So, Father, Lilia."
He spoke in a deliberately naive, childish voice, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Shall we go?"
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