Chapter 9: Emergency Family Meeting.

Zenith’s pregnancy was confirmed.

It seems I’ll have a younger brother or sister.
Our family is growing! Yay, Rudy-chan!

For the past few years, Zenith had been worried.
She was concerned that she might not be able to have any more children after me.
She would sigh and murmur that perhaps her body could no longer bear them.

Then, about a month ago,
her sense of taste began to change,
followed by nausea, vomiting, and fatigue.
The classic symptoms of morning sickness appeared.
Recognizing the familiar sensations,
she visited the doctor—
and was told it was almost certainly the case.

The Greyrat household erupted with joy at the news.

What should we name him if it’s a boy?
What if it’s a girl?
We still have room, right?
We can use Rudy’s old baby clothes.

The conversation flowed endlessly.
That day was filled with nonstop laughter and excitement.

I was genuinely happy too—
and I insisted that I’d prefer a little sister.
A little brother would just destroy my precious things.
(With a bat.)

And then—

The real problem surfaced about a month later.

—

Lilia’s pregnancy came to light.

“I am terribly sorry. I am with child.”

At the family dinner table,
Lilia reported her pregnancy in a calm, matter-of-fact tone.

In that instant,
the Greyrat household froze.

Who is the father…?

The air was far too heavy to ask such a question outright.
Everyone already had a vague suspicion.

Lilia is a diligent maid.
She sent almost all of her wages back to her family.
Unlike Paul, who frequently left the house to deal with village matters,
or Zenith, who regularly helped at the local clinic,
Lilia almost never went out except for work-related errands.

There were no rumors of her being particularly close to anyone.
At first I wondered if it might have been a one-night stand with some passerby…

But I know.

I know about Paul’s pent-up frustration after Zenith became pregnant
and he was forced into abstinence.
I know how the man overflowing with desire
would sneak off to Lilia’s room in the dead of night.

If I were truly a child,
I might have thought the two of them were playing cards together.
But unfortunately,
I know exactly what was happening—
and it wasn’t Old Maid.
It was Mother-deprived play.

Still… I wish they’d been a little more careful.

Even those two once said:

“Good boys and girls!
‘If you try, you can do it’—
what an excellent phrase.
It teaches us the importance of contraception!”

I’d love to shove those words in Paul’s pale face right now.
Though I don’t even know if contraception exists in this world.

Of course—
I have no intention of exposing the truth and destroying the family.

Normally I’d never forgive someone for laying hands on the maid.
But Paul did help me out with the Sylphie incident.
Just this once, I’ll let it slide.
Being popular with women is hard.

So if anyone started suspecting him,
I was ready to cover for him.
I’d even cook up a fake alibi if necessary.

With that resolve,
I shot Paul a reassuring glance: “Don’t worry.”

At the exact same moment—
Zenith looked at Paul with an expression that said, “It couldn’t be…”

Both mine and Zenith’s gazes locked onto Paul in unison.

“I-I’m sorry… It’s… probably mine…”

He confessed instantly.

Pathetic…
No—perhaps I should praise him for his honesty.

Then again,
he’d always preached at the family dinner table—
right in front of me—
about honesty,
manliness,
protecting girls,
never being dishonest…

So perhaps he simply couldn’t bring himself to lie.

It’s fine.
I don’t hate that about you.
I like that side of you.

(Even though the situation is the absolute worst…)

When I saw Zenith rise like a wrathful deity and raise her hand,
that was my honest thought.

And so—
with Lilia included—
an emergency family meeting began.

—

Zenith was the first to break the silence.
She held complete control of the discussion.

“So—what do you plan to do?”

From my perspective,
Zenith was remarkably calm.
She wasn’t throwing a hysterical fit at her cheating husband.
She’d only slapped him once.
Paul’s cheek now bore a bright red maple-leaf mark.

“After assisting with Madam’s delivery,
I intend to resign from this household.”

It was Lilia who answered.
She too was remarkably calm.
Perhaps this sort of thing is common in this world—
a maid taken to bed by her master,
a scandal erupting,
and her leaving the house.
Yeah.

Normally a tragic storyline like that would excite me.
But in this atmosphere,
I didn’t even twitch.
Even I have some restraint.
Unlike Paul.

By the way—
Paul was shrinking into the corner.
Fatherly dignity?
Yeah, right.

“What about the child?”

“I plan to give birth here in the Fittoa Region,
then raise the child in my hometown.”

“Your hometown is in the south, correct?”

“Yes.”

“You won’t be able to endure a long journey
after giving birth and losing your strength.”

“…That may be true,
but I have nowhere else to rely on.”

The Fittoa Region is in the northeast of the Asura Kingdom.
From my knowledge,
traveling south—even by changing stagecoaches—
takes nearly a month.

Even a month is manageable in the Asura Kingdom,
which is relatively safe.
Stagecoaches make it far from brutal.

But that’s for ordinary travelers.
Lilia has no money.
She can’t afford stagecoaches—
she’d have to walk.

Even if the Greyrat family paid her travel expenses
and she could take stagecoaches,
the danger wouldn’t change.

A brand-new mother traveling alone with an infant.
If I were a bad person and saw her—
what would I do?

I’d attack her.
She’s perfect prey.
Practically begging to be targeted.
Take the child hostage,
force some vague verbal promise from the mother,
bind her.
Steal whatever money she has,
strip her bare.
Since slavery exists in this world,
sell both mother and child—done.

The Asura Kingdom may be the safest nation in the world,
but that doesn’t mean bad people don’t exist.
It’s not certain,
but the probability of being attacked would be very high.

As Zenith said—
there’s also the physical aspect.
Even if Lilia’s body could endure it,
what about the child?
Can a newborn survive a month-long journey?
No way.

And if Lilia collapses—
the child goes down with her.
If either of them falls ill
and there’s no money for a doctor—
they both die.

I can picture it clearly:
Lilia collapsed in a snowstorm,
cradling her infant.

I don’t want her to die like that.

“Um, Mother… surely that’s too much…”

“You—be quiet!”

Paul timidly tried to speak,
but Zenith silenced him sharply.
He shrank back like a scolded child.
In this matter,
he has no right to speak.
Hmm…
Paul’s useless here.

“…”

Zenith chewed her nails, deep in thought.
She seemed conflicted too.
She didn’t hate Lilia enough to want her dead.
On the contrary—the two of them got along well.
After six years of doing housework together,
they were close enough to be called best friends.

If the child Lilia carried hadn’t been Paul’s—
if, for example, it had been the result of rape in some back alley—
Zenith would have protected Lilia without hesitation
and insisted—perhaps even forced—
that she raise the child here.
From the flow of conversation,
it seems abortion isn’t a concept in this world.

Right now, two emotions are battling inside Zenith.
Love.
And betrayal.

For her to remain this calm in such a situation
is honestly impressive.
If it were me,
I’d be so jealous I’d kick her out immediately.

Zenith’s composure probably also comes from Lilia’s attitude.
Lilia isn’t making excuses—she’s trying to take responsibility.
Responsibility for betraying the household she served.

But—
in my opinion,
the one who should take responsibility is Paul.

It’s wrong for Lilia to bear it alone.
Absolutely wrong.
They can’t part like this.

I decided to help Lilia.

I owe her.
We don’t interact much,
and she rarely speaks to me,
but she takes care of me properly.

When I sweat from sword training, she prepares a towel.
When I come back soaked from rain, she prepares hot water.
On cold nights she brings extra blankets.
If I leave books lying around, she neatly puts them away.

And above all—
above all—

She knows about the existence of the sacred panties
and has kept silent.

Yes—Lilia knows.

It was back when I still thought Sylph was a boy.
It was raining.
I was in my room reviewing the plant encyclopedia.

Lilia came in to clean.
I was so absorbed in the book
that I didn’t notice her cleaning around the god-shelf area.
By the time I realized—
it was too late.
The sacred panties were already pinched between her fingers.

I thought I was done for.
Sure, I’d spent nearly twenty years as a shut-in,
openly scattering things without shame.
I even had an “eroge pics” folder right on my desktop.
My concealment skills had probably rusted completely.

But I never expected them to be found so easily.
I hid them pretty seriously…

Is this what a maid is capable of?

The moment something inside me shattered,
I swear I heard the sound of blood draining from the top of my head.

The interrogation began.

Lilia said, “What is this?”
I said, “W-W-What could it be, haha…”
Lilia said, “It smells.”
I said, “M-Maybe it’s the scent of goma rayu or something…”
Lilia said, “Whose is it?”
I said, “…I’m sorry. It’s Roxy’s.”
Lilia said, “Shouldn’t it be washed?”
I said, “Washing it would be blasphemy!”

Silently,
Lilia returned the sacred panties to the god-shelf area.
Then, with my trembling form behind her,
she left the room.

That night, I braced myself for a family meeting.
But nothing happened.

I spent the night shaking under the covers.
The next morning—nothing.

She told no one.

Now I will repay that kindness.

“Mother.
Two new siblings at once—
why is the mood so heavy?”

I spoke as childishly as possible.
Lilia’s pregnant too?
Yay—our family’s getting bigger!
So why the long faces?
I tried to project that feeling.

“Because your father did something he shouldn’t have.”

Zenith said it with a sigh.
Her voice carried bottomless anger.
But the target of that anger wasn’t Lilia.
Even Zenith understood.
Who was truly at fault.

“I see.
But could Lilia really refuse Father?”

“What do you mean?”

Well—sorry, Paul,
but this time it’s your own fault.
I’ll let you take all the blame.
Sorry about the Sylphie thing—I’ll repay you next time.

“I know.
Father has some leverage over Lilia.”

“Eh? Really?!”

My lie landed perfectly—
Zenith looked at Lilia in shock.
Lilia remained expressionless,
but her eyebrow twitched slightly.
She really does have something being held over her?
From her usual behavior,
it always seemed more like Lilia held leverage over Paul…
No—convenient.

“The other night, when I got up to use the bathroom
and passed by Lilia’s room,
I heard Father say,
‘If you don’t want it spread around,
open your legs quietly.’”

“Wha—Rudy, what nonsense—”

“You—be quiet!!!”

Zenith’s shriek silenced Paul.

“Lilia—is that true?”

“No, there is no such fact…”

Lilia’s gaze wandered.
She really does have something.
Or maybe they did that kind of play.

“I see… Of course you can’t admit it from your own mouth…”

Zenith took Lilia’s reaction as confirmation.
Paul’s eyes bulged;
his mouth opened and closed like a goldfish,
unable to speak.
Good. Time to press.

“Mother—I think Lilia isn’t at fault.”

“Yes.”

“The one at fault is Father.”

“…Yes.”

“It’s wrong for Lilia to suffer
when Father is the guilty one.”

“…Yes.”

The response feels weak…?
No—one more push.

“I’m happy every day with Sylphie.
Wouldn’t it be better
for my new little brother or sister
to have a friend around the same age?”

“…Yes.”

“And to me—
both of them are my siblings.”

“…All right.
I really can’t win against you, Rudy.”

Zenith let out a long sigh.
Sorry for the trouble, Mom.

“Lilia—you stay here.
You’re already family!
I won’t allow you to leave on your own!”

Her word was final.

Paul’s eyes widened.
Lilia covered her mouth, tears spilling over.

And so—the matter was settled.

—

By shifting all responsibility onto Paul,
the situation was resolved without further incident.

At the end,
Zenith gave Paul a cold stare—
the kind one might give livestock about to be slaughtered.
In some industries that might be a reward,
but my balls shriveled.

With that look,
she returned alone to the bedroom.

Lilia was crying.
Her expression remained blank,
but tears streamed from her eyes.
Paul hesitated, reaching to embrace her shoulder.
For now—let’s leave this to the playboy.

I followed Zenith toward the bedroom.
If this caused Paul and Zenith to divorce,
that would be a problem too.

When I knocked on the bedroom door,
Zenith opened it immediately.

“Mother—what I said earlier was a lie I made up.
Please don’t hate Father.”

No preamble—straight to the point.
Zenith looked stunned for a moment,
then gave a wry smile
and gently stroked my head.

“I know.
I never thought I fell in love with such a terrible man.
He’s an idiot and a womanizer—
I was prepared for something like this someday.
I was just shocked it happened so suddenly.”

“…Is Father really that much of a womanizer?”

I asked while pretending not to know.

“Yes.
He’s calmed down lately,
but back then he had no restraint.
Who knows—maybe you even have an older brother or sister somewhere you don’t know about.”

Her hand tightened on my head as she stroked it.

“Rudy—you mustn’t grow up like that, okay?”

Her fingers squeezed—
no longer stroking, but gripping…

“You have to treasure Sylphie-chan, right?”

“It hurts—ow, of course, Mother, it hurts!”

I felt a huge nail hammered into my future behavior.

But at this rate—it should be fine.
What happens next depends on Paul’s efforts.

Still—
our father really is a handful.
No second chances, señor.

The next day—
sword training was insanely strict.
I followed through perfectly,
so please stop taking it out on me.

—

—Lilia’s Perspective—

Let me be clear.
The pregnancy is my fault.
I was the one who seduced Paul.

When I first came to this house,
I had no such intention.

But night after night I heard their moans,
cleaned rooms thick with the scent of man and woman—
even I am a woman. Desire builds.

At first I handled it myself.
But every day watching Paul train in the garden,
the lingering embers I couldn’t extinguish
grew into a blaze deep inside me.

Watching Paul practice swordsmanship
reminded me of the first time.
Back when I was much younger—
living at the dojo.
The other party was Paul.
A forced night visit.
I didn’t hate it,
but it wasn’t love either.
It was far from romantic—
so at first I cried.

The next man who made advances was a greasy minister.
After him,
I stopped caring.

When I heard Paul was recruiting a maid,
I thought I could use that incident as leverage.

The Paul I met again after so long
was far more manly than before.
The boyishness had vanished—
replaced by severity and rugged strength.

I’m honestly impressed with myself
for enduring six years in front of such a man.

At first Paul didn’t make advances toward me either.
That’s why I could endure.
If things had continued like that,
the heat would have faded eventually.
But the occasional harassment
only fanned the flames of desire.
I was aware I was walking a razor’s edge.

Zenith’s pregnancy broke that balance.
Seeing Paul frustrated with abstinence,
I thought it was my chance.
I thought it was my chance—
and invited Paul into my room…

So yes—
this is my fault.

I thought the pregnancy was punishment.
Punishment for giving in to lust
and betraying Zenith.

But I was forgiven.

Rudeus forgave me.
That clever child understood exactly what happened,
guided the conversation perfectly,
and brought everything to a clean resolution.
His calmness was almost eerie—
as though he’d been through something similar before.
No—no more calling him eerie.

I had thought Rudeus was creepy
and avoided him for so long.
He must have noticed.
And yet—
that same Rudeus saved me.
Even though it couldn’t have felt good for him.
He chose to save me and the child
over his own feelings.
I feel ashamed for having called him creepy.

He is my life’s benefactor.
A person worthy of respect.

I must respect him.
I must serve him with utmost reverence
for the rest of my life.
No—I have neglected him until now.
I alone cannot repay him fully.

Yes.
If this child is safely born and grows—
then this child shall serve Rudeus-sama.

—

—Rudeus Perspective—

After that,
several months passed without major incident.

Sylphie became able to use chantless magic up to intermediate level.
She’s gradually getting better at finer control too.
Her progress is remarkable.

My swordsmanship hasn’t improved much.
It’s getting better,
but I still can’t take a single point from Paul,
so it doesn’t feel real.

Also—
Lilia’s attitude has softened.
Apparently she used to be wary of me.
Well—makes sense.
I’ve been throwing magic around like crazy since I was little.

She’s still mostly expressionless,
but lately I sense an almost exaggerated respect
in her words and actions.
Being respected feels good,
but it puts Paul in an awkward position,
so I wish she’d tone it down.

Since that incident,
I’ve started talking to Lilia little by little.
Mostly about her old days with Paul.

Apparently Lilia once trained in the sword
at the same dojo as Paul.
Back then Paul had talent
but hated practicing.
He’d skip training to go play in town.
Lilia said Paul snuck into her room one night
and took her virginity.
He fled the dojo out of fear that it would be discovered.

She told me all this calmly.
The more I hear about Paul’s past,
the lower my opinion of him sinks.

Rape. Adultery.
Paul’s a scumbag.

No—Paul isn’t a bad person at heart.
He’s free-spirited, childish,
the type that tickles maternal instincts.
He tries hard to act like a proper father in front of me.
He’s just bad at self-control—
acts on impulse—
but he’s not truly evil.

“Hey—what’s with the stare?
Want to grow up to be a cool guy like your dad?”

While I was watching him during sword training,
he said that jokingly.
Ridiculous.

“Would a man who cheats and nearly destroys his family
really be considered cool?”

“Guh…”

Paul made a bitter face.

Seeing that expression,
I resolve to be careful.
Though I’m a dense protagonist—
I won’t cheat.
Girls will just fight over me on their own.
I’ll simply arrange things so they do.

“Haha…
Well—after this mess,
you’ll hold back from touching anyone but your mother, right?”

“L-Lilia’s fine, isn’t she?”

This guy hasn’t learned a thing.

“Next time Mother might silently return to her family…”

“G-Guh…”

Two beautiful women—
a wife he can have anytime
and a maid always available—
teaching swordsmanship to his son
while living a degenerate retired life in the countryside.
Hey—sounds enviable.
Isn’t that one of the best possible endings?
Like in a certain light novel—
having your way with both Rus and Sista and getting away with it.
Maybe I should stop calling myself dense
and learn from him…?

No—bad idea.
Calm down.
Remember the look in Zenith’s eyes
at the end of that family meeting.
Do you want to be looked at like that?
One wife is enough.

“C-Come on—you’re a guy too, you get it, right?”

Paul kept pressing.
I get it—but I won’t agree.

“What could a six-year-old possibly understand?”

“Hey—you’ve already marked Sylphie-chan as yours.
That girl’s gonna be a beauty someday~”

Can’t argue with that.

“Yeah—she’s plenty cute already as is.”

“See? You get it.”

“Yeah.”

Paul may be a scumbag,
but somehow we get along.

I may look like a child,
but mentally I’m a forty-something NEET.
A bona fide scumbag.
(Within games, at least) I loved girls
and loved harems.
At the core,
maybe I’m not so different from womanizing Paul.

Actually—
I started feeling like we got along
after the incident where I stripped Sylphie.
After that,
Paul started approaching me more,
and we opened up to each other.
Maybe because he saw my weak side—
or because I saw his.
He stopped trying so hard to act like a strict father.
He’s growing too.

“Nfufu…”

Suddenly I noticed Paul grinning.
His gaze wasn’t on me—
but behind me.

I turned.
Sylphie was standing there.
She rarely comes all the way to the house.
Looking closer—
her cheeks were slightly flushed,
and she was fidgeting.
She must have overheard.

“Come on—say it again for her.”

Classic Paul teasing.
I snorted.
He really doesn’t get it.
Paul still has a long way to go.

Even pleasant words lose impact
when repeated too often.
The trick to being dense
is to occasionally let a true feeling slip naturally.
Occasionally.
Saying it twice ruins it.
So I simply smiled brightly
and waved silently to Sylphie.

Besides—Sylphie is only six.
It’s way too early for that kind of talk.
If I spoil her now by calling her cute all the time,
she won’t turn out right.
My older sister from my previous life is proof.

“U-Um… Rudy…
You’re… cool too, you know?”

“Thanks, Sylphie.”

I flashed my (supposedly) sparkling white teeth
and smiled brightly.
As expected—Sylphie’s good at social niceties.
That upward glance almost made me believe she meant it.
I really do think Sylphie is cute—
but there’s no romantic feeling in it.
Not yet, anyway.

“Then I’m off, Father.”

“Don’t push her down in the grass or anything.”

Like I would.
Unlike you.

“Mother—! Father said—”

“W-Wait—stop—!!”

Today too,
our household was peaceful.

—

Zenith’s delivery was difficult.

The baby was breech.
Since Lilia was also heavily pregnant,
we called in the village midwife as backup.
The old woman declared it hopeless.
A child in this position usually dies, she said.

Both mother and child were in danger.
Lilia mobilized every bit of knowledge she had
and worked desperately.
Even I—though my help was small—
kept casting healing magic to support them.

Thanks to that—
somehow the birth succeeded.
The baby entered this world safely
and let out a vigorous cry.
A girl.
A little sister.
Thank goodness it wasn’t a brother.

But the relief was short-lived—
Lilia’s labor began.
It happened the instant everyone relaxed,
exhausted from the previous birth.

The word “premature” danced in my mind.
But this time the midwife came through.
She may not have known how to handle breech,
but she had experience with premature births.
Truly—the wisdom of age.

I immediately followed her instructions.
I kicked Paul’s butt to snap him out of his daze
and had him carry Lilia to my room.
Meanwhile I remade the birthing bath with magic,
gathered every clean cloth I could find,
and rushed back to the midwife.

She was dependable.

Lilia desperately called Paul’s name.
Paul—drenched in sweat—held her hand tightly.

The baby was born.
Smaller than Zenith’s child,
but still let out a healthy cry.
Another girl.

Both of them—girls.
Paul laughed stupidly—
“Two girls, huh—”
with a full-on idiot-parent grin.
The second time I’d seen that face.

Still—Paul has it rough now.
The female power in our house just doubled.
And who’s at the very bottom of that hierarchy?
The father who cheated and got the maid pregnant.

I’ll aim to become the cool, respected big brother.

Zenith’s daughter was named Norn.
Lilia’s daughter was named Aisha.

That’s what they were named.