I turned six.
While marveling at my own growth, I received more good news.
Zenith was pregnant.
She had been having pregnancy symptoms recently, so she went to the clinic to be checked by the Midwife grandmother, who confirmed the pregnancy.
The whole family was delighted by this sudden change.
The atmosphere in the Greyrat household reached a boiling point instantly; the joy was beyond words.
Paul had a silly grin on his face as he pressed his ear against Zenith’s belly, looking forward to the arrival of the new life.
“Does Rudy hope for a boy or a girl?”
“I want a little sister!”
When Zenith asked him, Rudy said without hesitation that he wanted a little sister.
“Don’t you already have Luna?”
Rudy gave me a complicated look.
This guy probably only thought of me as a close friend rather than family.
“Yeah, but I want another one.”
“Hehe, then Mommy will try her best to give Rudy a little sister.”
I pulled Rudy aside.
“Hey, you don’t actually have any designs on your own sister, do you?”
“You’re overthinking it!
No matter how perverted I am, I wouldn’t lay a hand on my own sister!”
“Then why do you want a sister so badly?”
“That’s…”
Rudy’s expression darkened, and his previously high spirits immediately withered away.
Did his younger brother do something terrible to him in his past life?
Could his trauma be from his brother smashing his computer?
“Alright, I won’t ask anymore.
But this world doesn’t have ultrasound machines; you can’t decide the gender of Zenith’s child.”
“I know that.
If it’s a boy, I’ll have to raise him properly from a young age and make sure he never touches a Baseball Bat.”
A Baseball Bat?
He really does hold a grudge about his brother smashing his computer with one.
He mentioned being a shut-in in his past life, eventually getting kicked out by his family, and having his computer smashed by his brother with a bat.
So that’s how it was.
No wonder the word ‘brother’ gives him trauma.
However, as an only child in my past life, it didn’t matter much to me.
Excluding Rudy, I had never truly experienced what it felt like to have siblings.
Just as the whole family was celebrating and looking forward to the new life, a bolt from the blue shattered the harmonious atmosphere.
“I am very sorry, but I am pregnant.”
A month later, in the dead of winter with snow falling heavily, Lilia the maid calmly informed Zenith of her pregnancy as if she were giving a routine work report.
At first, no one knew who the father was, but when everyone’s gaze converged on Paul, he broke into a cold sweat and lowered his head in a panicked apology.
“I-I’m sorry.
It might be my child.”
Slap!
Zenith struck him across the face.
Accompanied by that loud slap, the Greyrat Family’s first emergency family meeting was convened.
???
Lilia’s pregnancy plunged the Greyrat Family, which had been in a jubilant mood, into a freezing point.
The wind and snow howled outside, and the interior was just as bone-chillingly cold.
Paul sat dejectedly in a corner of the living room with his head bowed.
After all, his mistake was the greatest; he was the one who failed to control his lower half.
The moment Lilia said she was pregnant, I knew Paul was the prime suspect.
His stamina in that department is like a Goblin’s, making Zenith scream every night.
Now that Zenith is pregnant, he has to be celibate…
it would be a miracle if he could hold back, especially with a beauty like Lilia around.
He was bound to make a move on her.
Lilia sat silently in a chair.
The dining table, which was usually a place of warmth, had now become cold and sterile.
Zenith rested her head in her hands.
She was deeply hurt and in pain over the affair between Lilia and Paul, likely feeling betrayed by both of them.
At the same time, Zenith was conflicted—conflicted over whether or not to kick Lilia out.
With the wind and snow raging outside, kicking Lilia out would be no different from sending her and her unborn child to their deaths.
But keeping her would violate the monogamous teachings of the Millis Church.
Zenith struggled to ask Lilia what she planned to do.
Lilia said she intended to help Zenith through her delivery and then return to her hometown to give birth alone.
Lilia’s hometown is in the south of the Asura Kingdom.
Setting aside whether Lilia could withstand the exhaustion of long-distance travel, her child would certainly be born along the way.
Imagine a newborn infant; there is no way it could survive the rigors of long-distance travel.
The chance of the child dying prematurely would be almost one hundred percent.
Zenith naturally considered this issue as well, and she was extremely conflicted about how to decide Lilia’s fate.
Kind-hearted as she was, she couldn’t bear to see Lilia miscarry or have a newborn child die on the road.
Paul, the other source of the problem, tried to interject several times but was shut down by Zenith.
He could only shrink helplessly into the corner of the room, waiting for a miracle.
As for me, I naturally didn’t want Lilia to leave.
She dotes on me, prepares the meals I like, tucks me in at night, tidies my room, and bathes me.
Her love for me is no less than Zenith’s.
Furthermore, she has lived in this house for six years, working hard without complaint and sending most of her wages back home.
We all got along happily, and she was like a best friend to Zenith.
I didn’t want a Lilia like this to leave our family and meet a tragic end.
Rudy and I were peeking through the door, observing the situation.
Rudy and I exchanged a look; he didn’t want Lilia to leave either.
Even though Lilia often looked down on him, she never neglected her duties.
Rudy’s room was kept spotless and orderly by her.
So, we decided to use our own methods to help Lilia stay and prevent a tragedy.
Rudy originally wanted to intervene, but he was rejected by Zenith on the grounds that ‘this is adult business, children should stay out of it.’
Just as Rudy was still trying to figure out a solution, I thought of a great idea.
And that was being selfish—using a child’s selfishness to save Lilia.
“Waaaaah!
Mama!
Don’t make Lilia leave!
Waaaaah!”
I cried my heart out.
I had to; I gave my own butt a pinch, and it really hurt.
This wasn’t something I could simulate with Water Magic alone.
My wailing left Zenith at a loss.
“Waaaaah!
Lilia will die outside!
Please let Lilia stay!
Saint Millis would forgive her too!”
“That’s right, Mother.
Luna is right.
Don’t you always say that Saint Millis teaches us to be tolerant?
Besides, this is all Father’s responsibility.
That day…”
Taking the opportunity I created, Rudy turned the spearhead toward Paul, fabricating a story about Paul forcing Lilia into a relationship.
Naturally, the blame was shifted entirely onto Paul.
Paul was dumbstruck by these words, having no idea when he had done such a thing.
He could only open and close his mouth like a goldfish out of water.
As the cheating man and the head of the household, the final result was Paul bearing the vast majority of the responsibility.
Ultimately, under the pincer attack from Rudy and me, Zenith helplessly compromised and allowed Lilia to stay in the house.
This meant that from today onward, Lilia became Paul’s concubine.
“Lilia, from now on, you are part of this family.
You are not allowed to leave without permission.”
She looked at Zenith in disbelief, her eyes already wet with tears.
After making the decision, Zenith went back to her room to sulk alone.
She wasn’t doing well either.
Paul had sworn to love only her, yet he had betrayed her.
Any other woman would have taken Rudy and me back to her parents’ home long ago.
“Mama…”
Zenith sat before the dressing table, sighing with her head down.
Fortunately, she wasn’t crying alone.
Letting Lilia go would weigh on her conscience, but keeping her violated her faith.
No matter the outcome, she would feel a sense of loss.
When Zenith saw me come in, she opened her arms with red-rimmed eyes, signaling for me to come over.
I dove into her embrace, letting her stroke my hair.
“I’m sorry, Mama.
I know what happened between Lilia and Papa makes you feel bad, but it would be too pitiful to make Lilia leave.”
“Luna…”
Zenith let out a helpless sigh.
“Actually, I expected your father would have a day like this.
He was like that before we married.
I just didn’t expect it to be Lilia…”
Zenith became sadder as she spoke.
“Mama, I know Lilia and Papa make you feel betrayed, but the fact that Lilia could be honest with you about everything shows she isn’t the kind of bad woman who would use her pregnancy to blackmail others.
She and Papa just had a moment of impulse.”
“Thank you, Luna.
I know you’re trying to comfort me, but where did you hear all of this?”
Crap, I said too much and blew my cover.
My image as an innocent little girl is going to shatter in Zenith’s mind.
“Rudy told me.”
Sorry, Rudeus, I have to sell you out.
You just made up a bunch of lies about Paul anyway, and you usually act so mature.
You’ll just have to take the fall for me.
“So it was Rudy.
That child is far too mature—a bit too mature, even.
He’ll definitely grow up to be like your father.
Luna, when you get married in the future, make sure you don’t find someone like your brother or your father.
You must find a good man who is devoted only to you.”
Zenith advised me earnestly, passing on her experience for my future choice of a partner.
But I wanted to say that I actually like women—specifically the married type.
I share the same preference as Cao Cao.
From that day on, Lilia was allowed to eat at the table with the family.
In other words, she had become Paul’s concubine.
Fortunately, this is the Asura Kingdom, where it’s normal for a man to have multiple wives and concubines.
Lilia looked dazed at the dining table, her submissive appearance quite pitiable.
Finally, Zenith said, “Since we are family, we should eat together.” After that, Lilia tremblingly picked up her wooden spoon and ate her food mixed with tears.
Rudy and I looked at each other, knowing this matter had reached a perfect conclusion.
I hope you’re enjoying the fanfiction so far!