[Check Out My P4treon For +50 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!! And get chapters before publishing them here for free on my p4treon][https://p4treon.com/roooaaa]
===
Allen continued his journey on foot, moving quickly. However, after the battle, even though he had only been running with battle qi for four hours, he clearly felt fatigued. By noon, he plunged headfirst into a patch of grass beside the road, planning to catch a quick nap.
He was too tired.
Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the lush grass, casting scattered shadows on his face. The grass stems danced in the wind, tickling his face as his eyelids fought to stay open.
At that moment, he remembered Roxy's hand.
"...System?"
[Yes?]
This time, the system responded immediately.
Allen blinked his dry eyes, suddenly feeling embarrassed. He hesitated for a moment before asking his question.
"Um... I have a question... Before, even the smallest things would increase likability, but this time along the way, my interactions with Roxy were pleasant enough... at least I thought they were pleasant, but why aren't there any more notifications about gaining her favor?"
"...I'm worried that you're taking a cut of my points, you know what I mean?"
Whether it was an illusion or not, he felt that the dust that appeared this time seemed to jump a little, as if...
It was laughing.
[The moonlight was nice last night.]
Allen's consciousness was a bit hazy, and he nodded instinctively.
"Indeed."
[You held her hand and talked for a long time, the atmosphere was clearly a bit intimate, but why wasn't there a likability increase notification... is that what you want to ask?]
Allen's face froze upon hearing this.
"That's not fair, I'm innocent! I really only care about the points!!"
[Oh? Is that so?]
"Absolutely... Now tell me why the points aren't coming!"
[What the host needs to know is that, in terms of human emotions, intimate relationships have clear boundaries and divisions.]
[For example, strangers, acquaintances, friends, lovers, partners, family—each level of intimacy has a clear dividing line.]
[Once a certain threshold is reached, moving forward isn't something that can be achieved through casual conversation, simple physical contact, or formal goodbyes.]
[Do you... understand?]
Allen stared straight at the system panel, his gaze lingering on the word 'friend' that wavered in the wind for a long time, but he responded mentally.
'I understand. Last night was just holding hands... No, it wasn't even holding hands, it was just a coincidence at most... What's wrong with me? I suddenly feel so innocent that my IQ has dropped. Damn, I'm like an elementary school student, thinking Roxy might be interested in me... The first of life's three great illusions... I guess this is what they call an overconfident man.'
'Calm down... Roxy's favor toward me is probably stuck at the friend level, presumably still a long way from any ambiguous relationship like lovers or partners.'
Thinking about this, Allen silently let out a sigh of relief. He seemed relieved, and after a moment of silence, Roxy's smiling face at their parting floated into his mind.
'Hah... If we really broke through some boundary, I wouldn't know what to do... Allen doesn't even exist in the novel's plot. If I really replaced Rudeus and had a romance with Roxy, that would be too hard to handle. What about future visions? If I couldn't participate in subsequent major events, wouldn't I be at a loss? And in the future, if Lara isn't born, how would the person-god intervention happen... Wait! Stop being overconfident! How did this lead to thinking about having children?!'
Allen looked at the grass in front of him, fell silent again for a moment, closed his eyes, and weariness gradually overtook him.
'Roxy... has already given me many points, our first encounter directly gave me 23 points... Don't ask for too much... This is good... This is fine... This is very good...'
'Roxy...'
'Very good...'
Surrounded by the scent of grass, Allen, whose mind had been tense all night, finally fell into a dream.
But the system's dust still floated and jumped.
[Time and the future are so interesting. What happens now is often predetermined at some choice point in the past, and what happens in the future has already planted seeds in countless present moments.]
[Hehe...]
[...Your points, at the moment you met Roxy, have already been advanced from the future.]
[Allen.]
——
By the time Allen made it back, it was already mid-July.
The rice fields outside the village were pressed into golden waves by the wind.
As he reached the village entrance, the two little ones were practicing magic at the entrance. Sylphy saw Allen from a distance, looking stunned for a moment before her face instantly lit up with joy as she quickly dove into Allen's arms.
Allen, watching Sylphy's pointed ears quickly flutter, instinctively hugged her and spun around in place.
Then he saw Rudeus, who had been happy for just a moment before his expression turned to one of resentment.
Allen's face stiffened as he realized the other had discovered that his underwear had gone missing. He awkwardly coughed a few times, put Sylphy down, and avoided Rudeus's resentful gaze.
Sylphy stood steady, lowered her head to tidy her messy hair, her expression somewhat flustered, her voice soft and gentle.
"Allen, Rudeus and I have been very worried about you this past month..."
Allen's eyebrows twitched, his pupils reflecting Rudeus's gaze which didn't look worried at all, and he recalled his interactions with Roxy along the way.
His smile then became somewhat subtle as he was about to speak.
"Allen!" Suddenly, a muscular man jumped out from the clinic nearby, startling Allen who looked over carefully.
It was Paul.
'Wow, brother Paul.'
'Wait, why is this guy fooling around with his wife in the clinic in broad daylight again?'
This thought had barely emerged, and before he could greet him, Allen was caught in a headlock by Paul, who dragged him toward home. Allen didn't struggle out of a bit of guilt for leaving without saying goodbye, but when he noticed that Paul's arm was squeezing tighter and his head was completely wedged between Paul's pectoral muscles, with the strong scent of male hormones flooding his nostrils.
He panicked.
Then he began to struggle violently! As his arms waved, Allen squeezed his face out from Paul's chest and looked at Rudeus, frantically signaling with his eyes.
'Brother Paul's enthusiasm is too much for me to handle! Rudeus, don't just watch, save me, save me!'
Rudeus understood Allen's look but just pursed his lips, not wanting to deal with him.
When he discovered that his sacred relic had gone missing, he had already reconstructed events—first, that night he should have been sleeping in Roxy's room, but when he woke up, he was in his own room.
That meant Roxy and Allen had probably brought him back.
Then he racked his brains to think... vaguely recalling some hazy memories... that night Allen seemed to have spoken to him, and before that, there were hurried footsteps of someone leaving.
So the conclusion was very clear—the sacred relic had been reclaimed by the gods.
It was truly heartbreaking.
Logically, at this point it didn't seem to have much to do with Allen... but the problem was...
'Why was it MY underwear in the shrine?!'
Thinking of this, Rudeus gritted his teeth and glanced at Allen, watching as he reached out to grab Allen's hand that had broken free from Paul's embrace. First, Allen's face showed gratitude, which quickly turned to horror as...
Rudeus very carefully stuffed Allen's hand back into Paul's embrace, even patting his hand in consolation.
The expression was identical to the one Allen had when he woke Rudeus that night and then comforted him back to sleep.
"...These days, Father has been very worried about you, so he's been waiting with us at the village entrance... you should just submit to him..."
"Huh?? What??"
Allen flailed a couple more times, but found his neck was tightly encircled in Paul's arms like an iron hoop. He looked at Rudeus with a dejected face, let out a cry of resignation, and was dragged all the way back to the study at home under Rudeus's somewhat peculiar gaze.
As for why he didn't resist with sword techniques?
Emotionally, Allen was afraid of crossing swords with Paul, but rationally, he could still judge that the current situation wasn't developing in that direction.
It was definitely because Allen had left without saying goodbye, so Paul might actually be angry. It would be better to go along with him for now, and once they got home and he calmed down a bit, Allen could explain carefully...
That's what he thought.
However, upon returning home, the development of events still exceeded his expectations.
Zenith wasn't at the clinic; she was at home, and the moment she saw Allen, her face visibly lit up with joy, which was quickly overshadowed. Ignoring Allen's pleading gaze, she followed Paul and the others upstairs to the study, and Lilia followed as well.
With a bang, the door was closed, and Paul sat in a chair with his arms crossed, looking furious.
He didn't speak.
The study was unusually quiet, with only the heavy breathing of Allen, who had finally escaped the muscular man's embrace.
He sensed the strange atmosphere in the study, glancing at Rudeus and Sylphy sitting obediently in chairs, Zenith with her solemn expression, and Lilia with her head lowered, maintaining a dutiful appearance. Allen slowly swallowed.
'This isn't right... What's going on... Shouldn't it be a one-on-one man-to-man talk? Just ask me where I went, then I explain, get some admonishment, and move past this plot? Why is there this strange atmosphere?'
Paul's face was tense, several times he opened his mouth to say something, but finally it only became a sigh.
"Allen, do you really think it's alright to leave without a word like that?"
Allen was stunned.
'What's going on? Is this the teaching event for Rudeus from the original plot? Because of my appearance, it was disrupted, and somehow fate transferred it to me?'
He instinctively looked at Rudeus beside him, but to his surprise, Rudeus showed no signs of discontent, just staring straight at Allen.
Allen blinked, turned to look at Zenith, whose expression was almost identical. He then turned to look at Sylphy.
This child didn't have a solemn face but looked at him with a somewhat worried gaze.
"Allen... everyone was really worried about you. Uncle Paul had a big outburst a month ago..."
Allen was stunned, then suddenly realized.
At the time, he had left in a hurry without thinking much, leaving Paul a letter and stating that he would return after dealing with the 'Maned Wolf.' Since Paul knew his identity, and Zenith often looked at him with the same expression she used for the family's children, she probably knew too.
In Allen's eyes, leaving for a while and coming back wasn't a big deal, after all, it wasn't a true employment relationship. Paul's current knight work in Buena Village was arranged by Philip, and as Philip's son, Paul had reason to look after him and tolerate him, whether out of gratitude or family ties.
But in others' eyes, this was highly unreasonable.
Imagine going to work at a company, then leaving your boss a note saying you have some personal matters to handle, and you'll see them in a month.
No salary for this month, just continue paying me when I return.
Then you leave without any notice.
Is that appropriate?
So...
Paul had very likely already explained Allen's identity to the family members.
But even so, they shouldn't have these expressions... Reprimanding is understandable, but this interrogation-like atmosphere...
Paul now scratched his head somewhat irritably, maintaining an angry posture, but didn't speak. Instead, Zenith assumed a serious demeanor and slowly said:
"Allen, I've explained your identity to everyone. That day, your uncle was very angry... it was no longer good to keep hiding it, and I think..."
Zenith looked at Allen's shocked face and said word by word:
"I think there's no need to hide it. We all treat you like our own child, and Rudeus clearly enjoys being with you, it's not just a simple teacher-student relationship... All of this is good... but..."
"When you act on your own like this, do you... consider us... your family?"
Allen swallowed, not knowing what to do.
'Family? It's only been a little over three months... Even if I am Philip's child, is this necessary...'
At that moment, Roxy's troubled expression appeared in his mind, along with her words in the night breeze.
"...If it's something urgent, you should ask Lord Paul for help. He's at the upper level in three schools, and acting alone is very dangerous. Everyone will worry about you... You should apologize properly to them when you get back..."
Allen froze. Zenith's words didn't give him time to breathe, clearly conveying her thoughts to Allen at that moment.
"We truly consider you a part of the Greyrat family. I know you might not have much sense of belonging to a family, and I can understand that... But, you should know that we worry about you, Allen."
"Is there something that you couldn't discuss with us before making a decision? The way you left a letter... it's like..."
Zenith paused, her usually gentle face now looking somewhat complex. She looked deeply at Allen before continuing:
"It's like... we're monsters in the forest, making you so eager to avoid us... Or do you truly believe that in the Greyrat family, you're just a hired outsider... and nothing more?"
"Paul isn't actually angry. We're all just feeling a bit..."
"Uncomfortable..."
After speaking, Zenith seemed somewhat tired. She looked at Allen once more but didn't say anything else, standing up and walking out the door.
Then Paul, seeing Allen's stunned expression, just sighed, putting away his angry face, walked over, and patted Allen's shoulder.
"...I found the wanted poster in your drawer... It seems you went to deal with this. The clothes on your body also show signs of being washed after being stained with blood. Although your strength is formidable, in the future... it would be best to tell us before going out. How can you be sure we wouldn't support your actions? Isn't family supposed to be about mutual support, help, understanding, and assistance? That's what family is..."
"Ah, forget it, maybe you find it hard to understand what I'm saying... Let's leave it at that."
Allen felt his mouth dry, but he had no way to refute. The current situation completely exceeded his expectations of the plot, and he didn't know what to do.
Lilia glanced at Allen, then left the room to help prepare dinner in the kitchen.
Seeing Allen in this state, Rudeus didn't feel like arguing about not being taken along when Allen escorted Roxy. He already knew that escorting Roxy was a pretense, and Allen had actually gone to handle some previous 'personal matters.' He hesitated for a moment but eventually patted Allen's arm, joking to ease the atmosphere.
He said things like "so you're my distant relative" and similar words, but finally, seeing that Allen wasn't responding, he shrugged helplessly and left the room.
By the time Allen snapped out of his daze, only Sylphy remained in the study.
Sylphy's gaze wandered between the floor and Allen's face, and finally, she stepped forward. Under Allen's somewhat dazed gaze, she gently gave him a hug and said softly:
"Sylphy... was also very worried about you. But, it's good that you're back."
Then she blinked and left the study as well.
The evening sunlight streamed through the window onto Allen, casting his shadow long on the ground.
Allen's expression was somewhat dazed.
——
Dinner was still a silent affair.
Even at midnight, lying on the soft bed that Zenith had specially taken out to air, Allen still felt it was somewhat unreal. Honestly, everyone's reactions completely exceeded his expectations.
It was like... being scolded by characters in a novel pointing out your name, or being slapped by a game character reaching out from the screen—that weird feeling...
In the dim bedroom, he lay awake, spreading his hand out in front of his eyes.
'Being transported to another world isn't playing a game... so is this how Paul and the others should react? And the abnormal one is actually me, because I've always been participating in Mushoku Tensei with an attitude of playing a real-life game... instead of completely immersing myself in this world... but even so...'
"Worried? We've only been together for just over three months, even if I am Philip's child, is this necessary..."
A moment of silence.
"...Considered... a part of the family..."
"Tomorrow... I should apologize to them..."
The darkness was silent again for a long while before a faint murmur continued.
"...Family..."
——
In the end, Allen still didn't speak the words of apology, because after that, from the second morning, everyone seemed to return to their previous state of interaction.
Still full of laughter, still learning swordsmanship and magic, still going out to 'play' under the big tree with Sylphy and Rudeus every day, still the whispers from next door every night...
Still the regular, punctual, never-delayed monthly wage of two silver coins.
But Allen always felt something wasn't quite right...
Thus, time flew by in sword practice and Sylphy and Rudeus's magic studies.
Cold winter arrived.
Zenith was pregnant.
Note: So far this story is published up to chapter 110 on my patreon, go check it out and remember that if we reach the goal of 40 power stones I will publish the next chapter.