Integrating into Paul's Family, but Rudy Has Reservations

After a long while, Paul saw that Allen still wasn't moving, so he cautiously began to speak.

"Allen, um, this letter was received last year. I know this might be hard for you to accept, but actually, your father really is—"

"I know James isn't my biological father."

Paul froze, looking at Allen, who wore a calm expression.

"That's great! I'll write to Philip right away and tell him I've found you. That way, you can return to Roa—"

"It won't work."

Paul looked at Allen in surprise, and Allen returned his gaze with a smile.

"Uncle, please sit down and listen to me."

With that, Allen pressed Paul into a chair, then turned to get the chair from the doorway. Paul blinked, looking at him somewhat bewildered.

"First, the information about my disappearance is correct, but my 'biological father' concealed the preceding events."

Allen walked to the doorway, placing his hand on the top of the chair's backrest. The woody texture felt rough and grainy against his palm.

"I was assassinated when I passed through the Red Dragon's Jaw."

Paul shot to his feet.

Allen, meanwhile, lifted the chair and turned to face Paul.

"The 'assassination' was something I deliberately arranged because I had already realized that I wasn't James's biological son. I deduced this by tracing back the pregnancies from my siblings' birthdays. I shouldn't have existed in the Boreas Family in the Royal Capital. There was another younger brother in the same situation as me, but he died of illness at five years old. It wasn't until late last year that I secretly found a bandit group and staged a show, intending to escape from the Boreas Family and come to the Fittoa Region."

Paul let out a long breath and sat back down. Allen had misled him, making him subconsciously believe this choice was to return to his biological father.

Allen walked towards Paul, his eyes narrowing.

"But the 'assassination' went awry. The actual number of assassins didn't match what I'd secretly arranged with the bandits. It was supposed to be five intermediate Swordsmen, to go no further than a superficial attempt, each to go their own way, ending with my 'fall from a cliff and disappearance.' But what ended up appearing before me were eight skilled Swordsmen. If my estimation isn't wrong, that included two Water God Style Upper-tier Swordsmen, and also a Magician—"

"...They went for the kill."

Paul shot to his feet again.

Allen had already reached Paul, looking at him with an indifferent smile.

"So, they died."

Paul let out a long breath, sitting down once more.

Allen also sat down, meeting his gaze.

"Later, I snuck into the forest from the Red Dragon's Jaw. First, I faked traces of me heading north, then spent over four months taking a detour before arriving at Buena Village. I had heard about Uncle Paul's 'heroic deeds' back in the Royal Capital. I figured you wouldn't have much patience for noble children, and Buena Village is quite remote, suitable for hiding one's tracks, so I came to rely on you. However, I only just learned today about the news of my disappearance that followed. It seems James must believe I successfully escaped the Asura Kingdom, which is why he released such information."

Paul blinked.

"Heroic deeds? Oh? I didn't realize my legend was still circulating in the Royal Capital..."

Allen spoke incredibly fast, a dozen words spilling out in an instant.

"Ten-year-old virgin graduating from noble school, messing around with various women, then the wronged parties coming to find you, and your father—"

"Stop!"

Paul immediately stood up and clapped a hand over Allen's mouth. The latter, smiling, pulled Paul's hand away.

"I believe those bandits sold me out to James, and James has always been wary of Philip. Therefore, he deduced that I intended to secretly return and help Philip, so he used the fake assassination as a real opportunity to kill me and eliminate future trouble."

Paul's embarrassed face instantly turned serious. He realized that Allen's words hadn't referred to either James or Philip as "father." After repeatedly opening and closing his mouth, he recalled the scene of his own departure after an argument with his father, and couldn't help but sigh wistfully.

His apparent biological father tried to assassinate him, and he'd never even met his actual biological father... So, he had no sense of family belonging with either of them...

"Then you could secretly return to Roa City, right? If you just keep a low profile and only acknowledge Philip..."

"No."

"Firstly, Sauros has a deep grasp over the Fittoa Region. He would certainly notice, and he wouldn't approve of my actions. There's a very high probability that he would follow the Boreas tradition and send me back to James. At that point, my situation in the Royal Capital would become even more dangerous."

"Secondly, James has definitely placed informants in Roa City to secretly monitor Philip."

With that, Allen lowered his head and earnestly spoke to Paul.

"So, I humbly request that Uncle Paul take me in. As compensation, I can promise to safeguard Rudeus's future, because you can't always be with him, can you? But we are close in age, so I imagine we could become friends in the future."

Paul looked at the letter lying back on the table. After a moment, he could only nod.

Allen continued, "Once two years have passed and the commotion dies down, my body and appearance will have grown more. I'll shave my eyebrows to look friendlier and get a gloomy hairstyle with bangs. Even if someone who once knew me stood right in front of me, they probably wouldn't dare to recognize me."

Unlike the information age before his transmigration, this world's slow information flow had its benefits, and there were very few magical artifacts that could preserve one's appearance. A fierce god like Ruijerd could enter a city just by changing his hair color. And two years would be more than enough time for me to learn from Paul, at least enough to raise my Swordsmanship to Three-Style Upper-tier.

"Of course, James and my family in the Royal Capital, who watched me grow up, would likely recognize me, but as long as I avoid meeting them, I should be fine."

Paul glanced at Allen, sighing inwardly. He had a hunch that Philip would definitely recognize him, but he didn't voice his objection to Allen.

"That's true, and by then your strength will surely have improved further. I doubt anyone, except for a very select few Sword Kings or Sword Emperors, could pose a life threat to you. And your current public story is merely 'disappearance.' Even if they recognize you, they can only send people to assassinate you; they can't openly turn hostile. That's how nobles are in the Asura Kingdom."

Allen nodded.

"Yes."

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the door. Paul and Allen simultaneously fell silent. Then, three knocks sounded on the door.

Lilia opened the door and peered in, first scrutinizing Allen from head to toe, then speaking.

"Master, dinner is ready. Please come eat."

Indeed, Zenith's cooking skills were proportional to her size.

Magnificent.

Allen looked at the steaming soup and rice on the table, and a bread-like dish resembling pizza, with a pot of richly fragrant, tenderly stewed meat in the center.

Rudeus sat directly opposite Allen, observing him through the shimmering heat.

Allen instinctively smiled.

Rudy immediately closed his eyes and turned his head away.

Allen's mouth twitched.

Just then, Paul tapped the table with his finger and cleared his throat.

"Alright, based on our conversation just now, I've confirmed that Allen has the ability to instruct Rudeus. So, there's no need for a probationary period. From now on, he will be Rudy's swordsmanship teacher. Please treat him like family. Don't underestimate his role in this household just because of my swordsmanship rank."

Lilia, who was serving nearby, was the first to applaud. Although she also thought there was no need to hire another swordsmanship teacher, as the daughter of a former swordsmanship dojo owner, she had absolutely no objections to Allen's Water God Style display just now. With his ability, he could easily serve as a guard in the Royal Palace, and a high-ranking one at that.

Zenith clasped her hands in front of her face, smiling warmly.

"Since the master of the house has decided, I naturally welcome Allen. I'm sure Lilia won't underestimate this teacher just because of his age."

With that, she didn't keep her hands idle, reaching out to scoop rice and place it in front of Allen.

Then Paul threw an arm around his shoulder, grinning as he introduced Allen to the three of them, his words full of praise.

Zenith also nodded frequently at him, showing a kind smile.

This was completely different from the cold daily life with so-called relatives in the Royal Capital.

Allen, who hadn't really experienced family warmth in two lives, felt a little unaccustomed to everyone's gaze. He instinctively lowered his head, and the aroma of food wafted over him.

Heat mixed with wisps of steam rose, enveloping his face.

[Current Stage: Infancy, Cumulative Participation Score: 40 points. You have initially integrated into Paul's family, but Rudeus himself has a somewhat different view of you.]

[Immediate Task to Complete: Gain Rudeus's favor.]

[Rudeus: Countdown: 77:38:47]