Never did I imagine Hilda would say something like that. Both Eris and Shirou looked completely stunned.
Mrs. Hilda, however, had a firm look on her face, as if she had made up her mind.
As Philip's wife, Hilda was naturally not young, but her appearance was still pretty, making her look like a young woman.
She had the same red hair as Eris and gave off a widow-like charm. But her most striking feature was her incredibly full, generous chest.
Shirou, who was being held in Hilda's arms, even felt like he was suffocating from the softness.
Of course, the most important thing wasn't how comfortable or uncomfortable Hilda's hold was, but rather what Hilda had just said.
Shirou couldn't wait to break free from her embrace and asked, "Hi, Mrs. Hilda? What did you just say? Did you say something wrong..."
Shirou really hoped that Hilda's words were just unintentional.
The idea of him marrying Eris just didn't make sense, no matter how he thought about it.
But Hilda seemed to have misunderstood Shirou's words. She thought Shirou was still too insecure, and quickly said, "It's okay, Shirou, you don't have to worry. I will never let Eris bully you again! That's right, you are my child! Eris is the outsider!"
"M... Mother?"
Hearing Hilda's words, the most stunned was undoubtedly Eris, who was suddenly kicked out of the family. She was completely numb.
Hilda said without hesitation, "Eris! Is there anything you don't like about our Shirou!"
"Wait! Are you just treating Shirou like your own son?"
"Yes, Shirou, who is so well-behaved and sensible, is my child. That's right, he's my only child."
"???"
"So, marry Shirou, Eris, if you still want to be a part of this family."
"But I'm only twelve years old..."
"Age is not a problem at all! Don't always make excuses, you need to improve your womanly charm!"
"I..."
Facing the out-of-control Hilda, Eris tried hard to argue, but it was useless.
Hilda was determined to make this marriage happen and wouldn't listen to anyone's advice.
This stubbornness was very similar to Sauros.
This made Shirou realize why Eris, who was born to the quiet and calm Philip and Hilda, was so short-tempered. It turned out that her mother's genes were to blame.
"Hilda, calm down."
Philip had just seen Sauros off and came back to find that his wife had also gone crazy. He showed a helpless bitter smile.
He tried to calm her down, but found that Hilda's attitude wasn't a joke, nor was it a sudden impulse. She had made a very firm decision.
So Philip himself began to think about what benefits would come from Shirou and Eris getting married.
At the very least, the connection between the Boreas family and the Paul family would become closer.
This way, the Boreas family could use the excuse of helping the Paul family return to the royal capital to officially challenge the Notos family, even completely taking over the Notos family and allowing the Boreas family to rightfully return to the royal capital.
Not only that, but Shirou's own fighting strength was also considerable. He already possessed great strength now, and would likely reach at least Ghislaine's level in the future.
Letting his daughter marry such a strong man was undoubtedly what Philip, as a father, wanted to see.
Because there were too many benefits.
Philip suddenly changed from an opponent to a supporter, and began to hesitate whether to really just go ahead and force the issue, making it a done deal.
As for the others present.
Most people thought Hilda's idea was fine. Many people thought Shirou and Eris were indeed a good match. Even if Hilda hadn't brought it up, many people had actually had similar thoughts.
After all, everyone knew about Eris's situation. Ordinary people really couldn't tame this hot-tempered girl.
If Shirou didn't marry Eris, she would probably end up alone in the future.
"..."
While everyone present was considering things from their own point of view, thinking that the marriage had many benefits, Shirou showed a helpless expression.
He had no interest in the marriage.
At least, he didn't think he was qualified to get married right now.
Shirou always believed that he wasn't strong enough yet. He would only consider such things when he was strong enough, strong enough to protect everyone he wanted to protect.
Of course, Shirou also knew the Boreas family's thoughts. Most of them were probably thinking about Eris, which was why they supported the marriage.
Shirou had a different opinion on this.
That was that he didn't think Eris should be forced to stay by his side.
Eris was strong.
She not only had outstanding talent, but also a strong will.
This kind of Eris was by no means someone's dependent, and she wasn't like most women of this era, whose purpose in life was to get married and have children.
Eris was Eris. She had her own life and the ability to fly to higher places.
Therefore, Shirou rejected the thoughts of most of the Boreas family, rejecting their decision made for Eris's own good.
As for Philip and Hilda.
Leaving aside Philip's thoughts, his overly dark political ideas probably instantly led to many thoughts of power and benefits.
Shirou had never liked such things.
As for Hilda, he thought she had a mistaken idea, which was that as a mother, she ignored her daughter's thoughts.
Her actions just now were the same as ignoring Eris's own feelings and forcing her to marry a man she might not like.
Perhaps this kind of thing was common in this era.
But Shirou, who wasn't born in this era, couldn't accept this so-called normal thing because of his values.
The person that Eris married must be a man that she was willing to marry.
Based on the above thoughts, Shirou completely rejected the marriage. He took a deep breath and tried to speak calmly, "I'm sorry, I can't accept this marriage. Whether it's for Eris's sake or for the Boreas family's sake, this hasty decision is wrong."
Shirou's words were very sincere.
Even Hilda calmed down a bit after hearing his words.
But Eris...
For some reason, even though Shirou's words were basically spoken from Eris's point of view, and he believed that he had made the best decision for Eris,
But after he finished speaking, he inexplicably saw tears in the girl's eyes, and she suddenly turned around and left the scene without looking back.
"Eris!?"
Shirou called out in surprise, but couldn't stop the girl from leaving.
He was completely stunned for a moment and couldn't figure out what was going on.
The people in the banquet hall were also very confused and didn't understand what had happened to Eris.
But Philip had a knowing look on his face, smiling as he walked over and handed Shirou a glass of wine.
Shirou wanted to refuse, but found that Philip had forced the cup into his hand and said, "Sometimes, it's good to get a little drunk. People who are too clear-headed can always make the right decisions, but they often do a lot of hurtful things."
"Hurtful? Me?"
Shirou took the glass of wine, looking doubtful.
He felt that all his thoughts were based on Eris's point of view, and were completely for Eris's own good. How could he be hurting her?
Faced with Shirou's puzzled look, Philip showed the demeanor of a seasoned lover and said with a smile, "Yes, Shirou, your idea is good. You made the right decision for Eris, but the right decision doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. After all, you can never understand a girl's mind. My daughter Eris, even if her personality is like that, is still a girl at heart... Which girl doesn't have vague wishes, doesn't long for a handsome stranger to appear in front of her? Not to mention that for Eris, you have indeed saved her several times as her hero."
"I'm not a hero..."
Shirou shook his head. He never considered himself a hero, because in his opinion, what he did was no different from a butcher.
A hero is someone who saves people.
He was just a butcher who killed people.
Philip looked at Shirou, seemingly surprised that he would be so stubborn, and could only smile wryly, "Okay, then let's just say you're not a hero, but Eris definitely has feelings for you too. When Hilda said that just now, she might have even imagined marrying you in her heart... Granted, that might not be the best outcome, but it's definitely not a bad outcome. However, your answer, Shirou, is the same as completely shattering that yet-to-happen fantasy, so that the girl's vague wish, let alone come to fruition, was completely shattered before it even bloomed. Do you think what you did was right or wrong?"
"I..."
Philip's thorough analysis made Shirou instantly realize the error of his ways.
He also suddenly realized that he had done something so terrible, even sinful.
But Shirou really didn't think he and Eris should get married. That wouldn't be a good outcome for him or for Eris.
If that was the case, Shirou realized that there was only one thing he needed to do.
That was to be open and honest and completely explain his thoughts to Eris.
Only in this way could their relationship take another step forward.
But there was also a huge risk in doing so. The relationship between the two would undergo a huge change, either becoming strangers from then on, or becoming an even closer connection than in the past.
Shirou wasn't sure whether the changes would be good or bad.
That's why he hadn't dared to make a decision in the past.
But this time, he knew he had no choice. If he wanted to repair the relationship, he had to do everything he could to completely confront Eris.
---
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