"But it will be difficult for me to keep those who don't have the Foster bloodline, or aren't naturally attuned to Mana." Max finished and noticed his three aunts shiver.
"Why?" Robert and Evans asked at the same time, their brows furrowed.
"It's not easy to explain, but it has something to do with my method." Max calmly said before looking at Robert, "This was why I hesitated so much before agreeing to your suggestion."
"Then, you mean, apart from us, everyone will still be at a risk of dying when radiation spreads here?" Evans asked while putting his hand on top of Samantha's trembling ones.
"Yes, but it will be just that... a risk." Max said before adding, "Those who are lucky will survive, and those who aren't will be eliminated."
Sunny, Pennel and others shivered not just because their mother's lives were at a risk, but also because of how he sounded and looked so calm when saying this as if he wasn't talking about the over 200 people's possible deaths, but about just some mundane affair.
They finally realized, this seemingly easy to get along guy was in fact a very ruthless man.
Max let them worry for a few moments more, so what he was going to say next would have more impact and they would be more grateful.
Yeah, he accepted it was somewhat insidious of him to do, but he was just looking out for his interest without harming anyone. So, he didn't feel any guilt.
"Don't worry so much, aunts." He said with a smile on his face while looking at Penelope, Hannah and Samantha.
'Huh?' Immediately, everyone focused their gazes on him, especially his aunts, who looked at him with renewed hope.
"M-Max... you mean you can resolve this situation? I mean, can you make it so we won't be in danger any longer?" Hannah nervously asked.
Max didn't immediately answer, creating more tension. Then, he nodded, "For others, I would not go the extra mile because it's already not easy for me to reduce the danger of radiation to a non-fatal level, however, you three are family. So, I can't really let your lives remain in danger."
Everyone relaxed upon hearing this and Robert, Mark and others nodded in appreciation.
"You are a good man, little Max. I'm sure Sarah would have been proud if she was awake now." Peter emotionally said, but then he realized he might have touched a sore spot for Max and panicked.
Fortunately, for him, Max didn't look upset and even gave him a light smile and a nod.
He then looked at his relieved aunts and said, "Aunts, starting from the day of radiation's arrival until either you awaken or I find a way to cleanse the area of radiation, you'll live with me and my family in my house where my method will be more effective."
...
A while later, Mark, Peter, Evans and their families had left, leaving only Max and Robert, who looked at Max with a grateful and guilty look on his face.
"Thank you, little Max, and I'm sorry that I and my family didn't contact you all these years."
Max shook his head, "No need for thanks, Grandfather. As I said, aunts are also my family, so I'm doing what I should do. Also, you don't need to feel guilty about staying clear of me all these years because I know you must have your reasons with our families being involved in such complicated matters."
Robert nodded without saying anything.
After a moment, Max said, "Grandfather, I need a mansion where at least twenty people can live comfortably. I'm going to bring my family over."
"No problem." Robert promptly agreed.
"Good. Then, I'll leave. Everyone must be feeling quite anxious because of my long absence." Max said, standing up.
"You can take Jack or Henry with you if you want. Normal desperados would dare cause trouble when they see them with guns." Robert suggested.
"Yeah. I'm going to take them." Max nodded. He had already thought about bringing one of them and a few other people to escort everyone here.
With several people, not only would it be safer—though he didn't need to worry about it with his current physical stats—they could bring their stuff along too.
...
In the evening... Right before the sunset, Henry saw a group of twenty people coming toward the mansion. When the group was still far, he raised his guard up, but when it came nearer, he saw Max, Jack and several other familiar people and relaxed. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢
"Welcome to the gov—Williams' Mansion!" He greeted the Williams, the Martinez, Thompsons and Harman's family with a polite smile on his face.
Emily, Sophie and Natalie—who was walking beside Max, with her hand hooked around his hand for support—and Ruth and others looked at him in confusion which soon turned into surprise and then astonishment when Jack and others didn't refute him.
"Big Brother... What's going on?" Natalie asked, blinking her beautiful blue eyes at him, curious like a cat.
Sophie glanced at her before looking at Max.
Max patted her small head, and smilingly said, "Some things happened and I became the leader of this place."
If the fact that he could take them to the Governor's Mansion, the safest place in the Red city, and had even brought people to escort them had surprised Natalie, this shocked her so much that she found it surreal. But soon, the shock and disbelief turned into adoration and she looked at him with shining eyes.
Among the group, she wasn't the only one to have this reaction, however, as Ruth was the same.
In fact, Max could feel several more impressed gazes on him which made him feel some pride.
"Alright. Let's go and get settled now." He said and took the lead to enter the mansion after giving Henry a nod.
Half an hour later, the four families had settled in their new homes.
As Max asked Robert, he was given a large villa which could comfortably house 25 people.
As for the Martinez, Thompsons and Harman's family, they were given two story houses with a small garden at front.
"It's nice here, Big Brother." Natalie said while looking around.
Not long after they settled their things in their new rooms, Natalie had excitedly rushed over and asked him to take a walk with her around the mansion and explore it.
Max naturally did not deny her. Just when they were leaving the house, they ran into Sophie who asked them where they were headed to.
Natalie told her what they were going to do and invited her to join them. Sophie agreed and now the three of them were taking a stroll.
"Yes, it is." Max nodded and glanced at Sophie, "What about you, Sophie? Do you like the place?"
"Mm, I do." Sophie nodded, "We are not alone now and while clearly worried, the people here don't seem hopeless and depressed."
Hearing this, Max nodded to himself, feeling that his decision to take charge of the place and accepting the quest was right.
Thinking of the quest, with a thought, he pulled up the quest screen.
[Time Remaining: 4 Days, 20 Hours.]
"Max!"
Right then, a gentle and sweet voice called out to him.
"Who is she?" Before Max had even looked over, Natalie spoke up, her eyes narrowed as she looked at the mature woman in office dress walking toward them with a smile on her face.
Max didn't need to look to know it was Vivian.
Then he noticed the interesting reaction Natalie had and seeing how Sophie seemed to become somewhat defensive from the subtle shift in her expression, he suppressed a grin.
Leaning over to Natalie, he teasingly whispered in a loud enough voice for Sophie to hear too.
"What's up with your expression? Are you perhaps feeling jealous?"
"W-What?!" Like a startled cat, Natalie's head jerked and she cried out in almost too loud a voice, receiving some curious and weird looks from the nearby people who were already paying them attention after seeing Max.
Feeling everyone's gazes, Natalie blushed and glared at Max with an aggrieved look in her moist eyes.
Seeing her looking at him this way, he felt the urge to cup her face in his hands and kiss her. But since he wasn't into showing others his intimate moments to other people, he resisted it.
Natalie saw the fiery look in his eyes and felt hot all over. She had almost tilted her face upwards, offering her lips to him, but seeing him just smile at her before looking away, she felt so embarrassed that she wanted to dig a hole and crawl into it.
'Hmph! How hateful!' She inwardly snorted in displeasure and almost stomped her feet on the ground.
But it was not enough to vent her anger, so she tightened her hold around his arm and glared at Vivian.
'How cute!' Max thought and after taking a quick look at Sophie, which only deepened the satisfaction in his eyes, he looked at Vivian and smiled, "Hello, Aunt Vivian."
Vivian was startled seeing Natalie's aggressive stare and seeing how she was holding onto Max, she pursed her lips, a hint of envy flashing in her eyes.
Then, the scene of him kissing her flashed in her mind, and before she knew it, she found herself returning the glare and thinking, 'You want to keep him all to yourself just because you are his girlfriend? What wishful thinking, hmph!'
When she got a hold of herself, her eyes widened ever so slightly and she felt a wave of shame.
'What's wrong with me? Why am I being so childish?' She scolded herself, but she couldn't help it. Even though she felt ashamed to admit it, the thought of Natalie keeping him away from her displeased her. She really liked and wanted the thrill of having an affair.
After Max had gone out, she had debated with herself over how shameful and bad it was for her to cheat on her husband, but in the end, her repressed side had won.
Not long after she gave birth to Anna, her sex life with her husband had become non-existent. On the occasions she really could not hold back and took the initiative, he always told her he was tired or not feeling like doing it.
Since he did not care for her needs, what if she found someone else to do it? As long as no one found out about it, no one would be hurt and she would get to experience and enjoy the very important part of her womanhood she had been missing out on.
'Hm?' Without even looking at her status, Max could roughly tell what she had thought after making eye contact with Natalie, and from the changes in Natalie and Sophie's expressions, he wasn't the only one who could tell.
Swoosh!
Both Natalie and Sophie turned their gaze toward him, but he acted as if he couldn't see them and walked towards Vivian.
"Are you going somewhere?" He asked.
"Yes. I was going to your home." Vivian nodded with a smile.
"Oh, why?" Max asked, curious.
"Uncle Robert no longer needs a secretary, so he has sent me to report to you." Vivian smiled, "I'm going to be your secretary, of course, only if you don't have any problem with it."
Max shook his head, "Why would I have any problem with it? In fact, I'm happy that you, someone who I can trust, will be working for me."
Vivian's smile grew radiant when she heard this. Just when she was about to say something, Natalie could no longer keep silent, and spoke up.
"Big Brother, why don't you introduce us?"
Vivian's smile froze, not because Natalie had interrupted her, but because of how she addressed Max.
Max gave her a displeased look and she hurriedly snapped back to her senses which made him nod inwardly.
He did not want anyone to judge him for loving his family in his own way. But if someone did, they better keep their thoughts to themselves. If they said something about it or showed it on their faces, well, let's just say he would ensure they would never do it again.
He knew people might consider him a tyrant for it, but he did not care. If they could not accept his rules even after he saved their lives, they could leave his territory and die for all he cared.
Vivian's heart pounded in her chest. She knew if she hadn't retracted her expression, Max would have no longer treated her warmly like he had been doing and she would have become like everyone else, a stranger.
Max nodded at Natalie and said while looking at Vivian, "This beautiful lady is Vivian. She had a very good relationship with my mother, so I call and treat her like my real aunt."
He then gestured toward Natalie and Sophie, "This sweet girl is Natalie, my younger sister, and this here is Sophie, my elder sister."
"I see." Vivian nodded, realizing they were the step-sisters she heard about from Robert.
"Hello, Miss Natalie, Miss Sophie. It's very nice to meet you." She greeted them with a warm but polite smile.
"Hello." Sophie curtly nodded while Natalie stared at her for a few moments before she tightened her hold around Max's arm, pressing it against her chest, and revealed a radiant smile, "Hello, Auntie. It's nice to meet you too."
The corner of Vivian's lips twitched hearing how she called her 'auntie' and sighed in her heart, 'What a possessive little girl!'