Rites

Silent Conversation

Zaki sat there silently, like a drenched chick, looking somewhat despondent. He was in urgent need of someone to help and guide him, yet the mother he once trusted most was now mired in deep suspicion... Should you summon Fatuna to confront him, or let Maggie comfort Zaki, who always had a way...

ID: 5006508

Type: None

Tips: None

Duration: 1 days

Waits For: 3 days

Marked as New Only on First Occurrence: 1

Starts Automatically: No

Triggers Result Automatically: No

Tag Tips: None

Tag Tips Up: None

Tag Tips Text:

Random Text: None

Random Text Up: None

Actions When Wait Expires

Action:

Slots

Slot #1
Zaki doesn't know what to do

Locks: Yes

Is Key: No

Is Empty: No

Is Enemy: No

Conditions:

  • Type = Character
  • Card = Zaki

Pops: None

Slot #2
You can enlighten Zaki personally because you are his trusted mentor

Locks: No

Is Key: No

Is Empty: Yes

Is Enemy: No

Conditions:

Pops: None

Slot #3
Perhaps the meticulous-minded Maggie can help

Locks: No

Is Key: No

Is Empty: Yes

Is Enemy: No

Conditions:

  • Type = Character
  • Tag (Wife) = 1

Pops: None

Slot #4
Maybe calling Fatuna to have an open talk would be a good idea?

Locks: No

Is Key: No

Is Empty: Yes

Is Enemy: No

Conditions:

Pops: None

Activation Conditions

This rite has no activation conditions.

Outcome

Prior

This rite has no prior outcome.

Regular

Fatuna is already your wife
After seeing the old letter paper in her son's hands, Fatuna is silent for a moment, then looks up at you, as if asking what you mean.

She is now your wife, Zaki is her child and also your child, and of course you do not want to lose either. So you try to resolve the situation. You take the young man's cold hand and place it in Fatuna's pale palm. "Let bygones be bygones, there's no point, Zaki. She is your mother," you pause, emphasizing, "We are a family."

The young man stares wide-eyed at you, incredulous. He wants to pull back his hand, wants to refute something, but ultimately does nothing, says nothing.

He presses his lips tightly and lowers his head, abandoning the pursuit of that cruel answer, abandoning the question that torments you: what true justice is. However, the persistent doubts fester in his heart, turning into an unhealable sore that aches with every midnight recollection for the rest of his life.

Conditions:

Result:

You called both Maggie and Fatuna here
After seeing the old letter paper in her son's hands, Fatuna had remained silent for a long time before sighing as if finally relieved.

"Yes, if you must ask, I gave him tea brewed from cloves, then gave him wine, and after that, my brother pressed his head into the bath." Fatuna said calmly, looking straight at you.

"But why... why? Father indeed had a mistress... but... that's not a crime worthy of death!" The young noble cried hoarsely, tears welling from his eyes.

"You didn't sentence him to death, my dear child, I know," Fatuna looked at Zaki gently, but her words were harsh, "But I did. I sentenced your father to death. That's how it is, I admit my crime."

"Don't say that." Maggie squeezed her hand tightly, then looked at Zaki, "She did it for you, son. She—"

"Don't, Maggie, don't." Fatuna tried to interrupt her several times, but Maggie continued to speak gently yet firmly, holding her cold and trembling hand, "Isn't it clear in the letter? Your father had a child with a mistress... A child would gradually empty your mother's property, take away your future little by little. Human nature is greed, Zaki... I can understand everything your mother did; she had to, because she must protect you. Who else could protect you, your father blinded by lust? Or the woman coveting your wealth?"

Fatuna finally began to sweep, her shoulders slump helplessly. For the first time... even her brother did not understand why she was so determined... for the first time someone could really understand her. But this truth was not a burden that a child should bear. She collapsed, covering her face and cries bitterly, "This has nothing to do with him, why did you tell him? This is the sin I committed... This is my sin."

Zaki was completely stunned. He looked blankly, unbelieving at his mother. Was his father's death because of him? This heavy sin falls upon his immature shoulders. But what wrong did he do? Maggie whispered to comfort Fatuna, telling her that children must know the truth while signaling to you. You understood her meaning, took Zaki, and walked out of the room.

Zaki stood silently beside you. He had never seen his mother cry before. He recalled for a long time the once gentle and smiling mother who had not smiled since his father's death... She maneuvered strongly, putting forth a brave front, navigating among those wolves to protect their precarious and stable life... all but for him...!

"Yet even so..." he choked as he lowered his head, unsure of how to continue, "I really don't know what to do better... I have no right to blame my mother, but I also have no right to forgive her. What should I do? If you give me a knife, I will do it, if you tell me to forgive, I will do it. But... which is right, and which is wrong? I really don't know..." He leaned against you, slowly, his depressed confessions grew weaker and weaker, and you turn to look at him, this child... He fell asleep out of exhaustion. You pat his soft hair, wiped the tears from his face, and sighs softly. For a moment, you can feel that he almost regards you as his father.

Conditions:

Action:

You briefly explained the situation to Maggie, and Zaki presented the evidence to her.
The wife looked at the letters in astonishment for a long time before sighing, "... I understand her." Sympathy and compassion appeared in her eyes, "Maybe what she did was wrong, but... I understand her. She is a woman, a mother... what else could she do to protect herself and you?"

You knew, and you explained to the young man that if his mother hadn't acted, his father would have made the child outside the heir. The father would then slowly empty the mother's property and take away his future, bit by bit. None of this could be stopped unless one party died.

Zaki listened blankly, his clenched fists slowly unclenching. But how could this be... was this family broken because of him, what had he done wrong? The young man's eyes filled with tears, and he helplessly covered his face, "But what should I do? I... I can't blame her, nor can I forgive her... I... if you give me a knife, I will do it, if you ask me to forgive, I will listen to you. But which is right, which is wrong? I really don't know..."

Maggie gently patted his back, softly comforting him. The child's tearful confessions slowly exhausted themselves into quiet. Maggie wiped the tears from his sleeping face and sighed, "Poor child... let him sleep well for a while."

Conditions:

Action:

You left matters to Maggie and Fatuna to resolve
After seeing the old letter in her son's hand, Fatuna remained silent for a long time, then sighed as if she had finally released a burden. “Yes, if you must ask, I gave him tea brewed with clove buds, then gave him wine, and then my Brother pressed his head into the bathhouse.” Fatuna looked calmly at Maggie.

"But why... why? Father indeed had a mistress... but... that's not a crime worthy of death!" The young noble cried hoarsely, tears welling from his eyes.

"You didn't sentence him to death, my dear child, I know," Fatuna looked at Zaki gently, but her words were harsh, "But I did. I sentenced your father to death. That's how it is, I admit my crime."

"Don't say that." Maggie squeezed her hand tightly, then looked at Zaki, "She did it for you, son. She—"

"Don't, Maggie, don't." Fatuna tried to interrupt her several times, but Maggie continued to speak gently yet firmly, holding her cold and trembling hand, "Isn't it clear in the letter? Your father had a child with a mistress... A child would gradually empty your mother's property, take away your future little by little. Human nature is greed, Zaki... I can understand everything your mother did; she had to, because she must protect you. Who else could protect you, your father blinded by lust? Or the woman coveting your wealth?"

Fatuna finally began to sweep, her shoulders slump helplessly. For the first time... even her brother did not understand why she was so determined... for the first time someone could really understand her. But this truth was not a burden that a child should bear. She collapsed, covering her face and cries bitterly, "This has nothing to do with him, why did you tell him? This is the sin I committed... This is my sin."

The mother's tears awakened Zaki's lost soul. He remembered his once ever-smiling and gentle mother, who after the sudden change, risked everything to protect him, maintaining their precarious life, exhausting all her energy to deal with the wolves... it was to protect such a mother that he mustered the courage to seek a master to learn from, wasn't it?

He stepped forward and embraced his mother. It was also at this moment that he realized how thin and haggard she had become. “No, Mom, this is our crime.” He wiped away the tears from his mother’s face, and at that moment, it seemed he had finally grown up. He understood that justice and crime are not purely black and white; the helpless, the inevitable gray in between, that is the human world.

Conditions:

Result:

Action:

You called Fatuna for a confrontation
After seeing the old letter in her son's hand, Fatuna remained silent for a long time, then sighed as if she had finally released a burden. “Yes, if you must ask, I gave him tea brewed with clove buds, then gave him wine, and then my Brother pressed his head into the bath.” Fatuna looked calmly at you.

“But why... why? Father did have an affair – but – but that's not a death sentence!” The young nobleman roared hysterically, tears welling up in his eyes.

“You did not sentence him to death, my dear child, I know,” Fatuna looked at Zaki with soft eyes, but her words were firm, “but I did. I sentenced your father to death. That's how it is, I admit my guilt.”

Zaki could no longer listen, he glared fiercely at his mother and rushed out the door as if he had never really known her. You looked helplessly at Fatuna, this stubborn woman sitting in the shadow, like a sculpture that had lost its life.

Conditions:

Action:

You chose to comfort him alone
How should you persuade this child? You opened your mouth, at a loss for words – true, the man had done wrong, but in your heart, you believed he didn’t deserve to die... It’s unfair to Zaki’s father, and even more so to Zaki, who has lost a stable life and his father's protection.

Zaki looked into your eyes, not needing you to speak, gradually calmed down. 'I know what to do, teacher.' He bowed to you, then resolutely left your sight.

Conditions:

Action:

You left it to Maggie
Maggie read the letters seriously, and after a long silence, she looked up at the child who was nervously sitting aside waiting for an answer. He clutched the cloth on his knees tightly, bit his lip, and frequently looked out the window with eyes full of unease and anxiety.

Maggie sighed softly, knowing that the person the child was looking for was you – the person he trusted and admired, yet you were absent for some reason in this crucial conversation for him. Maggie knew that what she said to Zaki would not carry as much weight as your words, which made her feel heavy pressure, but she wouldn't back down. She put the letter down and gently asked Zaki, 'You think your mother was wrong, don't you? She killed a man who shouldn't have died.'

Her eyes seemed to see into the deepest parts of human hearts. Zaki was silent for a moment and then looked away. 'Father... Father indeed had an affair, but... if it were you, if my teacher made such a mistake... would you kill him?'

Maggie thought seriously for a moment, 'Maybe I would, maybe I wouldn't. But... if I were in Fatuna’s situation, I would certainly make the same choice. The biggest difference between me and her is that I do not have a child. Zaki, your mother had to do this because she had to protect you.'

'Protect me?!' Zaki looked up in surprise.

Maggie nodded, 'The letter makes it very clear, doesn't it? Your father had a child outside... it goes without saying that if this continued, he would slowly drain your mother's property, and bit by bit, take away your future. Human hearts are greedy, Zaki... when that day comes, who would protect you? Would you rely on your father blinded by lust? Or beg that woman who schemes for wealth?'

Zaki opened his mouth, 'You are saying, my mother killed for me... all because of me? But I, but I... but I didn't do anything! But I... sob...' He couldn't accept this result. He came to seek justice, but now, this heavy blame fell on his shoulders. Was he a mistake from birth? If he hadn't been born, neither his father would have died, nor his mother would carry this burden of life. What should he do to uphold the weighty word 'justice'?... He bent his back, nearly breaking down as he covered his face. At this moment, his reluctance and struggle against parricide faded. What he felt was a kind of unprecedented confusion and fear, as if the inner world he built cracked open a huge chasm in an instant, a gentle touch would shatter it into ashes.

Maggie didn't know that he had thought so much in an instant, she just softly patted the boy's back, 'I am not blaming you, Zaki. You're a good child, just young... Time will tell you the answer, give yourself some time, and give your mother some time, okay?' And Zaki, at a loss, could only nod haphazardly, then left in a daze.

After that, for a period of time, he seldom came to you. You could feel that he no longer admired or relied on you as he did before. Perhaps, some things in the boy’s heart were permanently rewritten. Perhaps, this is the path of growth...

Conditions:

Result:

You decide to leave the space for this mother and child
In your perspective, the best way to resolve matters is to talk it out face-to-face. You call for Fatuna, and then leave the space for this mother and child.

However, things did not go as you expected. Before long, you hear sounds of argument from the room. The door is pushed open violently, and the boy runs out wiping tears haphazardly. When he sees you, he completely loses control. He cries loudly, 'It was really her... Teacher, it was really her!'

You hurriedly comfort the child and instinctively glance inside the door. The woman sits in the shadows, lips tightly pursed, not getting up, as stubborn as a lifeless statue.

Conditions:

Action:

Extra

This rite has no extra outcome.