Actually that is frankly the point. The “typical” Christian answer does not effectively answer the poignant question.

The question is nudging the theist to admit that their worldview is inconsistent with their own view of what they would have done if they would be sovereign as God is.

To understand that question, you have to understand the subjective component of asking the question in the first place. Atheists expect there to be no answer because if God is truly omnipotent and omniscient then he would be able to stop suffering / if he would be able to see that suffering would inevitably occur (with free will, as you touch on) and he would stop it.

Both of these, however, are unsatisfactory. For obvious reasons. Not so obvious for the theist, though.