Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1734: [Bonus] A deal between best friends.

Maiuri continued eating with flawless elegance, maintaining perfect posture while calmly cutting another piece of food without spilling so much as a crumb. Her mature expression remained completely composed from beginning to end, and she never once glanced in his direction.

‘Nah… it couldn’t be her.’

His eyes slowly drifted toward the person sitting beside her.

Jonathan?

For one horrifying moment, an absolutely ridiculous thought surfaced inside Young Aether’s mind.

“…”

His face gradually paled before he immediately shook his head.

‘No. I’m definitely overthinking this! There is absolutely no way… He never swung that way’

He forcefully buried that terrifying possibility before it could grow any larger, although the hairs standing along the back of his neck stubbornly refused to settle.

Several minutes later, Sasha cheerfully returned from the kitchen carrying a small bowl of dessert. Still wearing the same innocent smile from before, she sat back down as though nothing unusual had happened, before happily offering Young Aether a spoonful.

“Want some?”

“No.”

The answer came so quickly that even Jonathan briefly glanced at him.

Young Aether wasn’t taking any chances. After everything that had happened during dinner, he had absolutely no intention of accepting anything Sasha personally handed to him.

Once everyone had finished eating, the atmosphere naturally settled into a quieter silence.

Young Aether placed his utensils down before looking directly at Jonathan.

“I’ll be staying here for the time being,” he said calmly, his playful expression gradually fading into something more serious.

“And while I’m here, I want to help investigate this so-called Hell’s Gate. More importantly, I intend to prove that my people had absolutely nothing to do with everything that’s happened.”

Jonathan watched him silently for several long seconds while his fingers rhythmically tapped against the tabletop. Eventually, he gave a slow nod before leaning back in his chair.

“Fine by me.”

A faint smile appeared on Jonathan’s face, although there was little warmth behind it.

“While you’re trying to prove your people are innocent,” he replied evenly,

“I’ll be doing exactly the opposite. I’ll prove they were responsible for destroying everything here.”

His eyes remained fixed on Aether.

“And if my evidence turns out to be true…” he continued, his voice growing noticeably firmer,

“Will you abandon them and stand with us instead?”

Young Aether didn’t answer immediately.

The question lingered heavily between them, carrying far more weight than the simple words suggested.

Jonathan folded his arms before allowing the faintest smirk to appear.

“What happened?” he asked quietly. “I thought you believed your people weren’t responsible for any of this.”

His gaze never left Aether’s.

“Or… are you no longer certain?”

Jonathan’s intentions couldn’t have been clearer. Regardless of what Aether ultimately decided, Jonathan refused to let his closest friend die in vain, as he was sure… other Empires would fall!

If another empire truly stood on the verge of destruction, he intended to drag Aether onto his side before that future could ever arrive.

Meanwhile, Young Aether wasn’t exactly afraid.

Rather, an uneasy uncertainty lingered in the back of his mind. He still had no idea what kind of schemes Arcane had already set into motion or how deeply events within this empire had been manipulated behind the scenes.

The more he thought about it, the less certain he became of anything.

After all, he had personally witnessed the skull-headed monster hammering the Ebon Stones, and he had also heard reports about the mysterious small hooded figure wandering inside the portal.

Those weren’t coincidences he could simply dismiss.

What if something far greater was unfolding behind his back?

If he needed to bring his friend to his side… he needed to prove they were innocent… but how could he do it?

“Aether?”

Jonathan’s firm voice snapped him back to reality.

Young Aether lifted his head and met Jonathan’s gaze without hesitation.

“Fine,” he replied after a brief silence. “But if it turns out that you are wrong, then you and your wives are coming back with me to my empire. No excuses, no ‘ifs,’ and no backing out. Deal?”

Maiuri and Sasha instinctively looked toward Jonathan.

The confidence radiating from Young Aether’s voice made it sound as though he truly believed nothing could possibly prove his people guilty.

Jonathan remained silent for several seconds. His expression stayed unreadable until the corners of his lips slowly curled into a faint smile.

“Fine,” he answered. “Then we have ourselves a deal. And whoever breaks it…” His eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

“…will never see the other again.”

“I agree.”

The two of them exchanged a small smile before firmly shaking hands, silently sealing the promise between them.

“Since that’s settled,” Jonathan continued, “get ready tomorrow. I’ll take you to a shop.”

Young Aether tilted his head.

“Hm? What for?”

Jonathan smiled as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“To design you a mech suit, of course.”

“…”

Young Aether blinked several times in genuine surprise.

That…

That was the last thing he had expected to hear.

A faintly wicked smile briefly appeared on his lips before disappearing just as quickly, replaced by a thoughtful expression.

“Well then…” Jonathan stretched his shoulders before glancing around the room.

“Shall we call it a night?”

As he spoke, he naturally wrapped an arm around Sasha’s shoulder and gently pulled her closer to his side. She immediately lowered her head, her cheeks turning a soft shade of pink while leaning comfortably against him.

Jonathan then looked directly at Young Aether, his calm expression carrying an unmistakable message.

She’s my wife.

Young Aether simply sighed inwardly.

He wasn’t even trying to steal her.

At this point, he felt as though he was constantly being blamed for crimes he hadn’t even committed.

“And Aether,” Jonathan added casually, “you can sleep in Maiuri’s room.”

“Okay—Wait, what?”

Young Aether’s eyes snapped wide open.

“Her room?”

“Yeah.” Jonathan nodded without the slightest hesitation. “Sasha and I have a few things we need to discuss tonight.”

The slight redness creeping onto Jonathan’s cheeks made it painfully obvious what kind of “discussion” he meant.

Young Aether’s lips twitched.

He understood exactly what Jonathan was implying.

That still didn’t explain why the hell he had to sleep in Maiuri’s room.

“Isn’t there an empty guest room?” Young Aether asked while looking around the spacious house.

“This place is huge. Don’t tell me there are only two bedrooms.”

Unfortunately…

“There aren’t,” Sasha answered with an innocent smile. “Only two bedrooms.”

Young Aether let out a defeated sigh.

“Then I’ll just sleep on the couch…”

Before he could finish, Jonathan stepped forward and firmly grabbed his shoulder.

“Come on, bro.” His expression turned unusually serious. “You already slept on the couch yesterday, and I still feel guilty about it. I’m not letting you do that again.”

He gave Aether’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

“You’ll stay in Maiuri’s room.”

Although Young Aether’s heart genuinely trembled at the trust his friend placed in him… this was the one thing he absolutely fucking did not want.

His face twisted into the expression of someone who desperately wanted to say something but simply couldn’t bring himself to say it out loud.

Damn it…

“How about this?” Young Aether suddenly suggested. “Why don’t you take both of them instead?”

The moment those words left his mouth, both Sasha and Maiuri turned beet red. Even Maiuri, who normally maintained an unshakable composure, lowered her gaze slightly as a faint blush spread across her cheeks.

Jonathan leaned closer before lowering his voice.

“Bro…” he whispered with an embarrassed smile.

“Maiuri’s extremely shy, and… honestly, I don’t have the energy to handle both of them at the same time.”

Young Aether blinked several times.

He wasn’t even talking about that.

Still… after hearing Jonathan’s explanation, he could at least understand one part of the situation. If Maiuri was truly that shy, sharing the same room as Jonathan and Sasha might make her uncomfortable.

He let out a long, exhausted sigh.

At this point, he had already decided to reject the idea altogether and simply sleep on the couch again.

Then Jonathan spoke three simple words.

“I believe in you.”

Young Aether froze.

For a brief moment, his eyes almost became watery.

His best friend trusted him so completely that he was willing to leave his own wife under his care without the slightest hesitation.

But the thing was…

‘But, bro… I don’t believe your wife!’

He screamed inwardly, feeling as though he were on the verge of tears.

In the end, there was nothing he could say.

If he continued refusing after hearing those words, it might seem as though he was the one questioning Jonathan’s trust.

He couldn’t bring himself to do that.

Instead, he turned toward the only person he hoped would object.

“Was… Sister Maiuri really okay with this?”

His voice carried the tiniest hint of hope.

Surely she would tell her husband that having a married woman and a young man sleep in the same room wasn’t exactly appropriate.

However, Maiuri merely folded her arms beneath her chest before giving a calm shrug.

“I’m fine with it.”

“…”

Young Aether silently looked back and forth between the three of them.

Since everyone else had already agreed, continuing to refuse would only make it seem as though he was the one entertaining inappropriate thoughts.

“…Fine.”

Not long afterwards, Jonathan wrapped an arm around Sasha before leading her toward their bedroom, while Maiuri quietly guided Young Aether to hers.

Without wasting any time, Jonathan and Sasha hurried toward their bedroom. The moment the door closed behind them, they casually discarded their outer clothes before diving onto the bed and… they fucked!

Meanwhile, back in Maiuri’s room, an entirely different atmosphere awaited Young Aether.

A large bed covered with elegant floral-patterned sheets occupied the centre of the room, while several oversized stuffed toys rested neatly against the headboard, adding an unexpectedly gentle charm to the space. Framed photographs of Jonathan and Maiuri decorated the walls, each preserving warm moments from their life together, and an old-model chandelier hanging from the ceiling bathed the room in a soft golden glow.

The room felt cosy and lived-in, with every corner quietly reflecting Maiuri’s calm and graceful personality.

“Huh…” Young Aether murmured while taking everything in with quiet curiosity. “This room actually feels… lively.”

Maiuri noticed his wandering gaze and answered in her usual calm tone.

“Jonathan spends most of his time outside on missions, so he rarely stays in one room for long. These bedrooms mainly belong to Sasha and me. Whenever he comes home, he simply chooses whichever room we’re in.”

“Oh…”

Young Aether nodded in understanding as the pieces finally came together.

“So that’s why Jonathan’s room had so many of Sasha’s clothes scattered around.”

“It wasn’t actually his room,” Maiuri corrected matter-of-factly.

“It was Sasha’s. He was simply sleeping there.”