Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1863: When He Thought No One Would Stay… They Stood Beside Him: Part 1

It wasn’t that long… was it?

After Penelope left him, Aether’s life had suddenly become unbearable.

Life had pushed him down countless times, forcing him to endure things he never thought he could survive. But whenever he reached the point where he could no longer see a reason to keep moving, there had always been one person waiting for him.

Penelope!

She had become the light he looked toward whenever everything around him turned dark.

She had been the fundamental reason for his survival!!

As long as there had been one person standing beside him, waiting somewhere at the end of his life, he had been willing to crawl through anything to reach her.

She would still be there.

Right?

But even that had been crushed because of his incompetence.

Everything he had built for them seemed to crumble before his eyes. Every brick he had carefully placed, every sacrifice he had made, every future he had quietly imagined for the two of them had collapsed one piece at a time.

And he couldn’t even protect it.

Had he not done enough?

He had survived every day believing that eventually there would come a day when everything would finally become brighter… as long as she was with him.

Now that future was gone.

The years of love and care had ended with a few words.

He had just been broken up with by the woman he had built his life around.

They had shattered, and… he no longer knew how to move forward.

He felt like stagnant water that had pooled in one place for too long, slowly losing itself to become a dry patch of earth.

Drip…

Drip…

Drip…

The rain poured harder as a tall figure with slouched shoulders moved through the streets. At first, he walked.

Then his steps became slower and heavier until it was difficult to tell whether he was walking at all or simply dragging his body forward through the rain.

His old clothes were completely soaked, clinging to his body as water streamed from his black hair and ran down his face.

His eyes were dull and swollen, carrying the exhausted redness of someone who had either cried moments ago.

He walked aimlessly beneath the grey sky, paying no attention to where the road led or how far he had already gone.

Eventually, a street crossing appeared ahead.

The pedestrian signal was red.

Aether barely noticed it.

He continued forward without slowing, his gaze fixed somewhere beyond the road as though there were something waiting on the other side that even he couldn’t see.

Closer and closer… reaching the road where vehicles were moving faster.

Sshhh!

Shhh!

Shhh!

The vehicles blurred…

Closer… and Clos—

CCKKKK!!

Just then, the sharp sound of bicycle brakes cut through the rain.

A bicycle stopped directly in front of him.

Aether finally stopped.

He slowly raised his head.

His reddened eyes stared blankly at the person standing before him.

It was his friend.

His friend was drenched as well, water dripping from his hair and running down his face.

He dropped the bicycle without even bothering to place it on its stand. It simply fell sideways onto the wet pavement with a metallic clatter.

He didn’t care.

He hurried toward Aether and grabbed him, pulling him into a tight embrace.

Aether remained completely still.

His arms hung loosely at his sides.

For several seconds, he didn’t even seem to understand what was happening.

Then he blinked slowly.

“W-What are yo—”

His friend tightened his arms around him before finally pulling back.

“Let’s go,” he said, his voice unsteady. “Come on. Let’s get something to drink.”

Aether stared at him without expression.

His friend looked directly into his eyes and immediately understood.

There was nothing there.

His friend swallowed hard.

“E-Everything will be alright,” he trembled, “Okay? You hear me? It’ll… it’ll get better.”

Aether lowered his gaze toward his own soaked clothes.

“I… I don’t have any money.”

His friend’s lips trembled, clenching his jaws. He quickly bit his lower lip and looked away for a moment, forcing himself to regain control before looking back at Aether.

“Who asked you for money?”

Aether remained silent.

His friend attempted a weak smile, but it barely lasted a second.

“Haha… it’s my treat, alright?”

He turned his face away and wiped beneath his nose with the back of his hand.

“I-It’s my… sniff… it’s my treat. So stop worrying about it.”

Aether said nothing.

His friend looked at him for another moment before quietly adding, “You don’t have to talk about what happened. You don’t have to pretend you’re okay, either. Just… come with me.”

Before Aether could reject him again, his friend pulled him toward the bicycle.

He picked it up from the pavement, wiped some of the water from the seat with his hand, even though the rain still poured, and motioned for Aether to sit behind him.

“Get on.”

Aether hesitated.

“Hold on to me,” his friend said.

Aether slowly climbed onto the bicycle.

His hands barely closed around the sides of his friend’s jacket.

The bicycle moved.

The wheels cut through the thin layer of water covering the road as his friend pedalled into the rain.

Aether remained silent.

Streetlights blurred into pale streaks across his vision. Rain struck his face continuously, cold enough to sting, yet he barely reacted to it.

Eventually, they reached their destination.

The bicycle stopped outside a small local bar tucked between two older buildings. Its sign flickered faintly above the entrance, struggling against the rain and the darkness surrounding it.

His friend climbed off first and helped Aether down.

They entered the bar.

The receptionist looked up as they entered and immediately noticed their drenched clothes.

Without asking unnecessary questions, he handed them two towels.

His friend took them.

“Thanks.”

He handed one to Aether.

Aether stared at it for a moment before slowly taking it.

His friend turned toward the receptionist.

“Do you have a separate room?”

“Yes, sir.”

“We’ll take one.”

The receptionist nodded.

“And… bring us plenty of beer.”

He paused, then glanced at Aether before adding, “The best stuff.”

Soon, they were guided into a private room.

The door closed behind them, cutting off most of the noise from the bar.

Aether sat quietly on one side of the table.

His friend sat opposite him.

A large jug of beer had been placed between them, its surface covered with tiny beads of condensation. Foam gathered near the top, slowly settling as the room grew quiet.

With his dull eyes, Aether looked at his friend, who was smiling at him warmly.

“Go on… drink it. This will make you forget the pain… forget everything. Just drink it, man.”

His friend’s lips trembled slightly as he said it.

For a moment, Aether didn’t respond. His eyes remained fixed on the beer sitting before him, watching the tiny bubbles rise through the golden liquid and disappear against the surface.

Forget everything?

The words sounded almost laughable!

How could alcohol make him forget something that had taken ten years to build?

Still, he reached for the drink.

Aether slowly extended his hand and wrapped his fingers around the glass. His grip was weak at first, almost as though his body itself had forgotten how to hold something properly.

He lifted it toward his mouth.

Gulp…Gulp… Gulp… Gulp!!

He emptied the entire glass in one go.

The beer burned faintly as it went down his throat. He lowered the glass and stared at it for several seconds as though expecting something to change.

Nothing did.

The ache was still there.

The hollow feeling in his chest remained exactly where it had been.

His friend quietly refilled his glass, and he took a small sip of his own beer and waited.

After three more rounds, the words finally came.

“T-The fuck does she want me to do, huhhhhh?”

Aether slammed his fist against the table.

“Does she think… I’m not trying enough? Huhhhhh? These fucking assholes didn’t give me the fucking job!… And even if I do get one… they barrreeeely let me stay for one or two months!”

His voice was slurred and hoarse from the alcohol.

His friend remained silent.

Aether pointed toward himself with a shaking finger.

“Tell me, Allen. What the fuck was I supposed to doooo? It’s not like I wanted to be jobless, am I?!….ha… You know how much I’ve been tryinggg… don’t you?”

Allen nodded slowly.

“I know.”

“You know? Hickkk….You?”

“Yeah.”

Allen placed his glass on the table.

“You’re doing your best to get whatever job offers you can. You’ve been doing that for years. I know that, man, and I’ve always appreciated it.”

Aether stared at him.

For a brief moment, the anger in his expression weakened.

Then he laughed bitterly.

“See? You can see it, but that fucking idiot thinks I’m doing it on purpose…”

His fingers tightened around the glass.

“She looks at me like I’m some fucking parasite. Like I wake up every morning and decide, ‘You know what? I think I’ll stay unemployed today just to piss her off.’ Hahah…”

Allen sighed quietly.

“That’s not what she—”

“Then what is it?”

Aether cut him off.

“What the fuck is it, Allen?”

He leaned forward, his eyes becoming increasingly bloodshot.

“I’ve applied everywhere. I’ve taken jobs nobody wanted. I’ve worked for people who treated me like shit because I needed the money…. And every time something finally works out, something happens, and I’m back at fucking zeroooo.”

He clenched his jaw as he remembered her hurtful words.

“Waiting ten years to get my life together? Woman! I’ve been doing that for fucking twenty-five years!”

His voice cracked.

“Twenty-five fucking years!”

He grabbed his beer and swallowed another mouthful.

“Hmm… Does she think I’m just enjoying this shit? Gulp…”

He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and looked directly at Allen.

“Tell me, Allen. Did…Did… I stay stuck in my room? I worked whatever fucking job I could get. I didn’t care what it was.”

His words came faster now.

“I was a pa..pa..plumber. A delivery guy. A service agent. A sa..sass.sales agent. A baker. A dissshhvassher…”

He paused, trying to remember everything.

“And so on.”

A bitter laugh escaped him.

“I did everything, Allen.”

He tapped his chest.

“I did everything!”

Allen watched him carefully.

“Does she not see that?”

Aether’s voice lowered.

“For the past ten fa..fa..fucking years… does she not see how hard I’ve been trying?”

Allen nodded.

“I know. You’ve done everything. I’ve seen it myself.”

He leaned forward slightly.

“I remember when you were working two jobs at the same time. You barely slept. You’d come home exhausted, sleep for a few hours, and then leave again.”

Aether’s eyes flickered.

“I remember you calling me once at three in the morning because you were still working.” Allen gave a faint smile. “You were so tired you couldn’t even remember what day it was.”

Aether stared at him.

“You remember…. that?”

“Of course I remember.” Allen shrugged. “You think I wouldn’t?”

Aether looked down.

The anger that had filled his face moments ago slowly gave way to something quieter.

Something wounded.

“See…”

He swallowed.

“You can see the truth, but not that fucking woman.”

Aether gritted his teeth and gulped down another mouthful of beer.

“I should have never loved that woman in the first place… I should have never… ever loved her.”

He stared at the table.

For a few seconds, neither man spoke.

Then Aether gave a hollow laugh.

“Love?”

He shook his head.

“Yuck.”

He took another drink.

“That shit is fucking fake, buddy. Don’t ever fall for that trap.”

Allen raised an eyebrow.

Aether continued without noticing.

“They fucking use you like a dildo and throw you away when they find their so-called… ‘Life-settled man!ʼ”

Allen nearly choked on his drink.

Aether slammed his glass back onto the table.

“If any bitch comes up to you and says she loves you, tell her to fuck off! No! Call me! I deal with that bitch!!”

Allen wiped his mouth and stared at him for a moment.

Then he started laughing.

“Hahaha…. You’re unbelievable.”

Aether glared at him.

“What?”

“Asshole, you enjoyed everything.”

Allen shook his head. “You spent ten years with that woman. And now you’re sitting here telling me love is fake? The fuck do you mean? Hahaha… I’m fucking a virgin, bro!! Unlike you, who saw heaven!!”

He shouted the last words with an annoyed expression, almost as though he had suddenly remembered that Aether’s love had personally offended him.

“Just because you got dumped doesn’t mean you get to turn around and tell your friends that love is some kind of fucking scam!”

He leaned back in his chair.

Aether slowly turned his head toward him.

“Enjoyed?”

Aether’s eyes narrowed.

“DO YOU THINK I’M ENJOYING THIS SHIT?!”

His voice exploded through the room.

Allen flinched and immediately raised both hands.

“Bro… I’m sorry.”

Aether’s breathing became heavier, then he gulped down another drink as he shook his head.

“No, no… you’re right!”

He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and stared at Allen with a crooked smile.

“I can’t leave my friend a virgin forever, can I?”

Allen raised an eyebrow.

Aether leaned closer across the table, lowering his voice as though he had just come up with the greatest idea in the world.

“How about this… we go to the… hmm…”

A mischievous grin slowly appeared on his face.

“You know…”

He let out a drunken chuckle.

“Hehe… let’s go there and enjoy ourselves to the fullest. We’ll forget everything for tonight. What do you think? No woman could block us from what we want!!”

Allen stared at him for several seconds before shaking his head.

“I would’ve loved to go to a brothel with you, bro, but… right now, that’s not what you need. You are not yourself. In fact, you would have beaten me if I said that…”

Aether frowned.

“Not me?”

He looked down at himself as though he had suddenly become confused by his own existence.

“Not me?”

He touched his chest.

“I’m… me?”

Allen’s lips twitched.

He closed his eyes and sighed. “Just drink this medicine.”

He pointed toward the beer.

“You’ll be fine tomorrow.”

“Medicine?”

Aether stared at the beer suspiciously.

Then, without hesitation, he lifted the glass and gulped it down.

“Hmmm…”

He lowered it slowly.

“Yes… This medicine is really working.”

Aether leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling.

“I… I’ve really realised how much of a losseeer I am. I literally believed she was my life…”

He gave a short, bitter laugh.

“The fuck?”

He rubbed his face.

“How much of a simp can one person be?”

His expression twisted with disgust.

“Yuck…”

He covered his mouth for a moment, looking as though he might actually vomit from the realisation.

“A-Aether, careful there.”

Allen immediately leaned forward when he saw him sway.

Aether steadied himself against the table.

Then he started laughing.

“Haha… hehehehe… What fucking woman?”

He suddenly slapped his palm against his chest.

“How dare she think she’s tired of me?! Huh?”

He turned toward Allen.

“Tell me, Allen. I’m tired of her!”

Allen stared at him.

“I’m tired of accepting her!”

Aether pointed at himself with a trembling finger.

“It’s me who broke up with her! Not the other way around!”

His voice suddenly rose.

“YOU HEAR ME?!”

Allen nodded.

“Yes.”

“Yes… yes…”

Aether smiled.

“Hehe… How dare she think she’s the only one thinking about our future…”

He lowered his head.

“I…”

His fingers tightened around the glass.

“I’m trying, man.”

His voice became quieter.

“I did… I really…”

He swallowed.

“I mean…”

A small, broken laugh escaped him.

“Hehe… he…”

His words began to stumble over themselves.

“I…”

He stopped.

His eyes remained fixed on the beer in front of him.

Then the tears came.

One slipped down his cheek.

Then another.

Aether didn’t wipe them away.

He simply stared into the glass.

The surface of the beer trembled slightly beneath his unsteady hands, and in the reflection, he could see her.

Penelope.

Smiling.

Beautifully.

The sight made his throat tighten.

“All I ever wanted was for her to be happy…”

His voice was barely above a whisper.

“She deserved it.”

He smiled faintly through the tears.

“I mean…”

His breath shook.

“For a useless person like me… she stayed with me until now.”

He suddenly clapped his hands together, the sound awkward and hollow in the quiet room.

“For that, everyone should applaud!”

Clap.

Clap.

His hands slowly fell apart.

“She really…”

His lips trembled.

Clap.

“She really was my angel…”

More tears slipped down his face.

Aether lowered his head.

“I…”

He struggled to speak.

“I should be grateful to have received her love, right?”

Allen’s expression tightened.

Aether continued before he could answer.

“I mean… even my mother abandoned me. Hehehe… I should be grateful, right?”

He looked toward Allen.

“Right, Allen?”

Allen stared at him.

For a moment, he couldn’t find the words.

Allen shook his head and said gently,

“No, buddy… She should be grateful to recei—”

“NO!”

Aether slammed his fist against the desk.

The bottles jumped from the impact.

Allen immediately fell silent.

Aether’s face twisted with fury, but the tears continued falling.

“No… Y-You don’t understand.”

Allen looked at him.

Aether’s fist remained pressed against the table.

“She stayed with me till now. She could have left whenever she wanted.”

Allen swallowed. “Aether…”

“She stayed!”

Aether shouted.

“So I should be grateful!”

Allen knew there was no point arguing with him while he was like this.

He slowly nodded.

“Yeah…”

His voice was painful. “Y-You should be grateful.”

Aether’s expression softened immediately.

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

“See…”

He nodded to himself.

“I should be grateful.”

He picked up his drink again, but his hand was shaking too badly.

“I shouldn’t talk shit behind her back.”

He stared at the beer.

“Hehe… I shouldn’t.”

He swallowed.

“I don’t deserve to be loved…”

Allen’s lips trembled.

He shook his head.

“It’s not like that, bud—”

“YES! IT IS!”

Aether suddenly raised his voice.

Allen fell silent.

He looked at his friend sitting across from him and realized that nothing he said was going to reach him tonight.

And every attempt Allen made to convince him otherwise only seemed to give Aether another reason to punish himself.

He didn’t hate Penelope.

He hated himself for losing her.

Allen watched Aether’s expressions change from one extreme to another. One moment, he was cursing Penelope as though she were the worst person in the world; the next, he was defending her, praising her for staying beside him for so many years.

It was as though Aether’s heart couldn’t decide whether it wanted to hate her for leaving or blame itself for giving her a reason to go.

Allen remained quiet. He had never seen Aether like this before.

At one point, Aether lowered his head and muttered in a blunt, almost emotionless tone, “She said… she’d rather sleep with another man than raise a child who isn’t hers…”

A bitter smile appeared on his lips.

“Heheh… he… he… wee…”

The laugh broke apart halfway through.

Tears suddenly poured down his face.

Aether covered his eyes with both hands, his shoulders trembling as the alcohol finally stripped away whatever remained of his restraint.

He cried like a child who had lost everything and had no idea where to find it again.