Chapter 398: Penelope…
[So, you still refuse to accept yourself?]
The words appeared…. as soon as Aether stepped out from the white door.
He didn’t respond, his silence laden with frustration.
Aether frowned deeply, his mind racing. He had thought that was the final test, the last hurdle, and yet it seemed this torment was far from over.
He glanced at his level bar, noticing with dismay that it had dipped slightly lowered towards ‘😇’.
The sight made him sigh inwardly, a small victory that he had managed to keep his emotions in check.
But the nagging thought remained:
what would he have done if he had lost control?
Suddenly, the void around him brightened, and the reels of his memories began to play once more.
Aether’s eyes narrowed in irritation.
“Tsk, just how many times is this going to…” His complaint trailed off as the memories unfolded before him, sharper and more painful than before.
He saw his mother pregnant, her belly swollen with the flourish of a new life.
Despite the abuse he had suffered at the hands of his stepfather, little Aether couldn’t contain his excitement about the impending arrival of a new brother or sister.
He had even picked out names, his young heart clinging to a fantasy of family happiness.
[Pathetic, isn’t it? Still believe in childish fantasies, just like those silly dramas… Hahaha…]
Yet,
“My child is going to become the greatest person in the world,” Aether’s mother whispered, her voice filled with pride as she cradled the newborn in her arms.
The baby cried… cried really loudly, and she smiled with a joy that Aether had never seen before, a joy that stung him more deeply than any words could.
Aether’s face paled, his eyes turning red with suppressed rage, “I-I thought I got ove—”
[Nobody ever truly gets over their past, dear Gentleman~]
[It’s an uncanny shadow, always lurking, always following, no matter how fast you try to run… No matter who’s advice…. The Past is something you need to remember until the end]
The scene in the memory shifted, darkening like a storm cloud over his once bright hopes. His mother, who had at least shown him some affection before, now treated him like an unwanted guest in his own home…. a plague upon their new, perfect family.
… He was an outcast, a stain on the happiness his mother had found with her new husband and child.
Little Aether struggled to fit into the new family dynamic, but his efforts were met with cold disdain. His stepfather, stern and unyielding, had forbidden him from getting too close to his baby brother.
“Your illness might infect him,” the man had warned with a cruel sneer.
[Look at how the adults treat an innocent child like a disease… Doesn’t it disgust you?]
Aether gritted his teeth, feeling the old wounds reopen.
Back then, he hadn’t fully understood what they were doing to him… the isolation, the way they locked him in the storage room, the gloves they made him wear inside the house as if he were contaminated.
Even worse, they paraded their new, perfect family outside, leaving him behind, invisible.
One memory flashed brighter than the rest: his stepfather’s stern voice cutting through his fragile self-esteem. “You’re busy studying, right?” the man had asked, his tone indifferent, almost bored. Little Aether, trembling with fear, could only nod. “Y-Yes, I’m busy… Father. Mother, I’ll stay here and study for the exam. You all can go to the restaurant”
“Are you sure?” His mother’s voice had a sharp edge to it, a frown marring her face as she glanced at him.
Little Aether looked to his stepfather, who gave him a cold glance. The boy flinched under that gaze and nodded hurriedly. “Y-Yes, I’m sure.”
[Wow… Your mother just accepted that? Didn’t even question your weird hesitation?]
Aether’s heart sank as he lowered his head, unable to bear the truth in those words.
To be honest, he had never truly understood his mother…. She had been caring once, at least at the beginning, but then something changed. It was as if she suddenly despised him, only to become inexplicably soft at random times. It was as if her emotions were in constant turmoil, a storm he could never predict.
“When will this be over?” Aether demanded, his voice tinged with impatience and exhaustion.
[Oh, why so eager to finish?] The words danced before him mockingly.
[Sigh… since you’re in such a rush, let’s make it more interesting, shall we? Let’s witness the fall of a big brother and the rise of a little one.]
The reels shifted, the scene changing abruptly to a prestigious elite private school—an institution so exclusive that only the children of VVIPs could step foot within its halls.
Little Aether, once the top student in his class, suddenly found his grades inexplicably slipping. Despite his best efforts, his marks plummeted, and the teachers’ explanations for the poor grades were flimsy at best.
“Your handwriting is atrocious!” one teacher sneered.
“You didn’t solve the problem the way I taught you,” another chided, shaking their head in disapproval.
“You’re clearly not paying attention in class. How do you expect to succeed?”
“How dare you question my grading! Get out of my sight!”
These were the responses Aether received whenever he tried to understand why his once-perfect scores had started to dwindle.
[Lame!]
Until then, Aether’s stepfather had never cared about his report cards. But the moment his grades began to slip, his stepfather’s disinterest turned into disdain.
“What’s this? Why are your grades so low? Are you even studying?” His stepfather’s voice was cold, filled with disappointment. He glanced at little Aether with a sneer before turning to his own biological son, his expression softening. “Look at my son… perfect scores across the board, top of the class.”
Aether’s mother frowned at him, her face etched with disapproval. “You’d better improve your grades, or your allowance will be cut off,” she warned, her voice sharp. Then, without missing a beat, she turned to her other son, showering him with praise and affection.
Aether bit his lip, the sting of unfairness burning deep. He wanted to explain, to tell them that something wasn’t right, but his stepfather didn’t give him the chance. His protests were dismissed before he could even speak.
[But you know the truth, don’t you?]
The words appeared.
Aether stared at his younger self, remembering how naive he had been.
At the time, he hadn’t understood why his grades were slipping. But later, he had discovered the truth… his stepfather was a significant shareholder in the elite school. It didn’t take much to connect the dots… but young Aether hadn’t.
Instead of calmly thinking through the situation, he had acted impulsively, like any child desperate for his mother’s attention. And in his desperation, he had transformed into something entirely different….
[A delinquent?] The words dripped with amusement, [You really took those TV dramas to heart, didn’t you?]
Little Aether had abandoned his neat, prestigious appearance, replacing it with the rough attire of a delinquent. The change was drastic… no longer did he look like the top student of an elite school.
Now, he was a troublemaker, complete with a scar from his mother’s first slap… that made him perfect!!
[Not bad…]
Current Aether watched his younger self with a soft, sad expression. He remembered those days vividly—the reckless abandon, the thrill of doing whatever he wanted without caring about the consequences. He skipped classes, spent his time on the rooftop, fought thugs in back alleys… For a brief moment, he had felt free from the crushing expectations of his family.
He hadn’t cared about anything other than the fleeting happiness those rebellious acts brought him.
As little Aether continued to spiral downward, his younger brother, meanwhile, began to shine, gradually overshadowing him.
The gap between them widened, and soon, the family’s attention was focused solely on the younger brother, leaving Aether further in the shadows.
Then one day, during one of his usual alleyway brawls, something unexpected happened.
“W-What are you doing here?” a feminine voice echoed through the alley. Younger Aether, in the midst of teaching a group of thugs a lesson for stealing a child’s money, turned to see a black-haired girl standing at the entrance.
She wore the same school uniform as him, her expression a mix of concern and disgust as she eyed the bloodied figures on the ground. In her hand, she clutched a taser.
“Oh!” Aether raised his hands in surrender, “I mean you no harm, lady.”
The girl shook her head, not taking her eyes off the unconscious thugs. “Not about you… what about them?” She gestured towards the thugs, her face twisting in disgust.
“Well, they won’t be waking up… at least not for a while,” Aether shrugged nonchalantly, picking up the stolen money bag. He turned and started walking out of the alley, intending to return the money to its rightful owner.
The girl flinched but quickly followed after him. “W-Wait!” she called out, but Aether ignored her, his focus on his task. After handing the money back to the child, he began heading back to school…. though not to attend any classes.
The extracurricular activities were far more interesting to him!
“Please, wait up!” The girl’s voice grew more desperate as she finally caught up to him. “You’re hurt,” she said softly, grabbing his hand without permission to inspect his injuries.
Aether frowned, pulling his hand away. He wasn’t in the mood for this, “What the fuck do you want?” he snapped, his patience wearing thin.
The girl flinched at his harsh tone, tears welling up in her eyes. She looked so fragile, so pitiful, that Aether couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt as the surrounding people began to cast judgmental looks his way.
“Sigh… what do you want?” Aether asked again, this time with a mix of frustration and resignation.
“J-Just let me treat you,” the girl pleaded, her voice trembling as she sniffled, trying to hold back her tears.
Aether sighed, more out of exasperation than anything else, before finally relenting. “Fine… do whatever you want.”
The girl carefully tended to his wounds, her touch gentle and precise. Aether watched her as she cleaned his knuckles, her focus entirely on him. After a moment, he couldn’t help but ask, “Why are you doing this? And… who the fuck are you?”
The girl’s eyes widened in shock, her expression one of disbelief. Her voice trembled as she spoke, “Y-You… for… sniff… forgot about me?”
Aether’s frustration deepened, “Oh, for fuck’s sake… Please don’t start crying again!” he groaned, his voice tired and annoyed. The girl lowered her head, sniffling quietly before she answered.
“My… my name is Penelope,” she whispered, her voice barely audible.
“Penelope… ah,” Aether nodded, but then his expression shifted, realization dawning on him. “You must be that crybaby?”
“Hmph! I am not a crybaby!” Penelope pouted, her cheeks flushing red with embarrassment.
Aether chuckled, amused by her reaction. “Then what’s this?” he teased, rubbing her tears off her cheek and showing them to her.
Penelope’s cheeks grew even redder, and she glared at Aether.
Current Aether, watching the scene unfold, couldn’t help but smile as well, a bittersweet warmth filling his chest.
[….]
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