Mysteries On Marvel

In those fragmented memories, Eren felt as if he had personally lived through the man's brief yet tragic life.

Born into a humble family in Chinatown, the man's parents were Chinese immigrants who had illegally crossed into the US.

Though not wealthy, his family managed to scrape by due to his parents' hard work. However, their relentless focus on work left him largely unguided during his formative years.

During his school days, he spent more time playing games and goofing around. While he wasn't completely inattentive to his studies, he didn't have the drive to compete with the top students in his class. As a result, he only managed to get into a modest community college.

After graduating, he secured a job at a Chinatown factory, thanks to a favor his parents had called in. His eloquence got him transferred to the sales department, where he landed a few major deals.

With newfound confidence, he found love in the factory and eventually married, starting a family of his own.

It seemed like he was destined to live a life similar to his parents—ordinary but peaceful.

But fate had other plans.

One evening, his father was hit by a speeding car while walking home with a bottle of beer he had just bought to relax. The car, driven recklessly by two intoxicated men who had stolen it, ended his father's life just two hundred meters from their home.

The men—two impoverished junkies—were charged with vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run. Legally, they should have been sentenced to five years in prison.

However, due to heightened racial tensions and frequent riots at the time, the jury, in an attempt to de-escalate the situation, sentenced them to only a year in prison with a two-year probation.

The meager compensation they were ordered to pay—a combined $20,000—was never collected. It was clear the two criminals couldn't afford it.

The loss of her husband plunged his mother into deep sorrow. She fell gravely ill not long after.

As her son, he naturally took responsibility for her medical bills. Though he hadn't expected the expenses to be so high, his years of savings managed to cover them.

He figured that by working hard for a few more years, he could recoup the losses.

But tragedy struck again.

The factory where he worked—a relatively stable source of income—collapsed under the weight of a massive breach-of-contract fine after failing to deliver goods on time due to supply chain issues.

Jobless, he began searching for new work, only to find that the local labor market had become ruthless.

With a surplus of workers from the collapsed factory, employers slashed wages, offering less than half of what he used to earn. Benefits were practically nonexistent.

Unwilling to accept such conditions, he reluctantly worked at a new factory for a few months. Frustrated by the grueling labor and meager pay, he eventually quit, hoping to find something better.

Reality, however, was merciless.

As if cursed, every job he found ended within a few months due to various reasons—sometimes voluntary, sometimes not.

His savings dwindled rapidly, eaten away by mounting expenses: his mother's medical bills, his child's needs, and basic household necessities.

Credit cards were maxed out one after another, and his income continued to shrink as his debt ballooned.

The crushing weight of life's demands suffocated him.

Still, he refused to give up.

He threw himself into work, juggling three jobs at a time, desperate to turn things around.

But the world doesn't always reward effort with success.

His body, worn down by relentless toil, finally gave out.

The medical bills for his own treatment drained the last of his savings and plunged his family further into debt.

Just as he began recovering and found a new job, his mother's condition relapsed.

That same night, he learned from the police that his wife had been struck by a stray bullet during a robbery while returning home from her job at a restaurant.

Although she survived, he was left with no money to pay for her treatment.

At the hospital, he knelt before the billing counter, begging the doctors to save his wife. They coldly reminded him that hospital policies required payment before treatment.

Fortunately, his wife's parents arrived just in time to cover the costs.

But they also demanded that their daughter leave him, refusing to let her endure such a precarious life any longer.

He agreed.

His wife's first words after surgery were a plea for him to bring their child to the hospital.

Unbeknownst to him, their child had fallen ill with a high fever that night. His wife had rushed home to take the child to the hospital, only to be caught in the crossfire of the robbery.

Staring at the empty balance on his credit cards, he was consumed by despair.

In the end, his in-laws brought the child to the hospital but forced him to sign divorce papers on the spot.

When he left the hospital, his eyes were hollow, devoid of the last glimmer of hope.

Back at the apartment, he saw a family photo on the table—a portrait of five smiling faces.

It was the final straw. He clutched the photo and broke down, sobbing uncontrollably.

At that moment, two crimson lights, drawn by his suffocating despair, descended from the void and entered his body.

After witnessing the man's tragic life through the fragmented memories, Eren's expression turned solemn.

He finally understood.

True suffocation doesn't come from the inability to breathe—it comes from the crushing weight of despair in life.

(End of Chapter)

[Check Out My Patreon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!! [email protected]/zaelum]

[+500 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]

[Thank You For Your Support!]