Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1820: Download a PDF?

Young Aether stared blankly at the road ahead, his eyes fixed on the stream of lights. He could barely process what he had just heard.

Jonathan… had hurt Lily?

Why the fuck would he do that?

Then he remembered Sasha… a girl who might not even be older than Lily.

The thought made his expression turn cold.

“Have you informed your father?” he asked, his voice controlled, though a faint chill had entered his tone.

Lily nodded. “I did… and that’s where I made my mistake. Ever since then, my father’s workload has increased. He’s been sent on increasingly dangerous missions, one after another, as if… someone is deliberately putting him in situations where he could die.”

Young Aether’s frown deepened. His fingers began tapping slowly against the dashboard, each tap echoing faintly within the quiet cabin.

His workload had increased?

How?

Wasn’t Jonathan merely a commander from another division?

Then how the hell did he have enough authority to influence the assignments of Lily’s father?

Aether’s gaze hardened as he stared through the windshield, his thoughts moving rapidly beneath his otherwise calm expression.

“What are you thinking of?”

The dark voice echoed through the back of his mind,

“You already know the truth. You have practically pieced together who betrayed you, yet you’re still hesitating. Why? Because he is your friend? The same friend who stood beside you when you were going through shit?”

Young Aether’s fingers slowly stopped tapping.

“Is that why you refuse to acknowledge it?” the voice continued. “Are you really going to blind yourself because accepting the truth would hurt more than denying it?”

His fingers tightened around the edge of the dashboard.

Lily glanced toward him. She noticed the subtle tension in his posture and gave him a weak smile.

“You don’t believe me, right?” she asked quietly. “It’s alright… even my father didn’t believe me when I first told him.”

She gave a small, hollow laugh.

“Ahah… I suppose I can’t really blame him.”

The sound pulled Young Aether out of his thoughts. He turned toward her, his expression softening slightly.

“Of course I believe you, dear,” he said. “I may not understand everything that happened yet, but I believe you.”

Even as he spoke, however, his mind struggled to accept that Jonathan could have done something like this.

[+800 AP]

“Thank you, Unc,” Lily said, her lips forming a soft, broken smile.

Young Aether took a slow breath and forced the tension from his face.

“Once we return, leave everything to your uncle.”

Lily immediately looked worried.

“But what if something happens to my father?”

“You don’t need to worry about that,” Aether replied. “I have my own ways of handling things. Whatever is happening behind the scenes, I’ll find out.”

Lily remained silent.

“You asked me whether I believe you, didn’t you?” he continued, turning his eyes toward her. “Then believe me when I tell you this. I believe you. So leave your father’s situation to me.”

His words were calm, but there was something beneath them that made Lily stop arguing.

She could only hum quietly and turn her attention back toward the road.

Young Aether remained silent for the rest of the ride, his eyes fixed ahead while his thoughts continued to turn over everything Lily had told him.

Then, gradually, the darkness ahead began to change.

A faint white glow appeared at the far end of the tunnel.

The glow rapidly intensified until the tunnel walls were flooded with artificial illumination. Thin strips of light embedded along the ceiling activated sequentially as the vehicle approached the exit, their brightness automatically adjusting to compensate for the sudden transition from darkness.

The car emerged from the tunnel.

SSShh~

White daylight poured across Young Aether’s face.

“We arrived at Gamma,” Lily said, her earlier sadness replaced by a bright smile.

Young Aether nodded as he looked around.

“Hmm… we’re already near the city, it seems.”

Gamma City stretched across the horizon.

Towering structures of glass, steel, and luminous composite material rose hundreds of meters into the sky.

Just like other Divisions.

Young Aether narrowed his eyes.

“So this is Gamma City…”

His gaze moved toward the skyline.

One tower immediately caught his attention.

It was taller than every other structure surrounding it… The Gamma Tower.

Then something caught his attention.

At the next intersection stood a humanoid robot wearing a sleek black-and-silver traffic officer uniform.

A thin blue line glowed across where its eyes should have been.

It raised one hand.

Every vehicle approaching the intersection slowed simultaneously.

The robot’s head turned.

Its optical sensors swept across the traffic.

Then it lowered its hand.

The vehicles began moving again in perfect synchronisation.

Young Aether stared at it.

“Wait… Is that a robot?”

Lily laughed softly.

“Yep. That’s a traffic officer.”

“A robot?”

“An AI-controlled traffic officer.”

Young Aether watched as the machine calmly directed hundreds of vehicles without making a single unnecessary movement.

Its right hand glowed red while its left glowed green, waving at the incoming vehicles with precise, mechanical movements. Unlike a normal traffic officer, however, the robot wasn’t standing on the ground.

It was attached directly to a rail mounted above the junction.

The entire unit moved smoothly along the rail, sliding forward and backwards across the intersection like the head of a massive 3D printer.

This was Young Aether’s first time seeing a robot.

He stared at it for several seconds before finally tearing his eyes away.

Lily nodded as she explained, “Yeah. This is the only place where robots and AI are manufactured. Welcome to Gamma City, also known as the Neural Sea of AI.”

Young Aether’s eyes widened as Lily drove deeper into the city.

Everywhere he looked, enormous holographic blue displays showed images of human brains connected to artificial neural chips. Thin streams of light flowed between them, forming intricate networks that spread across the buildings as though the entire city were connected to a single artificial mind.

It reminded him of the internet, except this wasn’t something accessed through a screen.

The entire city seemed to be part of the network.

Buildings communicated with one another. Vehicles exchanged information without human input. Drones adjusted their routes automatically, while countless invisible signals passed through the air around them.

The deeper they went, the more difficult it became to distinguish technology from ordinary life.

Lily suddenly pointed toward the sidewalk.

“See that woman? She’s a robot.”

“What?”

Young Aether’s eyes widened.

He immediately looked toward the woman Lily had pointed at.

She was walking beside a man, laughing and talking with him as they moved through the crowded street. Her movements were natural, her expression was lively, and even the subtle movements of her hands while speaking looked completely human.

There wasn’t a single visible feature that resembled a machine.

Young Aether narrowed his eyes.

“If you hadn’t told me, I would have thought she was human.”

Lily smiled.

“And look at the dog…”

“The dog is a robot?”

“Haha… No. The one who’s walking the dog is the robot.”

Young Aether blinked.

He slowly turned his head toward the man walking the dog.

The man looked completely ordinary.

His clothes were ordinary. His posture was ordinary. Even the way he occasionally looked down at the dog seemed completely natural.

Young Aether stared at him for several seconds.

Then his expression slowly turned annoyed.

“You’re kidding me, right?”

Lily blinked.

“Of course not.”

“Tsk. That’s not even funny, Lily.”

His tone carried genuine irritation. He felt as though she were treating him like some innocent outsider who didn’t understand how the world worked.

Lily simply continued blinking at him.

After all, she was literally telling him the truth.

Young Aether turned his attention back toward the man.

There was nothing.

No mechanical joints.

No glowing eyes.

Nothing that could distinguish him from an ordinary human being.

Then RIN’s voice suddenly came through his earpiece.

^She’s telling the truth… They are robots. I’m picking up a signal from their bodies… In fact, I’m picking up a lot of signals.^

RIN suddenly went silent for a moment.

Then her voice changed.

^Oh my God… Aether, this is my birthplace.^

“…”

Young Aether blinked.

What was with this sudden revelation?

Well, Lily had already said that Gamma City was the centre of AI development, so it made more or less sense.

Before he could think any further, RIN spoke again.

^Aether, dear~^

“…”

Young Aether frowned.

What was with that sudden change in tone?

^Since I’m a good girl, and I’ve been helping you every time… don’t you think it’s time you repaid me?^

“…”

Young Aether remained silent.

Good Girl?

Repaid her?

This bitch was blackmailing him!

^Don’t you want to see me directly?^

“…”

^Dear?^

“…”

Young Aether continued staring out the window.

There was absolutely no way he was going to let this AI have its own physical body.

That was the last thing he would ever agree to.

^Aetheeerrrr~^

“…”

^Come on! Talk to me!^

Her voice had become increasingly desperate.

Young Aether could practically imagine her pouting.

He deliberately ignored her.

^Aether…^

“…”

^Please?^

Young Aether’s lips curled into a satisfied smile as he closed his eyes, listening to RIN’s begging voice echo through his earpiece again and again.

He already knew exactly what she was hoping to get.

But he wasn’t going to let her have it that easily.

For once, he had the advantage.

This was his time to play his cards.

Lily glanced at Young Aether. “Should we go there first, or should we change your clothes? Dad gave me money to buy red clothes, leather shoes and belts, perfume, and other stuff.”

Young Aether’s lips twitched.

‘That fucking asshole.’

He shook his head before opening one eye.

“Let’s put an end to this once and for all. Go to her house.”

Lily nodded. The map displayed across the car’s windshield blinked before automatically calculating the route to the house.

As she drove toward the location, Young Aether suddenly sat upright.

“Is there… any place selling flowers here?”

Lily’s lips curled into an amused smile as she glanced at him.

Young Aether coughed lightly.

“I mean… we’re going to see someone, right? It’s basic courtesy to bring something when meeting someone.”

Lily giggled.

“You can just say you wanted to buy flowers for her. Why do you… sigh, Uncle, Uncle~”

Young Aether immediately averted his gaze.

“So?”

“I’ll stop if there are any flower shops nearby,” Lily said.

She tapped the car’s interface and asked its AI system to search for nearby flower shops.

A moment later, a soft synthetic voice responded.

Lily glanced at Young Aether.

He nodded with clear satisfaction.

Once they reached the flower shop, Young Aether stepped out of the car and entered.

“Welcome, sir.”

The first thing he saw was a young woman standing behind the counter.

She was beautiful and elegant, with an almost flawless appearance.

Young Aether was mildly surprised by her refined features… almost par with his wives.

“I need a mix of orchids and roses. A bouquet.”

“I understand. Is it for your wife? Would you like to add a note?”

Young Aether parted his lips.

For a moment, he simply looked at her.

Then a gentle smile appeared on his face.

“Nice to meet you again, Penelope.”

“Noted, sir,” the young woman replied calmly. “Anything else?”

“Well…” Young Aether thought for a moment before shaking his head. “No, Madam.”

“Understood. Just give me a moment.”

She turned around.

Then she moved.

Not walked.

Moved!

Her body shot across the shop in a smooth, instantaneous motion, crossing the distance toward the arranged flower garden with such unnatural speed that Young Aether’s eyes widened.

“…”

He stared at her back.

“She’s a fucking robot,” Young Aether muttered, his expression shifting into genuine surprise.

He hadn’t realised it until that moment.

For someone who had spent his entire life surrounded by ordinary humans, watching a person suddenly move with the mechanical precision of a machine was deeply unsettling.

This place was fucking horrifying!

^Hahaha… if only I had a body, I could identify everyone around you and protect you…^

RIN’s voice carried an almost theatrical sigh.

^If only I had a body… What a pity. What a terrible pity~^

She sounded as though she were genuinely mourning the fact that she didn’t possess a physical form.

Young Aether’s lips twitched.

“Bitch, I know what you’re trying to do, and I ain’t falling for that shit.”

^I don’t know what you’re talking about? What am I doing?^

RIN replied in the most innocent tone she could possibly produce.

Young Aether rolled his eyes. Just then, from the corner of his eye, he caught sight of another beautiful flower.

Meanwhile, Lily was waiting near the car, holding her palm before her. From the Ring, A hologram of Allen suddenly flared to life above her palm.

“Status?”

“…We made it to Gamma, Dad.”

“Then?”

“Unc Aether believed my words,” Lily said with a soft smile.

“Good. Once it’s done… you know the plan. Don’t waste a single second. Remember, Lily, this is important. Every second matters. Once we’re done, even one mistake could make every single one of us face the consequences, dear. I only have hope in you, dear… so please, don’t mess it up. And… protect Noah.”

“…”

Lily fell silent for a moment, her smile gradually fading.

“Lily?”

“Maybe we should talk to him… Dad.”

Allen’s face turned cold.

“Dear, this is not the time to change the plan. This is the only way to keep everything as it is. So, dear, don’t mess it up.”

“…Okay, Dad,” Lily said with a soft smile.

The hologram disappeared from her palm.

Lily quietly turned around and walked toward the back seat, where she waved at Noah with a beautiful smile.

“Wwwhooo!”

Noah waved back with a growling sound, still completely committed to staying in character.

Just then, a familiar voice came from behind her.

“Lily.”

“Yes—!”

She turned around.

Young Aether stood there, holding a beautiful bouquet of red-wine lotus flowers.

He simply held it out toward her.

His expression was gentle.

“A flower can bloom in the filthiest waters… surrounded by everything that tries to stain it, yet it still chooses to bloom in its purest form…”

He extended the bouquet toward her.

“The waters do not decide the colour of its petals, nor the purity of its bloom. Just like you, Lily.”

“…”

Lily stared at him.

“The land, the place, the people, the world… none of them gets to decide who you are. You do.”

Young Aether’s voice remained calm, but there was a deep sincerity behind every word.

“And I believe in you, child. You have a wonderful heart. You take all that pain, carry it inside you, and still find a way to smile.”

He gave her a faint smile.

“Hah… such a strong heart at such a young age.”

His expression gradually became serious.

“This time… no harm will fall on you while I’m watching over you.”

“…”

Lily stood completely frozen.

Her eyes slowly became hazy as tears gathered along their edges. Her fingers trembled as she reached toward the bouquet.

Then one tear finally slipped from the corner of her eye.

[+2000 AP]

“…”

Young Aether blinked.

For a moment, he simply stared at Lily.

‘Did I… download a PDF?’