Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1153: Capturing The Grace!

THUD!!

The massive blade crashed into the ground. The tall, muscled woman blinked slowly, then tilted her head to the side in curiosity. Her sharp eyes narrowed as she saw... Ashara—no, it was Nightfire—standing there, cradling Aether tightly in her arms, her face twisted into a feral, growling expression.

”Arrhhh! L-Let us g-go!” Nightfire snarled through gritted teeth.

Her eyes were glowing pure white, completely engulfed by the chaos inside her. The irrational instincts of her succubus side surged forward, trying to overwhelm her fragile control.

She trembled, barely managing to restrain herself from giving in to that wild hunger.

The muscled, ghostly woman stared at Nightfire with a puzzled yet intrigued look. Her ghostly hand reached back and effortlessly lifted the enormous sword onto her shoulder again. She murmured, her tone slow and thoughtful,

”Hmm... Two souls in one body?... That’s rare... Our Queen mentioned something about you... What are you doing with this human male? Are you... trying to harm your own Master?”

The ghostly warrior narrowed her eyes. The blade on her shoulder shimmered darkly, black mist curling around it like smoke. It pulsed dangerously, as if her next move would be decided solely by Nightfire’s reply.

Nightfire clenched her jaw, her hands tightening protectively around Aether. Her breathing was erratic, unstable. Still, she forced herself to speak.

”H-He... is... her husband... W-We came here... searching for her...”

She muttered, her voice strained, trembling under the pressure of holding herself back.

The muscled woman’s expression darkened. She frowned again but let out a low hum, almost like she was weighing Nightfire’s words.

After a short pause, she gave a slow, firm nod.

”Very well... Then come with me...”

Nightfire blinked in confusion. ”Huh? W-Why?”

The woman turned her gaze toward Nightfire with a solemn tone, her stance firm and commanding.

”Even if you say he’s the Queen’s husband, we still need the Queen herself to confirm it. Until then, you’re coming with me.”

Her voice carried no room for argument.

Nightfire hissed in frustration and glanced back toward the doorway. The exit wasn’t too far—if she could just push a little harder, maybe she could—

”Don’t even think about it!”

The muscled woman barked, her tone immediately turning deadly. She shifted her grip on the massive sword, the weapon humming with raw power.

Nightfire clicked her tongue, growling under her breath with frustration. After a tense pause, she gave a reluctant nod, her arms still tightly wrapped around the unconscious Aether.

Meanwhile,

The Ethereal/Umbra Domain.

Aether blinked several times in quick succession, a mixture of irritation and confusion washing over his face. Without warning, he found himself pulled into this domain again.

”Tch! Are you serious? I was just about to escape—fuck!!” Aether shouted furiously, spinning around.

Before him floated a small, swirling violet orb, no larger than the size of a human palm. It hovered mid-air, pulsating and twisting in slow, hypnotic motions, like a miniature rift in space.

”I warned you... I told you not to step foot in my land again.”

The voice came from the orb, harsh and angry. It crackled with fury as it continued,

”Are you so eager to die?! Are you actually courting death?!”

Aether exhaled a sharp sigh and crossed his arms,

”I didn’t walk in here on purpose! It’s your damn people who dragged me here—again! So if you’ve got a problem, bark at them, not me! And for the record, this is my domain. You’re the one trespassing here. I don’t have time to deal with this nonsense!”

The violet entity went still. Completely still. It hung in the air, motionless, as if processing his words in stunned silence.

Then it pulsed again, voice harsher than before.

”That doesn’t change the fact. You entered again.”

Aether’s eyes narrowed. ’What am I supposed to do now?’ he thought bitterly. Even though this place belonged to him, this thing had forced its way inside like it owned it.

What kind of power did it truly possess?

Even his Log had warned him repeatedly to protect this place.

The orb shimmered brighter, its colour intensifying into a violent glow.

”I always honour my word...” it hissed. ”But you... you broke your promise. And for that—I will erase your existence!!”

The swirling orb expanded ominously, spinning faster and faster, as if preparing to consume everything in its path. The very space around it began to warp and twist from the pressure.

Aether scowled, his patience thinning.

”Wait! You’re seriously gonna pull this shit now?! It wasn’t me! I didn’t do anything wrong! You fucking know that!”

”It doesn’t matter who caused it anymore!” the violet entity snapped. ”I gave you a warning, and you chose to act recklessly. Now... suffer the consequences. Bear the weight of your mistake!”

Aether’s entire domain trembled violently as the massive violet spiral grew larger and larger, expanding like a devouring vortex. His twin domain flickered erratically, strands of its energy being pulled toward the spiral as if the very fabric of his realm was being sucked into it.

Aether gritted his teeth, his instincts screaming in warning. And before he could even react, the violet spiral surged forward, zooming toward him at breakneck speed!

ZZZZZHhhhhhhh!!

Aether clenched his eyes shut for a split second—expecting the worst. But then... nothing happened.

Except—

Click!

A sudden, crisp clicking sound echoed through the domain.

Aether flinched and snapped his eyes open, confused by the lack of impact. What he saw next made his jaw tighten in disbelief.

The massive violet spiral orb... was trapped inside the cage.

Yes—that cage. The same eerie one was gifted to him by the twin figures.

It hovered mid-air, a bizarre construct of metal-like tendrils swirling between black and white, alive and twitching as if it possessed a will of its own. The cage pulsed, coiling tighter around the orb, locking it inside.

”W-What is this...?”

The violet orb muttered, its voice trembling with shock as it looked around, stunned by its sudden imprisonment.

But that wasn’t all. The cage slowly began to shrink—its living tendrils creeping in closer, tightening. And when the strange metal finally made contact with the orb’s surface, the reaction was violent.

The violet orb convulsed and twisted, its surface rippling like it was being burned or torn apart from within. It shook violently, its once-proud energy warping into desperation.

”What kind of monstrous thing is this?!”

It shouted in alarm.

The orb instinctively shrank its size to match the compressing cage, trying to resist the crushing force. But the more it resisted, the more the cage’s energy overwhelmed it. Finally, the structure stabilised, reducing the violet entity to the size of a regular, handheld prison.

And then—with a soft metallic thump—it landed on the ground, right in Aether’s domain.

Aether stood frozen for a moment, blinking in disbelief. His eyes narrowed in thought. ’So that’s why they gave this to me... to protect me from this thing,’ he realised, a flicker of amusement tugging at his lips.

But no... he wasn’t going to feel grateful. Not even for a second. Whoever gave it to him likely didn’t care about his safety—they just didn’t want their toy breaking too soon. They wanted him to survive only so they could watch him suffer longer.

”WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME, BASTARD!!”

”I WILL KILL YOU!!”

The violet orb roared furiously from inside the cage, its voice shrill with rage and helplessness.

Aether stared at it for a long moment, then reached down and picked up the cage. His lips curled into a slow, wicked grin. The violet orb froze, shivering slightly inside, sensing something far more dangerous now.

”W-What?”

It asked cautiously, its voice quieter.

”Tsk, tsk...” Aether clicked his tongue. ”You really shouldn’t shout when you’re locked in a damn cage. And even worse, you definitely shouldn’t threaten the guy who’s holding it.”

He leaned closer, eyes gleaming with menace.

”Because if you do... well...”

”I-If I do?”

The orb asked, almost whispering now.

Aether just smirked wider in response. Without another word, he gripped the top of the cage tightly... and began rotating it. Hard.

”W-Wait! No! Aahhhh!!!”

The violet orb began spinning violently inside, helplessly crashing into the cage walls as the entire structure whirled under Aether’s hand. The once-powerful entity screamed in agony, its energy lashing out and crackling against the prison.

And Aether? He just stood there—calmly, sadistically rotating the cage—his expression filled with twisted delight.