Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1164: Mending the Broken Samsara: Part-4

Aether had honestly believed he could use the memories of that woman—Starla—to reach her, to stir something deep enough to stop her from fighting. But instead... it completely backfired.

You can’t understand someone’s heart just by seeing their memories.

That was the cold, bitter truth.

And now?

Now Starla wasn’t just defending. She was attacking—relentlessly—with the clear intent to kill.

She leapt into the air again, her massive sword smashing into the ground like a hammer from the heavens, sending chunks of stone and soil flying. Aether barely rolled away in time, dirt brushing past his cheek as the blade crushed the spot where he’d just stood.

He could keep dodging her forever if he wanted. His speed was more than enough.

But the problem wasn’t her.

The real problem... was Nyx.

Her body was beginning to tremble, her skin paling, her movements weakening. Something in her was decaying—like her very life force was being drained from her with every passing second. Her bony arm, still outstretched toward the crack, looked thinner now. The flames that once flickered vibrantly around her bones were dimming.

If he didn’t reach her soon...

She was going to die.

And in order to reach her, he had to get past Starla.

But nothing—neither magic nor brute strength—was working on her.

He was backed into a corner.

A dead end.

’Hey, Log, didn’t you say something about pouring energy into the soul earlier?’

Aether asked mentally, leaping over a horizontal slash that cut the air like a guillotine. He sprinted forward again, ducking low as her blade whistled past his ear.

[Yes. If you pour your energy directly into your soul, it becomes possible to affect other souls physically.]

Aether nodded, dodging a downward strike that left a crater where he had just stood. ’Alright then... teach me how to do it!’

[...Bro, what?]

Aether rolled his eyes mid-sprint, bending low and narrowly avoiding another lethal sweep.

’Don’t mess with me right now! You obviously know how it works, right? Just teach me already—we don’t have time!’

[⛔Negative. Unable to process your request. ]

’FUCK YOU!!’

Aether cursed inwardly, rage boiling inside as he suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned to face Starla head-on.

”STOP!!”

The word echoed like a command.

Her sword froze in the air—just inches away from slicing into his neck.

Aether didn’t flinch. His chest heaved with heavy breaths, but his eyes were unwavering.

”You call yourself a Knight,” he said through clenched teeth, ”but you’re swinging that massive blade at a man with no weapon. No shield. Nothing.”

He took a step forward, gaze sharp.

”How far have you fallen, Starla? Is this really the kind of warrior your Queen would be proud of?”

Her arm twitched.

’Please work!’ He thought.

Whether it was the weight of her sword... or the weight of his words, he couldn’t tell. But something shifted. The rage in her eyes flickered—just for a moment. A shadow of doubt passed through her.

She was a Knight. A warrior of honour. Once upon a time, she would’ve never raised her weapon against someone unarmed.

But that part of her... had been buried. Forgotten. Twisted after becoming Nyx’s servant.

Her blade slowly lowered. The tip scraped the ground, leaving a line in the dirt as she stepped back with a heavy breath. She turned without a word, dragged her sword back to the crack, and stabbed it into the soil.

Still guarding like her Queen Ordered!

Aether let out a breath, his shoulders slumping in visible relief.

’Looks like some of her memories still helped,’ he thought, rubbing the back of his neck. That one small edge had bought him time.

Time to think.

He bit his lip, brain racing. He had to find a way to strike her soul. That was the only path forward. But how?

Just as he was running a hand over his nose, another thought sparked in his mind.

’The Grace...’

His eyes widened.

That tiny fairy he had once caught in the cage... She was the guider of souls, wasn’t she?

If anyone knew how to handle spiritual energy, it was her.

Without wasting another second, Aether dropped to the ground, folding his legs and closing his eyes, assuming a meditative pose.

Starla’s brows furrowed. She didn’t understand what he was doing, but she didn’t move. Whatever his plan was, she believed it was pointless. No one could challenge her on the battlefield of souls. Not without knowing how.

Meanwhile, Nyx was entirely consumed.

Her skeletal hand was still extended toward the crack, and her face—oh, her face...

She was grinning wildly, her lips curled in pure, manic joy. The energy of the crack was draining her, yet she trembled with excitement. Her body was withering, and yet her eyes sparkled like a child seeing light for the first time.

She was in bliss.

Her breath trembled. Her spine shivered. And for some reason, despite the agony twisting through her bones...

She had never looked so alive.

Not even when she was riding Aether.

Anyway,

In the Twin Domains—

Aether appeared before the tiny cage, the black-white cage glinting softly. He crouched down, waving lazily.

”Hello. Did you miss me, Grace?”

The little fairy sat perched on one of the bars, arms crossed and one leg dangling. She gave him a brief, uninterested glance—barely more than a twitch of her eye—before promptly closing her eyes again, as if his very presence had bored her back to sleep.

Aether didn’t take offence. Honestly, he didn’t even have the right to.

Instead, he offered a tired smile and crouched beside the cage, speaking softly.

”You see... ever since your sudden disappearance, the Cycle of Samsara has stopped functioning properly.”

He glanced at her again.

Still no response. Her eyes remained shut, her wings faintly shimmering—but still. Unbothered. As if the collapse of life, death, and reincarnation wasn’t even worth blinking over.

But Aether kept going.

”So, I... and my beloved Mary, we went to the green mountai—”

”Grenthollow.”

”Huh?” Aether blinked, cut off mid-sentence by her flat voice.

Grace didn’t open her eyes. She simply said, in a low and uninterested tone, ”It’s called Grenthollow. That’s the name of the green mountain you saw.”

”Oh? Okay, yeah... Grenthollow. Right.”

He cleared his throat, trying to get back into his groove.

”Anyway, when we got there... she just... she started to cry.”

”...Who? Mary?”

For the first time, Grace sounded a little curious.

Aether grinned inwardly. He had caught her attention—at last. He nodded, letting his expression soften, voice dipping into something sorrowful.

”Y-yeah... Mary broke down. Said the world was going to fall into chaos... that it’ll be filled with wandering, starving souls. She was shaking so much, she just collapsed into tears. I’ve never seen her like that.”

”....”

Grace still didn’t open her eyes, just confused by his words, as her expression squinted and frowned,

’She broke down? Mary? Are we even talking about the same person?’

Meanwhile, back in reality, in palace—

Mary was entering the palace like a swirling storm,

”We’re all going to die~ We’re all going to die~ Because of my screwed-up sense of love—ahahaha~!”

She spun dramatically, spreading her arms with a theatrical smile as she twirled through the great marble hall,

”But don’t worry, my darling child! We’ll escape before the Empire collapses! Everyone else? They’re going to die... burn... shatter! But not my sweet Lia—nooo~ I’ll pamper her till the end... heehee~!”

Anyway, back to Aether—

His hand trembled slightly as he looked into Grace’s eyes.

”S-So... in order to save the world—and my sweet little Mary... I—I jumped straight into the Cycle of Samsara.”

Grace’s entire body jolted as her wings froze mid-flap.

Her eyes shot open, widened with pure horror.

”ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FUCKING MIND, YOU USELESS PIECE OF COSMIC SHIT?!”

Her voice didn’t just echo—it boomed across the domes. The sound was sharp enough to nearly shatter Aether’s eardrums.

His body tensed, his hands almost moved to torture her again, but he gritted his teeth and endured.

He had to stay calm. He needed her help.

So, he forced a weak smile onto his face, eyes glistening with sincerity.

”What can I say...? I love her that much~”

He rubbed a single tear from his eye.

[....You know, you’re actually getting good at this.]

Log commented dryly inside his head.

Aether sniffed dramatically and gave Grace a quick glance.

Her jaw was clenched. Her eyes twitched slightly. Her tiny fists were balled up like she was trying not to punch something. Clearly, she was deeply annoyed—yet also slowly calming down.

’Hehe~’