Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1456: He had just faced death... only to see it again? What a nightmare!

Seeing him apologise, they finally understood that he had no choice at all.

He had been trapped there, unable to escape, and Delphine had only tried to help him, only to become caught in the same problem herself. In the end, there was no one they could truly blame.

They exchanged weak smiles and nodded slowly, eyes glistening with unshed tears. Selene spoke first, her expression serious yet trembling with emotion.

”N-Next time, you better not do something like this again,” she said, before pulling him into a tight hug and resting her head against his chest as if afraid to let go.

Raven nodded as well, wrapping her arms firmly around his side. Her lips quivered as she spoke, voice barely holding steady. ”No next time... husband,” she said, a single tear slipping free and trailing down her cheek as she pressed closer to him.

Aether’s lips trembled at their words, his chest tightening as he struggled to keep his composure.

Nyx, however, did not speak. Her gaze drifted downward, fixed on the empty sleeve where his left hand should have been, her eyes vacant and distant as she stared at it without blinking.

Aether noticed immediately. He leaned toward her and kissed her gently, the touch soft and grounding, meant to pull her back from her thoughts. ”I heard you worked so hard, darling,” he said warmly, his voice full of pride and gratitude.

”I am so happy.”

Nyx flinched slightly before her expression softened, warmth returning to her eyes. She smiled, ”That’s what a wife should do,” she replied, ”Protect her husband.” She hugged his empty sleeve tightly, holding it as if it were still a part of him.

”Tsk,” Thalia clicked her tongue as she slipped behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist. She leaned in close and whispered near his ear,

”And a husband’s duty is not to make his wives worry, right?”

Aether smiled softly at her words and nodded, leaning down to kiss her forehead in quiet reassurance.

Everyone felt his warmth then, and he felt theirs in return.

The moment was gentle, fragile, yet overflowing with love. In that closeness, he finally realised something he had not fully understood before.

Even though they had family here, without him, they had been just as lost as he was without them.

His expression grew serious, though his eyes remained kind as he spoke. ”Yeah, it’s a husband’s duty not to make my wives worry,” he muttered quietly. ”And... it won’t happen again. I promise you all.”

They all smiled, lips trembling as emotion threatened to spill over. If they had been alone, they might have broken down completely, overwhelmed by relief and happiness. Instead, surrounded by one another, they shared both love and pain in silence.

Delphine watched them from a short distance, her gaze soft as she smiled faintly, as though an amused thought had crossed her mind.

Emberlyn suddenly stepped forward, clapping her hands loudly to break the moment. ”Come on, everyone. Let Aether finish his dishes,” she said, her tone firm but gentle.

Aether returned to his seat and settled back into his chair. He was about to resume his meal when he suddenly paused, a small, knowing smile forming on his lips.

”How long are you going to hide?” he asked calmly.

Everyone frowned, exchanging confused looks, unable to understand what he was talking about.

”Snow?”

That single word was enough. A

small white snake slipped free from Selene’s cleavage and leapt toward Aether, her face lit up with joy.

”YAY! MASTER DIDN’T FORGET SNOWFLAKE!! Hissss~”

Snowflake hissed loudly as her body grew larger, turning to her normal snake size. She wrapped her tail around Aether’s body and pressed a quick kiss to his lips, her small mouth brushing against them as her tongue flicked happily, clinging to him as if she never wanted to let go.

”Master~”

”Master~”

”Master~”

”Master~”

Everyone chuckled as Snowflake kept calling out to him, her affection overflowing without restraint, pouring out in waves that were impossible to ignore.

”You know,” Selene said with an amused tone, glancing at Snowflake with a knowing smile, ”She had been crying nonstop every morning when you didn’t wake up.”

Snowflake immediately snapped her head toward Selene, glaring fiercely. ”She is lying! Snowflake didn’t cry, Master!” She then turned back to Aether, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

”S-Snowflake is not a crybaby! B-Believe me!”

Thalia shook her head slowly, ”No, you were crying every day,” she said honestly. ”And honestly, it got a little annoying, you know? We kept telling you that he would be fine, but you kept asking the same question again and again every single morning.”

Raven nodded in agreement, her voice soft as she added, ”’When will Master wake up?’ That’s what you kept asking.”

Snowflake puffed her cheeks and stomped her tail in frustration.

”NO! I am not!” she protested, glaring at all of bitches here!

A dozen filthy insults formed in her mind, ready to be unleashed, but she swallowed every single one... The only reason she held back was Aether.

She turned to him instead, lowering her voice and pressing closer. ”Master... Snowflake didn’t cry,” she said softly, trying her best to sound mature.

”She has grown up now. She understands everything... Believe her!!” She kissed Aether again, lingering as if to make sure he trusted her more than those so-called snitching bitches.

Aether’s lips trembled with affection as he kissed her back gently. ”Yes,” he said warmly, his voice steady and sincere. ”I believe you.”

Snowflake immediately turned toward the others with a smug expression, chin lifted in victory.

Everyone smiled softly at the sight.

Aether then returned to his meal, this time eating slowly, savouring both the food and the stories they shared.

They told him everything that had happened during the month, detail by detail, and he listened carefully, genuinely surprised by what he heard.

Honestly, it shocked him.

He never imagined they could accomplish all of that on their own.

His expression softened as he finally spoke. ”Looks like... I am the one who has been holding you all back.”

Everyone immediately shook their heads. Thalia stepped forward, her tone serious but unwavering.

”No. You are the reason we keep pushing our limits, husband,” she said firmly. ”In fact, I found something interesting in our Origin Card.”

Aether raised his eyebrows.

Thalia continued, ”Those numbers on the Origin Card... they can increase.”

Aether blinked, genuine shock flashing through his eyes.

Thalia nodded. ”After I started training harder and fighting more and more, the Strength value actually increased by one point. Even so, I had to work three times harder than before compared to when the Arcane Card values increased.”

Aether hummed quietly, his expression thoughtful as he looked at each of them in turn.

”I’m still working on it,” Selene said with a slightly dejected tone. Raven and Nyx shared the same quiet sentiment, their expressions reflecting determination mixed with frustration, unwilling to give up despite the slow progress.

They had been working together to oversee the Empire while also pushing themselves to increase the values recorded on their Origin Cards.

Ever since the attack, the failure, and the desperate struggle that followed, they had understood one thing clearly. They had to do whatever was necessary, no matter how difficult or exhausting it became.

Even though Thalia possessed a Primordial bloodline that already made her overwhelmingly powerful, she knew it was not enough to rely on that alone. If there was even a small chance to raise the values on the card, then that chance had to be taken.

Power unused or unexplored was nothing more than wasted potential!!

Aether frowned slightly, his gaze sharpening as he processed her words. ”Does that mean your strength increased?” he asked.

Thalia shook her head slowly. ”I don’t think my strength increased because the value went up,” she said honestly.

”Just like Lyirrs said, this card only shows the value of what the true body is capable of...”

Aether finished her thought quietly, his eyes narrowing with understanding. ”Your body was increasing its power without relying on energy,” he said, piecing it together step by step.

Thalia nodded in agreement, relieved that he understood without needing further explanation.

Aether hummed softly as he set down the last bone from his meal. His fingers rested against the plate while his expression grew thoughtful, eyes distant as new possibilities formed in his mind.

”Hmm... interesting,” he muttered, clearly intrigued by the implications.

Just then,

”Master!”

Aether looked up to see Snowflake staring at him with a proud, almost triumphant expression, her posture straight as if she were presenting an achievement worthy of praise.

”Master, Delphine and I decided to make you a wonderful new food for when you woke up!” Snowflake announced cheerfully, glancing toward Delphine with unmistakable pride.

”...” Aether’s face turned pale.

Snowflake smiled innocently, her expression so pure and earnest that even a child would lose in comparison.

”So stay tuned~”

She added, winking playfully at him as if she had just shared the best news in the world.

”...”

Aether felt something inside him die quietly.

He had just woken up, only to be faced with this.

Was he really going to face death again so soon?

What kind of nightmare was this supposed to be? It was unbearably cute, painfully sincere, and yet... utterly terrifying in the most horrifying way possible.

Meanwhile, Nyx continued staring at Aether in silence, her gaze fixed on him in a strange, unreadable way, as if she were thinking about something entirely different from everyone else.