Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1478: Official Engagement of Aerionis Zephyra: Part-5

There was, in fact, another method... Only those bound by blood could perform it!

Parents, Blood Siblings or... their blood child.

Those were the exception for this matter.

Yet, Aether didn’t have anything... Parents? No, Blood siblings? No... Child? Hell no!

Everyone knew Aether was once a slave, and he didn’t have a body for him... for him to bear such a shame during this ritual... what a tragedy?

And even more others still confused why Aether was taking the chalice with his left hand... was he not interested in this anymore?

They started to worry now...

Just then,

Maelona stepped forward.

Kaelen and several others stiffened in surprise, their attention snapping toward her as she walked steadily toward Kaelith.

The Elders immediately moved to block her path. They reminded her that no one was allowed to disrupt the ritual.

Before they could say more, Kaelith lifted his hand, stopping them with a single decisive gesture and allowing her to pass.

Maelona leaned closer, her voice barely more than a breath as she whispered into Kaelith’s ear, her words soft yet filled with quiet confidence.

Kaelith raised his eyebrows, turning to look at her again as though seeing her anew.

Maelona flushed under his gaze, an awkward and shy blush spreading across her cheeks, though she did not avert her eyes.

He blinked once, then again, genuine astonishment crossing his features before he finally nodded. With a slow motion of his hand, he gestured for her to proceed, granting silent approval.

Maelona nodded in return, the faint blush still lingering as she raised her palm upward. Blue particles stirred instantly, light gathering at her skin before a beautiful blue butterfly emerged from her hand, its wings unfolding like living crystal.

Gasps rippled through everywhere as everyone stared in awe, witnessing this. The butterfly glowed with an ethereal brilliance, tiny blue particles drifting from its wings as it fluttered gracefully around Maelona.

The butterfly drifted forward before gently settling upon the rim of the chalice. Its wings fluttered slowly, scattering soft light around the silver chalice as it enhanced the beautiful nighty glow around it.

With steady hands and solemn care, Maelona grasped the base of the chalice and moved it forward, guiding it slowly and reverently toward Aether’s lips.

Others didn’t get it... Why did Maelona, Aria’s mother, give sacred water? But they didn’t question it as long as Aether would be part of their family.

Aether watched her draw closer. His breath slowed, his lips parting.

Maelona tilted the chalice just enough for the water to touch his lips. The butterfly’s wings brushed softly against the rim, each flutter timed with Aether’s gaze, which never left her face. His eyes followed her with every beat, every second stretching longer than the last.

Her cheeks flushed red beneath his stare. Shyness softened her features as she withdrew the chalice, unable to endure his gaze any longer.

Without a word, she handed it to Kaelith, her fingers lingering for only a breath before letting go.

She turned away immediately, lowering her head as she walked back, her steps quick yet restrained, as if fleeing the intensity she had just shared.

The gathered crowd stirred, murmurs rising as confusion spread.

No one fully understood what had occurred.

Aether, Liora, and Aria felt it at the same moment.... A strange sensation stirred deep within their bodies, subtle yet unmistakable, as if something happened the instant the water passed Aether’s lips.

Kaelith gently placed the chalice back onto the tray beside the spoon and the large bowl.

He turned toward the trio and motioned for them to stand.

”The fate you carry is now threaded together,” Kaelith said, his gaze firm yet warm. ”For a better world, and for a future bound by shared resolve. May every path you walk lead toward growth, and may every trial strengthen what you now share.”

He bowed deeply, holding the gesture longer than expected, before straightening. Without another word, Kaelith stepped down from the platform. The Elders followed in silence, carrying the tray.

Aether exhaled slowly, believing the ritual had finally ended. Just then,

Thud~

Kaelith took a stance on the ground with bare feet in some kind of dancing pose before slowly moving his body.

His body swayed forward and back in controlled arcs, arms rising and falling in precise angles. Every gesture followed a strict sequence, never rushed, never broken. The dance allowed no improvisation, no personal flourish.

To stray from its form was to insult the lineage that preserved it!!

/It is the traditional Dance of Seeding our life, Aether./

Aria’s voice echoed within Aether’s mind.

Aether blinked in surprise as he watched Kaelith’s movements. His legs and arms moved with controlled grace, each motion slow yet purposeful.

Kaelith turned, pivoting on the ball of his foot, his heel never leaving the marked path beneath him. His hands moved as if shaping unseen threads, pulling them inward, then releasing them outward in measured waves.

One by one, everyone rose from their seats, even Kaelen. During this dance, no one was permitted to remain seated.

Kaelen turned respectfully to Dora and Ashara, gesturing for them to stand as well.

/He did not do it for Alaric... though./

Maelona’s voice followed, softer this time, tinged with something unresolved. Aether glanced toward her and saw her watching the dance intently, her expression distant, thoughtful.

His gaze returned to Kaelith.

Kaelith’s pace increased, not in speed but in complexity. His legs crossed and unfolded in smooth transitions, feet gliding across the ground without scraping. His spine straightened, then curved, forming symbols in the air with disciplined grace.

Aether found himself drawn deeper into the rhythm. His eyes followed Kaelith’s legs and hands, realising that nothing about the dance was random.

Each motion carried intention, each pause shaped meaning.

Every movement formed a symbol... Every symbol formed a letter!

When Kaelith formed the symbol for ’B’, the movement was unmistakable. His right arm swept outward while the left drew inward, hands trembling with controlled force. His leg lifted and curved precisely, forming the shape in full clarity. The motion was held for a heartbeat, allowing its meaning to settle before flowing into the next form.

Letter followed letter, seamlessly connected, his body never pausing long enough to break the rhythm. There was no space between motions, no hesitation. The dance flowed like a living script.

/He is writing his emotions with his body,/ Maelona’s voice whispered within Aether’s mind.

He was moving his body into words of his love for his daughter and the future Empire!

Aether’s eyes were drawn to each moment of Kaelith’s body, down to his fingers.

”What is he doing?” Aether muttered as he stepped forward, as though the dance itself had reached out and pulled him closer.

Something wrapped around his chest, tightening with every movement Kaelith made, as if Aether were no longer merely watching, but standing inside Kaelith’s heart.

Loneliness flowed first.

Then powerlessness, sharp and suffocating.

Fear followed, heavy and familiar, layered with uselessness, pain, and a hollow sense of nothingness.

Hatred surfaced briefly, jagged and raw, only to be swallowed by something far more fragile... Love.

And fear intertwined with it, inseparable, trembling.

Every emotion bled into the next without pause.

Aether saw it all in Kaelith’s dance... The dance no longer felt symbolic. Each movement revealed something buried, something never spoken. Kaelith danced his emotions openly, stripping himself bare before everyone present.

Aether never imagined it possible. Never believed that emotions could be felt so vividly simply by witnessing them. Yet there he stood, chest aching, feeling everything Kaelith could not say.

The seed resting in Aether’s palm began to sting painfully, heat biting into his skin. His fist trembled and jerked, muscles locking instinctively, yet he did not loosen his grip. He held it tighter, eyes never leaving Kaelith’s form.

Time lost meaning... Hours blurred into moments, moments collapsed into a single unbroken stretch of movement.

Aether did not blink... Heck, He barely breathed!

Kaelith continued to dance without stopping. Sweat soaked his clothes, clinging to his body as his muscles trembled under the strain. His fingers curled and strained, joints stiffening, and then Aether noticed his foot.

Blood?

It seeped from torn skin, dripping onto the ground. Each step smeared red against the stone, yet Kaelith did not slow.

His face remained composed, resolute. There was pain in his dance, but not in his foot, but in the emotion he was showing in the dance!

Aether snapped out of his trance, eyes widening,

”Someone stop him,” Aether said sharply, his voice cutting through the silence.

No one moved. Not a single soul stepped forward. They stood frozen, watching Kaelith dance in silence as blood pooled beneath his feet, staining the ground.

Still, Kaelith moved with purpose, his expression unwavering!

Aether frowned deeply, ’Fuck these traditions,’ he thought, stepping forward, ready to break the ritual himself.

Before he could move further, a sound whispered through the air.

Sshhh~

A gentle breeze swept across the Empire, flowing through the whole empire and beyond, soft and warm, almost joyful. It felt as though the world itself approved of what it was witnessing.

Kaelith halted.

One bloodied foot pressed firmly against the ground, the other steady lifted. One hand remained raised in the air as his chest rose and fell with heavy breaths. Beneath him, a circular trail of blood marked the path of his dance, perfectly drawn!

His head snapped toward the Elders.

One of the Elders stepped forward without waiting for instruction and placed the wooden spoon into Kaelith’s hand. Kaelith’s fingers closed around its handle with practised familiarity.

Resting within the shallow curve of the spoon were three small drops of sacred water, trembling faintly under the bright light.

Kaelith lifted the spoon slowly, raising it to eye level. His breathing steadied, shoulders settling, and the world seemed to narrow around the three drops alone. With a sudden yet controlled motion, he snapped his wrist upward. The spoon arced through the air, and the three drops were flung free, rising together in a perfect line before they began fall back down.

Before they could fall, Kaelith moved. His hand flowed beneath the descending drops, guiding the spoon with serpent-like precision. One drop touched the spoon’s edge and slid smoothly along its length, gliding from handle to tip without spilling. At the exact moment it reached the end, Kaelith flicked the spoon again, sending the drop soaring back into the air.

The second and third drops followed in seamless succession. Each was caught, guided, and released with identical grace, never colliding, never losing their shape. Kaelith’s movements never stopped; they blended together into a continuous rhythm, as though the spoon and water obeyed a single unbroken command.

To Aether’s eyes, it no longer resembled juggling.

There was no strain, no hurried correction. It looked like instruction, as if Kaelith were teaching the water where it was meant to go. The drops rose and fell in perfect arcs, answering every tilt of his wrist, every subtle shift of his fingers.

His eyes locked onto Kaelith’s hands, unable to look away.

’Damn man...’ he thought.

With each pass through the air, the sacred water changed. The liquid shimmered brighter, catching the light, thickening into something denser. What had once been fragile droplets now gleamed like living pearls, radiant and flawless, suspended momentarily between heaven and earth.

”Argh!”

Kaelith’s expression tightened as he drew in a sharp breath. His final motion was sudden and absolute. He hurled the three luminous pearls high into the air and drove the wooden spoon straight down into the centre of the blood-drawn circle.

As the pearls reached their peak and began to fall, Kaelith ripped the spoon free. The ground accepted them instantly, each pearl dropping cleanly into the narrow opening left behind, vanishing without resistance as though the earth itself had been waiting.

Ssssh~

A breeze flowed once more as Kaelith clapped his hands together.

Aria reacted immediately, motioning firmly for Aether and Liora to come down.

The three descended together and stopped before Kaelith, standing in solemn alignment.

”Now pour the seeds into the hole,” Kaelith said solemnly.

The trio nodded in unison. They moved into a circular formation and opened their palms at the same moment. Each seed slid free from bloodied skin, falling slowly!

The once-brown seeds were now coated in deep crimson, their surfaces slick and glistening. The red clung to them unnaturally, sticky drops as they fell down,

Drip...

Drip...

Drip...

The seeds disappeared into the hole one by one, swallowed by the earth below.

Kaelith lifted the chalice and extended it toward them. His tone softened, ”Hold it together in your right hand, and pour it while wishing for a better future and true happiness.” As he spoke, his gaze shifted briefly, landing on Maelona.

She stiffened. After a moment’s hesitation, Maelona shook her head and stepped back, her expression unreadable.

The trio exchanged a silent glance, then nodded. Together, they held the chalice and poured the remaining sacred water they had sipped earlier. The liquid flowed smoothly, filling the hole, merging with blood and seed alike.

Kaelith knelt slowly and began sealing the opening with the surrounding sand, his hands careful and reverent. As he bowed his head, another Elder stepped forward, lifting the large bowl and pouring water over Kaelith’s body in a ceremonial cascade.

Splash~

Splash~

Those watching bowed their heads as well, smiles forming quietly, filled with relief and deep-rooted joy.

Kaelith rose slowly and faced the trio once more. His voice softened, almost tender, as he spoke.

”With this... your life shall begin. From the moment it buds, the bond is recognised, and you may begin your wedding then or at any time thereafter. As you grow, the seed shall grow with you, carrying the memories of everything you become, whether you wish it to or not.”

Aria and Liora bowed deeply. Maelona immediately stepped beside Aria and lowered her head as well. Kaelen followed, moving to Liora’s side and bowing with equal respect.

Aether watched them for a brief moment before bowing his head toward Kaelith.

Kaelith smiled warmly and raised his hand in blessing. ”Bless you al—”

TRRRRRRHHH!

The ground trembled violently.

No, not just the ground. The entire Empire began to rumble, the force so intense it felt as though the shock travelled far beyond their borders, echoing through other Empires that connected them.

Flip~

Everyone turned toward the source of the disturbance.

From the just sealed earth, a single greenish bud pushed upward, small yet unmistakable, breaking through where the seeds had been planted.

Kaelith’s eyebrows rose sharply.

”That’s way too fas—” His words cut short as his eyes widened.

Crack!

The earth split open around the bud, fractures racing outward with alarming speed.

”EVERYONE RUN!!”

Kaelith screamed!