Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1597: When Devil comes out... You won’t like it: Part-2

The entire training hall murmured with secrecy, suffocating hum as small groups formed and clung together.

Eyes darted, and every whisper carried the same desperate intent, finding a way out, any way out, before death decided for them.

”I... I really don’t know who these people were. I-I am scared... Please, I have a family. They’re waiting for me.”

”Do you think I don’t have one? You think you’re special? Fuck!”

”What should we do? Standing here won’t save us.”

”H-Hey, I have an idea... how about attacking them? We are around fifty... if we rush together, we might have a chance—”

”Bro, did you see that freaking snake? Did you actually see it?”

”...”

”Then what the hell should we do?”

”We don’t know who that person ’Penelope’ is, and we certainly don’t know who those five people were.”

”Shit! Shit! We are going to die! This is it!”

Meanwhile, a group of four stood slightly apart, their silence sharper than the panic around them.

”He is certainly after us,” one beautiful and mature woman said with a calm tone, but her fingers subtly tightening at her side.

”What should we do? I-If he finds out... W-We are completely fucked. There’s no way out if he knows,” another woman added, her voice cracking despite her effort to steady it.

”H-Hey, don’t just give up now!” Mathew frowned, though even his defiance sounded thin, stretched over fear.

”Give up? Bitch, look at that thing again... that snake isn’t normal. It will swallow us whole in a second, bones and all!”

”Arrh!” the handsome man groaned, dragging a hand through his hair as sweat gathered along his jaw.

The beautiful woman inhaled slowly, forcing calm into her veins before speaking,

”Calm down, all of you. Think. He didn’t recognise who it was... that means we are still invisible to him, at least for now.”

A fragile shift passed through the group.

”So... we can escape? There’s still a way out?” the other woman beside her asked.

Mathew, beside her, shook his head, ”No. If we don’t go to him, he practically said he would kill everyone here.”

”So in the end, we are still going to die?”

The beautiful woman smirked, her eyes glinting with something colder than fear. She shook her head,

”Come on... you’re still not getting it. If he didn’t know who it was... then we control the story. And stories can be rewritten.”

”Huh?”

”Blame it on others?”

”Yes,” she nodded, ”All he needs is five people. Just five.”

Her gaze swept across the hall, scanning faces, trembling bodies, the isolated ones standing apart, drowning in their own guilt.

”If what he said was right, then everyone here is a bully... and look closely, some of them are already breaking. Standing alone, avoiding eyes, carrying their past like a stain they cannot wash away.”

A sinister smile curved across her lips,

”If we point at those guilty ones... if we guide his attention...” She let the thought linger, ”Haha... you already know what happens next, don’t you?”

Hearing that, everyone smirked in unison, fear twisting into something far more dangerous.

”But... what if they say they weren’t?” the handsome man asked, eyes flickering toward the restless crowd.

The beautiful woman smirked,

”Do you really think anyone will accept it? Of course, they will reject the accusation, just like everyone else will... and that makes it perfect for us. Denial only makes them look more guilty, especially with those faces.”

A quiet pause settled between them, ”So? Shall we?”

The group of four nodded in unison.

Meanwhile, Aether sat on the wooden chair silently, his knuckles resting against his chin as his gaze drifted across the hall.

The crowd twisted in desperation, people scrambling, whispering, clinging to anything that might spare them.

To him, it looked less like survival and more like decay unfolding in real time.

’So even now, they don’t even feel sorry...’

A faint breath left him, carrying a trace of disappointment that barely touched his otherwise cold expression.

’Sigh... I suppose this is what people are.’

Honestly, he had wanted to kill them all.

That had been his initial plan. But his wife’s voice lingered in his mind, reminding him not to lose himself.

Because of that, he had chosen restraint, a warning instead of annihilation, sparing everyone except those five.

Yet even now...

’In their eyes, the victim is still beneath them...’

The thought barely finished forming when a sudden shout tore through the hall, sharp and desperate.

”M-MY LORD!”

The handsome man rushed forward, but before he could reach Aether, his body was violently forced down.

In a blink, Kaelen moved.

A crushing force drove the man to the ground, Kaelen’s knee pressing hard against his spine, pinning him with brutal precision.

”Arhh!” the handsome man groaned, his body trembling under the pressure as pain shot through his back.

”I... I am sorry... I just knew about the person... P-Please...”

Kaelen did not move. His gaze shifted toward Aether, awaiting command.

Aether remained still, his eyes settling on the man beneath him,

”Tell me.”

The handsome man winced, ”B-But before that, can you let—”

”Talk.”

”...”

The handsome man clenched his teeth, pain and fear twisting together before he finally shouted,

”That guy in the back... he is the one who bullied an innocent girl named Penelope!”

His trembling hand pointed toward a lone figure standing at the edge of the crowd.

Aether’s eyebrow lifted slightly as his gaze followed the direction.

The boy froze.

His entire body flinched as if struck, his head shaking frantically. ”I... I didn’t... I wasn’t one of them... I...”

His knees gave out beneath him, collapsing as fear swallowed whatever strength he had left.

”I... I am sorry... please... I didn’t mean to... I wasn’t hurting anyone... I was wrong... I...”

His voice crumbled, words breaking apart as he crouched, trembling uncontrollably.

The handsome man smirked, satisfaction flickering across his face as he glanced back at his group.

They understood.

Without hesitation, they stepped forward, their expressions composed, almost respectful, as they approached Aether.

”My Lord... we too have seen others,” the beautiful woman said, her voice smooth, controlled, as she and the others drew closer.

Aether raised his eyebrows slightly, ’Interesting...’

”Oh?” he said softly. ”Then tell me.”

The group nodded and began pointing out four more figures scattered across the hall.

But unlike the first, these ones reacted instantly.

”No! I bullied my junior, but it was a man!”

”It wasn’t me! You’ve got the wrong person!”

”You’re lying! It wasn’t me!”

Voices clashed, rising in panic, each one scrambling to redirect the blame.

The beautiful woman snorted lightly, her lips curling with disdain. ”Oh, really? You expect anyone to believe that? You’re obviously lying... but it doesn’t matter. I already know it was you.”

She turned toward Aether, her expression shifting, softening into something calculated, her smile turning almost sultry.

”Please believe me, My Lord,” she said, her voice smooth as silk, ”He was the one who hurt that pitiful girl. She was such a hardworking girl, you know...”

Her eyes gleamed faintly.

”She deserved happiness.”

The four people’s eyes widened in raw, suffocating horror as they collapsed to their knees, their bodies trembling violently.

Words spilled from their mouths in broken desperation as they begged, swore, and denied.

Some even began confessing to other acts, throwing out true names, true victims, anything that might drag the blade away from their own throats.

”I-I bullied someone else! Not her! I swear, I swear on my life!”

”It wasn’t me! I never touched that girl! Please, listen!”

”I did wrong, yes, but not that! Not her! Please!”

Aether watched them quietly.

Filth.

Yes, they were filth in his eyes, crawling, writhing, revealing their true nature the moment death loomed close enough to taste.

His gaze lifted slightly, sweeping across the four.

More filth!

”I see...” Aether nodded slowly.

The beautiful woman’s lips curled inwardly, satisfaction blooming beneath her composed expression.

’Hahah... it worked. Just like that.’

Her eyes shimmered faintly with pride.

’So this is the so-called First Supremacy? A man revered by all... and yet so easily swayed. Just a smile, a few careful words... and he bends.’

Her tongue brushed lightly against her lips, a quiet, dangerous hunger forming.

’If he is this easy... then this is no longer survival. This is an opportunity.’

She lowered herself gracefully, every movement deliberate, controlled, refined to perfection. Her posture softened, her gaze turned fragile, almost trembling as she looked up at him.

”My Lord...” her voice carried a gentle tremor, carefully crafted,

”I know I have wronged others. I will not deny my sins.”

She paused, letting the silence breathe around her, letting eyes fall upon her.

”From this day onward, I will reflect... I will abandon everything I have, my title, my pride... and devote myself entirely to you as my retribution.”

Her fingers tightened slightly against the floor as she leaned forward just enough.

”I wouldn’t mind being your mistress too.”

Behind her, Mathew froze.

”W-What are you saying...?” his voice cracked, hollow, as if he no longer recognised the woman before him.

Before he could step forward, before he could even breathe properly again, Aether spoke.

”Oh? Mistress?”

A faint shift in his tone.

”Interesting... come here. Sit on my lap.”

Everyone... everyone in the hall froze, their thoughts halting as if struck. The gentle, innocent Aether they had perceived now spoke with something entirely different beneath his tone.

Just like that... he accepted?

The beautiful woman’s heart leapt with triumph.

’Of course... no one escapes this.’

She rose smoothly, her movements carrying a subtle arrogance now, barely concealed beneath feigned shyness.

As she settled onto his lap, her face flushed lightly, her lashes lowering as if overwhelmed.

”M-My Lord...”

Her breath hitched as his hand moved, gripping her ass without hesitation.

”What?” Aether’s voice dipped, edged with irritation. ”You offered yourself. Now you hesitate?”

”N-No...” she replied quickly, her tone soft, almost breathless, ”it’s just... everyone is watching...”

Her gaze flickered, just for a moment.

Toward Mathew.

He looked broken.

Aether noticed.

And something darker surfaced within him... his ice blue eyes flickered with pure darkness.

His grip tightened, deliberately fondling her ass, not hidden, not subtle, but meant to be seen.

”Aah...”

A quiet sound slipped from her lips as she leaned slightly into him, playing her role perfectly.

”Serve me well,” Aether said, his voice low, carrying a chilling authority,

”And I might consider making you the next Queen.”

!!!

Shock rippled through the hall.

Even Kaelen’s expression faltered, his knee pressing down harder without realising, drawing a strained groan from the handsome man beneath him.

Next Queen?

What did that mean?

Power?

Absolute power!!

The woman felt it surge through her veins.

’He is insane... hahah... the man above all rules, reduced to this. To think the great First Supremacy is this weak against a woman... Is that how that girl caught his attention, too?’

A realisation struck her.

’So that girl... Penelope... is this how she did it? Did she spread her legs just to get revenge on us all?’

’But how? No one even made contact with the First Supremacy—’

But before the thought could settle fully—

”S-Stop!! What are you doing?!”

The shout shattered everything.

Mathew shouted in pure rage, pain and disbelief as he yelled,

”She is my wife!!”

Her expression twisted instantly, veins faintly surfacing as fury flared behind her eyes.

How dare he.

He dared to ruin this moment.

This moment... this chance...

Her only path to ascend beyond everyone, beyond this pathetic circle of nobles clawing at scraps.

The Queen.

The one who stands above all.

And he dared to drag her back down?

Her nails dug slightly into Aether’s clothing as fury coiled inside her chest.

Did he understand what had just been offered?

Aether, a man beyond laws, beyond the Emperor, offering her a throne.

Power that decides life.

The Royal seat.

The absolute authority.

And this fool was throwing it away?

Was he insane?

And this fool... this useless man...

Ruining it?

Was he truly that blind? That pathetic?

If she rose, he would rise with her. Wealth, power, influence. Everything!

And yet he screamed like a child clinging to scraps of morality.

Why was he so blind?

But the truth had been spoken.

She could not erase it now.

So she adapted... Instantly.

Her body softened again, her expression cracking into fragile vulnerability. Tears welled, shimmering as she turned toward Aether.

”P-Please forgive him, My Lord...” her voice trembled, carefully broken, ”yes... he is my husband, but...but...”

She hesitated, letting the pain show, letting the illusion breathe.

”I-I never truly loved him... in fact...”

Her fingers tightened, clinging to Aether as if he were her only refuge.

”I was forced into this marriage... it was political... I had no choice...”

Her voice fractured further as she leaned into him, pressing closer, seeking shelter, offering herself all at once.

”I have endured it... all this time... awweee...” her voice broke softly as she lifted her gaze, eyes shimmering.

”D-Do you believe me? If I said I always had someone in my heart?”

As she hesitated before with puppy eyes and red face said,

”I-I have always L-Loved you.”

”...W-What?”

Her husband’s face darkened completely, as if something deep within him had cracked.