Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1780: A Part of him that she never saw before: Part-1

Aqualina Naiadae had finally awakened from her deep slumber.

Her vision remained clouded, veiled beneath a lingering haze as she slowly lifted her head toward the distant figure seated atop what appeared to be a small mountain. At first, she couldn’t comprehend what she was seeing.

And yet…

“Ah… AY-ther…?”

The name escaped her lips as naturally as breathing.

Not because she had recognised his silhouette.

But because the invisible thread connecting their souls had quietly returned.

The bond that had been severed only a day ago had somehow mended itself once more, weaving their existence together with an intimacy no death could erase. Through that restored connection, she felt him more clearly than she could ever see him.

His… heartbeat.

His… breathing.

His… unbearable loneliness.

His.. endless hunger.

His… fractured mind?

And…

His overwhelming, all-consuming rage?!

The torrent of emotions struck her consciousness like an ocean collapsing upon fragile glass, forcing the air from her lungs. It wasn’t ordinary anger.

It was something deeper. Older…. More primal?

It felt as though someone infinitely precious to him had been taken away.

As though every remaining fragment of warmth inside his soul had been swallowed by an endless abyss, leaving behind only starvation, hatred, and a darkness so profound that even light itself seemed afraid to approach it.

Ssshh—!!

Without warning, the living darkness surrounding Young Aether suddenly froze.

Only a hair-thin gap remained for the darkness to fully swallow him, trembling unnaturally as though resisting an invisible command. Every surrounding shadow became perfectly motionless.

Even the drifting black particles suspended in the air.

Then, in the very next second…

The darkness retreated.

First, it peeled away from his left eye.

Then his right.

Slrrr~

It continued sliding backwards across his forehead with the sickening sound of flesh being separated from bone.

Then his nose.

Then his ears.

Then his lips.

Then his cheeks.

Sslllrrrppp~

The abyss that had been moments away from devouring him entirely slowly flowed backwards, as though reality itself had entered reverse. The horrifying sound resembled someone greedily slurping liquid darkness back into an unseen mouth hidden somewhere beyond existence itself.

Strands of writhing black mist peeled away from his face one after another, unravelling with impossible precision. Every tendril withdrew across his neck, shoulders, chest, and limbs exactly as it had spread moments earlier.

Within only a few seconds…

The darkness vanished completely.

Not a single fragment remained.

Only Young Aether stood motionless amidst the mountain of corpses.

!~Ding~!

[Trinity: 01%]

The Trinity had stabilised at a mere 1%.

It was pitifully low.

But it was enough.

The unseen violent storm that had kept his long black hair dancing wildly gradually subsided until every strand settled against his back. Slowly lowering his gaze, Young Aether stared at his hands. Thick blood clung to his fingers alongside torn flesh and fragments of organic tissue lodged beneath his nails. He silently observed them for several long seconds before raising them toward his mouth.

Slluurrpp~

His tongue slowly traced across his bloodstained fingers, tasting every lingering drop with an expressionless calm that felt infinitely more terrifying than madness itself.

Meanwhile, Aqualina slowly pushed herself upright, one trembling hand clutching the side of her head as waves of pain pulsed through her consciousness.

She looked toward him once more before whispering with a weak, trembling voice,

“AY-ther… Thool en-VAI nah-SHAY-el?”

The long-haired figure remained silent.

He didn’t answer.

He didn’t even turn around.

With slow, mechanical movements devoid of any wasted motion, he descended from the mountain of corpses.

Reaching the ground, he bent down, picked up his helmet lying beside him, and calmly placed it over his head.

Only then did he finally turn toward her.

“Aqua… my precious wife.”

His voice was unusually gentle, almost painfully warm.

“I finally found you again. I missed you more than words could ever carry. Did you sleep well, my love?”

He slowly walked toward her before wrapping both arms around her trembling body with extraordinary care, as though embracing the most precious treasure in existence. His face rested lightly against her shoulder as he inhaled her familiar scent with a quiet sniff, almost reassuring himself that she was truly alive.

Aqualina’s beautiful eyes widened in confusion.

She couldn’t understand a single word.

His voice carried warmth.

His embrace carried affection.

But the language…

Her lips trembled as she quietly answered in a weak voice,

“Ee na’raen… Sela thul lycori’en.”

Young Aether remained still for a brief moment.

Then realisation finally reached him.

“…Ah.”

A small, helpless laugh escaped beneath the helmet.

“Right… of course.”

Tilting his head slightly, he spoke once more, this time in Lycorian,

“Thul vaeshin, AH-kwah, ee-nah ah-YOR-ee-ah? Thul ayem ee’varin?” = *How are you, my dear Aqua, my beloved wife? Did you miss your husband?*

Aqualina blinked in confusion.

For some reason… she didn’t feel the excitement that he always carried whenever he saw her. His voice was warm. His words were affectionate. Yet something was missing.

And…

Why was he hiding his face?

*Aether… show me your face. What are you hiding?*

Young Aether chuckled softly beneath the helmet.

*Now, now… this is our first meeting after such a long time. I’m feeling a little shy, you know~*

His tone carried playful embarrassment, almost like a husband nervously meeting the love of his life after years apart, uncertain how to express the overwhelming emotions filling his heart.

But to Aqualina… It felt wrong.

Completely wrong!

She slowly shook her head.

There was something wrong with him.

Something was definitely wrong with him.

To her, it had only been twenty-four hours since her husband had departed for another empire.

Twenty-four hours.

Not years.

Not weeks.

Just one day.

Why…

Why did he sound as though an eternity had passed?

Her fingers trembled as she slowly reached toward him.

She gently rested her hand against the helmet.

*Are you… alright, darling?*

Tears quietly gathered within her eyes as she gazed at the visor, her beautiful face filled with worry, fear, and quiet heartbreak.

*…*

Young Aether fell silent.

Tilting his head slightly, he stared at the tears rolling down her cheeks. Through the restored bond connecting their souls, he could clearly perceive everything.

He saw her pain.

He saw her worry.

He recognised every emotion flowing from her heart.

But…

Why couldn’t he understand them?

Why couldn’t he feel them?

It was as though her tears carried no weight.

As though her fear meant nothing.

As though… She meant nothing?

He blinked several times before slowly lifting his gaze toward the bloody ceiling high above them.

Aqualina instinctively followed his gaze.

*Aether…?*

Young Aether lowered his head once more before calmly asking,

*Why did you get captured? Hmm?*

Aqualina let out a weary sigh before lowering her eyes.

*We tried to oppose them… but…*

Pain flashed across her face.

*This time they were strong… far stronger than we anticipated. We barely managed to defend the palace. Several cities were destroyed before we could reinforce them…*

She bit her lower lip, guilt filling every word.

*So… the others and I devised a plan to push them back. I volunteered to lead part of it… and… I was captured during the operation.*

Young Aether silently nodded.

*I know my darlings are incredible… but you still have to be more careful.*

His voice remained gentle.

Almost lovingly so.

*During times like these… you should’ve thrown some soldiers in first as bait. Or used any of those useless bitches wandering around our empire. They’re expendable. You aren’t~*

He slowly placed a hand over his chest.

*Seeing you like this… it hurts my heart, darling. You have no idea how worried I was~*

*…*

Aqualina simply stared at the expressionless helmet for several long seconds.

Then, in a quiet voice, she repeated,

*Show me your face.*

*Hmm?*

*I said… show me your face.*

Her voice was firmer this time.

She didn’t know why.

She couldn’t explain it.

But something inside that helmet…

Something was staring back at her.

Not merely watching.

Observing and Studying her!

Every instinct she possessed as both a queen and a warrior screamed at her that something standing before her was fundamentally wrong.

The voice belonged to Aether.

The soul connection belonged to Aether.

Even the warmth embracing her belonged to Aether.

Yet hidden behind that visor…

There was something else.

An indescribable sense of dread quietly crawled beneath her skin, causing every nerve in her body to tense. It was the same instinct that countless generations of living creatures possessed when standing before an apex predator concealed within darkness.

If she hadn’t known, beyond any doubt, that the man before her was her husband…

She would have already drawn her weapon.

Or run!!

Because her instincts…

Had never been wrong.

*Hmm… no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no… NO. No. NO. No. NO. No. NO. No. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO~~ Dar… ling~ Don’t make your husband saddddd~*

He waved his index finger back and forth as he spoke, his voice rising and falling with the exact same rhythm over and over again.

Like a broken audio recording trapped in an endless playback loop.

Each repetition carried the same cheerful tone.

The same smile.

The same cadence.

As though whatever was speaking beneath the helmet had momentarily forgotten how normal conversations worked.

!!!

Aqualina flinched.

… This wasn’t her husband.

No… It was!

The soul bond unmistakably told her that this was Aether.

Every heartbeat.

Every trace of his existence.

Every strand of his soul belonged to him.

Yet…

At the very same time…

It wasn’t him.

Her trembling eyes searched the helmet as countless emotions surged through her heart.

*D-Darling…*

Her voice quivered.

*Please… tell me honestly… are you really alright?*

*Oh?*

Young Aether tilted his head.

*You’re worried about me? That’s so sweet, sweetie pie~*

He gently pinched her cheeks with surprising tenderness before standing up and lazily rotating his body with both arms stretched outward.

*See? I’m perfectly fine.*

Aqualina’s breathing stopped.

Her pupils shrank.

Only now…

Did she truly see him.

The suit he once wore was almost beyond recognition.

Its once-pristine armour had been ripped apart by countless impacts, leaving behind hundreds of ragged holes that barely held together. Entire sections had melted into warped metallic fragments, exposing the scorched inner framework beneath. Burn marks covered nearly every inch of the suit.

Yet…

His body beneath it… was flawless.

Not a single wound.

Not a single scar.

Not even a scratch.

It was as though whatever had shredded the armour had simply… failed to harm the flesh underneath.

Then her gaze slowly drifted upward.

Her heart skipped.

His hair…

It had become impossibly long.

Dark strands flowed far beyond his butt, gently swaying.

Then…

She remembered.

Helena’s words.

Whenever Aether entered that strange state… That impossible mode…

His hair would continue growing.

*’D-Did… something happen here…?’*

The thought quietly echoed inside her mind.

Unable to stop herself, she slowly turned her head and looked across the chamber.

Only now…

Did she truly see it.

The massacre!

Hundreds of destroyed mech-suits lay scattered across the chamber like discarded toys.

Ordinarily…

She wouldn’t have been shocked.

If anything…

She would’ve been proud.

This was her husband.

The man capable of impossible miracles.

The man she believed could overcome any battlefield.

But…

Something about this scene… made every instinct inside her scream.

Because these weren’t merely corpses.

Many of the mech-suits had been ripped open with overwhelming brute force rather than weapons. The soldiers inside…

Their organs… Their flesh… were scattered everywhere.

Entire torsos had been opened as though some monstrous predator had ripped them apart before feasting upon them.

It wasn’t a battlefield.

It looked like the feeding ground of something that had forgotten what humanity was.

*OI… Fucker~*

Aqualina instantly flinched.

Her attention snapped back toward Young Aether.

The helmet still concealed his face completely.

Yet she could unmistakably feel his gaze boring into her through the helmet.

*I’m right here, bitch. Where are you looking, hmm?*

He slowly walked toward her before crouching down until their faces were only inches apart.

*Were they more important than your husband?*

He tapped the front of his helmet with a finger.

*My fucking face is right here.*

His head tilted again.

Slowly.

Almost unnaturally.

*Don’t tell me… you don’t love me anymore?*

His voice suddenly softened.

*Why…?*

Another tilt.

*I thought you loved me.*

Another.

*Isn’t that what you always said…?*

The final words carried the pitiful whine of a crying child desperately seeking affection.

Aqualina’s expression froze.

She couldn’t understand.

Nothing made sense.

The warmth.

The affection.

The vulgarity.

The childishness.

The terrifying pressure.

They all existed together inside the same person, stitched into something that shouldn’t have been possible.

*A-Aether…*

She swallowed hard.

*I… I still love yo—*

*YOU LIAR!!*

BAM!!

His fist crashed into the metallic floor with terrifying force.

Aqualina instinctively pushed herself backwards across the floor, her heart pounding violently against her chest.

For the first time… she was afraid of her own husband.

Aqualina watched helplessly as her husband’s emotions spiralled further and further out of control.

The restored bond between their souls carried every fluctuation directly into her heart, making the instability feel far more horrifying than anything she could see.

*Why…*

His voice cracked.

*Why did you lie to me…?*

A quiet sniff echoed beneath the helmet.

*You don’t love me anymore…?*

Another sniff.

*My… my wife doesn’t love me anymore… sniff…*

He rubbed the front of his helmet with the back of his hand as though wiping away tears that weren’t even visible.

Then immediately,

*…*

He simply stared at her… as if something else was watching her.

!!!

Aqualina’s entire body stiffened.

Every instinct she possessed screamed the same warning.

Move!

Run!!

Escape!!!

Whatever was standing before her…

It wasn’t her husband.

No… It wore her husband’s body.

It carried his soul.

It spoke with his voice.

But something else… something unspeakably wrong…

Had nested itself inside him.

*…Maybe I should let you go.*

His voice became strangely quiet.

Almost gentle.

*You deserve to be happy… right?*

*Aether…*

Aqualina reached toward him with trembling hands.

*My dear… I love you. I… I’m not going anywhere.*

But her words never reached him.

Or perhaps…

They simply no longer held any meaning.

Young Aether slowly leaned closer.

Closer.

Closer.

Until only the smooth helmet separated their faces.

Had that helmet not concealed his expression…

Aqualina instinctively knew…

She would’ve witnessed something no human mind was meant to see.

Something that would haunt her for the rest of her existence.

His voice dropped into a soft whisper.

*But… I ain’t letting you go.*

Another inch closer.

*You belong to me… foreverrrrrrr~*

His breathing was slow.

Almost affectionate.

*Your body.

Your soul.

Your love.

Your hate.

Your anger.

Your happiness.

Your sadness.

Your disgust~

Everything…*

He slowly leaned beside her right ear.

His whisper became distorted.

Fragments of different tones overlapped unnaturally, as though dozens of voices were speaking through the same mouth.

*EvERY… FuCkIng… THiNg… BeLoNgS… tO… Me.*

The words crawled beneath her skin like freezing insects.

When he slowly pulled away, he looked directly into her trembling eyes.

The helmet reflected her terrified expression back at her.

*Yeah…*

His head tilted.

*If you still want to leave… then…*

He moved toward her opposite ear.

His whisper became almost inaudible.

Yet every syllable echoed directly inside her soul.

*I…

WiLL…

RiP…

YoUR…

SoUL…

AnD…

KeEp…

iT…

NeXT…

To…

My…

HeArT…

FoReVeR… Heh~*

A soft laugh escaped him.

*Ever…*

Another.

*Ever… You ain’t going anywhere, bitch!*

Then, without warning, his voice stretched into an inhuman shriek.

*HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE~*

The sound reverberated throughout the chamber.

He wasn’t joking.

He wasn’t threatening her out of anger.

He wasn’t trying to frighten her.

He was simply stating what he intended to do.

As though it were the most natural thing imaginable.

!!!!

Aqualina’s heart skipped.

Her blood ran cold.

For the first time in countless years… she experienced genuine terror right after killing her daughter.

Not toward an enemy.

But toward the man she loved more than anyone else.