Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1782: This ‘Thing’ Will Kill ANYONE!

*He… Heh—*

The strange excitement lingering inside Aether abruptly disappeared.

*I-I am sorry…*

Aqualina’s voice broke as the words escaped her trembling lips.

*I… yeah… I killed my daughter.* Tears streamed freely down her cheeks now, no longer restrained by the fragile composure she had desperately clung to.

*I deserve to burn in hell… I… I know I do… and I accept that.*

Her fingers tightened around the fabric of her own sleeves as though she were trying to stop herself from falling apart.

*I-I know what I did can never be forgiven. Every single day… I’ve lived with that sin buried inside my heart. I know I shouldn’t be allowed to be this happy… I know I don’t deserve it…*

Her voice shook uncontrollably before she looked at him through tear-filled eyes.

*But… I still wanted to stay with you, Aether… I wanted to find happiness too… even if it was selfish of me.*

Another sob escaped her.

*I… I’m sorry… I’m so… so sorry…*

“…”

Aether slowly tilted his head to one side.

Then the other.

His movements were slow, almost curious, as though his mind were trying to process emotions that no longer fit together properly.

Suddenly, his entire posture brightened.

*Oh?*

His head snapped upright.

*Oh…HHH!! Dear!*

He hurried toward her with exaggerated panic.

*Why are you crying? Oh, sorry… sorry… I didn’t mean it like that…*

For a brief second…

His expression froze.

He slowly turned his head toward empty space beside him, glaring at something only he could see.

Then his voice exploded.

*THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU, ASSHOLE?!*

BAM!!

Without the slightest hesitation, he slammed the front of his helmet straight into the metallic floor.

The impact echoed violently throughout the chamber.

Aqualina gasped in horror.

*A-Aether!*

Before she could reach him…

BAM!!

He smashed his head down again.

BAM!!

BAM!!

BAM!!

Each impact struck harder than the last, sending violent tremors across the polished alloy floor.

The helmet gradually bent inward beneath the relentless impacts. Thick crimson blood slowly seeped through the narrow openings around the damaged visor before trickling down his neck.

*A-Aether! What are you doing?!*

Pure panic overtook her.

She threw herself forward and wrapped both arms around him, desperately stopping him before he could smash his head into the floor again.

*Please… don’t hurt yourself…*

Her voice completely collapsed into sobs.

*W-What’s w-w…wrong with you…?*

She didn’t even know what she was crying for anymore.

Was she crying because of the unforgivable sin she carried inside her heart?

Or…

Was she crying because the man she loved was slowly destroying himself before her eyes?

*I am SSSOOOO GRATEFUL~*

His voice instantly shifted again.

He tightly hugged her back, almost burying himself against her shoulder as though searching for comfort.

*Even now… you’re still worried about me?*

He sniffled loudly.

*What a wonderful wife I have…*

His arms wrapped around her with surprising gentleness despite the blood continuing to drip from beneath his shattered helmet.

*I must’ve done something truly amazing in my past life to deserve someone like you.*

He buried his face deeper against her shoulder.

*Aqua, darling…*

Sniff…

*You’re such a beautiful wife…*

Sniff…

*And yet…*

His voice filled with self-loathing.

*I actually tried to hurt you…*

*What a sinful man I am!!*

He suddenly pulled one arm free and clenched it into a fist, preparing to strike himself once more.

Aqualina immediately grabbed his wrist with both hands.

*STOP!!*

Her scream echoed throughout the chamber.

*STOP HURTING YOURSELF!!*

Her voice cracked under the weight of unbearable anguish.

She held his arm as tightly as she could, refusing to let him injure himself again.

For several long seconds…

Neither of them moved.

Then…

His arms suddenly wrapped tightly around her once more.

*SEEE!!*

He laughed through his tears.

*I LOVE YOU, DARLING!!!*

He embraced her with overwhelming force, almost as though he were terrified she might disappear if he loosened his grip even slightly.

His crying gradually became quieter.

Softer.

Until…

It stopped completely.

The warmth vanished.

The chamber felt colder.

Without moving away from the embrace, he slowly leaned toward her ear.

His blood-stained helmet lightly brushed against her cheek as a dreadful silence settled over the room.

When he finally spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper.

*Still…*

A slow, wicked grin spread beneath the broken helmet,

*You fucking killed your daughter, bitch. HEHEHEHEHE~*

Aqualina’s entire body froze.

The warmth of his embrace remained exactly the same.

Yet it no longer felt like the embrace of her husband.

It felt like she was being held by something wearing his body.

Aqualina’s eyes broke, as though something precious had been torn from the depths of her soul.

The vibrant light that usually danced within her purple irises faded into an empty, lifeless gaze as she stared blankly at her husband.

*Still… I accepted you and your love, so don’t judge me~* he giggled softly, the carefree sound echoing unnaturally through the ruined chamber before casually pushing her off his lap and rising to his feet.

*Now, we don’t have time. Get the fuck out of here,* he said as he stood upright, his eyes narrowing toward the portal.

Judging from the calculating look in his eyes, he had already formed another reckless plan.

Aqualina silently… nodded to herself several times before slowly standing up. Straightening her back despite the fear crushing her heart, she proudly declared,

*I-I-I am not going a..anywhere.*

She understood what she had to do.

More than saving her world… more than escaping this battlefield… she had to bring her husband back.

Otherwise, even if the war ended and every soul survived, it would all become meaningless if the man who returned was no longer the same person everyone loved.

*…*

An unnatural silence swallowed the chamber.

*Get the fuck out of here.*

*I am not! And I will not!!* she answered without hesitation. Although her legs trembled uncontrollably beneath her, she refused to retreat, planting her feet firmly against the cold steel floor.

If she abandoned him now… then the man who eventually returned home would no longer be the gentle husband she knew.

Whatever darkness was consuming him here would follow him back, and that thought terrified her far more than death itself.

*Hmm…*

Aether groaned quietly as his neck twitched from side to side with unsettling jerks. His movements were strangely mechanical, almost as though invisible strings were pulling at his body.

Slowly, he stepped closer until only a breath separated them before gently cupping her cheeks.

*My dear lovely Aqua…*

He whispered with an oddly affectionate smile that somehow made the surrounding darkness feel even colder.

*I need you to understand something. You’re just going to become a pain in the ass for me, even with your so-called powers. You are still nothing before them… absolutely nothing!

So stop acting stubborn, shut your pussy, and get the fuck out of here.*

His fingers slowly tightened around her cheeks.

The pressure increased little by little until pain spread across her face, forcing a quiet groan from her lips. Tears instinctively welled within her eyes, yet she refused to look away.

Terror clawed at every corner of her soul while her instincts screamed for her to run.

Every instinct begged her to flee.

Every heartbeat screamed danger.

Yet her heart simply refused.

Because the monster standing before her… was still her husband.

*Oh… I get it,* he suddenly muttered, blinking a few times as though a realisation had struck him.

*You’re scared they’ll kill you if you go back now… isn’t that right?*

His expression softened for a brief moment as he recalled the battlefield she had barely escaped from. Sending her back meant throwing her straight into the middle of the nightmare that had nearly claimed her life only moments ago.

She must be terrified…

Wasn’t that why she was acting so strangely?

*Don’t fear when your hubby is here!*

He declared with an absurdly proud grin, thumping his chest with confidence.

Without another thought, he immediately dropped every improvised weapon he had painstakingly built over the last four days.

Advanced DIY railguns, energy diffusers, electromagnetic launchers, compact energy emitters, experimental energy cells, prototype drones, and countless futuristic devices crafted alongside RIN crashed onto the metallic floor with heavy clangs.

Even the rare components and specialised equipment he had scavenged from across the military sector were tossed into the growing pile as though the countless hours spent creating them held absolutely no value compared to her safety.

Aqualina could only blink in stunned silence as an entire mountain of advanced artifacts accumulated before her.

She slowly lifted her eyes toward the Aether, only to find him holding hundreds of small golden stones that shimmered with mysterious technological patterns beneath their crystalline surfaces.

*Take these as well,* he said while placing the stones into her trembling hands. *These things are interesting. Just attach one to your body, and it immediately blocks your energy while forming a ridiculously thin barrier around you. Whatever technology this is… it’s completely different from ours. Take them back to Lyirrs and have her reverse-engineer them. I’m sure she’ll create something even more useful from these… and also this.*

Without waiting for her response, he turned and climbed over the towering mountain of destroyed mech-suits. Twisted steel groaned beneath his feet while severed cables sparked violently.

Reaching deep into the heap of shattered machines, he grabbed something buried beneath the wreckage before forcefully pulling out Commander 6.

*Hmm… I ate-ahem… I took everything from inside, just in case,* he said as he shoved his hand into the torn-open chest plate of the destroyed Commander unit. Metallic fragments scraped against his arm.

He carefully searched the ruined interior for any remaining flesh, ensuring nothing valuable had been left behind. Once satisfied, he casually tossed it near Aqualina’s feet.

*Let Lyirrs examine this as well. We need to figure out how to destroy suits like these… well, even the more advanced ones. But I’ll deal with those assholes myself. And yeah… that’s about it.* He dusted his hands together before looking directly at her.

*Now take all of this and get the fuck out of here.*

He simply stood there, waiting.

Aqualina remained motionless.

Her vacant eyes drifted across the growing mountain of advanced equipment scattered across the floor.

It could save countless lives.

It could turn the tide of the war.

But…

None of it mattered if she lost him.

Her trembling gaze slowly rose toward Aether. Worry, fear, and helplessness carved themselves across her face.

Every second she remained here, she felt as though the darkness consuming him sank deeper into his soul. If she walked away now…

He might never return as the Aether she knew.

Before she could even part her lips, Aether sighed dramatically.

*I know! I know exactly what you’re about to say.*

He straightened his posture before ridiculously mimicking her voice.

**No! Aether! I absolutely won’t leave you alone! You’re not yourself, Daddy~**

His imitation was so absurdly accurate that it almost sounded like her.

Then…

His smile vanished.

*Bitch… I am me.*

His eyes became frighteningly empty.

*So shut the fuck up… and leave.*

Aqualina instinctively swallowed, her lips quivering before she bit down on them hard enough to draw blood.

*I… I can’t…Mff—!*

The rest of her words never escaped.

Aether’s hand shot forward with terrifying speed, his fingers wrapping around her delicate neck before effortlessly lifting her completely off the ground.

Her feet dangled helplessly above the cold metallic floor.