Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

"I… sniff, sniff… I am not… sniff… c-crying!"

Aether bit his lower lip with an awkward expression, as a soft "Tsk" escaped him. He turned his head to the side, unable to meet her eyes for a moment.

What should he do now?

He exhaled deeply, his voice softened... gentle, tender, nothing like the furious shouts from earlier. "Sigh… listen." Slowly, he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a tight embrace, holding her as if he would never let her go again.

His voice shook faintly as he spoke against her trembling hair. "When I thought I lost you… You don't understand what I felt. It was unbearable… like the world itself collapsed under my feet. Just like I don't understand what it truly means to live between life and death."

He pulled back slightly, cupping her cheeks carefully, lifting her tear-streaked face to meet his gaze. His thumb brushed her wet skin as his eyes softened.

"I love you, idiot…" he whispered, a faint smile breaking through the weight of his words.

Nyx sniffled, her body trembling as she flinched at the raw confession. Her tears only poured more heavily, dripping down her chin.

"N-No… y-you got angry… sniff, sniff… even though I didn't do anything wrong… sniff, sniff…" Her voice cracked even more as she lowered her head again.

Aether gently rubbed away the corner of her tears with his thumb,

"Yes… I did get angry. I admit it. But this anger… It's the kind of anger that only comes from love.

Please understand me, Nyx.

I'm not forcing myself on you… never. If you truly want to die… if you want to leave this endless cycle of life and death behind, then I—" his voice trembled but steadied again,

"—I would do anything for you to be happy, even if that meant accepting your death. But… you wanted to live, right?

Didn't you once dream of it?

Didn't you want to see our baby? To hold them? To pamper them? To take care of them and watch them grow?"

Nyx's lips trembled violently as her hazy, tear-filled eyes lifted toward Aether. She couldn't speak. She didn't know what to say, or even how to say it. Her heart pounded as though it would shatter her chest.

How did he know?

It was as if he could see her hidden thoughts, the dreams she never voiced aloud.

How did he know all this?

Was this… truly love?

Her thoughts were shattered when suddenly Aether's body flickered, his form distorting as if he was slowly disappearing from her sight.

Nyx gasped sharply, flinching. "W-What's going on?!"

Aether smiled weakly, "Nothing."

"No, no!" Nyx shouted, panic rising in her voice as she grabbed his arm. "Tell me what's going on with you!"

Aether only shrugged, shaking his head slightly. "I said nothing is going on—"

"Why are you not telling me the truth?!" she screamed, clutching at his collar with both trembling fists, her tear-streaked face pressed close to his.

"What did you sacrifice to reach here?!"

Aether's lips curved into a weak, almost tragic smile as he simply hugged her back tightly, his words coming in a faint whisper.

"Everything."

Nyx's body trembled at the sound of that word, her fingers twitching against his shirt before clutching harder, digging into the fabric as though she could anchor him here.

"J-Just tell me… tell me the truth!"

Aether sighed deeply, his breath heavy, weary. "Sigh… Due to the Eternal Contract… the moment you died, my reality began to crumble."

Her entire face froze, horror spreading across her face. She shoved him back slightly, staring at him wide-eyed. "Reality… crumble? You mean… You would disappear forever?"

Aether nodded quietly. His eyes were steady, yet a faint flicker of regret lived within them.

"If I don't change my contract holder soon… I will be erased forever."

Nyx's entire body froze as if ice had wrapped around her bones. Her lips parted, but no sound came.

It wasn't just about death anymore.

Erased.

The word echoed inside her like a curse.

It meant… Aether would no longer exist, even if Nyx were to be reborn again. Aether's soul would forever disappear, lost to the void!

"Why didn't you change the contract holder?!" Nyx shouted furiously, "You have Nightfire there, right?!! She could have helped you!!"

Aether only weakly smiled, lips trembling, but no words came. That silence was enough. Enough to make her entire body tremble, her heart sinking deeper into despair.

"S-Stupid… stupid!! So stupid!!"

She muttered through clenched teeth, tears dripping as she pressed her forehead against his for a brief second before leaning forward and kissing his lips in desperation.

Pulling back, her breath shook as she turned toward the sudden disturbance... a swirling grey mist that had appeared out of nowhere in the endless white space. "Let's go…"

However, before she could step forward, Aether caught her hand firmly. He pulled her back into his embrace, his arms wrapping around her.

He said, "No."

"Huh? Have you lost your mind?!" Nyx shouted, staring up at him in disbelief.

But Aether only shook his head slowly, "I don't want you to come for me…"

"… Aether…" Nyx bit her lips hard.

Why was he making this so difficult for her?

Why was he rejecting her attempt to save him?

Aether smiled faintly, his hand gently pressing over her chest, "If you come now… then you're doing it for me. No. I don't want that. I want Nyx to come back for herself… for her alone."

Nyx lowered her head, painfully biting her lip as her eyes filled with tears that wouldn't stop trembling.

Her voice cracked as the dam inside her heart finally broke.

"I… I never received love from others… not once.

I always longed for it… I longed for how the Her Majesty treated Lia, for the tenderness she gave her child…

I longed for a life where I could have a big family of my own.

I… I wanted so many babies… I wanted to love them so much… it should have made me hurt." She sucked in a trembling breath and lifted her gaze to Aether, her eyes flickering with need and fear.

"C-Can you… give those to me?"

Aether's lips curved into a genuine smile, his head nodding firmly without hesitation.

"I love you… endlessly.

I'll pamper you, all day and all night, until you feel overwhelmed and cry—aha, I'll even laugh at how spoiled you become.

You'll have a big family, Nyx… whether souls or living flesh, you'll have them all.

Babies... as many as you want. You'll be showered in life, in love, until it hurts you more than the pain you've ever known."

"R-Really?" Nyx's voice trembled with fragile hope. "No matter what happens?"

Aether nodded without faltering. "I promise… in the name of Aether. No matter what happens… better or worse, rich or poor, in sickness or in health—"

"They stay together until death parts them." Nyx finished softly for him, a faint, fragile smile breaking through her tears.

Aether nodded in return, holding her close.

But Nyx's lips curved into a cheeky grin through her tears. "No… we stay together even after death parts us."

Before he could answer, she turned swiftly toward the grey mist and stepped into it, her form swallowed by the shifting void.

Aether blinked, frozen for a heartbeat, before a quiet smile tugged at his lips. He shook his head slowly as his gaze lowered to his own body, now almost fully transparent, fragments of him disappearing into the emptiness.

He sighed deeply.

Honestly… he was really playing a dangerous game here.

Yes, it was true... the only thing that had pushed her to make that choice was the sight of his dire situation. Otherwise, she would never have chosen to come back.

Yes… he tricked her with his words.

But what choice did he really have left?

She who lived between death and life… Nyx could never truly understand it by mere words. No matter how much anyone tried to convince her, no matter how much reason was spoken, she would never listen.

She was the kind of woman who loved death itself… embraced it, even. She wasn't afraid of it, even if it meant leaving everything behind.

And not only her… but also the people here. Everyone in this place… loved death. They longed for it. They wanted to be part of it.

Aether sighed, flexing the only part of his body that was still visible—his head. His form had been reduced so far that nothing but that faint outline remained.

Turning to the other side, his gaze locked onto a shifting swirl of white and black mist. Without hesitation, he moved toward it.

Meanwhile—

Nightfire was panicking, her mind nearly snapping at the sight of Aether's fading body. His entire form was practically gone… literally, only his head hovered there, barely clinging to existence, while the rest had freakishly disappeared.

"We need to do something!!

Fucking Aether, stop it!!

Where is your cock?!!!" she screamed, tears streaking her cheeks.

The sight of his lower half missing hit her with horror of a different kind. "Don't tell me—don't you fucking dare tell me I'm never getting that thing anymore?!" she wailed.

So pitiful~

Just then, Starla frowned deeply, her sharp gaze catching something strange. She raised a finger and pointed urgently.

Nightfire blinked, following her direction....

Nyx's soul, which had been trembling and flickering as though on the edge of collapse, suddenly got sucked into the rope.

Both Nightfire and Starla flinched hard, their eyes widening as they tracked the movement along the rope. And then they saw it. A bright, brilliant light surged along its length, moving from one end toward… Nyx's body.

Flick~

Nyx's body convulsed violently, trembling back and forth as if struck by unseen lightning. Her limbs jerked before her eyes snapped wide open, glowing faintly.

"MY QUEEN!!" Starla cried out, her voice breaking as she immediately rushed forward, throwing herself into Nyx's arms and hugging her desperately.

Nyx blinked hazily, her vision blurred, her body heavy. She rubbed her eyes softly with her fingers, then let out a small yawn, her voice sluggish. "Yaa… what happened?" She glanced around with a dazed look, confusion painted across her face.

"The fuck happened, bitch?!" Nightfire shouted, her tone wild with a mix of horror and relief.

"You fucking died!! You just fucking died in front of us!! And Aether fucked up!!"

Nyx's eyes fluttered as memories slowly stirred, flickers of what had just happened returning to her like fragments of a dream. Something… no, someone… a reason that had pulled her back.

Her lips parted faintly.

"A-Aether?"

Thud!

Everyone turned sharply toward the sudden sound.

Aether had collapsed on the ground. His entire body, once flickering and unstable, had returned to normal.

He lay there panting heavily, his breath ragged. Blood trickled faintly from his nose, dripping down his lips, but his eyes... his eyes were wide with shock. He wasn't staring at Nyx, not yet.

Instead, he looked down at the glowing screen-like panel before him... his Log.

!~Ding~!

[+1000 AP]

[+1000 AP]

[+2000 AP]

[+2000 AP]

[+2000 AP]

[+3000 AP]

[+3000 AP]

[+4000 AP]

[+5000 AP]

!~Ding~!

[Congratulations🎉 on Completing the Mission: Seduce Nyx Shadowfall ]

!~Ding~!

[Reward: 50,000 Affection Points]

!~Ding~!

[Survival rate: 95.9%↑ ]

!~Ding~!

[Reward: Skill: Null-Return]

!~Ding~!

[Congratulations🎉 on Activating and Comprehending Trinity]

!~Ding~!

[You have Levelled up!!]

!~Ding~!

[Threshold Broken → You have ascended to Level 100❗]

!~Ding~!

[Congratulations 🎉on reaching Level 100!]

!~Ding~!

[📢Major Update Triggered]

[Request: LOG 2.0]

[...]

[...]

[Affirmative!]

[Initialising… LOG 2.0]