Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

After the meeting, Victor left the palace, since it was time for him to meet his people directly, to see what was going on and how they were dealing with the issues.

He flew alone through the misty skies... When he descended, the wind rippled through the banners and the air smelled of ash and steel. He moved quietly over the city, his gaze calm yet piercing, scanning every corner for disorder.

The people were working again, doing their usual routine. Hammer sounds clanged, vendors shouted prices, and the scent of baked bread mixed with faint traces of Arcane residue drifting from halted workshops.

Everything seemed normal, except for a few jobs that depended on Arcane energy, which had been paused for the time being and were now being changed into something else.

"Hmm… even if the new jobs provide… what about the industries and markets that depended on it?" Victor muttered with a frown, his voice low and edged with thought.

He could already see the cracks forming, trade lines snapping, materials piling up unsold. He understood it would cause a severe chain break in their routine cycle.

"Sooner or later, that market and industry will collapse… Hmm…" He hummed thoughtfully with a serious expression... He needed to deal with this somehow.

Maybe Maelona could help him deal with these issues?

He slowly landed on the cobbled street and began walking through the market. The ground was wet with morning mist; children darted between stalls, laughter mingling with the cries of hawkers.

People were too busy trading and arguing over prices to notice who had just arrived among them.

"How much is this?" Victor asked, his gaze resting on the glistening slab of meat laid upon a wooden counter.

The shop owner replied without looking up, "1200 Zenith," his hands busy wrapping a large order for a woman.

Victor's brow creased. "That's a lot for a single piece… don't you think so, sir?"

The shop owner, who had been grinning at the lady, turned with an irritated sigh. "If you don't have money to buy it, then just fuck off—" The words froze in his throat the instant his eyes met Victor's.

His lips parted, breath hitching as he realized who stood before him.

"D-Dragon Emperor…" he stammered, his voice trembling. His face turned pale as snow. Even though the words weren't loud compared to the market's constant noise, they spread like wildfire through the crowd.

The chatter stopped... Even the birds above went quiet for a moment. Then, one by one, people dropped to their knees, heads bowed low.

Victor stood still, his cloak brushing against the dust as he looked down at the trembling shop owner who was sweating as though his soul were melting.

"Tell me," he said slowly, each word striking like cold iron, "this piece isn't worth more than 500ˀ. Yet you're not just doubling but almost tripling the rate it's supposed to be. Why?"

The shop owner swallowed hard, eyes darting, voice cracking. "I… I didn't mean to sell it, my Lord… it's just… the rate… it skyrocketed!"

Victor's frown deepened as sudden pressure descended on the shop owner. "Skyrocketed? I didn't hear that… Hmm?" His gaze shifted toward the other shop owners. "Is that true?"

The other shopkeepers trembled, lowering their faces in horror.

"Hmm… looks like everyone's doing it… ah." He muttered in a voice sharp enough to cut air. His tone carried deathly weight, and as he looked around, he noticed people buying more than necessary.... hands shaking, baskets overflowing with goods.

His frown deepened further. "What's going on here?" he asked in a cold, dangerous tone.

The shop owners and buyers gulped in horror, sensing their Emperor's anger rising like a storm ready to break. One of the shopkeepers gathered enough courage to speak.

"D-Due to the disappearance of Arcane energy… the demand for meat increased exponentially and…" He hesitated, voice barely audible.

"And?" Victor pressed.

"U-Using this chance, we… we unanimously decided to increase the rate... P-Please forgive us, Dragon Emperor, but the rates are increasing lately... w-we couldn't hold back!"

Victor blinked slowly. "Oh? I see…" He nodded faintly, as if in understanding. The meat came from monsters and wild beasts that roamed the wilderness, and since people had lost their Arcane energy, they could no longer hunt as easily as before.

That made sense. That was precisely why he had already established a fair margin line for them... and even issued extra Palace funds for those brave enough to face the creatures.

He did that already. Yet…

He turned to the lady who had bought a huge load of meat... enough to feed fifty people. "Tell me… why the sudden demand for it?"

The lady gulped, her hands trembling as she bowed. "I-I just thought it would be easy to store… just in case something dangerous happens." Her eyes flickered nervously toward the sky, where the golden letters still shimmered faintly.

Victor blinked, his gaze following hers before glancing around. Everyone else nodded with the same fearful reasoning.

Victor felt honestly surprised. He hadn't expected this sort of reaction.

Actually… he understood it. The woman wasn't greedy; she was afraid. Storing food for an uncertain future made sense... yet the realisation that everyone thought the same unsettled him.

Victor sighed quietly. Now he wasn't sure whether to be angry at them for their panic or proud that they were preparing for what might come.

He raised an eyebrow, expression tight. "Things are getting messy," he muttered with slight annoyance.

"Call the Captain responsible for this area," Victor announced in a serious tone.

He needed to alert others.... to verify whether this situation had been ignored… or if the Captains already knew and chose to remain silent.

While Victor was busy dealing with the chaos, back in the palace…

The women were lying on the bed, their legs dangling lazily in the air, hands holding cards. They looked at each other with grave expressions... yet their serious faces betrayed the truth.

Everyone was playing a card game.

"Arrgh! Why is everyone focusing on me?!" Raven shouted as she became the first to lose. The moment the game began, everyone... literally everyone!! ganged up on her to eliminate her first!

This was utterly wrong!!

If it had been one on one, she would have been victorious!!

Absolutely, yet!!

Thalia giggled, tossing her hair back. "That's what you get for being a bitch~," she said with an amused tone, placing one card in the centre with exaggerated grace. Her smirk glowed with victory as her fingers tapped the table rhythmically.

The others glanced at the card before Selene reached forward, her eyes glinting mischievously. She took it, smiling faintly, then turned to Nyx.

"Your turn, darling. Take one from her."

Nyx tilted her head, her dark hair slipping over one shoulder as her fingers hovered above Selene's cards. Her fingertips traced the air slowly, gliding just inches away from the cards. As her slender fingers drifted from one to another, she noticed Selene's bright, playful smile suddenly beginning to sour.

Nyx blinked and pulled her hand back, her lips curling slightly....Too happy?

Too obvious!!

Realising something, she immediately picked the one that felt "sour." Only then did Selene smirk.... that wicked, sweetly dangerous smile of hers.

Nyx… was out!!

"Hmm… it's hard," Nyx said, sighing in a slightly annoyed tone, her pout earning small chuckles around the room.

Raven shook her head. "No! You're not supposed to look at her face — she was playing with you!!"

"Was she?" Nyx tilted her head innocently, blinking her bright eyes.

Selene smiled just as innocently, fingers resting near her lips, as if she hadn't just toyed with her prey.

Meanwhile, Selene, Thalia, Emberlyn, and Nightfire were still in the game.

The sound of the flicking deck mixed with the soft thump of pillows as the women shifted, legs crossed, teasing one another between turns.

"I didn't expect you to be this strong," Thalia said, watching Nightfire play with surprising calmness.

Nightfire smirked, the corner of her lips lifting. "Just because I'm a succubus, don't look down on me. I'm more than that~." Her tone was smooth like honey, and her eyes gleamed as she leaned forward on her elbow, cards glinting between her fingers. Then, with a teasing curiosity, she asked,

"So, all of you here… were fucked by Aether, right?"

"Cough, cough!" Emberlyn choked, her face flushing crimson. "M-Ms. Nightfire… I don't think that's necessary to talk about!"

Nightfire only shrugged lazily. "Well, I just thought I could share a few points… on how to make him cum harder."

"Cough, cough!!" Emberlyn's voice came out in small, embarrassed squeaks as she tried to hide behind her cards, her whole body trembling with flustered heat.

Selene and the others exchanged looks... before leaning closer like curious cats.

"Is that possible?" everyone asked in unison, except Emberlyn, who had now covered her ears for obvious reasons, mumbling something about "decency and wrong!"

Nightfire's grin widened. "Yeah… I milked him more than any of you could ever do in…"

"Days?" Raven tilted her head.

"No… an hour~," Nightfire replied with a sly grin, her voice low and melodic.

The room went silent for a heartbeat before everyone gasped in disbelief.

Honestly, it had been getting harder for them lately to make him cum even once within minutes. It was as if he was developing more restraint, more control, focusing only on their pleasure, watching them writhe beneath him like some amused deity of lust, taking satisfaction from every shiver and sigh.

Sadist!!

That damn man of theirs!!

They asked how, but Nightfire only smirked. "For that… you'll have to beat me~," she said in a sly tone.

Now, everyone got serious about the game. Even Emberlyn, who had been quietly observing, lowered her head. She knew she needed to leave this room, but the game was getting far too interesting.

She couldn't bring herself to stand up... not now.

She was just curious.

Just curious, you know!

That's all!

Believe her!!

Thalia, who was playing with narrowed eyes, suddenly muttered, "No, I haven't fucked him."

Hearing that, Nightfire raised her eyebrows. "Why?"

Thalia gave a weak smile. "Don't know… maybe I'm not as good as the others." Her face turned gloomy, the shimmer in her eyes fading as her tone softened with something heavy... a quiet ache.

Nightfire's gaze swept across the others. No one said a word. It was clear that none of them knew why Aether hadn't touched Thalia yet.

Nightfire looked at Thalia once more — this time deeply. Her gaze traced her features slowly — the delicate curve of her lips, the deep cleavage revealed by her loose gown, the way her body curved with such natural allure.

And her ass! Damn that ass!!

She was beautiful, dangerously so.

"Nah," Nightfire said finally, her tone sharp yet oddly sincere. "If it were anyone else, I'd think they were gay." Her voice dropped lower, playful but serious. "I'm pretty sure he'd love to fill you deeply."

Thalia blinked, face turning red at the directness. "Is that so? But I don't see anything like that… he barely ever touches me."

Nightfire hummed softly, a thoughtful sound leaving her lips. "Maybe he's holding back — like he did with me?"

"Hmm?" Thalia blinked again, confusion crossing her face. "What do you mean?"

Nightfire leaned back slightly, her voice taking a more serious tone, her smirk fading into something quieter.

"He didn't touch me like he did you all. He honestly waited for me to come to terms with my own thoughts. Only then did he touch me… and when he did... he fucked me mindlessly, without hesitation." She paused, her eyes lowering.

"Maybe it's something similar with you."

Thalia frowned, frustrated. "Come to terms with my own thoughts? But I don't have any! And he damn well knows I love him!"

Nightfire hummed softly, not denying it.

Selene interjected lightly, "Maybe you should just ask him directly?"

Thalia snorted, crossing her arms. "Why would I? I'm not that kind of begging woman! Hmph! If he wants me, he should be the one begging for me!!" Her voice cracked slightly at the end, a mix of pride and pain.

Only she knew how frustrated she truly was by his silence.

Still, Nightfire interjected gently, "Then ask yourself."

"Huh?" Thalia blinked, confusion returning to her expression.

Nightfire's gaze softened. "The answers to your questions are known only by him… and you. If you don't want to ask him, then ask yourself. You might find the answer waiting there."

Thalia grew quiet, her playful aura fading as a thoughtful silence took over. The game continued in the background... cards flipping, faint laughter, but her mind had already drifted somewhere far away.