Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1157: Broken Samsara: Part-2

Soon, Aether, Mary, and Nyx travelled on a weird black spider that was moving like a train—no breaks, no stops—yet the sound it made echoed like something alive.

Thud, Thud… Thud, Thud.

Aether sat on the spider’s broad, black back as he stared at Nyx and Mary.

Both of them were silent, their gazes locked forward, eyes fixed on something in the distance. Neither of them had said a word since the journey started.

They were currently heading toward the so-called Cycle of Samsara they had talked about earlier. From what Aether gathered, it was a place completely opposite of The Void’s Cradle… not just in philosophy or power, but in literal distance—far off at the other end of this world, away from the castle, beyond everything he had seen so far.

Aether glanced around. The streets they moved through were utterly empty. Not a single soul… Well, No being there.

Just abandoned stillness.

Aether frowned. Something wasn’t right. His eyes shifted toward Mary, narrowing in suspicion. He thought, almost instinctively, that she might’ve done something to cause this eerie emptiness.

Her powers, her status—if anyone could make an entire street vanish into silence, it was her.

He cleared his throat and asked, curiously, quietly,

“Why do you hate me?”

Mary didn’t respond immediately. She turned her head slowly, as if it took effort, and looked at him with an expression that felt cold… but not angry. Her face was blurred, not entirely solid, but behind that ghostly veil, there was a look of disgust. Not fury, just pure dismissal, like he wasn’t worth the emotion.

“Do you need a reason to hate a cockroach?”

“…”

Veins popped slightly on Aether’s forehead. He clicked his tongue in irritation, eyes twitching at the sheer arrogance of her words. Mary caught his expression and smirked. She seemed pleased, satisfied even, as though his anger amused her.

Aether groaned softly and leaned back, sinking into the spider’s stomach. It was slightly fuzzy, surprisingly comfortable in a strange, creepy way. As he stared up at the pale gray sky that stretched endlessly above them, he mumbled,

“Nyx, I’m going to sleep now… wake me up when we reach there.”

Nyx, who had been quiet the whole time, simply nodded her head in acknowledgement.

Aether slowly closed his eyes, drifting off.

Mary, still looking ahead, finally glanced sideways. Her eyes lingered on Aether, watching the soft rhythm of his chest rise and fall. He seemed to have fallen asleep quickly, his breathing calm. Then, with a curious flick of her eyes, she turned toward Nyx and spoke in a lower tone,

“It feels like something’s happening between you and him…”

“Hmmm?”

Nyx tilted her head slightly, her expression genuinely confused. It wasn’t fake confusion—it was as if she honestly didn’t understand what Mary meant.

Mary narrowed her eyes and frowned, elaborating with slight annoyance, “I mean… you two seem to have grown close. Closer than I thought possible. That’s what surprises me.”

She didn’t expect this. Not even a little. Nyx, of all people, getting close to Aether?

Even if it wasn’t overly obvious, Mary had been watching. She had noticed the way Nyx’s eyes lingered on Aether just a bit too long.

The way her tone shifted when she spoke to him. It was subtle, but unmistakable. Nyx was showing emotions—something she rarely did. And more than that… she was showing them to Aether.

Nyx gave a soft hum and then shrugged gently, her voice calm and soft like a whisper brushing the wind. “I’m not sure, Your Majesty,” she replied with a faint smile. “But he saw the real me… and he didn’t run away. Maybe that’s why it feels like we grew closer.”

Mary blinked.

“Saw the real you?”

She repeated the words slowly, her voice now uncertain, a trace of confusion creeping into her tone. Her eyes narrowed further as the thought began to form in her mind. But then her expression twisted, morphing into something horrified. A deep, genuine unease spread across her face.

“Wait. Don’t tell me… he saw your true form?”

Nyx nodded softly, eyes lowering. Her fingers began fidgeting in her lap, gently rubbing each other as if trying to calm.

Mary stared at her, speechless for a moment.

An outsider… accepted the real Nyx?

No. No, that couldn’t be right.

Scratch that—

An outsider wasn’t even afraid of Nyx’s true form?

That was insane!

Mary’s heart pounded faster. This went against everything she knew.

The real reason the other Empires hated the Void Empire wasn’t just politics or power or ideology.

It was fear.

Because the people of the Void were not like the rest of the world.

They weren’t normal.

Even Mary herself knew how twisted and wicked she could be. She never denied it. The Void Empire was home to monsters—beings born from shadows and bred for betrayal.

People here didn’t live by love or trust.

They expected you to betray them.

They assumed you’d stab them in the back the second their guard was down.

They weren’t nurtured with kindness. They were raised with suspicion and survival. This Empire was made of creatures that smiled as they devoured you.

Not a single person here would dare to ask someone to protect them, because the moment you turned your back, they’d sink their claws into you.

That’s how this Empire was.

That’s how it had always been.

And yet… this boy. This outsider. Aether.

He had seen Nyx’s true form.

And he didn’t scream. He didn’t run. He didn’t shiver or flinch or call her a monster.

He stayed.

And that… that terrified Mary more than anything.

Not just the true form…

Here, in this Empire, they were wolves hiding in sheep’s clothing.

That was the perfect way to describe them.

A flawless mask. A twisted deception.

They looked like humans. They spoke like humans. They even acted like they understood what it meant to be human. But once you peeled off the skin, stripped away the clothing of civility… there was nothing left resembling humanity.

That was the real reason why outsiders never spoke to them.

Why no one dared form friendships. Relationships? Marriage? Bonds?

Impossible.

And it wasn’t like the people here were unaware. No, they knew. They knew exactly what they were. What they were capable of. And they didn’t care. They never tried to change. They didn’t feel ashamed.

These weren’t misunderstood beings. These weren’t broken people looking for redemption.

They were monsters in human skin.

Creatures without remorse… Beings without hesitation.

They didn’t feel bad when they betrayed someone. They didn’t flinch when they stabbed someone in the back. They didn’t apologise after they broke your heart or tore your trust apart.

They felt nothing.

A heartless breed of monsters.

It was impossible…Well, completely absurd for an outsider to trust someone from here.

Mary’s gaze shifted toward the sleeping Aether and then to Nyx beside him. Her fingers tensed slightly.

She wanted to believe Nyx. She really did. Deep down, she wished she could hold onto some thread of faith.

But Nyx’s eyes… her expression… There was no lie there.

She was simply saying what she truly felt. Quietly. Honestly.

And if Nyx wasn’t lying… then that only left one other possibility.

Aether.

’Tsk… I knew he was just a scared little pussy,’ Mary scoffed inwardly. ’He’s probably saying all that crap just to make it easier to escape later. Just words. Just survival tactics.’

She convinced herself. Over and over again. There was no way someone could look at the real Nyx and not flinch. Not scream. Not run.

Heck, even Mary once ran away, seeing the Real Nyx!!

There was no way a human—an outsider—could look at one of them and say, “I’m not afraid.”

No one trusted them.

Not truly.

And yet… even as she tried to convince herself, part of her couldn’t stop watching Aether. Her eyes lingered on him with a strange, subtle curiosity.

She remembered a moment—a vivid memory—when he had laughed. Not gently. Not innocently. But wickedly.

He had giggled when facing Master Snape. That eerie, twisted kind of laugh that didn’t belong to prey.

That wasn’t the sound of someone trembling in fear.

That laugh had sent an actual shiver down her spine.

In that single moment, it felt like Aether wasn’t what he appeared to be.

He was something else.

’Maybe… maybe he’s one of us?’ Mary thought, her brows furrowing as uncertainty crept deeper into her chest.

But then she shook her head. No, that couldn’t be.

If that were true—if he really was one of them—then Grace wouldn’t have ordered Mary to kill him.

And even stranger… after giving the order to kill him, Grace had also commanded her not to hurt him later.

It was contradictory. Confusing. It made no sense.

Why would Grace give such mixed orders unless…

Mary’s thoughts began to spiral.

Meanwhile—

Aether was not just peacefully sleeping.

He was inside his domain.

Standing in front of a cage… his face frozen in confusion, lips parted slightly, eyes wide with disbelief.

His tone was a blend of curiosity and raw shock as he spoke, almost in disbelief at what he was seeing.

“What the fuck? Are you an Freaking F—”

_______

[Author’s Note: I’m really sorry, guys. I’ve found myself stuck in an unexpected situation today, and I couldn’t manage to upload the next Chapters as I had planned. I truly apologise for the delay.

You might be wondering—”Then why did your other novel get three Chapters today?”

If you’re asking that, please believe me, those Chapters were pre-written and scheduled in advance. I haven’t abandoned this story, not at all. I’m still committed to it with all my heart. Please don’t make any assumptions like in other novels. It’s just that today, something came up that I genuinely couldn’t avoid or control.

Once again, I’m really sorry for the delay and thank you so much for your understanding.😅]