Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Leon and Vesperine helped Kai, who was still visibly stunned, his body stiff and his eyes unfocused as his mother’s words echoed again and again in his mind. Even though a deep, burning hatred had grown in his heart for her twisted experiments, for the pain she inflicted—somewhere, buried in the ruins of their broken bond—he had still hoped that once she faced judgment, once she finally saw the consequences of her sins… maybe, just maybe, she would become normal again.

Maybe she would regret… Maybe she would change.

All he ever wanted… was to make her realise what she had done. To face her mistakes, to accept them—not deflect them.

It was wrong… So utterly wrong.

But he still clung to that impossible hope that if she admitted her guilt, faced the law, and atoned… perhaps she could become someone better.

Someone… human.

Yet…

“Kai… come on…” Vesperine whispered gently, her voice low and soothing as she patted his shoulder, trying to be his anchor. She leaned in closer, her face filled with concern, “You didn’t do anything wrong, Kai. You only wanted justice… to help her see what she became. Please, don’t let this twist your heart.”

She hesitated for a moment, then added softly, “Believe in yourself, Kai. She’s the one who did wrong… and she tried to put the blame on you. Please, don’t carry that burden. We’re here. We’re not leaving you.”

Leon nodded in agreement, his voice rough and angry. “Yeah, Kai. Your mother just… she twisted the truth and threw it at you. She shifted all the blame, like a coward, just to save her adopted son… or maybe… her real son?” he muttered, his tone laced with confusion and disbelief.

They both turned slightly, glancing toward Xara, who was kneeling next to Aether and tending to his injury with shaky hands.

“You’re bleeding!!” Xara cried out, panic rising in her voice. Her hands trembled as she saw the red pooling around his wound—it wasn’t even that deep, but her reaction was instant and wild.

Aether gave a weak, awkward smile. “Come on now… it’s nothing—” he started, lifting his hand in a casual wave, but—

“Are you insane!?” Xara snapped, cutting him off. “Your blood’s pouring out! Of course it’s dangerous! We need to stop it now. Shit… I don’t have any high-level healing potion on me!” she growled, frustration and fear curling into her tone.

Kai clenched his jaw, barely holding in a bitter laugh. High-level healing potion… for a scratch? Was she serious?

That kind of potion could restore an entire limb.

His chest tightened, a sharp ache blooming in his heart. ‘I see… I guess she really does love him more than me,’ he thought, his expression twisting with pain and quiet surrender.

Taking a slow, shaky breath, he looked at her with a dead calm and said in a firm voice, loud enough for all to hear, “I will no longer be your son, Ms. Xara. You have no right over my life anymore. From now on, I walk my own path… away from you.”

And with that, he turned, shoulders stiff, head held just enough to hide the tremble in his lips. Supported on either side by Vesperine and Leon, his lover and friend, he began to walk away.

Vesperine smirked faintly, satisfaction glimmering in her eyes.

Velc, watching everything unfold, turned to Xara and spoke with disdain, “I don’t know what kind of deal you made with my father, or what twisted history binds you… but from this point on, you are no longer welcome in my home. The deal is null and void. Pack your things and leave. You’re a monster, and I don’t want you anywhere near my family,” he finished coldly, before following after his son.

Aether stood silently, eyes fixed on the group as they slowly disappeared from view. He glanced back at Xara, who hadn’t moved an inch. Her head remained bowed low, her shoulders motionless, not even an attempt to turn or call out.

Aether took a step forward. “Xara, yo—”

“Don’t say anything,” she muttered, voice weak but clear. A faint, sad smile tugged at her lips. “I guess… that ends everything…” she whispered, and then suddenly let out a long gasp.

“Finaaalllyyyy…” she exhaled as her legs gave out and she dropped onto the ground, her butt hitting the dirt with a heavy thud. Her expression was utterly exhausted.

Aether raised an eyebrow, confusion flickering across his face as he watched her slouch with what looked like… relief.

Xara cracked her neck, slowly rolled her shoulders, and stretched out her stiff limbs with a soft groan. Her voice came low, almost amused, “You know… hiding it all this time… pretending, suppressing, lying even to myself… it’s been such a fucking burden.”

She looked at him with tired eyes. “For years, I lived with this constant fear… this dull anxiety that clung to me like fog. I always worried, always wondered when the truth would come out. And when it did… I expected to feel ruined.”

She exhaled. “But instead… I just feel free.”

Aether raised his eyebrows as he watched her had a relieved expression.

“Oh?”

“Yeah… I don’t know why. I don’t know how. And honestly, I don’t care anymore,” she said with a quiet, broken chuckle. “The moment it was all out in the open… I felt relief. It’s strange. Like tasting raw flesh after years of chewing on overcooked heart. It was bitter and bloody… but real. And it finally stopped the rot inside.”

She paused, her smile fading just a little. “Though… I lost everything I worked for. Everything I built.”

Aether tilted his head and looked down at her. “Are you?” he asked, voice soft as he leaned closer.

Xara gave a small smile. “Maybe… not,” she said after a pause, shrugging her shoulders. Then, without another word, she tore a piece of her skirt and carefully wrapped it around his bleeding hand.

Aether watched her hands work with gentleness. “You do know this is just a small scratch, right?” he said, a faint smile pulling at his lips.

Xara met his gaze and returned the smile, though hers trembled slightly. “I… I know. But the second I saw your blood, something inside me just… flared. I couldn’t think. My heart started pounding. Anger, fear… I don’t even know what I was feeling. It was all a blur. I just reacted… instinct, maybe.”

She stared into his eyes, a soft longing glowing behind hers. “I didn’t plan it. I didn’t think. I just knew I didn’t want to see you hurt.”

Aether gently leaned in and pressed his forehead to hers. His voice came in a whisper. “Are you sure about this?”

“Hm?”

“Your son?”

Xara was silent for a long moment. Then she sighed, long and heavy, as if releasing years of tension. “He’s grown, Aether… He doesn’t need me anymore. And maybe… maybe he never did. Most of all, I know you and he will never get along. Not truly. Especially after today… Watching him try to kill you right in front of me… how can I ever trust what he might do when I’m not looking?”

She closed her eyes, her voice breaking slightly. “Maybe.. this is for the best. Maybe.. it was always meant to end this way.”

Even after everything… she was not broken… it just she accepted it… Xara really made different!

Aether raised his eyebrows in surprise, his voice tinged with curiosity. “So… You did it for me?”

Xara’s cheeks flushed a soft shade of pink, her gaze dropping to the ground as she averted her eyes. She hadn’t expected him to ask, but in that moment, her heart fluttered with an unfamiliar warmth.

Her fingers fidgeted nervously, a quiet admission in her demeanour.

Aether blinked a few times, his thoughts racing. ‘I guess… I have a long way to go in understanding her,’ he thought to himself.

His initial belief that he was making a move had now shifted—there was something more complex at play here. Xara wasn’t just reacting to him; she was feeling something too.

Before he could dwell on it, Xara shook her head, as if trying to regain control. “A-Anyway, we need to leave before that bastard throws my things out of my room,” she said with sudden seriousness. Her face grew tense.

Then, with a sudden realisation, she cursed under her breath. “Wait, what about ownership? Oh shit!” Her hand flew to her mouth, biting her nails nervously as she realised her mistake. She should have waited for Aether’s ownership to be officially recognised. But now, it was still in Kai’s hands—and she knew he would never give it up.

Aether smiled softly, his voice warm but firm, “There’s no need to worry about that… I’ll find my own way. You don’t need to think about it right now. Just focus on yourself, okay?” He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

Xara hummed in agreement, though the worry still lingered in her eyes. She needed to figure out a plan to secure the ownership.

Just as they turned to go, Aether stopped abruptly,

“Wait.”

“Hmmm?” Xara turned to him, her brows furrowing slightly in confusion.

Aether’s gaze had shifted to something on the ground—Xara’s creation, the one that had died.

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