Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1179: Mary Never hated Aether... for real?

”Huh?”

Lia’s voice cracked as the single word escaped her trembling lips. Her eyes widened, heart pounding violently in her chest, barely able to comprehend what she’d just heard.

She stared at her mother as if the world had turned upside down.

She... she didn’t hate Aether?

That couldn’t be true, right?

But all this time... everything Mary had said, everything she had done — the cold glares, the forbidding warnings, the firm commands not to see him. It all screamed hatred. It always felt like her mother truly despised him.

So then... what was this?

Mary’s eyes softened as she watched the pure confusion twisting her daughter’s expression. Her lips curled into a loving smile, her chest swelling at the sight of her baby girl looking so lost and adorable.

She couldn’t resist.

With a chuckle, she leaned forward, reached out, and pinched Lia’s cheek gently before planting a kiss on it. Her voice came out soft, laced with both pride and warmth as she said,

”Aether proved his worth, dear... He’s not just a boy anymore. He’s not a slave. He’s Nyx’s husband now... and more than that, he saved this Empire with his own hands... Even Grace — you saw what he had, right? Even she acknowledged him.”

Lia’s lips parted, but no sound came. She just nodded, her head moving slightly, but her mind wasn’t fully there. It was still reeling, circling around those words that just didn’t seem to fit with everything she thought she knew.

Not hate him?

She was still trying to absorb the meaning. Her mother’s previous words echoed in her mind again and again. Her chest felt tight, emotions clashing wildly beneath the surface.

”Dear?”

Mary’s voice reached her ears again, pulling her back.

Lia blinked and looked at her mother, her eyes glassy and her heart thumping with hope. ”T-Then... you’re not hating Aether anymore?”

Mary gave a small laugh, her voice light but firm. ”As I said before... I never hated him.”

And just like that... the storm inside Lia’s chest began to ease.

The pressure that had clutched her for so long slowly began to loosen. A weight she didn’t even know she carried lifted. Her throat tightened with overwhelming emotion, and her eyes shimmered.

She wasn’t alone anymore. She didn’t have to choose between the two most precious people in her life.

She could have both her mother and Aether.

Tears threatened to spill, but a radiant smile broke across her face instead. She looked up, and her mother saw it — that bright, glowing smile so filled with love that it melted something deep inside her.

Mary’s breath caught. She leaned in again, unable to hold back, and started showering Lia’s face with kisses — cheek, nose, forehead, chin — everywhere.

”M-Mom!!”

Lia squealed, her cheeks burning bright red, struggling to hide her laughter. ”That’s too much!”

Mary chuckled even harder, wrapping her arms around her daughter with affection spilling from every pore. ”My daughter is just... too cute~ I can’t help it!”

She nuzzled her nose against Lia’s, then asked gently, her tone playful but curious, ”So... mind telling me what happened now?”

Lia instantly tensed up.

A deep blush spread across her cheeks and down her neck as she fidgeted with her fingers, her eyes darting away.

”H-How can I say this to you, Mom...” she mumbled, her fingertip nervously tracing circles on the bed like a guilty child.

Mary blinked. For a moment, she just stared.

What was this?

Lia?

Shy?

Her daughter — bold, cheerful Lia — was blushing like a blushing bride and stammering like a schoolgirl?

So cute. So pure. So... sexy.

So much... She wanted kill Aether now!!

She clenched her fists so tightly her nails dug into her palm. Her entire face twitched, and if she’d had a real body right now, steam might’ve erupted from her nose.

’A brat did this... Aether did this... and not me? Her mother?’

She bit her lip hard, tasting blood, her blurry form twitching in dangerous pulses.

She was barely holding herself back. Her vision blurred, her mind spun with fury and jealousy.

That bastard had touched something so precious.

”C-Come on, dear...” Mary’s voice trembled slightly as she tried to maintain calm, though it cracked at the edges. ”I-It’s just me... you can tell me...”

Lia swallowed. Her blush deepened until even her ears were red. She lowered her head until her bangs shadowed her eyes.

”M-Mom... that’s so... Hehe...”

She giggled softly, her voice melting into a dreamy warmth.

’DON’T LAUGH LIKE YOU’RE DEEP IN LOVE!!’

Mary screamed internally, clenching her teeth as her lip tore further. Blood ran down her chin, her fingers twitching with violent restraint. She could barely breathe.

Still, somehow... somehow, she endured.

For her daughter.

Lia took a deep breath, then began to speak. Slowly, hesitantly, she told her mother everything. From the moment Nyx’s house to their playing in water... Of course, She didn’t mention his identity as Victor, nor did she speak of his other wives — that part, she kept sealed tight in her heart.

She wasn’t idiot to tell this after knowing her mother finally accepted Aether... but still she would tell everything once married.

But everything else... she laid bare.

Mary listened in silence.

Her blurry form seemed to stabilize, and she sighed long and deep. Her whole being seemed to settle.

’Thank goodness... nothing too far happened,’ she thought with relief. ’My baby... she’s still a child. She’s still innocent.’

She smiled softly at Lia.

But then...

”A-And... T-Then... w-we...” Lia’s voice wavered, lips trembling. Her face turned crimson, eyes twitching, mouth quivering in horror at the thought of saying it aloud.

How could she?

How could she tell her mother that?

She slapped her hands against her cheeks, trying to cool the rising heat, then shook her head rapidly, ”No~ No no no~”

Mary tilted her head, one brow rising. Her playful curiosity began to shift. Her eyes narrowed. Her heart started pounding.

Something was off.

Something... dangerous.

Her instincts screamed... Her Mother tingly.... worsening!!

She shouldn’t ask. Her heart might not survive it.

But she had to.

Still, her voice was quiet. She leaned down slowly, her entire body stiff with anxiety, and asked,

”We...? What... happened?”

The entire palace seemed to still... Even the air paused.

Lia bit her lip, her hands trembling as she clutched the edge of the blanket. Her voice came out in a whisper, ”W-We... kissed...”

Then she yanked the quilt over her face, burying herself beneath it as if that could hide her from the world.

Her voice, muffled under the covers, squeaked, ”Oh my god... I told my mom... hhooooo!!”

She screamed inwardly, kicking and curling under the blanket.

And Mary... she dead!