Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

The Root turned to him slowly, its voice cold and sharp now. ”You speak like youʼve seen the truth. Like youʼve walked every path... But you donʼt even know who you are, do you? Youʼre just another broken piece... trying to act whole. Thatʼs whatʼs truly pathetic.”

Veins throbbed on Aetherʼs forehead. His grip loosened on the rod as he slowly stood up, rising from the dirt with a blank expression, his eyes locked onto the Root. He looked ready to tear her apart, every inch of him trembling with the urge to unleash.

Then—

”Let me ask you something...” the Root interrupted with a strange calm. Its voice was soft, yet oddly curious. ”What are you? Tell me that. Are you him? Or maybe... that other one? Or... someone else entirely? Just who the hell are you, Mr. 28?”

Aether froze mid-step. He blinked slowly, confusion flickering behind his eyes. ”...I am... Aether.”

”Hmm... Aether...” the Root repeated, voice growing more distant. ”...but which Aether?” it asked again, head tilting to the side with a slow creak, like an ancient tree bending in the wind.

Aether blankly stared at it, his breath shallow. ”I am... Aether. The one and only Aether.”

The Root stared back at him in silence for a moment, before suddenly bursting into laughter. ”Hahah... HAHAHAHAHA!” It laughed loud and wild, like it had just heard the most absurd joke in existence.

Aether frowned, a vein twitching near his eye. ”Iʼm not sure whatʼs so funny here.”

The Root merely shrugged, trying to contain its amusement. ”No, no... itʼs just... aha... the previous you said the exact same thing. ʼThe one and onlyʼ... how poetic it all sounds.” Its voice grew quieter, more serious now, ”But you can never be the one, No.28. Just like I told you before—youʼre trying to balance something that was never meant to be balanced.” [A/N: Any idea when?]

”Youʼre chasing equilibrium that can never be chased or... even thought of it! And in doing that… youʼll eventually die. Just like the others. And when youʼre gone, another one will rise, saying the same thing... ʼI am the one and only.ʼ Hah... funny, isnʼt it? Endlessly tragic, but still funny.”

Aether clenched his fist so tightly his knuckles turned pale. He bit his lip, holding back the tide of anger, sorrow, and bitter acceptance.

As much as he wanted to scream back, to deny it all—he couldnʼt.

Deep down, he knew.

He knew how his life had played out up to now. There had never been certainties. No promises kept. No final victory. Just a cycle—he dies, he returns, he fixes what he can... then breaks again.... Again and again.

Nothing else.

And someday, maybe even soon, he might vanish entirely. Just like the countless versions before him. Not because he wanted to. But because thatʼs how it had always been.

Aether gritted his teeth, the heat of defiance burning in his eyes. He stood tall and steady, raising his face to the Root as his voice rang with raw, stubborn resolve.

”Yeah, you might be right. I might die again.... And I might be forgotten like all the others.

But not this time.” His voice cracked, then steadied again,

”This time, I wonʼt disappear.... There are people who depend on me... There are women who love me, who wait for me.... Children who look to me like Iʼm some kind of light in all this darkness...”

”This is who I am.... Aether.

Not a number.

Not a ghost of memories.

Not just some recycled soul walking in someone elseʼs footsteps.

I am me—born between actors, thrown aside, mocked, forgotten, forced, seduced, broken. I am just me... but I carry the memories of those who came before so they wonʼt be forgotten by me... Thatʼs all.”

He stepped forward, slowly but without hesitation. Each step carried weight, not just of his body, but of every version of himself that had walked before, ”And I know the truth... Youʼre not free. Youʼre chained, trapped in this place. Caged like some forgotten god. Am I wrong? Or was it you... Who called out to me?”

”...”

The Root stared at Aether, unmoving. Then it whispered, quiet but clear, ”Thatʼs quite the observation skill youʼve got there...” It neither confirmed nor denied.

Aetherʼs lips curved into a subtle, confident smirk. ”I donʼt know your face. But Iʼve heard your voice more than enough to never forget it. Clara.”

”...” The Rootʼs expression darkened for a moment. Its frown deepened, staring at him longer than before, as if searching his eyes for something. Then, the glowing globe in its tendril-like hand began to pulsate with violent light, energy surging through its core.