Lackey's Seducing Survival Odyssey

Chapter 1434: Aether... he was really worried about you, you know

Not sure how anyone could properly respond to a situation like this, where a woman who had just threatened everyone without hesitation suddenly transformed into a disturbingly cute, innocent mother.

The shift felt wrong in a way that crawled under everyone’s skin, because the love she showed for her daughter ran uncannily deep, strangely pure, and terrifyingly obsessive all at once.

Snap.

Snap!!

Snapp!!!

Aqualina, Raven, and Drakhairs stared at Mary with expressions that bordered between confusion and alarm.

Mary held a square metallic box in her hands, her fingers moving with affection as she gazed into it, while soft clicking and snapping sounds echoed rhythmically from the device.

Their gazes slowly followed the direction of her snapping fingers, turning away from her face and toward the scene she had created.

There, laid out beneath the open sky, sat an unmistakable setup filled with porcelain cups, delicate plates, and carefully arranged sweets.

A tea party!

Yes. The moment Mary realised her daughter had actually made friends, even if they were strange, even if they were people she personally disliked, even if every instinct told her they were dangerous, she wasted no time.

She dragged them all into the garden of their new home and arranged a tea party with obsessive precision, because no matter how warped her standards were, this mattered deeply to her.

Deep down, she was genuinely happy to see her daughter finally seated at a tea table, laughing beneath the light like true royalty.

Mary sniffed softly, her shoulders trembling as her face twisted with an expression close to tears. The blur around her made it difficult to see clearly, but the emotion behind it was unmistakable.

Her voice dropped into a gentle, fragile tone as she spoke, heavy with longing she had buried for far too long.

”I... I never thought my dear would finally have a tea party with others. I mean it... truly never. I dreamed about it, imagined it, hoped for it, but I never believed it would happen. Aweee...”

The sound she let out afterwards was dangerously close to a sob.

Raven and Aqualina exchanged quick glances before blinking almost in sync, unsure whether they should be alarmed or sympathetic.

Behind Raven, Drakhairs remained motionless, his posture straight and calm, standing like a silent statue carved from shadow, observing everything without judgment... that’s right, without judgment!

Mary continued speaking while the rectangular box in her hands kept releasing cheerful snapping sounds,

”Even with Nyx Shadowfall, it never felt like a real tea party. It felt more like a sister gathering than anything else.”

Her eyes softened as memory took hold, recalling how Nyx and Lia would simply sit across from each other in silence, staring without words. Whenever Lia tried to speak, Nyx would only hum or nod, offering no real response unless the topic involved ghosts, souls, or the dead.

She wanted something normal for her daughter, something simple and cute. She wanted laughter, chatter, clinking cups, and innocent joy.

She wanted a fucking normal tea party!

Mary sniffed again, lowering her gaze as she muttered under her breath,

”She was never invited to any tea party. Not even once. My poor child... I still wonder why.”

”Yeah... we wonder why....”

Raven and Aqualina spoke at the exact same time, their voices flat and expressions identical as they stared blankly at Mary.

Drakhairs closed his eyes slowly.

Aqualina finally broke the weirdness, gesturing toward the metallic object in Mary’s hands,

”What’s that thing?” she asked.

Mary turned toward her, her eyes instantly brightening with pride before she answered.

”Oh? This is a camera. It is quite wonderful.”

”A camera?” Aqualina tilted her head, unfamiliar with the concept.

Mary nodded enthusiastically, her movements quick and repetitive like a woodpecker, before stepping closer and turning the screen toward Aqualina. Her fingers moved lovingly as she scrolled through image after image.

”See, it captures my dear’s lovely movements, her expressions, her existence itself. Every moment worth remembering.”

The screen filled with images of Lia laughing freely, eating sweets, sleeping peacefully, fighting fiercely, and then... bathing?

Aqualina froze.

First, the realisation that this device could capture moments with such precision.

Then came the second realisation, far more unsettling.

Bathing?