Chapter 1775: One from his heart.
^Do you know this creature?^
RIN’s voice resonated in Young Aether’s earpiece. She had noticed him standing pletely still, his gaze locked onto the figure suspended within a massive cylindrical capsule.
Inside the transparent chamber, an unconscious man’s body hung on chains.
Young Aether stared silently at the familiar face before letting out a dry chuckle.
“Know him? Hah… He is my wife’s son… and my wife’s brother.”
^…^
For exactly 0.8 seconds, RIN’s processing matrix halted.
Multiple logic branches collided.
Contradiction detected.
Relationship analysis failed!
Incestuous family structure impossible to calculate!!
RIN was like… what the fuck did she just hear?
Wife’s son?
Wife’s brother?
The fuck?!
^…Processing error. I require clarification because my probability engine has officially given up trying to understand your family tree.^
Young Aether simply shrugged… even he did not understand that shit, and there was no point in delving into that matter anyway.
RIN remained silent for another brief moment before accessing fragments of their previous conversations. Thousands of archived memories flashed through her database, and then… realisation struck.
^…Right. I forgot you somehow managed to violate several social norms, biological expectations, and mon sense simultaneously by filling multiple lonely mothers-in-law.^
Even her perfectly feminine voice carried something resembling exhaustion.
^Honestly… I no longer possess enough putational resources to judge your personal life. Anyway… why is he here? Did he e searching for you… or was he captured by these people?^
Young Aether frowned as his eyes swept across the enormous chamber.
The portals rotated silently around the chamber like miniature galaxies before his gaze finally settled upon Kai.
^Why are you staring at him? Retrieve your son before something happens.^
Young Aether’s eyebrow twitched.
“He ain’t my son. Only Kaelen is my son. No other bitches are my fucking child.”
RIN immediately responded without even a millisecond of delay.
^Oh? OH….. Correction accepted! Therefore… he rejected you because you filled not only his sister’s vaginal but also his mother’s vaginal too. Statistical analysis concludes his hate toward you is entirely reasonable. Wait… you have a SON?^
There was the faintest pause before her voice resumed.
^Unexpected information received. I am significantly more surprised that another woman voluntarily agreed to reproduce with you.
OH MY GOD!!
Fascinating!
Humanity continues to exceed my predictive limitations!!^
A thick vein bulged across Young Aether’s forehead.
What the hell?
She was seriously acting as though he shouldn’t have children.
‘The fuck? Is this bitch actually insulting me?’
Then he clarified.
“Kaelen isn’t my biological son. He is Liora’s child from her previous marriage.”
RIN remained silent for a brief second before releasing what could only be described as an artificial sigh.
^Acknowledged. Thank goodness… My ethical subroutines were beginning to experience severe instability.^
Young Aether narrowed his eyes.
“Oi… bitch. What’s that supposed to mean?”
RIN pletely ignored his plaint.
^Genetic relation confirmed absent. Therefore, by conventional human standards… he is not your son.^
Young Aether scoffed, his voice being quieter.
“If blood alone decides who our family is… then every human alive is related somewhere down the line. DNA doesn’t make someone my son.”
His gaze remained fixed upon Kai inside the capsule.
“I accepted him because I loved him… because I saw the kind of person he truly was… because he accepted me despite everything.
Family isn’t something decided by blood.
It’s decided by the people who choose to stay in your life.”
^…^
Silence followed.
For several seconds, RIN produced no response.
Millions of calculations raced through her quantum neural architecture as she attempted to process an emotional concept that possessed no mathematical certainty.
^…Statement archived. Emotional framework updated… partially understood.^
Young Aether slowly shifted his attention back toward the capsule.
“Anyway… how was he captured?”
His eyes narrowed.
“Even if they stripped away his Joker authority… he’s still an Arcane King. Someone capable of overpowering him and imprisoning him like this…”
There were bruises covering his body. It seemed he had fought before being captured.
Just as Young Aether was lost in thought, his ears twitched.
Numerous synchronised footsteps echoed from the metallic tunnel.
Without hesitation, he slipped behind the massive cylindrical capsule. The thick reinforced base concealed his entire body as he carefully leaned out just enough to observe the approaching figures.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
The rhythmic march of hundreds of metallic boots reverberated throughout the circular chamber.
Moments later, an entire battalion of mech-suits emerged from the tunnel, advancing in flawless military formation. Their armoured frames gleamed beneath the lights while countless mechanical joints hissed with pressed air.
Plasma rifles, magnetic cannons, and energy blades rested in their hands as they marched directly toward the portals surrounding the chamber.
One of the soldiers stepped forward.
“Stand in your allocated positions.”
The mand echoed through the chamber with military precision.
Without a single unnecessary movement, every mech-suit separated from the formation and headed toward its assigned portal. Each soldier climbed onto the elevated platform positioned before the dimensional gateways, standing perfectly still as rows of glowing indicators illuminated beneath their armoured boots.
The mander slowly raised his hand.
“All units…”
Every weapon emitted a deep mechanical hum as energy rapidly accumulated inside their cores.
“Get ready…”
The humming intensified.
“Three…”
“Two…”
“One…”
“Deploy.”
SSSHHHNNNGGG!!
Hundreds of mech-suits disappeared into their respective portals simultaneously, swallowed by waves of distorted space until the chamber fell eerily silent once more.
Young Aether remained hidden for several more seconds, making absolutely certain no one had stayed behind.
Only then did he quietly step out from behind the capsule and slowly approach one of the still-active portals. Its surface rippled like liquid glass, revealing nothing beyond the endless distortion within.
^What exactly are you planning to do?^
RIN asked.
^The war has already begun. Based on the available evidence, they have already captured one of your people. That statistically suggests numerous strategic positions have already fallen. Casualties are highly probable. We are late, Aether.^
Her voice remained emotionless.
^Mission assessment: Failure. You failed to protect your people. The President is absent. Your original operation collapsed before it even began.^
“…”
Young Aether remained silent.
If everything had truly fallen apart…
…then there was only one thing left for him to do.
Reach the battlefield.
Fight beside his people until the very end.
RIN continued.
^Based on the deployment size I just observed, the probability of your Empire successfully resisting their offensive is steadily decreasing. Current battlefield projections indicate…^
“Don’t.”
His voice cut through her analysis like a blade.
He slowly shook his head, refusing to let her finish.
He didn’t want to imagine what was happening beyond those portals.
He had done everything possible to keep these monsters occupied.
Yet these bastards had still chosen to focus entirely on eradicating his people.
“…What the fuck do they even want anymore?”
His fists slowly tightened.
“An empty world?”
“An empty empire?”
“To stand alone and rule over nothing but corpses?”
His eyes hardened.
“I have to go.”
He reached forward and pressed his fingers against the shimmering surface of the dimensional portal.
SSSSNNNGGGG!!!
The instant his hand touched it, sparks erupted.
The portal violently rejected him.
It felt as though countless microscopic blades were grinding against his metal fingers, like an impossibly dense diamond wheel shredding through steel. Ripples spread wildly across the gateway before violently pushing his hand away.
Young Aether blinked.
“…What?”
He frowned and tried again.
The exact same violent rejection occurred.
“Why can’t I enter?”
RIN answered almost immediately.
^Because your mech-suit authorisation is inactive.^
“…”
Young Aether froze.
Then his face twisted.
“…FUCK!!”
His furious roar echoed throughout the chamber.
Now he couldn’t even enter the damn battlefield.
And even if he somehow forced his way through…
…what exactly could he do?
He stood there in plete frustration… as if his fingers were digging into his own hair as an overwhelming urge crawled through his mind to rip it out strand by strand, if only to replace the helplessness consuming him with physical pain.
No matter what he had done… in the end, he had failed once again to protect his people.
“Are you going to beg us again?”
The familiar dark voice echoed through his mind, its tone dripping with amusement, as though this oute had been the very thing it had hoped to witness from the beginning.
Young Aether clicked his tongue in annoyance before fixing his gaze upon the shimmering dimensional portal.
“If I can’t enter…” he muttered while narrowing his eyes, “…then is there a way to destroy it? Or at least shut it down? If these portals remain active, they’ll keep sending more mech-suits into the battlefield.”
^Negative. My database contains no operational data regarding this portal technology. As you previously informed me, only the President possessed plete administrative authority over the dimensional gateway network. I was never granted access to those systems.^
Young Aether remained silent.
His fist tightened.
What was he supposed to do now?
He had exhausted every option that came to mind, yet none of them brought him any closer to the battlefield.
“…Is there really no way?”
His eyes slowly drifted downward.
Then another thought surfaced.
What if he died…
Well, if he died, time would rewind, right?
He would return; he would have four days in his hand.
That would give him enough time to prepare for everything.
A slow, unsettling smile gradually spread across his face.
“…Yeah.”
“I can still fix this.”
His voice was barely above a whisper.
He stared at the portal before lowering his gaze toward his fingertips. The metal was torn open where the portal had scraped across them moments earlier, leaving behind his fresh fingers that continued to sting.
A quite chuckle escaped his lips.
“I guess… it’s finally time to find out what being ground into nothing actually feels like. Hehe…”
There was something deeply unnatural about the excitement in his laughter.
To anyone watching, it would have sounded less like a man preparing to die and more like someone eagerly anticipating a new experience.
^Warning.^
RIN’s voice immediately interrupted him.
^Behavioral analysis indicates an abnormally elevated probability of intentional self-termination. Your physiological responses, facial expression, and movement patterns strongly suggest suicidal intent. Please explain your actions.^
Young Aether simply smiled.
He offered no explanation.
Instead, he slowly walked toward the portal with wide, unblinking eyes, curiously observing the swirling dimensional currents. If stepping inside meant his body would be shredded into microscopic particles before ceasing to exist, then so be it. Four days in exchange for one death was a bargain he was more than willing to accept.
Just as he prepared to take the final step…
Tang!
Something suddenly shot out from the portal.
A heavy metallic object slammed directly into his chest, knocking him off his feet before he could react.
Young Aether crashed against the floor with a grunt.
“Shit… what the fuck?”
Another voice followed immediately afterwards.
A heavily armoured mech-suit stepped through the portal, its massive frame radiating heat as the gateway closed behind it. The number “6” was engraved across one shoulder plate, while traces of dried blood and scorched debris stained the red-black armour.
The mech-suit’s visor emitted a crimson scan before locking onto mander 10.
“Oh? You’re still here, asshole?”
The pilot laughed.
“What are you doing lying on the ground like that? Don’t tell me you actually tripped. Hahaha… you pathetic gay piece of shit.”
He walked closer before casually extending a hand.
“e on, get up. We’ve already won the war. It’s only a matter of time before the Naiadae Empire pletely falls.”
Young Aether quietly reached toward the offered hand.
The instant his fingers were about to grasp it, mander 6 suddenly pulled his hand away with a loud burst of laughter.
“Hahaha! I can’t believe you actually trusted me. That’s fucking hilarious.”
He wiped an imaginary tear from beneath his visor.
“Still… listen to this, gay shit. mander Two actually managed to capture the Arcane King of the Aquaris Naiadae Empire.”
His laughter grew louder.
“Man… you should’ve seen it. That monster pletely lost it and wiped an entire city off the map. Hahaha! The people were screaming everywhere while trying to run for their lives.”
He shook his head as though recalling a wonderful memory.
“Oh my God… I swear, hunting those pathetic little bastards was the most fun I’ve had in years. You really missed out on something special, asshole.”
He stretched out his hand once again.
This time, mander 10 didn’t even acknowledge it.
Young Aether slowly rose to his feet under the disguise of the armour, his movements unnaturally stiff as those final words echoed repeatedly inside his mind.
“…An entire city?”
For the first time since the conversation began, his voice contained neither anger nor mockery.
Only quiet disbelief.
“Yeah… and you know what?” mander 6 said proudly, his laughter echoing through the chamber.
As the words left his mouth, another object emerged from the dimensional portal behind him.
“Our squadron caught her before mander Two and mander Three could even step in. Hahaha… you should’ve seen the look on their faces when they realised my squad had already secured the prize.”
mander 10 remained pletely still.
A strange sense of dread slowly crept into his chest.
“…Who?”
mander 6 merely grinned beneath his visor before casually stepping aside.
A large cylindrical stasis capsule slowly drifted out of the portal on its own. Crimson anti-gravity rings pulsed beneath its metallic base, allowing the enormous container to hover soundlessly above the floor as it glided.
Streams of blue diagnostic lights flickered across its transparent surface while mechanical restraints kept the figure inside suspended in place.
Young Aether’s breathing stopped.
Inside the capsule…
A woman with long purple hair hung motionless.
Her body was almost unrecognisable.
Blood stained nearly every inch of her pale skin, countless bruises covered her arms and torso, and deep lacerations carved across her body with merciless brutality. One of her legs had been severed pletely above the thigh, leaving only a mangled stump where fresh blood continued drifting through the crimson-tinted liquid inside the capsule.
Even unconscious…
She looked as though she had endured unimaginable torture before finally collapsing.
Young Aether’s pupils slowly shrank.
The world around him seemed to lose all sound.
The humming machines…
The glowing portals…
mander 6’s mocking laughter…
Everything faded into absolute silence.
His trembling lips parted ever so slightly.
“…A… Aqua… dear?”
The words escaped almost soundlessly.
His vacant eyes never left the woman inside the capsule.
The warmth slowly disappeared from his expression.
So did every remaining trace of reason.
Something deep inside him quietly snapped.
!~Ding~!
[Skill: Bloodthirsty Berserk has been forcibly activated!]
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