Chapter 1198: Aether got laid by Vesperine?

Aether teleported Kaelen back to the palace. With that done, he reappeared at the restaurant, pushing open the door to the private room.

Vesperine sat stiffly on a chair, her arms crossed, her eyes unfocused... caught between confusion and something that looked like the crack of defeat.

When her gaze landed on him, her cheeks flushed deep red, and her expression twisted into one of pure fury. She shot up slightly and barked, "It’s all because of you!!!"

Aether stopped mid-step, blinking slowly, as if he genuinely needed a second to process her outburst.

"Bitch, what?" His tone dripped with lazy mockery, the corner of his mouth curling into an edged smirk, like someone watching pieces of a game fall perfectly into place.

Vesperine’s lips twitched hard as her jaw clenched, "Don’t act like you’re some innocent bystander. You planned this, didn’t you? You dared to rip us apart!"

Her voice broke with anger, and before the last word had fully left her lips, she lunged toward him.

But just as her body was about to crash into his, she stopped—frozen midair, suspended by an unseen grip only inches from him.

Aether stood there, unmoving, his eyes cold. Vesperine thrashed against the invisible force, her hair swaying in jerky motions. "Let me go, bastard!" she screamed. The air around her shimmered faintly, the current swirling tightly like coiled ropes locking her in place.

’Pathetic,’ he thought, his expression not shifting an inch. It was barely any effort—just a thread of his air control, and she was stuck like prey in a spider’s web. Anyone with real skill could have slipped out of it with ease... yet she couldn’t.

And still... she’d somehow managed to have the most powerful men wrapped around her finger.

His gaze slid slowly over her.

Her face... not striking enough to steal breath, but not ugly either.

Her chest... modest, just enough to fill a hand.

Her hips... average at best.

There was nothing about her that screamed allure, nothing that should have made men turn their heads. No scent of danger, no curve to tempt the eye.

Just plain.

And yet...

"You’re just average," Aether said flatly, "Tell me—what’s so damn special about you?"

A vein throbbed visibly on Vesperine’s forehead. Her glare sharpened like a knife. "You bastard!!" she spat, her voice shaking with rage. "Why don’t you let me down and I’ll show you exactly what’s so great about m—"

Thud!

"OUCH!"

Her sentence ended with a sharp cry as she crashed to the floor, nose first. The pain shot through her head, making her vision blur for a moment. She cursed under her breath, shaking her head hard to clear the daze, then looked up at him again, eyes blazing.

"Just because you’re handsome and cool doesn’t mean you can treat me like this, you rough bastard!" she snapped, holding her sore nose.

Aether’s lips curled into a chuckle, but it wasn’t warm—it was hollow, humorless, as if the sound existed only out of habit. "Are you... complimenting me?" he asked, crouching so his eyes were level with hers, staring deep into them.

A shiver ran down her spine. Something about him felt... off. This wasn’t the same man she knew before.

Where did that quiet, obedient version of him disappear to?

"Tell me what you’re hiding," he said.

Vesperine’s brows furrowed. "I’m not hiding anything. You already ruined it—you already tore me and Kaelen apart."

His eyes flashed crimson for a brief second as his skill stirred. "I asked... what you’re truly hiding."

Her breathing slowed as her gaze locked onto his. There was something in his eyes—sharp, deep, and unyielding—that caught her like a hook.

"I..."

"You?" he prompted, leaning in, his shadow falling over her.

"I like your eyes, man," she blurted.

He blinked once... Then his brow furrowed. He activated his Crimson Veil again... and nothing happened. No shift in her pupils, no glazed reaction.

Wait...

Her frown deepened as she caught the subtle change in his expression. "Don’t tell me... you were trying to mess with my head?"

His frown darkened.

Vesperine’s eyes lit up with realisation. "Ha... too bad for you. I’m immune to your little manipulation trick." Her lips curved into a wicked grin, teeth flashing.

Aether’s stare hardened. ’So there are people who can resist my skill... I figured it might happen eventually.’ It was surprising, yes, but not unthinkable. Still... her?

Someone so weak she could barely fight back against a breeze—yet she’d managed to bind the strongest men to her will.

Just who the hell was she?

"Tell me... why did you try to get close to my son? Not just him, but every Arcane King... what’s your end goal?"

Vesperine tilted her head, frowning. "What? Can’t I have... my own harem?"

Aether chuckled, "Hah.. Of course, I couldn’t care less if you wanted a harem or fucked your way through half the continent.

That’s not my problem.

The problem is... You came after my son. And that, in my rule, means you’ve started treading on my nerves. So tell me... before I decide not to give you the chance."

His expression darkened as he suddenly gripped her twintail hair, yanking her head back. "Otherwise you wouldn’t be talking anymore."

"Ouch... so rough~" she purred, her tone dripping with seduction. Her eyes flickered with a pink hue as she leaned in without hesitation, her lips curling upward.

"Oh my... look at those deadly eyes... so fucking handsome... it’s making me shiver," she whispered, her voice trembling as her body did the same, a lustful glimmer dancing in her gaze.

"Oi. I’m not interested in you, bitch," he replied with a haughty tone, looking at her like she was the most laughable thing in the room.

She thought she could seduce him?

Him?

How ridiculous.

Vesperine clicked her tongue. "Kai really made a stupid decision... tsk, tsk. Such a pity I couldn’t make you my toy—"

BOOM!!

Her words were cut short as his fist connected with her face, sending her crashing into the wall. The sound of impact echoed through the room. She coughed violently, blood splattering from her mouth, and wiped at her nose where crimson trickled down. "T-That’s... unacceptable," she spat, her voice shaking.

Aether walked toward her, not even a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. "I’ll ask you one more time... Who are you... and what are you?" His hand shot out, clamping around her throat, lifting her off the ground with ease.

Vesperine’s legs kicked weakly as she struggled, but her eyes burned brighter, glowing more furiously.

"Why don’t you... find out... in my bed~ rrhh—"

Her voice broke into a groan as his grip tightened, nails digging into her skin until thin lines of blood trickled down her neck.

She could feel it—he wasn’t bluffing. If he kept going, he’d snap her neck. But...

"A-Are you sure?" she choked out, coughing. "If you kill me now... cough... Kaelen will never... mate with another woman."

"..." Aether’s grip loosened slightly, his brow furrowing. "What do you mean?"

Vesperine’s lips curled into a slow, poisonous grin. She licked them in an exaggerated, sultry motion. "Once they’ve tasted me... no other woman, literally no woman, can satisfy them. Not in bed, not in desire... and they’ll never be able to give birth."

Her wicked smile widened. "So go on, dear father of Kaelen... kill me. Let’s see if you love your son enough to risk ruining him forever~"

Aether’s expression hardened.

Was she bluffing? Maybe.

But this was the woman who had somehow wrapped the most powerful men alive around her finger. She might be hiding something dangerous.

And he... he knew the kind of pain such things could bring. In his previous life, his own incompetence had left scars—deep ones. He wasn’t about to let his son go through that same hell.

Of course not.

"Well... I guess I’ll just lock you up, then," he smirked.

Vesperine’s face shifted instantly into shock. ’Shit... I didn’t think of that,’ she cursed inwardly. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed something—Aether’s cheeks had flushed faintly red.

Her lips curved into a knowing smirk.

Aether frowned, "What are you smirking at? Is it good to be locked up—ha... ah... b... b—" His words faltered as a strange, burning heat spread through his body, sudden and overwhelming.

An unbearable lust—hotter and heavier than anything he had ever felt—rushed through his veins, making his muscles twitch and his breath stutter.

"You should have paid more attention to your surroundings, Aether darling~" Vesperine’s voice dripped with venomous sweetness as she slipped easily from his loosened grip.

He stumbled back a step, his mind fogging, his body sweltering as though set on fire from within.

Her grin grew as the pink hue in her eyes deepened.

His vision blurred. The edges of the world warped, shapes shifting until Vesperine’s face was no longer her own—it was Selene’s... no, Celestia’s... no, Sandra’s... Helena’s... and back again, flickering between every woman he had ever loved.

"W-What... happened?" His voice was hoarse, trembling, his chest rising and falling faster. Then he noticed it—the entire room was bathed in a faint pink mist.

He hadn’t seen it before. She’d kept it thin, subtle, making sure his eyes stayed fixed on her long enough for it to build.

But now... the mist had grown thick, swirling around them like a poisonous fog. His mind was clouded with lust, his legs weakening under the weight of it. His shaft ached, bulging painfully against his clothes.

It was almost exactly like that time Morgana had dealt with a stray incubus who tried to touch her...

Vesperine slowly slid her upper shirt off, revealing the soft curves of her breasts, barely concealed beneath a yellowish fur-trimmed bra. She grinned, her expression teasing and shameless. "Aether... why are you backing away?"

But for Aether... it wasn’t Vesperine he saw anymore. It was Selene—pouting, her eyes smouldering with seduction.

In the haze, Selene climbed onto him, pushing him down with ease, straddling his stomach. She leaned forward, lips curling into a dangerous smile.

"Let’s fuck~"