Chapter 760: Master... Something is wrong: Part-4

Meanwhile, In an Unknown Place,

Aqualina and Celestia were struggling... just to walk up the stairs!

"Huff-Huff—W-Why are we even walking on these damn stairs...?" Aqualina groaned, her face twisted with exhaustion. They had been walking for what felt like an eternity!

Behind her, Celestia panted heavily, her breathing ragged.

It wasn’t just the sheer distance that was draining them—something about these stairs made every step feel unbearably heavy like an invisible force was pressing down on their bodies, forcing them to struggle against it.

Heck, they weren’t even sure they were climbing anymore... rather—

"Wait... Are we supposed to be going down?" Aqualina asked, her voice laced with frustration as she watched the hooded figure ahead of them descend the steps yet again.

It was an endless cycle—they climbed up, then down, then up again. Every time they reached a certain floor, they’d be forced to change direction as if trapped in some twisted loop, repeating over and over without escape.

And to make it worse, the hooded figure leading them wasn’t saying a single damn thing! It just kept walking ahead, silently guiding them without explanation.

"Tsk." Aqualina clicked her tongue in irritation. As much as she wanted to yank that hood off and see who or what was underneath, she held herself back.

There was a time to be curious and a time to know when to leave things alone. Right now, this mysterious figure was their only lead—their only way out of this bizarre, endless space that felt more like some kind of twisted experiment designed for monsters.

Celestia, however, was more focused on something else. As they continued moving, she started noticing a pattern—up, down, up, up, down, down, up... It felt familiar, like some kind of key sequence. But to what? She wasn’t sure. She had only observed it—nothing more.

Aqualina glanced over her shoulder at Celestia, who had been silently trailing behind her. It wasn’t just coincidence—Celestia was deliberately staying close, positioning herself protectively in case anything attacked them from behind.

"Hmm..." Aqualina hesitated for a moment as if she had something to say, but no words left her lips.

Noticing her unease, Celestia shot her a questioning look. "Do you need something, Princess?"

Aqualina met her gaze for a second before shaking her head, "...No, it’s nothing," she muttered, though her voice lacked conviction.

Celestia didn’t push, but she could tell something was on Aqualina’s mind.

And then—

"Nope, I can’t keep quiet about this anymore!" Aqualina suddenly blurted out, her voice laced with exhaustion. She turned to Celestia, her expression serious. "...Is my mother..."

Celestia stiffened, swallowing nervously. ’What is she about to ask...?’

Aqualina clenched her fists, struggling to get the words out. It was as if they were lodged in her throat, refusing to be spoken. But after taking a deep breath, she finally forced them out.

"My mother... likes Aether, doesn’t she?"

Celestia’s eyes widened in shock. She flinched—visibly.

That reaction did not go unnoticed by Aqualina, who simply nodded, her expression blank. "I see..." she murmured, before turning back to follow the hooded figure, as if the conversation was already over.

Celestia, however, panicked. "W-Wait! Princess, what do you mean the Empress likes Aether?! That’s—That’s not—"

"Come on now, do you really think I’m that much of an idiot?" Aqualina interrupted, her voice filled with quiet frustration. "I saw how my mother reacted when I announced Aether as my lover... She went completely pale!"

Celestia opened her mouth to protest, but Aqualina wasn’t done.

"And it wasn’t just shock—it was something else," Aqualina continued, her tone growing somber. ’Besides… I was once her mother. Of course, I know how she hides her emotions. That look on her face... it was the same expression she always had whenever she got jealous.’

For a brief moment, amusement flickered across Aqualina’s face.

But Celestia wasn’t about to let this go so easily. She had to protect what Aether had worked so hard to maintain. "Maybe… she was just surprised to see you fall in love with a slav—"

"Do not call him a slave!" Aqualina’s voice was cold. Deadly. Her glare cut through Celestia with sharp intensity, void of any emotion.

Celestia blinked, then immediately bowed her head. "Please forgive me, Princess. I meant that he was jus—"

"I know exactly what you meant," Aqualina cut her off, her voice firm. "But I don’t believe for a second that my mother’s reaction was just about me… There’s something more. I..."

She trailed off, her mind racing. She still remembered how her mother had stared blankly at Aether, and how Aether—normally so composed—had avoided her gaze, almost as if he was... guilty?

They had hidden it well, but Aqualina had caught glimpses of something off—something neither of them wanted her to see.

More than that, Aether’s eyes... the way he looked at her mother was—

’Wait!’

Aqualina’s heart pounded as a realization hit her. Pieces were clicking together in her mind—things she had ignored or brushed off before, suddenly making sense.

She had been too distracted, too caught up in everything else. But now that she had time to think—now that it was just the two of them, walking endlessly in this strange space—her thoughts were unravelling the truth.

And she didn’t like where they were leading.

Being alone in silence always had a way of making people dwell on their past—sometimes far too much. It was an endless cycle of overthinking, a loop that only deepened the more time passed.

Celestia gulped, feeling unease creeping up her spine, ’If she finds out... some disaster will definitely happen—’ But then, her thoughts came to an abrupt halt.

’.... We can’t hide this forever... Sooner or later, she’s bound to learn the truth. Hmm... should I plant the seed now?’ A sly grin curled on her lips as the idea took form in her mind.

Meanwhile, Aqualina’s thoughts were spiralling into an abyss. ’Does Aether... love my mother?’ Even thinking about the possibility made her stomach twist into knots.

A dreadful expression settled on her face, her mind racing with thoughts she wished she could shut out. But before she could drown in those emotions—

"What if..." Celestia suddenly spoke, her voice careful, "The Empress actually loved him?"

Aqualina stiffened on the spot, her body going rigid as she turned toward Celestia.

Celestia quickly raised both hands as if surrendering, flashing an innocent expression. "I’m just speaking hypothetically! I mean... what if the Empress truly loves him? And the only reason she’s letting him go is... for you?"

Aqualina flinched at those words.

’For me…?’

She remained frozen in silence for a long moment before finally whispering, "What would I do...?"

Her face had gone pale. Sharing Aether with other bitches was already more than overwhelming—but this? This was too much.

This was her own mother. Or rather... her own daughter.

No matter which way she looked at it, it was suffocating, an impossible situation to process all at once.

Celestia, on the other hand, was watching her reaction with sharp eyes. The fact that Aqualina didn’t outright reject the thought but was actually considering it—oh, this was priceless.

’Heh~ Now, Aether better reward me well for working this hard~’ Celestia chuckled inwardly, a devilish smirk curling at the corner of her lips.

Suddenly—

"Here."

A deep voice rang out, cutting through the tense atmosphere like a sharp blade.

The hooded figure had finally spoken. It had stopped moving, standing still at the edge of the dimly lit staircase.

Both Aqualina and Celestia snapped out of their thoughts, their attention shifting toward the mysterious figure before them.

At the very end of the staircase stood a small door—or at least, something that resembled a door.

Frowning, Aqualina and Celestia exchanged glances before turning their gazes back toward the so-called "door." It was almost completely blending into the wall.

The hooded figure raised its hand and motioned toward the disguised entrance. "Once you enter this, you will find yourself inside another building. There, you must reach the top and locate a door identical to this one."

Aqualina frowned deeply, suspicion creeping into her eyes. "You’re not coming with us?"

The hooded figure didn’t answer. It merely motioned again, urging them to step forward and enter.

Aqualina and Celestia hesitated... But with no other choice, they shared one last glance before nodding in silent agreement. As they cautiously approached the hidden entrance, something strange happened—the wallpaper, which had seemed completely flat and seamless, suddenly shifted.

The two women tensed in shock.

The doorknob was emerging... slowly pushing out from within the wallpaper, as if the wall itself were alive.

Aqualina and Celestia gulped simultaneously.

Taking a deep breath, Aqualina reached forward, fingers trembling slightly as they brushed against the eerie, out-of-place knob. She twisted it carefully, and with a soft creak, the door opened.

As soon as they stepped through the mysterious doorway, the hooded figure turned away and moved with hurried steps.

Meanwhile—

The moment Aqualina and Celestia crossed the threshold, chaos met them head-on.

"Hold the Subject No. 23408!"

"I’m trying, sir! But the reaction getting stronger!!"

Voices filled the air—sharp, frantic, and filled with urgency.

Aqualina and Celestia barely had time to react before their surroundings fully came into focus.

Bright, sterile lighting. The strong scent of chemicals. Strange machinery. White coats. Medical tools. Experimentation equipment.

And then—

"We’re losing its stability... We need to stop this—NOW!"

"Oh no!"

BOOM!

A violent explosion rocked the facility.

Blood splattered violently against a transparent glass wall, the crimson droplets painting a horrifying scene.

The researchers—those dressed in pristine white coats—stood frozen, their faces drained of all colour.

"Subject No. 23408... failed," someone finally muttered, their voice eerily calm despite the blood-soaked mess before them.

Meanwhile, Aqualina and Celestia crouched low, pressing themselves against the cold floor.

’Where the hell are we...?’

They had no idea. But one thing was certain—this place was a laboratory. And from the looks of it... it wasn’t one they wanted to be trapped in.