Apocalypse with my SSS Harem Beauties-Chapter 123: Potential And Corruption

Night fell slowly, but the sky never returned to normal. The sickly colors dimmed into darker shades, blending into a horizon that looked like bruised face or sick skin.

Strange auroras drifted faintly above the city, pulsing in irregular waves. The world felt heavier than before.

Inside the house, the companions remained seated in their positions.

Hours had already passed. Sweat soaked their clothes. Their breathing had grown uneven long ago, but none of them stopped.

Ether continued to move through their bodies in steady circulation. The process felt like dragging molten metal through fragile veins.

George’s shoulders trembled. Ethan’s jaw clenched so tight the muscle near his temple twitched. His eyes hurt again.

Clara’s hands rested on her knees, but her fingers curled slightly as if resisting pain. Daniel’s breathing turned sharp and shallow. Samantha’s calm composure cracked as sweat rolled down her neck.

Myles was the most stable. He was just shaking slightly.

The colorful Ether around him had grown clearer. It no longer flickered randomly with blackness. It rotated in slow motion around his body, tightening and compressing each time his core pulsed.

His chest rose and fell heavily.

Finally Lilian said.

"Stop."

Lilian’s voice cut through the room.

They did not argue. One by one, they released their circulation and opened their eyes.

The sudden stillness made their heads spin. Ether that had been forced through their bodies now settled slowly, like a river calming after a flood.

"Gah!" George fell backward onto the floor with a groan. "I feel like I ran a marathon while getting electrocuted."

"You look worse than that, old man," Daniel muttered, though he was barely sitting upright himself.

Victor, still on the sofa, gave a faint chuckle. "You all stink of sweat."

Myles wiped sweat from his chin and exhaled slowly. His muscles ached deeply, but beneath the exhaustion he felt something different. The stability of his energy.

After that they gathered what little food they had left like canned foods or dried snacks, and a few bottles of water. They ate in silence at first, conserving energy.

"We’ll need to search for food again soon," Samantha said quietly.

George sighed. "Yeah. Our supplies won’t last long."

Lilian, who had not touched any food, shook her head.

"From now on, you will not need as much."

They looked at her.

"You’ve begun absorbing Ether properly," she continued. "As your bodies adapt, Ether will supplement your physical needs. Your hunger will decrease and your fatigue will recover faster."

Ethan blinked. "You’re saying... we don’t need to eat as much?"

"Yes."

Victor raised a brow. "And you?"

"I do not require food at all, if you haven’t noticed," Lilian replied calmly with a shrug.

They were silent for a few seconds.

Then George laughed weakly. "That’s very good news."

Relief showed clearly on their faces. Less need for food meant fewer risks. Fewer supply runs, so more time to train.

"Now," Lilian said, shifting the atmosphere back to seriousness, "tell me what you sensed inside your bodies."

They exchanged glances.

Daniel decided to speak first. "At first it was chaotic but after a few hours I felt a pathway form. Like... channels inside my body. The Ether started moving more smoothly."

Clara nodded, agreeing. "It felt sharp in my body. When it passed through my arms I could feel my nerves react faster. Or something like that. I still didn’t understand it too much."

Samantha lowered her gaze slightly and spoke. "I felt pressure in my chest. It hurt. But after I endured it the pain turned into warmth that spread into my arms and behind my eyes."

George scratched his head. "I felt like it was trying to burst out at first. Now it’s calmer."

Ethan touched his chest. "It reacts when I focus. Almost like it listens to my thoughts."

"Even without moving much, I can feel it stabilizing my wounds," Victor said and gave a faint smile.

Then all eyes turned to Myles. He remained silent for a moment.

"When I circulate it," he said slowly, "it doesn’t just move around my body but..., it speaks to me."

He looked at his hands.

"It responds."

The faint aura around him shimmered again, barely visible in the dim room.

"It feels like something inside me is waking up."

Lilian’s gaze sharpened.

"Yes," she said quietly. "It is."

"What do you mean?" Myles asked.

Not only him. Everyone in the room leaned forward slightly. Why would Myles Ether speak to him?

Lilian did not answer immediately. Her eyes studied him carefully as if measuring something invisible.

"Myles is different," she said at last.

The room grew quiet.

"The potential inside him resembles what you witnessed in that monster before."

The air seemed to grow colder.

"You mean—" Daniel began.

"Yes," Lilian cut in calmly. "The same type of evolution. The same possibility."

She turned fully toward Myles.

"Your core is not merely circulating Ether. It is interacting with it on a deeper level. That is why it feels like it speaks to you. The Seed recognizes you."

Myles’ brows lowered. "Recognizes me as what?"

"As something capable of exceeding the limits."

Silence pressed down on them.

"You can become far stronger than the others," Lilian continued. "Your growth speed will surpass normal boundaries once it fully awakens."

That part sounded good. But she did not stop there.

"However, that same potential carries a greater risk. The line between evolution and corruption is thin. The more power you draw, the closer you step toward losing yourself."

Victor’s faint smile faded.

"You have a higher chance of mutating," Lilian said bluntly. "And becoming something no longer human."

The words settled heavily in the room.

Myles did not answer right away. He lowered his gaze to his hands. The faint shimmer of Ether still circled him.

He had felt that presence. It did not feel evil. But that power had felt... hungry.

"I see," he muttered quietly. He did not like the comparison to that monster and the implication that he stood closer to becoming one.

Around him, the others reacted in different ways.

Some of them turned complicated and uncertain. Some looked thoughtful and calculating. There was also envy, or perhaps, frustration.

Myles felt all of it. The fear, doubt, confusion, and expectation put on him.

He closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again. Determination shined in his eyes now. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"Don’t worry," he said firmly. "I will not be corrupted."

His voice did not waver.

"If there’s a line between becoming stronger and becoming a monster, then I’ll walk that line without crossing it."

His companions looked at him. They had seen him reckless. They had seen him desperate. But this was different.

He was determined, and in this world where everything had turned into hell, they needed whatever spark of hope they could get. Myles is their hope.

"Tomorrow, we must begin going into the higher zone," Lilian said suddenly.

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