RISE OF EROS

Recognizing the girl and curious, Andrew entered the store. A soft jingle was heard as he entered, as a small bell sat at the top of the door. The girl immediately looked toward the door and was surprised to see Andrew, but she quickly composed herself and, with a professional smile, asked, "How can I help you?"

Noticing the girl's reaction, Andrew understood that she had recognized him, but he didn't intend to bring up the subject, so Andrew didn't want to complicate things for her.

Unfortunately, it was impossible because what he really wanted to know was why a well-known and reputable jewelry dealer ran a small store in the underground floors of the mall.

For Andrew, there was no explanation for this, and curiosity overcame him. The truth is, he felt it was curiosity, but this wasn't entirely true. It was his divinity that prompted him to enter.

Experts and demigods have some premonitions or feelings. It's a much weaker version of Candice's ability, but it was still powerful, and Andrew, as a candidate for god and demigod, also possessed them.

It wasn't the first time they'd appeared, but this time it was so subtle that he mistook her for harmless curiosity. He approached the counter where the girl was and smilingly asked, "May I ask, why does a renowned jewelry dealer like yourself conduct business in this place?"

The girl narrowed her eyes suspiciously. She didn't understand Andrew's reason for asking that and was reluctant to answer, so she simply said, "If you're a customer, you can look at our products; if not, you can leave."

Andrew was surprised by her words. Not only because they were sharp but also because his charm wasn't working on her. He had just escaped a situation where every woman wanted to devour him, and here was a girl speaking to him harshly.

This surprised him and put him on alert, as he knew that for a woman to act this way when she was in his presence meant she had a strong will. Not that this endangered Andrew, for the woman, despite being an expert, was much weaker than Andrew, but it was still a very special case.

Still, Andrew didn't want to get into a conflict and didn't pressure her. He stopped talking to her and walked around the small shop, looking at the pictures and descriptions of the items the girl was selling.

Honestly, he wasn't interested, but since the girl seemed overly alert to his presence, he decided to wander around the shop and check out what was on offer. He quickly understood the shop's reasoning.

This girl, despite her youthful appearance, isn't really young; it's just that, thanks to her strength, she has unnaturally extended her youth. This isn't something unusual in this world.

That wasn't important; what mattered was her status. As a jewelry dealer, she was wealthy and had a certain reputation in the city, but even so, she didn't run her jewelry shop; instead, she was here in the somewhat illegal area of ​​the mall.

The items on offer were, coincidentally, all jewels, but unlike the ones she sold in the store on the upper floors, these were special. They weren't meant for decoration and luxury, but rather had special abilities.

There were jewels that could heal and those that could curse. The variety was wide, and some had miraculous effects, but nothing that caught Andrew's attention. It wasn't as if he was looking for anything in particular, but since he was looking, he examined it carefully to see if there was anything that might be useful, but he hadn't found anything.

At least that was his thought, until one of the images caught his eye. It was a milky-white stone the size of a golf ball with some pink symbols that looked like letters. Although it was only a picture, for some reason, Andrew felt drawn to it and then read the description.

This one said the stone had the ability to increase the libido of those around it. In short, it was a kind of aphrodisiac, but Andrew didn't believe it was just that. As he thought about it, Fluffy's voice sounded in his head, "Andrew, you should buy that gem."

"Do you know what it is?" Andrew immediately asked, and Fluffy replied, "It's a gem of passion. The description is more or less correct, but in your hands it's different."

Before Andrew could continue asking, Fluffy spoke again, "Passion gems are stones that have been bathed in the essence of an Eros god, so that stone in your hands could help strengthen your dominance."

"Could it help me break the divine seal?" Andrew asked excitedly, and Fluffy replied, "Although I don't think it will allow you to break it, it will definitely help you move toward it". Since it was urgent for Andrew to break the remaining divine seals, he wouldn't waste this opportunity, so he quickly looked at the girl and asked, "How much for this gem?"

The girl looked at the picture Andrew pointed at and put on a displeased expression, but only for a second before returning to her professional smile. Although her change of expression was quick, Andrew noticed.

Obviously, he could imagine what the girl was thinking, but Andrew didn't care. He hadn't been shy about such topics for a long time; he had already embraced his status as a candidate for the Eros god.

"The price is written there," the girl said, and then Andrew looked again and smiled embarrassedly, for it was true. It was a large sum for a gem that only worked as an aphrodisiac, but for Andrew, it wasn't much.

He took the money out of his dimensional bag and handed it to her, saying, "When can you deliver it to me, and do you have similar products?" This time, the girl couldn't maintain her professional smile and said with disgust, "So Mr. Andrew is a pervert."

Andrew wasn't bothered by the girl's obvious displeasure, but he also didn't like being called a pervert. It's not that he denies being a pervert, because even he believes he is.

If he weren't, he wouldn't be a candidate for the god Eros, but even so, he didn't like being called that in such a derogatory way. However, he wouldn't start fighting with her either, so he made an excuse to save his social standing.

"I believe Miss Abby knows that I have several pleasure houses among my businesses. These gems are perfect for improving services," was what Andrew came up with. "Oh, right, I forgot about that," the girl said with surprise, but with a bit of feigned appreciation. It was obvious she didn't believe him, but Andrew didn't try to clarify further, as that would only prove he was lying.

At that moment, the girl spoke again, "So Mr. Andrew did know my name." Andrew looked at her with a smile and replied, "I rarely forget a beauty's name". "Wow, he's not just a pervert, but a shameless one," Abby said again with disgust, which annoyed Andrew, but he didn't explode. He knew how to control his emotions; he didn't want to give him the pleasure of seeing him angry.

For some reason, Abby seemed determined to anger him by insulting him, so Andrew didn't want to continue the conversation. "Well, let's talk business. Miss Abby hasn't answered me yet."

Abbys noticed Andrew deliberately changing the subject, but she didn't care either. "The gem will be delivered to your business in the red-light district tomorrow. As for more items like these, I don't have any at the moment."

Andrew nodded and, not wanting to talk to her any further, left, saying, "If you can get more, I'm willing to pay a lot for them, so you can contact me". As he left Abby's shop, Andrew didn't want to continue walking, so he decided to return to Comers Palace. However, while he was walking back, he chatted with Fluffy about what had happened.

"Why wasn't that girl affected by my charm like the others?" he asked, and before Fluffy could answer, he added, "Even if her will was strong, it shouldn't be so immutable, right?"

"She's probably using some device that allows her to avoid being affected by her emotions. Doing business in that place doesn't seem easy, and there will be no shortage of those who want to take advantage," Fluffy replied.

Listening to his divine beast, Andrew could only nod. It's true that strong-willed women can avoid his charm, but not to the degree Abby's had achieved, so Fluffy's explanation seemed adequate.

Andrew took his time returning, but to his surprise, when he reached the gates of Comers Palace, he noticed several carriages parked in front of him, blocking the entrance, and many people standing around.

Although there didn't seem to have been an accident, and no signs of combat could be heard or seen, it was an unusual situation, to say the least, so Andrew extended his aura to investigate what was happening before entering blindly.

While he has complete control over what happens there, he hadn't received any alerts, and since he was in Abby's shop, entertaining himself, he didn't notice this. Besides, since there was no alert, it only meant that nothing had happened to endanger his loved ones.