Rise of the Eromancer

Chapter 124 Conquering Wall Maria (Gone Wrong, Gone Bad)

"How did Ayesha even tell you my address? Last I checked she's restricted from accessing all of her military privileges."

"She… has her ways."

"Like you have yours. Coffee?"

"I… don't drink coffee."

Although Rhys intruded Maria's house out of nowhere, her stoic nature surprisingly still prevailed, as she was now calmly preparing some refreshments for her uninvited guest.

As for Rhys, he just sat at the counter and casually scanned Maria's apartment — which was a lot bigger than the apartment the military gave him.

She barely had any furniture, and although there was obviously enough space for a dining table, there was none. She did not even have a TV or a sofa.

"I have no use for them," Maria said as she placed a soda in front of Rhys, and a cup of coffee for her, "This apartment is solely for me to eat, sleep, and all the other private stuff I need to do that is none of your concern."

"Hm…" Rhys let out a soft chuckle as he glanced at Maria, or more specifically, the 5 Hearts floating above her head; 2 of them, already filled up. Throughout his meeting with Maria, Rhys had always found her abilities extremely fascinating; to be able to move through the shadows was an ability he was sure he would have a lot of use for.

Currently, he has Arise, which gives him practically unlimited stamina in all aspects but mental, Affection Meter, Selective… Desire Reading, Web Production, Ultra Reflex, Wind Control, and Ayesha's Herculean strength.

Being able to move through the shadows would surely amplify all of this. The only problem now was filling all of Maria's Hearts.

Through the weeks he had spent with the soldiers of Wilder's Harem, Rhys had learned that the 5 Hearts did not necessarily represent love — it is called an Affection Meter, after all, not a Love Meter.

Most of the women of Wilder's Harem had at least 3 of their Hearts filled up, and Rhys was sure they did not have a crush on him at all, but instead adored him in a way that… people adore politicians, idols, or maybe even gods.

For Maria, Rhys had no idea how he was even going to start making her like him. The first Heart filled up when she saw Rhys being locked up in jail, the second one was when he invited her to have dinner with the others.

But now, try as Rhys might, he could not even hear a speck of her desires.

"Chronic overthinker, check," Maria tapped the counter as she leaned closer to Rhys, looking him straight in the eyes. Rhys just returned her stare, looking at her face that was probably less than two feet away from his.

Maria was good-looking, mature. Her brown hair that split to the sides and only reached her shoulder, seemingly not moving even if she moved her head, almost cementing the fact that she almost talked robotically. But in a way, a good way, it adds to her charm.

"I know I am beautiful, Mr. Wilder," Maria let out a tiny sigh as she leaned away, "But you do not need to stare that much."

"You are, Ma'am," Rhys softly chuckled as he looked down, "You are very beautiful."

"...Is that how you get them?" Maria squinted her eyes, "Womanizer, check."

"That… I don't think I am."

"You have three women in your life, Mr. Wilder," Maria crossed her arms, "Granted, Katarina may not be with you sexually just yet, but I assure you, her feelings for you are not platonic."

"Well…" Rhys took a gulp of the soda Maria offered her, "...Don't womanizers usually only have temporary partners? I don't really know how our situation came to be, but I assure you, Ma'am — I treat both Ayesha and Lina the same way, I'm not… just going to abandon or leave them. Believe it or not, they truly are precious to me."

"Congratulations, you are an evolved womanizer," Maria shook her head, "Precious, yes — but do you even love—"

"I do," Rhys answered without any hesitation, "I do love them, that's never been a question."

"Greedy," Maria pointed at Rhys as she took a sip of her coffee, "Can't say I don't like that — you'll really make a fine politician, Mr. Wilder. Although, considering everything you have been doing so far, that is exactly where I think you are heading."

"I'm not interested in politics."

"Don't lie," Maria scoffed, "Everything about you practically screams politics, Mr. Wilder. Mysteriously charismatic, relates to the most oppressed demographic in the entire world, highly manipulative, and most importantly…

…you are a walking, functioning bundle of mental illnesses rolled into one. If that doesn't describe a politician, I do not know what does."

"...Manipulative?" Rhys blinked.

"It's a compliment, Mr. Wilder." And once again, Rhys saw a somewhat cheeky smile crawling on Maria's face, "And you are highly manipulative, extremely so…

…to the point that you told several Lowborns to blow up your own apartment and dress up like a group of extremists."

"...What?" Rhys could not help but let out a small scoff, slightly leaning away from Maria in disbelief as he heard her words, "What are you saying?"

"Oh, Mr. Wilder," Maria clicked her tongue several times while shaking her head, "The others may not have discovered it, but I, who had spent several hours in your apartment, would."

"W—"

"The lock installed in all of your doors is military," Maria did not let Rhys say anything as she started walking around toward him; her fingers trailing across the counter, "That means, no one is going to come in there without a key or a passcode. The only other way is to completely break the door from the outside… perhaps a small miscalculation, but that's alright…

…you can just say you are unlucky that the door was almost completely unscathed."

"You're… saying I let someone in to plant a bomb in my own apartment?" Rhys softly chuckled.

"The type of bomb used was a Demolition type; completely non-flammable so the damage would be controlled, a C4 that happens to also be issued to the military. Common, sure…" The smile on Maria's face grew wider as she stood right beside Rhys, whispering into his ear,

"...But for someone who could get information on an HIU agent like me? I bet it is as easy as snapping their fingers to get an IED like that."

"Hm…" Rhys could really only close his eyes as he felt Maria's breaths crawling down his neck, figuratively and literally, "Have you shared this… story of yours to someone else?"

"No, of course not," Maria tilted her head to the side to look at Rhys's face, "As you said, it's just a story. But I am curious, though… if there is something else to this story?"

Rhys opened his eyes and once again returned Maria's gaze, which now seemed highly… obsessive for some reason,

"What type of stowy aw…" And as Rhys opened his mouth, he suddenly found himself slurring his words for some reason.

"Do you want to hear my story, Mr. Wilder?" The smile on Maria's face did not disappear, turning wider along with her eyes as she glanced at the soda she gave Rhys, "I put enough sedatives there to even down several rhornus."

"Oh…" Rhys turned to look at Maria one last time, before he felt his vision just suddenly fade away, "You…

…you shouldn't have done that."

"You're going to tell me everything, Mr. Wilder…" Maria whispered into his ear as she caught him before he could fall, "...And if I like what I hear, I'm joining your harem."

"No… you shouldn't have done that," Rhys whispered, a small, but incredibly maniacal laughter very slowly escaping his lips, "Call…

…Call Katarina."

***

"Rhys, stop! Please… stop it! Damn it!"

"Don't touch the Recruit! The two of you just check on the Suit and see if she's fine!"

"Okay… just make sure he breathes this in! He needs to fully wake up!"

"Gods damn it, wake up or I am gonna crush your balls, Recruit! You done did something this time!"

"Huh…?" Rhys found himself repeatedly blinking several times; his vision, slowly recovering with each bat of his eyes. And soon, his consciousness returned to him, welcoming him to a scenery that could only be described as chaotic.

Rhys then turned to look at the woman holding him, only to see Ayesha doubling in his vision.

"Zeus fucking Bolt, Recruit," Ayesha quickly slapped Rhys's face with both hands, grasping his face tight, "Remind me not to get you drunk."

"What…" Rhys breathed out as he noticed several scratches already healing on his arms. He then turned to look at the room he was in, only to see not a single part of it not ruined; the walls were either cracked, or there was a print of a hand embedded through it… all left hand.

"What did I…" Rhys then turned his head toward the other voices he was hearing in the room, only to see Katarina and Lina there… with Maria curled up in the corner of the room, wearing some sort of… latex suit. She seemed to be crying… but also smiling at the same time as she embraced herself,

"...What did I do?" Rhys could not help but whisper. But he could not really focus on anything else, however, as his eyes were completely fixated on the Large Gray Heart floating above Maria's head, "What…

…did I do?"

And just like that, Rhys was able to conquer Maria… not knowing exactly how or why.