Reincarnated Hero System

On Aramis, there was a race of creatures called Dryads.

Of this race, there was a particular subspecies of them that seduced the males of intelligent races and preyed on them for nutrients.

There were only female dryads and they were all exceptionally beautiful, with no shortage of men falling prey to their wiles.

Now then, why was this being brought up at this point in time?

It was to give context to Arthur and Evan’s current situation.

Both boys were currently being embraced by a group of five nearly naked women, with clothes that left little to the imagination and extraordinary proportions.

To understand how they got into such a situation, we’d have to backtrack to right after Arthur handed the unconscious Margaux over to the Military Police Inspector.

◇　◇　◇

The cube-shaped spatial map that Arthur had picked up from Margaux held coordinates for a location deep within Elven territory.

Naturally, it was not the territory of the dark elves which were just arriving on Aramis but the indigenous Light Elves of the planet.

Despite being affiliated with the invading demons, Arthur thought it best to waltz over there like it was the most normal thing, and he dragged Evan along just because.

First, they made a detour to Sloklens to update Rachel about Margaux’s status before heading to a nearby Mercenary Guild several days later. This Mercenary Guild, an Intercontinental organization, catered to Aramisians seeking to battle demons independently of the formal Army.

Arthur used his Mercenary Guild identity for their entrance into Aramisian territory. Crafting a convincing backstory and showcasing a touch of divinity, he quickly gained entry into the guild.

On Aramis, Divinity Wielders were highly prized due to their effectiveness against demons vulnerable to divine power.

Arthur adjusted his apparent level to 400, presenting himself as an Intermediate Grandmaster. This secured him an S-Tier Mercenary ranking, as guild ranks followed Stat Ranks. Meanwhile, Evan registered as well, achieving SS-Tier certification which granted him access to Teleportation Waypoints leading into Elven territory.

With their credentials in hand, Arthur used Greater Teleportation repeatedly, warping them across North-Eastern Gledea.

The location marked on the map was in a forest, and following the map, they arrived at a massive that was bathing in sunlight.

It looked pretty, but what drew their attention towards it was the strong magic power they sensed from it.

As they approached, figures emerged from the surrounding woods—a quintet of female ‘elves’ who eyed the boys with a cautious wariness.

Evan and Arthur introduced themselves as ‘just travellers’ who ‘came in peace’, before posing questions about the tree in front of them, curious about the source of the magic power.

Although still wary, they agreed to explain. Meanwhile, Arthur subtly harnessed ambient cosmic energy, probing beneath the tree’s roots to uncover the nature of the seal he sensed there.

Confident in their ability to easily overpower the elves if necessary, Arthur and Evan viewed them as no threat. When the elves activated their skills, the two assumed it was merely a precautionary measure.

Arthur’s focus was largely on the seal, with only a fraction of his awareness dedicated to monitoring the elves for any overt hostility.

What came for them, however, were not attacks or hostile intent, but desire.

The skills that these ‘elves’ had activated, were charm-type skills.

They had activated these skills immediately after they were spotted, so Arthur and Evan assumed they were preparing for a fight and activated combat skills.

Even after their peaceful intentions were made clear, the elves didn’t deactivate their skills, and the two boys simply thought their caution was still in effect.

The ‘elves’ had drawn closer to them when explaining about the tree, putting the two teens in range of their skills’ maximum effect.

It was then they shed their elven guises and revealed their true, mesmerising forms.

Their skin, now visible in its natural hue, shimmered with the warm, inviting tones of fresh bark, while their hair cascaded like autumn leaves, glowing with an entrancing, subtle light.

Each dryad radiated an aura of enchantment, their eyes glowing with an irresistible, hypnotic allure.

The dryads’ eyes sparkled with a myriad of shifting colours, creating a captivating kaleidoscope that mesmerized anyone who gazed upon them.

Each breath they took released a delicate whisper of magic, an intoxicating fragrance that filled the air and ensnared the senses. The scent was a heady blend of blooming flowers and ripe fruit, sweet and tantalizing, making it difficult to think clearly or resist their influence.

Their gentle sighs and softly spoken words carried an enchanting melody that echoed in the boys’ minds to lull them into a state of dreamy compliance. Each feather-light touch from the dryads was a conduit for their magic, sending pulses of warmth and pleasure through the boys’ bodies, heightening their senses and eroding their willpower.

As they moved closer, their touches became even more intimate, each caress a deliberate infusion of their charm.

With an intense, predatory gaze, the dryads scrutinized the teenagers, noting the vacant, entranced look in their eyes—a clear sign that their charms had taken hold.

Yet, the dryads remained calculated and deliberate, choosing not to strike immediately, instead opting to further enthral them, drawing the boys deeper under their spell before making their move.

Evan was content to ignore the dryads while waiting for Arthur to finish what he was up to—until one of them tried to mess with his memories.

It took every ounce of his self-control not to flip out right there and then. Instead of turning the dryad to ashes, he calmly addressed Arthur.

“So, Arthur. When are you going to stop pretending like this shit actually affects you?”

[…eh?]

One dryad, poised to kiss Evan’s cheek, let out a bewildered gasp, unable to fathom how he could still maintain coherent thought.

What’s more, his words implied that Arthur, too, was unaffected by their charms

They instinctively rejected such a notion, believing it impossible. Yet, Arthur proceeded to shatter their beliefs in the next moment.

“Dude…you could have waited a few more seconds. I was almost done deconstructing this place’s security.”

Arthur replied with a sigh, raising a hand to press his forehead and seeing this, Evan was slightly taken aback.

“Oh…my bad.”

“Don’t worry. Enough time has already passed, I’ve unlocked it now.”

The moment Arthur spoke, he seized the arm of the dryad holding his shoulder and hurled her with all his strength, sending her crashing through a line of trees before plunging into a nearby stream.

[Wha-!?]

The other couldn’t even have a chance to complete her exclamation when Arthur grabbed her hand.

The realization of their BIG mistake dawned on her too late.

She tried to run, but how could she, a mere grandmaster, escape Arthur’s grip?

A light tug was enough to nearly dislocate her arm before he tossed her over his head and slammed her to the ground.

Meanwhile, Evan’s hands blurred, and faster than the dryad could realise what was happening, he seized her by the face, covering her mouth with his palm. His other hand clamped tightly around her arms, and he activated a technique.

‘Mesarthim: Flammable Arm.’

A burst of flames erupted from Evan’s hand, rapidly climbing up the dryad’s arms and burning off her skin and flesh in mere seconds.

Tears streamed down her face as she attempted to scream, but Evan’s powerful grip, enhanced by sound nullification magic, stifled her cries. She could only endure the searing pain of her burning arms, unable to make a sound.

The remaining two dryads wasted no time fleeing, but Arthur flicked his fingers, using gravity law energy to create a pulling force. It dragged not only them but also the dryad previously flung into the forest.

Evan then tossed the charred dryad aside and turned his narrowed gaze to one of the three Arthur had brought over.

“You—you’re the one who tried to alter my memories, right?”

The Rogue Hero was pissed. But his fury was not explosive but controlled, a calm rage that was all the more terrifying.

The audacity of trying to replace memories of Eliza with herself had pissed Evan off to heaven and back.

Despite the dryad’s terrified denial, Evan did not care. He grasped her head, and a chilling cold began to emanate from him as he proceeded to freeze it with ice.

The ambient temperature plummeted rapidly, the cold biting sharply enough that even Arthur began to feel its chill.

‘Oh, his skill is this powerful?’

Arthur was genuinely impressed by this as he watched Evan thaw the ice that froze the dryad into a statue with his flames.

Then he froze her body into a statue again. Then he thawed it with flames that burned her again.

Evan repeated this cycle: freeze, thaw, burn, and then freeze again.

The two remaining dryads watched in horror, their eyes filling with tears as they witnessed the excruciating suffering inflicted upon their comrade.

Evan repeated this process multiple times while Arthur silently watched him.

The repeated exposure to extreme temperatures made the dryad’s body increasingly brittle, a fundamental principle of chemistry that applied just as much to living beings as it did to inanimate objects.

Evan did this over and over again until the dryad’s body began breaking down, and the worst part was that she could feel every bit of the pain.

The other dryads began to beg for mercy, their pleas desperate as they realized the fate awaiting them was far worse than death, but Arthur just asked one simple question.

“If you were successful in charming us, you were going to drain out all our magic and lifeforce as nutrients for that tree, were you not?”

“?!”

The dryads flinched at his question, their reaction a clear admission of their intentions, so the boy proceeded to deliver his judgment.

|Threat of Imminent Death to Host Detected ⚠|

|Reincarnated Hero System Stored Authority Consumed|

|Activating ‘Survival Enhancement Mode’|

‘What the—?! Again?!’

Evan turned towards Arthur and saw him raise his hands and unleash a beam of silver light. The light engulfed the dryads, and when it finally faded, they had disappeared.

‘What?’

The Rogue Hero raised a brow in confusion as he saw Arthur casually walk over to the tree and begin tinkering with it like nothing happened.

It was then that Evan noticed fine particles of dust being carried by the breeze, carrying with them a faint, lingering scent of the dryads. The realization struck him with a jolt.

‘Did he…turn them to dust?’

Arthur had a Pseudo-Authority in the law of destruction, so it wasn’t entirely surprising that he could perform such a feat.

Not only did Arthur have a Soul Eating sword, but he could also turn people to dust on the fly.

Evan tossed the lifeless dryad he was holding onto the ground and stepped over the other unconscious dryad whose arms had been reduced to ashes.

“Damn bro, you turned them to dust.”

“Uh-huh.”

Arthur casually admitted it as he conjured a magic circle and began tweaking it while Evan questioned.

“Wasn’t that a bit overkill?”

“Was it?

I’m someone who lives guided by my pleasure and displeasure. They tried to turn me into nutrients for this tree which they were born from, and that displeased me so I simply acted to clear my displeasure.”

Evan was once again, slightly taken aback by a response from Arthur, which showed his cavalier attitude and indicated his lack of remorse.

‘So, to him, it’s just a natural response to something that displeases him, huh?

Living guided by his pleasure and displeasure…that’s a hedonistic worldview if I’ve ever seen one.’

Evan glanced at the spot where the three dryads spent their last moments, before thinking.

‘Arthur prioritizes his desires and emotions above all else, regardless of the situation…’

“I’m curious though…”

“Hmm?”

“How are you able to resist it? As far as I know, their charm was absurd.”