Third Person
Five days had passed since Arthur left Sharia and headed southwest, following the route Rudeus had described. Finally, they reached the limits of a dense, dark forest.
—"I should have bought a horse... don't you think, Fenril?" —he murmured, stretching his sore back—. "I have to run with you on my back, otherwise, you'd drag yourself along the road."
Fenril, who was now the size of a normal dog, let out a grunt that was half complaint, half agreement.
Arthur smiled.
—"Yes, yes... I know you're growing fast. But you could at least do me the favor of not falling asleep while I carry you."
Fenril proudly tilted his head, as if to say he wasn't going to apologize.
Arthur consulted the map and looked towards the forest. Barely any light entered; it was a dense forest.
—"According to this..." —he told himself— "it's called Lumen Forest. What a name!"
Fenril suddenly stopped, his ears perked and his back tense.
Arthur felt it too.
—"Yes... me too," —he replied in a low voice—. "There are several presences moving. We're in a hurry, so let's avoid monsters as much as possible."
He put away the map, adjusted his belt, and advanced cautiously through the trees. The forest air was dense, as if something invisible was gliding through the branches.
Suddenly, the rustling of leaves and a deep growl broke the silence.
Several figures emerged from the bushes: boars with long tusks and emerald fur, with eyes that glowed unnaturally. They moved fast, surrounding them.
Arthur clicked his tongue.
—"We don't have time for this."
He stepped forward, raised a hand, and Mana began to flow with precision. The air around him vibrated.
Without unnecessary words, he released the spell.
An expansive burst of compressed wind erupted from his position, sweeping the ground in a wide radius. Leaves, branches, and dust shot out like projectiles, and the boars were violently thrown back, rolling among the trees or crashing against the trunks.
Fenril took advantage of the moment and lunged forward, traversing the terrain with a distorted speed, setting the path while keeping the stunned beasts away.
Arthur didn't stop to check the results.
—"Let's go," —he commanded—. "The monument must be close."
Both continued advancing, dodging every obstacle ahead, leaving behind the furious grunts that gradually faded away.
.....
During that whole day of searching, they finally found the landmark, thanks to Fenril's sense of smell, who followed Rudeus's trail. It was a monolith with an engraved seal.
Observing it closely, it had the symbol of the Dragon God, with a series of carvings resembling a sharp dragon head.
—"Alright, let's see what this thing is capable of," —Arthur placed his hand on the stone monument—. "Fenril, don't stray from me."
Then Arthur recited the notes he had secretly seen from Rudeus, invoking the words of the Dragon God.
—"In the name of the Dragon who lived with a single objective, letting nothing escape the yoke of his massive arms, who ended the life of the Second, whose eyes possessed an ephemeral emptiness and was known as the Dragon Warrior of Brilliant Aquamarine Scales. In the name of the Sacred Dragon Emperor Shilard, I destroy this barrier."
After pronouncing these last words, the monolith absorbed his Mana through his hand. The location distorted, mixing with another landscape. As it stabilized, ancient ruins became visible.
—"Incredible. I wonder how this works," —Arthur said thoughtfully, resting his hand on his chin.
—"Hey, Great Sage, could you replicate it?"
"...It is possible, but you would have to stay a whole day to thoroughly analyze all the parameters and the complex magic of the Dragon Seal."
—"But there's no time," —he suspended—. "By the way, Fenril, you still smell his scent, right?"
Fenril checked, sniffing the area. He emitted a sound of confirmation and began to follow the trail.
They traversed several empty rooms. In one of them there was a kind of cabinet, but Arthur only saw it from afar and followed Fenril, who continued along the path they had taken.
They finally reached some stairs that descended to a lower floor.
Descending carefully so as not to step on any traps, he realized that although it was a lower floor, it was still brightly lit.
Then he saw a magic circle at the end of the corridor.
—"That must be our accommodation on the Begaritto Continent, my dear friend."
Woof!
Both crossed the circle at the same time...
....
Arthur opened his eyes, slightly dazed. He looked to his side to check if his companion was there, who was indeed shaking his head from disorientation.
He looked around and realized they were still inside the ruins, but this time with a difference: instead of vines, there was sand scattered everywhere. As they left the area, the environment became very hot. The wind blew as if he were in an oven. The sun was already setting.
—"We better stay here tonight. After all, monsters attack more frequently at night here."
—"Rest first, friend, then I'll leave."
Fenril, understanding the command, discretely curled up in a corner where the wall still offered shade and became invisible, ready to take the first watch.
Arthur lay down on the cold stone. Fatigue weighed on him, but his mind did not cooperate. He looked at the cracked ceiling of the ruins... and then, without warning, the memory assaulted him.
The way Aisha had clutched his shirt.
The resolve in her eyes.
And how soft that unexpected gesture had been.
—"A good luck kiss..." —she had said.
Arthur swallowed.
He felt a strange feeling in his chest. Not uncomfortable... just different. As if something had changed inside him.
It wasn't that he hadn't liked it.
And that was precisely what confused him the most.
It was the first time something like this had happened to him. In this life... and in the previous one.
"So...—he thought— am I starting to see her differently?"
The image of Norn appeared in his mind almost immediately. Her sincere gaze, her unconditional trust in him.
Arthur let out a slow sigh.
—"It's really affecting me spending so much time with the Greyrat family... thinking about having them both... if I said something like that, they would be angry."
He took a deep breath.
—"Concentrate, Arthur," —he told himself—. "I'll think about the rest later."
Gradually, with Fenril watching him and the cold as night fell, his mind began to calm down.
And finally, sleep overcame him.
.....
Arthur opened his eyes, looked around, and realized he was in his room in the mansion.
—"What is this?" —He tried to get up, realizing he was chained to the bed for no reason.
Then the door opened. Aisha and Norn entered, but the most surprising thing was that they were only wearing towels.
They walked towards him.
—"Hey girls, why am I chained up?"
They didn't answer, they just smiled seductively. They climbed onto the bed, crawling closer, in a slightly provocative manner.
One of them grabbed his head, making them face each other.
—"Hey, Aisha, what are you doing?"
At that moment she kissed him, making Arthur's eyes widen a lot.
But the most shocking thing was that the kiss wasn't normal; it was erotic. Then Norn came closer and did the same.
Arthur seemed to get lost further and further in desire. Then Aisha started touching his body, slowly dropping the towel, but before that happened...
Norn's kiss changed. She was frantically licking his face. Then he felt the scene distort.
He found Fenril licking his face.
—"Stop, stop, I woke up! Stop licking me!"
Fenril moved back a bit.
Then Arthur, waking up better, smelled a sweet aroma.
—"What is this?" —He shook his head, feeling as if he had drunk a lot of alcohol, but it was a very different sensation.
—"This is what made me dream that..." —He stood up with some difficulty.
—"Hey, Great Sage, is this what I think it is?"
"..Yes. You are under the effects of a Succubus's ability. If you use high-level [Purification], you will be able to counteract the effects."
Understanding this, he cast his [Purification] spell on himself, returning to normal.
—"Much better..." —he whispered with cold fury—. "I'm going to make her regret making me dream that..."
Fenril watched Arthur leave in search of the intruder. Apparently, the wolf was not affected by the Succubus's ability. She tried to get rid of it, but the creature kept floating in the air. Having no other option, Fenril went to wake Arthur, which resulted in the outcome he already knew.
After getting rid of the Succubus with several powerful spells (and much irritation), Arthur lay down to sleep a little more peacefully, having erected an earthen wall around his position.
End of Chapter