This woman's allure gripped not only Alaric, but even Pandora found herself drawn to it.
Her golden hair contrasted sharply with the smooth, porcelain-like whiteness of her limbs.
The contours of her body were well-defined, beautiful, and flowing, neither too slender nor overly voluptuous.
The curve of her waist was soft and graceful, every part of her form exuding an ultimate perfection.
It was the most flawless body imaginable, and its owner possessed a face that matched it, equally perfect.
Such perfection transcended gender itself, like a painting lavishly rendered with deep, vivid strokes, gorgeous, dazzling, and overwhelmingly aggressive in its beauty.
Yet even more terrifying than her perfect appearance was the nearly demonic pull of her charm.
At the instant she appeared, not only were Alaric and Pandora captured by her allure, even the sea itself seemed to still its waves, the wind ceased its caress, and all things in nature seemed moved by her presence, swayed irresistibly to follow her will.
Such power was frightening, yet it was no cheap trick of magic or sorcery.
This was innate, the divine charm of godhood itself, an immutable law woven into the fabric of the world, invisible and irresistible.
And crucially, it was not merely beauty's charm; there was something else mingled within it, desire.
Alaric, having traversed multiple worlds and survived countless events, was not easily undone.
Though this terrifying allure almost wrested control of his thoughts, he shook it off within moments and reclaimed himself.
Even so, it still left him with an inexplicable fondness for this woman before him, something he had never felt before, and which he found deeply unnerving.
In most games, the Charisma stat might seem unimpressive, but in the real world, high charisma could be truly dangerous, just like this woman now.
Even if Alaric could break free from her bewitchment without losing his reason, if she were his enemy and tried to strike at him, he might find himself unable to deliver a killing blow.
In a fight against her, he would be held back, unwilling to go all out, in which case, it would be better to just run away.
But while Alaric could resist, not everyone could.
At the very least, Pandora at his side could not.
Though they were both women and nature often made like repel like, the woman before them possessed a charm that transcended gender, and Pandora's reason had simply evaporated.
Without realizing it, Pandora's breath had grown heated, her skin suffused with a beautiful blush, and her jade-like hands were already roaming over Alaric's body…
After the past days together, Alaric was intimately familiar with every inch of her; he instantly understood what was happening.
The girl was aroused.
If they were alone, it might be one thing, they could always spar it out.
But with a stranger present, this was only making things worse.
Without hesitation, Alaric cast a spell to send Pandora into slumber.
Fortunately, the woman before them seemed to be using only her natural beauty and charm, with no direct mental manipulation, so the hypnosis was unaffected.
Pandora collapsed softly into Alaric's arms and drifted into sleep.
Even so, to achieve such an effect with nothing but beauty and allure, this was terrifying, on par with a legendary-level enchantment spell in both potency and scope.
Once certain Pandora was no longer under influence, Alaric turned to the woman before him.
"To regain your reason so quickly… what an incredible human you are," she said, covering her mouth with one hand, her smile tinged with seduction.
Her words sent another ripple through Alaric's will.
"You should feel proud, even the gods of Olympus could not reclaim themselves so quickly before me. Men truly are pitiful beasts."
That strange pride, that predator's interest, Alaric immediately knew he was dealing with a troublesome woman.
He didn't answer her, but instead asked calmly,
"Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, may I ask, what brings you here?"
Her expression shifted to surprise at the mention of her name.
"Oh? We've never met before. As a mortal, how could you recognize me at a glance?
I've only just joined the Olympian pantheon, I have no temples, no followers. Mortals shouldn't know me."
"The answer's simple," Alaric replied evenly.
"In this world, the only ones who could affect me and Pandora through appearance alone are high-ranking deities.
As it happens, I've met a goddess before, and I know what her allure can do… but your influence is even more exaggerated."
As he spoke, he tapped the sea with his foot, it took quite some time for the water to reluctantly stir again, as if annoyed he had interrupted its enjoyment of the beauty before them.
"You see," Alaric shrugged helplessly, "no one but the goddess of love and beauty could achieve such an effect."
"So that's why you guessed?" Her eyes lit up, brimming with delight.
"As I thought, in beauty, no other goddess can compare to me. And now even a mortal has noticed."
Watching her grow giddy, Alaric couldn't help but shake his head.
So concerned with her beauty? Such a simple, transparent goddess… or perhaps all gods were easy to read, their personalities laid bare by their divine domains, for gods were simply the embodiment of those very laws.
However, his next words were merciless.
"No, not exactly," he said, shaking his head.
"I'd only heard the tale of your birth, a goddess born from the foam of the sea, wasn't it? When I saw the way you appeared, I took a guess."
"You… you were just guessing?!" Her pout formed instantly, her eyes narrowing in mock anger. Yet even anger looked enchanting on the goddess of love and beauty.
"Vile mortal, are you toying with me?"
"Just teasing," Alaric replied with a smile, waving his hand. "Even if it was just a guess, the moment I saw your beauty, I knew it was true."
Though she was one of the Twelve Olympians, a being whose power far surpassed his own, Alaric showed no fear, even daring to jest and flirt.
For that, he had his own techniques.
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