Reluctantly, Aaron decided to take those nine corpses to the fountain of life deep within the forest. After all, even though they were women, they were still some of the strongest humans in history. Having them on his side wouldn't be bad.
"Do we really have a fountain of life?" Hermina asked, wide-eyed. "I don't remember ever seeing one."
"Yes." Aaron turned to face her. "You shouldn't believe your own eyes. Remember, this is my kingdom, you see only what I want you to see."
Hermina fell silent and lowered her head. Scolding herself for being arrogant, she really didn't want Aaron to get the wrong impression of her.
"Forget it."
Aaron's gaze returned to the nine women lying in coffins. Their expressions were serene, as if they were merely asleep.
"Heh… Seeing them like this, who would think they're corpses thousands of years old." Hermina said with scorn, annoyed that Aaron's attention had shifted away from her. "I don't understand why you want to bring them back. Am I not enough?"
"Yes, you are enough, daughter of the stars."
Aaron's reply surprised her. Holding back the joy in her heart, she asked: "Then why?"
"Because you are my carpet. What I want now is servants."
Hermina blushed, her pale face turning completely red. She felt as if she were floating, sweetness filling her racing heart.
'Aaron said that… He considers me special… Hehehe… I'll be the best carpet you've ever had in your life, my lord~'
Thinking that, Hermina recalled the scene of her licking Aaron's feet. Suddenly, a lewd smile adorned her face:
'I'll serve you very well… Hehehe~'
Even without looking at her, Aaron already knew what she was thinking, just from the lustful aura emanating from her body.
'She's thinking perverted things, I just hope it's not about me… Who am I kidding? Of course it's about me.'
Pushing the thought to the back of his mind, Aaron teleported the nine corpses into the depths of the forest, moving along with them.
When Hermina came out of her daydream, Aaron had already vanished with the corpses, and on top of that, she couldn't sense him anywhere.
"What do I do now?"
With nothing else to do, since Aaron had given her no orders, she returned to the throne at the center of the ancient forest.
"I'll torture the hero's party. Maybe my lord will give me a bonus for overtime."
Hermina was happy; this made her more motivated and creative in finding new ways to make the hero's life miserable.
"Hehehe."
"It's kind of fun…"
Said Hermina as she cast a meteor down upon the hero's party. As for her two sisters who were with the hero… It would be better if they died, because whether she liked it or not, they were dazzling.
"I'm sorry, sisters, but just the thought of my master looking at another woman makes me furious… So die, so that your elder sister is never irritated by the two of you."
…
"Sinister."
Aaron was speechless at that scene. It was impressive how such cruel words were spoken with such a sweet voice and smile.
"Well, as long as you don't kill the hero, everything else is permitted."
His attention turned back to the nine naked corpses submerged deep in the lake. Resurrecting the dead was not so simple—Aaron had needed to understand the soul deeply before achieving a perfect resurrection.
However, what he wanted to do with the nine heroines was different. Not just resurrect them, but also make them stronger than before.
"Jewel of life, I never thought this would come in handy."
The jewel of life, as the name suggested, was a gem containing limitless vitality. It originally belonged to the elves of the great forest, but was stolen by a demon who wanted to use it to become immortal.
The elves had begged for the hero's help, for without the jewel, the silver lake—as they called the fountain of life—was drying up, killing the forest, and as a consequence, weakening them, since their powers were heavily dependent on nature.
Hearing their lament, the hero acted. As an outside observer, Aaron could clearly see that it was not out of genuine heroism, but out of greed and lust for the bodies of the elven queen and princess.
The hero's party then found the demon and defeated him. It seemed simple, but if not for Aaron, that demon would have achieved his goal and killed the entire party.
"Seriously, it's laughable how pathetic they were."
The hero then handed the jewel back to the elves on a silver platter, but did not get the reward he desired.
"Hahahahah— I still remember Léo's face when he couldn't sleep with those two."
The elves' reward was just a thank you and a worthless blessing. The elven queen and princess, who had once been friendly, even flattering toward the hero, now looked at him indifferently, even with thinly veiled contempt.
But of course Aaron wouldn't let something as precious as the jewel of life remain in the hands of someone so foolish. The moment he touched it, he switched it with a fake. It was identical to the original, the only difference being that it had an expiration date and was infected with his corrupted energy.
Aaron grasped a green jewel that appeared in his hand, then threw it into the middle of the lake.
"My main goal was to absorb this stone, but my dark divinity, inclined to destruction and corruption, completely rejected its power."
"I understood something about the divinity of life, so it wasn't completely useless, but it wasn't much of a loss either. Who would have thought I'd now be using it to create immortal soldiers."
However, Aaron's greatest benefit from swapping the jewel was infecting the great forest. The energy of the false jewel of life contaminated the underground water veins, which in turn spread the infection through the earth and trees. Even elves or creatures that came into contact with this water were infected and under Aaron's control.
"That includes the elven queen and princess, I don't remember their names, but the two might be useful in torturing Léo. Imagine his face when he learns that the two women he couldn't have are now submitting to another—and that other is Kyle."
"Léo, wait for me, I'll make you suffer a lot."
Aaron swore solemnly, once again losing himself in thoughts and past memories.
Within a few hours, the heroines began to awaken, emerging from the lake almost in unison. On the surface, they all turned at the same time to face Aaron. He stood in a black cloak, his feet wet in the cold water of the lake.
They moved toward him, their eyes cloudy and possessed-looking. Soon they surrounded Aaron, their tall bodies and generous assets blocking the moonlight, casting large shadows over him.
"What do my dear ones want?" Aaron asked as he found himself surrounded by women—an unexpected, but not unpleasant, development.
The first woman, the tallest, with golden hair and green eyes, who seemed the most mature and powerful of the nine, was the first to come out of her trance and speak: "We want to know if you are our master."
The other women nodded, as if agreeing.
"Yes, I am. Now put some clothes on, my heart can't handle seeing so many breasts out in the open."
They didn't move. The shortest one, with red hair and brown eyes, said arrogantly: "Why? Don't you like what you see?"
"No, actually I do like it, it's just not the right time for that."
"Tch! Buzzkill." She spat while blowing away a lock of red hair that had fallen over her eyes.
"Why did you call us? I believe my duty in the world of the living ended a long time ago." A silver-haired elf with violet eyes said. The starlight swirling within her eyes was similar to Hermina's.
"I need servants." Aaron shook his head as he spoke seriously, looking at the nine. "You are perfect for the job."
A silence fell over the place, as if those words had confused the nine women.
"Hahaha." The red-haired woman was the first to break the silence. "You're funny, wanting me to be a servant? Hahaha—"
She was immediately silenced by the stern looks of the other eight. They exchanged glances among themselves, as if conversing telepathically.
The golden-haired woman stepped forward, introducing herself: "I did not introduce myself earlier, I am Golden Helena. Please, may I know your name?"
"Where are my manners, I am Aaron Kyle. You may refer to me by my first name."
"Oh? Alright. Then… Aaron." Helena's voice was naturally authoritative, even as she tried to soften it. "We cannot be your servants, but we can attend to you in other ways, for bringing us back."
The red-haired woman laughed, grabbing her own breasts—the largest among the nine—squeezing and shaping them in various ways, as if to show off their elasticity and softness.
Moaning seductively, she said: "Nnh… ah~ we can serve you in all sorts of… fun ways."
But as she spoke, her gaze was fixed on the other eight. She seemed more concerned with their reaction than Aaron's, as if she considered him insignificant.
A tall woman with long silver hair and the bearing of a general was the first to react to such shameless provocation: "Show some respect, Ravena, just because we're naked doesn't mean you can put on such disgraceful displays."
"Disgraceful? Look at the size of these!" Ravena crossed her arms, making her chest bounce upward. "Why be ashamed of showing off these deadly weapons?"
A black-haired woman with a melancholic expression, seeing Ravena act like that, whispered: "Why are you so proud? Is it just a way to escape the pain of your childhood love rejecting you for looking like a milk cow?"
"Why you—!"
"Oh? Did I hit a sore spot?"
"Stop it!" Helena frowned and turned to the two. "We're discussing something important."
A bronze-skinned Amazon with black hair, seemingly dissatisfied with Helena, growled: "Why are you acting like the leader?"
"Isn't it obvious, Brienna?" Helena flipped her hair back and said proudly: "Because I am the strongest."
Aaron blinked. It seemed the nine heroines weren't all that harmonious. A conflict was slowly forming, and they seemed to have completely forgotten his existence.
'Seriously? Why did I give free will to these nine?'
"Silence."
A simple command, but the nine women's bodies reacted violently. They lost control and stood upright, even their expressions frozen.
Their eyes clouded, trapped in a trance, but deep down, Aaron could still see they were conscious.
"Quiet."
"Much better."
The nine lined up side by side, Aaron's eyes running over their bodies, seeming to look directly into the souls imprisoned within them.
"You are my servants. You have no choice but to serve me, disobedience is not an option."
"One thing I can guarantee—you will not regret it."
"Now walk to the center of the forest and ask Hermina for clothes. I can't let you wander around naked."
The nine bowed and strode off into the forest. They moved quickly, as if they already knew the way.
"Fragments of the jewel of life are within those nine bodies, along with some physical modifications. They have become good vessels for my dark divinity."
Aaron nodded, satisfied with his creation.
"Now I'll deal with the demon king."
He vanished—Aaron no longer existed. In his place stood Kyle, humanity's greatest hero.
…
My eyes rose to the sky.
"Demon King! Your reign of terror is coming to an end."
I, Kyle, though not the true hero, swear that I will defeat you and free this world from your tyranny.
I promise.