RISE OF EROS

Andrew was really just taking a stroll, as he had nothing else to do. However, just as his mere presence enchanted the women who saw him, this annoyed almost all the men present. These men may not have been the partners of the women Andrew enchanted, but in no world is a man who attracts the attention of all women well received by the other men.

Jealousy is natural, and that's what most of the men present were feeling as they watched Andrew strut around the place. Andrew wasn't really strutting, but to the men, that's what he was doing.

Unlike the day before when he went out with his sons, Andrew was unaccompanied. Since absorbing the divinity of the water god in Riverland and training with Biacko, Andrew was stronger than his guardians, so there was no need for them to accompany him when he went out.

When he was accompanied by his wives or children, his guardians were always present, as with more people around him, the situation could easily become complicated, so guards were needed.

However, when Andrew was alone, no one accompanied him, as in a dangerous situation, the guardians could become a burden. Andrew was now a demigod, and despite his lack of practical experience, he was more powerful than his guardians.

He quickly noticed that the men were looking at him with hostility and understood the reason, but he paid no attention. First of all, he was so powerful that he could defeat them with a single glance.

The second thing was that, although not everyone knew him, after the big party he held and yesterday's outing with his children and their guardians, rumors spread everywhere, and few would dare to attack him.

At least Andrew believed the second was well known, but he was wrong. Many knew him, but for ordinary people, few recognized him, so some among those present had ill intentions.

Unfortunately, for them, Andrew's perception is not something to be underestimated, as he is not only a demigod, but his Eros eyes picked up on the evil intentions of those present. This surprised him, as he couldn't believe that so many evil intentions could accumulate in people just from his mere presence.

At that moment, Fluffy's voice sounded in his head, "It's the curse of Eros". Andrew was surprised to hear it and asked, "What do you mean?" To which Fluffy replied with a giggle, "Andrew, you know that the Eros gods and the gods of love have a lot in common, right?"

"Well, yes. You explained to me that we are very close, since my mastery of eroticism and sex as a candidate for the Eros god is born of love and lust," Andrew replied, not understanding the reason for the question.

"That's correct, but that's not the only way they're similar. Lust and love have something much stronger in common. Have you heard the saying, 'Love is blind,' or 'From love to hate is one step?'" Fluffy continued, mockingly.

"Will you stop beating around the bush and tell me what's going on?" Andrew asked, annoyed. Fluffy stopped playing and replied, "The gods of love enchant with their presence, and the Eros gods enchant in the same way."

"Do you mean we're both cursed by our presence?" Andrew asked incredulously, and Fluffy replied, "That's correct. Your charm attracts women like love is attracted to the gods of that domain, so jealousy is created."

"And to think I would have such a flaw," Andrew sighed, incredulous, and Fluffy giggled again as she said, "The gods of love have it worse, for their presence enchants, to the point of being obsessive."

Fluffy paused and added, "You create jealousy, which for people like these will only cause annoyance, but they usually don't dare to act unless a girl close to them approaches you". "However, with love, everyone would pounce on you obsessively. Obsession is more powerful, as it is more likely to make people act," Fluffy concluded.

Andrew let out another sigh and decided to leave, not wanting to stay and see if these men would attack him. He didn't have the kindness to treat them gently if they did attack him, so he decided to leave.

Everyone was surprised to see Andrew disappear in the blink of an eye. The jealousy they had before now turned to fear, for they now knew Andrew was powerful and could easily eliminate them.

Although Andrew's movement was casual, for ordinary people it wasn't; to them, it was the power of an expert, and they didn't want to mess with him. Andrew paid no attention to that and was now somewhere else.

The place I'd arrived at was a magnificent building, large and crowded with city traffic. It was a shopping center. The port of Comers is the largest on the continent, so there are many ships leaving and entering every day.

These ships not only carry goods and people from all over the continent, but also a wealth of information. The information from the shopping malls was no exception. Furthermore, in Comers, where there were products of all types and nationalities, it could be said that a shopping mall was a natural fit.

The Dunnas shopping mall might have been the first, but the Comers mall was undoubtedly the largest and busiest. It spanned two blocks and had five floors. There were even two underground floors for more exclusive and reserved products. That's right, the underground floors were something of a legal black market.

There, they could find many items not normally seen in ordinary stores. While transactions there were a bit dubious, as the goods were not common and from legitimate sources, being in this shopping mall, everything was legal.

Andrew was actually surprised by this, as he had to admit that it was an innovation to his idea of ​​shopping malls. Although they were a gray area bordering on black, it didn't change the fact that they were lucrative.

He strolled through the mall's shops at a leisurely pace. Despite the large number of people there, it wasn't crowded, and the products were top-quality. After touring the mall, Andrew immediately came to the conclusion that while there were many stores offering different types of businesses, there wasn't anything as innovative as the clothing and lingerie stores he and Candice had created.

Even his massage parlor could operate there without any problem. Only his sex toy store would have problems, as this world hadn't yet become accustomed to those types of products.

Still, Andrew didn't leave. He wanted to see the underground levels and was surprised to find them different from what he'd expected. For some reason, Andrew imagined the underground levels of shopping malls back on Earth.

It turned out that things were different here. While everything was very organized, the place was poorly lit, and even the stores were a bit dark and uninviting. Honestly, Andrew thought it was a somewhat questionable place, but he understood why.

The products offered in this place didn't come from legitimate sources. Many were stolen or looted from tombs, so it was best not to display them like those on the upper floors. Even so, many interesting objects could be seen in the display cases. Obviously, the most impressive ones were hidden and not visible, but labels with descriptions of the objects could be seen.

Even though everything here was legal, if a valuable object appeared and an expert or demigod wanted to steal it, leaving it exposed would only make their job easier. That's why these shops had few products on display.

Most were pictures with descriptions. In fact, transactions weren't even made instantly; rather, an agreement was established, and payments and items would be exchanged according to a predetermined schedule.

In short, more than stores, these establishments were more centers of intermediation or information. Andrew looked everything over, and although he didn't find anything that interested him, he did come to a conclusion.

His sex toy shop could operate on these underground levels. It might not have a lot of customers, but even then, it would be lucrative, he was sure of that. The reason was that confidential deals were made here, so many who might have a taste for these toys could buy them without fear of being exposed and ridiculed.

There's nothing wrong with having these toys to satisfy yourself, but everyone has a social life and a reputation to maintain, so they didn't want to be associated with these activities, so it was perfect.

Andrew had gone out to clear his head and spend some time walking, and he ended up working, as he was now thinking about how to set up these businesses. Obviously, he wouldn't dedicate himself to it personally, but at least he would pass the idea on to Candice and the others to carry it out.

With that over with, Andrew prepared to return to the Comers Palace, but he stopped when he noticed something. In one of the shops, he saw a young and beautiful woman behind the counter.

He didn't care about what she was selling, but the girl caught his attention, as she was one of his guests at the party. Andrew didn't know who he had invited, as he hadn't personally handled that matter.

Still, he could remember everyone at the party, and that's why he recognized the girl. It wasn't her beauty that caught his attention, but the fact that he hadn't expected to find her here, since, as far as he understood, she was in the business of buying and selling jewelry.

In fact, Andrew had seen a store belonging to her company on the upper floors, so he was curious to know what kind of store she ran here underground and what surprises the girl might have in store for him.