CHAPTER 53: ALONE WITH THE LITTLE FAIRY

The path to Barovik was peaceful, the morning sun climbing the sky as Eren led the group with firm steps.

The air was fresh, the shadows of the cursed temple left behind, but the calm was an illusion that Lee Min-Jae, in his essence, knew wouldn’t last.

A light shone ahead. Liriel, Hagan’s fairy, appeared, hovering with translucent wings buzzing. Her green hair shimmered, and her petal robe displayed symbols that seemed to pulse with mana.

This time, there was something different — a mysterious, almost seductive air in her smile.

"Eren Vale," she called, her high-pitched voice carrying a provocative tone. "There’s something only you can see. Something... special. I can show you, but only if we go alone."

She tilted her head, her eyes shining as if challenging him, her wings trembling slightly.

Eren stopped, eyes narrowed, his mind cold as steel.

Lee Min-Jae knew how to spot bait, and Liriel was playing hard. Important information? Only alone? It was a trick, a trap disguised as seduction. But he knew how to play too.

"Interesting," he said, his voice calm but with a touch of feigned curiosity. He turned to the group, his gaze sharp. "I want to investigate this alone. It might be a trap, and I take the risk. Better me than everyone."

Kaela growled, her claws flexed.

"Alone? With that thing? I don’t trust her, Eren."

Her voice was thunderous, her dominant instinct shouting against the idea. Morwynn raised a web, the threads vibrating.

"It’s risky," she said, analytical. "But you know what you’re doing."

Nyssa hesitated, biting her liquid lip.

"You’ll be okay, right?" she asked, shy, her eyes full of concern. Sylha laughed, floating over to him.

"Alone with the little fairy? HA! Be careful, Tamer, she might bite you! Or you bite her first!" She twirled, her misty hair dancing.

Eren nodded, his expression impassive.

"Trust me." He knew they felt it — Kaela with her instinct, Morwynn with her logic, Nyssa with her heart, Sylha with her madness.

They hesitated but gave in, trusting his judgment. Kaela huffed but stepped back.

"If she hurts you, I’ll tear her apart," she promised, her voice firm. They knew he was plotting, and that was enough.

He followed Liriel, who floated ahead with an enigmatic smile.

The path veered into a hidden clearing, an ethereal garden that seemed to spring from another realm. Trees with silver trunks stood tall, their leaves glowing with their own light, as if made of stars.

The ground was covered with moss that pulsed with mana, and the air carried a sweet, almost hypnotic fragrance.

It was her nest, a magical environment crafted with sensory illusions — dancing colors, sounds of water that didn’t exist, a warmth brushing the skin. Liriel believed she controlled it, that she would ensnare him there.

"Welcome to my domain," she said, her voice now silky, almost a whisper. She hovered closer, her petal robe revealing dominion symbols glowing on her tiny body. "Here, I test you, Eren Vale. I guide you. Show you what Hagan cannot." She tilted her head, her eyes gleaming with feigned superiority. "But you need to prove you are worthy."

Eren let the charm take over, leaning slightly, his eyes fixed on her with an apparent fascination.

"Worthy, huh?" he said, his voice smooth but calculated. "Show me, then. I want to know everything."

In his mind, he was already predicting her moves — every gesture, every word. He was Lee Min-Jae, the programmer who manipulated codes, and now, as Eren, he manipulated people. He entered the game, letting her think she was seducing him, that the pace was hers.

Liriel laughed, floating around him, her wings creating a warm breeze.

"You’re curious, aren’t you?" she teased, her tiny fingers brushing the air near his face, a subtle touch that promised more. "Hagan gave me freedom to find someone like you. Someone special." She smiled, her lips curved with secrets.

Eren tilted his head, pretending to be mesmerized.

"Special, is it? Then guide me," he said, his voice low, almost an invitation.

The tension grew, dense like the mana in the air. Liriel floated closer, the symbols on her robe glowing more intensely.

"Do you feel it?" she whispered, her eyes locked on his. "The power here... only you can hold it."

She brushed her hands through the air, creating light illusions that danced around Eren, like invisible caresses. He smiled, a minimal one, letting her believe he was falling for her charms.

"Show me more," he murmured, his voice laden with apparent submission.

Liriel believed she had him. She floated to his shoulder, her tiny lips inches from his ear.

"You are different, Eren," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "I want you to see what I hide."

She drew him in, and Eren yielded, leaning in for a kiss — the first intimate touch. His lips brushed hers, tiny but charged with energy. He let her guide, his body relaxed but his mind sharp. She thought she was ensnaring him, that the pace was hers.

He felt her pulse quicken, the illusion around intensifying — flowers that did not exist blooming, the air becoming warmer.

Liriel pulled him closer, her tiny fingers brushing his neck, and for a moment, she let the mask slip.

"I... I was abandoned," she whispered, her voice broken. "Hagan saved me, but I see in you something he never had. Strength. Freedom. I want that."

Eren froze inside but maintained the facade. A trauma. A desire. Liriel was obsessed, not with Hagan, but with him, with something she saw as a mirror of her own pain. He seized the opportunity, leaning in more, her touch now a thread he could pull.

"Show me everything," he said, his voice smooth but with a control she didn’t perceive. The fairy smiled, believing she had him, but Eren was already planning his next move. The psychological game was in his hands.

The ethereal garden transformed, the air becoming murky as if the very plane dissolved into a dream. The silver trees swayed, their leaves glowing with a light that pulsed in sync with the magical excitement growing between Eren and Liriel. The moss beneath their feet felt alive, vibrating with mana, while golden particles danced in the air, like stars falling in slow motion.

The fairy’s petal robe began to unravel, not by tear, but by a subtle glamour, revealing her tiny form in an ethereal glow that defied logic. It was a dreamlike setting, shaped by her will, and she believed she dominated it.

Liriel floated toward Eren, her eyes shining with a mix of power and desire.

"You will remember it was my choice," she said, her voice silky, laden with control. She hovered above him, wings buzzing, and with a gesture, the air around seemed to envelop him, a magical pressure that forced him to kneel. She set the rhythm, moving like a dancer, her tiny fingers tracing illusions of caresses that brushed his skin. "Feel my power," she teased, the superior smile as she created ethereal duplicates of herself, each more beautiful than the last, surrounding him like a harem of light.

Eren yielded, his body relaxed, the submission seemingly complete.

"Show me," he murmured, his voice low, feigning fascination. In his mind, however, he was Lee Min-Jae, the master of exploits, analyzing every move. His cold eyes caught her reactions—the tremor in her wings when he moved, the stronger gleam in her eyes when he tilted his head. He allowed her to feel in control, a wolf pretending to be a lamb, but he was already mapping the weak points.

The dance began, a magical and sensual performance that transcended the physical. Liriel used illusions to multiply herself, each copy brushing him with ethereal touches, the air charged with a heat that seemed to melt his defenses.

Eren responded, activating the aura of his bond with Sylha, shaping the environment to his hidden desires. The trees bent, forming an arch over them, the moss glowed in amethyst tones, reflecting the energy he channeled.

"Do you want me like this?" she asked, her voice a provocative whisper, while one of her duplicates traced a line of light across his chest.

"I want everything you want to give me... today," he replied, his voice smooth but loaded with double meaning. He leaned in, letting her think he was falling for her charms, but his hands moved with precision, brushing the air where her wings fluttered faster—a sensitive spot he had noticed. Liriel shuddered, her control wavering for a moment, and he pulled back, his eyes gleaming with a slight smile.

"More?" he whispered, the deliberate provocation.

She bit her lip, the duplicates dissipating as she approached, the glow of her body intensifying.

"You’re bold," she said, pulling him with magical force, her tiny fingers now touching his face.

Eren yielded again, letting her guide, but every touch was calculated. He whispered ambiguous truths near her ear,

"You shine brighter when you’re lost,"

and felt her body tremble. He touched where she was most sensitive—the base of the wings—and withdrew, forcing her to beg.

"More, Eren," she whispered, her voice broken, unaware that control was slipping away.

The tension was a thread about to snap. Liriel intensified the rhythm, the garden responding with bursts of light and heat, the golden particles swirling like a vortex.

She pulled him into an ethereal embrace, her tiny body pressing against him, the magical energy flowing like a current.

Eren let her dominate, his lips brushing hers in a kiss that seemed to seal the act, but it was just another move in the game. In his mind, he laughed. "She thinks she has me. But I’m guiding every step."

The climax came when Liriel "surrendered." She fell against him, the glow of her body dimming, her voice weak.

"I want you just for me," she whispered, her eyes full of a desire mixing obsession and vulnerability.

Eren held her, the touch firm but calculated, letting her think she had won. The garden returned to calm, the moss pulsing in soft tones, the trees straightening.

The system blinked, a window appearing in the corner of his vision:

[Alert: Emotional Bond Established - Hagan’s Fairy]

[Emotional Affinity: 89% | Emotional Control: 12%]

Eren smiled inwardly. The bond was a tool, and he would use it. Liriel believed she had ensnared him, but he knew the real game was just beginning.

The ethereal garden crumbled into a dense mist, as if the very plane dissolved under the weight of what had just happened. The silver trees disintegrated into shadows, the pulsing moss reverted to common earth, and the golden particles that danced in the air fell like magical ashes, dissipating into silence.

Eren lay on the ground, his body warm from the effort, his breath still uneven, while Liriel nestled against him.

The fairy, small and delicate, rested on his chest, her wings trembling slightly, the glow of her body now soft, like a faint moonlight. Her green hair spread over him, and her smile was passionate, almost possessive, her half-closed eyes reflecting a victory she believed she had achieved.

The air around carried a magical silence, an echo of the energy they had shared. Eren felt her weight, not just physical but emotional—the bond the system had recorded pulsed in his mind, a string he could pull whenever he wished.

Liriel lifted her head, her face lit by a smile that mixed tenderness and triumph.

"Now you belong to me," she whispered, her voice still silky, but with a tone of certainty. "I will help you, Eren. I will guide your ascension. With me, you will be more than a Tamer. You will be a king."

Eren turned his face to her, maintaining the façade. His eyes, usually cold, softened with a feigned glow of affection.

"You are amazing," he said, his voice low and warm, the words sliding like honey. "Let’s rise together."

He caressed the air near her wings, a tender gesture that made her shiver, and she laughed, snuggling closer, believing the control was hers. But in his mind, Eren was Lee Min-Jae, the programmer who manipulated codes like a master chess player.

She thinks she has me, he thought, the inner voice sharp. But this bond is my bait. I’ll use every piece of her to extract the secrets of the Core and destroy them from within.

He had known this for days. The flashback came like lightning—as Liriel spoke to him on the way to Barovik, the Core’s drones had picked up secondary signals, and Vaen’s system had revealed traces of interference.

Eren connected the dots: Liriel was not just a messenger for Hagan. She was linked to a larger network, probably The Core, plotting to control or eliminate him. He pretended to accept the fairy’s proposal, allowed himself to be led to the nest, permitted the psychological game and the sensual dance, all to plant the seed of the bond. Now, he held the key to infiltrate their shadows.

Liriel leaned in, her tiny lips brushing against his in a soft kiss. Eren responded, deepening the gesture with calculated tenderness, whispering against her mouth:

"You were perfect." She sighed, her eyes shining with emotion, and he felt her pulse quicken.

But in his mind, the truth was different:

And now, she doesn’t know where her mission ends... and my control begins.

The emotional bond, recorded at 89% affinity, was a tool. The emotional control of just 12% was the space he needed to maneuver, explore, dominate.

The fairy leaned back again, her body relaxing against him, the glow of her skin fading as fatigue took over.

"With you," she murmured, drowsy, "I will prove my worth. Hagan will see." She chuckled softly, a faint sound, before closing her eyes, a satisfied smile on her face.

Eren watched her in silence, his chest rising and falling with controlled breaths. She slept, vulnerable, believing she had sealed a pact of power. But for him, it was just the beginning of a larger game.

He stood up slowly, the movement fluid, as if the weight of the moment didn’t affect him. The mist around him dissipated, revealing the path back to the group. Eren adjusted his posture, his eyes fixed on the horizon where Barovik awaited, a distant silhouette against the darkening sky. His mind spun, dissecting every detail.

Liriel had revealed more than she intended—her loyalty to Hagan was fragile, her obsession with him was a weak point. The Core, with its network of mages and artifacts, was behind this, and he would use the fairy to dismantle their intentions.

He thought of the monsters awaiting him—Kaela, with her dominant strength; Morwynn, with her lethal precision; Nyssa, with her protective sweetness; Sylha, with her chaotic energy. They trusted him, knew he was plotting something bigger.

The bond with Liriel was an emotional exploit, a breach he would exploit to gather secrets. The Core wanted to control him, but Eren was the player, the disguised king. He would not be a pawn.

The system blinked, a final window appearing on his HUD:

[Emotional Exploit Stabilized]

[Target: Hagan’s Fairy | Status: Infiltrated]

[Current Objective: Gather secrets from The Core Guild]

Eren clenched his fists, the slightest smile returning.

"They think they have me," he thought, his inner voice sharp. "But I’m the one who’s going to burn their networks."

Barovik was the next board, and he would play to win.

The silence of the broken garden enveloped the scene, the fairy sleeping like a conquered trophy, while Eren stood as the predator he had always been.

The mist completely dissipated, leaving only the distant sound of the wind and the promise of an imminent confrontation.

He knew now that a guild was watching him, that Liriel was a piece in a larger plan, but that didn’t matter. Lee Min-Jae never lost, and Eren Vale was living proof of that.

Liriel slept, oblivious to the fact that the control she believed she had was an illusion—an illusion he had masterfully woven.

The game was in his hands.