045 Are You Aurelius von Victus? No? Then Fuck Off!

[Ding!] 

[The system advises the host to think in reverse!] 

"Hmm," Aurelius hummed as he read the system's message; his mind spun into action and began to think about what the system meant. 

He didn't write off the system's message as he knew that there was something to it, 'I could feel it.' Aurelius mumbled as he felt as if he were on the cusp of something important. 

His heartbeat rose rapidly while his eyes became dazed, and his mind sharpened further. 

'Thinking in reverse...' He muttered the system's message inwardly, 'what does that mean...?' 

Aurelius spent quite some time thinking about the system's advice, but he couldn't come up with a solid answer; all the things he had come up with made no sense or had some major loopholes in them. 

Shaking his head as he felt slightly dizzy, Aurelius mumbled, "Let's start from the beginning." 

Sitting upright with his back leaning against the bathtub, "Every person has a list of requirements to choose something; it could be anything, and the person might know it consciously, or the list could be in their subconscious, manipulating one's decisions from the dark." 

Since there is a list for their decision-making, it could also mean that it could be fulfilled or manipulated by something external. 

Aurelius stared into the air as he recalled what he had realized, 'but what am I missing?' he pondered as he pinched his nose, slowly feeling agitated. 

TSK 

Aurelius clicked his tongue with frustration as he mumbled, "Let's just ask the system." 

'System, what do you mean by thinking in reverse?' 

. 

. 

. 

'....Fuck you!' 

Aurelius cursed as he clenched his fists, feeling irritated by the system's silence, 'Why did you bring it up when you didn't wish to elaborate further!?' 

But he immediately calmed his mind, knowing that it would be a waste of time to curse at the system. 

'Haaah!,' Aurelius mumbled as he slouched his back, resting his head on the bathtub and closing his eyes, 'I'm tired.' 

His mind wandered off into the world of imagination; it was unwilling to think more about the system's cryptic message and was too tired. 

'Hah! I wish I could enter my dream lands,' Aurelius mumbled as he could see the sea of naked women dancing in front of his eyes. His nose could smell their body fragrance from miles away, and he could hear their giggles as if he were right next to them. 

'Ahh, just how pleasant would it be if I could just snap my fingers and make all the women my followers?' Aurelius mumbled as a perverted smile bloomed on his face; he was thinking about having two curvy MILFs servicing him while hundreds of women knelt, gazing at him with the utmost devotion. 

Haaah, just how great it would be if all the residents were only women and he were the sole man; there would be no disturbance, no external threat for him or his followers. 

'Wait....' Aurelius stopped daydreaming as he suddenly opened his eyes, his heart raced, and his mind shifted into gear as a sudden realization dawned upon him. 

[Ding!] 

[The host is correct!] 

[The system urges the host to think more!] 

Aurelius ignored the system's message as his eyes dazed off, his heart raced while his mind spun into gear. 'It was in front of me all along.' 

"I was an idiot!" He cursed himself as he looked up at the ceiling, his pupils dilating at the conclusion. "It was the external manipulation." 

"I concluded that the list could be changed by external factors," he murmured as he looked at the system's message floating in front of him. "You wanted me to notice that didn't you?" 

[Affirmative!] 

Aurelius smirked as he read the new message from the system. Earlier, he had realized that he needed to know what the list of requirements for the women were. 

And there are two ways with which he could use that information. "First would be the focus method;" in this method, Aurelius would focus on an individual, learning about her list and then catering according to it. 

This system had a pro and a con: "The pro would be that it has a high conversion rate," as Aurelius tailored his offers and manipulations according to the individual person. 

"But this cannot always be used," Aurelius muttered to himself, 'this process is too time-consuming, and I will have to put a lot of effort into converting them.' 

The best example would be Griselda, although it was easy to make her agree; he had to spend a lot of faith points to cure her, ticking off the most important requirement on her list. 

The second method is to identify the common requirements in a woman's list and check them off, giving him a massive advantage in numbers. But this one had a con as well: "I will lose control on how many I could convert and the success rate," Aurelius mumbled as he closed his eyes, thinking back on the day when he converted Aria's teenage friends, the best example he could think of that would suit the second method. 

"Haha," but then Aurelius chuckled as he mumbled, "The only reason I succeeded then was because of my skill, Divine Charm, which I cannot always rely on." 

Just like how his Divine Charm didn't work on Lily, there could be a time when his Divine Charm could be rendered useless as the power levels of the women might outmatch his capabilities, which Aurelius was sure would happen; after all, he was going to meet quite a few monsters soon. 

But even now, the system's message hasn't been answered yet—thinking in reverse. 

"Well, it's simple, really. What does a jerk do when he is losing in a strategic game, for example, chess?" 

Aurelius smirked as a mischievous glint flashed across his eyes: "The answer is simple; he would flip the board and laugh in your face." 

And that was what the system had suggested. 

Aurelius's smirk widened as a confident expression adorned his face; his deep blue eyes swirled like an ocean in rage as he thought about the prospects of the conclusion. 

"It wanted me to realize that, instead of catering to everyone's list, I should manipulate the list so that their requirements lead to them submitting to me." 

Want a good life filled with happiness and love? — Submit to Aurelius von Victus. 

Want a life filled with money and luxury—submit to Aurelius von Victus. 

Want to be protected from your enemies and save your family—submit to Aurelius von Victus. 

No matter what requirements they had, it should lead to him. The women of this world should only have one question in their minds to have their requirements fulfilled. 

Are you Aurelius von Victus, no? Then fuck off!