The night settled over the imperial capital as two beauties had just left the auction house. Their youthful curves were even further amplified by their tight revealing dresses and jewellery. Although their demeanour was full of wealth, they clearly did not quite match the dignified ladies of actual noble families which were leaving the building along with them. In fact, their smiles grew a little stiff as they witnessed the mob of nobles with necklaces and rings worth more than their entire wealth. However, that only lasted momentarily as they quickly headed into a nearby alley. There a youth already awaited them: He might have been only 16, but his chiselled and handsome features made him appear significantly more mature in the eyes of the two women. He was tall, wearing very formal button-up shirt and pants. But what made the two come here in the first place was the mysterious charm that the youth possessed.

“You really came~,” one of the beauties chuckled when they saw that the youth was present.

“Of course,” an elegant smile surfaced on his face as he slightly bowed and kissed that lady’s hand “a promise is a promise after all.”

“Then let’s go,” while the other lady’s cheeks were definitely coloured with red hue she seemed to be in a hurry.

“Why such haste, my lady,” with a single step the youth appeared right in front of her and also kissed her hand “the night is still young.”

“I will be in great trouble if my father thinks I am fooling around,” she admitted while her cheeks grew even further scarlet.

“I see,” that bewitching smile remained on his face “in that case let’s by all means hurry. Please, follow me,” he announced and turned around, walking off. The two ladies did not hesitate for long before following right behind him.

“So, what are you doing in the capital?” the youth asked them a question.

“My father decided to stop by to restock on goods,” the shyer of the two admitted, “And Anna convinced me that I have to visit the auction house with her.”

“You did really enjoy it, though,” Anna chimed in from the side.

“So, you are both daughters of travelling merchants?” the youth carried on the idle chatter.

“Yup,” Anna chuckled “not up to your standards?" she joked around.

"Oh please," he laughed "it's much more relaxing to speak with commoners like myself."

"But you must meet all kinds of noble ladies in the auction house," the shy girl inquired.

"Although I have met my share of nobles, only a handful bothered to speak with me beyond stating what they wanted me to do for them," he admitted.

"Oh, so who was the most interesting of them all," it was Anna who pushed that line of questioning further.

"I remember that person clearly, even though it was about 4 years ago," the youth couldn't help but smile "he was very young but it was as though he saw through all my secrets with a single glance. I must admit that all the scholars and wise men that I have met couldn't hold a candle to the 8 years old boy."

"And what was his name?" Anna grew even more curious.

"It was none other than the infamous…," he made a short pause which made the ladies hold their breath," Irwyn von Blackburg."

"Amazing," Anna exclaimed, "Did you also get to draw him, Desir?"

"Unfortunately I didn't quite get to ask," Desir sighed, "He came to the auction house 3 evenings in a row, so I had decided to get a bit closer before I made such a request, however, he never came back for the 4th time. Either way, we are here," he suddenly announced. They were standing directly in front of a rather sizable house. Although it was not quite a mansion it was definitely far bigger than what one would expect an auction house employee to own. Moreover, even the garden seemed to be in pristine shape.

"Wow," both of the girls simultaneously gasped when they realised which house he meant, "How can you afford to live in such a place?" Anna even asked.

"I inherited it from my late folks," Desir lied as he opened the gate, but seemed to only amaze his company further, “Let’s head inside,” he beckoned and they entered the building. As soon as they entered Desir snapped his fingers and the lights turned on.

“Even magical lights?” Anna exclaimed “maintaining those can be very expensive as far as I know,”

“I have done some minor dabbling in magic myself,” Desir just smiled at her, “It’s not much, but I can maintain them by myself,” as they spoke they left the simple entrance hallway, and entered the living room. They were welcomed in the huge area by countless paintings upon paintings decorating the walls. There seemed to be a plethora of every trait a human physique could posses, female or otherwise, however, there was not a single drawing which did not portray a human sitting or lying on a sizable black couch

“If you would sit down, ladies,” Desir pointed at the very same couch as the one in the countless paintings before he also walked over to an already prepared canvas, “Let’s get started right away," The two nodded and walked over to the couch. While the shy one conservatively sat down Anna decided to tease her by lying down over the couch and her friend’s thighs, as they both smiled and posed for Desir.

“Tell me,” Desir said without taking his eyes off the drawing “what made you accept my offer?”

“Hmmm,” Anna thought about it, “I probably did it because no one ever drew me before, and that makes it kind of exciting.”

“I see,” Desir nodded his head and directed the next question to the other girl, “And what about you?”

“I don’t really know,” she admitted with a slight blush, “I think mostly I came along with Anna.”

“But you definitely wanted to come too, didn’t you?” Desir just chuckled which made the girl’s cheeks grow even redder.

“You both came with me because you wanted to, and that is a reason just as valid as any. We all desire something after all, be it beauty, wealth, fame, influence or even just power,” Desir spoke as his hand vigorously moved the brush, “Even the emperor himself has things he craves after all. So, what is it you desire?”

“Wealth, of course,” Anna answered without hesitation “with enough money you can even become a noble, and obtain all the other things you mentioned,” she spoke with resolution, and the other girl chimed in with a quiet ‘I agree’ from the side.

“I see,” Desir nodded his head behind the canvas “you see, desires tell you a lot about a person. Those who seek fame are often petty men and women who desire to just look down at the entire world. Those who desire power are on the other hand usually people who have a strong and unwavering purpose. Those who seek wealth like you too are often young, and beautifully naive.”

“Naive?” Anna was slightly confused by that statement.

“Of course,” Desir chuckled at her puzzled expression, “What is all the money in the world worth when it can be robbed from you. If you pay for better guards that will just attract stronger bandits. All the wealth in the world is useless if you can't keep it.”

“In that case what is it you desire?” Anna asked.

“The painting is done,” Desir announced instead of answering.

“That was incredibly fast!” the shy girl exclaimed as Desir turned their portrait around. They immediately noticed one major difference when compared to the other paintings on the walls.

“Why-y are we naked?!” even Anna began to significantly blush as she asked that question while her shy friend’s entire visage became bead vermillion. As they stared at the drawing they realised that there was another major difference: Their bodies were just far too perfect. Both the ladies knew that they were pretty enough to be called beauties, but the immaculate curves portrayed on the canvas far surpassed the beauty that they ever possessed. It was as though Desir brought them to perfection through that painting.

“You asked what I desire,” Desir stepped around the painting as he began to unbutton his shirt “what I crave is pleasure. Be it through conversation or through flesh. Wouldn’t you say that the most primal of desires is also one of the best,” he chuckled. That made the girls blush even further, but they didn’t seem to be even considering resistance. He was after all a natural predator, and those two were just chicks long ensnared by his traps. With each sentence they exchanged throughout the night they were dragged deeper into his charm until they could no longer escape.

“Let me give you the night of your lives.”