Intermission - Luke and Danglars.

The reply came a few minutes after he sent the message. In the airport of Paris, waiting to board his flight in the next hour or so, Luke Allen stared at his phone with a blank face and a turning stomach.

-Oliver Brooks: Mr. Allen, I actually have a request, one that would greatly help my own peace of mind about carrying on with this deal. I would like to talk face to face with Ms. Jennifer, if possible. I realize this is strange, and you’re free to deny my request. I simply want to ask her some questions about you. It can be at your hotel or any public place of your choosing. If that’s not possible, then I fear I might not be able to continue conversations.

Why? What did Jennifer have to do with this? Why would the young man be interested in her? Was his reading of him incorrect? Was Oliver Brooks a man who would really…?

…

No. No, he had to calm down. He was letting his own fears get the better of him. If he considered what he knew, Luke was sure he could reach the truth of Oliver’s intentions.

Over the years, Luke had learned to trust his magical abilities. The one he relied on the most was the ability to read a person’s character. At first it took days, but now he could understand a person with a single glance.

Oliver Brooks was a good person. Innocent, harmless, kind. Fearful and anxious, too. And despite that, strong. A person who knew weakness and strived to be set free from it, step by step.

Luke could not take advantage of such a young man.

Regardless, he needed to thread carefully. For even if he could get a perfect read on his character, Luke did not know what the being possessing him was like.

‘A Spirit of Lust would have to originally have been an incubus or a succubus,’ the spirit inside Luke said, speaking directly inside his mind. ‘They’re not strong, barring a few exceptions, but they possess unique skills. Skills you want for yourself.’

It was true. Even though, or perhaps because Luke was possessed by Danglars, a Spirit of Greed, he wished to have more than he already had. Luke had money and plenty of it. He had power and influence. He had every liquor he desired to drink, every meal he fancied to eat. The supernatural granted him even more. He once wished he could fly like a bird, so he bought a spell for it in the black market. It worked, and Luke discovered he was far more afraid of heights than he thought. Traveling in a plane was a whole lot different, not to mention preferable.

More relevantly, Luke had women. His three best friends who had stuck with him through thick and thin. Girls he loved, girls he wanted. He bought a scroll for a spell of Normalized Polyamory and set it in front of them, telling them exactly what it was. He admitted to wanting to use it, and that if they were against it, to rip the scroll to pieces. They didn’t.

Luke, Jennifer, Cecilia and Natalie were happy. Oddly enough, Luke was satisfied. He did not want more women. He did, however, wish he could keep up with the three.

His sexual appetite was fairly healthy, but his sexual stamina couldn’t keep up. In that sense, he was just a normal human. Even though he could run a marathon thanks to the general magical enhancement, he couldn’t help it when, well… When the little man decided he wouldn’t stand up anymore.

Then one day, at a gathering of regular black market customers, a friend mentioned something interesting. Rumors of an elixir for sexual performance being sold at another market. But before Luke could get his hopes up, his friend followed by saying production had stopped long ago and for unknown reasons. Luke tried to get in contact with the original sellers, but they were… untraceable. He tried to find someone re-selling some leftover vials. They were all gone. The only thing he could find were hints.

The elixir was made with sexual energy, a very unique type of magic. That was the key ingredient. A few alchemists claimed they could make something like it if only they had access to sexual energy.

And thus Luke’s search began. His newest love hotel was just part of a big chain of them around the world, all built with the purpose of hopefully luring in a Spirit of Lust. He hadn’t expected to meet a man possessed by one so… randomly. Which brought him back to the man himself, Oliver Brooks.

Luke took a deep breath.

‘Danglars, would a Spirit of Lust be able to break through the mental defenses we gave the girls?’ Luke asked his partner.

‘Diana’s remain intact, remember? I doubt this Spirit of Lust has the power or the skill to do it. Even if they did, they’d need physical contact to do it, and that would make it obvious. Hmmm… Here’s my best guess, Luke. Spirits of Lust are known to be good mind readers. I bet the kid hopes to know more about you by reading Jennifer’s mind. He’s being cautious.’

‘I suppose I can’t blame him for that. There are plenty of bastards in our world.’ Luke sighed. ‘What do you think about this? If Jennifer is okay with it, we let Oliver talk to her in the hotel. That way I can be there if he tries something strange. Do you think he’ll actually be able to read her mind?’

‘He won’t be. Let him try what he wants. Just let Jennifer ease his concerns. She looks far more trustworthy than you ever will.’

‘Excuse me? I AM trustworthy!’

‘But you don’t look it, that’s my point. You’re so formal that it makes you sound shady.’

‘Ugh. So usual business etiquette is coming back to bite me.’

But yes, this sounded a lot more plausible to Luke. He was sure Oliver was not the type to go after other people’s girlfriends. The young man simply wanted more reassurance that he wasn’t getting into something dangerous, and if that was the case, Luke would accept his request.

Though he needed to ask Jennifer herself, first. Only then would he be able to accept.

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