The Art of Captivation

The first thing everyone noticed, was an adorable little dragon girl walking proudly in front of the group that just entered.

The little girl was incredibly cute and charming wearing a fluffy little white dress with a small tiara on top of her hair that appeared to be made of solid ice and diamonds.

Her face was scrunched in a serious expression that made her look unapproachable and slightly intimidating despite being only six years old.

… Or at least that's what she believed.

"Aww!"

"She's so precious!"

"James I think we should start trying…"

'Why aren't they afraid of me?' Mira wondered, but quickly tossed the thought aside as she started looking towards the desert table to see if there were cookies available.

When the focus left the little girl, everyone noticed the women walking behind her.

"By Asherah…"

"Their presence is…"

"They are so beautiful!"

"I thought his wives were just supposed to be rejects.."

"Those dresses!"

Bekka, Lisa and Lailah were each wearing dresses with their backs cut out and a slit on the side that went all the way up to their hip.

Each one of them also wore gold arm bands, necklaces, and rings made with exquisite dwarven craftsmanship.

Each ring was enchanted with a variety of buffs like increased mana regeneration and enhanced senses.

Not only could they see everything going on in this party, they could hear everything as well.

Even Bekka had shifted her hands from her usual paws to delicate little fingers that bore a ring on each.

Lailah was first in line and wore a bright red dress with a golden tiara that held a bright red ruby in the middle that matched the color of her eyes perfectly.

When Sei first saw her daughter, she was uninterested at first.

Though when she saw the crown and dress that Lailah wore, her uninterest quickly changed into bitter jealousy and then rage.

'T-that bitch… she's actually wearing such an outfit?'

It was worth noting that the crown on Lailah's head alone costed more than several large cities could earn in a year.

'And what's with that look? It's like she doesn't even put me in her eyes anymore!'

Sei was seething.

This was the same girl who used to flinch at the mere sight of her and now she wouldn't even glance her way!

'You think you're special now? You are still nothing! So what if that sniveling little man bought you a few trinkets!'

And then she saw Exedra.

And her jealousy reached a fever pitch when she saw the most gorgeous man she could imagine.

-

Canis wasn't doing much better when he saw his daughter.

Bekka wore a tight black dress that could barely contain her enormous bust. On top of Bekka's head was a black metal crown in the shape of thorns.

While there were no jewels on Bekka's crown, it didn't take away from the feeling of wealth that now emanated from her.

Canis knew he'd need ten years of frugal living to even be able to think about buying the cheapest item his daughter wore.

But that wasn't what bothered him the most.

He'd given up his daughter to the dragons because she was useless and dispensable but now she actually gained some kind of twisted sense of superiority from it? What a joke!

'You think because that weak little lizard gave you a few shiny items you're better than me?!' Canis roared internally. 'He'll get bored of you and you'll be right back in the dirt with the rest of us you sow!'

And then his gaze landed on Exedra.

And he felt chills run down his spine when he felt his malevolent aura.

-

Lisa was last in line and had the most eyes on her.

She wore an incredibly intricate silver tiara that was littered with diamonds, her dress was golden colored and went perfectly with her warm amber eyes and hair.

While she was undoubtedly beautiful, the few dragons in the crowd could sense that she was a lesser dragon and sneered inwardly.

Beautiful trash is still trash after all.

"I can't believe he'd do such a thing."

"She's old and lesser, does he not have any taste?"

"She'll surely sully this event with her presence."

Lisa could of course hear the harsh words being thrown her way but paid them no mind.

Exedra had informed all of them prior to entering that this was likely to happen but he had a plan for it.

While she wasn't sure what the plan was exactly, she trusted her husband and knew if he said he was gonna do something he'd do it.

She just had to make a mental note of everyone saying something unpleasant for later.

'Have I seen that woman somewhere before?' Jirai wondered.

He was staring at Lisa trying to remember where exactly he'd seen her but he was drawing a blank every time.

He turned to ask his son, only to remember that he'd left the room some time ago.

He seemed to be frustrated that he couldn't find what he was looking for and simply went outside to calm down.

'How'd that bedridden whelp land such beautiful women though?'

He couldn't believe it.

Every woman in Exedra's harem was divinely beautiful.

How'd one brat without an ounce of power get so lucky?

And then Exedra came into view and for the second time in Jirai's two thousand years of living, his looks felt inferior compared to another man's.

-

When Exedra stepped out in full view of the crowd, all the hushed murmurs and whispers that plagued the crowd before immediately ceased.

No one had ever seen a man that fit the definition of perfect to such a degree before.

Wearing a red robe with black pants and his signature sandals, as well as his ceremonial golden necklace and weapon disguised as an earring, Exedra hadn't deviated much from his usual attire to the dismay of Duke.

But no one could focus on the clothes he wore.

Not when this man's appearance was so utterly enchanting.

His long blood red hair was tied up in a ponytail with two loose strands of hair falling in either side of his face.

The body underneath his clothes was not only incredibly well defined, but it was covered in intricate black tattoos that no one recognized.

He was walking forward with his eyes closed, yet he never made a misstep.

Unbeknownst to them, Exedra was using soul sense along with his natural perception as an incubus to 'see' the entire room.

He could see everything and everyone without his eyes even being open.

He could see their feelings as well.

Red auras were surrounding Bekka and Lailah's parents and a few of the noble dragons.

Most of the women in the room either had green auras for jealousy or the standard purple for an intense desire.

< Skill : Soul Sense has leveled up!

Exedra finally opened his eyes when he heard the message from the system and several gasps were heard once again.

While his daughters eyes were almost the same, they lacked the vibrant luster and the bitter coldness that her father's had.

This dangerous contrast between something you can't look away from, and something you should look away from, thoroughly entranced the hearts and minds of everyone present.

Most women became wet immediately and made up in their minds they would try to seduce this young man by any means necessary tonight.

One was… more determined than others.

'That bitch! She knew this would happen, that's why she told me that!'

Audrina was in a difficult position.

She wanted to be a good friend and keep her word but.. not only was this man divinely handsome, but there was another deeper force that seemed to want her to obey this man's every whim and want.

She'd been tricked damn it!

That's why that woman was so giggly earlier!

While she could feel her emotions were being influenced just from the sight of him, she couldn't do anything about it.

She was under a spell she had no desire to break out from.

She hurriedly folded her arms across her chest and covered her breasts when she realized her nipples had gotten hard without her realizing it.

The group came to a stop directly in front of Yara and Iori.

They bowed slightly to Iori before offering Yara warm smiles.

"You all look perfect." Yara couldn't stop a single tear from falling from her eye.

Lisa : "Thank you, mother!"

Bekka : "You as well, mother."

Lailah : "Our beauty is still far below your own."

Mira : "Don't cry grandmother do you want a cookie too?"

Yara chuckled before shewalked towards her son and lightly touched his face. "My boy is a man now. I couldn't be prouder."

For the first time in a while, Exedra smiled a warm smile that was only for his family to see.

The three women fell in love all over again when they saw the man who had become harder to read recently displaying such an emotion.

The few in the crowd who didn't believe that was really Exedra were now fully convinced and the murmurs resumed with an unseen intensity.

"Is that really him?"

"I-I thought he was supposed to be bedridden?"

"How can someone change so much?"

Yara naturally heard the murmurs and walked torward the group of confused partygoers.

"May I have your attention please.."

Yara didn't yell or scream, yet everyone immediately ceased their conversations and listened.

"I told you all on the invitations that I had an announcement to make." She began.

"But first, let me tell you a little story…"