"Phew, no customers today either."
The "Illusion Theater" that shows illusions had no visitors today.
Before opening, I went around telling people I was opening a shop that fulfills desires.
My illusion magic mentor, Meiko, also helped spread the word.
I thought I'd done enough promotion.
"Why are there no customers?"
It must be unfamiliar.
Showing desires through illusion magic.
I expected many wouldn't understand what that meant.
Plus, the low regard for illusion magic is likely why customers aren't coming.
I knew and prepared for it.
"But I didn't expect only one customer in four days."
I thought some noble ladies would be interested.
But not a single one showed up.
Are they all so devout?
Don't any of them secretly want to fool around with noble heirs?
Are all the nobles here pure-hearted?
No way.
"Did my mentor not promote properly?"
She was supposed to handle promoting to the noble ladies.
I thought she'd feel some responsibility since we developed this together.
"Ugh, whatever. It's not fair to blame someone who's gone to the provinces for magic development."
But I'd definitely grill her when she returned.
Did she really promote properly?
If not.
"I'll make her handle all the mana stone recharging."
Maybe make some pocket money with alchemy too.
She should take responsibility for sloppy work, right?
Come to think of it, the only customer in four days was the Iron-Blooded Knight Yuris on opening day.
That was the most surprising part.
Who'd have thought a knight who only knew victory would come to experience defeat?
"She's taking longer than expected. It's about time she showed up."
I'd improved the video quality for her.
Though there were still flaws, I'd definitely fixed some shortcomings from the first video.
I was confident she'd be satisfied if she watched it again.
But the customer who should've come didn't.
"With her willpower, she might actually stick to not coming back."
Failing to make the first customer a regular was disappointing.
While I was maintaining the magic circle with those thoughts.
Knock, knock, knock.
Someone knocked on the door.
"Is the owner here?"
A stiff, businesslike voice.
A familiar voice.
"She's here."
Opening the door.
"Oh, you're here."
"Lady Yuris? You're back."
"I came to check if your business is doing well."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
"I thought you came to experience it again. You said you'd had enough of defeat."
She avoided my gaze, looking around the shop.
"Ahem, no customers, I see."
"Quiet, right? Seems the promotion hasn't quite worked yet."
"…Is that so?"
"Come in. I'll get you some tea."
"…Is that alright? I'm not interrupting?"
"Of course. We haven't had customers for days."
"…"
She looked at me as if she expected as much.
"No surprise. Who'd use illusion magic? Even mages avoid that school."
"Saying that in front of an illusion school mage?"
"Ahem, sorry."
I sat her on the sofa and brought her tea.
I noticed Yuris sniffing as she sat quietly.
"What are you doing?"
"N-nothing. The tea… it smells nice."
"Really?"
She looked disappointed.
"Have a cup."
While quietly sipping tea, Yuris asked me.
"It doesn't smell like it did when I first came here."
"Oh, thanks to your comment last time, I cleaned more thoroughly. It's not good to have smells in a place where customers stay for long."
"Is that so…"
She's really disappointed?
Did she actually like that smell?
That's unexpected.
The Iron-Blooded Knight Yuris, drawn to pheromones.
Sipping her tea, Yuris glanced at me and scanned the shop.
"There's stuff here I didn't see before."
"I fixed and improved some flaws from the last video."
"Flaws… there were flaws?"
She flinched, surprised.
"Yes. It was my first video, so it was rougher than I thought. I spent the last four days tweaking the magic circle and adding necessary tools."
"I see."
She glanced at me, trembling slightly.
"But why aren't customers coming?"
"You know how people view illusion magic. It's a school most dismiss."
"They don't trust it."
"Exactly."
"…"
After a brief silence, Yuris put down her teacup and glanced at me.
"W-well, then I could be your customer…"
Her face was bright red.
Who would've thought the Iron-Blooded Knight could make such an expression?
"Be my customer?"
"I feel bad seeing you lonely without customers. It's definitely not because I can't forget that experience."
"Oh, is that so?"
Coming at it like that.
Honestly, how a customer returns isn't that important.
A shopkeeper should accommodate the customer's circumstances, right?
But seeing that expression from the Iron-Blooded Knight.
An expression she'd never shown anyone else made me want to tease her.
Like how you want to mess with a friend who reacts amusingly.
"If you don't need the defeat experience, we'd need to do a new survey to find a new desire."
"…What? I have to do that again?"
"We need to find what you desire through a survey. Playing the same satisfied video again would lessen its fun."
"So the next video would be different?"
"Of course. Different desires mean new settings, from background to characters. We could get more detailed about your desires. If you have a specific person in mind, just let me know."
She shut her mouth at my words.
Her hands, holding the teacup, fidgeted nervously.
Biting her lower lip, Yuris cautiously asked.
"W-what if I don't do the survey?"
"Then we'd have 'no choice' but to continue the previous video."
"No choice…"
She quietly repeated my words, pretending to ponder.
I know.
What she wants.
I gave her a slight opening to save face.
An opportunity to take back what she said without losing her pride.
But it seemed that wasn't enough.
Not enough to fully open up her desires.
"Then I'll need a little push."
"Would you like to continue the previous video without a survey?"
"I-I didn't say anything."
"It's my recommendation as the shop owner. Enjoying a genre in one go feels lacking. Plus, didn't it end on a cliffhanger? You should get revenge."
"…Is that so?"
"Yes. It wasn't planned to wrap up everything in one go. It'd be a shame to end it like that."
"A shame. A shame… Yes, it would be a bit of a shame."
She nodded, mumbling in a dazed voice.
"Then please proceed with that video."
"Great. Sit here."
I placed a cushion on the chair.
"What's this?"
"A sweat-absorbing cushion. You sweated a lot last time. This is to make it less embarrassing."
"T-thank you."
Her face bright red, she sat down.
"We'll start slowly. You'll encounter the bandit in the mountains again. The story will continue based on your desires. So, enjoy it fully."
I lightly grabbed her wrist.
Her face flushed bright red.
"I-is it okay to hold me like this?"
"Of course. It's for a better immersive experience."
"…"
"Remember this sensation of being held."
"Alright."
I activated the illusion magic, and light sparkled around her.
Flash.
In that moment, the world changed.
***
"…"
It was that forest.
Yuris realized she had returned to that forest.
Mangor Mountain.
The forest with the bandit's hideout that overpowered her.
Yuris drew her sword again.
This time, she wouldn't lose.
She returned because the humiliating memories of that day were still vivid, but also to shake them off and claim victory.
"I won't lose."
She believed in herself.
Having felt that bitter defeat, she wouldn't want to feel it again.
Her desire today was surely to defeat that bandit.
"What's this? Back again? Couldn't forget my touch, so you came all this way?"
The bandit appeared before Yuris, who had steeled her resolve.
The bandit who humiliated her.
An ordinary-looking, rugged bandit.
Yuris realized her body was trembling as she faced him.
"I'm scared?"
Of this insignificant man?
"T-this can't be…"
The bandit approached her trembling form.
"Looks like our lady still wants to play knight. Or maybe…"
The mocking bandit raised his right hand, wiggling his middle and ring fingers.
"You came to be pampered by your husband?"
It was an insult she'd never experienced.
"Y-you bastard!"
She charged at the bandit.
Thud!
"Ugh!"
She was subdued by the bandit in an instant.
As if victory would never be hers.
The biggest reason was her hand, which felt strangely heavy.
Too heavy to swing her sword properly, as if it wasn't her hand.
Like a noble lady who'd never held a sword.
"This can't be…"
I wanted to lose again?
The bandit who subdued her grabbed her wrist and dragged her along.
At that moment, the potent male scent made her head spin.
"No. If I smell this…"
"I was going to let you go like a gentleman, but you ignored my kindness. Got it?"
Holding her wrist, he completely subdued her and pushed her against a tree.
Then his right hand slipped into her pants.
"Heh, already wet? You missed this that much?"
"N-no, I…"
But the man's hand, when he pulled it out, glistened with her slick juices.
"Your body says otherwise."
"…"
My body produced that fluid?
That shameful liquid came out again?
When she couldn't believe it.
"Spread."
The bandit looked down at her coldly and spoke.
It was a voice she couldn't resist.
In reality, she'd have twisted his neck, but in this illusion, she was too weak.
Are women supposed to be this weak?
Iron-Blooded Knight Yuris felt fear.
"Last time I'll say it. Spread."
Trembling, Yuris bit her lip and spread her legs.
Her pants were soaked with her juices.