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Translator: uly
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: After the First Customer
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After the first customer, Knight Captain Yuris, had left.
I looked around the completely extinguished magic circle, replaying the illusion she had experienced.
Reviewing the service provided to the customer and giving feedback was an essential process for creating even better videos.
"Thanks to the demo video, the first customer's video turned out better than expected."
That's right.
It turned out better than expected.
The illusion magic had been implemented so well that it deceived all five senses of the knight captain, and the magic circle's perfection was high enough that slight sensory changes influenced the video within the illusion.
And the customer wasn't just anyone—it was Yuris, the knight captain known as a Swordmaster-level swordsman.
This meant that at least inside the magic circle, it could fool most ordinary people.
However, it wasn't perfect.
"She definitely said at the beginning that it was a region she recognized when she started watching the video."
Basically, most of the backgrounds in the illusion were created based on my memories.
So, if something too familiar appeared, it could break the immersion in the illusion that I had worked so hard to create.
Thanks to that familiarity, immersion could deepen, but I thought that when using real backgrounds in the future, I should arrange them to suit the customer's perspective.
And moreover.
"Having so few tools definitely made it hard to diversify the scenes."
Most of it had been nipple torture.
Lightly stroking the areola to tease her, rubbing her breasts with her own love juices, or occasionally stroking her privates in between—that was all.
With proper tools, I could have tormented her in more varied ways, but since it was only the first day, the only things in the shop were the chair and my two hands.
Honestly, I hadn't even imagined that a customer would show up right away during the soft opening period.
Using my own mana was quite burdensome too.
For now, with few customers, it was fine, but if three or more customers came in a day like this, I might collapse from mana exhaustion.
'It's not like I can recover all the spent mana in just one day.'
Efficient mana consumption was another task to solve.
"It's also regrettable that I still can't control more than one character at a time."
Of course, pre-programmed characters could move on their own right away.
But that would consume too much mana, making it likely I couldn't properly finish the video.
"Improving mana efficiency has to be the top priority."
If I just refined that, I wouldn't need to control every character in the video myself, and I could create more varied content.
"Or should I turn the characters into pure background elements? Not as moving objects, but as sources of effects."
For example, just exposing them as gazes felt from outside the window.
Without needing to act out separate characters.
Aren't crowds in sports games like soccer not a huge process hog?
If I preset their actions and make them repeat the same behaviors in fixed positions, I probably wouldn't need to allocate much resources to extra characters.
Just giving the feeling that people are there should be enough.
"But then, I need to make sure the player enjoying the video can't approach them more than necessary."
By creating an invisible wall they can't pass, limiting their vision so only voices are heard.
Or switching to showing only silhouettes from afar.
"Not a bad idea?"
Making mocking voices audible.
Even though no one is actually visible, making it feel like someone is watching.
"This could be used in a lot of ways. If I program it right, it should be fully feasible."
Finally, I looked at the bandit who had confronted Yuris.
He was the typical bandit you could commonly find wandering the empire's mountains.
Sunburned dark skin, shaggy beard and unkempt hair, thick arms, and scars here and there.
Too default, so personally, it was a disappointing design.
It felt like the design I had programmed as Bandit A back in the day had come out as-is.
And that was exactly the image she wanted.
A common bandit you could see anywhere.
'But like this, it lacks presence.'
Not that she wanted that presence to begin with.
"Who would've thought that great lady wanted to submit to such an ordinary man."
She denied it, but this illusion magic circle was a device that projected her desires exactly as they were.
If Yuris had really just come to experience simple defeat, the formula I set in the magic circle wouldn't have produced this result.
It would have gone with ordinary torture and pain.
And tried to break her through that somehow.
But the result the magic circle showed me was different.
⚙ System Notification ⚙
[Yuris's Desire: Wants the bandit to mess her up completely.]
It was clear that deep in Yuris's subconscious lurked a desire to submit to an ordinary man, at least on the surface.
"They say you can't tell a person just by looking at them."
The symbol of victory and guardian of the empire harboring such a desire to lose.
Who could've known?
'Well, even always winning can get boring after a while.'
Even someone who always succeeds must have their own struggles.
Exploring the customer's personal troubles ends here.
Thinking any further would be disrespectful to her.
With my thoughts concluded, I looked at the spot where Yuris had sat.
Even though I'd cleaned it with magic, the seat where she sat was still damp.
That wasn't from sweat.
If it had been sweat, it would've vanished with magic long ago.
"How much did she feel, exactly...?"
That much satisfaction with our video.
As she left, she had firmly declared she wouldn't come back.
-This much experience of defeat is enough.
Looks like I'll be seeing her again soon?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Yuris arrived at the training grounds today at her usual time, as always.
Coming to the training grounds at 6:30 a.m. to build basic stamina was one of her indispensable routines that she never skipped.
"Hup! Hngh!"
She trained with basic sword techniques—slashing, thrusting, and swinging a training sword made of black steel weighing over 30kg.
It was a full-body workout that stimulated not just her arms and upper body swinging the sword, but even her lower body maintaining balance.
After slashing, thrusting, and swinging as if in real combat, she rolled to the side, got back up, and swung again.
It was training possible only for a Swordmaster who far surpassed human limits—a sword too heavy for an ordinary person to even lift.
People always saw Yuris in her elegant uniform on the platform and assumed she used graceful swordsmanship, but she employed techniques that valued real combat above all.
Covered in dust, drenched in sweat.
"Hoo, hoo."
And today's training for Yuris was far more intense than usual.
Perhaps to shake off the memories from yesterday.
"Hah!"
Yuris swung her sword while shouting louder than ever.
"Haa, haa."
It was intense enough to make even a Swordmaster like her sweat profusely.
'The memories from that day still won't leave me.'
Last night, she hadn't slept properly.
Every time she closed her eyes, the memories from the illusion kept resurfacing.
The sensations were so vivid that she couldn't fall asleep easily.
Her powerless self, bound.
The bandit's hands ravaging that self.
The mocking gaze and the man's scent growing thicker with time.
Slap!
She slapped her cheeks so hard they stung.
'Get a grip.'
Are you still dwelling on those thoughts right now?
Forget that day's memories.
Pretend it never happened.
You've experienced defeat once, so no need to go back.
You've been through everything you wanted.
That day's humiliation.
Shame.
And pleasure.
"..."
She looked down at her chest.
The breasts that the bandit in the illusion had endlessly ravaged.
"Wait! Again!"
No.
This won't do.
She let out a sigh.
Looking around, the training grounds were now filled with knights who had come out for morning training like her.
Mostly knights from the 1st Knight Order.
They had come out to train following the exemplary Yuris.
'My subordinates are here. I'm the knight captain they trust and rely on. I have to set an example.'
Enough with the useless thoughts.
As she steeled her resolve,
"Captain."
Someone tapped her shoulder from behind.
"Eek!!!"
At the touch on her shoulder from behind, Yuris involuntarily twisted her body and stepped back.
Her subordinate knight, who kept his head shaved to a shine—Jeko, the vice-captain of the 1st Knight Order.
He looked at Yuris with a startled face.
"Ah, ah, J-Jeko, it was you."
"What was that? I didn't know the captain could make sounds like that?"
"Sorry. I'm a bit tired today."
"Haha, it's fine. It happens. I'm just glad to see a new side of you, Captain. Haha!"
Jeko also seemed flustered, rambling and averting his gaze.
"But what is it?"
Composing her expression, she asked why Jeko had called her.
"Oh, right. There's the mock battle with the 2nd Knight Order coming up, yeah? The schedule's set."
"The schedule's set? When?"
"Two weeks from now, at the central imperial training grounds, I heard."
"A mounted tournament?"
"No, I was told it's a captain-vs-captain duel and a squad-vs-squad group battle."
"Captain-vs-captain duel, huh. The 2nd Knight Order Captain's been sharpening his blade—got it. I'll keep that in mind."
After finishing his report, Jeko suddenly stepped closer.
"Captain, you're gonna smash the 2nd Knight Order Captain this time too, right?"
The moment he approached, the scent of a sweat-drenched man made her head spin.
The sweat from harsh training and his masculine pheromones made her bite her lip without realizing it.
The instant she caught the scent, one man's face flashed in her mind.
The illusion mage, and the bandit from the illusion he created.
The overwhelming presence that left her powerless.
Why is that man's face coming to mind now?
"Captain?"
"Huh? Yeah?"
"Are you not feeling well today?"
"...?"
She realized belatedly.
That her body had leaned slightly toward Jeko.
That her body had naturally tilted to inhale the potent pheromone scent.
"Ah, no. Don't worry about the 2nd Knight Order Captain. I absolutely won't lose."
"Haha! I believe in you, Captain!"
"T-Then I'll go wash up."
"Take care!"
Stepping back, she looked around.
There were women in the 1st Knight Order who had joined following her, but most were male knights.
And she realized how thick the manly scents they emitted were, wafting even through the training grounds.
It was a pungent smell that made her nose wrinkle.
Until now, she had never once noticed.
That men's scents were different.
She and they had always shared the same battlefields, shedding blood and sweat together.
Suddenly becoming aware like this was all because of that man.
The bandit who had rendered her powerless.
That man's scent was completely different from the knights'.
His was even more pungent than now, but the more she smelled it, the more she wanted to smell it—a scent that...
A strong male's scent.
'That man? What am I thinking about the bandit from the illusion...?'
Yuris hurriedly grabbed a towel and entered the women's changing room, unaware that something other than sweat was flowing down her body.
'I absolutely won't go back there.'
Yuris vowed to herself again and again.