"No negativity! You're handsome, period. Nothing needs to change."
"..."
Iris seemed to bounce back easily; on the other hand, I tried to suppress my nausea.
Just as I thought, she was highly adaptable and it stopped affecting her almost completely.
Anyway, it seems there really is a huge difference and clash of opinions and perspectives regarding my appearance.
Apparently, Iris idealizes me and thinks I'm very handsome.
I know myself that objectively I'm not that ugly, but I don't think that's enough to complete the mission, and it's better to change my appearance.
"I can read everything you're thinking. You're always so hard on yourself; I've already told you that you're very handsome."
"...I don't think that's true. You're the only one who says that."
Finally, the bad feeling mostly went away, and I was able to speak relatively normally.
On this matter, Iris is way too biased.
"My mother and my mother-in-law said so too."
"And that's still not objective."
"Don't be stubborn. Besides, it doesn't make sense to win them over with a fake appearance—that goes against the plan."
"Plan?... Do you mean-. No, we'd better stop this. We shouldn't argue; we can't keep wasting time."
Arguments between Iris and me can get sidetracked and take a long time, and this wasn't the time for that, with such a dangerous client waiting to be served.
"Yeah, Honey, this isn't the time to argue. It's obvious I'm right. Well, let's merge."
"...No! Since we've separate, it's better if I handle her alone, since she's a very dangerous person. You stay here."
"Come on, when we're together we're the best, we're unstoppable, Honey."
"That's because we haven't run into anyone truly dangerous yet, and that woma—"
"But, Honey!"
"No buts, I'm not changing my mind. 눈_눈"
"Hmph!... Fine, I'll obediently stay here, but only if you go out looking the way you do now. That way, you'll see I'm right."
"...Fine."
Haaah... well, if she backed down, I should back down too.
Besides, come to think of it, to change my appearance, I need a reference.
Making a normal, simple face was easy, but being handsome… I really don't know what would count as that, and nothing that's absolutely ideal comes to mind.
And thinking about it, it's bad enough that I'm changing my race in the long run, because if she becomes a regular customer I'd have to pretend every time, and changing my appearance too would make everything more problematic.
Ding!
The woman was already ringing the bell at the front desk.
I didn't know what would happen if she got impatient, and I couldn't let her just leave.
Even though we separated, the morphogenesis didn't disappear, so without further ado, I left the room.
"Oh! How strange, is no one here? But the sign outside said open thirty-two hours. Hmm.., I'll take a look."
Click!.
"Oh, I'm sorry, dear customer, I was a little busy restocking supplies. Welcome to our massage parlor."
I came out and she was talking to herself.
I didn't know what she was referring to, but it seems I came out just in time.
She didn't seem angry or impatient either, even though no one came out right away.
"Oh, so what she was saying outside was true. I have to say, even though it's a strange marketing strategy, it works well. Those scales, the hair, and the black horns are quite pretty… your face is also to my liking."
'Aha! . honey I told you so.'
"I'm glad you're satisfied, dear customer. May I ask what kind of service you'd like?"
I guess what caught her attention and what she saw outside was that a guy of the 'Ryushen' race was working here.
And I've already taken care of that. Thank goodness it's not something as outlandish as the Roselyn situation.
Now all that's left is to give her the massage.
It's lucky there were two massage rooms, or this would be a problem.
"Hmm… well…"
"Oh, forgive my clumsiness. Here's a catalog; please choose the type of massage you'd like. Some are a bit unconventional, so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. I'm here to serve you."
"Oh, you really are a nice guy… I'm liking you more and more… but first of all…"
"..."
She was speaking casually, but for a moment her golden eyes seemed to sparkle and she looked me up and down.
For some reason, that made me feel uncomfortable; it felt very intrusive. I felt as if she wasn't just looking at my appearance.
"Let's see, if you're a rank-one masseur… hold this, young man."
"Huh? What is—"
I didn't really know what she did, but it seemed to confirm my profession. Then she pulled out a sort of staff from somewhere; it had gold edges and was transparent in the center.
I didn't want to take it without knowing what it was, but before I could figure it out, it was already in my hands and then back in hers.
"Oh! No bad intentions, no corruption. You're also totally clean in this regard… very clean, I must say! Hey, kid, are you a virgin or something?"
"Huh? No."
I wasn't keeping up with her.
"Hee~ you don't have to lie to me… It looks like I struck gold."
I don't know what that staff was for, but whatever it did to her, it seemed to put her in a better mood.
I also don't understand what made her think I was a virgin, but she seemed convinced of it, even though I denied it.
After that, she started reading the sign with the list of massages.
I watched her in silence, and saw her face growing more and more confused. I figured there was a problem, so I spoke up:
"Is something wrong, dear client?"
"Well, you know… there was a little smiley face under the letters outside, and I've heard that means something very specific in this kind of place, but I don't see anything here about that."
"..."
'Oh! Honey, this woman wants the happy ending.'
'We can't be sure of that yet. We don't know the local culture or the unspoken language.'
'But , look at how he's been looking at you with desire, ever since you picked up that staff.'
'I don't see that.'
In this case, I couldn't agree with Iris—she wasn't looking at me with any obvious interest, just a little curious about me.
But Iris has proven to be sharper than me in these matters, so even though I don't see it, I won't dismiss what she said.
"What's going on? Am I wrong?"
"No… you're right. Ahem!, but I'd recommend adding some massages for added comfort."
For now, I had to somehow figure out what she really meant and what she wanted.
If we misinterpret what she wants, it could cost us our lives, so I had to be very careful.
"Oh, I see you're still professional. But I don't know what to choose. You have so many good options—do you have any recommendations?"
"It depends on the client's needs, since there are all kinds of massages. Some relieve fatigue, others aid recovery, and we also treat old ailments or discomforts. There are also those that relieve mental fatigue and stress, and so on."
"And also those for relieving sexual frustrationa deep, penetrating massage haha!"
'See, honey, I was right again.'
"...Yes, putting it there would be a bit inappropriate. So, dear client, would you like to add any extra massages?"
"Hmmm… so it comes with a real massage... this is really interesting. I guess you start with the massage I choose and gradually stimulate and touch me until it starts feeling really good, huh? I like that!"
'Honey… she's found us out. She knows our modus operandi. We have to run… hmm, no, I take that back—that would make us miss our chance with this beauty.'
"If that's what you want, dear client…"
"Good!, I really like the theme… this massage says it comes with scented candles, which is good since it'll create a nice atmosphere, and if I add this full-bod—"
Beep, beep.
Just as I was thinking about the next steps after she made up her mind, a strange sound rang out.
I didn't understand where it was coming from until the woman raised her hand and I noticed the sound was coming from the bracelet.
And then something happened that amazed me, as a sort of projection appeared from the bracelet—specifically, a 3D hologram.
In it was a girl with horns and scales; she was a Ryushen.
The projected girl turned as if she were looking around before saying anything, and inevitably our eyes met.
"..."
"..."
There was a strange silence. I don't know why, but I sensed something peculiar about this girl, and she also looked at me with a strange expression.
Our exchange of glances, for some reason, lasted for three strange seconds.
But finally she broke the eye contact, , turned, and looked at the Jinlian.
"Ma'am, I know this was your free time, but something has come up that requires your presence as soon as possible."
"Ah, come on, I'd just found gold in a corner of the capital."
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but it's really necessary."
"Haaah… fine, I'm on my way."
With that, the conversation seemed to end, and the hologram disappeared.
The woman, who had seemed very excited, suddenly took on a somber expression and looked at me with a hint of regret.
"Haaah… I'm sorry, handsome, but it seems we're not meant to be today. As you heard, something came up."
"I understand, dear client… would you like to make a reservation for the future?"
"I'll definitely be back, but I really don't know when I'll be free again."
[Mission Complete]
"No problem. With a client as beautiful as you, there will always be room in the schedule."
"Oh! I see you know how to flatter—I like that. Remember to do it more when I come back..."
"I'll keep that in mind. So, may I have your name?"
"Oh, write down the name Li-Lin. Alright, see you next time."
She gave me a different name .It might just be her nickname, but I'll keep it in mind...
Finally, she winked at me, turned around, and left, and almost at the same moment she walked out—
"Noooo!! Why!?"
Iris came out of the room and shouted in disappointment.
I guess she thought what she called a "happy ending" was guaranteed, but then, unexpectedly, she just left.
"There's nothing we can do about it, but at least we completed the mission, and she'll come back in the future."
"Ugh, I would've at least liked to see her body. Haaah, what a shame. Well, honey, let's fuse and continue with Big Sister Rose.."
"...Seriously, stop that. Let's leave that for another day. When she comes to, I want to ask her some questions; I still don't understand how to complete her mission."
"Oh! Now that you mention it, honey, Big Sister Rose is in a bad situation, isn't she?"
"Yeah… and it could affect us… haaah~ but I guess you're not going to let me just kick her out, are you?"
"Huh? What are you talking about, honey? She's already part of our harem. After everything we've done, we have to take responsibility; obviously we have to help her. Besides, we have to complete the mission."
"(≖_≖ )"
"What?"
"It's nothing…"
"Ah! But now that I think about it, the fusion was a little weird, don't you think? You know, I felt like you weren't thinking as much as you did the other times. Why?"
"...I'm not sure."
Yeah, it was a little strange. I felt like Iris was mostly in control, unlike before; I wasn't thinking deeply or anything like that.
If I had to say something, it's because the situation really didn't require thinking that much or overanalyzing what I had to do… that, or that I really didn't think it was a good idea in this uncertain situation and my side lacked initiative…
But just because I lacked initiative didn't mean I was against it; maybe that's why we didn't break up, and thanks to that...
It's better not to think about that
"Hmm, well, whatever! Everything turned out great anyway. Honey, tell me, what did you think of the experience? Wasn't it good?"
"..."
"Honey?"
"..."
"What's wrong? Are you thinking about how good it was? For me, I think it's not that different from when we just rub against each other, but it's still a little different and unique. Besides, isn't it great to see a cute girl's reactions?"
"...."
"Hmmm, honestly, I thought it would be something more… I don't know. But it was still really good. You liked it too, didn't you? Well, if our fusion liked it, that obviously means you did too. That's why we didn't unfuse. See, honey, that's why I always tell you we have to try new things."
Yeah, this is the thing I honestly didn't want her to bring up. What she said made sense, and that's exactly why I didn't want to think about it.
But it was already too late.
I got up and walked to the nearest corner before crouching down and staring at the spot where the walls met.
..