Eloise's Scented Weakness
ElOISE said in a cool, indifferent tone, as if completely uninterested, “...Come by my side for a moment after class.” Then, just like that, she turned her head away and shifted her gaze to the blackboard where the professor was writing. Her usual sour expression and eyes were back in place, but when I confirmed that she had pulled the handkerchief away from her nose—the very one I had been keeping her from—I was fighting hard to hold back the laughter that threatened to burst out. Of course, to hide those feelings, I simply nodded with a tense, strained face. She probably looked terrified, as if the noble girl had called her like some kind of threat.
ElOISE kept staring at the blackboard with a completely blank expression. The professor was droning on about complex magic theory and monster descriptions, but from my viewpoint, ElOISE didn’t seem the least bit interested in it. My hypnosis was clearly working perfectly: the moment I sat down, every other person around her started emitting an odor so revolting it would make a normal nose curl. The funniest part was that ElOISE didn’t realize it herself, yet the closer she sat, the nearer her body had drifted toward mine—almost like her instincts were drawn to something that smelled good rather than bad. She even occasionally wrinkled her nose in the same way a puppy does when sniffing for a scent.
Unlike ElOISE, I was perfectly normal, so I was dying to know exactly what she had been called for. “In this case, if you refer to this document, you should be able to arrive at the following conclusion.”
Just like her, I pretended to be absorbed in the professor’s boring lecture while secretly glancing at ElOISE. Our eyes almost met several times, but I looked away and pretended not to notice.
“Class is over for today. Submit your report before the semester ends, but if you don’t want to regret it later, start early.”
The time passed, and before we knew it, class had ended. ElOISE stood up first, as if leaving, but when she caught the smell again, she pulled out the handkerchief and covered her nose while staring straight at me.
Without a word, her eyes seemed to say, “Follow me,” so I rose, pretending to be afraid, and trailed after her out of the lecture hall.
The other students watching laughed, obviously excited to see what would happen next, but when they noticed ElOISE’s irritated glare, they quickly moved their seats away to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.
***
The academy lavatory was supposed to be a filthy place. Especially the public ones shared with others. But the academy’s own lavatory was nothing like that. Since it was managed by the country and the school’s rule was to prioritize students, every facility was meticulously cleaned, disinfected, and maintained. Thanks to that, the academy lavatory stayed beautifully clean and spotless. Magic tools for cleanliness were installed, and cleaning staff came by on schedule, so it actually looked cleaner than the world I had been reincarnated into.
That was why I had been thinking about lavatories all of a sudden—because ElOISE had led me straight here. Since I couldn’t ask where we were going, we walked until we reached an empty lavatory where we were completely alone. If my memory was correct, this place had almost no foot traffic; students probably never came here.
“So… do you know what you did wrong?”
In the mirror above the sink, ElOISE’s reflection looked absolutely stunning. Long, bright orange hair that reached down to her neck and faint freckles on her nose. Her chest wasn’t as large as Maila’s or Chloe’s, but even so, she would never run out of beauty. Plus, her cute little face paired with the daughter of a wealthy noble family was already a powerful weapon.
If this had been before, I would have been terrified that ElOISE’s call meant more torment. But now? The bright hair and the way she deliberately tried to look noble were nothing more than fuel for my amusement.
“Are you even listening to me?”
She had been staring at me silently for too long. A hint of malice began to seep into ElOISE’s eyes.
“No.”
“...What?”
When I gave her that unexpected answer, ElOISE looked at me as if she couldn’t believe her ears. It was obvious she was just trying to provoke me, but I stared back boldly and continued.
“I honestly have no idea what I did wrong, ElOISE-nim.”
“...Have you finally gone insane?”
ElOISE stared at me in confusion, let out a short laugh, and stepped closer. She reached out and lightly pushed me. I tumbled backward and ended up pressed against the lavatory wall while she loomed over me, looking down. She had always been smaller than me, but I had never realized it until now. The little Chihuahua that kept ignoring my commands flashed through my mind, and I couldn’t hold back the laughter that erupted.
“Hah… this is too much!”
“Hypnosis start”
ElOISE grabbed my collar in irritation, but the moment she did, I shouted the trigger word.
“...Ah.”
The instant the words left my lips, ElOISE’s eyes instantly became hazy and empty. I smiled as I watched the doll-like girl and gently pulled her into my arms. ElOISE, now completely obedient, clung to me like a large plush toy, frozen and silent, pressing her soft body against mine.
“Mmm… you changed your perfume too? That won’t get rid of the smell, though.”
While savoring her scent, I released her and thought for a moment. Various amusing hypnosis ideas popped up, but the one I liked most immediately came to mind.
“ElOISE, how was your morning commute today?”
“...It was hard because the smell stuck to me more than usual.”
“Specifically?”
“The bakeries along the way, the body wash I used in the shower, and the perfumes were fine… but once I reached the lecture hall and started smelling the other students’ odors, it became unbearable.”
“So you kept using the handkerchief the whole time?”
The blank-faced ElOISE nodded.
“Normally the hypnosis works perfectly, but from the middle of class you stopped using it?”
“That’s because… as soon as I sat next to you, breathing became easy.”
“You? I didn’t do anything special.”
“I don’t know why, but only your scent didn’t reek. That’s why I called you over.”
Unfortunately, she would never get the answer she wanted. How could she possibly realize she had been hypnotized?
“Still, no suspicion about your suddenly improved sense of smell? It would be strange if you didn’t think anything of it.”
“I was planning to ask the church to do a blessing check as soon as I get the chance. Probably because of what happened in the Black Market…”
From the way she trailed off, it seemed she wasn’t even sure herself.
“Speaking of the church… I heard they can cast divine power to purify curses.”
At my words, ElOISE nodded.
I was slightly curious too. Could the church’s divine power actually break my hypnosis? It was a problem I would have to check someday.
“Anyway, we’ll deal with that later…”
It was time to enjoy the girl currently under my hypnosis. Since ordinary enjoyment was boring, I decided to tease her.
“Hey, ElOISE. Can you hear my voice clearly?”
“Yes…”
“Serina in front of you—a commoner—showed a completely unacceptable attitude toward a noble like you. Correct?”
The hazy ElOISE nodded.
“So the noble you should teach the commoner Serina a lesson. How about that?”
“Yes… that is correct.”
Watching her obediently follow my lead, I continued the hypnosis.
“But normal punishment won’t work. I’ve endured your harassment for quite a long time.”
There was no violence like broken bones, but that didn’t matter.
“So you should give me a punishment that will break your own pride.”
“Break my pride…?”
ElOISE asked as if she didn’t understand. I smiled wickedly.
“The method is simple: make you suck my penis.”
“...?”
Her face twisted as if she had heard a weird joke. When I shrugged my shoulders, as if asking if there was a problem, ElOISE’s eyes wavered in confusion.