On the bustling commercial pedestrian street, two women strolled side by side, dressed in casual attire.
"Speaking of which," Himeko remarked, glancing at the golden-haired girl's new attire, "when you were first brought to St. Freya, that outfit of yours was quite striking."
"That outfit?" Snow replied thoughtfully. "It was designed for ease of movement—what Shenzhou would call a 'fitted uniform.' It's quite different from the casual clothes we're wearing now. If you insist on drawing a comparison..."
"...it's more like your Valkyrie Battlesuit, wouldn't you say?"
"As for you..." Snow continued, her eyes shifting to Himeko. "Though your battlesuit conceals quite a bit... the makeup and accessories you were wearing back then..."
"You didn't actually run all the way to Nagazora City wearing some kind of formal evening gown, did you?" Snow asked, giving the woman beside her a peculiar look.
As if Snow had struck a nerve, Himeko's face flushed crimson, veins bulging visibly across her cheeks.
"It's all because of you brats! You ruined my vacation and date, damn it!"
"I was actually quite fond of that pretty boy!"
"And what happens? I end up leading a bunch of greenhorns who've barely seen a real fight, preparing for a seven-day-and-seven-night showdown with a Herrscher!"
"And then you swoop in and one-shot the Herrscher! Just as I was about to get killed! If you'd been even a minute earlier or later, I could have been spared this mess!"
"My vacation's ruined, the monster I was supposed to fight gets snatched away halfway through... What did I do to piss off the universe these past few days? My luck's been utterly cursed!"
"Uh... sorry?" Blue eyes met Himeko's, brimming with genuine remorse.
"Save your apologies. I'm just venting. If it weren't for you, I and the Hyperion would have been toast."
"Right, so where's this café we're headed to? It must be pretty special if it can get the Headmaster to sneak out of her office to slack off."
"We're almost there. The store manager is an old acquaintance of mine—Aria, formerly an A-rank Valkyrie from Schicksal Headquarters."
"When Theresa established St. Freya Academy, Aria happened to be applying for retirement. I immediately pulled her over. Headquarters is a hellhole; only the brainless fools would want to stay there."
"So, what's the name of the café?"
"Hmm... Coffee Cup..."
"?"
"Just Coffee Cup," Himeko explained, noticing the girl's confused expression.
"Such a simple and straightforward name..." Snow's lips twitched into a wry smile.
"Oh? We're here!" Himeko, who had been chatting with Snow the whole way, glanced up at the sign beside them. Without realizing it, they had reached their destination.
"I'll go check where Theresa's hiding. Snow, find a seat and make yourself comfortable." Himeko waved to the girl and headed inside the café.
The café's exterior was simple and unassuming. A dark sign hung above the entrance, bearing no text—only a white-painted coffee cup and three differently styled kittens.
Looks like a cat café? The girl thought, gazing at the three cats on the sign. Just then, she felt something tug at her ankle.
It was a cat with soft, gray fur and strikingly emerald-green eyes, staring curiously at the newcomer it had never seen before.
"Wein—grabbing customers' clothes is impolite, you know," a gentle female voice called from inside the café. As the girl examined the sign, a woman with long, pale blue hair appeared behind the counter.
Her blue eyes, slightly lighter than Kiana and Snow's, shone with a warm smile as she looked at the golden-haired girl standing outside and the cat at her feet.
"Won't you come in and have a seat, newcomer?" the blue-haired woman invited Snow.
"An invitation from such a beautiful lady? I can't find any reason to refuse," Snow replied with a smile and a nod. She scooped up the gray cat beside her and pushed open the café door.
"It seems Wein really likes you," the woman remarked, tilting her head adorably as she looked at the cat in Snow's arms.
"Wein? Is that the cat's name?"
"Yes, it is~"
The gray cat, nestled in the girl's arms, curled up contentedly against her chest, its emerald eyes narrowed to slits in apparent bliss.
"Then, newcomer, what should I call you?" the blue-haired woman asked with a warm smile.
"Snow. Just call me Snow."
"Snow... like a snowflake? That's a lovely name," the blue-haired woman nodded approvingly.
"So you must be Miss Aria, the one Himeko mentioned?" Snow asked, her tone precise as she gazed at the woman before her.
"Call me Aria-nee~ Oh, so Himeko brought you here? Hmm... would you like something to drink?" Aria offered a menu.
"Uh... a macchiato, I guess?" Snow scanned the extensive menu, recalling her past preference for sweeter coffees.
"A macchiato? I've got it!" Aria smiled warmly and lowered her head to begin preparing the drink.
Freshly ground coffee was blended with fresh milk, topped with a layer of freshly frothed milk foam, and drizzled with caramel syrup. The caramel paste created a lattice-like pattern around the rim of the cup. In no time, a Macchiato Coffee was ready in the blue-haired woman's hand.
"Here you go, Miss. Your Macchiato Coffee," Aria said, placing the coffee on the counter and sliding it toward the blonde girl seated there.
"Hmm... not bad," the girl remarked after taking a small sip.
"Thank you for the compliment... Since Snow is a guest brought by Himeko, where is Himeko herself?" Aria asked, watching the girl sip her coffee.
"Himeko? She rushed into the cafe earlier, saying she was here to catch Your Excellency, the Headmaster, slacking off... Didn't you see her, Aria-nee?"
Just as the words left the girl's lips, a cacophony of shattering ceramics and glass erupted from the cafe's second floor, followed by the thud of heavy objects crashing to the ground.
"...Himeko!" The warm smile on Aria's face crumbled instantly. A furious roar reverberated through the cafe's ground floor.
"What a peaceful day, slurp~" Snow murmured, sipping her Macchiato Coffee and watching the Store Manager, whose personality had completely collapsed, charge upstairs with a broom in hand, utterly ignoring the escalating commotion from the second floor.
"Meow~" The cat sprawled across her lap echoed the girl's words, lazily rolling over before settling back down to nap contentedly on her thigh, eyes half-closed.
-
"Miss Aria, I'm so sorry!!!"
Snow sat nearby, watching with amusement as Aria scolded Himeko and Theresa, whom she had dragged down from upstairs. The pair hung their heads like defeated roosters.
"Anyway, slacking off at work is unacceptable! Headmaster, have you finished processing those documents? Or did you dump them on your Adjutant again?!"
"And you, Himeko! Isn't it teaching time? Abandoning your students to that Fu Hua child—doesn't your conscience ache?"
That Fu Hua child... Snow's expression twisted slightly as she watched from the sidelines.
The scolding continued. The golden-haired girl beside her licked the last bit of milk foam from her cup. Then, the lunch break bell rang throughout the academy, finally ending Aria's prolonged lecture.
"Alright... enough about you two. It's getting late. Let me make you something to eat," the blue-haired woman sighed and returned behind the counter.
"Yay! Aria's the best!" Theresa chirped, hopping onto a nearby chair and meeting Snow's curious gaze head-on.
"Uh... you're here too?" Theresa's face flushed with embarrassment under the golden-haired girl's scrutiny.
"...I've been here since before Store Manager Aria dragged you and Himeko down from upstairs, you know."
"Ah ha ha ha... Let's not talk about that! Let's not talk about that! Snow, what do you think of this place? It's great, right? I personally chose this spot for Aria!" Sensing the situation was turning sour and desperate to salvage her remaining dignity as Headmaster, Theresa swiftly changed the subject.
Hearing Theresa's question, Aria paused her work and looked at Snow with a hint of anticipation.
"Hmm...? The coffee is delicious, the Store Manager is so kind, the cats are adorable... and who knew you had such a keen eye for military strategy, Headmaster?"
"Huh?" Theresa looked puzzled by Snow's final compliment.
"Even though Aria's café is exquisitely decorated, that can't hide its true nature."
"Hmm... Just put up some sandbags, pour in concrete, and add two heavy weapons teams..."
"I could seal off the entire block." The girl narrowed her eyes, gazing out the window as if assessing weapon firing arcs.
"...As a street-side permanent fortification... I'd give it a perfect 100 points."
"Don't show off your bizarre knowledge in such odd places, jeez—!" The three remaining patrons in the café grimaced, staring at the girl who was earnestly contemplating turning the place into a bunker.