Adventurer's Guild Café: I Was Wrongfully Exiled by the Saint, So I Will Enjoy My Second Life with My Fluffy Friends-Chapter 2.4 - Pointing Out Special Skills

When the café first opened, it was bustling with activity, but as time passed, it gradually settled down. We still get a variety of customers, but the atmosphere has become more relaxed, and I’ve started to feel more at ease.

At first, I only stayed behind the counter, but with Ruri teaching me how to handle customers, I’ve started practicing taking orders.

“Lulu, have you put on a little weight?”

“Ru~?”

Today, it’s raining.

The soft sound of raindrops dancing on the ground can be heard.

Perhaps because of the rain, the café is nearly empty.

Lulu, who loves napping in sunny spots, was today gazing up at the gray sky by the window. It seems the rain is a novelty to her.

While mopping the floor, I crouched down next to Lulu and gently petted her fluffy head with my fingers. Lulu, looking pleased, rubbed her head against me.

“You’ve gotten bigger too... Hmm, is this normal for a Carbuncle? Speaking of which, how do they evolve?”

“Ru!”

Lulu swished her soft, fluffy tail in a little circle.

She seemed to puff out her chest, as if to say, I didn’t get fat; I grew up! It was amusing.

Lulu had fully taken on the role of the café’s “mascot Carbuncle” with her silver ribbon.

She’s such a rarity that some customers even visit the café just to see her.

When she sweetly begs for food, everyone melts and ends up feeding her.

I do tell her not to bother the customers, and it seems she understands. She avoids those who don’t like animals.

She’s very strategic, cozying up to the customers who seem likely to spoil her.

Still, everyone finds Lulu so adorable that they can’t help but fuss over her.

Most people seem to think I’m Lulu’s owner and often ask how we met.

But really, Lulu just stays by my side—it’s not quite like I’m her owner, and I certainly didn’t “tame” her, so I always struggle to answer.

(For some reason, some people think I’m an amazing monster tamer...)

“Don’t trouble the customers too much, okay?”

“Ru~”

“And don’t eat too many sweets, either.”

“Roon~”

Lulu loves fruit jam cooked with plenty of sugar.

Whenever Dan bakes jam pies, she absolutely begs for them.

On the other hand, she seems to dislike spicy things, like chili peppers.

“Kuna.”

“Ah, sorry!”

While petting Lulu and gazing out the window, I suddenly noticed Dan standing behind me.

Startled, I quickly stood up, realizing I had been slacking off on mopping.

“No, it’s not that. Sorry, but I need to take care of something at Yan’s shop... Could you watch the café for a bit? Ruri should be back soon.”

Dan looked at me apologetically.

There weren’t any customers at the moment.

Still, he was worried about what might happen if someone came in while I was on my own.

“I’ll be back soon. If anyone orders something like a light meal, could you ask them to wait a little?”

Being left alone to watch the café was a bit nerve-wracking…

But Dan seemed to have an urgent errand, so I had no choice but to step up and handle things.

“Don’t worry! Lulu and I will hold down the fort just fine!”

I said this confidently while Lulu gave a little flick of her tail.

Seeing this, Dan looked relieved and thanked me.

“Thank you. I’ll be back soon.”

“Okay. Take care.”

Dan left the café and walked into the guild hall.

Because of the rain, the guild was quiet, with hardly any people around.

I figured no customers would show up for a while, so I retreated back into the café and resumed cleaning.

◆

“Roon.”

As I cleaned and listened to the sound of the rain, washing teacups and such, Lulu, who was perched on my shoulder, lightly poked my cheek.

“Hm?”

I placed the washed teacup on the drying rack and lifted my head.

“Ah...”

W-What is happening…

Even though both Dan and Ruri are gone, a customer has come in…

The person who walked into the café on this rainy day was a tall man dressed in black attire.

I froze for a moment, but as the man looked around, I hurriedly greeted him.

“Welcome! P-Please feel free to choose a seat!”

“Ah, thank you.”

Up close, the man had an unexpectedly beautiful face.

He appeared to be in his late twenties.

He had glossy black hair and deep blue eyes. When viewed from a different angle, his eyes almost seemed to have a hint of green, like a strange gemstone.

Noblemen from the country of Aluda were often good-looking, but I had never seen someone with such a stunning face.

On the back of his high-quality black clothes, there was a silver thread embroidery of two crossed staffs, resembling a coat of arms.

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He wore white gloves on his hands.

Everything he wore clearly indicated that he was of high status.

Remembering the nobles from Aluda, I shivered a little.

But now, there was no one else in the café, so I had no choice but to serve him.

The man sat at a window-side seat, glanced at the menu, and then said:

“I’d like a cup of coffee.”

“Y-Yes!”

The order came quickly.

I almost faltered in surprise.

“Y-Yes, of course…”

Since there were no other orders and it was just a drink, I was able to handle it despite my nervousness.

I awkwardly made my way back to the kitchen.

◆

“I-I was surprised…”

After calming myself down, I began my work.

While grinding the coffee beans in the mill, I glanced over at the man.

He was staring blankly out the window, watching the rain fall.

“Roo.”

As for Lulu, she seemed completely unconcerned.

After briefly checking my hands, she yawned widely on the counter table and curled up into a ball.

It seemed she wasn’t impressed with the coffee order this time.

After grinding the beans, I followed the procedure Dan had taught me to brew the coffee.

Since I was using a siphon method, I was able to make it with a consistent level of taste, even though I was still learning.

There were a few tips on timing the extraction and stirring, but I was happy to find that it was easier than drip brewing.

“I-I hope this is okay…”

After pouring the coffee into the cup, I nervously peeked at the customer.

He was still staring blankly out the window.

“…It’s okay. This isn’t Aluda country, after all.”

Muttering that to myself, I placed the cup on the tray and moved towards the man.

“Th-Thank you for waiting.”

My voice cracked from the tension.

My tail was trembling, which was so embarrassing…

“Thank you.”

I only heard those words, and then I hurried back to the kitchen, almost as if escaping.

◆

For some reason, I couldn’t help but watch the man from a distance.

I wondered why.

He’s beautiful, but… how should I put it?

The way he stared out the window looked incredibly lonely, as if he was wrapped in an aura of solitude. He might even be younger than he seems.

Yet, there was an unusual calmness, silence, and a certain tiredness about him that you would expect from someone older.

As I stared at him, he took a sip from his cup.

Then, he shifted his gaze from the window to the cup.

“……”

His expression seemed like he was pondering something, as if something was bothering him.

After narrowing his eyes and thinking for a moment, he looked up and gazed at me.

“!”

I flinched and quickly averted my eyes.

What was that?

Did I do something strange?

Panicking, I saw him gesture for me to come over.

Eh… no way, what should I do?

A sudden wave of sweat broke out over my body.

Lulu was still happily napping, completely unfazed.

I didn’t know what to do and froze in place.

But the man clearly looked at me and spoke.

──“Come here.”

I couldn’t help but tremble as I nervously made my way toward him.

◆

“Uh, um…”

I lowered my ears and tail, standing in front of the man.

“……You.”

“Y-yes?”

I was trembling, and the man stared at me without changing his expression.

“…You put magic on this coffee.”

“Eh!?”

I was shocked, my eyes widening.

“M-Magic?”

I couldn’t possibly use magic. After all, I had no magical power.

“…There’s a small amount of magic mixed in.”

“Th-that’s not possible…! I didn’t do anything…!”

Was I in trouble for something I didn’t realize?

Sweating nervously, the man tilted his head.

“…Has it just recently awakened?”

“?”

I was still shaking, and the man looked at me carefully before sighing.

“…I’m not blaming you. I was just curious as to why you would do something like this to the coffee.”

“I really didn’t do anything…”

But then, I suddenly remembered the people who had looked at the drinks I made before, tilting their heads.

There was Kiril-san, and also Kurona-san. I think there were a few others who looked like they wanted to say something.

“Was it unconscious? That’s still a bit dangerous.”

“!”

Am I doing something dangerous…?

“I’ll consult Simon about this.”

The man said just that before finishing his coffee and standing up.

“The payment is here.”

“Ah…”

I have to say something… But I was sweating and my heart was pounding, so I couldn’t respond properly.

Seeing me like that, the man said quietly:

“I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

“Eh?”

“Thank you for the meal.”

He said that, and then, with a flick of his black coat, he left the café.

◆

After I dazedly saw the man off, I was still lost in thought when Ruri returned.

“Sorry, sorry! I ran into an acquaintance and got caught up in a conversation… Huh? Is it just you, Kuu-chan?”

Seeing me standing still inside the café, Ruri tilted her head in confusion.

“Ah, Ruri… welcome back.”

“You’re spaced out—did something happen?”

“…Actually…”

I told Ruri about what happened earlier.

After hearing my story, Ruri placed her hand on her chin and thought for a moment.

“Hmm, that must have been Gier.”

“Gier?”

“Yeah. Black hair, blue eyes, and wearing a coat embroidered with the crossed silver staffs symbol—sounds like no one other than Gier from the Staff Knight Order.”

“Staff Knight Order…”

Ruri smiled brightly.

“Gier was originally an S-rank adventurer, but now he’s been recognized for his skills and is the leader of the ‘Staff Knight Order,’ a group of knights protecting this town. He was even knighted and now holds a title.”

So, he really was a noble.

“Staff knights…?”

Still, I’d never heard of “staff knights” before.

Is there something different about them compared to normal knights?

“Yes, staff knights are warriors who primarily use magic in battle. Usually, magicians who use advanced magic need to follow complex procedures, which makes them slower in movement. But staff knights specialize in offensive magic and can also fight hand-to-hand. Only those who are intelligent and physically capable enough can become one.”

“Th-that’s amazing…”

But, why is someone like that here?

“The Staff Knight Order has quite a close relationship with the guild. If there’s something the knights can’t solve, the guild will help, and conversely, if there’s something the guild can’t handle, the knights will lend a hand. Gier probably had a meeting with Simon today, too.”

After nodding in agreement, Ruri grinned and looked at me.

“That guy, he usually doesn’t talk much, but he spoke to you, Kuu-chan.”

“?”

“Hmm,” Ruri nodded thoughtfully.

“Even someone as stiff as him can’t resist Kuu-chan’s cuteness, huh?”

“Ah… me…?”

That man said something about me putting something into the drink…

What could that have been?

When I told Ruri about it, her eyes widened.

“Huh? Kuu-chan put something in the drink?”

“Yes…”

Ruri tilted her head.

“I’ve drunk the tea Kuu-chan made for me a few times… but I just feel like it’s soothing, and I don’t really think much beyond that.”

“Yeah… I didn’t do anything like magic…”

I looked at my hands.

I was born without any magic power, which is something that people are supposed to be born with. There’s also a theory that beastkin naturally have very little magic power.

But even so, it was too much of a difference to be considered zero, as my stepmother once told me…

In Aluda, everyone believed that “magic is something you’re naturally born with.” So, magical tools were made only for people who could use magic, and there wasn’t anything I could use.

In this country, however, because many demi-humans live here, magic is distributed, which is a relief. I think the magical tools here are better than in Aluda, so they consume much more magic, and even regular magic users can’t operate them.

“Well, Gier is definitely not a bad person, so you don’t need to worry. If anything happens, he’ll definitely protect you. You were a little surprised by what he said, huh? Let’s have something delicious. I think Lulu’s probably hungry too.”

While I was lost in thought, Ruri gently took my hand in hers.

When I looked up, startled, Ruri was smiling.

“Now, tea time, tea time!”

Saying that, Ruri cheerfully pulled my hand and led me back to the kitchen.