"After spending a night in this cafe, I'm sure you've figured out that neither I nor Xilin and the others are from your world."
"To be honest, I don't intend to interfere in the affairs of other worlds. If I have to clean up every mess in every world, I won't be able to open this cafe anymore."
"Of course, since I have already made a promise to you, I will certainly help you solve the troubles with Kiana."
"only--"
Suddenly, the store manager changed the subject:
"Before that, shouldn't you pay for the damage you caused last night?"
This sudden and outrageous move caught Kiana and Raiden Mei off guard. They looked at each other and saw similar confusion and dumbfounded looks in each other's eyes. They didn't understand why the topic had suddenly taken such a big turn.
They knew it the next second, because the door of the cafe was suddenly pushed in from the outside. Raiden Mei and Kiana then realized that the cafe had actually been open for business for a long time, and it was obviously not a wise choice to discuss these problems of Kiana in front of other customers.
The two girls took a deep breath, sorted out their complicated emotions, turned around at the same time, and were stunned at the same time.
The customer who walked into the hall was a capable woman in military uniform, with a well-proportioned figure and elegant posture, and the sound of her high heels touching the ground was extremely capable.
The customer who entered the hall immediately locked his eyes on the store manager sitting behind the bar. After seeing the store manager's face, an expression of embarrassment and slight indignation immediately emerged on the customer's face.
She opened her mouth as if she was about to say something, but at this moment, a shout with a hint of surprise made her hold back the words that were about to come out.
"B...Bronya...?"
The person who spoke was Mei Raiden. After seeing the customer's face, a look of disbelief appeared on her face, and she blurted out the name that came to her mind.
"Hmm?" Hearing someone calling his name, the customer subconsciously turned his gaze towards Raiden Mei, sizing her up with obvious confusion on his face, "Yes, I'm Bronya, may I ask who you are..."
The corner of the store manager's mouth curled up slightly. He shook the empty glass, stood up leisurely, opened the curtain and walked into the kitchen. The sound of running water immediately came from the kitchen.
"Wait, aren't you the girl from yesterday?" Before Mei Raiden could answer the customer, the latter's body shook violently as if she suddenly realized something, and her expression became a little nervous.
She walked up to Raiden Mei in two steps and asked worriedly, "Mother... No, did Cocolia do anything bad to you?"
"But... Cocolia? Bad things mean..." Looking at the other party's anxious yet polite posture, Raiden Mei's mind was a little confused. She couldn't understand why Bronya in front of her suddenly said Cocolia's name.
The elegant girl in military uniform recalled everything that happened in the store yesterday afternoon with a serious expression: "If I remember correctly, she claimed yesterday afternoon that she would turn you into a being called a Herrscher... I think that's the name."
Mei Raiden was even more confused: "But, I've already been a Herrscher."
Hearing this, the girl in military uniform immediately revealed a painful expression.
"Damn it...Is it still a step too late?"
She quietly turned her head to the side and glanced at the door curtain behind the bar. After confirming that the store manager seemed to be washing something in the kitchen and would not be able to come out for a while, she stretched out her hands and held the palms of Raiden Mei, with a dignity and determination like a defender in her eyes. She whispered: "If you encounter any trouble, you can tell me. Although I am not from your side, I am also a believer of the Amber King. If you seek refuge from the City Builders, as the Great Guardian, I will do my best to protect your safety in the name of preservation."
"Eh?"
Amber King? Protector? City Builder? Raiden Mei's eyes were full of messy circles.
What the hell is going on here? Why does Bronya look so weird?
"Hey, hey, hey, that's enough."
At this time, the store manager lifted the kitchen door curtain, and on the plate in his hand were two glasses of kiwi juice, four steaming cheese toasts and four white grilled sausages.
"Although she is a temporary employee, she is still my employee. Isn't it a bit unreasonable for you to poach my employees in front of me, the store manager?"
"Shop, clerk?" The girl in military uniform was stunned. She blinked her eyes silly and couldn't believe her ears for a moment.
"Yeah, I'm a coffee shop after all, so it's not surprising to hire a few people when I'm short of staff."
He placed the plate on the counter, then pouted at Raiden Mei: "Go, find a table and have breakfast with Kiana."
Mei Raiden was a little unresponsive for a moment: "Huh? Is this for us?"
"Who else can I give it to if not you? Rita and Xilin have already eaten. Stargazing and Brownie probably won't get up until noon. I'm not used to eating too much for breakfast, so I'll just have a cup of hot milk to cope with it. You two are probably the only ones who are still hungry."
"Time is limited, so I can only bake a few loaves for you. Kiana has such a big appetite, I don't know if it will be enough. If not, tell me."
Kiana and Raiden Mei were both stunned.
The store manager had been acting domineering just now, but at this moment, the two girls clearly felt a strange concern from each other.
No, if you must say it, this kind of care itself is not weird. At least for Mei Raiden and Kiana, they themselves have felt similar warmth from their elders. This warm feeling is plain and natural, but logically speaking, it should not appear on the store manager in any case.
The store manager seemed to be completely unaware of how much confusion his unconscious actions had caused to Mei Raiden and Kiana. After casually giving breakfast instructions to the two temporary employees, the store manager turned his gaze towards Bronya, who had a complicated expression. The corners of his mouth raised slightly, and his face showed the gentle smile he always had when treating customers: "So, my guest, what would you like to drink?"
The gap between his attitude towards strangers and customers and his attitude towards Kiana and Raiden Mei was immediately apparent.
If, before the manager spoke to Bronya, Mei Raiden and Kiana could still comfort themselves that this might just be the manager's serious attitude towards work, now, their mood became more and more confused.
The elegant girl in military uniform pursed her lips. She secretly glanced at the plate on the bar and swallowed inconspicuously: "Does your cafe also provide breakfast?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a very strong gurgling sound was heard.
That voice was not elegant at all. The capable guardian froze for a moment, and then her face turned red at a speed visible to the naked eye. She slapped the bar and argued for herself in a panic:
"No, no, no, that's not it! I just, I just haven't had time to eat breakfast yet...!"
"Why are you explaining this to a coffee shop manager like me?" The corners of the manager's mouth twitched, as if he was trying to hold back a laugh. He opened the drawer behind the bar and took out a menu. "Of course we have breakfast. What do you want to eat?"
"It doesn't have to be complicated, just do the same as theirs..." The guardian lowered his head, his voice weak and faint.
"Okay, do you want me to take you to a location?"
"No, that's not necessary." Bronya turned her gaze towards Mei Raiden, "Would it be convenient for us to share a table?"
"Uh..." Mei Raiden glanced at the empty hall and felt like she had a complaint stuck in her chest, not knowing whether she should complain or not.
"Okay, okay!" Seeing that Raiden Mei seemed to be still a little hesitant, Kiana quickly agreed, "I'm also curious about how Mei knew you. Your name is Bronya, right? What a coincidence, I also know a girl named Bronya!"
"Really?" Bronya, who was dressed in military uniform, also smiled. "It seems that the three of us are really destined to meet. I hope I can get along well with you."
Chapter 4 Xing: Godfather! Come on! (k)
Outside the frosted window was a windless and cloudless blue sky. The blurry skylight enveloped the place, and the misty sunlight fell into the lobby of the cafe, leaving a slight warmth on the profiles of the three girls.
"The Bronya you know turned out to be a little kid." The guardian in military uniform sipped the sweet and sour refreshing exotic juice, then gently took a bite of the crispy toast, a hint of surprise flashing across his eyes.
"Yes, she is small in size, just like our sister." Raiden Mei's mouth corners slightly raised with a hint of joy.
"Tsk, how can a sister snatch things from adults?" Kiana took a bite of sausage and spoke with a hint of complaint in her tone, but judging from her crescent-shaped narrowed eyes, her mood was obviously not as resentful as it seemed.
"Haha, you, you claim to be an adult, but you're still angry with a little sister." Raiden Mei shook her head helplessly and said meaningfully, "Compared to Bronya, it's hard to say who is more childish."
"Who told that dwarf to always act so condescending in front of me? He knows I like Mei the most, but he always jumps out to be a light bulb and gets in the way." Kiana chewed the half sausage in her mouth indignantly. The way she chewed hard was as if she regarded the sausage as an enemy. "It makes me angry just thinking about it."
"Pfft." Bronya, who was wearing a military uniform, couldn't help but chuckle. "It seems that you and that little Bronya have a better relationship than I thought."
"Well... I can't deny it." Kiana raised her empty left hand and scratched her silver hair. "Although she always looks very annoying, Bronya is indeed a companion worthy of our trust."
As she spoke, Kiana couldn't help but sigh softly: "I wonder when Bronya will be able to find her childhood playmate."
"Believe her. Although there have been constant frictions along the way, Bronya's ability and belief are also obvious to everyone." Raiden Mei chuckled. She turned her head and looked at the blurry but warm sky outside the window. She couldn't help but sigh like Kiana, "Even though I said that...but the situation over there is indeed a little worrying."
"What do you mean?" Bronya, who was wearing a military uniform, put down the cup in her hand. "Has the Bronya you know run into any trouble?"
"Rather than saying it's a trouble..." Raiden Mei considered her words and suddenly turned her gaze to Bronya in front of her, "Oh, by the way, I almost forgot, Bronya... Is it okay for me to call you that?"
Bronya, in military uniform, smiled. "Of course, no problem. I am very happy to communicate with you. If it is helpful to you, you can treat me as the friend you know."
"Then you can just call me Mei." Raiden Mei pondered for a moment, "Bronya, can you tell me? When you first saw me, why did you suddenly ask me that question? And you also said... Cocolia claimed yesterday afternoon that she would turn me into a being called Herrscher?"
"Huh? Don't you know it yet?" Bronya was stunned for a moment.
"No, I know she plans to turn me into a Herrscher, but this matter should have been decided a long time ago." Raiden Mei shook her head.
Bronya hesitated for a moment. "When I visited yesterday, I saw you lying on the table of this cafe. Then Cocolia... or rather Cocolia from your world suddenly broke in. She tried to take you away and said a lot of things that I couldn't understand at all."
"It's just that the manager of this cafe told me that Cocolia's actions were equivalent to forcing an innocent citizen to commit a crime. As a great guardian who carries out the will of preservation, I certainly can't just ignore this, so I stopped Cocolia."
Mei Raiden was stunned. She and Kiana, who was also stunned, looked at each other and said in astonishment, "Yesterday? But I came to this cafe for the first time last night."
"Huh?" Bronya was also stunned, "But I clearly saw..."
At this moment, the door of the cafe suddenly opened again.
The three people sitting around the floor-to-ceiling window turned their heads subconsciously, and saw a gray-haired girl in trendy clothes pushing open the door of the cafe. Her expression was cold, and her slim windbreaker and slit skirt swayed gently in the breeze.
Mei Raiden and Kiana's eyes shrank slightly. They did not know this cold girl with slightly scattered gray hair, but the moment she pushed open the door, the scene outside the door made the two girls who grew up on Earth feel as if they were dreaming.
"Eh? Those buildings outside..." Not only them, but even Fu Hua, who used Kiana's eyes to see the scene outside the door, couldn't help but let out a voice full of astonishment, "...the ancient style of Shenzhou?"
Vehicles that looked like wooden boats were traveling at high speed in the blue sky. Planets that were larger than the sun were suspended in the air. Tall ancient buildings were everywhere. The Jade Gate that spanned the sky and the earth was emitting a mysterious glow in the distance.
Although the architectural style is extremely similar to the ancient Chinese style that Fu Hua is familiar with, there is no doubt that the scenery outside the door, which is similar to that of a science fiction movie, is by no means what ancient China should have.
Compared with Kiana, Mei Raiden, and Fu Hua hidden in Kiana's body, Bronya also showed a somewhat surprised expression after seeing the scene outside the door, but as the supreme ruler of Beloberg, she quickly adjusted her mood, and immediately stood up to greet the customers outside the door.
"Pioneer, long time no see."
The cold grey-haired woman glanced at Bronya and said, "But didn't we just meet yesterday?"
Bronya was choked and almost speechless, and a strong feeling of powerlessness arose spontaneously.
From the bottom of her heart, Bronya actually admired this heroic beauty who saved Yarilo No. 6 with a heavenly fire that burned everything. But on another level, she had to admit that she, who had received a harsh education, was not very good at communicating with a cold girl with extremely weird thinking.
She still remembers the first time she faced Sambo when she was abducted to the lower area by him. It was clear that not long ago, she was still chasing him on Cocolia's orders, but after they met, that guy shamelessly stretched out his hands to her who had threatened her, and said - "Please arrest me!" Such weird words directly confused the serious and capable Bronya.
But having said that, Bronya had to admit that this straightforward speaking style was quite to her liking. It would be great if this guy's thinking circuit could be more like a normal person.
After being speechless for a long while, Bronya sighed softly: "Pioneer, what are you doing in this cafe?"
"Is there anything else we can do in the cafe?" the gray-haired girl asked calmly.
So Bronya was at a loss for words again.
"Well, I mean, if you just want to drink coffee, you don't need to find this special coffee shop, right?"
The store manager behind the bar couldn't stand it any longer: "Hey, hey, hey, what nonsense are you preaching to my lovely customers? Are you here to mess things up?"
"No, no, I, I don't mean that!" Bronya was almost numb, "I just want to say that compared to drinking coffee, the pioneers came to your coffee shop that can connect different worlds, there must be other, more far-reaching purposes!"
"That's indeed true." The cold Miss Pioneer touched her chin. She first closed the store door, then stretched out her pair of well-proportioned and beautiful long legs, walked to the bar with crisp footsteps, lowered her head, and looked at the store manager with a calm and indifferent gaze.
Just when Bronya, Raiden Mei, and Kiana all thought that this cool and cool girl would express some insightful opinions, the pioneer girl extended her hand to the store manager and said concisely: "Anything else? Hang up."
The young store manager's eyes twitched violently. He stared at Miss Pioneer who was speaking with confidence. His mind was a little stuck, but he unexpectedly felt that there was no sense of incongruity in hearing such words coming from her mouth.
Bronya tilted her head, not quite understanding what Miss Pioneer was saying. Raiden Mei also showed a hint of obvious confusion. Only Kiana, a veteran video game novice, jumped up at once.
"Hey! What sinful thing are you asking the store manager for?! I hate people who cheat when playing games the most in my life!"
Miss Pioneer turned her head and glanced at Kiana, who was grinning and looking fierce. She was silent for a moment and nodded.
"Indeed, if they are not dead, do Gu Lao Meng Hua and Xing Qiong have them? Or fuel would be fine too."
The store manager rolled his eyes, shook his hands helplessly, and said unhappily, "We don't have any Gu Lao Meng Hua, Xing Qiong, or Fuel, but we do have some Shui Jing and Ying Kuchikamizak left. Do you want some?"
"want."
"I want your head! I've been out of business for so long, where can I find crystals for you?" The store manager couldn't help but chop Miss Pioneer on the head with a knife. He supported his forehead and rubbed it for a long time, and finally exhaled a weak breath, "You've gone to a new place again?"
"Well, Xianzhou Luofu, our current location is Xingcha Sea." Miss Pioneer pulled over a bar stool and sat on it, crossing her arms on the bar, "Also, we've run into some trouble again."
The store manager smiled weakly: "It's been a troubled journey, but at least no one is chasing you this time."
"Well, it's a blessing in disguise." Miss Pioneer nodded.
Bronya's face turned slightly red, and Mei Raiden and Kiana scratched their hair at the same time, their confused expressions silently declaring that these two Earth residents were completely out of the situation.
"Where are your companions? Are you the only one here today?" asked the store manager.
"I'm the only one who found this cafe." Miss Pioneer nodded, her expression as indifferent as ever, but what she said was quite off the mark: "Manager, is this cafe of yours the kind of travel store in the game? The kind that I can unlock every time I arrive in a new area?"
"...No, if that's the case, why didn't the Black Tower Space Station find your cafe?"
Suddenly, Miss Pioneer touched her chin and revealed an expression as if she was thinking about something: "Could it be that there are still areas in the space station that I haven't unlocked yet?"
The store manager nodded in agreement: "Well, it will probably be available after the next version update."
"The store manager knows?" Miss Pioneer asked with her eyes brightening, "Then do you know how long it will take for the version update?"
"About forty-two days... Bah! What a bullshit version update! You really treat your journey as a game!" The store manager widened his eyes and roared.
"...but you clearly told me the exact number of days." Miss Pioneer looked back at the store manager's eyes without any fear. Her voice was cold and lacked emotion, and was obviously quite indifferent. However, the store manager clearly caught a hint of deep-hidden grievance in Miss Pioneer's tone.
"It's just a metaphor! Do you understand metaphor?" The store manager stretched his upper body forward slightly, using his hands and feet to defend himself. He rolled his eyes, thought for a moment, and suddenly pointed in the direction of Bronya. "If you really treat this as a game, the first thing you should do is to lure Bronya onto the train."
"Wait, what does this have to do with me?!" Bronya was confused.
"Hmm..." Miss Pioneer turned her head, narrowed her eyes, and looked at Bronya carefully with an almost scrutinizing look.
That meaningful look made Bronya feel a chill down her spine.
