arc2 · 079-ch79

Chapter 79: Let's Go Check Out That Café

Yesterday was a busy day in its own right. Still, I was glad I got to talk with Arihara-san directly. He even gave me advice about my Storage skill, and it sounds like if I show him the skill next time, he'll permit me to sell potions and such inside dungeons.

Now then, Mom said she had an interview at a nearby café today. She was dressed up nicely from the morning since she'd be meeting someone.

I'm also relieved that Umi seems to have gotten pretty used to commuting by bus. On top of that, Arihara-san pulled some strings and apparently had Umi's school route added to the police patrol route. Honestly, I never expected him to go that far, so I'm truly grateful. When Asahi gets back, I need to work hard so I can repay that debt.

Oh, that's right. Since I have the chance, why don't I go check out the café where Mom's interview is? The interview itself seems to be a bit later, so I'll go beforehand and see what kind of place it is.

When Mom asked if I wanted breakfast, I declined, told her I was stepping out for a bit, and took the elevator down to the first floor. As I walked through the spacious lobby, I felt a lot of eyes on me. Everyone was looking my way and whispering. They probably couldn't tell who I was with my new haircut.

I get the feeling they're saying things like, "Was there someone like that here?" Well, if I show my face a few more times, they'll remember me eventually.

I stepped outside the condo and arrived after about a ten-minute walk at a small but stylish café. The shop's name is "Harukaze." It looks like quite a nice place with a good atmosphere.

They apparently offer a morning set and open fairly early. I opened the wooden door and went inside. The shop had about five table seats, and there was an elderly man who appeared to be the owner, plus one middle-aged female staff member.

"Welcome... oh my, what a handsome young man!"

The auntie staff member complimented me the moment she saw me. These kinds of privately run shops often have a close distance between staff and customers. She's probably the type who compliments customers to turn them into regulars.

It seemed like they had just opened, so I was the only customer inside. I ordered the morning set from the Master and waited for my food to be ready.

Right, I'll check my emails on my phone while I wait.

(Let's see, let me review the D-rank party requests I bookmarked the other day... whoa, the requests have really piled up)

I knew this would happen, but the influence of the Dungeon Club stream and the Indomitable stream has caused F-rank and E-rank requests to skyrocket. There's no way I can check them one by one.

For now, I'll finish my now-routine search for "Sword Emperor," then go through the D-rank mailbox. I'm thinking of doing D-rank next since I've already filmed F and E.

However, this weekend I have transfer stone registration, and Hyakka Ryouran's floor 30 assault is also coming up. If I take a request, it'd be after that. Well, I should at least pick out some candidates.

(Let's see... 250 D-rank requests, huh. Just leaving them alone for a bit and they've really piled up. Some parties seem to have sent requests multiple times too. I should probably add a condition that they can only send one request per month)

Thinking about that, I started by skimming through the party names.

(Dungeon Cleaning Squad, Dragon Fang, Sato Fisheries Co., Ltd., Meathead Unit, Student Alliance Team A... wow, there's quite a variety)

I opened the emails from parties that caught my eye, checked their request details, and bookmarked the ones that interested me.

Just as I finished going through them, the morning set arrived, so I put my phone in my pocket and started eating.

Thick-cut toast grilled to a golden brown, shredded cabbage, mini tomatoes, and potato salad. I asked for corn soup instead of coffee for my drink. And it came with grilled bacon too. Quite a generous portion.

First, a bite of the toast. Mm, straight-up delicious. The salad was good too, dressed with a Chinese-style dressing. The best part was the bacon, grilled nice and crispy. I think it was seasoned with just salt and pepper, but the saltiness was spot-on—I couldn't help but nod in satisfaction.

This place has a great atmosphere, and both the Master and the auntie staff member seem kind, so I really hope Mom passes the interview and gets to work here. Satisfied with the meal, I paid the bill and headed back to the condo.

When I got home, Asahi still hadn't returned, so I sat down at my computer and got to work on some small tasks.

First, I reviewed the D-rank party request details I'd bookmarked earlier. I'd flagged quite a few parties, so it took longer than expected, but I settled on Sato Fisheries Co., Ltd.

It's not a group of male employees—it's a party of four male explorers. Apparently, company employees who awakened to promote the company's name became explorers, and before they knew it, they'd leveled up all the way to D-rank.

They say they've already left the company now that they're D-rank explorers, but back when they were new to the job, the company apparently backed them up quite a bit, and they haven't changed the party name as a way of repaying that debt.

The leader is Ounabara Atsushi-san, a rare Water Mage. Then there's Kawahara Tadashi-san, a Two-Handed Swordsman; Mizuhara Toru-san, a Spear Wielder; and finally Ikeda Naomochi-san, a Shortbow Archer—a four-person party.

Their preferred location is the Tokyo Skyscraper Dungeon. They're registered up to the tenth floor, so this request is for the floor 20 boss subjugation. Since the goal is boss subjugation, they want combat support to avoid unnecessary stamina drain—that was another deciding factor.

However, since this weekend is booked, I'll reply that filming will probably be next week. I listed a few available dates and sent it off.

After that, I confirmed patrol routes and decided what to do when Asahi gets back tomorrow. Between that and various other preparations, time flew by before I knew it.

Mom had already left for her interview, so I ate the fried rice she'd prepped in advance, and then decided to check my own stream videos.

I was going to watch footage I'd filmed before to find ways to improve my filming techniques, but the early Hyakka Ryouran and Kokushi Musou videos were so entertaining that I ended up getting completely absorbed in watching them, and before I knew it, it was already night.

Over dinner, I asked Mom about her interview—she said it went pretty well. Apparently the results come quickly, so I'll be praying she gets to work at that café.

Umi seems to be doing well at elementary school too. She says she's made more friends and it's more fun than before. Yeah, the way she phrased it implied it wasn't very fun before, but if she's enjoying herself now, that's what matters.

Now then, tomorrow Asahi's reinforcement will be finished and it comes back. I'll be heading out bright and early again, so I should go to bed early tonight. Or so I thought as I climbed into bed—but imagining a strengthened Asahi got me too excited, and I ended up lying awake for a while, unable to fall asleep.