Chapter 1953: Neo Baby Castella Blend ⑤

It seems that the direction for Kuro's Neo Baby Castella Blend has been somewhat decided, and like the other new products, they're aiming for a release the month after next.

The next morning, I headed towards Elise-san's shop. When it comes to coffee enthusiasts, Ozma-san is the first person who comes to mind, but the place closest to my home is Elise-san's shop.

Now that I think about it, I don't actually know where Ozma-san lives...... The most likely possibility is that he resides in Megiddo-san's castle, but it wouldn't be strange if he had another place as well.

Anyway, I planned to ask about that with a hummingbird and then head out with the samples for promotion, so I decided to go visit Elise-san first.

Elise-san is usually at the shop except on her regular holidays, and she says she rarely goes out, so the likelihood of her being at the shop is high.

And so I visited Elise-san's shop but......

[......Geh.]

[Ah, hello...... Temporarily Closed?]

Elise-san was just outside the shop, about to hang a sign on the entrance door that said "Temporary Closed."

[......Just as always, you had to come at the most inconvenient times, Human-san. Well, it's fine. You must have something you need, right? Hurry up and come in.]

[Eh/ Is that alright? If you're closing up shop for the day, that means you must have some errands to run......]

[I have plans this afternoon and will be going out. Since it's a hassle to open just for the morning, I'll just temporarily close shop for today. Well, since I have time until noon, if it's Human-san, I can keep you company. If it's something troublesome, I'll just send you away, but for now, I'll hear you out.]

[I see, then excuse me for intruding.]

Her tone still has its usual sharpness...... or so it would seem, but the fact that she doesn't complain or try to chase me away makes me think she's actually quite a kind person.

Prompted by Elise-san, I entered the shop, and she prepared a chair for me.

[So, what's this about?]

[Actually, someone I know...... Or rather, Kuro...... the Underworld King gave me some samples of a new coffee she's planning to release in her company, so I came to share them and promote it......]

[......Underworld King-sama's company...... Coffee...... Are you talking about Dual Star Trading Company's new product!?]

[No, I didn't know the name of the company but...... judging by your reaction, it seems to be quite famous.]

It seems like that coffee company is even more famous than I thought...... I knew Kuro's companies were top-notch in their respective fields, but Elise-san's reaction was unexpected.

[......Human-san...... You actually visit with some good news for once huh.]

[You're saying it as if I always come with bad news......]

[I wouldn't say always, but it's true that you often visit bringing along troublesome matters. Putting aside if Human-san intended it or not....... Well, that's just how you are. So, what kind of new product is it?]

[It seems they're going to release several new products, as I got a lot of samples. I'll arrange them on the table.]

Elise-san seems quite interested in the new coffee products, but not in an unusually intense way like Ein-san. I mean, I guess that's just how Ein-san is...... Jutia-san also seems to lose her composure when it comes to tea-related matters.

Well, in any case, Elise-san reacted with a slight increase in enthusiasm, but overall, she maintains her usual demeanor.

[......There are quite a few varieties. Will these be released as a series...... Well, since we're at it, I'll brew one of them. Is there any particular one you'd like to try, Human-san?]

[I'm not very knowledgeable about coffee, so I'll leave it up to you.]

[Fumu, then something with a neutral flavor should be good...... Let's see...... Let's go with this one. I'll go brew it, so wait a moment.]

[Ah, yes. Thank you.]

Elise-san went to the back of the shop and, after a short while, came out with freshly brewed coffee, placing it in front of me along with a piece of cake.

[You brought something nice, so I'm serving you cake as well.]

[Thank you....... By the way, isn't that brewing process quite fast? Is coffee usually brewed that quickly?]

[Oh, it's quite expensive, but there's a specialized magical tool that uses Space-Time Magic to speed up the extraction process. Since I'm a dedicated coffee enthusiast, I have quite a few coffee-related magic tools.]

[I see, that sounds quite convenient.]

[Yeah, it's convenient alright, but it's really expensive, so not many people buy it. It's also quite large, so it's generally suited for use in coffee shops or stores.]

Elise-san sat down at the seat across from me and began chatting while enjoying her coffee. It's just, the cake was only served to me, there was none in front of Elise-san.

[Arehh? What about your portion of cake, Elise-san?]

[I'm not really fond of cake. The one I served you is from those I kept to serve to guests, so I just brought out Human-san's portion.]

[I see.]

[......Hmm, this blend is nice. It has no strong flavors and seems to pair well with anything.]

After answering briefly, the conversation shifted to the new coffee products, and just like that, I spent some time chatting with Elise-san about coffee.

<Afterword>

Serious-senpai : [For guests....... Considering Elise's personality, it's probably meant for Kaito and Alice, right?]

? ? ? : [No, she doesn't even offer me tea, always having this strong "just hurry up and go home" aura, so it's probably cake she bought for Kaito-san.]

Serious-senpai : [Well, Alice showing up = orders from the top, and even in casual conversations, she always had that "just hurry up and go home" vibe, so if you think about it, I guess she's relatively soft with Kaito......]