"You really don't like Minami-kun? Not even a little?"
Takina Inoue's question made Rio Futaba pause for a moment.
Because, truthfully, she didn't even know the answer herself.
But—
Whether it was Takina Inoue or Chisato Nishikigi...
Rio felt that both of them definitely liked Minami.
If that was the case...
"I guess I have some affection for him," Rio replied, "but I don't like him."
"Is that so?"
Takina didn't press her like Chisato had, nor did she speak brazenly.
She simply responded calmly, then turned her gaze to Minami, who was still chatting with the manager Mika, and remarked meaningfully:
"I hope you really won't fall for Minami-kun, just like you said."
The atmosphere grew a little tense.
At that moment, Minami finished his conversation with the middle-aged manager and walked over to them.
Rio looked visibly relieved, as if she'd been saved.
She opened her mouth to speak—
But beside her, Takina had already bowed gracefully, her posture elegant as she addressed Minami. "Minami-kun."
"Uh..."
Rio couldn't help but glance at Takina.
Minami and Takina were about the same age, both part-time workers here.
Even if Takina liked him, wasn't this level of formality a bit much?
She didn't quite get it and decided to steer the conversation elsewhere. "By the way, Minami, earlier you mentioned you only work part-time at this café... What kind of work do you usually do? Dishwashing? Waiting tables?"
For a high school student working at a café, the typical tasks would be menial—dishwashing, cleaning, or serving customers.
That's what Rio thought—and what she asked.
But—
"Minami-kun is our temporary head chef here at LycoReco."
Before Minami could respond, Mika, the manager he'd been speaking with, stepped over and answered with a smile.
"Eh?!"
Rio's eyes went wide in disbelief.
Head chef?
Minami?
Of this café?
She couldn't hold back any longer. "Um... Manager-san, are you joking?"
You couldn't blame her for that reaction.
After all, the head chef is the lifeline of any restaurant, defining its standards.
In Japan, the head chef is often called the "taishou" (commander), a title reflecting deep respect.
The role of head chef is second only to the owner in importance.
And this critical role was given to a high school student who occasionally works part-time?
It sounded completely absurd.
So Rio's only possible conclusion was: This has to be a joke, right?
But—
"Mika's not joking. Minami-kun really is our temporary head chef at LycoReco."
Takina turned slightly, having caught Rio's inner doubts, and added:
"Actually, Mika even offered to hire Minami-kun as the café's permanent head chef, with forty percent of the daily revenue as his salary. But he declined."
Forty percent of the revenue?
Hiring a student as head chef at that rate?
Rio instinctively touched her ear, wondering if she'd misheard.
Forty percent of the café's earnings.
Paying out forty percent of the day's revenue as Minami's salary—what did that even mean?
Let's break it down, me.
The café LycoReco still had its own operational costs.
Ingredients, water, electricity, gas, staff wages—and on top of all that, Minami's forty percent cut?
Could this place even turn a profit?
It was so absurd that Rio Futaba was left speechless.
The real kicker…
She couldn't help but glance at Chisato Nishikigi and Takina Inoue.
Was she the only one who thought this whole situation was completely insane?
Seriously, how much faith did these people have in Minami?
And more importantly—could a café in such a lackluster location even break even, let alone profit?
As a girl of science, Rio couldn't wrap her head around it.
"Ehehe, here's our menu. Take a look if you're curious."
Maybe Chisato picked up on her thoughts, because she grinned and handed her a menu.
And then—
"..." Rio.
No.
"Are these prices… real?"
She stared numbly at Chisato.
In all her life, she had never imagined menu prices this absurd.
¥6,888 for a standard meal set.
¥8,888 for a premium meal set.
¥9,888 for a deluxe meal set.
What kind of pricing is this?!
Were they trying to fleece customers like sheep?
No—they weren't trying, they already were.
A single meal costing nearly ¥10,000?
For a high schooler, that could cover three or four full meals if spent wisely.
Closing the menu, Rio muttered—
"…I get it now."
Chisato giggled, taking the menu back. "Right? Now it makes sense."
"..." Rio.
Yeah, she definitely understood now.
With prices like these, LycoReco wasn't just profitable—it was probably raking in a fortune.
Almost ¥10,000 for one meal…
"I mean, I was shocked too at first, but since Minami-kun set the prices, I didn't say anything."
Chisato laughed.
Her reaction had been just like Rio's at the beginning—stunned by Minami's insane pricing.
"Again... Minami?"
Rio sucked in a sharp breath and looked over at him.
"Hmm?"
Minami happened to glance back, his clear, pure gaze meeting hers.
His elegant, harmless face made Rio visibly shiver.
I've been tricked.
That was all she could think.
She had been completely fooled by Minami's innocent-looking eyes.
His methods of squeezing customers dry were practically legendary.
Every person who stepped into LycoReco probably left with a gaping hole in their wallet.
He could've just robbed them outright—but no, he actually served food.
Still...
"With prices this crazy… do customers even come?" Rio asked Chisato, skeptical.
The café was clearly empty.
Could anyone really afford to dine here?
Minami had brought her here to "help," but with such low foot traffic, what was she even supposed to do?
Chisato simply smiled. "You'll see soon enough, Rio-chan. But for now, let's head to the changing room and get your uniform on."
"..." Rio.
Chisato was being mysterious.
Takina followed Minami to the kitchen.
With no choice, Rio trailed after Chisato to the staff room.
Each staff member had a spare uniform.
They resembled Japanese-style outfits with traditional obi sashes.
Chisato's uniform was red, gold, and white, lively and elegant.
Rio's was gray and gold, modest and calm, matching her glasses for a serene, intellectual beauty.
But then—
"Whoa—! That's huge! Seriously huge!"
Chisato's red eyes widened in awe. "No wonder Minami-kun picked you, Rio-chan. That chest and petite figure—tsk tsk. If I were a guy, I'd be gooning for these babies!"
"Please don't stare at me like that!"
Rio's pale face turned red, hands tugging her sash tighter.
"Eh? No big deal, I'll be seeing it often enough anyway."
"Wha—? What does that mean?!"
Rio clutched her chest, puzzled.
"Well… when we're all in bed with Minami-kun doing fun things together—"
"Stop! Stop right there! Don't say another word!"
Was this girl shameless or what?!
Listening to Chisato's outrageous words, Rio's mouth twitched. She glared hard.
Chisato, unbothered, grinned, muttering, "Still pretending, huh?"
Rio's face flushed deeper. She couldn't even think of a comeback.
Soft skin fears thick skin—that's how it felt.
But deep down, Rio could tell—
Chisato wasn't bad, just too energetic and fond of teasing people.
It was just her habit of spouting dirty jokes…
Rio didn't even know how to react.
Dressed and ready, she turned to Chisato. "So… what do I do now?"
"Hmm… ever worked in service before? Basically, it's taking orders, tallying bills, and handling payment. No digital ordering—we do it all by hand."
Chisato gave her a once-over.
"No… I haven't."
Rio shook her head.
Her wealthy background meant she never needed to work part-time. Her monthly allowance alone was astronomical.
But even without experience, she'd eaten out enough.
This seemed simple enough—Rio was confident.
"Leave it to me."
She spoke firmly.
"Hmm… you're confident, but let me warn you—the workload here is brutal. If you can't handle it, lean on me. It's normal to mess up your first time."
Chisato offered a friendly heads-up.
But Rio didn't take it seriously.
Brutal workload? Was that a joke?
This café had been dead silent earlier.
And with Minami's insane pricing?
Just getting one customer would be impressive.
What stress? What intensity?
With those thoughts, she followed Chisato out of the changing room.
Then—
"Taishou! Table One! Two Special Sets!"
"Taishou! Table Three! One Standard Set!"
"Table Four shared seating! One Deluxe Set! Taishou, please!"
"..."
Loud voices.
A chorus of activity surrounded her.
The clatter of dishes being cleared, the scribble of orders being recorded.
Heat...
The heat of people.
The warmth of a crowd of customers coming and going!
The moment Rio Futaba stepped out of the changing room and re-entered LycoReco, her confident stride froze mid-step.
She stared at the scene in front of her.
The certainty she had felt before... began to crumble.
Because—
The LycoReco that had been so quiet and empty just moments ago...
Was now packed wall to wall with customers.
This...
What was going on?
"No surprise—it's Minami-kun… It's already started, huh?"
Beside her, Chisato Nishikigi let out a sigh of admiration.
No surprise?
Rio opened her mouth, unable to hide her disbelief. "Th-these customers... are they really all here... for Minami's cooking?"
For those 5,000 to 6,000 yen meals? Those insanely overpriced dishes?
"If not, what do you think, Rio-chan?"
Chisato, already used to scenes like this, simply chuckled at Rio's shock.
"Hmph, these loyal customers? They're just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Minami-kun's talent. Soon enough, Rio-chan, you'll see even more of what he's capable of."
"...Is that so?"
Rio managed a stiff reply.
Just looking at the packed tables, she could feel her hands and legs go a bit numb.
And Minami... he was handling all this pressure, while serving dishes worthy of those outrageous prices.
At school, he was also top-ranked in academics.
Just thinking about it... she couldn't believe it.
Is this guy really a high schooler?
Could he be an alien who landed on Earth in a spaceship?
She couldn't help but wonder.
But wondering wasn't going to help.
Watching Mizuki Nakahara and the petite Kurumi rushing around the café...
Rio remembered that she had agreed to help Minami.
She couldn't just stand around doing nothing.
After getting a quick rundown from Chisato...
Rio grabbed a ballpoint pen and sticky notes, and thus began her very first job.