EPISODE 54 – People Like Me
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Running joyfully and gleefully, it seemed that everything as so clear to me. However, I noticed that I was running towards home.

“Hm, I still hadn’t known why Slice-of-Life didn’t change.”

Guessing by the results I have, trying any other genre would result in the same. So, right now, Slice-of-Life is the highest, or in other words, the priority, and thus, the world will adhere to its laws.

I slow down and walk along the road to enjoy the roads a bit more.

“The question is what I’m going to do.”

Racking and riling my brain up once more, I try to brainstorm, thinking of ideas, but no matter how much I push it, my thoughts forcefully linger on the Overruling Statement despite knowing how well it wouldn’t work in this case.

“Haha, it’s no use thinking about it.”

Looking around me, I see all kinds of shops.

“Maybe taking a refresher will ease my brain…” I murmur to myself.

I really need someone to brainstorm with… it’ll help processing things much easier…

Then over the corner of my eye, I spot a coffee café (喫茶店).

“It’s technically another café, but maybe I can actually focus there.”

Actually… why did I leave the maid café in the first place?

“Maybe I got a little too excited and darted off without thinking… although it’s too late to come back now…”

I don’t really want to suddenly arrive at school now either. I’m not sure if I would be able to gain anything there.

Preventing myself from getting lost in thought, I go through with the café. Unsurprisingly, it was mostly empty as it was still early morning, and the majority of people would probably come by around past noon.

Much like the maid café, I was greeted by a waitress, with long, brown, silky hair, with two round medium-length pigtails. With bright hazelnut eyes, she greets the customer – me.

“Welcome to Hoshizora Yume (星空夢) ! Take a seat!”

Done as I was told much like last time, I analyze the surroundings.

It seems this is a Western-styled café.

The place is decorated with plants those of which I’d assumed to be plastic plants, but helps the place look livelier. There were even some hanging plants. To add, the bottom half of the walls were colored brown, of course, to sell the feeling of coffee, and the upper half was colored with warm beige, which invokes the classy feeling. The tables were made of some kind of dark wood, accompanied by wooden chairs. The floor itself was spotless, textured with porcelain tiles mimicking the appearance of wood that was much lighter in comparison to the rest.

Finally, I take a seat and she hands me a menu from her hands.

“Hmm…”

I… can’t differentiate anything in this list…

In my hand, lay a list of all sorts of coffee, but whenever I bought coffee, I only made sure that they weren’t black coffee, else it’d be too bitter.

Espresso, Americano, Cappuccino, Latte, Café au Lait, Macchiato, Mocha, and more… So yet again, I’ll go with the safe option…

“I’ll take Mocha, please.”

“Would you like any cake to add with that?”

She flips the menu and presents me with a whole set of cakes, which I yet again fail to see the difference.

“Uh…”

I give up on reading their names since I would not remember them once I get out nor would I be able to recognize the difference now.

Remember Kibe… the usual. White equals vanilla and cream and brown equals chocolate.

Despite that, a lot of the cakes were actually white, which just made the generalization exponentially harder.

“Uh…”

So instead of going with the complicated choices, I find a chocolate flavor and settle with that.

“I choose thi-”

“Sir, if you’re having trouble I can recommend our Matcha cake! The earthy bitterness of matcha balances out the sweetness and richness of the mocha, offering a unique fusion of flavors that feels light yet indulgent… or or! Hazelnut Cake, a nutty hazelnut-flavored cake works well with mocha because of the natural pairing of hazelnut and chocolate! It adds a layer of complexity to the experience. Maybe perhaps our Tiramisu? The coffee-soaked layers and creamy mascarpone filling of tiramisu complement the coffee flavor in the mocha, creating a harmonious blend of tastes! But we also have Bavarian Cream Cake! The smooth, creamy texture of Bavarian cream provides a contrast to the mocha's richness, adding balance to the flavors! Or or or-”

“Uh, uh, buh, ah-”

Too much talking! Too much talking! Stop! Stop! Stop! You’re gonna drain me! Ah! Ahh!

“Oi, Mitsuki-san, there you go again, overwhelming our guest,” a waitress in the front speaks out and so, me and ‘Mitsuki-san’ look at her.

A twin-tailed white hair girl who was just about the same age as the waitress near me right now, wearing the same outfit. Her eyes were black. Of course it could in fact, be really dark brown, but that would require a closer inspection.

She comes to face me and I fix my posture unconsciously.

“Sorry about that, she can become a little too enthusiastic. She’s a new worker, I hope you understand.”

“I-It’s alright really, it helped me think about my choices clearer…”

That was just lip service… I didn’t actually understand anything that she said. But I did catch a few flavors…

Mitsuki-san steps back and bows her head.

“I-I’m sorry to have bothered you! I am so incredibly sorry!”

“D-Don’t worry about it…”

She looks at me with troubled eyes which seems that she might say more if I don’t say anything.

“L-Let’s see, I-I’ll go with Hazelnut Cake as per your recommendation.”

“U-Understood! I’ll deliver your order right away!”

With a deep bow, she hurries over to the front to prepare.

“That was…”

I don’t know what that was about, but okay…

Waiting for my drink, I tap on the desk once more.

“This is all Mieko’s fault… she took so much of my meal…”

With a great sigh, I mull over what to do, however, one small thought sticks.

Hang on a minute, thinking back on it now… why was Mieko here? It’s a school day, so, why did she go out of her way to find me?

“That’s odd.”

Maybe she didn’t spend school in this particular day. She’s a genius, so I don’t really foresee her missing anything.

“I’ll just ask h- Oh wait, I can’t…”

I’ll just assume that she skipped school this particular day…

Not too long after, the same waitress comes out with my order on a round black tray, my cake on a small plate and mocha coffee served in a white cup. She drops them both to my table and passes me the bill.

“550円 for the Mocha Coffee and 450円 for the Hazelnut Cake.”

1000 in total… A much more worth it price compared to earlier.

Taking out my wallet and paying, she bows her head once more and returns to the front.

With a fork prepared for me I take a bite and enjoy my cake.

“Mhm~”

After chewing, I blow my coffee and take a small sip.

“Mhm~ Delicious…”

Yet again, I try to think, but nothing comes to mind, so I sigh.

“Maybe I should go to school tomorrow. That should help me come up with a solution to my case…”

Okay, let’s just reiterate… The looping is caused by the Slice-of-Life… then knowing that only I reset and certain others do not… what could it mean?

Solving my worry immediately, I recall Tan’s words once more.

A world of endless days… A world of endless happiness…

I take a sip.

“She knows… Why didn’t I take her seriously?”

Then that can only mean one thing, can’t it?

“All Slice-of-Life genres of similar nature are in on this. Only we get to remember, and the other people are getting roped in… Then that means, I really won’t be getting my money back. This sucks.”

I hear the door open and a man enters, and immediately, Mitsuki-san, comes to greet him.

“Welcome.”

I stare at him for a bit and then at the food.

“Let’s finish up quickly and reset for the next day. Yeah, I don’t think I’ll be able to go anywhere right now.”

Eating more of my cake, I savor its flavor for each bite.

“This is heaven~”

“Mind if I join you?”

“What?”

The man who just entered pulls back the chair opposite me and sits down.

“This is a great café, isn’t it?” he tells me.

“Uh… yeah?”

I wonder what this man wants with me…

Upon closer inspection, it seems his eyes are closed. He isn’t even opening his eyes at all. It’s like that anime cliché where they can somehow see with closed eyes and are suspicious as hell. Seeing it in front of me makes me uncomfortable. Not to mention, he somehow has a butler outfit and is wearing two white gloves too. He possibly just entered his 20s judging from his looks.

“A-Are you a cosplayer?” I ask him.

“Oh?”

He looks all over his suit.

“Ah, it must be because of what I’m wearing. Ahahaha, no no, Comiket isn’t even near.”

“So… what business do you have me?”

“I see. I’ll get straight to the point.”

He rests his right elbow on the table and rests his cheek on his hand.

“Kibe Takayuki. Stop what you’re doing right now.”

The atmosphere shifts from soft to heavy. All of a sudden, a man barges in, intrudes my space, and calls out my name casually. I drop my fork of cake and stare at him.

“How do you-”

“Know your name? How could I not know your name, Kibe? You don’t think your actions have been unnoticed until now?”

My eyebrows burrow and turn serious. It’s obvious he’s not one to be messed with.

“Don’t tell me… Are you the Author?!”

“Oh, nothing like that. I’m a character much like you. We can’t decide to meet him, but that’s a different thing.”

He stops resting his face on his cheek and clasps both hands in front of me, now resting both arms on the table.

“Okay, Kibe. Let’s cut the nip in the bud… stop what you’re doing.”

“What exactly? And why am I obliged to follow your orders?”

“You are not obliged. I’m only saying this because the others aren’t as merciful as I am.”

“You’re threatening me?”

“This is for your own good.”

I steadily grow furious at his cocky attitude.

“What are you suggesting I do?” I ask him with glaring eyes.

“Drop everything.”

“By everything, you mean?”

“Do not associate yourself with people of other genres.”

My eyes widen.

“You… You know?”

“Yes… quite frankly, I want you to stop associating with main characters of other genres.”

“…What’s the reason?”

“I can’t tell you that.’

“Why you- How do you expect me to follow the orders of an anonymous man who straight up tells me to stop doing what I’m doing? What are you planning, you fucker?”

He sighs.

“I’m just looking out for you.”

“Don’t look down on me. I can take care of myself! What am I supposed to fear? Who lead you here?!”

“Why don’t you have a bite of Hazelnut Cake? Take a sip as well. We wouldn’t want to have our Mocha Coffee to go cold.”

Shivers go through my spine, and I look at my food. The sheer fact that he knew exactly what my order was, frightens me, so I just follow his orders and eat my cake, then sip. Once my mouth was empty, I continue our conversation.

ゴクリ(Gulp)

“Just how much do you know about me, stalker?”

“It seems I have mislead you into thinking that I am your enemy.”

“You’re threatening me. How else do you think I would take it?”

“I am your friend. I’ve only come here to send out a warning from the others.”

“’Others’?”

“People aware of the state of the world. People who have surpassed the realm of stories.”

“Who…”

“The Meta-Narrative.”

I take a long glance at his face.

“Okay… so these Meta-Narrative people, are my ‘friends’?”

“No, I never said that. I said I was your friend, not them.”

I scratch my head frustratingly.

Geez, what is this lore dump?

“Fine, then, ‘Friend’,” I mock the calling he made himself, “Answer my earlier question. How much do you people know about me?”

“You? Hm… If I’m being honest… we know-”

I brace myself for the worst possible answer.

“-everything.”

END OF EPISODE 54

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