Ryu groaned, clutching his throbbing head; his body ached all over. A steady tapping on his shoulder had woken him. He rubbed his eyes, his blurry vision coming into focus. Squinting, Ryu suddenly tensed, startled by Sylfie. The elf leaned over him with an annoyed expression.

“Hey, you need to wake up,” she said, nudging him. “Aurora’s really sick. I think she got into the kitchen and ate some more coffee berries last night.”

“I told her it would upset her stomach,” Ryu grumbled. “She never listens. Give me a moment to gather my bearings. I’ll be down in a minute. I had a long night.”

“I can tell,” Sylfie motioned to something beside Ryu.

Ryu turned around to find Freyja snoring peacefully under the covers next to him. Only then did he realize he wasn’t in their room but her’s.

“Oh sh*t,” he mumbled. “Sylfie—”

“Save your breath,” the elf said, shaking her head. “It’s none of my business, and frankly, I don’t care what you do in your free time.”

Ryu watched her as she left, unconvinced. He quickly slipped into his clothes, making sure not to wake Freyja before he exited the room. After freshening up, he hurried downstairs to tend to Aurora.

The cat groaned, her stomach bloated, making her look like a rotund black balloon. If he wasn’t so worried, Ryu may have laughed at the sight of her.

“Ryu, my tummy hurts even more now,” Aurora moaned.

“Well, what did you expect? I told you not to go near those berries,” he sighed, shaking his head. “Does every lesson have to be learned through experience with you? Why can’t you just take my word for it and listen to me for once?”

“I’m sorry, nya.” Aurora’s ears drooped.

“It’s okay,” he replied, staring at her. Questions ran through his mind, like her interaction with [Grimm Reign] and the way her memories had been coming back to her. They were all connected somehow, but he hadn’t a clue as to what that connection was.

“What should we do?” Wisteria asked, worried.

“I’m not an expert on animals,” Ryu stated, scratching his head. “Our best course of action is to take her to the vet.”

“That might be difficult considering Grandmother and our local veterinarian left for the capital,” Sylfie stated.

“Now?” Ryu frowned.

“I’m guessing it has something to do with the Ore Grazers wreaking havoc in the Frostflame Mountains. Ida is an expert on animals after all. She may have a way to take down those beasts easily.”

“So the vet’s out of the question. Now what?” Wisteria bit her nails.

Ppfffttt! Pooot! Braaap!

They all stared at Aurora as she relieved herself on the floor.

“Oh my God!” Sylfie screamed in horror.

“Well, that solves the problem. Now that’s a log,” Ryu whistled, impressed.

“Ahhh, much better!” Aurora exclaimed, looking less bloated and more relaxed now.

“Aw, I’m glad you’re feeling better,” Wisteria, cooed, scratching Aurora’s ears. “Guess I’ll clean this up,” she said, rolling up her sleeves.

“Wait, actually,” Ryu stopped her, narrowing his eyes at the peculiar shape and contents of the massive dump Aurora just took. “Is this—”

“Yep! It’s my gift!” the cat stated proudly.

Sylfie clutched her stomach, laughing uncontrollably. “Some gift, huh?”

Ryu didn’t answer, grinning widely. If this was what he thought it was…He pointed at the cat poop, invoking [Sanitation]. Instantly, the waste disappeared, leaving a pile of coffee beans behind.

Sylfie looked at Ryu in disbelief. “You’re not going to—”

“Yep, I’m going to use these beans to make a brew,” he answered.

“N-no way! I’m crazy about cats but I’m not insane enough to drink cat poop coffee!” Wisteria remarked.

“Relax, they’re clean, but I’ll clean them again thoroughly before I use them,” Ryu reassured her. “Sylfie—”

“I have no qualms,” she answered bluntly.

“Of course you don’t,” Ryu chuckled. “I’ll make a simple espresso out of these. You’ll see. We’ve been given quite the asset here.”

Ryu cleaned up the beans and roasted them. He followed the process of making espresso the way Hazel had taught him. Though it wasn’t necessary to do with these particular beans, he enjoyed the process and the discipline of each step, casting [Nullify], [Petrify], and [Purify], and managing the [Pressure Stabilization].

He smiled as the effervescent aroma of the coffee wafted throughout the café. He took a sip, the flavor of caramel and chocolate enveloping his tongue. The Dark Elf process seemed to have imbued it with some healing properties as Ryu’s mind cleared, his hangover fading in an instant and the aching in his joints disappearing altogether.

A notification rang in his mind, causing him to check his Coffee Brewer statistics.

[Current level: 11]

[Coffee Brewer Rank Up: Connoisseur]

[Skill Acquired: Protease Enzyme]

[Skill Acquired: Multiply]

[Level 10 Bonus: Green Thumb]

[Level 11 Bonus: Harvest Boost [+10% Yield]]

He had finally ranked up in both brewing and adventuring. The accomplishment left Ryu with a sense of pride, feeling as though the wheels of fortune were finally moving in his favor, barring his issues with titles.

“This is Kopi Luwak. It’s coffee made from beans processed via the digestive enzymes of an animal called a civet,” Ryu explained as Wisteria looked at the cup apprehensively.

“So Aurora’s not a cat? She’s a civet?” she asked.

Ryu shook his head. “No, she’s very much a cat, but I guess she has the enzyme to process this coffee as well.”

“You can’t expect her to make coffee like this continuously, right? I mean, look at how much pain she was in, just for this batch!” Wisteria protested.

“Not to worry,” Ryu stated. “We’ll figure out a sustainable way to make this brew. I just leveled up and received some skills that can process the beans from the fruit directly, without Aurora’s involvement.”

“That’s good,” Wisteria relaxed, her concerns assuaged.

“That Giuseppe,” Ryu chuckled. “He must have known, or at least had an idea about the process.”

“So what now?” Wisteria asked.

“I think we should buy a plot of land on the outskirts of town and start a farm there. We could plant a few of the coffee berries and make sure the soil and climate conditions are right. The rest of the berries can be processed and served to customers,” Ryu stated. “I’ll just need to run this by Hazel first.”

“T-this is delicious,” Sylfie stuttered, finally speaking. The golden brown crema formed a mustache on her mouth, disappearing quickly as she licked her lips to get the last bit of foam. The elf’s reaction convinced the mage to try a sip. Wisteria’s eyes bulged and before she knew it, she had guzzled down the drink in one sip.

“How does poop coffee taste so good?!” she exclaimed.

“I told you, it’s because of the enzymes that process the coffee beans. They allow the beans to release a distinct flavor.”

“Hehe, do you like my gift, Ryu?” Aurora chirped.

“Very much,” Ryu replied, stroking her dark fur. There was still so much he wanted to ask her, but he refrained from questioning her for now. First, they’d get her memories back, then they would try to make sense of everything else.

“We should serve this to the others,” Sylfie said. “It would help with their hangovers.”

Ryu nodded in agreement.

“Didn’t Giuseppe say that this coffee was an aphrodisiac, though?” Wisteria pointed out.

“They’re all adults. As ridiculous as some of them are, they can think and act for themselves,” Ryu replied.

“R-right,” the mage relented.

Ryu got to brewing while the ladies woke up the rest of the guild, the aroma of freshly brewing coffee enticing even the groggiest of the bunch. Once all the espressos had been served, Ryu and his party seated themselves at a table near the door, giving Jörm and his crew some space as they went upstairs to pack.

“Where are they headed off to so soon?” Ryu asked.

“Preparations for the infiltration and subjugation of the black market between Dwarven and Kaffa territory have been made. They’ve been summoned to the capital,” Sylfie explained.

“What? Then how come we haven’t received a summons yet? Aren’t we a part of the mission?” Ryu remarked.

“We are. I just wanted to wait until you were more cognisant. Mathias and Sir Reginald are waiting outside near the bakery for us,” she said.

"They are? We should go meet them, then," Wisteria remarked.

They ran up to their rooms, packed their bags, and headed out the doors of the café, making their way towards the bakery.

Wisteria greeted her brother and father with a hug, the two looking slightly tired from their journey.

“So, you finally wake from your slumber,” Mathias teased, turning to Ryu.

“Good to see you too,” Ryu grinned.

“Ryu,” Sir Reginald, greeted him.

“Sir Reginald,” he replied, handing a cup to Sir Reginald and Mathias.

“What’s this?” Mathias asked.

Sir Reginald merely smiled, taking a sip of Ryu’s espresso. “Kopi Luwak. You never cease to impress me.”

“How did you get your hands on something like this?!” Mathias exclaimed, finishing his espresso.

“It’s a long journey back to the capital right? I’ll tell you on the way,” Ryu replied.

“It certainly is,” Mathias sighed. “So, are you all ready?”

They nodded, smiling confidently.

“As ready as we’ll ever be,” Ryu stated.

“Yeah! We’re gonna kick some dwarf butt, nya!” Aurora chimed.

“The Dwarves are our allies! We are not kicking their butts!” Sylfie corrected her.

“Brother, Father, it’s best we save the discussion for when we are on the move. Let’s not delay any further,” Wisteria said.

“Of course,” Sir Reginald agreed.

“Alright, we’re all set to leave,” Mathias said. “We’ll have to make one more stop along the way, but after that…”

They all grinned, shouting at the same time.

“We’re off to the Dwarven Kingdom!”

[End of Volume 1]