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"Where's the Young Lady?"
Hayasaka Ai frowned, raised her eyes, and looked at Amamiya Natsuki, her gaze worried.
"Don't be nervous, Kaguya is much more capable than you." Amamiya Natsuki gave her a reassuring look, then turned to the unlucky girl and stated his purpose, "Yuiko… I'll just call you Yui, it's more natural. We're looking for a companion, and we've confirmed she's in the restaurant… Are you sure there's no one else in the back kitchen?"
"No." The black-haired girl quickly shook her head. "I'm the only kitchen helper. If there were anyone else, I would definitely know."
"I believe you."
Amamiya Natsuki nodded slightly, indicating trust.
This unlucky girl, at first glance, didn't seem very smart, otherwise, she wouldn't have exposed her identity so easily.
"Another wrong option eliminated." Amamiya Natsuki said calmly, "She's not in the front of the restaurant, and now not in the back kitchen either. It seems she's somewhere outside these two areas. Looks like we'll have to do a carpet search."
"Um…" Yui pursed her pink lips and said softly, "I've been helping in the back kitchen and front with serving dishes. Just now, that fat chef told me to make the supervisor's favorite midnight snack and send it to the second floor. I didn't know what to make, so I ran away…"
"Supervisor?"
Hayasaka Ai's eyes flickered slightly, and she crossed her arms over her chest, saying, "Both of those fat chefs just mentioned the supervisor. So, he's in the restaurant?"
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"It seems we have to go to the second floor."
Hayasaka Ai nodded: "Let's go now."
"Yui." Amamiya Natsuki turned his head to look at the girl who was looking at him pitifully, "If you have nothing else to do, you can come with us. The dungeon quest might have other ways to be completed."
"I'll go with you!"
The unlucky Yui quickly nodded, afraid that Amamiya Natsuki would leave her in the back kitchen.
Now that her identity was exposed, if she stayed alone, she would definitely be caught again and turned into tomorrow morning's ingredients by the fat chef. She absolutely did not want to experience that despair a second time.
The two players in front of her were clearly very strong. Following them might even give her a chance to complete the quest. Even an idiot would know how to choose.
"Then let's go."
This time, there was no need for the Missing Cloak. The three of them each activated their disguise forms and swaggered out of the back kitchen.
After circling the restaurant, they soon found an inconspicuous iron ladder at the back of the restaurant, spiraling up to the second floor.
"Senpai, wait a moment."
Hayasaka Ai reached out and pulled Amamiya Natsuki aside, whispering in his ear, "First, help me recharge my weapon."
The Magical Gun, which could take down a fat chef with one shot, was very useful, but its endurance was very poor, requiring frequent energy replenishment.
Now that they were about to go to the second floor, Hayasaka Ai naturally had to prepare by fully reloading her bullets first.
A Artisan must sharpen his tools if he is to do his work well.
As a professional Spy Maid, if she didn't know how many bullets were left in her gun, that would be a huge mistake. If the gun ran out of bullets at a crucial moment, she would regret it too late.
However, the Magical Girl's prop gun could not use ordinary bullets. It needed to be charged by infusing "Love and Beauty" energy into it—
This thing was a bit idealistic, requiring Hayasaka's heart to be full of love and beauty to convert into the energy needed for charging, so ordinary charging methods were not very effective.
"It does need charging." Amamiya Natsuki nodded upon hearing this, and whispered, "…Didn't you find a way to charge yourself through experimentation before?"
There's more than one way to charge.
For example, if Hayasaka Ai ate a delicious dessert yesterday and felt a sense of peacefulness in the evening sun, she could charge. But watching a hydraulic press decompress with distorted pleasure would have no effect at all.
"All those methods require a relaxing environment and mood," Hayasaka Ai muttered, "Right now, time is tight, how can I have the leisure to prepare so much... So charging is such a hassle, why does it need love and beauty?"
"The last person who had the same thought as you has already fallen into a witch."
"Tsk."
Amamiya Natsuki said in a low voice:
"Then we'll use the method from the first time I helped?"
"For the Sheltered Ojou-sama, sacrifice is unavoidable," Hayasaka Ai snorted, "I can only let the perverted senpai benefit."
Amamiya Natsuki straightened his face and said:
"If you say that, I won't kiss you today."
"Heh, men."
Hayasaka Ai slightly tilted her pretty face up, her eyes full of disdain, "What is the perverted senpai doing putting his hand around my waist?"
"Stop talking, you first remove your disguise," Amamiya Natsuki muttered, "I really can't bring myself to do it with you looking like this."
"A boy's mouth, a lying devil," Hayasaka Ai removed her disguise and whispered, "If a strange girl obediently lifts her face for you boys to kiss, wouldn't you just get more excited?"
"..."
Amamiya Natsuki said nothing, lowering his head to get closer.
Slap!
Hayasaka Ai reached out, pushed Amamiya Natsuki's chin, and said with disgust:
"Don't kiss me with that unscrupulous doctor look, you first take off your disguise."
"So troublesome."
"Urusai, hurry up."
"..."
Hayasaka Ai proactively wrapped her arms around Amamiya Natsuki's neck, slightly tilting her flushed, pretty face upwards and closing her eyes.
The Sheltered Ojou-sama, all this sacrifice now is for you.
"Eh eh eh?!"
The unlucky Yui next to them widened her eyes in surprise, then quickly turned her head, blushing, and looked elsewhere.
What about going to the second floor as planned?
Why did these two suddenly start kissing?
Neither the time nor the place is right for kissing!
Stealing glances at the kissing couple from the corner of her eye, the unlucky Yui suddenly thought of a possibility—
(Could it be... some kind of unspoken rule?!)
(In previous instances I've experienced, similar things happened; a female player would willingly do such things to get a man to protect her...)
(W-what should I do?)
The unlucky Yui grew more panicked the more she thought about it.
(Could it be that I've also encountered such a thing?)
(What if I don't agree and they make me leave?)
A moment later.
Charging complete.
Hayasaka Ai wiped the corner of her lips, feeling satisfied.
As the saying goes, with a gun in hand, there's no panic in the heart. This saying is indeed true.
"Yui, let's continue," Amamiya Natsuki turned and called out.
"C-coming!"
The unlucky Yui replied, then quickly walked over, blushing and looking down at her toes, her heart pounding nervously.
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"We continue our action."
"Oh..."
The unlucky Yui replied, head bowed.
A misunderstanding.
She must have overthought it.
She's clumsy and dull, and not particularly remarkable, so surely no one would want to use an unspoken rule on her, right?
The operation continued.
They quickly arrived on the second floor.
"Senpai," Hayasaka Ai paused, whispering, "There's light in the room ahead."
"I see it," Amamiya Natsuki nodded slightly, "Let's go."
This area on the second floor should be the employee living quarters. Only one room had a faint light peeking through the window cracks.
"How do we get in?"
Hayasaka Ai asked in a low voice.
"The same method will work," Amamiya Natsuki stepped forward, knocked on the door, and then said, "Hello, we are law enforcement officers from the Food Safety Bureau. Please open the door and cooperate with us to understand the situation."
"..."
The room was exceptionally quiet; no one responded.
Amamiya Natsuki remained unhurried and continued:
"Your employee Fujino brought us upstairs. We know you're inside. Please open the door and cooperate with the inspection."
"..."
After a brief silence, a low, heavy voice finally sounded from the room.
"Wait a moment."
Thump thump thump.
Footsteps on the wooden floor quietly approached.
Amamiya Natsuki slightly turned his head and glanced at Hayasaka.
Hayasaka quietly retreated half a step, moving away from the door, finding the best shooting angle, ready to act at any moment.
Click.
The door was pulled open.
A wisp of dim candlelight spilled out.
Amamiya Natsuki narrowed his eyes, looking over calmly. The person who opened the door was indeed a Miss in a black and white maid outfit, and she even had twin pigtails. However, she was very short, estimated to be only 1.4 meters, looking like a child laborer no matter how you looked at her.
"Excuse us."
Amamiya Natsuki said casually.
"..."
The loli maid said nothing, merely stepping aside to let them in.
Amamiya Natsuki looked into the room. It was just an ordinary room. A broad, thick back was seated on the sofa, facing away from the door. There was no ambush or danger. Only then did he turn to look at Hayasaka, nodding slightly, signaling Hayasaka Ai to come over.
"Hmm?!"
The loli maid paused, lifted her small face, her gaze falling on the mushroom on Hayasaka Ai's head, then her eyes shifted to Amamiya Natsuki.
Their eyes met.
The loli maid suddenly asked in a low voice:
"This guest, what did you do after waking up yesterday morning?"
"Let me think..." Amamiya Natsuki smiled, "Walked the dog with a sleepless girl who couldn't sleep."
Eyes confirmed.
Sheltered Ojou-sama's identity successfully confirmed.
"...Found her."
Looking at the loli maid in the maid outfit, who was making tea for her, Hayasaka Ai felt quite subtle.
Before, at home, making tea was always her job. Today, their roles were reversed, a completely new and rare experience.
"Aren't you from the Food Safety Bureau?" The plump woman on the sofa looked over, her voice puzzled. As she spoke, she kept stuffing food into her mouth. "Why are you wearing a doctor's uniform?"
Undoubtedly, the plump woman sitting on the sofa was the restaurant manager. At first glance, she was even fatter than the two chefs downstairs, truly bloated and gluttonous.
With every slight movement, the sofa beneath her would groan under the strain, as if it would collapse at any moment.
Amamiya Natsuki couldn't help but think of those African women; the manager in front of him could truly sit on someone and kill them, it was no exaggeration.
"It's a long story..." Amamiya Natsuki sat on the opposite sofa, not intending to waste words, "Are you the only one in the room?"
"That's right."
The plump woman continued eating, answering indistinctly, proving by her actions what 'the fish rots from the head down' means.
No wonder the two chefs in the kitchen were both fat; there was an even more unsightly eater above them.
"Then there's nothing more to say," Amamiya Natsuki leaned back, turned his head, and said, "It's up to you."
"..."
Hayasaka Ai didn't hesitate at all, decisively raising her right hand and pulling the trigger.
A pink heart-shaped bullet shot out, carrying dazzling bullet effects, slowly flying towards the plump manager.
The plump woman's face showed tension; she wanted to dodge, but unfortunately, with her physique, movement was difficult, and she couldn't dodge at all.
So the bullet perfectly hit its target.
The plump woman's body trembled slightly, she sat back in the sofa, raised her greasy hands, and began to cry, covering her face.
"I was wrong... If I could live my life over, I would never come to work at the restaurant..."
Amamiya Natsuki clicked his tongue: "Looks like it's another 'change of heart' effect."
The plump woman continued to cry and repent: "When I first took over, the restaurant had very few customers and was often losing money, so I thought of drawing a magic circle to make customers, once they entered, involuntarily want to eat..."
Hey, hey, you're going too far!
Those two chefs downstairs were only adding Hextech, but you, on the other hand, directly thought of mentally tricking diners. You guys who work in the catering business, your hearts are too dark!
"As a result, the magic accidentally backfired, and I have to spend more than half of my time eating every day, I just can't stop..."
Serving her right, it's gratifying!
Whether it's using Hextech or secretly having double standards both domestically and internationally, reaping what you sow, you can't blame anyone else.
"Kaguya-san, is that you?"
Hayasaka Ai said while taking out a rope and tying up the plump woman, to prevent her from breaking free and escaping.
Shinomiya Kaguya nodded gently:
"It's me."
"Your maid outfit today is very cute," Hayasaka Ai smiled, feeling quite good about the role reversal, "Can I give you a hug?"
"I refuse," Shinomiya Kaguya firmly rejected the unreasonable request, "You are...?"
"It's Hanamori," Amamiya Natsuki interjected, "No taste, Kaguya-san today is clearly super cute."
Shinomiya Kaguya glared over, her twin pigtails gently swaying behind her, instantly striking the heart and making one's heart flutter.
"Let's go out and talk." After helping to tie up the fat supervisor, Amamiya Natsuki stood up and said, "Let's go to the hallway."
The four of them came to the hallway.
Amamiya Natsuki undid the disguise, revealing his true face while saying:
"There is an option to temporarily remove the disguise on the character panel."
"I saw it."
Shinomiya Kaguya nodded slightly, quickly found the option, and removed the disguised identity given by the game.
Black hair, red eyes, a pretty face so beautiful that no flaws could be found, and a chest that made people sigh with regret, it was Shinomiya Kaguya.
Poke, poke—
Hayasaka Ai nudged Amamiya Natsuki with her elbow and smiled:
"Senpai, do you have anything you want to say?"
"I really do." Amamiya Natsuki said seriously, "Kaguya-san, you don't have to remove the disguise."
"Eh?"
Amamiya Natsuki raised a thumb: "Twintail loli and maid form, super cute."
Hayasaka Ai followed suit, raised a thumb, and said with a pleasant smile:
"That's right, super cute."
"I don't think it's cute at all." After Shinomiya Kaguya complained, she crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared at Amamiya Natsuki, "I've been wanting to leave, but unfortunately I can't find a chance… What did you encounter along the way?"
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