Tokyo Culinary

"Smith-san, why did you choose a maid cafe?" It was the first thing he asked when he heard of the place they were going to.

"You don't have a maid cafe in your village, do you? So I thought about taking you there. I'm also curious about maid cafes and call me Smith. It feels weird if you call me with honorifics." She said with a gentle smile while looking at Kimihito.

It was true that in Kimihito village there was no maid cafe and he was sure there would never be. But Smith's words make sense that maid cafes include Tokyo culinary, perhaps. He also doubted whether it could be called Tokyo culinary because it was located in Tokyo.

"At work hours like this, it must still be quiet. Let's go there!"

"Yeah yeah..."

After a few minutes of driving, they finally arrived in front of a coffee shop. Seen a three-story building with brick walls and a modern coffee shop that extends, in front of the entrance, there is a small wooden building with a red roof. They couldn't see what was inside the glass walls from the outside, but it seemed like the people inside could see outside.

"Cafe Stile?"

"What's wrong, Kimihito?" Smith, who heard Kimihito talking to himself, looked confused.

"No, I just seem to have heard the name of this cafe somewhere..." He felt that he had the name 'Cafe Stile' somewhere. But after trying to think, he still couldn't remember.

Smith, who heard Kimihito's reasoning, started to look at her smartphone. "Maybe it's just your feelings, and I can tell this coffee shop is still new."

"How did you know that?"

"I know from the internet... I just remembered that there's no internet in your village, so tech stuff might be hard for you to understand." She replied with a small laugh.

Kimihito, who heard Smith's answer, was a little annoyed, but that's the reality, so he accepted Smith's words. "Well, it's hard to live there, but that doesn't mean I don't know anything."

"Don't worry. I will teach you many things." She said with a seductive tone and expression.

Kimihito's mind began to travel everywhere, thinking about what Smith would teach him later. But when he thought about it again, he calmed down a bit. It was unlikely that he would do such a thing.

"That's for later, and I haven't even had an hour in the city yet."

'I'm sure I'll teach you a lot~' Thinking about that, Smith wondered what she would teach him.

After a short conversation between them, they immediately entered the Cafe Stile. That was their first time going to a maid cafe. They were pretty curious about what was inside.

Kring

Hearing the sound of the bell on the door, several cafe waiters who were nearby looked towards the entrance. One of the waiters there started walking to greet new customers who entered.

"Welcome, Onii-chan and Onee-chan!"

Kimihito and Smith, who had just entered the cafe, were suddenly greeted by a maid. She had chin-length brown hair, purple eyes, and she smiled brightly like a smile that had to be protected.

She wears a canary yellow button-up blouse with black buttons, short puffed sleeves, a white band with a dark blue stripe on edge, and a white-collar with a dark blue line. She also has a white half-apron with frilled edges, white knee-high socks with a dark blue stripe on the top socks, and dark blue toe cap flats with white gloves with a dark blue line on the edge.

Looking at the maid in front of them, only one thing the two of them thought 'Are they employing elementary children?'

Seeing their expressions, the maid seemed to know what they were thinking. It wasn't because she could read minds, but because there were already many people who met her for the first time who would look like that.

"Mooo~ Onii-chan Onee-chan, did you guys think anything weird about Mafuyu?" Said the maid named Mafuyu while looking angry. Even though she seems angry, her expression is adorable, like a little sister angry with her brother. Coupled with Mafuyu's petite body shape, she figures like a little sister more perfectly.

Hearing the maid's words named Mafuyu, they realized that there was no way an elementary school child could be accepted to work here. But if that were the case, the cafe would be in big trouble.

"No, I'm just a little surprised…." Kimihito replied with a forced laugh.

"Really? Then how about Onii-chan and Onee-chan sit down first? Mafuyu knows you must be tired!"

After that, the two of them went to sit at an empty table by the window. The seating design is quite simple. There is only one table and two chairs arranged to face each other, making it suitable to go here with just a close friend or a girlfriend.

"Onii-chan Onee-chan, is there anything you want to order? Mafuyu will help you!" Kimihito and Smith could feel a bright aura emanating from Mafuyu.

"I'll order Ocha tea. How about you, Smith? I'll treat you."

"Why all of a sudden?"

"Well... just think of it as a thank you for bothering you."

Smith, who heard it, chuckled. Maybe in the future, she will also trouble Kimihito. But of course, she didn't say it and just accepted his kindness. It is not good to reject others.

Mafuyu, who heard their conversation, was annoyed and wanted to kick their ass. But because she was a professional and still in work mode, she could only show a smile that matched her character, a little sister.

"Then coffee bun and coffee ice cream, please."

"That's all? Then Mafuyu will make it soon, so wait a moment, Onii-chan Onee-chan~" Mafuyu then jogged towards the kitchen to tell the chef to make an order.

Seeing Mafuyu's distant figure, Smith looked at Kimihito, and a thought crossed her head. "Tell me, Kimihito, are you interested in demi-humans?"

***

Meanwhile, in Stile's kitchen.

"What's wrong, Akizuki-san? You look surprised."

Hearing his name being called, Akizuki turned to the person who called him. Akizuki is one of the chefs at Stile. He is a young man of average height, has green hair and slanted blue eyes with noticeably small pupils. He was wearing a white buttoned shirt with rolled sleeves up to his elbows, black pants, brown shoes, and a black apron.

"Manager, it's a woman, right?" Akizuki pointed at Smith, sitting at the table by the window.

The Manager who looked at Akizuki's finger became confused and asked, "Then what's the problem?"

Dino, who is usually called the Manager himself, is also one of the chefs at Stile, just like Akizuki. However, apart from being a chef, he is also the Manager of Stile. Dino is a tall, handsome, well-groomed pale-skinned young man with blond hair, blue eyes, and perfect eyebrows. All its features make it easy to guess if he is a foreigner. While working, he wears a chef's outfit similar to what Akizuki wears.

"Ha? Do you ask what the problem is? THAT IS OUR FIRST WOMEN CUSTOMER SINCE THIS CAFE OPENED!"

It's true what Akizuki said. Since Stile's opening, it has been quite popular among male otaku and cafe maid lovers. A woman's appearance in Stile took Akizuki by surprise, considering he was a yuri lover and his desire to see female customers be friendly with each other so he could imagine. But this time, his hopes were dashed after seeing a man sitting with the woman.

However, Akizuki didn't give up, expecting two women to come and feed each other. Yuri's soul was passionately thinking about that possibility in the future. For now, he can only wait.

"Ahaha... I also just realized that our customers have always been men."

Dino had not been aware of it all this time. He only focused on finding new members. There are only four workers at Stile, including himself. He planned to add two or three more maids.

"Coffee bun, coffee ice cream, and Ocha tea, please."

"Um, please wait a moment."

"Huuh…" Mafuyu sighed.

Mafuyu feels tired. Besides serving customers herself, she has to maintain her character as a cheerful little sister. She wasn't the only one working as a maid at Stile. There was a high school girl who also worked as a maid here. But still, the two of them are not enough when it comes to serving all the customers, especially when they are full. They will be in a lot of trouble and have to run around to reduce their interaction with customers, which is the main selling point of Stile, a cafe maid character.

***

"Onii-chan Onee-chan, your order is ready!" After waiting a few minutes, Mafuyu came with Kimihito and Smith's orders.

"Here's Ocha tea for Onii-chan, then coffee bun and coffee ice cream for Onee-chan. Please enjoy~" Mafuyu said with a smile like usual.

"Thank you, Mafuyu-chan."

"Hehe~ Then Mafuyu will come back first, Onii-chan Onee-chan. If you need something, you can call Mafuyu!" She said, then left the table for the two of them.

Glancing at Smith's Order, Kimihito saw an all-coffee dish. "Hm? You really like coffee?"

"Sure, I probably can't live without it. Maybe I'm addicted too."

"..." He couldn't believe that Smith was addicted to coffee.

One of the main reasons people are addicted to coffee is because of the energy boost it provides. Unfortunately, the effect only lasts for an average of 5 hours. That's why many people drink more than 1 cup of coffee every day. That will have the opposite effect once they stop drinking coffee.

"Even so, I have high standards for coffee." She said, telling the truth.

"Is that so? Then how does the coffee bun and coffee ice cream taste? Is it up to your standards?" Kimihito asked while enjoying his tea.

"Not bad. It looks like this cafe doesn't use instant coffee here."

"You must have tried a lot of cafes."

"Sometimes, I'll take you to a cafe that serves the best coffee in Tokyo."

"I'm looking forward to it." It would be a lie if he didn't look forward to Smith's invitation to the cafe with the best coffee. He thinks Smith is a coffee specialist, a person who dedicates herself to tasting a dish from coffee and can't live without it.

"By the way, Kimihito, have you found a place to stay?"

"Not yet. Do you know of a place to stay for a few months that is cheap and also has easy requirements?"

"As I thought you, haven't found it... I have two choices. Do you want to hear it?" Smith asked Kimihito with a seductive smile, but somehow he has a bad feeling right now.

"The first option is to stay with me, yo-"

"I refuse." He immediately rejected her offer before hearing any further.

"If you refuse, then the second option becomes the last resort." After saying that, she opened her smartphone and gave it to him.

"Inn rental fee is only 1000 yen per month, and meal fee is 15000 yen. Is this a scam?" He said he couldn't believe an inn at that price, especially in Tokyo.

"This is not a scam." She who knew the validity of this information said that it was indeed true.

Kimihito only concluded one thing after hearing her answer. "Then, how come the price of this inn is so low?" He was sure there must be a reason it was so cheap.

"That's because... Ghost."