Chapter 173: That Blue-Haired Woman Has Arrived 

Chisato Nishikigi and Takina Inoue had temporarily left.

The reason was simple.

Apparently, Mizuki Nakahara and Kurumi had ditched work at Riko-Riko and snuck into the Shuka Festival behind Mika's back.

And knowing how unreliable Mizuki was as an adult, plus Kurumi's legendary laziness, there was no telling what kind of trouble they might cause.

So, to prevent them from embarrassing themselves in public, Chisato and Takina had no choice but to go track them down.

After parting ways with them, Minami Shouji glanced down at his phone.

It was already 12:56 PM.

"Almost my shift time."

He put his phone away, thinking to himself.

As mentioned before, Minami's class was running a chocolate banana stall.

His shift was scheduled from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM.

With only four minutes left before his shift, Minami didn't waste time standing around and started heading back to his class.

By noon, the food stalls were seeing an increase in customers.

By the time Minami arrived, the two classmates from the previous shift had already almost finished cleaning up.

"Perfect timing."

After exchanging a few brief words with them, Minami, along with a girl named Youko Morishita(OC), took over their shift.

Youko Morishita looked nervous.

Really, really nervous.

From the moment she first laid eyes on Minami, her heart sank.

"I'm doomed."

Unlike Minami, who was at the top of the school's social food chain, Youko had always been practically invisible in class.

If she didn't have braided hair, she might as well have had the word "background character" written all over her face.

And now, she had to work with Minami for a full hour.

One. Whole. Hour.

"What if he finds me annoying…? What if I just get in his way…?"

She had heard the rumors about Minami.

How he barely interacted with their classmates.

How he was cold and distant.

How his perfect grades made him seem almost unapproachable.

Just standing next to him gave her an overwhelming sense of pressure.

And if she accidentally offended him…?

"Would I get bullied…?"

She didn't even want to imagine it.

The more she thought about it, the more her body tensed up, and she didn't even dare to breathe too loudly.

Honestly—

If Minami wasn't standing right next to her, she might have already started crying.

Lost in her spiraling thoughts, Youko timidly spoke up.

"M-Minami-senpai…?"

"Huh? 'Minami-senpai'?"

Minami raised an eyebrow, turning toward her.

"...What's up with this girl?"

They were in the same grade—why was she calling him 'Senpai'?

"Ah! I-I'm so sorry! I meant Minami-kun!"

Realizing her mistake from his reaction, Youko panicked and immediately bowed her head in apology, terrified of upsetting him.

"Your name is Youko Morishita, right?"

Sensing her fear, Minami sighed and reassured her.

"You don't need to feel pressured. Making chocolate bananas isn't difficult. Just focus on the chocolate—I'll take care of the rest."

"O-Okay!"

Minami's tone wasn't as intimidating as she had expected.

That alone shocked Youko.

She had always heard that Minami was hard to approach.

But now that she was actually talking to him…

"He's… surprisingly normal?"

Morishita Youko clumsily broke apart pieces of chocolate with her gloved hands, dropping them into the pot to melt—

All the while, she kept sneaking glances at Minami Shouji beside her.

At that moment, Minami was effortlessly multitasking—

One hand peeled bananas and carefully skewered them onto bamboo sticks,

While the other hand monitored the chocolate melting in the pot.

Compared to Morishita Youko, who was constantly on edge, afraid the chocolate would burn—

Minami's movements were smooth and precise, almost mesmerizing to watch.

Under Youko's curious gaze, he added fresh cream into the melted chocolate, then skillfully whisked it until smooth.

Then, picking up a banana, he drizzled the rich chocolate over it before lightly sprinkling colorful sugar strands.

A perfectly crafted chocolate banana was done—

His actions were seamless, without the slightest hesitation—

Even more refined than a professional working at a chocolate banana stand.

Morishita Youko could only stare in amazement.

That was until Minami suddenly spoke.

"Morishita-san."

"Ah…? H-Huh? W-What is it, Minami-kun?"

Hearing his voice, Youko snapped out of her daze, carefully responding.

"It's nothing serious."

Minami handed a freshly made chocolate banana to a customer, who took a bite and immediately marveled at the flavor.

Then, Minami glanced at her and asked—

"But… are you sure you're okay?"

"Okay…?"

Youko grew even more confused.

"...Your chocolate is burning."

Minami pointed at her pot, where the chocolate had already turned black and was dangerously close to drying out completely.

"Eh?! EHH—!?"

Youko screamed in horror, frantically lifting the pot off the heat.

Seeing her reaction, Minami could only sigh internally.

Why did it feel like Morishita Youko was actually a liability in this chocolate banana operation?

And, as expected—

Since she had to go wash the now completely burnt mixing pot,

Her chocolate banana station was practically out of service.

As a result—

All the customers ended up flocking to Minami's side.

Fortunately, with Cooking LV4 (Happiness), Minami handled the sudden rush with ease.

Even with the increase in customers, he remained calm and composed, quickly making one chocolate banana after another.

Even Morishita Youko was impressed by his speed.

If it had been her, she probably would have made a complete mess by now—

Chocolate everywhere, total chaos.

But more than just impressed—

"I-I'm so sorry, Minami-kun!"

Having finally finished cleaning, Youko hurriedly bowed in apology.

If he hadn't stepped in to save the stall, things would have been a disaster.

"It's fine. Just be more careful next time."

Minami waved it off like it was nothing, already moving on to preparing another batch of chocolate.

Seeing him go right back to work, Youko quickly followed suit.

But—

Soon enough, as she busied herself, she began to notice something strange.

Something really strange.

People.

So many people.

Youko stared in shock at the ever-growing line forming at Minami's station.

Wait.

Wait, wait, wait.

What's going on here?!

They were working the same stall.

They were making the same product.

So then—

Why did Minami's line have so many people?!

That's right.

Same stall.

Same chocolate bananas.

But Minami's side had a line stretching out the door—

While her side…

Had barely any customers at all.

Morishita Youko couldn't comprehend it.

She was making the exact same thing.

So why was there such a huge difference?!

She stood frozen, watching as Minami smoothly and effortlessly churned out chocolate bananas, all while handling the cash transactions.

"Three white chocolate bananas—1,500 yen."

"Two dark chocolate bananas—1,000 yen."

"...…."

By the time she snapped back to reality,

Minami had already put her in charge of handling the money.

Because, frankly, he didn't have enough hands—

And handling money with sticky fingers was far from ideal.

Since Youko's side was practically empty,

She might as well be useful somewhere.

Youko, now stuck in her new cashier role, had a completely blank expression.

Who… am I?

Where… am I?

She had never imagined a simple school festival could sell this much.

In just thirty to forty minutes—

She had watched their supplies rapidly dwindle.

The bananas, the chocolate, the toppings—

All disappearing at an alarming rate.

Sure, the Shuka Festival was famous, and the crowd was huge.

But still—

This pace was ridiculous!

Earlier, before Minami took over, their classmates had only sold about a third of the stock.

But as soon as Minami stepped in—

They were now almost completely sold out?!

This guy…

This guy wasn't just a top student.

He was insanely capable at everything?!

Was he…

Was he actually just an all-rounder genius?!

Seeing Minami Shouji effortlessly prepare chocolate bananas while casually answering customers' curious questions, Youko Morishita was utterly stunned.

"How is he this good at everything?"

And more importantly—

"Are his chocolate bananas really that good?"

Because for some reason, customers kept coming back for a second round.

"Doesn't chocolate get tiring after a while?"

She couldn't wrap her head around it.

Sensing her thoughts, Minami didn't even bother explaining.

Instead, he casually handed her a freshly made chocolate banana.

"Try it."

"H-Huh...? Is that okay...?"

Youko hesitated, looking at the banana that was supposed to be sold.

"It's fine. We've already hit our sales target for the day."

Minami waved it off like it was nothing.

After all, the cost of ingredients wasn't high.

And since they were almost sold out, they had already made a good profit.

So letting a classmate have one? No big deal.

"T-Then… I won't hold back."

Since Minami had personally offered, refusing felt awkward.

So, after a moment of hesitation, Youko took a bite—

And immediately, her eyes widened behind her glasses.

Now she understood.

She finally realized why Minami's chocolate bananas were so popular.

Because—

Compared to her own clumsy attempt at melting chocolate—

Which had a slightly burnt taste from poor temperature control—

Minami's chocolate had a rich, deep aroma.

It was sweet, but not overly so—

The flavor had been perfectly drawn out during the melting process.

The contrast between the warm chocolate shell and the cool, refreshing banana created a perfect balance.

There was no sense of overwhelming sweetness—only pure enjoyment.

And to think—

The ingredients he used were just ordinary store-bought chocolate and cheap bananas.

Yet somehow, Minami had turned them into something exceptional.

But more than that—

Beyond the flawless taste—

There was something else.

Something that no one else could replicate.

It was…

That feeling of happiness you get when eating something truly delicious.

That tiny moment of joy melted away all the stress she had felt.

It even soothed her nerves, making her less anxious about working beside Minami.

Youko exhaled deeply.

"This is… really good..."

Now, she completely understood why customers kept coming back.

Because it was just that delicious.

As she sat there, silently marveling at Minami's skills, she couldn't help but sneak a glance at him.

For someone rumored to be "hard to get along with",

He sure was different from what she expected.

He had never once complained about working with her—

Even though she had only slowed him down this entire time.

Instead, he had helped her whenever she struggled.

"Maybe Minami-kun… is actually a really patient and kind person?"

Just as she was lost in thought—

A calm yet lazy voice suddenly rang out.

"Minami, five chocolate bananas."

The voice was so distinct that Youko instinctively looked up toward Minami—

And then—

Her jaw dropped.

"S-She's so cute…!"

Standing in front of their stall—

Was a breathtakingly beautiful short-haired girl with blue hair.

Compared to her own dull, awkward presence,

This girl effortlessly embodied the words "cool" and "stylish."

She wore a black knitted V-neck sweater over a white collared shirt,

A round pendant necklace rested elegantly at her chest,

Paired with a navy-blue, slightly vintage-style midi skirt—

Only revealing a small portion of her legs, clad in black stockings.

And then, there was her face.

Perfectly symmetrical features.

A naturally elegant, laid-back expression.

Her entire aura was refined, cool, and mysterious.

Just looking at her, Youko couldn't tear her gaze away.

"She might be… the most beautiful customer we've had all day."

Curious about how Minami would respond to such an exceptional beauty,

Youko turned to watch his reaction—

And in that moment—

Minami lifted his head, looked at the blue-haired girl—

And flatly said:

"Five chocolate bananas—5,000 yen."

"COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!!!"

Youko choked.

"W-What kind of daylight robbery is this?!"

Wasn't it supposed to be 500 yen per banana?!

Minami just doubled the price on the spot!