“D-Dear Master.. .A m-m-most beloved welcome…”
“No, that won’t do~ You mustn’t stutter saying that line~ You’ve to say it in one go! Watch how I do it!” Blue deeply inhaled a mouthful of air and a smile brimming with energy bloomed on her face like a flower.
“Dear Master, welcome home~ Do you want coffee or tea~?”
“H-How amazing…” Exclaimed Ke’er in amazement as she covered her mouth.
“Hehehe… You’re flattering me~” Blue rubbed her head in embarrassment.
“Sorry… Ke’er is just too dumb to get a hang of it…”
“That’s not true at all. When I first arrived at this place, the eyebrows of the store manager teaching me were all furrowed up… Now that I think about it, that was the first time I’ve seen the store manager’s poker face change.” Said Blue in deep rumination while pinching her chin.
“So, don’t lose heart. The manager has said that we should approach it the same way we eat our rice — a mouthful at a time… That said, I don’t eat rice, only meat.” Blue licked her small mouth.
Slightly shocked, Ke’er sized Blue up.
The young, ponytailed girl before her was only half a head taller than herself. Although her chest area was somewhat of a pity, her slim figure and slender limbs made her body appear very well-proportioned to incur the envy of others.
‘Can this body shape be maintained by only eating meat all day long?’
“Blue-chan~ It’s already 10 o’clock. It’s time to open for business.” Two maids of similar age as Blue left the dressing room.
They gave her a greeting before quickly shifting their eyes onto Ke’er.
“Eh? Who is this?”
“Oh! Let me introduce her~” Blue bounced up all of a sudden and, brimming with energy, circled around Ke’er a few times.
“This girl here is Ke’er-chan, from the cat race~ She will be working together with us from now on.”
“H-Hello, everyone~ My name is Ke’er, I look forward to working with all of you.” Ke’er timidly greeted them before hiding behind Blue, who was the person she was most familiar with of all those present.
“Oh my, what an adorable little creature~ Heyy~ I really wanna know what you taste like~” A young girl with long green hair lightly pressed a finger against her lips and licked it.
“Much obliged.” A young girl with straight long black hair expressionlessly returned Ke’er’s greeting in a formal manner.
“Uhm…”
“Stop frightening Ke’er, Green. This is only her first day here.” Blue was somewhat unhappy with her colleague’s behavior.
“Oh~ It’s just a joke, that’s all. Hehehe… That’s right, Ke’er-chan. Is ‘Ke’er’ your real name?”
“Eh, y-yes.”
“I see. In that case, it’d be best if we come up with a pet name for you.”
“A pet name…?”
“Well, it’s nothing of importance, just a way to make it easy for our masters to address us, that’s all. We don’t use our real names when we’re working inside the cafe, you know.”
“Mhm.” The emotionless, heartless, and expressionless1 black-haired girl nodded and erased her presence.
“Is that so?” Ke’er looked at Blue beside her, who was leaning forward on her stomach and sniffing at her like a puppy.
“M-Miss Blue, what are you doing…It tickles~”
“Don’t worry, Blue is just memorizing your smell. After all, it has already been a very long time since our shop got a new employee. The store manager’s requirements for new recruits are especially high… Though, it has since been lowered.”
“W-What do you mean by ‘memorizing my smell’?”
“Well, Blue hasn’t told you yet? Here, look.” Saying which, Green went forward and took off Blue’s maid headband, revealing a pair of fluffy dog ears.
“Blue is an Asiatic dog.”
“Awoo~? D,D-Dog?!” Ke’er’s pupils contracted as she rolled her body into a ball under the table.
“Eh? Why are you hiding from me, Ke’er-chan…” Dejection was written all over Blue’s face and her dog ears drooped downwards.
“Pfft… Come on out, Ke’er-chan. This dog Blue doesn’t chase after cats, nor bites randomly. She’s a really, really obedient girl. You can even stroke her head too.” Green smiled as she caressed Blue’s dangling dog ears.
“R-Really?”
“Really, really~ A dog of my pedigree doesn’t bite people, uuu…That’s what Miss Store Manager said.” Blue hurriedly unleashed a barrage of explanation.
“Uehhh…” Ke’er’s instinctual fear mostly vanished upon seeing the somewhat adoringly-silly puppy before her.
“Sorry to interrupt, but it’s already 10 minutes past 10 o’clock.” Interjected the girl with long black hair from the side who had been silent throughout.
“Wow! Time has passed this fast already? Hurry, get ready. Don’t let our guests wait anxiously! I’ll open the door!” Blue hurriedly re-adjusted her headband and ran towards the store’s entrance.
“So, Ke’er-chan~”
“Mhm. I’m here.”
“Let’s set your pet name as Pink2, how about it?” Said Green after a brief period of contemplation with her eyes locked onto Ke’er’s cherry-colored hair.
“Eh? S-Sure…”
“Oh my. I’m truly grateful that you don’t hate that name~ Give it your best out there, alright?”
“Uh, mhm!”
…………
“Ehehe~! Dear masters, welcome back. Do you want coffee or tea? ~Winkhere.”>3~”
“Ooooh! Blue-chan is as energetic as always! I want coffee with white sugar, please. Thanks!”
“Welcome back, my master.” The maid with long, black hair gave a textbook-style salute.
“If Black-chan can give me a smile, I’ll order 3 cups of coffee and 3 sets of steaks, then eat it all down!”
“Is that so?” The always expressionless Black gave a faint smile. It looked very natural, without any hint that she was forcing it through her ever-stony expression.
“Ohhh! She smiled, Black-chan smiled! Ahh, I’m dying! I can’t avoid the three sets of coffee and steak now!” The cuteness that resulted from the contrast gave the customer immense satisfaction.
‘They’re all a-amazing…’
Seeing the three maids’ expressions that were impeccably natural to a fault, as well as their smooth movements in serving their customers, stunned Ke’er.
“Eh?? Green, is the small cherry-colored hair girl over there a new maid?”
“Oh, is Master referring to Pink? Yes, she’s been newly recruited by our store~ She just started today and is somewhat new to this business. May I ask for your kind understanding.” Green purposely raised her tone so that more customers could hear her words.
After all, the salary was determined by a base pay and the number of times a customer mentions a maid by name. She hoped that Ke’er could quickly adapt and integrate.
“Oooh! That cute child is a maid too? Can I order my meal from her?”
“Step aside! I’ve already chosen her!”
“Eeeh…” Seeing the aggressive customers in front of her, Ke’er felt her legs turn somewhat soft.
“Don’t be afraid. Bring the coffee over to the master on Table 3, ask him what he needs and you’re done~” Said Green in encouragement as she passed a tray over to Ke’er.
“O-Okay…” Ke’er gulped behind pursed lips as she took the meal tray and a menu.
The customer on table 3 was a chubby, bespectacled youth whose face emerged with a foolish smile when he saw Ke’er arriving.
“E-Ehm, Gue…M-Master! This is the coffee you wanted… Gu-nyaa!” In a moment of nervousness, Ke’er fully displayed a special skill exclusive to natural airheads — Face Planting on the ground.
“Platter, crack!” The glass cup fell onto the tabletop and hot coffee poured onto the obese youth’s clothes.
“Waah!”
“I-I’m sorry!! S-So sorry, nyaa…” Ke’er hurriedly took out a cleaning rag and knelt down to help wipe his clothes clean.
Seeing the cat-eared girl with cherry-colored hair mere inches away from him made the obese teenager forget that he had been scalded by boiling water. Lowering his gaze, he looked at the area where her chest was…
Puu! Fresh blood erupted out his nostrils in a straight line.
“Ahhh! Pink-chan, you’re the best! I’m dying!” The obese teenager fainted.