[I didn't seduce them either.]
"Not yet? That earlier wasn't blatant seduction? Pulling the tie, yo yo yo～ From now on, no smiling at customers."
[It's really not.]
Saiki didn't know what happened either. He originally couldn't pull off a smile like Kita's at all.
He just thought he'd eat his coffee jelly with a faint smile, make his eyes a little gentler, and worried it wasn't enough, so he even used his superpower. Who knew… it went overboard.
"Anyway, that's it for now."
Ijichi Seika finished speaking and turned to leave.
Saiki sat on the stool, propping his cheek as he thought.
(Seriously, even though I haven't used this superpower in two years, I had perfect control over it back then. Could it be…)
(Could this superpower have evolved too far… Come to think of it, when I last checked my abilities, I never really tested this one. I didn't know it could grow to this extent.)
(I planned to keep it locked in storage, thinking I'd probably never use it again in this lifetime. I used it once today, but next time I need to control it properly and use it as little as possible.)
Actually, when this superpower first awakened, Saiki couldn't control it at all. If he accidentally smiled outside, it would activate automatically.
People around him would keep pressing closer, so during that period Saiki rarely went out.
That's why his expressionless face isn't just from laziness—there's a bit of this reason too, though he eventually gained control.
But unexpectedly, without realizing it, because it grew so fast, it became uncontrollable again.
(Next time I'll control this ability properly. Since it's become uncontrollable, who knows when a smile might accidentally trigger it automatically.)
"Saiki-kun, one coffee jelly."
[Got it.]
...
Saiki walked to the drink counter and only saw Kita Ikuyo. Gotoh Hitori was nowhere in sight.
[Where's Hitori?]
Kita Ikuyo stared blankly at the screen with clear eyes, blinked after a moment, then nodded and asked: "Eh! Right, where did she go?"
[Don't ask me back.]
"Right here!"
Yamada Ryo was squatting next to the trash can, pointing at the pink creature inside.
[What are you doing, Hitori?]
Saiki stepped forward to look. Gotoh Hitori had turned into a soft-bodied creature and was inside the trash can.
Kita Ikuyo: "The situation looks pretty bad."
Saiki nodded in agreement.
[Yeah, it does. This is kind of a problem—nobody can throw trash like this.]
"Is that the main point?"
Gotoh Hitori stretched out her hand and repeatedly wrote "special trait special trait" on the ground.
"My special trait, my special trait is disappearing. It's fine for Saiki, but even my first-day newbie performance as a part-timer was worse than Kita-san's! I burned my hand just serving coffee!"
Gotoh Hitori pulled out her guitar and displayed her all-round soul-singer performance: "Next up, please enjoy 'The Part-Timer Elegy: More Useless Than a Newbie on Day One' la～la…"
Gotoh Hitori's soul gradually floated upward from the trash can along with the song.
[This is a "true" soul singer.]
[Anyway, come out first.]
Saiki lifted the trash can, dumped out the soft-bodied creature Gotoh Hitori onto the ground, and she returned to normal.
"Okay～"
Ijichi Nijika: "Kita's cheerful personality makes her more suited for this kind of work. That's normal. Everyone has things they're not good at, right, Ryo?"
Yamada Ryo puffed out her chest, hands on hips, proudly: "I'm not nervous serving customers. I'm really good at it."
(Where are you good at it?)
"Not what I meant!"
Kita Ikuyo stepped forward, patted her head, and comforted: "It's okay. Everyone has things they're bad at and good at. Like me—I can't play guitar at all. You're way stronger than me in that area."
Gotoh Hitori: "Ah, gracias～"
[Don't get discouraged. Want to try the new cake I just made? It's strawberry flavor!]
Saiki took out a piece of strawberry cake. The aroma was sweet and inviting, it looked delicious and mouthwatering, with a rich sweet fragrance, perfectly balanced in color, aroma, and taste. The strawberries on top were crystal clear, like sparkling red gems.
Ijichi Nijika: "How did you make a strawberry cake?"
[I saw some leftover strawberries in the back and just made it on a whim. Only enough for one portion, though. Maybe we could add it to the menu.]
Ijichi Seika: "Rejected. Looks like too much hassle unless you're planning to make it every day."
[Then rejected it is.]
Ijichi Seika: …
[Look, look.]
Saiki waved it in front of Gotoh Hitori. The scent wafted over.
Gotoh Hitori stretched out her soft, squishy hand, trying to touch it, but Saiki pulled it away. He offered it again, she reached again, he dodged again, reached again, dodged…
Gotoh Hitori finally stood up and grabbed Saiki: "It looks so good!"
[There's only one piece. Here.]
Saiki scooped a small bit with a spoon and fed it to Gotoh Hitori.
"Ah!"
Gotoh Hitori opened her abyssal maw, put the cake in her mouth—no chewing needed. It melted instantly on her tongue, leaving a faint, refreshing fragrance between her lips and teeth.
"Ahm～ So good."
"Yay, it looks delicious. Can I have some too?"
[Sure, here.]
"Ah～"
Kita Ikuyo opened her mouth.
Saiki subconsciously scooped another spoonful and fed it into Kita Ikuyo's mouth before realizing what the action might imply…
Kita Ikuyo held her cheeks: "Sweet and delicious, mouthwatering, appetite-spiking, fragrant and sweet, perfect in color, aroma, and taste, sweet, soft, fluffy and melt-in-your-mouth—it's a super perfect cake."
"Me too, me too!"
Ijichi Nijika came over wearing gloves—she'd been wiping tables but walked over the moment she smelled the aroma and saw the cake.
[Here…]
Saiki was about to hand it to Ijichi Nijika.
"Ah～"
Ijichi Nijika pointed at her gloves: "It's inconvenient right now, so… ah～"
Saiki fed Ijichi Nijika too.
Ijichi Nijika savored it slowly. The rich cream swirled in her mouth, sweet and fragrant.
"This is the best cake I've ever eaten!"
[As long as it's good.]
"Mmm—"
Saiki felt it—a terrifying, oppressive gaze from behind.
He quietly turned his head. From the corner of his eye, he saw her standing behind him, arms crossed over her chest, not saying a word, just staring at Saiki.
(This siscon shop owner isn't jealous because her little sister got fed by someone else, is she?)
Saiki's glasses completely hid his eyes, making it impossible for anyone to tell what he was thinking.
"Me too."
Yamada Ryo tugged at Saiki's sleeve and pointed at her own mouth.
"Ah～"
Saiki directly placed the entire remaining cake—plate and all—into Yamada Ryo's hands.
Yamada Ryo subconsciously took the plate, looked at the cake in front of her, then at Saiki's unreadable expression, and slightly furrowed her brow.
It was as if she was saying: Everyone else got fed, but not me—why? I'm not satisfied. Just as she was about to voice her dissatisfaction…
"Here, senpai～"
Kita Ikuyo scooped a spoonful with the spoon and fed it to Yamada Ryo.
"Ah～ mm, good…"