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Vol. 1 Chapter 17: Welcome home!
Maid cafĂ©s. They are paradises, amalgamations of all dreams and hopes of mankind. In the age of concept cafes, which compete heavily against each other, maid cafes are considered old as dinosaurs. Despite that, they were pieces of man’s dream, and their existence was already well-known to the public. As soon as you step inside, you’ll be thrilled regardless.
Wearing colorful costumes, welcoming their “masters” with a never-withering smile, they were truly the Tyrannosaurus of the new concept cafĂ© world.
“Welcome home~! Master~!”
Angel
 Their voices were bells announcing the descent of a choir. Tyrannosaurus, Stegosaurus, whatever-saurus—they all faded from existence, and the age of dinosaurs came to an end. The one descending before us was none other than Michael, the archangel
 Or maybe Gabriel? Raphael?
Ugh, I’m getting tired of weird explanations, so let me lay out what happened. Backtracking to Sunday, I visited Yui’s cafĂ© for the first time in a month. I hadn’t really planned on going so soon even after we made amends, but just last night I received ten messages, or rather ten essays. Her momentum overwhelmed me.
I walked into the place with tension rising from my bowels, and was greeted by an oh-so-familiar figure. Her long, sky-blue dyed hair was done up in a ponytail. Big, droopy eyes painted the picture of cuteness. She wore her white and pink maid uniform with perfection; the nameplate on her chest was decorated with numerous stickers of cats and hearts, and an anime badge was pinned to her shirt.
“Yuta-kun! Thanks for coming!”
“Yeah, it’s been a while. Glad to see you’re doing well.”
I was then led to one of the tables further back to take a seat. It hadn’t been that long since I last saw her, but the shadow of fatigue stopped looming over her and completely disappeared. No longer did she look like she was at her wit’s end.
“What would you like to order?”
“A Heartthrob Omelet and a Coke, please.”
“Sure thing, sir! Please wait a moment!”
She took my order with a springy smile, returning to the counter while skipping. Seeing things I once thought I gave up on made me unbelievably happy. About five minutes later, she came back with a Coke in hand.
“Here you go~! One Coke for you!”
“Thanks. Oh, I forgot to mention that I’d like one more drink. It’s for you.”
“Wow! Thank you~! Thanks a lot!”
She decided on iced cocoa, meanwhile, I sat down my glass on the table so we could both talk over a pleasant drink.
“Yui-chan, I’m glad you’re not overworking yourself again.”
“Aw, thanks! I have fewer customers than before, but I’m happy some people still support me because they see I changed for the better.”
“Yeah, you’re definitely cuter now.”
“I–is that so?! T, thank you!”
I remember calling her cute many times before, but for some reason, now she was red to the tips of her ears and stammered with embarrassment. At any rate, it’s glad to see this sincere version of her is still a hit with other customers. Well, I noticed her charm from the very beginning.
While I was putting on such high-and-mighty otaku airs, an omelet was brought in from the kitchen and Yui received it.
“I’ll write on your omelet! Any requests?”
“Hmm, I’ll leave it up to you.”
“Okay~! I’ll do my best!”
Then, she expertly grabbed a ketchup bottle and began to write on my omelet. Her sheer dexterity impressed me, and I got absorbed in watching her move. Now then, the most important part: what she wrote—
“I love you, Yuta-kun ♡”
Her message made the omelet taste sweeter than a parfait, I’m sure. There were also hearts drawn all over it, and I. Mean. It. It was a flurry of hearts fuller than the most expensive of all orders—She was not done yet.
“Next, I’ll work my special spell on your omelet!”
“Please do
 Um, why are you sitting next to me?”
As if it was the most natural thing in the world, she sat down right beside me, intertwined her fingers with mine, and started whispering sweet words into my ear, ones only lovers would share.
“Yuta-kun, I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you!”
Her voice was that of a baby bird’s soothing melody, and its lack of force made it ten thousand times more powerful. The fact that it was whispered into my ear, combined with her tender breathing blowing on my lobe, made me feel like giving up and giving in right there.
“Do you want to see more of me? Look, your heart is going ba-dump, ba-dump so fast!”
Even after melting my ears, her attack did not end. Right after her whispers, she raised my hands—still interlocked with hers—and placed them right above her bosom. The softness of a thousand marshmallows, even through her uniform, overtook me. I couldn’t even feel her heartbeat.
Not only did she seize my sense of hearing, but also my touch. Falling was inevitable. It might’ve been game over if it were just the two of us in this room, but there were many people there. If someone saw Yui wreaking havoc, she would be blamed and punished. That single thought managed to snap me back to reality, and I steeled my resolve.
“Y–Yui-chan, wait.”
“Hm? What’s wrong?”
“The other customers are watching us
”
“Don’t worry, it’s the last table in the cafĂ©. No one took notice, okay?”
She got me
 Everything was calculated to the minute detail. Indeed, this table was the furthest from everything else, and not even once did other customers look our way. Moreover, I don’t think her colleagues would even think of her doing something like whispering into a customer’s ear. It was like the two of us were in a different dimension.
“But any more than this and they will catch us, what a waste,” she got up and sat in the chair right across me.
What a close call
 I had no idea she prepared such a violent charge. In fact, she might be a cheeky little devil. I feel if I let my guard down for a second, she might take me away and eat me whole. Let’s change the subject

“Oh, the omelet is delicious.”
“Really? I see! That’s because I cast some powerful spells!”
“I guess so
”
“Speaking of which, what’s your relationship with that junior girl from the other day?”
Even though I managed to change subjects, she asked me a difficult question.
“I met her last year, right after I got cheated on by my girlfriend. We often go to the arcade and watch movies together.”
“Hmm
 We go to different schools, so I’m at a disadvantage
”
She whispered something, but I couldn’t catch it, unfortunately. After a brief moment of silence, as if planning something, she opened her mouth.
“I’d love it if you could hang out with me, even if it’s just once in a while. It’s fine even if your junior comes as well!”
“Hanging out with me is fine, but you shouldn’t with Kurosaki
” Judging from their argument the other day, they don’t seem to be very compatible with each other. Rather, Kurosaki was just irked by Yui’s optimism. It would be a bad idea to let them meet.
After chatting and finishing my omelet, which tasted sweeter than condensed milk, I packed my stuff to leave.
“Are you leaving already?”
“Yeah, I had a great time today though.”
“Glad to hear that! Come back anytime, ‘kay? I’ll give you lots of service!”
“Service
 Well, thanks a lot for your time!”
“Have a good day, master~!”
While I noticed her dangerous tone, I left the store pleased to see her acting normally for the first time in what felt like ages. As I stepped outside, the darkness had already engulfed the city. The sky had no clouds, yet I felt the sun would rise brightly again tomorrow.