kscans

Chapter 484 - A Friend's Friend

A month after the exploration of Cat Island concluded, Parfait was in the cafe area of her base in the Eastern Country, Azuma, eating a strawberry shortcake.

It was a login bonus-like sweet from the Maid Guild, and eating it had become something of a routine for Parfait when starting her AFO sessions. Recently, she had been eating more realistic, non-buff-providing sweets, and she found them to be even more delicious than five-star quality confections.

As Parfait savored the delicious cake, she wondered what she should do today.

Natsu and the others had real-life commitments and weren't planning to log in today. However, Ginny had said she would be coming, so Parfait was waiting for her.

With nothing in particular to do, Parfait sat in her chair, elbows on the table, and recalled the events of the past month.

After collecting catnip during the Cat Island event, they were granted an audience with Siegfried, the queen of the Nyanko Kingdom. As expected, it was the calico cat Siegfried they knew. When their eyes met, Siegfried seemed a little surprised but then proceeded to walk gracefully with her children.

Siegfried and her kittens walked down a runway made for the audience as if it were a fashion show. Everyone was captivated by the sight, and Orion, in particular, took screenshots and videos with a blank expression.

However, in the end, she couldn't hold back any longer. After getting everyone's permission, she attempted to tame Siegfried.

The result was that they were hit with a wide-area Tame Counter, leaving them immobilized, and then wiped out by a super-wide-area attack called the Honorable Cat Stampede, which ignored defense.

That said, being playfully swarmed by a horde of cats is, without exaggeration, a dream for most of humanity. Everyone was wiped out with happy looks on their faces. Of course, they didn't forget to take screenshots and videos of the moment. When they released them, the number of views was staggering, and it became a tradition for those granted an audience to attempt a tame and be wiped out at the end.

That had happened, but Parfait and her friends had earned a great number of points in the event. As a result, they were able to get almost all of the exchange items. Parfait was delighted to have obtained "Melampus," an item that allowed her to speak with her pets. Though the black cat she wanted to talk to, Trachiyo, had yet to return from her training journey.

The event was an unmitigated success. They also made new acquaintances like Orion, Deeger, and Rhadia, and when they left Cat Island, everyone told them to call if they ever needed anything. Over the past month, they had gone hunting together and become even closer.

However, the event also brought other things to light. Most of the information came from Rhadia, but when Parfait asked her parents and Diite about it that night, they explained everything without hiding anything.

Mom is a person from 120 years ago and Dad is a modern person. It's impossible to believe, but Nacchan's parents are the same way. The reason why so many talented people are gathered around my seemingly ordinary dad can be explained by that, so I have no choice but to believe it.

Her father, Hayato, was on good terms with the Foundations. His meeting with Ney, who was then the next head of the Libra Foundation, was apparently a complete coincidence, but his actions after being kicked out of his clan led to his encounters with the NPCs of AFO at the time. That was what connected to the present.

According to her father, Hayato, "There were a lot of troubles, but everyone else solved them. I just helped out a little." He said he hadn't done much himself. That was also the reason he asked not to be called a savior.

Her mother, Esha, sighed in exasperation, and Diite burst out laughing. However, Hayato himself didn't seem to be feigning modesty. He genuinely believed it, and he added with a wry smile,

"A production player with no combat power in AFO, and just a regular person in reality. There's no way a normal person like that could be a savior, right?"

But he was the only one who said that.

She had a chance to meet Abel's father, Ash, and the romance-loving Ren, so when she asked them what they thought, they laughed and said, "That's just like Hayato," and then added with a smile that they owed Hayato a debt they could never repay.

When she met Natsu's father, Mist, and her masters Benitsuru and Simon, she asked them the same question, and they all gave the same answer. Only Natsu's mother, Noat, wrapped in a blanket, said something a little strange, "I raised Hayato-san."

Seeing how her father, Hayato, was adored by everyone made her feel proud, a secret she couldn't tell anyone. With her mother being from 120 years ago, she had been on the verge of worrying about being different again, but the positive evaluation of Hayato meant she didn't have to worry so much.

Another major reason she wasn't worried or shocked was that she wasn't the only one.

Natsu, both of whose parents were from 120 years ago, was overjoyed, exclaiming, "As expected of my father and mother!" while Chris simply said, "Encounters are a curious thing," and didn't seem to mind.

Rick, whose parents were both modern people, was learning about security and hacking from Relic, and he had come to respect him even more, saying, "To think he's a world-class master of not just past technology but modern technology as well, I'm truly impressed."

Wilnel had also heard the story from Ronios and, with a knowing smile, said, "I understand now why all of you are so talented," and whispered, "I'll scout you for Gemini someday...!"

That had happened over the past month, but in the end, she was able to play AFO without any particular worries, with a clear mind.

So, Parfait switched her train of thought to what she should do from now on.

Thanks to Rick, the passive income from their base had stabilized, and the foundation for focusing on adventures and events was in place. Now, all that was left was to start preparing to actually open a cafe.

My cooking skill has improved quite a bit, and I think I can manage the ingredients. I'd also like to have a few cats as employees, but first I have to wait for Trachiyo... Right, I also need uniforms. Maybe I should put together some cute equipment... Or maybe a mascot costume like Deeger-san... No, probably not.

Having some free time since she was alone, Parfait pondered various things. After about ten minutes, there was a knock on the cafe's entrance door.

"Um, excuse me, is G-Ginny... san, at home?"

Thinking it was a voice she hadn't heard before, Parfait approached the door. She looked outside through the small window on the door.

...There's a suspiciously behaving beautiful girl outside...

A beautiful girl, looking around furtively, was on high alert. She looked to be about the same age as her, wearing a dress like Ginny's, that of a classic young lady, giving off an aura of someone who had never held anything heavier than chopsticks.

She had silky straight black hair, eyes as black as lacquer, and, like Ginny, wore a dress that was primarily black with red frills.

Whoops, I shouldn't stare. She's probably Ginny-chan's friend.

When she opened the door, the girl flinched.

"Ah, sorry to startle you. Ginny-chan hasn't logged in yet, but I think she'll be here soon, so please wait inside."

In the real world, she wouldn't just open the door like that, but this was virtual reality. Thinking there probably wouldn't be any scams, Parfait beckoned the girl inside.

However, the girl just blinked repeatedly and made no move to enter.

"Um, is something wrong?"

When Parfait asked, the girl's eyes welled up with tears and she covered her mouth with both hands, letting out a small "Kuh."

? What's going on?

She didn't seem surprised, but there was a strange atmosphere about her. As Parfait gave her a suspicious look, the girl took a deep breath, then held the hem of her skirt and curtsied.

"U-um, my name is Cynthia, I'm a classmate of Ginny... san's. I have an appointment to meet Ginny... san here today..."

"Cynthia-san, I see. If you're a friend of Ginny-chan's, please, come in. I'll get you some tea and sweets right now."

Seeing this as an opportunity for customer service practice, Parfait once again urged Cynthia inside, but Cynthia shook her head.

"N-no, I'll wait outside..."

"Eh? Please wait inside. If Ginny-chan finds out I made her friend wait outside, she'll get mad at me."

She had never seen Ginny get angry, but if she were to mistreat her friend, there was a high chance she would. Besides, there was no reason to make her wait outside.

"I-it's fine... I'm good at blending into the background... Please just think of me as part of the scenery..."

"Yeah, I have no idea what you're talking about."

It was an unsettling statement, or rather, she didn't know what it meant. However, from her appearance, she seemed to be the daughter of a company president. Ginny's parents were executives at the large corporation Hyper Toy Maker, so she had many connections with large companies.

Even though she said they were classmates, Parfait thought the connection was likely through that, but for some reason, Cynthia wouldn't come in. Or rather, it felt like she wouldn't even make eye contact with Parfait.

Does she not want to be with me? But why? This is the first time we've met, right?

If she was Ginny's classmate, they went to the same school, albeit in different classes. Parfait thought she would have at least seen such a beautiful girl before, but she had no memory of it at all.

Just as she began to think that the story about being Ginny's classmate might be a lie, she heard the sound of footsteps approaching rapidly from the second floor. DOTA DOTA.

And then, Ginny appeared on the stairs.

"Parfait-san, actually, my friend is coming today... There's a beautiful girl here!"

The moment she saw Cynthia, Ginny said that. Then, as if her legs had given out, she sat down on the floor in a side-sitting position and pounded the floor with her fist. The floor shook slightly.

"Oh crap! I wanna whale until I hit the ceiling! Eh? What? Is Cynthia-chan an ultra-rare!? I'd pull as many copies as it takes to max her out! In fact, I wanna buy stock in that company and have a say in its management...!"

"Hey, Ginny-chan! Your true self is showing!"

Ginny, who usually wore layers of deception and was seen by others as a sheltered young lady. But that was just her appearance. Inside, she was something from the depths of darkness. She had fallen to darkness on a different vector from Natsu.

It would be a disaster if her classmate saw her like this, so Parfait tried to hide Ginny somehow, but it was clearly too late. So, she opened her mouth to try and smooth things over.

"Um, Cynthia-san, Ginny-chan is usually much more modest..."

"There is an angel here, de gozaru!"

"...Gozaru?"

That's a word Master Benitsuru would use, Parfait thought. Cynthia, who had used such a word, also collapsed from the knees, sitting on the floor in a side-sitting position with both hands on the ground. Then, she started patting the floor. Teshiteshi.

"A critical hit to this one's heart, de gozaru yo! As expected of Ginny-shi, I would support her even if I had to skimp on food! Ahh, I wish someone would make a donation box for Ginny-shi! I would pray to it morning, noon, and night, de gozaru oo!"

...Ah, they're the same kind?

While feeling a slight desire to log out, Parfait tried to get the two beautiful girls, who were sitting on the floor saying strange things, to sit in chairs.