Princess Connect! Relaxing Cafe Days: Pecorine's Appetite and the Ghost's Secret - Morning at the Popuri Teahouse, and the Sugar Footprints on the Floor

Today's pudding is going to be absolutely perfect!" Morning light sparkled across the surface of the Rivane River. Along its banks stood a two-story stone building—Popli Pavilion. A guildhouse and café run by the Gourmet Knights. A girl with orange, softly flowing long hair loosely braided at the sides—Pecorine—threw open the shop's windows with a flourish, the hem of her pastel orange dress with its white frilled apron fluttering as she moved. "Mmm, it smells so good again today! The river breeze always seems a little sweet, doesn't it?" She narrowed her large amber eyes into crescent moons and stretched big. She was slender, barely over five feet, but hauling ingredients every day had given her arms a surprising amount of muscle. With the ribbon bearing the Gourmet Knights' crest swaying at her chest, Pecorine stepped outside. Asteria was a culinary city known as the "Town of Tasting." Population around thirty-five thousand. The Rivane River ran through its center, and waterwheels turned slowly here and there. The morning market wafted with the scent of bread and baked sweets, and everyone passing by on the streets looked somehow happy. "Morning, Pecorine. You're full of energy again today, aren't you?" "Morning, ma'am! Today's tomatoes are so red and look delicious! I'll come buy some later!" Pecorine waved to the vegetable vendor she'd passed, then went back inside. —This place, Popli Pavilion, is my treasure. She murmured it in her heart, to no one in particular. Behind the counter, Yuki, the cooking assistant, was silently measuring sugar. Short black hair, calm eyes. He didn't talk much. But he was the partner Pecorine trusted most. "Yuki, good morning! Let's do our best again today!" Yuki gave a small nod. That was enough. "So for today's pudding, I'm thinking of using a little more egg than usual. I want it rich and melt-in-your-mouth!" Pecorine pinched some of the sugar Yuki had measured with her fingertips and licked it. "Yeah, this sugar's just right! It's the kind we got from the Asteria market, isn't it? Good ingredients really are different." As she spoke, she pulled eggs from the refrigerator. Popli Pavilion's signature menu item—"Popli Brand Pudding"—was eighty gold apiece. They said it was a flavor that made you feel happy the moment it touched your tongue. The ingredients were eggs, milk, sugar, and a sugar candy called "star fragments." "Hey, Yuki." Pecorine began to speak quietly as she cracked eggs. "You know, when I was little, I lived in an orphanage. I don't even remember my parents' faces. I was always hungry." Yuki kept his hands moving, listening quietly. "Then one day, the previous head waitress gave me a pudding. It was warm, and sweet, and the moment I ate it, I cried. I learned for the first time that there was something this delicious in the world." She mixed the eggs in the bowl, her eyes looking somewhere far away. "And so, I decided. I'd make a pudding that surpasses that flavor. The previous owner may be gone, but as long as there are people waiting for my pudding in this shop, I'll keep making it!" Yuki's lips curved, just barely. "Ah, you just smiled! You hardly ever smile, Yuki!" When Pecorine pointed at him, Yuki immediately went back to a straight face and held out the bowl of sugar. "Hehe, you're embarrassed. Here, thank you!" That was when it happened. Clatter. Something fell over in the back of the kitchen. "...Huh?" They both looked toward the sound at the same time. A cup that had been sitting on the counter was moving on its own. "...Huh? Huh? Huuuh!?" The cup slid slowly toward the edge of the counter, as if someone were pushing it with a hand. And then, just like that—it fell. Crash! "Kyaaaaaah! A ghost! It's a ghost! Yuki, did you see that!? Did you see it!?" Even as she screamed, Pecorine's eyes were somehow sparkling as she clung to Yuki's arm. Scaredy-cat though she was, she was endlessly curious about supernatural phenomena—her contradictory nature on full display. Yuki didn't flinch even with her clinging to him. Thud. This time, the bag of flour toppled over. White powder scattered across the floor. "Hyaaah! The flour too! Ghosts knock over flour too!?" Then the container of sugar tipped, and white sugar spilled across the floor with a soft hiss. "Ah! What a waste! The sugar! Oh, but... maybe ghosts like sweet things? If I offered it some pudding, do you think it would pass on?" Yuki crouched down and stared intently at the sugar scattered on the floor. "Yuki? What's wrong?" Yuki pointed at the floor without a word. On the white sugar, there were small footprints. "...Huh? Footprints?" Pecorine crouched beside him and peered closely. They were smaller than a child's footprints, but unmistakably the shape of shoes. "...Do ghosts leave footprints?" Yuki didn't answer. He just kept staring at those footprints. Silent, as if thinking about something. Pecorine tilted her head. "Hey, could it be that this shop really does have a ghost? I'm kind of excited about that sort of thing! But also, it's scary... Ahh, what do I do!?" She clutched her head with both hands. Past noon. The baker came to Popli Pavilion carrying freshly baked bread. "Pecorine, you in? I had some bread left over today. Want it for lunch if you'd like?" "Wow! Thank you! This bread smells amazing! So fluffy—eating it feels like it'd make you happy!" Pecorine took the bag of bread and immediately grabbed one. "Ah, more importantly, Pecorine. There's something that's been bothering me." "Yes? What is it?" The baker pointed outside the shop. "There are strange stakes driven around the shop. Survey stakes, they call them. The developers' people are apparently surveying this whole area." "Surveying...?" "Rumor is, the Grand Marché Commercial Union has been buying up land around here. They say they might build a big store." The smile vanished from Pecorine's face. The Grand Marché Commercial Union—the merchants' guild that controlled the largest market in the Kingdom of Storia, with about four thousand members. They were also the Gourmet Knights' main supplier of ingredients. "...Is this shop being targeted too, you think?" "I don't know. But it never hurts to be careful. Check your land deed and important documents properly." "Yes. Thank you for telling me." After the baker left, Pecorine went outside and looked around. Sure enough, in the empty lot behind the shop, several unfamiliar wooden stakes were driven into the ground. "...It's true. These weren't here yesterday." Something tightened in her chest. But she quickly put on a smile. "Well, the ghost is scarier anyway! I can think about the land stuff later!" With that, she ran back inside. Evening. Closing time, when the shop lights went down. Pecorine sat before the small altar on the second floor. On the altar was a single photograph. A woman with a gentle smile. The previous head waitress of Popli Pavilion. "Ma'am. The shop got through another day safely. We sold lots of pudding. Everyone said it was delicious." She pressed her hands together and quietly closed her eyes. "...But you know, some strange things have been happening. A ghost appearing, strange stakes being driven in. I have a bad feeling about this." Just then, she heard footsteps tapping up from below. "Yuki?" She turned to see Yuki coming up the stairs. In his hands was an old wooden box. "What's that?" Yuki set the box down in front of Pecorine without a word. "...Where was this?" Yuki pointed down. Under the kitchen floor, apparently. "Can I open it?" Yuki nodded. Pecorine slowly opened the lid of the wooden box. What came out was part of an old recipe book and a single note. "...This is the previous owner's handwriting." The note read: "Popli Pavilion's flavor is the flavor that connects people to people." Pecorine traced the words with her finger. "...Ma'am." Her eyes grew hot. Flipping through the recipe book, she found recipes for pudding, cakes, and soups written in careful handwriting. "Amazing. So many... The previous owner protected this shop's flavors all this time." She clutched the note to her chest. "I've made up my mind. The disappearing pudding, the ghost commotion—I'll get to the bottom of all of it myself. This shop is mine to protect." Yuki nodded quietly. The next morning. "Yuki! Good morning! Let's get fired up and prep for opening again today!" When Pecorine opened the shop door, something was lying at her feet. "Huh? A letter?" A white envelope. No sender's name. Tilting her head, she opened it. The paper inside read: "There's a ghost in this shop. But its true nature is something far more frightening." "...Huh? What is this?" A chill ran down her spine. But a moment later— "...Things are getting interesting!" Her eyes flashed. "Yuki! Look at this! It's a challenge letter from the ghost! What do you think 'something more frightening' means? Could it be connected to why the pudding keeps disappearing on its own!?" Yuki took the letter, rubbed the paper between his fingers, and studied the handwriting closely. Then, as if he'd noticed something, he looked up. "...Yuki? What's wrong? Did you figure something out?" Yuki didn't answer. He just stared at the letter. "Hey, Yuki. I have a feeling something's about to begin. The ghost, the land, the disappearing pudding. I feel like it's all connected!" She clenched her fist. "To protect this shop, maybe I can't do it alone. I need to gather allies. Maybe I should talk to Kyaru and Kokkoro too." Yuki carefully folded the letter and handed it back to Pecorine. "Thank you, Yuki. All right, let's make delicious pudding again today! Making hungry people happy—that's our job!" With that, Pecorine retied her apron strings with a firm tug. Grrr~. "Ah, my stomach growled. Breakfast first, then! Yuki, I'm going to bake bread, so help me out!" Yuki gave a small nod. The morning breeze from the Rivane River drifted softly in through Popli Pavilion's windows. It carried with it a sweet scent, and just a hint of mystery. Another lively, slightly mysterious day at Popli Pavilion was beginning.

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Episode 1

Name: Princess Connect! Relaxing Cafe Days: Pecorine's Appetite and the Ghost's Secret
Author: Novelia

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