Princess Connect! Relaxing Cafe Days: Pecorine's Appetite and the Ghost's Secret - The Fairy Girl and the Disappearing Pudding

"Yuuki, we're out of eggs! The milk is running low too, and there's barely any sugar left!" Pecorine flitted busily around the kitchen, opening and closing cupboards. Yesterday's ghost incident had sent flour and sugar spilling across the floor, so there wasn't enough left for today's pudding. Her fluffy orange hair swayed softly with every movement. "I'm curious about that letter from yesterday too, but first we need ingredients for the shop. If we can't make pudding, we'll disappoint all our hungry customers." She retied the strings of her white frilled apron with a firm tug, then grabbed the shopping basket hanging on the wall. Yuuki nodded silently and pointed at the counter. A note lay there. "Oh, you wrote me a shopping list? Thank you! Let's see—eggs, milk, sugar, and 'star fragments'... Yup, I've got it all memorized! Without those, we can't make the Potpourri special pudding." She tucked the note into her apron pocket and put her hand on the shop door. "Alright, I'm off! Take care of the shop while I'm gone!" Yuuki gave a small wave. Pecorine waved back cheerfully and bounded outside. The morning breeze off the Rivarne River brushed gently through Pecorine's hair. The water sparkled, and somewhere in the distance she could hear the slow turning of a waterwheel. Mornings in Astellia always smelled of bread and fresh-baked sweets. "The morning market really is the best! Everything smells amazing, everyone's smiling, and it makes me so hungry!" She crossed the Rivarne Bridge and headed for the central market, the Astellia Marché. Her steps were light on the cobblestones. People passing by called out, "Morning, Pecorine!" and she waved back with a beaming smile each time. The Astellia Marché was a massive market with over two hundred stalls lining its streets. Vegetables, fruits, fish, meat, spices—even rare ingredients kept fresh by magic—everything imaginable was on display. The morning market was especially lively, with merchants shouting out their wares. "Onions, onions! Fresh onions, get your onions here!" "Ahaha, I think I'll pass on onions today! I'm looking for eggs for pudding!" "Pecorine, dear, my eggs were laid just this morning. Nice rich yolks—perfect for pudding." "Really!? Let me see, let me see!" At the egg vendor's stall, eggs sat neatly arranged on beds of straw. Pecorine picked one up and held it to the light. "Wow, the shells are so glossy! These are great eggs! Ma'am, I'll take thirty of these!" "Much obliged! You're as energetic as ever, dear." She placed the eggs in her basket and headed to the milk shop next. At the stall, rich with the scent of fresh cream, Pecorine accepted a small sample cup. "Mmm! So rich and sweet! With milk like this, I can make a melt-in-your-mouth pudding! Three bottles, please!" She added the milk bottles to her basket. It was getting heavy now. But Pecorine's step was still light. "Next up, sugar and star fragments! Star fragments are only sold at that one shop." She headed for a small baking-supply store tucked in the back of the market. It was a sweet-smelling shop lined with colorful candies and glittering silver dragées for decoration. "Sir, may I have a bag of star fragments?" "Oh, Pecorine. Pudding again today? Star fragments are star-shaped sugar candies—they're enchanted to warm up ever so slightly when you put them in your mouth. People say they turn pudding into the taste of happiness." "That's right! Without these, the Potpourri special pudding just isn't complete! Thanks, sir!" With her shopping done, Pecorine let out a sigh of relief. Her basket was packed full—eggs, milk, sugar, and star fragments. "Hehe, now today's pudding is all set! I need to get home and start making it... wait, huh?" A crowd had gathered in one corner of the market. "What's going on? Are they selling some rare ingredient?" Pecorine tilted her head and approached the crowd. She stood on her tiptoes and peered inside. And there, at the center, stood a small girl. Long, pale yellow-green hair. Pointed ears. Translucent, delicate wings on her back. Her large emerald eyes had vertically slit pupils—the mark of the fairy race. She was tiny, barely over four and a half feet tall. A small flower ornament adorned her hair. "...That girl's a fairy." Pecorine held her breath. The girl stood perfectly still, surrounded by merchants. "Hey, hey, a real fairy? That's rare. Let me touch your ears." "They really are pointy! And her wings are see-through. Come on, fly for us a little." "How much are you selling her for? She's rare—she'll fetch a high price." The men reached out without hesitation, trying to touch the girl's ears and wings. She stood motionless, expressionless. But her small hands were trembling faintly. "...Please stop." The girl's voice was so thin it seemed it might vanish at any moment. "Oh, it can talk. Say something else." One of the merchants reached for her hair. In that instant, Pecorine pushed through the crowd and burst into the center. "Stop it!!" She planted herself in front of the girl and spread both arms wide. Her shopping basket clattered. "She's not a spectacle! Nobody said you could touch her!" "Huh? What's your problem, getting in the way?" "This girl is going to be our shop's guide! So I'm taking her with me now!" With that, Pecorine grabbed the girl's hand and held it tight. The girl's hand was cold as ice. "...Huh?" The girl looked up at Pecorine with her big emerald eyes. "It's okay. I'll protect you. Come with me?" Pecorine smiled at her—her very best smile, the one that made her eyes curve into crescent moons. The girl gave a tiny nod. "Phew, we managed to get away! Those guys just wouldn't quit." They ran all the way to the back alleys of the market before Pecorine finally stopped. Breathing hard, she looked down at the girl's hand still clasped in hers. "Um, sorry for dragging you off like that. I'm Pecorine! The poster girl of the Potpourri Pavilion." The girl slowly raised her face to look at Pecorine. "My name is Kokkoro. I am a guide, come from the village of Sweet Forest." "Kokkoro! What a cute name! So, why were you in the market? Did you get lost?" Kokkoro shook her head slowly. "I am not lost. This is my first time in this town, but I do not get lost. The plants tell me the way." "The plants?" "Yes. I am of the fairy race, so I can speak with plants and water. The trees of the forest have long told me that a shop called the Potpourri Pavilion in this town sends out the most delicious fragrance of pudding." "What!? That's my shop! The Potpourri Pavilion's pudding!" Kokkoro's emerald eyes sparkled just a tiny bit. "My. Then you, Lady Pecorine, are the one who makes that pudding. I was drawn out of the forest by its fragrance." "Whaaat!? The forest trees told you about the pudding's scent!? And you came all the way to Astellia just for that? That's amazing! Somehow, that makes me really happy!" Pecorine burst out laughing. Kokkoro gazed steadily at her. Her expression didn't change, but her eyes seemed to be smiling, just a little. "Lady Pecorine. Earlier, you said you would make me your guide." "Huh? Oh, yeah. That was kind of a lie to save you from those guys... but if you'd really be our guide, that would be incredibly reassuring!" "If I will do, I would be glad to. I was sent out to see the world beyond my village, so I was searching for a place to go." "Really!? Yay! Then starting today, Kokkoro, you're the Potpourri Pavilion's guide! Will you come to my shop?" "Yes. I would be honored to accompany you." The two walked side by side toward the Potpourri Pavilion. "Here it is! This is the Potpourri Pavilion! My precious shop!" A two-story stone building along the Rivarne River. The sign read "Potpourri Pavilion." Pecorine puffed out her chest and introduced it to Kokkoro. "My... what a lovely shop. Just as the plants said—it smells sweet and warm." Kokkoro closed her eyes and sniffed the air. "Hehe, that's probably the leftover scent of the pudding I baked! Come on, come in, come in! I'll introduce you to Yuuki!" When Pecorine opened the shop door, Yuuki was wiping dishes behind the counter. "Yuuki, I'm home! This is Kokkoro—she's joining us starting today! She's a fairy guide! Isn't that amazing!?" Yuuki stopped and looked at Kokkoro. Kokkoro gave a small bow. "My name is Kokkoro. From today, I will serve as this shop's guide. I look forward to working with you." Yuuki gave a small nod. "Yuuki says nice to meet you! Isn't this great, Kokkoro?" "Hehe... yes. Thank you." That night. "So here's the plan—starting today, Kokkoro's helping us investigate the ghost incident! Yesterday, a cup moved on its own, and the flour fell over. And we got an anonymous letter. It said, 'There's a ghost in this shop. But its true nature is something far more frightening.'" Pecorine spread the letter on the counter and showed it to Kokkoro. "My... what a frightening letter." Kokkoro stared intently at the letter. "But I sense no ill will from this paper. Rather, it feels a little lonely... that's the impression I get." "Lonely? You can tell that from a letter?" "Yes. Fairies can sense the traces left on objects. Whoever wrote this letter wanted someone to notice, but didn't want to frighten anyone... I can feel that hesitation." "Wow...! Kokkoro, that's amazing! So can you figure out who the ghost is, too!?" "That, I cannot yet say. But if we search the shop, we may learn something." "Alright! Then let's start our watch now! Weird things happened in the middle of the night yesterday, so tonight let's both stay awake!" "Understood." Yuuki quietly went upstairs. Late at night. With the shop lights off, Pecorine and Kokkoro hid behind the counter, holding their breath. "...Kokkoro, are you sleepy?" "I am fine. I do not need much sleep at night." "Fairies really are something. I'm about to nod off..." That was when it happened. Clatter. A small sound came from the direction of the basement door. "...! It's here!" The two exchanged glances and crept quietly toward the sound. The stairs leading down to the basement. A faint light leaked from below. "...Someone's there." Pecorine's heart pounded. She was scared. But she couldn't look away. The two descended the stairs one step at a time, careful not to make a sound. The basement door was slightly ajar. Peering through the gap— There was no one there. But one of the puddings that should have been on the storage shelf had vanished. "...The pudding! One disappeared yesterday too! So a ghost really is eating them!" "...Lady Pecorine, quiet." Kokkoro closed her eyes, listening for something. "...The plants told me. Small footsteps passed beneath the floorboards." "Beneath the floorboards!?" Kokkoro crouched in a corner of the basement. One of the floorboards was slightly raised. She gently lifted it. "...Here. There are small footprints." Pecorine crouched beside her and peered in. On the dirt beneath the floor, small footprints remained clearly imprinted. Even smaller than a child's. "...These are so tiny. And, doesn't it smell kind of nice?" "Yes. It smells of dried goods. Dried fish, kelp... there's a scent of the sea mixed in." "Dried goods...? Is there a shop nearby that sells dried goods..." Pecorine's head snapped up. "...Ayumi's Shop!" The dried-goods store in the neighborhood, Ayumi's Shop. Its only daughter, Ayumi. A shy girl who always made herself small in the corner of the store. "...But why would Ayumi? She should be helping at the shop as always." "The owner of these footprints appears to be quite small in stature. Small and slender enough to pass through this gap. And they carry the scent of dried goods. ...The likelihood is high." Pecorine stared at the footprints in silence for a while. "...But we can't jump to conclusions yet. It might be someone else entirely. We have to make sure." "...Lady Pecorine, you are kind."

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Episode 2

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

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