The Nation of Justice, Fontaine.
A nation prosperous in technology and arts. It is a nation operating on a judicial system— and the one that makes the judgment is none other than the Hydro Archon, the celebrity and God of Justice of the people, Lady Furina.
Under her rule and Chief Justice Neuvillette's watch, the residents of Fontaine get to see a fantastical performance during a trial— unique only to Fontaine.
Court of Fontaine, the Nation's main city.
Currently, very few people can be seen walking in the streets. As for those who remained, they were either busy or doing a job. This is because a trial is currently being held in Opera Epiclese.
On a quiet and relatively secluded spot in the Court of Fontaine, an unsuspecting shop was present.
"Le Souffle du Silence." A small sign was hung by the door and addressed the café.
Right at this moment, two people inside were discussing something while sitting down and having a cup of coffee.
"I know, right? That last trial would have definitely been more engaging if Mathieu had put up more of a fight..." a woman sighed, her disappointment evident.
"It's unfortunate," another lady at the same table replied, shaking her head with a hint of disdain while cradling her cup. "Criminals these days are so uninteresting—utterly repetitive."
"Right from the moment they're caught, they start defending themselves with cunning, but eventually give in as the evidence stacks up," the elegantly dressed lady chimed in, her delicate dress flowing as she spoke. "The last four trials have been like this."
"Thank goodness for Lady Furina, though. She knows how to inject some life into the proceedings, doesn't she?" the other lady remarked, a smirk forming on her lips.
The lady who had been frustrated and ranting moments ago also broke into a smile when her friend mentioned their Archon's name. "Absolutely. Whenever Lady Furina arrives at a trial, she sweeps away all the stagnation in the air."
As evident from their conversation, the two ladies seem to idolize their Archon.
At this moment, however, a young man came over to the ladies table. Soon, his smooth-flowing voice came over. It carried a hint of nonchalance and a playful manner.
"Pardon me, ladies, here is your Café Noisette." The young man said while placing two cups down.
Instantly, the two ladies' attention diverted and focused on the young man.
A slender young man of pale complexion stood there, holding a silver plate with two cups on it.
His brown hair bore a slight curl, and his deep amber eyes held a profound allure. He sported a white long-sleeved shirt with a black waistcoat and an apron on top along with black trousers, reminiscent of a barista.
Seeing the young man appear, one of them then said with a different tone from earlier. This time, appealed. "Thank you, Monsieur."
"No, I should thank you, Madame." The young man cajoled with a faint smile at her. "If not for you, my poor little Café would yet to have any customers."
"I-I... Well... It's..." When the lady saw him smile, her face quickly reddened as she ran out of words to respond.
Seeing her friend stutter, the other lady smirked and looked at the young man. "Say, this is a newly opened café, no?"
"Indeed it is." The young man entertained her with a nod. "It was previously an unused lot, but when it was passed down to me, I made this small café."
The lady nodded. She then cradled the cup in her hand. "This is a good coffee, I believe that you will surely get more customers in the future."
"Thank you, Madame." The young man responded with a sincere gentle smile.
The lady nodded, but soon, she spoke more. "If you don't mind me asking, what is your name?"
"Isaac." The young man identified himself with a courteous smile. "My name is Isaac Alder. But you can just address me as Isaac."
"Alright then, Monsieur Isaac. A pleasure to make your acquaintance." The lady nodded as she remembered his name. She then took a sip from her cup, and soon, a warm sensation filled her oral cavity.
She tasted a rich coffee flavor with a touch of sweetness from milk. The addition of milk gives it a soft, round quality that might remind a person of a hazelnut's mild, nutty flavor.
The moment she gulped it, a warm sensation passed through her esophagus that brought a soothing feeling for her.
Overall, she enjoyed it.
Isaac chatted with them for a bit more before deciding to go back behind the counter where he takes orders from, and enters another room.
[+5]
Looking at the floating notification window that appeared in front of him and disappeared after a second, Isaac breathed a sigh of relief with a wry smile.
"Not bad for the first day, huh?" He remarked to himself.
He then placed his hand on his neck before gently moving it, as if clearing a stiff neck. "Yeah... This is the life. Away from all the troubles and just working in my humble café..."
He felt calm and at peace in this serene environment where the smell of grounded coffee beans danced in the air.
"It's much better than what the traveler is doing if I have to say so myself." He nodded at his words with a wry laugh. "They should have just arrived in their first nation if I recall correctly..."
Truth be told, Isaac has a deep secret. A secret he cannot tell anyone ever as it may endanger his life.
He was a transmigrator— someone whose soul possessed another body from another world.
Long story short, Isaac felt his chest tighten as pain expanded from his chest. Shortly afterward, his vision became dark and he passed out.
The last thing he remembered was playing a game with a cup of coffee in his hand.
Isaac's first thought was that he died of a sudden cardiac arrest due to his sleep deprivation and constant caffeine. And he thought that was the end of it.
However, the next moment he woke up, he found himself inside an empty and abandoned house.
It was then that a floating system screen appeared in front of him and explained his situation.
Shortly afterward, he found out that his soul was dragged and chosen to be reborn in the world of the game he was last playing.
In short, from what he learned...
"Open status."
* * *
- The Serenity System -
Name: Isaac Alder
Titles: None
Vision: None
Delusion: None
System Points: 15
STR: F-
DEF: F-
AGI: F+
STA: F
INT: B+
Status: [Cursed]
Remarks: A normal person with above-average intelligence.
* * *
He got himself something called a Serenity System. Basically what it does is provide a sense of comfort and relaxation to stressed characters.
Isaac can then gain system points by providing a place where these characters can relax and unwind.
Isaac can then use these points to buy or upgrade something from the system's shop.
Thinking back to when he first woke up in this world 3 days ago...
"It's a good thing this whole lot was given to me as a starter gift by the system..." Isaac hummed as he looked around the café. He then added with a wry laugh, "Otherwise, I might have to live in the streets..."
He was grateful to the system. And from the looks of it, the system isn't charging him anything for it that can threaten his life like those novels he read.
However, there is one function of the system that he finds... Interesting. And it was the "Quest" function.
The quest function offers a variety of tasks for Isaac to do, which gives different rewards based on the difficulty.
There were three daily quests available, and one main quest that he must do to progress to another main quest.
And right now, Isaac was being presented with a big golden quest mark labeled as an "S-Rank" Quest.
[S-Rank Quest]
[Type: Main Quest]
[Title: Catch Me If You Can...]
[Objectives: Create a mystery case that even the character 'Furina' cannot solve.]
"...Very risky." Isaac was no fool. He understands very well the severity of this quest.
Furina is the God of Justice, and next to her is the Chief Justice of Fontaine, Neuvillette.
And Neuvillette just happens to be the leader of the special detective force in Fontaine called Marechaussee Phantom.
If Furina were to ask Neuvillette to help, it would be very devastating for him.
However...
"It does sound interesting..." Isaac shivered as he tried to hide his ecstatic smile at the thought of fooling both the God of Justice and the Chief Justice.
"Calm down..." He then collected himself and calmed down. Soon, he breathed a sigh. "There's no rush... I have lots of time..."
"My main priority right now, of course, is getting more customers." If there's one thing Isaac likes more than peace, it's money.
"So I oughta go and work first." He added with a cunning smile.
* * *
A/N:
"Le Souffle du Silence" is a French phrase that translates to "The Breath of Silence" in English.
"Le Souffle du Silence" Is pronounced as "luh soo-fluh duh see-lah(n)s," with the "r" sound in "souffle" being silent.