In an endless plain full of flowers.
Isaac's lone figure stood amongst the beautiful and pristine flowers that were present everywhere.
However, his mind was vacant. He didn't know where he was nor why he was there.
He couldn't even utter any words.
He just stared blankly at that one flower stained with blood.
Just then, the soft and melodious voice of a woman entered his ears.
'How pitiful.'
'For you to bear all the tragedies of the world...'
Soon, the blood-stained flower that Isaac was looking at started twisting. It then transformed into a humanoid figure that looked like a woman.
Right now, she was turning her back on Isaac. The only thing Isaac noticed was her cold demeanor.
'This time, make sure to make choices you know you won't regret...' With her cold tone, it seemed as if she was reminding him. 'Live the peaceful life you always wanted.'
Isaac stared blankly at her figure. He didn't recognize who she was, but just by seeing her figure, he felt his heart turn heavy.
It was as if a thousand bricks were layered upon his chest.
He didn't know her... Yet she felt familiar to him...
It was odd.
Why can't he speak?
Who is that woman?
Why... Why is he feeling like this?
A lot of questions surged up Isaac's mind at this moment.
It was as if massive amounts of bottled emotions inside of him suddenly showed signs of erupting.
Before Isaac could verbally ask any of his questions, the entire world shattered and Isaac's vision darkened.
The last thing he saw was the ice-cold statues being erected around the woman and...
...the Eleven individuals who were bowing behind her.
*
*
*
In the cafe, Isaac, who had mistakenly taken a nap, slowly opened his heart. 'What the...?'
He rubbed his eyes and felt like he just dreamed of something— but he can't remember it. 'Weird... It must've been one good nap for me to dream of something...'
He tried to recall what dreamt of, but each he did, they would just dissipate and never return. In the end, he gave up. 'Oh well.'
"Mister Isaac!" Suddenly, a lively voice woke him up more.
Isaac looked at who it was and saw the familiar Klee. Looking at her, he suddenly remembered what he was doing. 'Right... I gave Klee some cookies and was supposed to brew tea for her...'
Not long after Isaac started another day of business after last night's mission, Klee came back with the entrance fee of 100 Mora.
Fearing what would happen if he gave a hyperactive child terrorist that can make bombs any she wants, Isaac decided to give her some tea— and he plans to keep it that way.
However, before he could start brewing, he unknowingly fell asleep.
'Can't believe I fell asleep on the counter.' He shook his head. He made a mental note to never do this again as it might prove to be a major flaw in him. 'Good thing nothing exploded while I was taking a nap...'
He stood up and warmly smiled at Klee. "Sorry, Klee. I fell asleep. Did you finish your cookies?"
"Yup! I didn't leave a single one!" Klee presented the tiny plate that Isaac gave her.
Looking at the small plate with only crumbs left, Isaac nodded. "Alright, as promised, we'll watch something on the TV."
"Yay! Can we watch it now? I wanna pick one!" Klee cheered. Truth be told, Klee entered the cafe when Isaac was watching an anime.
She quickly for curious and asked him about it, to which Isaac honestly replied. Shortly after that, Klee wanted to have a turn and watch something.
Isaac told her that he'd only let her watch one animation if she bought one thing from his cafe.
...Hey, can you really blame him? Deep down, he's still a merchant at heart. Profits are the top priority.
"Fret not for I am a keeper of my words." He said with an unchanging soft smile. 'Most of the time.' Isaac silently thought.
He then took the remote and started browsing the home section of YouTube.
Klee sat on one of the seats and looked intently at the screen as if looking for the perfect video.
After a few minutes, the two of them finally settled on a particular video.
[Zhongli Character Demo]
"Oh, a classic." Isaac softly chuckled to himself at the sight of the familiar thumbnail.
"This one! I wanna watch this one!" Klee pointed at Zhongli's face while looking at Isaac.
"Alright." Isaac gently smiled as he pressed the remote, letting the video play. "Now sit back and relax."
"We last left off with ancient Liyue..." Soon, the trailer started playing.
While Klee was busy watching, Isaac's mind couldn't help but wander off.
'When will new story-related people would enter my cafe? I need a lot of points right now...' Isaac internally sighed as he vibed to Rex Incognito.
System points were important to him. After all, most if not all the items he possesses came from the system.
Even the coffee beans and tea packs. Isaac bought them all from the system and restocked them through the system.
As such, if he runs out of system points, he has no choice but to buy coffee beans outside!
How could he do that?
The coffee beans and tea packs sold by the system are way cheaper! Not only that, but they're also high-quality!
'Please, to whoever is thinking of entering my cafe right now... Make up your mind!' Isaac silently prayed while watching the CEO of Geo.
*
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*
"Agh, we can't find anything!" Walking down the street, a trio can be seen talking to each other.
They were a young woman with blonde hair, an elderly man with gray hair, and a refined man with sunglasses.
"It's to be expected, Demoiselle..." The elderly man said while shaking his head. "This case is practically a national crime. They wouldn't just let anyone near the crime scene to look."
"Haaa... You're right, Melus." The woman with blonde hair sighed. "But that doesn't mean I'll give up! Maybe we can find other means of how the Masked Clown stole the painting."
"I can break into Palais Mermonia if the boss wishes me to." The man with the sunglasses solemnly said. "Just give the order, boss."
"No, no, that's too far, Silver." The blonde woman quickly rejected the notion.
She then sighed before grasping her chin and started pondering. "What we need right now are clues relating to the Masked Clown."
"People just don't disappear like that." She said with a solemn tone as she remembered the vivid descriptions of the Melusine about Isaac's disappearance. "My father investigated the case of the Serial Disappearances Case and met his demise because of it..."
The Serial Disappearances Case was a case in Fontaine that had been present for twenty years now. It revolves around young women mysteriously vanishing and never being found ever again.
"Now that there's someone who appears to have the ability to vanish, he might very well be my only lead to the Serial Disappearances Case..." She mutters to herself while walking. "Now that a trail had opened itself for me, who am I to reject it?"
"Your determination is unyielding as the sea, Demoiselle." Melus, the elderly man, shook his head with a smile.
"The boss' motivations motivate those around her." Silver also praised her.
"Haha, enough you too." She accepted their praises before shaking her head.
She then looked around and saw something not far away. Having an idea, she then looked at the two of them. "Right, why don't we take a short break and have some coffee?"
"Very well, Demoiselle." Melus nodded as he also looked at where she was looking.
"I shall follow the boss." Silver crossed his arms.
"Alright then," She turned around and walked towards the cafe she spotted. "Let's enter~!"
*
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*
Ching~!
The bell of the door chimed, bringing a certain melody to drift inside Isaac's humble cafe.
Isaac, who was preparing lunch for himself, stopped whisking the eggs in the bowl he was holding and rushed to the counter.
"Welcome... What would do you have?" Right after Isaac uttered those words, when he saw who the new customers were, he felt like his words got stuck inside his throat.
"Hmm, what a great smell." The woman with blonde hair smelled the fresh earthy smell of coffee drifting in the air. "I can tell that this place uses fine-quality coffee beans, how come I've never heard of it before?"
'It's Taylor Sw— Err, I mean Navia.' Isaac quickly recognized who it was.
The current president of Spina Di Rosula, Navia.
Spina Di Rosula, for the lack of better words, is a mafia. But not the one littered with criminals— no, instead, they dedicate their time to helping the people of Fontaine and investigating matters that the Gardes would not or have difficulty with.
Originally founded by Callas, Navia's father, Navia serves as the second President of the group following her father's demise.
Currently, the organization is funded by donations from its supporters.
'...this should serve as my introduction to the second main quest...' To be honest, Isaac still didn't want to do the next main quest. It was because planning and actually doing the plan is exhausting for him.
'However, I am not someone who passes chances like this.' Then again, he is also someone who knows how to grasp opportunities.
As such, he decided to entertain fate for a bit.
With a warm polite smile, he replied to Navia. "Thank you for your kind words. As you said, only the finest ingredients would befit my customers."
"Now then, what would it be?" And so starts another game.