Inside Isaac's cafe, it had only been a few hours since Isaac had been interviewed by Charlotte.
Isaac and Nahida also finished their little hangout and the latter left not too long ago.
Right now, it was around five in the afternoon— the time when there were very few customers.
As for Isaac, he was leisurely sitting down on one of the customer seats. On his table were a lemon cake and tea.
"How boring..." Isaac muttered to himself with a bored expression as he gazed out the window.
The sky was already tinted with bronze.
"I'm craving some steak..." Isaac rested his head on his palm. "I'll cook some later..."
It was one of his privileges for acquiring so much mora, so why not exploit it to the fullest?
He then sighed outwardly.
"I wonder what I'll do in the meantime..." He mulled over something to relieve his boredom.
He then closed his eyes and pondered for a moment. After a few minutes, an idea popped up in his mind. 'Hm? Hold on...'
His eyes slowly opened as if he had gained enlightenment. "Hmm... I guess that won't be too much of a problem..."
Taking one last sip of his tea, Isaac smiled. He then looked at the smart TV that was hanging right above the counter where he usually works.
"Right... Let's get this going."
---
"Demoiselle, will you not consider being more... Incognito?" Melus asked. "You're practically adding a target on your back by coming here."
"He's right, boss. What you did had surely caught Monsieur Neuvillette's attention." Silver added. "I believe that it is wise to not stand out."
"Hehe, don't worry too much, you two." Navia, who wore her usual carefree look, chuckled. "If anything, what I did is exactly what Monsieur Neuvillette wants."
Regarding Spina Di Rosula's actions of capturing multiple suspected Sinthe vendors, surprisingly, the Iudex Neuvillette hadn't sent anyone to apprehend the Spina.
This either shows that Neuvillette supports Spina Di Rosula or that he wants to observe further.
Either way, it just proves that Spina Di Rosula is safe for the time being.
"I hope Uncle Marcel and the others can properly extract information from those vendors," Navia said as she walked with her two bodyguards by her side.
"It would take time, but I believe that they would get there soon," Melus said with a solemn tone. "But that poor Marcel... He's been quite unfortunate lately, hasn't he?"
"Tell me about it," Silver said with a light nod. "I think I saw him stub his toe at least 7 times every five minutes— what terrible luck."
"Alright you, two let's stop fretting over Uncle Marcel's unfortunate situation," Navia laughed as she glanced at her two bodyguards. She then changed the topic, "Do you two want some snacks?"
"I'm fine with anything," Melus said as he bowed slightly.
"Anything you say goes, boss." Silver also nodded.
"Alright," Placing her arms on her hips, she pondered for a moment. She then remembered something. "Why don't we go back to that one café we visited? What was the name again...?"
"Le Souffle du Silence was the name If I recall," Melus answered her. "The owner there was quite the connoisseur... Such a person leaves quite a noteworthy impression."
"Isaac was his name, no?" Silver said while crossing his arms.
"Ah right, that's it." Navia nodded her head. She then looked at her two bodyguards. "It was right around south-west of Palais Mermonia, yes?"
"I believe so." Silver nodded his head in agreement.
"Alright then, let's go." With a light smile, Navia decided to take her two bodyguards to relax a little in the city.
---
"That should be it." Silver said as he noticed the familiar building.
"It's already getting dark... Do you two still want coffee?" Navia looked up at the sky before asking.
"We'll just take some tea instead." Melus shook his head as he crossed his arms. "And you should too, Demoiselle. Coffee can disrupt your sleep."
"Hehe, I know." Navia chuckled lightly before walking towards Le Souffle du Silence's entrance.
She saw the familiar wooden signboard hanging on the door. After a second, she opened the door.
However, the moment she opened the door, what entered her ears was music.
"Too much... Of the past..."
"For one to... Memorize..."
It was a slow somber singing coupled with a similar somber music.
"Huh?" The moment Navia entered, she instantly saw Isaac standing in front of the smart TV holding a small item in his hand close to his mouth.
The Cafe barely had any lights on and it was quite dark. Only the light coming from the smart TV and the candles on the tables were providing lighting.
"Is someone singing?" Melus also heard the singing and entered the cafe. He stood beside Navia at the entrance.
Isaac, who didn't mind their presence, continued singing. "Life is too long... To end at a grave..."
"It seems so," Silver also heard the singing and entered the cafe. Like Melus, he stood beside Navia.
"Is that... Monsieur Isaac?" Navia said as she looked at who was singing. With a soft smile, she commented, "He seems immersed in his singing..."
"Come on, let's not disturb him." Navia gestured at a table and invited her two bodyguards with an interested smile.
Melus and Silver nodded and didn't interrupt Isaac. Both of them followed Navia and sat down.
They then watched Isaac singing. They just silently sat down and listened in entertainment.
"Every night brings a dream... But the day... Relentlessly... Keeps me awake—"
"All the rest will be torn up whenever a choice is made—"
"Everyone has their own desire... leading to... the ultimate..."
"—Life is too long to end at a grave..."
Isaac sang to his heart's content without any care to the world. And yes, the item he was currently holding was a microphone— courtesy of the system shop.
He didn't even care that Navia entered. He just wanted to vent all his emotions on singing.
This imbued his singing with emotions— exactly the kind that people like.
This was one of the ways Isaac released stress. The others are doing exercises and brewing.
"Just a drop of water suffices..."
"Still, I wish... to embrace the world with my thoughts."
"A eulogy."
"Time to leave where I have stood so long—"
"Letting you go... recover traces overlapped—"
"—Ends, then begins..."
With those last lyrics, the music started dying down. Finally, Isaac finished singing on the last line.
"Hah..." Sighing, he turned and took his glass of tea before gulping it down. He then looked at Navia and the company before bowing.
Soon, applauding sounds erupted from the audience who listened.
Clap*
Clap*
Clap*
"Bravo, Monsieur Isaac," Navia said after clapping her hands three times. "You had a fantastic voice!"
"A magnificent performance, indeed." Melus nodded his head in agreement. "I can tell that you've captured the essence of that song quite well."
"A combination of a somber mood and an exciting undertone hidden beneath... Truly a fascinating piece of melody." Silver gave praise as he adjusted his sunglasses.
Hearing all of their praises, Isaac smiled gently. He then placed his right hand on his left chest and bowed slightly. "Thank you— all of you."
"Now then."
"Is there anything the three of you want?" Putting down his microphone, Isaac asked with his usual gentle courteous tone as he approached them with his hands behind his back.
"We'll just have your finest tea, thank you," Navia said as her eyes met Isaac. She then smiled, "And... If possible, another song from the bartender?"
Hearing this, Isaac smiled lightly before nodding. "Alright, that won't be a problem. Give me a minute."
With this said Isaac left the microphone on a table and entered the kitchen. He turned on the lights and started brewing Navia and the company's tea.
After a few minutes, Isaac was done with brewing and left the kitchen carrying a silver plate with their cups on top.
"Here you go," Isaac each gave them their respective tea without any problems. "Do enjoy, my dear customers."
"Say, do you not wish to extend your business?" Thinking of something, Melus spoke. "For example, introducing cocktails in the night? It could help you bring in more business, might I suggest."
"Hm, you aren't wrong..." Isaac held the silver plate before shaking his head with a faint smile. "However, I have a strict rule of not selling any alcoholic beverages."
"So I might introduce cocktails in the future, but you'll most likely only get fruits and or vegetable juice mixtures." Isaac chuckled lightly after saying this.
"I understand." Melus solemnly nodded and didn't probe further.
'I know you just wanted me to sell you liquor.' Isaac's amber eyes slightly squinted as he maintained his smile. 'Nice try tho. This café shall forever remain family-friendly under my watch.'
"Well then..." Placing down the silver plate on a table, Isaac picked up the microphone once more. "Shall we go for another round?"
"Yeah!" Navia said with enthusiasm as she raised her cup. She was genuinely enjoying this.
Seeing Navia's support, Isaac nodded turned to the smart TV, and picked a new song to sing.
This time, it was different.
[Da Capo]
"Oh, I'm gonna enjoy singing this one..." Isaac smiled faintly before selecting the song.
And so, another round of singing happened.
---
Late at night, the surrounding stores around Le Souffle du Silence were already beginning to close.
And Isaac was also doing the same.
"Thank you for your patronage, my dear customers." Isaac sighed with a faint smile on his lips. "And for... Listening to me. To be frank, I was a tad bit shy knowing I was being watched so..."
"Haha, there's no need for thanks, Monsieur Isaac. As usual, your brew was delicious." Navia waved her hand with a smile as she looked at Isaac's amber eyes. "As for your singing, there's no need to be shy— we loved it! Don't we?"
"Well yes, of course." Melus nodded his head. "In fact, there had even been instances when I wanted to go for a round."
"Haha, perhaps next time." Isaac chuckled lightly at Melus' words.
After bidding them farewell, Isaac went back into his cafe and started cleaning up.
After doing so, he finally closed the cafe for the day. However, the lights in his kitchen were still on.
Sizzle—*
Inside, Isaac was panfrying a steak on top of a stove, and beside it was a pot of another meal he craved.
Knock*
Just then, a rhythmic knock came from the back of the cafe.
"Who could it be?" Isaac, who was busy pan-frying the steak, pondered. However, he quickly made a guess. "Wait no... It might just be Furina..."
Lowering the temperature to prevent burning, Isaac quickly left the kitchen and went to the back of the cafe.
Opening the door, the figure that appeared in front of him confirmed his guesses.
"Lady Furina, how do you do?" Isaac bowed to her slightly as he opened the door.
"Oh, the usual," Furina rolled her eyes before entering. Once she entered, she immediately smelled something in the air. "Oh? Are you just about to have dinner?"
"Indeed," Isaac nodded as he closed the door behind her. "Would you like to join me? I've already cooked a bit."
"Ha, how thoughtful of you my dear servant," Furina scoffed with a light smile. "Very well then. I shall entertain your idea."
"Well then, what meal had you prepared?"
"It's nothing much, really." Isaac shrugged as he walked back into the kitchen. "Just pan-fried steak and..."
"Some macaroni and cheese on the side."
A good comfort food, perfect for late nights.
* * *
A/N:
Merry Christmas, bozos.