21 Can't catch a break

"...I don't remember letting you stay at my place, Guuji Yae," Isaac whispered while looking at the mischievous Kitsune in front of him.

Contrary to Isaac's serious expression, Yae Miko's face was rather relaxed and she wore a light smirk. "How cruel of you, sir Isaac. Would you not even let a beautiful maiden such as I have a place to sleep?"

'She's messing with me.' A vein lightly throbbed on Isaac's forehead. He then curled up a wry smile. "Guuji Yae, surely you jest. It's just that I think this would have needed more thought."

"So you're saying that you'll leave me by myself in this foreign land where I barely know anyone? Oh, how heartless." Yae Miko faked a distressed face as she said this. However, she couldn't erase the amused smirk on her face.

'She's enjoying this!' Isaac's polite smile twitched lightly. "Well then, would you mind talking about this with me?"

"Hehe, sure." Yae Miko lightly chuckled and agreed to his request.

Soon, Yae Miko sat up from her seat and Isaac opened the door to the counter. The former entered and the latter soon closed the door.

Afterward, Yae Miko was the first to enter the kitchen. Before Isaac went in, he stopped for a second before looking at the trio.

"Forgive me, customers. I just have something to discuss with my friend here." Isaac looked at the siblings and sincerely apologized with a calm smile. "I'll be right back."

"It's alright." Lyney nodded as he stated his arm. To be honest, he was also enjoying listening to their conversation.

Isaac nodded before entering the kitchen. Soon, only light sounds of voices can be heard behind the kitchen door.

Meanwhile, the siblings, who were quietly observing the quarrel between the two, sat quietly on the sides.

Currently, the three of them were drinking the coffee and tea Isaac made.

"Now that was quite the sight to behold," Lyney commented with a wry smile as he watched Isaac and Yae Miko. "What do you two think?"

Lynette didn't say anything as she carefully blew on her tea. As usual, she had a deadpan expression.

"...she seems to enjoy teasing him," Freninet said as he held his cup.

"And it seems like it doesn't sit well with him." Lyney chucked in agreement before taking a sip from his coffee. The mild sweetness of the steamed milk that was sitting on top of the espresso touched his lips, forming a faint cloud around it.

The combination of the strong taste of the espresso with the steamed milk blended into a fine taste inside Lyney's mouth.

'It's no wonder Freminet liked this so much.' Lyney thought with a satisfied smile on his lips. 'Plus, the top hat that he drew on top of the milk was a nice touch.'

He then glanced over to his sister who was a true tea connoisseur.

When he saw her, his eyes slightly showed signs of surprise. It was because Lynette was drinking the tea continuously!

'Normally, she enjoys drinking it slowly...' Lyney thought with a wry smile. 'She must really like it then. Good for her.'

He then glanced over to Freminet who was holding Pers near his chest and the coffee cup in his other hand. He was also peacefully drinking his Latte.

Seeing his siblings' tranquil expressions, Lyney couldn't help but take a moment to relax too.

His shoulders slightly drooped down as he let out a faint sigh. A gentle smile soon appeared on his face, however, his light-violet eyes which seemed to contain innocence also carried a hint of maturity.

He then once more took a sip from his cup as he looked at his siblings, unnoticed by them.

'Now that I've thought about it...' A thought soon formed in Lyney's head as he looked up at the ceiling. 'This is one of the few rare moments when we three actually relax and don't have to worry about the current mission...'

'...we should make this quick.' His hand's grip on his cup lightly tightened. However, it soon loosened. 'That's right... There are still more things that we need to do for Father.'

'Until then, you two relax.' Soon, silence descended upon the siblings as they silently drank their drink.

---

Meanwhile, in the kitchen of the cafe.

"You can't be serious, Guuji Yae," Isaac said as he crossed his arms. "What are you planning?"

"Oh please, let your guard down for a moment, would you?" Yae Miko chuckled lightly as she looked at Isaac. She then curled her lips into a cheeky smile. "It's not like I'll devour you."

"Th-Thats..." Isaac was startled a little as he heard those words.

Yae Miko, on the other hand, saw his reaction, and a smirk remained on her face. 'How cute.'

She had just realized that Isaac, from her observations, truly only wanted to capture his sole goal.

She also saw his subtle reactions to certain things such as the siblings. She found that he was a bit tense when dealing with them and was quite careful, leading her to believe that they were people Isaac was careful of— this was also the reason why she didn't want to go with Lyney and the others.

Realizing that Isaac has weaknesses and is not a powerful entity with malicious intentions, her tense and defensive attitude towards him melted.

And what came with it was her usual behavior— teasing!

Isaac was just about to respond when he noticed the strange glint in her purple eyes.

It was a strange look in her eyes.

For some reason, that look in her eyes made him shiver a bit.

'This is why I don't like mischievous people like her...' Seeing her face, Isaac soon shook his head. He then cleared his throat. "We digress. Let us return to the topic."

"Alright," Yae Miko nodded as she crossed her arms. "Regarding me living here, it was just something I made up on the spot."

"You didn't think I'd actually abandon the Grand Narukami Shrine did you, Sir Isaac?" She added with an amused smile.

"...I was expecting that answer." Isaac didn't lie. He already knew how much bullcrap she spews, so he more or less thought of this answer a while back.

"Furthermore, won't this be a great cover-up?" Yae Miko continued speaking. "They'll think I'm living here while I'm all the way in Inazuma. Brilliant, isn't it?"

"Which reminds me... I can return here, can't I?" She asked with curiosity. "Inazuma right now is in shambles and I'm dying to break free from the staleness."

"...Indeed." Isaac crossed his arms before lightly sighing. "Though, there is an entrance fee of a hundred Mora."

"Oh, if that's the case, I might visit every day." Hearing Isaac's words, a soft delighted smile appeared on Yae Miko's face.

'If it weren't for Klee, I would have raised the entrance fee to a thousand Mora!' Isaac silently regretted in his heart. 'But I can't lose Klee as a customer. I still need her to steal more of those invisible options Albedo made.'

'Those are so helpful!' He was referring to the potion that helped him be invisible when he stole the painting. 'I hope Albedo has more of it though...'

Just then, Yae Miko's mouth opened and she spoke. "Alright, if everything's cleared up now, shall we go back?"

"You first, Guuji Yae." Isaac didn't forget his manners and let her go first. He opened the door for her.

"Thank you." Yar Miko lightly chuckled before stepping through the door.

Isaac then followed behind her and the two of them returned to the counter. Yae Miko returned to her seat and Isaac sat down on his chair behind the counter.

Just then, the voice of Lyney reached his ears. "Excuse me, here's our payment."

Isaac turned his head and looked at Lyney who placed a pouch of Mora on the counter.

Isaac stood up and took the pouch before checking them. He then nodded.

He then looked at Freminet. "Would you be coming back again, Monsieur?"

"Erm... Yes." Freninet said with his usual voice.

"That's great." Isaac let out a soft smile as he smiled gently. He then turned his head to Lyney and Lynette. "How about you, Monsieur and Demoiselle?"

"...the tea was nice," Lynette told the truth with a blank expression. "I can tell that you used high-quality leaves."

'That's all from the system!' Isaac maintained his smile. He then looked at Lyney. "How about you, Mister Lyney?"

"Haha, with such a coffee, why would I not return?" Lyney gave a light chuckle. His eyes then widened before adding with a smile, "By the way, I haven't gotten your name yet, sir. It would be quite rude if I kept referring to you as sir, no?"

"Well, according to proper reciprocation, I do indeed need to say my name." Isaac gave a light smile as he shrugged his shoulders. He then looked at Lyney with a gentle smile. "My name is Isaac. Just call me Isaac."

Hearing this, Lyney nodded before waving goodbye and leaving with his siblings.

Now, left alone with the pink Kitsune, Isaac sighed. He then looked at her. "Shouldn't you also return, Guuji Yae? I'm sure the Shrine is waiting for your presence."

"I believe so." However, in contrast to Isaac's serious face, Yae Miko only gave him a light smile as she read a manga. "But what if I don't?"

"...then the shrine maidens would get worried and call the Tri-Commissions to help find you." Isaac crossed his arms as he explained what could possibly happen. "Given your status in Inazuma, I'm sure that quite a lot of resources would be deployed to search for you. Can you really do such a thing to the people? Especially when it's currently facing a crisis?"

"..." Hearing Isaac's scoring, Yae Miko was silenced. She then didn't say anything for a few seconds.

A few moments later, she let out a sigh before closing the manga she was holding. "Ha... How uncouth of you, Sir Isaac. To shove away someone like me."

She then stood up with a smile and approached him with her hands behind her.

"What are you..." Isaac saw her approaching and was just about to ask when she suddenly approached his right ear.

She then whispered silently in his ear. Her crisp, elegant, and alluring voice entered his ears.

"I might just one day punish you, sir Isaac."

"..." Isaac heard this and his face darkened. It felt like the world crumbled before him. '...that's it.'

This was the price he had to pay for letting a mischievous Kitsune dominate him.

However, what kind of man would he be if he didn't fight back?

Before Yae Miko could extract her head, Isaac suddenly grabbed her waist and pulled her over, pulling her down, but not before grabbing her arm and preventing her from hitting the floor.

"...I do advise you to watch your words..." He then reached his head close to her ears and spoke with a firm tone. "Yae Miko."

After saying this, he then pulled her over again and let her stand firmly on her feet.

Afterward, Isaac walked over to the cafe's door and opened it, revealing a golden light. "Now if you please?"

Yae Miko was speechless for a while before she let out a light chuckle. "...fair point, sir Isaac."

"Now then, I bid farewell now." With a light smirk, she waved her hand as she walked over to the door to return to Inazuma.

Upon reaching the door, she hesitated for a moment before stepping through it. But not before uttering a few words.

"What a fun day."

And just like that, the door closes.

---

"I'm exhausted..." Isaac saw Yae Miko leave and he slumped down on one of the chairs. "Seriously..."

"Dealing with people like her is quite taxing."

"Since it's Sunday tomorrow, I'll just visit the Confrerie tomorrow." He muttered to himself. "Today, I just want to relax."