Chapter 1

The staff for Cafe 369's second location has been decided~!

But Ushi’s being stubborn as a mule and keeps insisting he won't do it…

Tap tap tap…

Woahhhhhhh~!!

It looks… so delicious……!

…Were those voices from the dining room just now?

What is this huge pile of sweets, Uu-chan…? They look like donuts at first glance.

It’s a fried rice flour snack. They’re called sel roti.¹

(They showed up in the latest Patibato episode, so I wanted to try making them. I followed the original recipe to a T, so I ended up with a ridiculous amount, but…)

You guys always scarf down stuff other people make, so this much should be nothing for you. Oh, and they don’t taste as good once they cool down, so finish them while they’re still fresh out of the fryer.

Well in that case, I won’t hold back!

…Me…too…...

Thanks for the foo– Hot!

!!!!

The outside is perfectly crisp and fun to bite into, while the inside has a chewy texture, probably from the rice flour–

And the more you chew, the more that gentle sweetness comes through–

S-SO D-DELISH~!! My hands are already reaching for another on their own!

One… more… One… more…

(Everyone’s eyes are sparkling. So I was right! There really is something truly special about Shio’s sweets!)

—Shio! No matter how you look at it, I neeeed you for my second cafe! There’s gotta be some kind of way I can get you to take the job~!?

…! It’s Yowa-san again.

With your sweets, the customers will definitely be tooootally swooned! Then you’ll become our all-time-favorite staff member and together, we’ll spark a revolution in the dessert world!

I have said this many times already, but I’m not getting dragged into whatever weird scheme this is. So no.

But~!!!!

Hm… Ahem. Lend me your ear for a moment, Yowa-san.

Uji…?

If…do this…he might…

Hoh?

Shio! If you come work for us, I’ll even set up a special kitchen just for you!

Yeah yeah, still not doing it.

Unlimited budget! You can buy whateeever equipment and ingredients you wish! You could make all the sweets you like, as many as you want!

Like I said–

And I’ll throw you in the newest convection oven too!

…..!

Mufufu… Now that got your attention, ya~?

Muu-chan… You told him something, didn’t you.

This is the perfect chance to eat your sweets to my heart’s content. Do you really think I would let that slip away?

You think saying it in a cool way will get you a free pass!? That’s literally 100% pure selfishness coming from you…!

(I don’t think this is bad though…)

Soooo~? Whaddya say??? That oven’s just waiting to go vroom vroom for you~!

…If you’re calling it a ‘private kitchen’, then even the owner isn’t allowed to enter.

If you can keep that promise, then I might consider taking the job.

Aha! Then it’s settled! I’m counting on you as our sweets specialist~!