"Ah—mm~" Biting into a luxuriously loaded hand-pulled pancake, Remilia's eyes curved into adorable crescent moons as she savored the flavor.
Her cheeks puffed up like a hamster's, and she munched away happily with loud, contented chewing sounds.
Across the street, several little fairies and youkai stared in envy, practically drooling with longing. No matter how much Keine tugged on them, it was like their legs had been nailed to the ground.
With a resigned sigh, Keine finally brought the little ones by the hand over to Rin's food stall.
"Boss, could you give each of them a portion?"
"You got it~" Rin replied cheerfully, and immediately began making more pancakes under the amazed gazes of the kids.
"I want nine layers in mine!"
Smack!
"Wah~" A flick to the forehead from Keine quickly shut Cirno up. She could only stare longingly at Remilia's ultra-luxurious pancake.
Seeing how Remilia was enjoying it so much, even Keine started to get tempted and awkwardly ordered another one for herself.
With the pancakes in hand, the five little ones were finally pacified and followed Keine back to the Terakoya (temple school) with satisfied munching and cheerful faces.
Remilia, meanwhile, became something of a walking advertisement, drawing in more and more curious villagers. Rin's stall was soon bustling with customers.
Finally getting a bit of downtime, Rin patted Remilia's little head under her pouty gaze and couldn't help but sigh in admiration:
"Remilia, you really make a great mascot."
"How dare you disrespect the Queen of the Night. Careful or I'll bite you, grrr~" Remilia tried to sound menacing, but with her cheeks still full of pancake, it didn't quite work. Still, since the food was good, she let it slide.
"Boss~ I want one too!" Right then, Yukari Yakumo leaned in with a pitiful look, clinging to Rin's arm in a spoiled tone.
Her drawn-out, whiny voice made Remilia break out in goosebumps. She looked at Yukari with a weirded-out expression. What's with this old lady? Is she possessed or something?
Rin gave her a side-eye. "Didn't you already have fried dumplings for breakfast?"
"That's different~ And I want to bring some for Chen and my shikigami too."
"With all the fancy toppings, of course!" Yukari beamed and pointed at Remilia's half-eaten pancake.
Remilia shrank back protectively, afraid her food might get stolen, and munched away even faster.
Seeing that, Yukari's eyes twitched. Do I really look like someone who would steal a kid's breakfast?
Rin chuckled at the standoff between the two, while continuing to cook. Considering the tastes of Chen and Ran, he added fried fish fillets and deep-fried tofu to theirs.
But when it came time to prepare Yukari's portion...
A chilling, resentful voice suddenly rang out behind him—
"Make one for me too." Rin jumped in shock, accidentally flipping the pancake clean off the grill.
Turning around with a pounding heart, he found Patchouli glaring at him, her face flushed and fierce.
His eyes twitched.
Why does it feel like she's about to beat me within an inch of my life?
What did I even do?
Scratching his head in confusion, he still nodded and agreed to make one. But even after Patchouli stepped aside, that heavy, grudge-filled stare didn't let up. It made his scalp tingle.
It felt like... he had used someone and then dumped them without a word.
Am I imagining things? Muttering to himself, Rin cleaned up the dropped pancake and resumed cooking.
Yukari, meanwhile, eyed Patchy's weakened state warily, her violet gaze flickering with unease.
This resonance ability of the boss is way too dangerous. There's no defense against it...
And who knew how long it would last?
If it stayed active and Rin kept getting cozy with Marisa, Patchy might level up like crazy just from the feedback!
At this rate, even a light pat from Rin might trigger Patchouli to enter combat mode on the spot.
If that ever happened to me...
Yukari shivered at the thought, quickly straightening up into the most obedient posture she could manage.
Better behave until I fully understand how this power works...
Just then—
"Hss—" A sharp intake of breath came from Patchouli.
Her limp body suddenly tensed up, and her pretty face contorted slightly from the jolt of pain.
Marisa!!! After getting bent like that, you're still moving around?!
Patchouli's face darkened. She couldn't exactly explain what was happening in front of everyone, so she had to grit her teeth and look away, pretending nothing was wrong.
But just a few seconds later, her face flushed bright red again.
Marisa! What are you fiddling with down there?! Did you overfill it and now it's overflowing?!
SLAP—
The sharp sound of a slap made everyone, including Rin, flinch.
When they turned their eyes to Patchouli they were stunned by the vivid red handprint on her cheek—absolutely glaring.
The strange fiddling sensation finally stopped, and Patchouli let out a small breath of relief.
So... our states are still linked. Damn it, Marisa, you little gremlin! You're seriously asking for it today!
"Did Patchy get triggered by something?" Remilia tugged on Rin's sleeve, whispering softly.
Yesterday she was twitching like she got possessed, thanks to that resonance thing. But now she's suddenly hitting herself? That's... not normal anymore. Is she okay mentally?
Noticing the weird looks everyone was giving her, Patchouli deadpanned:
"There was a mosquito."
"Hmm? Oh—sure." Nobody called her out. They all just nodded along politely.
Meanwhile, in a house not far away, Marisa was sitting in bed, utterly confused as she held her flushed cheek.
What the hell just happened?!
Why did it feel like someone suddenly slapped the crap out of me out of nowhere?! That stinging pain was definitely real!
Is there an invisible person hiding in here?!
Marisa warily scanned the room, then dove back under the covers.
But after a while of silence, she couldn't help but resume cleaning herself up.
The messed-up boss left way too much behind. If she ignored it, something bad was bound to happen!
But just as she moved, a wave of sharp, stabbing pain shot up from her pinky toe, making her vision go fuzzy from the intensity.
Back at the shop, Patchouli was already rolling on the ground in agony, clutching her foot.
Under the subtle gazes of Remilia and the others, not only did Patchouli not stop—once she recovered, she actually kept going, furiously pinching at herself.
That damn Marisa... Today, you die!!!