My philosophy after working at Cyberia for a year was that the best way to learn something was to actually try it. That’s why we were already out in the main hall.

“Oh, so this is the hall. As expected, I feel a little nervous.”

—Really?

I almost asked, but Tachibana looked completely at ease. She was looking around the store and at the customers with curiosity, showing no signs of nervousness at all. When I first worked in the hall, my legs were trembling.

“Alright, I’ll give you a quick tour. Follow me.”

“Fufu, got it, Natsuki.”

I led Tachibana around the hall. Since I was just explaining the register, counter, and table numbers, I thought it wouldn’t take long—but unfortunately, I had underestimated the situation.

…No, seriously, who could have predicted this?

Tachibana suddenly stopped walking. Her gaze was fixed on Table 15. Sitting there were two young women in suits—probably office workers. Their faces turned red as they looked in our direction.

…They were definitely looking at Tachibana.

Right now, Tachibana was wearing Cyberia’s male uniform—a suit. At first glance, she looked like nothing more than an incredibly handsome man. Given the outfit, there was no way anyone would suspect she was actually a girl.

“Those girls are cute,” Tachibana murmured softly before lightly waving at them.

Of course, casually waving at customers was a huge no-no in the service industry… but—

At that moment—the two office ladies exploded.

“…Wow.”

It was obvious that some kind of intense emotion had erupted between them. One covered her mouth, while the other collapsed onto the table, overwhelmed. It wasn’t hard to imagine what they were feeling.

This is how Aotaka High School students end up suffering through the winter season, huh…

“Hmm, maybe being a waitress is my calling.”

“No, no, it’s not. That wasn’t customer service.”

“Is that so?”

Tachibana tilted her head in confusion, making it hard to tell whether she was joking or serious. When someone has a face like his, everything they say sounds sincere.

“Hand-waving at customers isn’t part of the hall staff’s duties. That’s more of a job for hosts or other nighttime professions.”

“Ah, a host? That sounds interesting too.”

…I still couldn’t tell if she was joking. But if she did become a host, she’d definitely be ridiculously popular.

“Anyway, can you teach me how to work in the hall?”

“Of course. That’s why we’re here. Let’s start with customer service practice.”

Refocusing, I moved to the hall entrance. Even though it was a slow time of day, I couldn’t leave the hall completely unattended to goof off.

“First, the customer greeting. I’ll demonstrate, so you come in as a customer, alright?”

“Understood.”

Tachibana stepped out into the entryway and then returned.

—And at that moment, a switch flipped inside me.

A natural smile settled onto my face. My brain pushed aside the fact that Tachibana was ridiculously good-looking. The person in front of me was now just another customer.

“Welcome. How many in your party?”

“Ah, um… two, I guess?”

“Two guests. Please allow me to show you to your seats.”

Raising one hand, I led him to a small table by the window. I could hear her footsteps following behind me.

“Please have a seat here. Enjoy your meal.”

When I lifted my head after bowing slightly, Tachibana was looking at me with curiosity.

“Natsuki, you changed all of a sudden.”

“Did I?”

Sure, I’d switched into work mode, but I didn’t think it was that different.

“Yeah. You even smiled.”

“Smiling is the foundation of customer service. You’ll need to do it too, Tachibana.”

“Leave it to me. Smiling is my specialty.”

Tachibana flashed a smile. It was a charming smile, but… something felt off.

That wasn’t a customer service smile—it was the kind of smile meant to captivate someone. If he showed that smile to the office ladies earlier, things would get out of hand.

◆

To be honest, I was really worried about whether Tachibana could handle customer service properly. She had already waved at customers out of nowhere, something I’d never even considered doing. In other words, my idea of “normal” didn’t apply to her. Her speech was also a bit unusual, so I wasn’t sure if she’d follow the manual properly.

But then—

“Welcome. How many in your party?”

Tachibana greeted me with a bright, feminine smile.

…Wait, what?

Since she was still dressed in a suit, my brain momentarily short-circuited.

“Uh… three people.”

“Three guests. Please allow me to show you to your seats.”

Her movements were graceful as she led me to the table. I watched her in awe.

Apparently, just from watching me once, Tachibana had completely mastered the manual. That was genuinely impressive. Most people could memorize the words, but nerves would make them stumble.

“Please have a seat here. Enjoy your meal.”

She bowed politely. I waited for her to lift her head before clapping.

“Amazing, Tachibana! That was perfect.”

“Really? That makes me happy.”

She had already switched back to his “Prince” mode. I found myself blurting out:

“I can’t believe you did normal customer service. I totally thought you’d do it in Prince mode.”

“Oh?”

At my words, Tachibana gave me a mischievous look. She placed a hand on my shoulder and leaned in close to my ear.

“────If you’d like, I can do it that way instead?”

“…!?”

A low, velvety voice whispered right into my ear, making me jump back. My face was definitely red. Right now, dhe looked like nothing but a man, and yet for some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to meet her gaze.

“O-Only do that when a friend comes in! Otherwise, just keep doing it the normal way. Got it?”

“Yes, yes. Understood, Natsuki.”

I had no idea at the time that my careless words would later cause such a big incident…