I Run the Protagonist’s Favorite Café in a Hopelessly Depressing Game World - V1 Chapter 1.3

I Got the World Completely Wrong

Just like her last name suggested, Tamaki Omuta was a girl created in the same lab as Shikiko Komuta. If Shikiko was the completed artificial witch, Tamaki was probably the prototype. She had massive magic power but poor control, so she was branded a failure.

Because of that background, Tamaki held an extraordinary grudge against Shikiko and tried to compete with her every chance she got. The classic rival character.

Well, they say people who fight a lot are actually close, and when those two reconciled they became incredibly intimate… but at first the hatred was strong enough to kill.

Even now Tamaki was glaring at Shikiko with eyes that could kill.

“…………”

With her white hair tied in two bunches, she looked like a sheltered young lady if you only saw her appearance.

Anyone would probably call her a beautiful girl if she just stayed quiet.

But the moment she opened her mouth, rude remarks flew out that made you wonder if she’d left her sense of ethics inside her mother’s womb.

Not that she was ever born from a mother. Designer baby.

The opening of Witch or started with the protagonist Shikiko clashing with her rival Tamaki.

Of course the stage wasn’t this café—it was the academy.

I’d retired from the public eye to change the game’s story as little as possible, yet things had already shifted.

…Well, I did get a position where I could directly watch over Shikiko, so maybe it balanced out. Or maybe a small plus. A little chaos adds spice.

I forced myself to accept it and stepped between the two girls who were practically sparking.

“Can you two not fight, ladies?”

“Ah, sorry… When I see Shikiko I stop seeing anything else.”

“Since we finally have a customer, how about some coffee? You hungry?”

“…Actually, I haven’t had lunch yet.”

“Then I’ll whip something up.”

Looks like it was time to show off my skills again.

Just as I was getting pumped up, Shikiko tugged my sleeve.

“Boss. She’s not a customer. She’s a pest. Same as a cockroach. Let’s burn incense and exorcise the evil spirit.”

“Hey you. You’ve got some nerve calling me a cockroach.”

“…Considering how annoyingly she keeps hovering around people, maybe rat would be more accurate than cockroach.”

“Shikiko Komuta!!”

Oh wow. They really do talk like this.

I was a little moved seeing the exact same exchange I remembered from the game.

“Our place serves rats without discrimination too.”

“Hey! Don’t take Shikiko’s nonsense seriously!”

“Boss. She’s the lying type of rat.”

“First of all, rats don’t talk!”

Tamaki grabbed her own hair bunch and screamed.

She pulled a staff from her pocket and started gathering magic power──.

“Wait wait wait wait! Don’t use magic! Are all witches these days this quick to fight!?”

“Shikiko… If only you didn’t exist, I…!!”

“I’ll take you on. Let’s end our grudge right here.”

“Don’t end it! If two witches fight in a place like this, the café will be done before any grudge!”

I’d spent most of the money I earned as a witch to open this place. I didn’t want to lose it over something this stupid.

I stopped the two of them with everything I had.

“Phew… Listen. Absolutely no magic, got it?”

“…………”

“…………”

“Answer me.”

“Yeees.”

“Yes.”

Both of them answered reluctantly.

“I’m going to make food, but I’ll be watching from the counter. No fighting.”

“One-in-a-million, 0.2-second magic attack──”

“The moment I sense magic power starting, I’ll throw a plate at you.”

“Understood.”

“I’m seriously worried…”

I knew their relationship was bad, but I didn’t expect it to be this intense.

I spread out my magic perception just like in my active days and headed to the counter.

◇

The tension stayed thick, like two nuclear missiles pointed at each other, but no war broke out before the food was ready, and we safely moved on to coffee time.

“…………”

“…………”

Shikiko and Tamaki were glaring at each other.

They glared while sipping their coffee.

“Ah, this is delicious…”

Tamaki muttered quietly.

That was nice to hear. I’d spent good money on the beans, so I had some confidence—but getting praise from a customer felt different.

I grinned.

“Then next, try this Napolitan──”

Tamaki gently poked her fork into the steaming Napolitan.

She quietly lifted the noodle that looked like ivy wrapped around a big tree and brought it to her mouth.

“What the hell is this, it’s sooooooooo bad!!!!!!!”

She spat it out dramatically.

She immediately washed it down with coffee like a palate cleanser.

“Eh, eh, eh!? What!? Did a terrorist attack happen!?”

“I was pretty confident…”

“It looked perfect! But the taste is fatally awful!”

“Maybe not tasting it first was the problem.”

“Isn’t it common sense not to serve food to customers without tasting it first!?”

Tamaki’s shoulders trembled hard.

Hmm.

Yeah, fair point.

Not tasting it first is pretty bad.

I scratched my cheek.

“You too! Shikiko, why are you calmly eating!?”

“Ah… I had my sense of taste taken.”

The air froze.

No, not really.

Only Tamaki froze.

I pretended to be surprised on the surface, but I’d known for a long time.

Shikiko explained calmly.

“A little while ago I had to fight an abnormally strong monster. I used magic. The cost was my sense of taste. …Well, I got lucky. It wasn’t something that would stop my heart or my legs—nothing that would mess up fighting. I can still live normally like this.”

Plus my physical abilities shot way up.

Shikiko flexed her upper arm to show it.

──The more magic you use, the more it settles into your body.

That’s why high-ranking witches had physical abilities far beyond normal humans. I’d heard some even used magic aggressively just to boost their combat power.

The bet was your own life. The reward was empty strength.

Such a stupid chicken race.

Who would reach the finish line first—getting stronger or dying?

When Tamaki learned about the cost, she staggered back a few steps and spoke in a trembling voice.

“S-sorry… I didn’t know…”

“It’s fine. It feels weird when you act all meek, Tamaki.”

“But… Shikiko already used magic, and I still──”

“Don’t use magic just because of inferiority complex.”

Shikiko cut in sharply.

“I used magic because I had no choice. I was in a situation where I might die, so I had to. There’s no need to take risks when you’re not on the brink of death.”

Her words carried weight.

The kind that only comes from someone who willingly bet their own life.

But the heavy atmosphere didn’t last long.