The cafa Shareef drank on his journey wasn’t particularly good.
They’d made sure to bring the best cafa beans they could from the Sand Nation, but something had been off. It hadn’t tasted anything like the cafa from his home. Had the beans gone bad, or was the water different?
I recall my servants struggling quite a bit.
Anyone who lived in the Sand Nation was deeply familiar with how cafa was supposed to taste. Therefore, the men and women who’d served Shareef since he was a child saw the poor cafa as a massive problem. They’d tried changing the water, using sugar and various spices, and consulting Sand Nation nobility who’d left for the Empire ahead of them. They’d done everything in their power to make a delicious cup of cafa.
As it turned out, their efforts were rewarded. The cafa they drank in the Empire was quite good. However, compared to the Sand Nation’s cafa, it was still a different beast. Shareef and his servants would’ve been lying if they’d said that the Empire’s cafa wasn’t a bit disappointing.
That was precisely why his home country’s cafa tasted especially delicious.
Having tasted all sorts of cafa on his journey, Shareef’s tongue was especially sensitive to the other world’s blend.
Compared to the cool cafa served in the Sand Nation, the stuff at Nekoya was lightly bitter and strongly sour. It was also nearly unsweetened but delicious. It was different from the Sand Nation’s cafa, but still familiar, and it washed down Shareef’s throat smoothly.
After enjoying the cafa on its own, Shareef grabbed the silver spoon set beside the glass and turned his attention to the ice cream. Having ordered the coffee float time and time again, he now knew how best to enjoy what it had to offer.
All right. Next up is…
As Shareef had enjoyed the cafa, the ice cream had started to melt. He used his spoon to scoop up some that was about to drip and took a bite. It quickly melted over the warmth of his tongue, leaving behind only the flavor of milk and a sweet taste in his mouth. This was ice cream in its most delicious form. It had begun melting but hadn’t yet done so completely, giving it the perfect softness.
Shareef then took a spoonful of the unmelted inner ice cream and brought it to his mouth. This time, the ice cream lingered on his warm tongue for longer. It slowly melted as he enjoyed its mouthfeel and took a sip of cafa. The drink washed away the ice cream’s cold, sweet aftertaste, and it felt excellent.
Time to sink the ship.
Shareef flipped the ice cream scoop—now half the size it once was—over, sinking it into the cafa. He stirred it into the drink.
Soon, the ice cream melted completely in the glass of black cafa, turning the coffee float brown. Shareef took a sip. The melted ice cream’s presence sweetened the drink, causing the much-creamier cafa to taste completely different from before.
If the cafa had been something to experience with one’s throat, it was now something to experience with one’s stomach. A heavy flavor, so to speak.
Mmm. This is truly the best form of the coffee float.
Shareef was tremendously satisfied. Half a year had gone by, but he was pleased to find that the other world’s taste hadn’t changed one bit.
And then it happened.
The sound of bells ringing filled the air, announcing a customer’s arrival. Shareef looked over immediately to see a young, blonde-haired woman standing in the doorway—the very woman that Shareef was madly in love with.
She surveyed the restaurant and made eye contact with Shareef, then smiled brightly.
That alone was enough to make Shareef’s heart skip a beat. Suddenly, the cafa he was enjoying tasted infinitely sweeter.
I knew it. When Adelheid is around, my cafa tastes even more delicious than usual.
Now then, what to do, Shareef wondered as he finished off the rest of his cafa. Should he invite Adelheid over himself?