Zero and Soma sat slumped against the ter, exhausted after another busy m rush. The café had been packed again, and while the business was booming, the two of them were running on fumes.

  Zero wiped his brow and checked the Gacha points at the register.

  "Alright, let's see what we got."

  A small notification s flickered into view.

  +148 Gacha Points Earned

  Zero hummed. "That puts us at a total of 690."

  Soma, leaning against the ter with a cup of water, g him. "So, if we opened for lunch, we could hit 1000 and do an 11-pull by the end of the day."

  Zero groaned, dropping his head onto the ter. "Yeah, but I'd also be dead from exhaustion."

  Soma ughed. "Exactly. You already push yourself too much."

  Zero sighed dramatically. "Fine, fine. I guess I should slow down."

  Soma grihen suddenly snapped his fingers. "Wait. Didn't you want to experiment with making another e?"

  Zero's eyes widened as realization hit him.

  "Oh yeah! Let's do it now!"

  Soma smirked. "Alright. Show me the magic."

  He grabbed a bowl of pop and plopped into a chair, watg Zero as if settling in for a live theater performance.

  Zero gave him a ft look. "…Seriously?"

  Soma popped a kernel into his mouth. "What? You expect me not to enjoy this?"

  Zero took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he focused inward.

  He had dohis once before—summoning Soma had e from instinct, but now he wao trol it.

  Reag deep within himself, he tried to pull at that energy.

  Nothing.

  Zero frowned. He tried again, pushing harder—f his will outward.

  Still, nothing happened.

  Soma, watg from the side, casually threw another piece of pop into his mouth. "Not looking good, bud."

  Zero growled under his breath, g his fists.

  "Alright. Let's push it."

  This time, he forced himself deeper, searg for that hidden energy—the part of him that had created Soma in the first pce.

  Then—

  A sudden sharp pain shot through his chest.

  His breath hitched, his body tensing as if something inside him was being torn apart.

  Then he heard it—

  Soma's scream.

  Zero's eyes snapped open.

  Soma was on the flasping for air, clutg his chest.

  Zero rushed over. "What happened?!"

  Soma took a shaky breath, sitting up. His face ale, sweat beading his forehead.

  "…I felt like I was being crushed from the inside."

  Zero froze.

  Whatever he had just do had directly affected Soma.

  After a few seds, Soma let out a breath and forced a weak chuckle. "Well… guess we found a limit."

  Zero frowned. "I think I need more practice."

  Soma wiped his brow and nodded. "Yeah. And I think you should sit o for tomorrow."

  Zero raised an eyebrow. "What? Why?"

  Soma stretched his arms and leaned back. "You o train more. If you figure out how to make just one more e, you have that e focus on gathering magical energy."

  Zero blinked.

  Soma tinued. "Think about it—once you get one more, you start stockpiling mana. Then, with more magic, you make even more es. It's a solid method."

  Zero hummed, thinking it over. "So I o master making just one more first."

  Soma grinned. "Exactly. But for now, just focus on yourself."

  Zero exhaled. "Alright, alright. Are you okay handling evening hours alooday?"

  Soma smirked, rolling his shoulders. "Of course. I do coffee too, y'know."

  Zero grinned, feeling a small sense of relief.

  For now—he had a new goal.

  And he was going to master it.

  …

  The afternoon sun cast long shadows over the Pi Police Department, bathing the pre a warm golden hue. Ihe usual hum of office chatter filled the air as officers ed up their paperwork for the day.

  Officer Wolfe leaned against Mo's desk, arms crossed.

  "Mo, you doh the paperwork?"

  Mo looked up from her ly stacked dots and gave a small nod. "Yes."

  Wolfe smirked. "Alright. Good work for today."

  Mo hesitated for a moment before speaking up.

  "Do you have anything to do tonight?"

  Wolfe arched an eyebrow. "Why do you want to know, Boot?"

  Mo clicked her tongue. "I heard a new café has bee a hot topic tely."

  Wolfe stared at her for a sed, then shrugged. "Alright. Let's go."

  The engine hummed as Wolfe drove through the cobblestoreets of Pi, the warm glow of the afternoon sun refleg off the car's polished hood.

  He tapped his fingers oeering wheel. "Where'd you hear about this café? I thought you always went straight home after our shift."

  Mo, sitting in the passenger seat, folded her arms. "Actually, I heard about it while doing Officer Valdi's paperwork."

  Wolfe's foot twitched slightly against the gas pedal.

  "Wait." He shot her a sharp gnce. "You're doing Valdi's paperwork?"

  Mo winced, scratg her cheek. "He… insisted. And he's a higher rank than me."

  Wolfe gritted his teeth.

  He had hoped that after Captaiook over, things would start ging. But old habits—especially corruption—died hard.

  He made a mental o keep an eye on Valdi.

  For now, though—

  "Alright. Keep going. What were you saying about the café?"

  Mo adjusted her seatbelt. "As I was saying, Officer Valdi was interrogating some of the detained cops."

  Wolfe's expression darkened. "And?"

  Mo sighed. "Several of them admitted they were being paid to hustle this café. Apparently, it's been attrag some powerful people. Not enough to be on anyone's direct radar, but enough that someone wants to che them."

  Wolfe frowned, processing the information. "So it's not just some random café. It has someone's i."

  Mo nodded.

  Wolfe clicked his tongue. "Alright. But ime? Don't do anyone else's paperwork. That's how things worked before Era became captain. But now? We do our jobs properly."

  Mo smirked. "You sound just like our netain."

  Wolfe chuckled. "She has standards, which is more than I say for most of this department. With her on board, we actually do better."

  The car rolled to a stop in front of a cozy-looking shop led between twer buildings.

  A small wooden sign above the entrance read:

  Café Lebnc.

  Wolfe squinted. "This is the pce?"

  Moilted her head, stepping out of the car. "It's… han I expected."

  Wolfe leaned against the car, hands in his pockets, sing the café's modest yet welierior.

  "…Let's see why several cops were getting paid to mess with this pce."

  With that, the two officers stepped toward the entranknowingly walking into something much bigger than a simple café.

  The bell above the door chimed softly as Wolfe and Moepped inside Café Lebnc.

  Behind the ter, Soma stood ing a coffee cup, a rexed yet practiced motion as he looked up to greet them.

  "Wele."

  Wolfe and Mo, now in their casual clothes, took a moment to s the interior. The café had a cozy charm, warm lighting boung off the wooden surfaces, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee drifting through the air.

  Wolfe's sharp gaze nded on Soma. "Bit young for a café owner, aren't you?"

  Soma chuckled, pg the cup down. "Well, I'm not. The boss is busy, so here I am." He set a saucer on the ter. "So, what I get you?"

  Wolfe eyed him for a sed, then leaned forward. "Latte."

  Moook a seat beside him. "Affogato."

  Soma nodded. "ing right up. What about food?"

  Moilted her head. "What do you have?"

  Soma grinned. "We have a different menu every day. Tonight, it's mb shanks."

  Mo perked up. "Oh, I want that."

  Wolfe smirked. "No need for me."

  Soma gave a small nod before heading to the espresso mae, his movements smooth and effortless.

  As the sound of steaming milk filled the air, Wolfe leaned ba his chair.

  "Alright, Boot. Let's test something."

  Moraightened slightly. "Alright."

  Wolfe g her. "This café gets robbed. Two suspects. Oakes a hostage, the other is ransag the register. What do you do?"

  Mo immediately started analyzing. "Well, I—"

  "Wrong." Wolfe cut her off before she could even finish.

  Mo frowned. "I didn't even—"

  "A you're already wrong."

  She gritted her teeth. "Alright, then what?"

  Wolfe tapped his fingers on the ter. "You don't rush in. You observe. Look at the surroundings."

  He gestured toward the cash register, sitting close to the entrance. "See that? It's in a bad spot. Easy to grab and go. The moment someone walks in looking for trouble, it's their first target."

  Mo looked toward the register, then back at Wolfe.

  "You don't just react to a situation—you anticipate it."

  Moook in the lesson but huffed. "Still, I think I could've at least answered first."

  Wolfe smirked. "That's why it's a training exercise."

  Soma returned, pg a tte in front of Wolfe and an affogato in front of Mo.

  "Enjoy."

  Moirred her coffee before taking a sip. "Mm. That's good."

  Soma hen g Mo. "As for the mb shanks, they'll be ready in just a sec."

  As Soma returo the kit, Wolfe took a sip of his owhen tinued his lesson.

  "Boot, lesson two. You o be aware of everything in your enviro—not just the obvious threats." He gestured again toward the yout of the café. "Always look at the register pt, the entrahe exits. Who's sitting where. Who has a on."

  Mo listened, but her attention shifted as a rich aroma filled the air.

  A few moments ter, Soma returned, carrying a pte of mb shanks, the meat glistening in a savze, a faint trail of steam rising from the dish.

  Even before tasting it, the smell alone was enough to make Mo's mouth water.

  Wolfe, who had initially deed food, paused.

  Without eveating, he gestured toward Soma.

  "Alright, get me ooo."

  Mo smirked. "Ohhh, I thought you didn't want any?"

  Wolfe shrugged. "ged my mind."

  Soma chuckled. "One more ing right up."

  And with that, the two officers settled in, ready to see what made this café so special.

  …

  The remnants of their meal sat oable—only a few bones and a light smear of sauce left on Mo's pte. She leaned back, tent and full, stretg her arms as she g Wolfe.

  "Sir, why do you still insist on being my training officer? You're a detective. You could've passed me off to someone else."

  Wolfe, sipping the st of his coffee, smirked. "Because I saw your academy scores."

  Mo raised an eyebrow. "And?"

  "You were at the top of your css. One of the best performances I've seen." He set his empty cup down, leaning forward slightly. "But then I saw yraduation speech."

  Mo visibly ged, c her face with her hands. "Ugh, don't remind me."

  Wolfe chuckled. "You wrecked that shit."

  She groaned. "That was almost a year ago. Are you ever going to let me live that down?"

  Wolfe smirked. "Nope."

  They both ughed, their usual formalities slipping away for a moment.

  Then Wolfe's expression softened.

  "Speaking of which—how are you?" he asked. "Are you ready for the test week? If you pass, you're no longer a rookie."

  Moook a deep breath. "I have to be."

  Wolfe watched her for a moment before nodding. "Good. Just don't freeze up when they ask you to make a speech again."

  Mo scowled. "Oh, screw you."

  Wolfe chuckled, then leaned ba his chair, gazing out the café window.

  "…Holy, I don't even know why the kingdom thinks they copy the Federation's system," he muttered. "They're worried, that's why. Seeing a nation ruled by a leader elected by the people? That idea must scare the hell out of them."

  Mo listened quietly as Wolfe sighed.

  "If the kingdom truly cared, they'd separate their power properly. But instead, they just want to mimic what they see while still keeping the reins tight."

  He shook his head. "Hah… Doesn't matter anymore. We just do our jobs."

  Moapped her fingers oable but didn't say anything.

  The versation lingered in the air, the weight of their roles settling in.

  …

  As the night rolled in, the café finally wound down.

  Soma flipped the "OPEN" sign to "CLOSED" and stretched his arms over his head.

  "Alright, we're done."

  He called upstairs. "Oi, Zero! It's over!"

  A moment ter, Zero came dowairs, rubbing the back of his neck. "So? How much did we make?"

  Soma grinned, pulling up the register dispy. "We got an addition of 377 points."

  Zero's eyes lit up. "So we did it. We have enough."

  The total now sat at 1,067 Gacha Points—just enough for another 11-pull.

  Soma smirked, crossing his arms. "Told you I could hahings alone."

  Zero smirked right back. "Yeah, yeah. Good job, Chef."

  Then Zero stretched, yawning. "Alright, I'm taking a bath. After that, we roll."

  Soma raised an eyebrow. "Why take a bath first?"

  Zero grinned. "So our luck gets better."

  Soma stared at him for a moment.

  Then snorted. "You're ridiculous."

  Zero just grinned wider as he made his stairs, ready to freshen up befambling fate once again.