Chapter 326

One Hundred and Thirty-Five Pages Coffee Showdown (Part One)

“Visitors passing by, good afternoon! It’s 1:30 PM on November 30th!”

Once everyone was seated, the pajama maid glanced at the time, holding her prepared speech and microphone and walked to the center of the square.

“Have you ever heard of or seen maids? What do you think about this profession?”

Although she was wearing a maid outfit reminiscent of pajamas, her voice was loud and clear, leaving an impression as refreshing as mint candy.

“Next up, we will be witnessing a special competition! It’s a maid showdown between ‘Peach Cat’ maid café on the fifth floor of the commercial area, and ‘Kamehameha’ manga eatery in the underground shopping street! To claim the title of ‘Number One Maid Café’ in the commercial area, we will determine the winner through a best-of-three format, with three rounds of professional skills.”

In truth, ‘Kamehameha’ was just a comic bookstore, and even the store manager himself believed so.

Putting employees in maid outfits was merely to satisfy his own preferences; the focus of their business back then wasn’t on ‘maids,’ but rather on hidden income from gray areas… It’s not hard to understand that Sister Qiūluó, as a maid, was too strong, intimidating only those with myasthenia gravis; I wonder how she passed the interview. Perhaps the manager just wanted a security guard.

Then, a sudden hero changed everything.

To earn money for university tuition, Senior Li Jiànnián took on various part-time jobs, doing almost any dirty or exhausting work, especially in service industries. His extensive experience on those posts honed his skills as a waiter to perfection.

When he transformed into a woman and donned a high-quality maid outfit, he became the ultimate maid.

Motivated by generous pay, he greeted every guest with utmost sincerity, bringing warmth and comfort to otaku customers while also securing their wallets.

It was Senior Chāngpú’s unique appeal that prompted the manager to change the profit direction, expanding the number of maids in the store. The store even registered a blog, posting daily updates about the maids’ activities and creating a ranking list for the most popular maids.

Unfortunately, the golden age of ‘Kamehameha’ was fleeting.

When Father Li Lóngbǎi reverted to a young girl, the heavy financial burden on the Li family eased, and Senior Li Jiànnián, having escaped the “unending part-time hell,” focused all his energy on his studies, preparing for the college entrance exam next year.

Despite Chāngpú Senior retiring and becoming a “legendary maid,” her influence remained. The popular ‘Kamehameha’ continued to attract customers, and if there were a service deity in the world, it would surely be Senior Chāngpú.

— “Even Lin Zǐyè, who likes maid outfits, is interested in her. She truly excels in being a maid.” —

As the host of the showdown, the pajama maid invited Lin Zǐyè and Shopkeeper Shēnyáng to speak. Unlike Lin Zǐyè’s modest “friendship first, competition second,” Bald Turtle Sage’s attitude was quite arrogant.

“Old man’s girls will show you what true maids are like! Bring it on, brat!”

This was provocative trash talk, disrespectful of elders. This is probably what they meant.

“Thank you both for your… speeches.”

The pajama maid had an angry tic mark on her forehead, but considering the bigger picture, she restrained herself, hoping her colleagues could deflate this old man’s arrogance.

“The first event is coffee brewing. To serve excellent coffee to guests, this is a skill every maid should master!”

The pajama maid gestured towards two long tables in front of her, each set with coffee-making equipment.

“We have two identical sets of equipment and freely available coffee beans. Both teams can choose their own, and the time limit is twenty minutes. The brewed coffee must be handed over to three judges for scoring.”

Since the judges were mentioned, I naturally received attention. The pajama maid paused and walked to the judge’s table, saying, “Now, let me introduce the three guest judges for today’s maid showdown!”

“Wow?!”

Introducing the judges was a routine… but I was so nervous I started shaking my leg.

“Famous music producer, Mr. Yǔwén Tuōhǎi! Though he’s a last-minute guest, he’s an unexpected big shot! Our Balance Commercial District is amazing!”

The old man stood up, smiling. This elderly gentleman was dignified, having been through grand scenes before, and was well-suited to such events…

Next up would be my turn to make a fool of myself.

“And then, Miss Xiàlù, the daughter of Balance Food Company, the peace defender of the commercial area, and an intern maid at Peach Cat!”

I almost stood up with Xiàlù. Why did she introduce Xiàlù first?

… Yes, I am just a nobody without any titles, so there’s no point in introducing me.

“And finally, Miss Huángfǔ Língmèng, the daughter of the Huángfǔ Group!”

Huh? What is this maid host talking about? I’m the closing act?

— “It seems Lin Zǐyè invited all the maids to the coming-of-age ceremony last time.” —

Does the boss invite all employees to their birthday party?

With such an exaggerated title, I forgot to stand up. However, the pajama maid continued praising: “Though born into the Huángfǔ family, Miss Língmèng has always lived a low-profile life. But such a gem is not ordinary, even if she wants to blend in, her brilliance cannot be hidden…”

Enough!

Stop saying more!

What kind of image did she create for me?

The crowd’s gazes were piercing. I needed to do something to overcome this awkward situation before I was overwhelmed…

Only one option left!

[Megami Mod]

Activating goddess mode stealthily, I stood up and greeted, just like Xiàlù did, though I suppressed my charm, which still stirred the crowd… Xiaolu, who was close, seemed dazed but quickly recovered, wrinkling her nose as if disgusted.

“Hey, did you just glow?”

“Xiàlù, people don’t glow.”

“As long as you’re still human.”

… What else could I be if not human?

“Oh, Miss Língmèng’s smile is perfect! It’s like a goddess is among us!”

Though unaware, the pajama maid hit the nail on the head.

“But everyone shouldn’t keep staring at Miss Língmèng. Let’s get back to the maid showdown. Please send out your first maids!”

From ‘Peach Cat,’ several oddly dressed maids, whose names I couldn’t recall, were not worth guessing.

But ‘Kamehameha’ could be speculated. After all, the manager brought only three maids.

Although Xiǎo Lěi isn’t good at cooking, she has worked in the cafe for a long time and can probably brew coffee.

However, Cherry Sauce disagreed.

— “Lěi is the ace of the store, she might be saving herself for the finale.” —

But under the manager’s instructions, the hesitant Senior Lóngkuí stood up.

— “Looks like the manager will have the random maid compete in cooking, and Lěi will compete in attractiveness.” —

Frankly speaking, this flat-chested, clumsy girl doesn’t seem very attractive.

— “Xiao Kai! How could you look down on your girlfriend like that? She has a baby face, a straightforward personality, and long legs. There are many elements that make her popular! An ace isn’t just talk and what otakus say.” —

I don’t find it pleasant that my girlfriend is liked by other men.

Meanwhile, ‘Peach Cat’ sent out their first contestant.

A long-haired girl in a cropped maid outfit, with heterochromatic cat-eye contacts, blue-purple vertical pupils, peeking from under thick bangs.

“Great! So, in the first round, our maid Kǎi from Peach Cat will face off against AOI from Kamehameha. Both girls are cute. I hope they can brew coffee that matches their looks!”

AOI is not read as ‘Little Green,’ but as ‘AOI.’

The pajama maid knew the origin of Senior Lóngkuí’s nickname. Peach Cat did their homework before coming to challenge, and they proposed the event projects. The maid’s coffee-brewing skills are likely formidable, and the manager might be in trouble.

“So, the first round begins! Time limit is twenty minutes! Serve your loving coffee to the three judges!”

The circular plaza began playing background music;

Otaku fans from Kamehameha cheered for Lóngkuí;

Peach Cat’s fans also enthusiastically supported their maid Kǎi;

Curious spectators gathered around to watch the showdown.

My leg moved, it was Yòu Zi.

It climbed onto my shoulder, staring at the two maids in the duel with its small black eyes.

The first step in making coffee is selecting the beans and grinding them into powder. Senior Lóngkuí stood uncertainly in front of rows of coffee bean jars. Although I couldn’t distinguish these dark brown beans, she seemed to know them well, even weighing the beans with a small scale and occasionally sniffing them. Her focused and dedicated expression had a calming effect.

But she seemed to forget that time was ticking, with only twenty minutes left, she couldn’t waste too much time choosing the beans.

“Shēnyáng’s girls plan to make a blended coffee.”

The self-proclaimed coffee expert, Elder Yǔwén Tuōhǎi, explained as he stroked his white beard.

“Blended coffee is made from three or more types of beans mixed together, adjusting the acidity, sweetness, bitterness, aroma, and body to create a unique flavor. Blended coffee isn’t a single type; every barista has their own recipe… Excellent, I’m looking forward to it.”

When drinking AJ’s coffee at Aunt Lín’s place, this elder said similar things, but AJ just grabbed beans randomly.

Can this elder really tell the quality of coffee?

Or is he just trying to sound impressive?

“Hmm, no matter how hard Little Green tries, it won’t help! Actually, the harder you try, the worse you’ll lose!”

Xiàlù snorted, “Before joining Peach Cat, Kǎi was already a professional barista! As far as I remember, Little Green was just a part-time high school student. You have no chance in this round. A pro versus an amateur, how can you lose? Just sending anyone over would win!”

Preparing to make milk foam, Kǎi tasted the fresh milk herself.