Just as Kaori-san agreed to help with a look that suggested she had reached the point of no return, a Hummingbird message suddenly arrived for her.
"Oh? Kaori-san, did you buy a Hummingbird magic tool?"
"Hehe... I actually just got it a few days ago! Thanks to you introducing me to Akane-san and Raz-sama, my procurement costs went down and the quality of my ingredients improved. That boosted my sales, so I finally had some extra room in the budget! I've been making more friends outside the Friendly City lately, and it's so much more convenient to have one, so I decided to take the plunge. Let's swap registrations later!"
Kaori-san’s ability to switch gears was impressive. The strained look from a moment ago vanished, replaced by a smile so bright I could practically feel her excitement.
It was a bit like watching someone show off their brand-new smartphone. It felt a little rude to think this since she was technically my senior, but her youthful charm certainly outshone her maturity.
"...Hmm. Kaito-kun, it seems Olivia-sama wants to stop by and say hello. Would that be alright?"
"Ah, so it was from Olivia-san. How did she know I was—wait, I guess she’d know if I was within the city limits? Sure, as long as it’s okay with you, I don’t mind at all."
I wondered for a second how she knew I was at Kaori-san’s diner, but while she was inside the Friendly City, Olivia-san possessed power that rivaled that of a Supreme God, and her abilities were vast.
She had mentioned before that she could do nearly anything within the city's borders, so keeping track of visitors was likely a simple task for her.
Knowing Olivia-san's personality, it made sense that she’d want to greet me the moment she realized I was there. I told Kaori-san I was fine with it as long as the shop owner herself didn't mind.
"Olivia-sama... It has been quite some time since I last saw her," Noin-san remarked.
"Are the two of you acquaintances?"
"Yes. We were introduced when Shallow Vernal-sama first created her, but we haven't met since then. Olivia-sama... well, she rarely ever leaves the Friendly City, you see."
"Ah, that makes sense. I suppose you wouldn't cross paths much."
Olivia-san almost never left the Friendly City, and Noin-san almost never approached it. There really was no overlap in their lives.
That said, Olivia-san was the guardian of the original Friendship Treaty—a document that represented Noin-san’s legacy as the First Hero. From that perspective, Noin-san was a very significant figure.
I was a little curious to see how a meeting between the two of them would play out.
Serious-senpai: "Can I give you my personal take on this?"
???: "Go right ahead."
Serious-senpai: "I bet Olivia has absolutely no interest in Noin... She only told Kaori she wanted to see Kaito, didn't she? She didn't even mention Noin once..."