Operation: Make Friends

If you're out on a long-term deployment mission, it's only natural to work. I opened my eyes early in the morning and began preparing for work. After brushing my teeth and changing my clothes, I went downstairs and sat at the living room table. Amy and Victor had also woken up around the same time and were washing their faces. Rain and Shine were still fast asleep, showing no signs of waking up.

"Jeff?"

"Yes?"

"You're up already? Not going to sleep in?"

Amy asked, seemingly surprised to see me up so early. I nodded in response.

"Yes! We have to work, after all."

That's right. Work. The very reason I joined this organization. To help Amy and become a source of strength for her. Amy chuckled softly at my answer and headed into the bathroom.

Victor began his morning workout. He was vigorously lifting a massive piece of equipment installed at the far end of the living room. Wearing only a thin top, his bulging muscles practically screamed for attention. Resting my chin in my hands, I stared out the window. It was incredibly peaceful outside.

Emerging from the bathroom, Amy began preparing breakfast. Dressing drizzled over crisp green vegetables, flanked by slices of chicken breast.

"Uh..."

I made a face as the plate was pushed in front of me. Eating nothing but grass even after coming all this way? That felt a bit too cruel.

"Amy!"

"Yes?"

Amy popped a cherry tomato into her mouth with her fork, looking as if nothing were wrong.

"Well, since we have to work hard... wouldn't it be better to eat something a bit more substantial?" I said, nudging a piece of broccoli away with my fork.

"Was it not enough?"

But Amy seemed to take my words the wrong way. Her hand moved in a flash, piling a mountain of broccoli onto my plate.

"Ack!"

I let out a short shriek and quickly pulled my plate away.

Only then did Shine and Rain finally crawl out of bed. The two of them shuffled down the stairs, rubbing their sleepy eyes.

"Jeff. You're up early."

"Yeah. We have to work."

"Right. Work."

Shine nodded at my words and went into the bathroom. Rain followed her inside. After washing up, the two girls approached the table. Their faces crumpled the moment they saw the plates waiting for them.

"Blegh."

Rain pushed her plate away with a look of pure disgust.

"Being a picky eater is bad for you," I said, transferring some of my broccoli onto Rain's plate. My stomach was already stuffed from eating too much of it anyway.

"Jeff!"

Ignoring Rain's scream from behind me, I carried my empty plate to the sink. Washing the dishes was Rain's job. With her water manipulation, it would be over in a split second. I went over to the sofa and sat down like a good girl, waiting for everyone.

Once I was settled on the sofa, Amy, who had also finished her meal, approached me with a stack of documents in hand.

"What kind of work are we doing?!" I asked Amy, full of anticipation.

Was it an infiltration mission where we had to sneak in like cool spies? Or maybe a surveillance mission? Surely it wasn't a raid where ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠we had to smash everything to pieces, right?

"Here. This is what you'll be doing, Jeff."

I took the documents ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from Amy's hand. The papers contained a brief outline of the mission and basic profiles of the people living nearby.

I read the mission title aloud, wondering if my eyes were playing tricks on me. But no matter how many times I looked, that was exactly what it said. The goal was to become friendly with the people on the list.

This was a mission? I looked up at Amy with a dumbfounded expression. Seeing this, Amy adopted a serious expression and began to explain.

"Jeff. You're wondering why we're doing this kind of mission, aren't you?"

"Yeees."

"Listen closely. Your role is incredibly important."

"Important...!"

"That's right. If you build a good relationship with the neighbors, we can rely on their help when we perform more critical missions later on."

I see. I nodded at Amy's explanation. It actually sounded quite plausible when she put it that way.

"And it's not a mission for you alone. It's for Shine and Rain as well."

A joint mission! I spread the documents I was holding onto the table. As the papers rustled and scattered, photos of the local residents slipped out from the back. Having finished their breakfast, Rain and Shine walked over and began examining the documents spread across the table.

"Hmm."

Shine nodded after reviewing the contents.

"You can all do it, right?"

"Yes!" I answered energetically.

But if this was our mission, did that mean Victor and Amy were carrying out a different one? What were they going to do?

"What kind of mission are you and Victor doing?"

"I've decided to work as a guide at the nearby museum."

"A guide...?"

"Yes."

Amy said, sliding a tablet across the table to display a map. The GPS-tracked map showed our current location and the museum Amy had mentioned. It was just a short walk away. For a normal job, the commute was practically perfect. I nodded.

"So if we go here, we can see you?"

"Exactly."

I nodded and turned my gaze to Victor. He was drinking water after finishing his workout.

"What about you, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Victor?"

"I'll be working night security."

"At the museum?"

Victor nodded. Was there something important inside that museum? Amy continued her explanation.

"A very special exhibit is scheduled to arrive at the museum, though we don't know exactly when. Jeff, Shine, Rain—if you hear any rumors about the museum from the neighbors, report them to us immediately."

Report. The weight of that word felt entirely new. I clenched my fists and nodded. Up until now, I hadn't been able to do a single proper mission. Now that it finally felt like I was helping Amy, my heart began to race with excitement.

"Just leave it to me!" Rain puffed out her chest with a confident look. And with that, the morning meeting concluded.

Since Victor and Amy were heading to the museum for their interviews, only the three of us were left behind. I plopped down in the yard, staring blankly outside. Rain and Shine sat down right next to me. Basking in the warm sunlight made me want to take a nap. Since we had just eaten breakfast, my full stomach was making my eyelids heavy.

"Jeff. We have to start the mission."

"Oh, right."

I pulled the documents out of my bag. Our very first target was a small cafe near our house. It was also the place where we had made our first acquaintance. Gender: Female. Age: 32. Ability: Low-tier Ignition. Name: Valentine. She was a woman with a truly sweet name. I nodded as I recalled her languid, relaxed vibe. Our first target for friendship was decided.

"What do we need to do to get close to her...?"

The three of us exchanged ideas with serious expressions.

"Shouldn't we start by boosting her sales?" Rain suggested confidently. That actually made a lot of sense.

"How much should we boost them?" Shine asked.

How much, indeed? Buying too much at once would be nice, but it might arouse unnecessary suspicion. A moderate amount, spread over multiple visits—wouldn't that be better? I pulled a small notebook from my bag and began drafting a schedule. It was a new item—a tiny notebook that had been inside the gift box we got from Lucy's theme park. The cover featured a cute, sparkling chibi Lucy, which was incredibly charming. I smiled softly as I held it.

"Jeff."

"Ah."

Caught under Shine's watchful gaze, I quickly opened the notebook and set my pen to paper. First task: Boost Valentine's cafe sales. From now on, visiting Valentine's cafe every single day until the mission ended would be our daily routine.

Once the plan was set, we set off immediately. We adjusted our bags and headed toward Valentine's cafe. As we drew closer, a sweet aroma began to drift through the air. The cafe opened early in the morning, and customers on their way to work were already filtering out with takeout cups in hand. The three of us swallowed hard as we arrived in front of the cafe.

"Let's go in."

Inside, there were already several customers. Chime— The door opened with a soft ring, and the eyes of the patrons briefly flicked toward us. Activating our bracelets before leaving the house had definitely been the right call.

"Oh, my. You're back."

Valentine had been cleaning. Looking up at the sound of the chime, she welcomed us warmly, clearly remembering who we were.

"Hello."

I greeted her quietly, making sure not to draw the attention of the other customers.

"What can I get you today? Something delicious again?"

I gaped in embarrassment at her question, feeling my face grow a little hot.

"W-We'll have an Angel's Touch and... a Sweet Dragon Scale, please!"

'Angel's Touch' referred to a caramel macchiato, while 'Sweet Dragon Scale' was a sugary cinnamon cookie. Valentine chuckled softly at the order and guided us to a table. Once seated, we huddled our heads together and resumed our meeting.

"How can we get closer to her?"

"I think we should start a conversation."

I nodded at Rain's suggestion. Conversation—there was no better way to build a relationship. But the topic was the problem. What should we talk about? In fact, I wondered if we'd even get the chance to talk. Valentine was moving busily. Unlike yesterday, the cafe was bustling with customers. It seemed wise to note down the quieter hours and visit then starting tomorrow.

"Here you go, your order is ready~"

Carrying a large tray, Valentine began setting down our items. Her languid smile was directed right at me. Feeling strangely self-conscious, I averted my eyes. Before Valentine could walk away after setting everything up, I called out to her.

"U-Excuse me, ma'am!"

I knew her name from the file, but since she hadn't officially introduced herself, I couldn't just call her by it. Today was the day we had to exchange names.

"Yes?"

"W-What is your name...?"

Valentine's eyes widened at my question. It must have caught her off guard.

"Valentine. But you can just call me Val."

Valentine said with a relaxed smile. I nodded blankly. Then, Shine gave my arm a sharp tug. Right. Staring too much wasn't good either.

"And what are your names?"

I swallowed hard and introduced us. For this mission, my alias was Shasha. Shine was Charles, and Rain was Jane. To avoid making a mistake with these unfamiliar names, I pronounced them slowly and clearly.

"Nice to meet you all. I hope you'll become regulars."

Valentine said before heading off to another table, as a new customer had just walked in to order.