The power of love

"Does Jiang Yao have a crush on Himeko?"

Stelle was very confident in her guess.

They could smell Himeko's coffee from miles away.

There was no reason he wouldn't know it was something no living soul should drink.

Yet Jiang Yao had knowingly walked straight into the tiger's den.

It was hard to imagine him doing that without a convincing reason.

"Huh? That can't be right, can it?"

March 7th didn't dare think too hard about it.

Otherwise, the more she thought about it, the more sense Stelle's explanation made.

"Well..."

Welt and Dan Heng sucked in a breath.

Was that something they could say?

Pah!

Was that something they could make wild guesses about?

Still, they had to admit.

It did seem to make a little sense.

"I've heard that on some planets, they say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, pom."

"Is being in love really that terrifying, pom?"

Pom-Pom accepted Stelle's explanation quite readily.

Mostly because the conductor simply couldn't imagine anyone volunteering to drink Himeko's coffee.

Stelle bobbed her head.

She looked rather smug.

She believed she had seen through everything.

So she nudged March 7th.

"What is it?"

March 7th still hadn't recovered from that bombshell.

"Hehe..."

With a mysterious air, Stelle draped an arm around March 7th's shoulders.

She pointed at the camera hanging in front of March 7th's chest.

March 7th's eyes immediately lit up.

She nodded.

Then she dashed off.

Stelle followed right behind her.

Of course, the two girls' antics couldn't escape a pair of old hands like Welt and Dan Heng.

The two exchanged a glance.

"I... need to go look after them. It wouldn't be good if Himeko got angry."

Welt came up with an excuse.

"Yes, same here."

Dan Heng didn't even bother finding his own excuse.

How could they not know Stelle was talking nonsense?

How long had Jiang Yao and Himeko even known each other?

Even if Jiang Yao wanted to pursue Himeko.

He wouldn't need to resort to "self-harm."

His cooking skills alone would do the trick.

But...

Sorry.

They were simply too curious about what on earth Jiang Yao was thinking when he decided to taste Himeko's coffee.

And, just in case.

They meant, just in case something happened to Jiang Yao after drinking it.

Wouldn't he need first aid?

So they both followed March 7th and Stelle back to the scene.

Naturally, Pom-Pom wasn't about to fall behind.

Pom-Pom had discovered this crucial information, pom!

Before long.

The Astral Express Crew had all gathered at the dining room.

Their postures were just rather sneaky.

They couldn't let the people inside know anyone outside was watching—er, observing~

"Huh, something's not right."

"Could Stelle actually have been right?"

Watching the scene inside, Welt rested a hand on his chin and fell into thought.

March 7th muttered while taking pictures.

The situation inside was genuinely strange.

Jiang Yao seemed unusually happy.

His body swayed ever so slightly.

It seemed to be an unconscious movement.

All that was missing was him humming a tune.

Yet strangely enough, they could smell that bitter coffee even from outside.

It was just...

The sight really packed a punch.

So much so that even Welt and Dan Heng began wondering whether Jiang Yao really did like Himeko.

They didn't have to wait long.

"The coffee's ready."

Himeko served Jiang Yao a cup of coffee with a warm smile.

She also filled a cup for herself.

"Thank you."

Jiang Yao looked at the steaming black coffee.

He smiled and politely thanked her.

So this was Himeko's coffee?

It really didn't smell very good.

The bitterness had swallowed up the coffee's aroma.

It had completely stolen the show.

But that was fine.

Foods and drinks that smelled bad.

There were plenty of examples that tasted great, weren't there?

Like stinky tofu, rotten eggs, river snail rice noodles, and durian.

So smell wasn't the deciding factor in how food or drinks tasted.

Most importantly!

Jiang Yao had never tried it!

He had watched Himeko's entire coffee-making process.

There had been nothing strange about it.

He could safely say Himeko had taken it seriously.

And put her heart into it.

With the quality of those coffee beans taken into account.

It might taste bad, but surely not so bad that the mere mention of it made people pale?

Outside the door.

...Here it comes, here it comes!

Everyone held their breath and focused.

They really had been shaken.

When Himeko had said the coffee was ready.

Even a Cold Dragon Young like Dan Heng could tell from Jiang Yao's expression that he was excited.

At that moment, he truly began to question Jiang Yao's motives.

Had he really fallen for Himeko?

Taking that thought a little further, could he have boarded the Express because of Himeko?

At that moment.

Never mind Dan Heng.

Even Welt's inner gossip was burning bright.

Several pairs of eyes.

Stared fixedly ahead.

Eager to see what happened next.

Himeko was no different.

This cup of coffee had taken much longer to prepare than usual.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have given Pom-Pom, Stelle, March 7th, and the others the chance to witness such a spectacle.

That was because she had put extra care into it.

Naturally, Jiang Yao wouldn't let that anticipation go unanswered.

After sniffing the coffee.

He grasped at the empty air with both hands.

He seemed to be considering how to take his first sip.

But to the people outside.

He looked more like a shy young man seeing his beloved, happy yet nervous.

In reality, however, this was merely Jiang Yao showing respect for food.

Let's see what we've got here~

Jiang Yao swirled the coffee in his cup, then tilted his head back.

He took a great big gulp.

The people outside the door were dumbfounded.

Taking such a huge gulp.

Would Jiang Yao spit it out?

It wasn't that they were looking down on Jiang Yao.

They simply knew Himeko's coffee too well.

Jiang Yao had gotten a little overconfident.

Of course, they also didn't know Jiang Yao was the Aeon of Voracity!

But, faced with Himeko's coffee.

What difference would being the Aeon of Voracity make?

The instant the coffee touched his lips.

His brain sounded a fierce protest and warning.

A protest and warning of this magnitude had only occurred when he first ate a Stellaron.

This isn't looking good...

The thought flashed through Jiang Yao's mind like an electric current.

Unfortunately.

It was too late.

The instant the coffee entered his mouth.

The instant he nearly downed it in one go.

The smile on his face froze.

Himeko's smile froze too.

The gossiping onlookers outside the door stopped breathing.

The air seemed to have solidified.

This second.

This moment.

Seemed extraordinarily long.

As though even after the seas dried up, the rocks crumbled, and the world grew old, they would never escape it.

Then.

The stalemate, in which time itself seemed to have stopped, was broken.

All they heard was glug, glug, glug...

Jiang Yao downed it in one gulp!

That freshly brewed, piping-hot... coffee?

No, calling it an unidentified black liquid would be more accurate.

Jiang Yao downed the whole thing in one gulp!

But that did nothing to revive Himeko's frozen smile.

Because the expression on Jiang Yao's face was one of utter agony.

He looked like Fanny would if she had been drugged, then tied up and forced to watch the Analyst party with Kaisia and Cerys.

Everyone outside the door was dumbfounded, too.

Was this the power of love?

They could think of no other reason why Jiang Yao's face was twisted in agony while his mouth dutifully finished every drop.

Without exaggeration, they could even see a readiness to face death on Jiang Yao's face! The resolve of someone who had cast aside all concern for life and death!

So, what else could it be?

How could this not be the power of love?

This was the power of love!

Even if an Aeon showed up, this still had to be the power of love!