[Ease]

It was only a cup of coffee.

Coffee beans she had bought herself.

A simple roast.

Extraction with hot water.

Chocolate Powder and Light Cream available anywhere.

Just these simple ingredients.

Combined into a cup of coffee that could only be called unparalleled.

No matter how she judged it.

This was the best coffee Himeko had ever tasted.

So much so that Himeko began wondering what on earth she had been drinking before.

How had she ever put up with her own coffee?

She finally understood, too.

Why, when Jiang Yao tasted... uh, drank her coffee.

He had looked so pained.

She understood completely.

Because the coffee he made.

Could hardly even be described as coffee.

It was an entirely different drink.

Its deliciousness.

Deserved every word of praise imaginable!

Himeko drank, lost in the experience.

Until she raised her cup again.

And discovered.

Her coffee was gone!

An empty feeling immediately welled up inside her.

Only then did Himeko notice.

That at some point.

Her [dear companions].

Had all gathered around.

Waiting for Jiang Yao to feed them!

How could Himeko not realize that this bunch had probably been watching the whole time?

"Whew, finally back among the living."

After finishing his Pour-Over Coffee, Jiang Yao took another moment to recover before he fully came to his senses.

He had to admit.

Himeko's coffee belonged at the same table as a Stellaron.

It could become the lifelong nemesis of a certain Voracity Aeon who preferred to remain anonymous.

"What are you standing around for? Try my Pour-Over Coffee~"

Jiang Yao poured everyone some coffee.

Eager for them to taste it.

"Pour-Over Coffee?"

Stelle raised an eyebrow, glanced at Jiang Yao's hands, then very rudely let her gaze drift downward.

There was a table below. What else did you think it was?

"..."

Noticing Stelle's sheepish grin, Jiang Yao rolled his eyes and ignored the goofball.

"Please savor it carefully. Don't rush through it like I did."

"This cup of coffee has four flavors."

"Rich, silky cream."

"Fragrant, delicious Flower Nectar."

"Chocolate that's sweet without being cloying."

"And refreshing, aromatic Fruits."

"Trust me, if you gulp it down, you'll miss out on a wonderful journey."

Jiang Yao brimmed with confidence, his tone and even his expressions and gestures seeming to carry a certain magic.

One that made people believe him without question.

Of course, after he finished speaking.

His meaningful gaze swept over Pom-Pom.

When making the coffee, he had slipped a little something extra into Pom-Pom's cup.

"I'm looking forward to it."

Welt adjusted his glasses and accepted the coffee.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Savoring the message this cup of coffee conveyed.

"Then we'll help ourselves!"

March 7th and Stelle could hardly wait.

This cup of coffee might have been made in something of a hurry, but its presentation really appealed to both of them.

"Thank you."

Dan Heng silently enjoyed the brief peace.

"I didn't expect to taste Passenger Jiang Yao's handiwork so soon."

Pom-Pom's big eyes shone brightly.

Earlier, March 7th and Stelle had praised Jiang Yao to the skies.

Pom-Pom had wondered whether he could really be that incredible.

Even with Himeko and Welt vouching for him, Pom-Pom still found it a little hard to believe.

Yet here was a chance to taste Jiang Yao's handiwork already.

Pom-Pom was very much looking forward to it.

As everyone raised their cups.

The aroma of the coffee blended with Light Cream seemed to gain greater depth.

Held back by the Light Cream, the fragrance poised to blossom was striving to break through barrier after barrier.

Who could possibly resist that?

In other words, was anyone who could resist even human?

The trailblazers each took small sips.

Instantly.

Like fireworks from the Naganohara Family.

The flavors bloomed in their mouths.

Welt recalled the tumultuous years of his past.

It was as though he had returned to the days before he inherited the name Welt.

That carefree joy.

That sense of security his father had given him.

It was the Chocolate Powder!

Sweet.

Yet not cloying.

Then came the faint bitterness of the coffee beans...

It was like...

It was like... even after all this time, even after he had boarded the Express.

But!

The goddamn Honkai was still chasing him!!!

Yet the floral and fruity fragrances that followed brought Welt a wonderful sweetness.

Because alongside the Honkai.

There had also been those companions, dependable juniors, the Skull-Cracking Senior, his family...

The pain of the past.

Now, looking back.

Had become the most important part of his life.

Instead, it was a sweetness hidden deep within.

The flavors in this cup of coffee blended together perfectly.

It stirred so many feelings.

The same was true for Stelle, March 7th, and Dan Heng.

From the two flavors they had tasted at first.

They slowly savored three... then four!

Was this really just a cup of coffee?

What kind of trials and tribulations...

Pah!

What kind of coffee could possibly achieve something like this?

Different memories, different feelings, surfaced one by one in that moment.

Every aroma was a delight for the taste buds.

Every phase of fragrance was a memory of their own.

This was no longer a drink, but a work of art.

They were utterly certain.

Delicious flavor truly could pluck the strings and sing upon the lake of a person's heart.

Himeko watched her companions enviously.

She had already finished hers. QAQ.

And there was none left!

That left Himeko feeling a little sulky.

Until she noticed—

Pom-Pom was actually crying!

Yes.

Pom-Pom was crying.

Apart from the same recipe used for the Astral Express Crew's cups.

Jiang Yao had secretly added something extra to Pom-Pom's coffee.

[Ease].

Yes, [Ease].

A product of memoria from the planet Penacony in the Asdana Galaxy.

Jiang Yao had collected it before getting rammed by the Express.

Memoria was an ingredient that required special handling.

One little mistake.

And the memoria would completely distort the flavors of the other ingredients.

There would be no salvaging them.

Jiang Yao had spent a long time researching before finding a workable method.

And now he had put it to use on Pom-Pom.

Because he knew Pom-Pom.

He knew everything about Pom-Pom.

Pom-Pom was—

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That was why Jiang Yao had specially added [Ease] for Pom-Pom.

What was Ease?

Ease was—

Coming home from work or school on a Friday evening, throwing yourself fiercely onto your bed, and turning off your phone.

Preparing to hide yourself there for the next two days.

If anyone asked on Monday why they couldn't reach you, you would say your phone had run away from home, and you had only just persuaded it to come back.

Exactly.

The effect of the memoria would let whoever tasted it feel [Ease].

And so.

Pom-Pom recalled the Nameless of days gone by.

Traces of their existence still remained here.

It was as though they had never left.

As though they still lived aboard the Express.

Lazarina...

Mikhail...

Tiernan...

The memories were so clear.

So vivid.

Everyone had fooled around together.

Played together.

Bragged together.

Clowned around together.

What lively times they had been.

There were even...

Other, hazier memories.

Dorico...

San-3000...

Capy Baba...

How did that saying go again, pom?

Dead memories are attacking me, pom!

Pom-Pom grew distracted, an irrepressible sense of loss welling up inside.

Ease came at a price.

Then what was that price?

The answer was that peaceful days were only possible because someone else shouldered the burden.

The thought lingered.

After gathering their thoughts...

Pom-Pom looked at Jiang Yao with a deeply complicated expression.