The socially awkward villain's furry superpower

Sienna hadn't spent much time in Auclair before.

Oh, of course, it's only an hour's drive from her hometown, and it's considered a relatively close city, but her town has everything she needs, so there's no need to come here.

The only reason to come to Eau Claire is to browse some of the less-known shops or visit the university. There's also a pretty good hospital here.

She might have been born there, maybe. She'll have to ask her mother to confirm.

The key point is that she doesn't know much about the city and can't accurately point out where the good restaurants and similar places are.

So when she arrived at the peculiar building a few blocks away from the shopping district, following the address given by Meraton, she was quite surprised.

Located in the western part of Eau Claire, this is an affluent and beautiful area.

Perhaps that's why that restaurant is so upscale... yet so strange.

The "Railway" restaurant is a two-story building made of red bricks, with a beautifully landscaped area around the entrance.

This part looks pretty ordinary.

But the large locomotive protruding from the front of the building is anything but ordinary.

It was a large, red steam locomotive standing there, and the restaurant seemed to be built around it, as if it had grown out of it.

“That’s so cool,” Teddy said.

"Is this normal?" Athena asked.

Sienna shook her head. “Something’s not right,” she said. “I’m surprised I’ve never even heard of this shop before.”

She led her sisters toward the front door; all three of them were dressed in very simple clothes.

However, Athena's attire made her look slightly more formal, or rather, like someone trying hard to look like a businesswoman.

Greeting them at the door was a young man with acne-covered skin, dressed in a butler's uniform. "Hello," he said, trying to make his voice sound less childish, "Do you have a reservation?"

“Hmm,” Sienna said amidst the clinking of cutlery, “maybe? Ordered under the name Meraton.”

"What's your last name?" he asked, his tone strained with a desire to be noticed.

“I’m not quite sure, but it should be someone named Meraton,” Sienna said.

He glanced at her, then looked down again. "Yes, there is one named Meraton."

"Oh, um, does she have long black hair, and, uh, does she speak very loudly?"

He nodded reluctantly. "I'll go ask what your names are."

"Sienna."

The waiter left, leaving her and her sisters standing awkwardly in the lobby.

The people at the nearby tables were all well-dressed and looked like important figures.

She could only imagine what they would think if they saw her and her sisters dressed so simply. Maybe she should go home and change?

But she didn't have any particularly nice clothes to wear, let alone prepare suitable clothes for her younger sisters.

No matter what they do, they will always seem out of place.

"This way, miss," the waiter said upon returning.

They walked through a room filled with small cubicles that partially obscured the view of diners, and then proceeded along a row of locomotive components placed in the middle of the restaurant.

Finally, we arrived at a booth with a round table and curved seating.

Meraton was there, leaning back, with two empty glasses in front of her. “Hey, you’ve finally arrived,” she said, “your heroes today!”

Sienna nodded and looked at the curved seat.

There's enough room for her and her sisters.

Teddy slid in first and sat between Sienna and Meraton, then Sienna sat down, and finally Athena sat down as well. Teddy was just tall enough to put his arms on the table.

“Well, hi?” Sienna said.

Meraton smiled at her. "Hey, who's this new little guy?"

“My name is Tina,” Athena said, tilting her head back. “I am the eldest sister’s younger sister.”

Sienna considered her words carefully, and finally decided to try her best to explain. "She's just like us. That is to say, uh, just like Teddy, you, and me."

“Hmm,” Meraton said, “at this rate, you could build a whole team.”

At that moment, a new waiter came over, stopped in front of their table, filled their glasses with ice water, and placed several menus on the table, interrupting their conversation.

Sienna looked at the two regular menus and the two children's menus, then pushed the children's menus in front of her sisters.

"I... I never thought about building a whole team or anything like that."

“Hmm,” Meraton said, leaning back with the menu in his hand, “you might want to consider it. Speaking of which… have you thought about what to do next?”

"You mean, from now on?" Sienna asked. "Hmm, I haven't thought about it yet."

"You should think about it. This time of year is a great opportunity for newcomers to shine and promote themselves."

Only during this period will the big names quiet down and not mind others stealing the spotlight before they re-enter the game.

“Yes,” Sienna replied.

"Please think about it, okay?"

Sienna nodded, then turned to order food for her sisters. This meant she could postpone her own choices for a while, which was good.

She hates choosing things from the menu; she never knows what she'll like to eat.

“Here are some fish sticks,” Teddy said. “These are nice, aren’t they?”

“I think so,” Sienna agreed.

“But look,” Teddy said, pointing to the picture next to the fish chips, “they look like little animals. What if my fish chips look like little bears?”

“I’m sure they all taste the same,” Sienna tried to reassure her.

Teddy pouted at her, but after a while he went back to looking at the menu, so Sienna turned to Athena, who was staring at the menu.

Have you decided what you want to eat?

"This is all food for children."

"Oh, yes."

Athena's gaze widened even more. "I'm past the age of eating these things," she said.

Sienna looked at the menu for a moment. "Don't you like... pasta with meatballs? Or, uh, mini burgers? Look, that burger comes in a little cardboard train."

"What?" Teddy asked. "You can eat a train? That's so cool."

Sienna ruffled Teddy's hair, pretending not to see the hint of envy that flashed in Athena's eyes.

If Athena wanted it too, she would give her some care, but she wasn't quite sure what Athena thought.

Athena is much harder to understand than Teddy. "If you'd like, you can choose from my menu," Sienna said.

“Well, while you guys were choosing your food,” Meraton said, “I spoke with our meddlesome friend about Big H and that hard drive. He’s pretty happy with you, you know.”

“Oh, um, that’s good,” Sienna said.

"I won't ask how you found Homi, but well done. That's one of the reasons I wanted to bring you here, to celebrate, since there's one less villain on the streets. But I think this has made some idiots in the industry quite jealous."

"what?"

Meraton shrugged. "The world of heroes isn't as glamorous as it seems. We're all vying for attention, but there are only so many villains worth taking down. There's a lot of pointless infighting and other such trivialities."

“Really?” Sienna asked.

"Oh, of course. Those who just want to be in the spotlight can take on small jobs from time to time, but those who want to be big-name heroes need opponents of sufficient stature."

Such opponents are rare. The world is becoming more and more peaceful, which means opportunities are becoming fewer and fewer. So, the fact that you and this teddy bear caught that guy has annoyed some people.”

“But they could have caught him themselves, couldn’t they?” Sienna asked.

"Don't try to reason with people who are driven by emotions, or you'll only get yourself into trouble," Meraton said.

“If anyone tries to hurt my sister, I’ll retaliate with their logic and stab them in the back,” Teddy said.

Meraton snorted. "Well done, bear girl," she said, "but I didn't invite you here for nothing. There are a few things we need to talk about."

"For example, what is it?" Sienna asked, increasingly nervous.

"Well, first of all, we need to talk about Sement. He contacted our meddlesome friend and arranged a meeting. Everything was arranged; it was a face-to-face meeting."

I won't be there; I'm involved with too many forces. But our helpful friend might invite you. Of course, that meddlesome guy will pay you. You'd better squeeze him for a hefty sum."

“I… I’m not sure if this is a good idea,” Sienna said.

Meraton shrugged. "Whatever. The other thing I want to talk about is your future, or rather, the fact that you don't have much of a future right now."

You and the teddy bear here have certainly made a splash. I'm thinking, maybe it's time to take you out to see more of the world.