My girlfriend is actually myself.

Looking at the smug Takahashi Yuko, Shiraishi Saku wondered where his proud mother had gotten her expert advice.

He won over Yuko Takahashi, thereby controlling her daughter's workplace, and without revealing his identity publicly, he left a buffer zone. Yuko Takahashi even thought she had found a sucker. This subtle and understated approach is completely unlike Aoi Tsukimiya.

Given the other party's personality, they would either be domineering and issue a direct ban on working, or they would completely ignore her wishes when conducting business negotiations; it's impossible for them to do it so smoothly.

If it were the latter approach, he and the girl would resolutely refuse.

"Anyway, don't worry, follow me. I won't treat you badly." Yuko Takahashi said in a bossy tone.

Saku Shiraishi and Natsumi Yukimiya raised objections.

"We only know how to use the 'foolproof' coffee machine," said Shiraishi Saku.

"I have absolutely no idea how to do latte art," Yukimiya Natsune added.

Although high-end coffee machines are almost entirely automated, frothing milk and latte art still require manual operation.

Frothing milk is the process of whipping milk into foam, while latte art is the process of using milk foam to draw beautiful patterns on coffee. In movies and TV shows, this is a standard feature of the middle class.

Regardless of the taste, coffee made this way is far more refined and expensive than coffee made using the "foolproof" method.

Latte art, in particular, not only boasts a wide variety of designs but also features specialized competitions, allowing for significant markups and reaping huge profits from customers.

"It's alright," Yuko Takahashi patted her chest. "Our client plans to focus on boutique and long-term growth, and specifically asked me to train baristas from scratch!"

Did they even consider this? Shiraishi Saku marveled at the skillful methods of the person behind his proud mother.

Yuko Takahashi's explanation is something no normal person would believe—who would train baristas from scratch? It would unnecessarily increase costs. However, considering the background of the wealthy and powerful owner, this explanation seems quite reasonable.

This is unlikely to be a coincidence, but rather a carefully orchestrated scheme. With this persona, all sorts of blunders that happen later can be explained, and the store manager, Yuko Takahashi, won't stop her, because she already has a clear role to play—to collect her salary.

"Furthermore," Yuko Takahashi slammed her hand on the table, "our incredibly strategic benefactor has specially arranged for us to meet a barista friend who won a gold medal in an international latte art competition to teach us techniques. Although the gold medal barista hasn't arrived yet, her student is already here. Let's give a round of applause to Ms. Asakura!"

Amidst the applause of the three, Asakura Chihaya, dressed as a maid, emerged from the kitchen, calmly approached the counter, and greeted them.

"..."

Shiraishi Saku and Yukimiya Natsune exchanged a glance and sighed inwardly.

The fact that the gold medal barista's apprentice is Chihaya Asakura makes the barista's identity obvious.

The title of a light novel flashed through Shiraishi Saku's mind: "About the time I pretended to be a latte art teacher and played house with my part-time daughter in the coffee shop I acquired."

As expected of capitalists, even their childish games are so sophisticated.

I initially thought that Tsukimiya Aoi was doing this to control the girls' workplaces, but now it seems that two days a week isn't enough, and she wants to create more time to be with her adopted daughter.

Shiraishi Saku and Yukimiya Natsune narrowed their eyes and stared at Asakura Chihaya, indicating that they had seen through everything.

As expected of a professional maid, completely different from Airi's half-baked one, Asakura Chihaya's expression was natural, calm yet solemn, like a classic maid from a TV drama in the last century, without showing the slightest panic.

She bowed slightly: "Lady Moon Palace is temporarily unavailable, so I, as her disciple, will provide some basic instruction first. Please change into your work clothes."

Shiraishi Saku and Yukimiya Natsune walked backstage.

Unlike convenience stores, the café has two changing rooms, one for a man and one for a woman. The young woman naturally followed Shiraishi Saku to the men's changing room.

"Miss Yukimiya," Asakura Chihaya reached out to stop the girl, "the women's changing room is over there."

"I am male."

Please don't make jokes like that.

That despicable Tsukimiya Aoi, how could she be so cruel as to tear them apart!

After changing into extremely conservative employee uniforms, Shiraishi Saku and Yukimiya Natsume returned to the counter and, under the tutelage of Asakura Chihaya, learned how to make milk foam.

Yuko Takahashi also joined them.

"...Place the nozzle near the side of the cup to create a vortex in the milk," Chihaya Asakura demonstrated. "Pay attention to the temperature of the milk pitcher. Wait a moment after it feels hot to the touch, and you're done."

As expected of a professional maid, even her coffee-making skills are so professional.

Chihaya Asakura handed the milk cup to the three of them.

Yuko Takahashi took over and was the first to try it. Relying on her past experience, she succeeded on her first try and gained the approval of Chihaya Asakura.

"As expected of me!" she said smugly, putting down the milk cup.

The next one to try is Yukimiya Natsune.

Following Asakura Chihaya's instructions, the young girl poured in the milk, first spraying the steam nozzle for two seconds before inserting it into the milk container; all her movements were perfectly executed.

But when it came to the crucial part, the girl's body had a problem.

"It's hot." She threw down the milk cup. Using her skin to feel the temperature was torture for her delicate skin.

She raised her burning fingers and pinched Bai Shishuo's earlobe. The earlobe is the coldest part of the human body, and touching your earlobe when your hand is burning hot is a folk remedy.

Shiraishi Saku turned on the tap beside him, took the girl's hand in his, and rinsed it under the running water. The cool water took away the burning sensation on her skin.

Yuko Takahashi was used to seeing Natsumi Yukimiya's agility at the checkout, and this was the first time she had seen the girl fail. Moreover, just after Natsumi's own success, Yuko felt proud and was about to give her some pointers in a victor's tone when she saw the girl and boy being so intimate. Caught off guard, she was forced to witness their affection, and her emotions choked deep in her throat.

It feels like winning the game but losing at life.

Damn it, no wonder they ban office romances! This is so discouraging!

Yuko Takahashi stared at the two of them, venting her resentment at being single.

Asakura Chihaya's calm gaze swept over the two of them as she cleaned up the overturned milk jug: "You can judge the quality of the milk by the fineness of the foam, even without considering the temperature."

Yukimiya Natsune temporarily gave up, and Shiraishi Saku took the milk cup.

Making milk foam isn't difficult; the requirements for raw materials and equipment far outweigh the technical requirements. Shiraishi Saku quickly learned it and then had a young girl try it, completing it in one go.

The Asakura Maid mini-lesson moves on to the next round: try drawing a heart shape with milk foam, which is the simplest pattern.

Yuko Takahashi succeeded on her first try, while Saku Shiraishi and Natsumi Yukimiya each took a milk cup and practiced.

Practicing a skill with two bodies simultaneously was something Shiraishi Saku had never tried before, filling a gap in his twin experiments and leading to a new discovery.

Not only can he and she share completed muscle memory, but they can also accelerate the formation of muscle memory.

Just as two brains working together on a math problem greatly increase computational power and efficiency, two bodies practicing a skill together also accumulate muscle and nerve experience.

This feeling is similar to the state of having another body's perception drawn away before, but it's different. The only part of the perception that is enhanced is the part related to the use and memory of skills.

The efficiency improvement brought about by this enhancement is not just doubled, just as a program running with double the computing power is more than twice as effective.

This feels like having multiple experience points in the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow instance, causing skill levels to increase rapidly.

The two of them put down their coffee cups at the same time, and two white hearts were perfectly spread out on the brown coffee.