#koikoi

Early February. Hallway near Café Cinnamon

NIKI

Hmm-hmm-hmm~ Hmm-hmm-hmm~♪ As You Like It~♪

Ahh, I ended up working overtime again today. But that doesn't even matter to me right now!

After all, I've been coming up with the special menu for Valentine's week… It’s the kind of job that gets my skills tingling, and I lose track of time!

That said, I've been working way too much lately, so I'd like to take it easy once I get home...♪

Hmm? What's this... individually wrapped candy?

And not just one, there are many of them.

...Why are there candies scattered in the hallway? Weird things happen often around ES, but someone seems to have put a lot of effort into this...?

(Oh, could this be a prank?)

No doubt about it! The candies are scattered so blatantly... It's too obvious~♪

(This is different from when I was tricked during Sweetling Seekers. It'd be polite of me to pretend to fall for something like this!)

Haha! I'm finally getting used to my work as an idol.

Well then, without further ado...♪

-

Scene change: staircase

-

NIKI (speaking loudly)

Huh~? That's strange~

I don't know why there's so much candy lying around, but today sure is my lucky day!

(By making an obvious setup, it's likely that the prankster will reveal themselves!)

(...Alright, they should be coming soon! If I do it now, I can at least give them a reaction -)

TORI

Gotcha!

NIKI

Wooaah...!

I...I, uhm, didn’t expect you to come from behind, Himemiya-kun! What a surprise!

TORI

...What's with that calm reaction? You could’ve been like... "Whoa!" or "Yikes!", or-

Oh, you were expecting a prank and were ready for it, weren't you? You're so obvious!

NIKI

Mmm... was I no good? I thought I was pretty spot-on with acting surprised...

TORI

It doesn't matter. Not like I'm trying to teach you a lesson on...'the harshness of showbiz', or something.

Anyway, I have a favor to ask, so - will you give it a listen?

NIKI

...Ahah. Since you’ve got me in a solid grip, I don’t think you’ll let go even if I say "no".

So. What's the favor?

Since you called me in particular, is it something related to cooking...?

TORI

Naturally!

You know what's coming up, don't you? That's right - Valentine's Day!

Therefore, I’m granting you the honors of making my Valentine’s candy!

NIKI (flabbergasted)

What... Honors...? I don’t really need such a right - do I even need permission?

TORI (frowning)

But it is an honor! Be a little more excited!

NIKI

Mmmn.. But I’m wondering, still, do you really need to 'grant' such a right?

If you want to eat delicious chocolate, Himemiya-kun, you have plenty of options, right?

You’re rich, so you can get any exquisite confectionary without worrying about budget or availability.

Plus, there are many chefs better than me, so there’s no need to go out of your way to ambush me for something like that.

TORI (shaking head)

No, only Shiina-senpai can do this.

It's true that the Himemiya family’s wealth allows me to buy all the sweets I want - but that’s not the point.

Do you know that the price of chocolate has been rising lately?

NIKI

Oh yeah, I heard it’s been skyrocketing. Something about trouble in the main exporting countries... I heard it from the store manager where I work part-time.

TORI

Yes. Because of that, Fine decided to postpone Chocolat Fes to springtime.

Given the situation, I thought it would be disrespectful to give chocolate to Eichi-sama.

TORI's voice raises

So, please! Lend me your wisdom!

TORI's voice calms

If it’s Shiina-senpai - the one who comes up with various seasonal menus at Café Cinnamon - then you must be full of ideas, right?

NIKI (smiles)

Ah, I see. You want to prepare sweets that don’t use chocolate.

Understood. If it’s okay with me, I’ll help as much as you need!

At Cinnamon, I always think about recipes while considering ingredient costs and budgets. But, since this is a direct request from Himemiya-kun, I suppose there’s more flexibility in the budget, right?

TORI (smiles)

Of course! I’ll provide as much money as you need, so make the ideal sweets!

NIKI

That’s generous~✰ Alright then, let’s head back to the dorms and start planning!