“…” Stelle felt a bit awkward.
To be honest, she hadn’t thought much when she walked into the tavern.
She had simply seen the Cat’s Tail sign, remembered what Amber had said, and subconsciously stepped inside.
But after sitting down, all she could do was sit there in embarrassment.
Because she didn’t actually want to drink alcohol.
In her memories, it seemed like she had never drunk alcohol before.
Come to think of it, was she even an adult…?
Despite her appearance, she was probably not that old.
On top of that, her current financial situation didn’t allow for any reckless spending.
She only had 5,000 Mora in total.
According to that man earlier, it was barely enough for two meals.
“Um…
do you have any non-alcoholic drinks?” Stelle asked hesitantly, making a request to the small catgirl in front of her.
In her understanding, taverns usually sold non-alcoholic drinks.
But this was a different world, and her assumptions might not apply here.
“What did you say!?” Diona slammed the table and stood up, staring at Stelle in shock.
“S-sorry!” Stelle immediately clasped her hands together and apologized.
Maybe in Mondstadt’s culture, asking a bartender for a non-alcoholic drink was offensive.
It was only natural for the catgirl to be upset.
But that was fine too.
It would give her a perfect excuse to leave the tavern without spending any money.
“I’ll leave right away!” Stelle quickly stood up, not daring to linger.
“Wait!
Don’t go!” Diona jumped down from her seat and grabbed the hem of Stelle’s clothes in a hurry.
“Do you really want a non-alcoholic drink?” Diona looked at her with anticipation.
“Uh…
is there one?” Stelle asked awkwardly.
“Of course there is!” Diona said excitedly.
But noticing the other customers looking over, she quickly withdrew her hand and coughed lightly.
“Sit down first.” “Okay…” Stelle nodded blankly and slowly sat back down.
But when she thought about her wallet, the chair suddenly felt like it was covered in needles.
“Um, you don’t have to force yourself,” Stelle said, raising her hand with a hint of hope.
“Hmph!
I’m Diona, the signature bartender of the Cat’s Tail.
A mere non-alcoholic drink is nothing difficult!” Diona put her hands on her hips, looking proud.
Stelle wanted to say something more, but as she looked at Diona’s fluffy ears and the tail swaying behind her, which looked incredibly soft, the words got stuck in her throat.
“…Then I’ll leave it to you.” Stelle sighed.
She might as well treat it as the price of watching a cute cat.
From what the catgirl had said earlier, she had also learned her name.
Thinking about it, this place really was similar to a cat café.
Besides Diona, there were also several cats of different colors being kept in the shop.
But no matter how cute they were, none of them could compare to an actual catgirl like Diona.
…
Diona walked behind the counter, picked up a shaker, and began carefully selecting ingredients.
Since it wasn’t alcohol, she wouldn’t add too many strange things into it.
In truth, Diona didn’t like making non-alcoholic drinks for others.
Because she felt it was meaningless.
Whether successful or not, it wouldn’t have any impact on Mondstadt’s wine industry.
Destroying Mondstadt’s wine industry was her grand goal, so she couldn’t waste time researching non-alcoholic drinks.
But when this gray-haired woman made such a request, Diona agreed without even thinking.
Aside from the pleasant aura surrounding this woman, which made her want to get closer, it was also because she was the first person to enter the tavern and not want alcohol.
That alone made her completely different from those awful drunk adults!
Diona actually felt happy when she heard the request.
So much so that her tail began wagging unconsciously.
“…” Stelle silently watched the catgirl’s movements, her attention almost entirely drawn to the tail swaying back and forth.
It looked so soft…
she really wanted to touch it.
“Here, this is Fantastic Summer-Serendipity Coral Sparkling Tea,” Diona said, quickly placing the finished drink on Stelle’s table.
“Ah, thank you.” Stelle nodded in thanks.
Just as she was about to pick it up, her ears caught the murmurs of the tavern’s customers.
“Hey, isn’t that the legendary one…?” “Yeah, Diona hardly ever makes that.” “It was only sold in limited quantities back then!
Damn, I’m so jealous!” These whispers continuously reached Stelle’s ears, causing a cold sweat to form on her forehead.
Limited release…
legendary…
besides meaning the drink was probably delicious, it also meant one thing.
Expensive!
And she only had 5,000 Mora!
“Um…
they said this is limited…” Stelle looked at Diona, wanting to explain that she didn’t have enough money.
“What are you talking about?
I didn’t make this especially for you!
I didn’t hear anything they said!” Diona turned her head away with a blush, her cat ears twitching slightly.
As mentioned earlier, Diona wouldn’t normally go out of her way to make non-alcoholic drinks.
This was something she had created out of boredom before, and the tavern owner, Margaret, had once sold it in limited quantities.
Only a few people had ever bought it, because she never made it again afterward.
If not for Stelle, the people of Mondstadt might never have seen this drink again.
“I see…” Stelle lowered her head and looked at the brightly colored drink.
This catgirl was unexpectedly a tsundere.
Really cute.
But…
had she also been affected by her?
Stelle had already noticed something strange about her body.
Whether it was Lumine, Amber, or even herself at the beginning, they had all shown unusual reactions.
Now even Diona was the same.
But why were only women affected by her?
Could it be that she was actually some kind of succubus?
“What’s wrong?” Diona asked when she saw Stelle staring at the drink without drinking.
“Nothing, nothing.” Stelle snapped out of her thoughts and quickly replied.
Forget it.
She would think about her body later.
As for the drink…
it had already been made.
There was no way she could return it now.
If she didn’t have enough money, she could just work here for a while—or borrow some from Amber tonight…
Thinking this, Stelle picked up the cup and took a small sip.
“Mm!
It’s delicious!!”