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Azur Lane: Episode of Belfast Volume 3 Chapter 1 Part 5

「Hmm? What happened to you all of a sudden, Neptune?」

Elizabeth tilted her head at Neptune’s sudden appearance.

「Your Majesty, if my team manages to win this year’s Pancake Race, would it be possible for you to make me the exclusive Waitress for the Annual Tea Party until next year’s race?」

Hearing that, Belfast, who was still watching the lottery lots, also looked at Neptune.

Although she had dropped it simply at the spur of the moment and not really thinking this action through, thinking about it now, her statement just now might have been the same as declaring war on Belfast, the Head Maid of the Maid Corps.

—— But it doesn’t matter anymore.

She really wanted to serve as a waitress at that Annual Spring Tea Party.

Now that the “Her Majesty’s Stomach Fishing Pole Strategy” which he had put a lot of thought and effort into, had run into a dead end with just one method of brewing tea, he had no choice but to approach Elizabeth in a completely different way if she wanted to succeed in her endeavors..

Neptune looked at Belfast with a fearless smile on her lips.

「From this year onwards, I’m the one who will fit in that beautiful picture frame.」

「A picture frame, you say?」

Belfast furrowed her brows without understanding the meaning behind Neptune’s words at all.

Neptune had pride and stubbornness as a waitress. In the first place, she was proud that she had more potential than the Maid Corps not only in making sweets, but also in her overall work as a waitress.

Her self-confidence was largely due to her personality, but at the same time, she was also proof that she had been studying on her own all those years, from her detailed manners to making sweets and serving them.

「I absolutely cannot lose to you.」

At her obvious provocation, Belfast gently places the lottery lots on top of the serving cart and turned her body towards Neptune. Her expression remained the same as usual, but at least she seemed to sense Neptune’s clear rivalry that was oozing out of her.

「Heh, is that so? I must say, that sounds rather interesting.」

Without thinking, Elizabeth said lightly and put her hand on her chin.

「By the way, who else is going to be on your team, Neptune? Have you given it a thought already?」

「Yes, Your Majesty. That would be the three shipgirls of the Leander Class.」

Even as she answered, Neptune kept his eyes solely on Belfast, and Belfast alone.

「Hmm, I see, the Leander Class, huh…… Ah! Now I remember!」

All of a sudden, Elizabeth leaned forward towards Neptune.

「Speaking of which, you guys were the second place team last year, weren’t you?! This is going to be one heated rematch!」

「Well then, what do you say to that? Will you accept the challenge?」

When Neptune asked her about that, Elizabeth let out yet another “Ah!” from her mouth, as if she just happened to remember something.

「Actually, about that matter, but depending on the day and the weather, I also want to drink tea brewed by other girls as well. Which is why I do not think that the exclusive status is going to cut it in here and ——」

「Will you grant me the honor of acknowledging me as an exclusive waitress if I manage to win the race?」

「No, you see, about that, let’s talk about that now and ——」

「It’s good to have someone exclusive once in a while!」

「Which is why ——-」

「Exclusive!」

Neptune brought her face even closer towards Elizabeth as she said that.

Elizabeth, who was taken aback by the abnormal pressure coming from Neptune, reflexively nodded regardless of her original intentions.

「I’m glad that we understand one another. This is what we call the privilege of the winner.」

Neptune then backed away from Elizabeth, and twirled in place, putting her hands together in front of her chest.

And when she catches Belfast in her line of sight again, she told her with a smile on her face.

「I won’t lose to you, Head Maid-san.」

Belfast finally opened her mouth to deliver a proper reply to that bold declaration.

「……To be perfectly honest, I don’t think that this is a very good way to decide the Annual Tea Party’s waitress like that.」

However, she then looked straight at Neptune.

「—— But very well, you are on! This Belfast will accept the challenge from you, Neptune-sama!」

Thus, the promise of a Neptune + Leander Class rematch against the Maid Corps team led by Belfast was properly established right there at that very moment.

* * *

Originally, Neptune had very little to no interest in this whole Pancake Race event.

(…… It doesn’t really matter if someone wins or not, since there is no real prize for winning in the first place.)

Yes, it was just as she thought: for there was indeed no prize to be had in winning the Pancake Race whatsoever.

It was just a weird event, the purpose of which was to strengthen the bonds between people as they would all eat some delicious pancakes together after the race was finally over.

And as Neptune, she herself especially did not want to compete with anyone else. It was not even that she liked pancakes that much. In the first place, she would make sweets by herself every day, so she had more than enough fill of that particular food for the day.

Of course, it would have been a whole lot better if she did not have to participate in the Pancake Race in the first place. However, last year she was made to forcefully compete when she was cornered by the three shipgirls from the Leander Class, who were laneting that they did not have nearly enough people to compete themselves.

For some reason, in the blink of an eye, Neptune ended up appearing as an anchor for the Pancake Race before she even knew it ——

「—— We are really looking forward to working together with you! With a team like this, we are sure to win the first place without even trying ☆」

「P-Please wait just a minute! Why am I even in this race in the first place!?」

But even though she was complaining like that, Neptune was forced to jump down from the pier into the sea with a frying pan in her hand.

But even though she was doing her best at that time, In the end, she was beaten by the Maid Corps by a landslide and her team ended up coming in second place.

(… Oh well, this is really irrelevant. Not that it matters or anything.)

Even though she honestly thought that way, it would be a lie if she said that she did not regret losing the first place and that she was not frustrated by it.

Moreover, even though the three Leander Class shipgrils had such high expectations of her right before the race, they finished second. Even though the event was meant to be nothing more but a fun little bonding exercise, Neptune did not wanted how to face them, as she was sure that they must have been really disappointed with her.

「……I don’t want to be commended by them or anything like that. I don’t deserve it, and I certainly did nothing all that praise-worthy.」

Muttering like that to herself, she hurriedly hid herself and tried to return to her dormitory room before the award ceremony would roll about.

But it was precisely at that moment when the three Leander shipgirls managed to find her, grabbing onto her before she was able to flee the scene.

「W-What do you think you’re doing!? Let go of me right this instant!」

「Oh no, we won’t let you go! We still want you to stay with us! Besides, there is still something really important that we must do!」

The one to say that was Leander, the first ship of the Leander Class and a Light Cruiser, who first grabbed Neptune’s arm while she was doing her best to try and get away from here as soon as possible.

「That’s right ☆ It was disappointing that we ended up in second place for sure, but you don’t have to feel responsible for that. So no worries.」

The next one to open her mouth with a bright smile on her face was Achilles, the second ship of the Leander Class and a Light Cruiser as well.

Clinging to both of her arms as if they were trying to hug her, they looked really adamant about not wanting to let Neptune go no matter what.

「We want to take a commemorative photo with you while eating pancakes with everyone else!」

「I-I myself don’t really want to be commemorated while looking like that!!」

「Ufufu. You’re not good at lying, I’ll let you know!」