3 bar menu

Azur Lane: Episode of Belfast Volume 3 Chapter 1 Part 8

Neptune did not know all that much about her because she has never really spoken to her in person, but she has heard that she was really ditzy and clumsy. In stark contrast, the younger sister Belfast seemed to be a perfect maid out there.

—— So, because of that simple fact, the taste of that black tea probably did not seem to be that much of a big deal here.

So it would seem that Neptune would get to try Berlfast’s personally-brewed black tea on some other occasion.

With that in mind, Neptune left the sandy beach together with Belfast and the others.

And when they came to a place where the soft sand shifted into hard dirt, there was a place with a conveniently placed wooden table and bench that someone had put together on the spot.

[Shall we all rest here for the time being?]

There was also a small roof over the tables and benches, which made this place pretty much perfect for taking a break.

[Why is there even a table and a roof in a place like this?]

When Neptune asked that question, Newcastle said while placing the thermos bottle on top of the table.

[The islands around the Home Port island have places like this for Coast Watchers where they can wait while being sheltered from the elements. Also, the waters around here are often used by Destroyers during their training, so they come here for their breaks pretty often.]

[Hmm, is that so —— Huh, what the?]

Neptune noticed something that was placed under the bench just now.

She bent over and picked it up, and it was a white jacket. It seems that someone has forgotten something here the last time they visited.

[It probably belongs to Ark Royal-san. I have seen her wear such a raincoat on numerous occasions before.]

Belfast looked as though she just happened to remember something.

[Yeah, but like, what the hell was she doing here……?]

Neptune had heard that Ark Royal was someone who would have a really peculiar interest in all Destroyers around the Home Port island, so it was actually not all that weird to expect to see her wherever you would get to see the Destroyers, but even so, Neptune let out a long and pained sigh, put the rain-jacket on the bench, and sat down next to it.

Belfast sat directly across from Neptune, took out a thermos water bottle, and poured it into the cups lined up on the table.

[Please, go right ahead. But also, please be careful. It should still be hot.]

Neptune then carried the tea that was offered to her towards her mouth without much thinking..

It was at that moment that ——

[…… Impossible. It cannot be.]

The word ‘delicious’ alone could not possibly describe that taste she was experiencing.

At that moment she was overwhelmed with so much emotion that it would be a shame to describe it in just a few simple words like that.

Neptune stared at her own face reflected on the surface of the tea that was poured inside of the cup in apparent disbelief.

—— What’s going on with my body……? This gentle, yet fragrant taste……

Earlier, Belfast said that it was her older sister, Edinburgh, who brewed this tea, but could it be that all the members of the Maid Corps were able to brew a tea that was this high-level?

Faced with something like this, the usual herbal and fruit teas that Neptune would drink just paled in comparison.

It was a really childish way of saying it, but she felt like she was drinking real tea for the first time in her life.

[But be that as it may, the fact that this tea is served from a thermos bottle can change its taste a little bit. I guess that a freshly brewed tea from the pot would have an entirely different taste to it after all……]

In other words, the true value of this tea was still unknown to Neptune.

And the most incredible thing here was that this is not a tea that was even brewed by Belfast the Head Maid.

——Perhaps, no, definitely…… Neptune was sure that Belfast herself would be able to brew an even better tea without a problem.

From what she was able to hear around the dormitory, Belfast was really good at brewing tea, so if her sister Edinburgh was able to brew something quite delicious like this, then she would only be expected to produce an even better result.

However, there was still a part of Neptune that was having a hard time accepting reality for what it was, that there would be something even better than this.

[—— Oh wow…… This is a really, truly delicious-looking piece of cake.]

At that time, it was Belfast who suddenly opened her mouth and what came out was nothing short but words full of admiration accompanying her surprised expression.

Neptune, who was off to her own fantasy land for a good moment now, heard this and raised her head to look at Belfast.

On a plate right in front of Belfast, there was Neptune’s special cupcake that was already missing a huge chunk out of it.

[Ah, I am so sorry for interrupting you. I suddenly yelled out like that……… It’s just that, it was really so delicious, so I couldn’t really help myself and it just…… kind of slipped out.]

Just like that, Belfast expressed her genuine feelings here.

Neptune, on the other hand, was so deeply moved by those words, but because of her unnecessary stubbornness, she was unable to just accept those genuine words of praise.

Instead, she would just continue to present her usual attitude here without any reservations.

[O-Oh, yeah. I-I mean, your tea isn’t as bad as I thought it would be as well. It gets a passing grade, if anything.]

Inside of her heart, she desperately wanted to convey her impressions in a more frank and honest way.

But since this entire situation was taking place right before the important Pancake Race where Neptune was supposed to fight for her exclusive right to serve as a waitress during the Spring Tea Party, her pride would get in her way and there was absolutely no chance for her to be honest right about now.

And so, Neptune got up from the bench nervously.

[W-Well then, it was certainly a lovely break, but I guess that it’s time for me to go now. Thank you very much for your hospitality.]

[Huh? You are going already, Neptune? Aren’t you going to eat some of those cupcakes yourself?]

Regardless of Achilles’ surprised words, Neptune started walking away in a hurry.

Right about now Neptune thought that if she was to stay here any longer than necessary, she would get used to this gentle atmosphere, and that would certainly get in the way of her special training program that she was trying to make happen until the day of the actual competition.

And of that was to happen, she would really be in trouble,

[You know what they say: today’s tea is tomorrow’s enemy.]

[Hold on! Hey, Neptune, I said hold on!]

But Neptune would not heed Leander’s words no matter what, and just like that she jumped into the vast ocean and took off on her own just like that.

But really, how?How was it possible for the maids to make a mere tea taste so exquisite like that?

[There is no way for me to be defeated here…… Never! I will never admit it!]

Neptune followed the course that the race’s track would consist of leading towards the next checkpoint with a hazy feelings brewing inside of her chest.

* * *

After that little break took place, Neptune worked hard with the three Leander Class Light Cruisers in order to perform a full-fledged Pancake Race practice.

Before the actual race would take place, there was still a whole lot of things that needed to be done. So while Neptune’s team was busy with their own training and preparations, she would often secretly peek at Belfast’s team practice as part of what she would call an “enemy inspection”.

And today, too, she was on her way to see how Belfast and her team was doing right before their own practice would start. As soon as Neptune left the dormitory and went down the downhill path, she could see Belfast and the others standing at the pier.

[Oh, there you all are.]

Neptune hid behind a tree and watched what was going on with Belfast’s group.

Except for the first day, the girls’ special training was always conducted at the pier of their Home Port island.

Apparently, Belfast seemed to be teaching these two inexperienced racers a priority action that was a proper way of flipping the pancakes on the pan. She must have realized that this was way more important than keeping up throughout the race course.

[—— Ehhhh~ why!? This is not even close to working out or going smoothly!!]