"Danger? Up on the snowy mountain, apart from Kjeragandr, no other fellow has the qualifications to make Letty feel in danger," Flandre answered naturally.
Although Letty's direct, frontal combat capability seemed somewhat average to Flandre, that was only in comparison to Flandre herself. Letty was never a youkai who relied on brute physical strength; she excelled at harnessing the howling wind and biting frost, leading her opponents astray in whiteout conditions until they slowly froze, becoming a permanent part of the blizzard itself.
If they were to engage in real combat, especially on a snowy mountain, and Letty chose to play defense rather than meet an attack head-on, even Flandre would find it tricky to catch her.
"Even you can't easily handle her, Flandre?!" Upon hearing her words, Exusiai's and Texas's eyes widened.
After all, Flandre's sheer, terrifying power was plain for anyone to see. If even Flandre found her difficult to deal with, then that lady named Letty was vastly more formidable than she let on.
"Of course! After all, Letty is a Yuki-onna..." Flandre didn't think she could easily defeat the Snow Woman on her home turf.
After chatting for a while longer, the group decided to step outside for a casual walk to stretch their legs.
"You're all going out? What about me?" Emperor pointed a stubby flipper at his own beak.
"Aren't you hungover? Go back to sleep!" Flandre patted Emperor on his feathered shoulder, then took Exusiai and Texas by the hands, walking out of the bar while laughing and chatting.
Stepping out onto the avenue, the small group strolled leisurely down the sidewalk. They had barely walked half a block when Exusiai abruptly came to a dead halt.
"What's wrong, Sister Exusiai?" Flandre paused, everyone turning to look at her.
Exusiai lifted her head, sniffing the air like a trained bloodhound locking onto its target's scent trail. "There's an active oven ahead... Someone is definitely baking apple pie!"
Without waiting for a response, she sprinted forward. Two hundred meters down the block, Exusiai pointed proudly at a cozy dessert shop, her halo glowing brightly. "This is the place!"
Flandre stared at her in utter disbelief. "You picked up the scent from two hundred meters away?!"
Exusiai placed her hands on her hips, striking a triumphant pose. "No apple pie scent on Terra can ever escape the nose of Exusiai!"
"Is that baked dessert really that delicious?" Seeing her so obsessed, Flandre grew immensely curious.
"It's not just a matter of whether it's delicious or not! It's a fundamental spiritual sensation—the moment you catch a whiff of it, your soul starts itching, like your heart is constantly being scratched by the gentle claws of a Featherbeast! You think about it day and night..." Exusiai passionately declared the sheer majesty of her favorite food.
Flandre tilted her head, thinking that after Exusiai's intense description, apple pie sounded less like a pastry and more like some kind of strange magic potion. Still, her curiosity was piqued, so after a brief discussion, the four walked inside.
"Boss! Two whole fresh apple pies!" Exusiai called out energetic greetings the moment she stepped through the door.
"Eh? There are four of us, so why only two pies?" Flandre asked, confused.
"No problem at all—because I'm eating both of them!" Exusiai declared proudly.
"Alright..." Flandre looked up at the menu board mounted behind the counter. "Hmm, Sister Meiling, is there anything you'd like?"
Hong Meiling scanned the board. "I'll have a red bean roll and a bowl of chilled Qingbuliang, please."
Flandre turned toward Texas, who waved her hand casually. "I'll order my own, Flandre. Don't worry about me."
Flandre nodded, turning to the store owner. "Boss, one slice of apple pie, one bowl of ginger milk curd, one red bean roll, and one Qingbuliang."
After Texas stepped up to order a slice of chocolate pie, the four gathered around a comfortable booth near the window.
"Is it okay that we left without Emperor?" Flandre suddenly remembered the penguin and asked.
"The Boss doesn't eat breakfast anyway. You don't need to worry about him," Exusiai replied, waving off the concern.
"What about the rest of Penguin Logistics?" Flandre recalled Croissant, the girl with the croissant-shaped horns on her head.
"Are you asking about Croissant and Sora?" Texas answered with a rare, gentle smile. "Sora went to perform on her idol tour, and Croissant tagged along as her personal security guard—though she mainly went so she could use Sora's status to sell cheap souvenirs at the concert venues."
"Aren't you a logistics courier company? You actually allow your employees to take on side hustles?" Sister Hong Meiling asked, surprised.
"Of course. The Boss never stops us from earning extra money," Texas replied. Though neither she nor Exusiai had much interest in side jobs, the policy was remarkably flexible.
"Your boss is surprisingly generous," Meiling noted with genuine appreciation. At the same time, her mind drifted back to her own employer... cough. Truthfully, Remilia was actually quite easygoing; the real terrifying one was a certain knife-throwing, time-stopping Head Maid.
As they chatted, their orders were brought to the table.
Flandre looked down at the warm, golden slice of apple pie in front of her. Watching Exusiai take a huge bite, she picked up her fork and tried a piece as well.
"How is it? How is it? Isn't apple pie the single greatest food on the planet?" Exusiai asked eagerly, her eyes practically sparkling.
"Uh... the flavor is actually pretty good!" Flandre offered an honest evaluation.
Although it didn't quite live up to Exusiai's exaggerated praise—where one bite made it unforgettable and two bites sealed a lifelong covenant—the buttery crust and sweet, spiced filling were genuinely delicious.
"Hehe! Naturally! Apple pie is the ultimate delicacy!" Exusiai beamed, thoroughly satisfied with Flandre's approval. "By the way, you mentioned Kjerag earlier... what happened after you left the snowy mountains?"
"After that? Afterward, we traveled over to Kazimierz and watched the Knight Tournament!" Flandre happily recounted their wild experiences in Kazimierz.
"Kazimierz... I've heard about that place on the news. It's supposed to be extremely flashy and vibrant," Exusiai nodded before glancing at Texas. "Texas, have you ever been there?"
Texas nodded slightly. "I have."
"Eh?! How come you've never mentioned it before?" Exusiai's eyes went wide.
"Kazimierz and Columbia share very close economic ties," Texas explained calmly, not shying away from her background. "Columbia's financial conglomerates and the Kazimierz Commercial Federation are deeply intertwined. My family used to have business dealings there."
"I see... Did you attend the tournament back then?" Exusiai pressed.
"No. My knowledge of the modern Knight Tournament comes almost entirely from television broadcasts and corporate reports," Texas shook her head.
Seeing this, Flandre took over, animatedly describing everything she had witnessed during the grand tournament.
After listening to Flandre's description, Texas shook her head with a quiet sigh. "The commercialization in Kazimierz has gone to absolute extremes. When the Knight Tournament is so tightly bound to massive gambling syndicates, it becomes far too easy for the Commercial Federation to manipulate the outcomes from behind the scenes."
Rumors of the Commercial Federation fixing matches had long spread across Terra, and Texas was well aware of them. Hearing Flandre's firsthand account only confirmed that those dark rumors hadn't exaggerated the state of Kazimierz in the slightest.
"Those knights are so pitiable," Exusiai said softly, her tone laced with genuine sympathy. "Training so hard for years to master their combat skills, only to end up as mere puppets pulled by corporate strings."