Answer: Metadata-based result

During the FIRST execution of `SELECT COUNT(*) FROM ORDER;`, Snowflake uses metadata-based result caching. Snowflake maintains metadata about tables that includes row count information, which allows it to quickly return the count without scanning the actual table data. This is different from result cache (which stores query results for reuse) or warehouse cache (which stores data files). The community discussion confirms this with 100% consensus on option D, with references to Snowflake documentation that distinguishes metadata cache from result cache.

Author: LeetQuiz Editorial Team