I Only Baked Bread, but I Was Mistaken for the Best - Chapter 1

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 1. The Four-Leaf Clover of Happiness
[There’s been growing controversy in the hunter industry lately regarding support-class abilities, hasn’t there?]
[That’s right. There have been ongoing debates about support-class abilities, but….]
Baking bread is grueling work.
First, I activate the yeast, then measure out the bread flour, sugar, and salt, mixing them thoroughly together.
I don’t forget to sift the mixture either.
“Next comes the unsalted butter, yeast, and egg yolks….”
With practiced, familiar movements, I separate out the yolks and mix them in the prescribed order.
The dough undergoes a folding process and cold resting to achieve a tender texture.
[Unlike combat-focused classes, support-class abilities vary wildly in treatment depending on the specific skill awakened.]
“That turned out beautifully.”
I carefully flatten the dough with a rolling pin, spreading it evenly, then cut and wrap it before placing it in the refrigerator.
That completes the croissant preparation.
But if I only had this, how could I possibly call it a bakery?
[This situation arose due to the absence of the Miracle Guild’s guild master and S-rank hunter, ‘Maestro’….]
Beep.
I turned off the TV that had been running on its own and refocused on my work.
“Next….”
The preparations that began as the sun set and the sky turned crimson continued until darkness fell completely.
Sandwich bread, baguettes, focaccia, scones.
And countless other varieties of bread.
After preparing dough for so many different breads, my lower back and wrists were screaming in protest.
“This is brutal.”
I thought I was destined for success.
When the bread I made as a child received universal praise.
When I graduated from Le Cordon Bleu with honors.
Even when I opened the bakery with support from my Grandmother, who had spent her entire life farming in the countryside.
I had absolute certainty that it would work out.
“Damn it.”
And I failed spectacularly.
“Really, damn it all.”
It was my greed—wanting to open the bakery on a street with heavy foot traffic.
But my funds fell far short of my ambitions.
Setting up shop in an alley set back from the main street turned out to be a fatal mistake.
“I never thought it would fail this badly….”
Even with heavy foot traffic on the main street, people rarely ventured deep into narrow alleys.
If only I hadn’t been swayed by the real estate agent’s smooth talk!
But what good is regret now?
My ambitiously opened bakery, ‘Trèfle de bonheur,’ stood on the brink of closure.
“It means no one passes by…and even when someone does….”
When I peered through the large window I’d carefully designed during the interior renovation, all I saw was the grayish-white exterior wall of the building next door.
And the street below was littered with nothing but cigarette butts.
“Happiness my ass….”
If I’d known it would come to this, I should have named the shop “Four-Leaf Clover of Fortune” instead of “Three-Leaf Clover of Happiness.”
There was a time when baking brought me joy—why had everything become like this?
If only I could feel that happiness again….
As the suffocating feeling tightened around me, I exhaled a deep sigh and left the kitchen.
“Sigh… Let’s call it a day.”
I was removing my apron and hat to toss them into the washing machine and tidying up the shop when it happened.
[I sense your desire.]
[I evaluate your mana aptitude.]
[Evaluation complete. Awakening is possible.]
“What… what is this….”
A blue notification window suddenly scrolled across my vision.
Anyone living in this era would recognize it.
This “status window” was an ability only awakened Hunters could see and feel.
“Does this mean I’ve become a Hunter?”
Hunter.
Twenty years ago, Gates suddenly appeared across the globe alongside these superhumans—beings that spewed monsters threatening humanity. We called them Hunters.
And sure enough.
[Congratulations on the awakening of ‘Han Seung-hyun’.]
[Name: Han Seung-hyun]
[Skill: Witch’s Cottage]
My status window floated before my eyes, displaying everything about me.
There was no room for doubt.
With my awakening, the nature of my power had been carved clearly into my mind.
“Ha… haha….”
[Witch’s Cottage: A witch’s gingerbread house. Bake treats that deliver happiness!]
[Key: A key that leads to the Witch’s Cottage. Insert it anywhere and turn!]
[Oven: A witch’s oven. No preheating, no temperature settings—bake however you wish!]
[…]
“Witch’s Cottage? What even is this.”
This incomprehensible ability called Witch’s Cottage.
Moreover, the skill’s nature seemed to require unlocking before knowledge would transfer to me.
So right now, there were only two things I could understand.
One was that I had a means to enter the “Witch’s Cottage.”
“Summon key.”
The moment I finished speaking, a small key materialized in my hand.
Without hesitation, I inserted it into the kitchen door in front of me and turned it. What appeared before my eyes was….
“Is this really a gingerbread house?”
The entire house—tiles, floor, ceiling, and walls—was constructed entirely of confectionery.
Every surface, without exception, was made of sweets.
Moreover, an unusually designed oven sat in the kitchen.
“This is made of candy too.”
Built in a rounded shape like a traditional hearth, with biscuits stacked like bricks to match the space’s aesthetic—a confectionery oven.
Having come this far, I couldn’t possibly misunderstand what this ability demanded of me.
“So the second task is for me to bake bread and pastries here, then?”
The intent was unmistakable.
I was meant to bake bread and pastries.
But consider this.
Hunters eating bread I’d made while facing monsters that drip venom and tear through steel plates with razor-sharp teeth and claws.
“Yeah. They’d be minced meat in less than five seconds.”
After releasing a heavy sigh, I turned to leave.
“The taste that conveys happiness….”
Words I’d forgotten long ago.
Happiness.
Why had I chosen this path?
Why had I selected a profession where I could only fall asleep after covering my entire body in pain relief patches from kneading dough all day?
Yet how had I managed to never lose my smile, day after day?
What had I been striving for?
The past I’d tried to avoid reached out to me once more.
‘Tsk tsk. Why does Seung-hyun want to make bread?’
‘When I see people happy eating the bread I made, it makes me feel good!’
‘Then shall Grandmother have a taste too?’
‘Yes! Grandmother!’
‘Oh my. My sweet boy. You baked this so deliciously!’
“Damn it…. What am I supposed to do?”
As I muttered this, fidgeting with the key I’d been holding, it happened.
Ding!
[Your earnest wish, born from recognizing your true heart, has been detected.]
“Ow! It’s hot!”
The key suddenly glowed red and began radiating heat.
Startled, I dropped it, and it fell with a clear, ringing clang.
Unlike its confectionery appearance, the key—now glowing hot like molten metal—began to take on a new form.
“What on earth is that….”
Ding!
[The Familier, butler of the Witch’s Cottage for countless ages, reveals its true form.]
“What?”
The key shone brilliantly, transforming before my eyes.
It writhed and stretched, growing larger, and when the light finally faded from the expanded key, what appeared was….
“A cat?”
“Meow.”
It was a single cat, its entire body covered in sleek, lustrous black fur.
“It’s just a cat, isn’t it?”
“How rude. I am a Familier—a faithful butler who has served all the witches who have inherited the witch’s title across generations.”
We both stood there, staring blankly at each other.
“A cat that can talk!”
“How is the witch a man!”
We shrieked in unison.
* * *
“So you’re a Familier who has served witches across generations….”
“To be precise, I am a butler serving an ancient and distinguished lineage from Brittany in France.”
The cat, having calmed down somewhat, climbed onto a chair and answered while licking its front paws.
But what was this about France anyway?
My family consisted entirely of pure-blooded Koreans.
“Furthermore, we are the only lineage to survive that notorious witch hunt. When Marie de Landour calmed the seas, I still grind my fangs thinking of how she was executed because of that damned thing!”
“Well… yes, in any case….”
“In any case nothing! I have a hundred, a thousand times more questions to ask!”
The cat let out a meow and bounded down, approaching me.
Then, circling around me, the creature sniffed at the hem of my pants several times before speaking.
“Sniff sniff. Meow. There’s definitely a witch’s scent coming from you.”
“Like I said before, I’m a man.”
“Are you perhaps mistaken about something?”
“How could I not know my own age? I’m twenty-five.”
“If you’re that stupid, then it’s certainly possible.”
With every word, the cat spewed out remarks that made my blood pressure rise.
But what could I do?
I couldn’t exactly beat the creature senseless.
So I found myself sighing continuously.
“The fact that you summoned me proves you’re from the Witch’s Lineage. I don’t understand why a man would receive the witch’s power, which only women can inherit… but the contract has been made.”
“A contract?”
“Meow? You didn’t know? That you were the one who awakened me from the key?”
The creature tilted its head and groomed its fur once more.
Now that I thought about it, the cat was right.
The status window had said so, after all.
“That I had awakened to true sincerity….”
“Exactly. If that hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have awakened. And….”
The cat sat before me, staring intently.
Its green eyes, contrasting sharply with its black fur, swept over me from head to toe.
And then….
“Sigh… I have to serve such a human as my master… How tragic….”
“What’s wrong with me?”
“The fact that you don’t even know is the real tragedy… Anyway, give me a name.”
“A name? You said you’ve served the lineage for generations?”
“Meow? When the master changes, of course you get a new name. A master who doesn’t even know basic common sense….”
It seemed that as the newly appeared master and contractor, I was supposed to name this creature.
I wanted to give it a name like “Noir” that came to mind immediately, but….
“Meow?”
“What kind of look is that?”
“It’s a look of anticipation.”
I didn’t expect it to say something so bold.
After pondering for a while, I spoke the name that came to me aloud.
“Noir. How about Noir?”
“Meow…. Noir, you say….”
The creature—no, Noir—kept repeating the candidate name over and over.
That name was the first thing that came to mind when I saw it.
It’s from France, and I’m quite familiar with French from my time studying abroad there.
Besides, it’s black, isn’t it?
“Meow! What’s the difference between that and just calling me Noir!”
“Then let’s just go with ‘Noir.'”
“I don’t like it! I don’t—”
[Familier ‘Noir’ has been registered.]
“Meooooow!”
Noir’s cry of anguish echoed through the air.
“Meow… I suppose there’s no helping it…. Such a master…. Here, take this….”
“Take what?”
Ding
[Witch’s Path]
▷ There is someone whose fate needs to be changed by your bread. Bake the right bread and give it to them!
▷ Objective: Deliver ??? to ??? 0/1
▷ Reward: 50BP
As Noir’s front paw moved, a status window appeared before me.
“What else? A witch who doesn’t bake bread isn’t a witch.”
Noir spoke while brushing away the tears that had formed at the corners of its eyes.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————