I Only Baked Bread, but I Was Mistaken for the Best - Chapter 137

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 137. The Sound of Truth Weeping (3)
“Is a banquet usually conducted like this?”
“That’s irrelevant.”
Before the banquet began, Dayeon asked upon seeing Sung-bok suddenly rise from his seat.
Ria’s answer to her was that she didn’t know either.
“Remember that we’re here because of a mission.”
“Ugh. This is difficult….”
Dayeon shook her head, expressing her reluctance.
But Ria felt equally reluctant about the situation.
On the surface, the two of them were attending this gathering to narrow the gap between the Hunter Association and the Church, which had been fraught with problems.
But their true purpose—their actual mission—lay elsewhere.
‘They said it would start after I ate bread at the banquet….’
This matter was receiving significant attention from the Hunter Association.
And for good reason—it was an incident involving an artificially induced Gate Break.
Moreover, the perpetrators were figures from politics, business, and religious circles.
‘I suppose I should be grateful that Yeon-gi knew about this….’
What even the Association hadn’t grasped, Yeon-gi knew.
That was probably why she had approached Elder Rohan.
What on earth was Yeon-gi’s true identity?
Considering how she lived within the Gate and her abilities, she couldn’t be called human.
Yet why did that existence act for humanity’s benefit?
Without gaining anything for herself.
‘Of course, the Association Director says there must be a clear purpose behind her actions….’
The first-generation Hunter who led the Association held a firm stance on Yeon-gi’s behavior.
All monsters act to cause harm to humans.
For someone who upheld this as their first principle, Yeon-gi’s actions, however helpful now, would eventually bring great calamity.
‘Though I share that concern….’
She was an opponent who could turn hostile at any moment.
So it was right to precisely understand her abilities.
That reasoning was also part of why I had joined hands with Rohan.
Moreover, Rohan had hinted that Yeon-gi’s apostle would reveal themselves directly in this affair, making participation all the more necessary.
‘Beyond that, we need to eliminate everyone attempting to cause this Gate Break in one sweep.’
That’s why the two of us, skilled at handling multiple opponents, had been dispatched.
I would neutralize our enemies with my vector manipulation ability, while Dayeon would use her power to definitively eliminate any threats.
‘But what’s suddenly happening?’
Ria tensed as she watched Sung-bok abruptly halt the banquet, rise from his seat, and prepare to say something.
Of course, in a one-on-one fight, she would absolutely win against him.
But why then.
‘Something feels like it’s about to happen.’
An uncomfortable unease crept down her spine, gripping her tightly.
In the meantime, Sung-bok, who had cleared his throat several times, continued speaking.
“First, I’d like to express my gratitude to all of you for attending this gathering on such a fine day. We truly have a remarkable turnout.”
Sung-bok seamlessly continued his remarks, introducing the distinguished guests in attendance.
His political intentions were glaringly obvious.
He inserted himself into matters he needn’t have touched, redirecting the audience’s applause toward himself.
Only a cunning fox could pull off such a maneuver.
“First, we have the Gongju Mayor in attendance.”
“Ah, hello everyone.”
The man in the business suit sitting beside him adjusted his tie, rose from his seat, and bowed respectfully.
According to Rohan’s intelligence, this affable-looking man was one of the key figures instrumental in orchestrating the Gate Break.
“And here we have Choi Do-hun, Chairman of the Osung Group—a name I’m sure you all recognize.”
“Good evening. I’m deeply honored to have received an invitation to such a prestigious gathering. I’m Choi Do-hun. Thank you for having me.”
He too bowed with impeccable courtesy.
This one carried the sharp demeanor of a seasoned businessman.
Yet he was equally complicit, orchestrating schemes alongside Sung-bok.
It was precisely then, as Ria surveyed her surroundings with every ability primed for deployment, that something happened.
“Team Leader. Something’s coming.”
“Coming? What do you—”
As Dayeon drew the needle concealed in her sleeve and flicked her wrist, Ria sensed it too.
Malice directed at her.
Malice launched in the form of magic.
*Clang!*
“Are you alright, Team Leader?”
“I’m fine. What was that—”
The cheers and applause continued unabated around them.
As if nothing had just transpired.
Yet something was unmistakably impaled on the tip of Dayeon’s needle.
“An eyeball…”
“This is the same thing we saw before, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
The colossal eyeball creature that had revealed itself when they’d laid their trap before.
A candy-sized eyeball, as if that monstrosity had been shrunk to a fraction of its original size, writhed on the needle’s point.
Only after Ria’s vector manipulation took hold did it finally go still.
“It seems they’ve prepared something. I can sense them all around.”
“Despite all this preparation, no one else has noticed…”
As she focused her senses, the presences became apparent.
They were everywhere.
Beneath chairs, under tablecloths, in wall crevices, even inside the hoods of audience members’ jackets.
How long had they been infiltrating this place?
“This entire space has been occupied.”
“It looks like something’s about to happen.”
As I turned my gaze toward Rohan, he too seemed to have grasped the situation, issuing silent orders to the Holy Knights beside him.
The moment they heard, their faces drained of color as they rushed off in various directions.
But these people wouldn’t be able to resolve this crisis.
They were beings concealed so cunningly that even I, an A-rank Hunter, had failed to detect them.
It would take someone of Dayeon’s caliber—an S-rank Hunter—to handle this.
“I need to call someone.”
“Calling them will give us away immediately. They probably already know we’ve discovered them.”
“That doesn’t mean we can just sit idle.”
Ria slipped her hand into her bag, touching her work phone as she spoke.
Her thirteenth phone.
She manipulated the device containing the contact information of those she could turn to in urgent situations, dialing a number while muttering to herself.
“And there’s one old-fashioned person who’s perfect for a situation like this.”
“Old-fashioned? Are they elderly…?”
“No. They’re not particularly old…”
Ria opened her mouth, recalling an S-rank Hunter who always wore a tattered traditional robe and single-handedly cleared Gates.
“But their appearance is straight out of the Joseon Dynasty.”
“Speaking of which, why hasn’t Yeon-gi arrived yet? They said they would come.”
“I don’t know. Maybe they thought we could handle it ourselves, or perhaps…”
Ria’s fingers moved urgently within her bag, sending a message.
Soon, feeling the vibration of her phone confirming the transmission, she finished her thought.
“Something came up.”
* * *
“This is getting rough.”
“Meow. But there’s no other way, is there?”
“Even so, it’s taking too long. And the stamina drain is enormous.”
I sat down briefly, catching my breath heavily as I answered Noir.
It wasn’t as though I’d been sprinting at full speed, nor was the intense sunlight from the sky beating down hard enough to cook a person alive.
It was simply that I was carrying too much on my body.
“You said you’d made it light, but it’s heavier than I expected…”
“There’s no helping it, Owner. We can’t have you wandering around here naked, can we?”
“That’s exactly why I’m doing this.”
Sweat was streaming down my forehead, but I couldn’t wipe it away.
To do so, I would need to remove the Hardtack armor—the zahar—that covered my entire body.
For those wondering why I didn’t just take it off, I should explain what kind of place this was.
“No matter how I look at it, this doesn’t seem like a Gate.”
Lifting my head and surveying my surroundings, I saw carriages and people moving along well-paved roads.
Stalls lined the Alley, and merchants enthusiastically called out to attract Customers.
The Sky was high and blue, and the sun shone brilliantly, illuminating all things.
Far off near the horizon, I could see an enormous castle, and skimming across its peak was…
“Except for the dragons flying around.”
“Remember this, Owner. This place is absolutely not reality. Meow.”
“Of course not. Who would think this is real?”
Inside the Gate that the Witch’s Cottage had entered this time.
It resembled a scene straight out of a fantasy novel.
A landscape depicting ordinary people going about their lives.
But this was inside a Gate.
There was no way it could be truly peaceful.
“I was genuinely startled when a spear shot out from the shadow.”
It was the sight I had witnessed when first looking out the window from inside the Witch’s Cottage.
From the shadow of a cow peacefully grazing, a black spear suddenly erupted.
The cow died instantly and vanished into the shadow.
The shadow left alone seemed to hesitate, then slipped into the shadow of a nearby pillar.
I’ll say it again.
This is inside a Gate.
Peace does not exist here.
“I never expected a prophecy saying the Previous Witch was here.”
“I did not anticipate that either. Meow.”
I had ventured into this dangerous space purely because of a prophecy.
The Witch’s Cottage’s threat to find the Previous Witch.
Since I had no idea how to search, I spent BP to obtain a prophecy with this result.
‘Where shadows continue their hunt, you shall meet a fateful connection. You shall return to where you belong.’
‘In the end, you shall face a familiar face in a familiar place, and this shall be the last.’
“Can’t you just tell me clearly?”
“But wasn’t it clear that I had to come to this place?”
“That’s the only reason I’m putting up with this.”
Originally, I had planned to head to the Banquet Hall where Rohan was causing trouble, but after hearing the prophecy, I changed my mind.
Upon direct verification, time in the Gate was moving ten times slower than in reality.
With still a day’s worth of time remaining, my plan was to search for the fateful connection the prophecy spoke of here.
That was certainly the plan…
“More than a week has passed for us already, hasn’t it?”
“Indeed, Owner. To be precise, nine days have passed. One day remains.”
“Maybe this isn’t the right way to search…”
“The Witch’s Cottage did not specify how long you must search, so there is no need to rush, Owner.”
“That’s true as well.”
But having time didn’t mean I could sit idle and do nothing.
And so, nine days had passed since I began my desperate search within this Gate masquerading as peace.
I had witnessed the shadows’ hunts hundreds of times over.
Yet among all of this, I had never encountered anyone who could be called a fateful connection.
“What exactly does ‘fateful connection’ even mean?”
“If the Witch’s Cottage said there was a connection, then there must be clear grounds for that judgment. For instance, wouldn’t there be something like a thread of fate?”
“Right. I thought about that too, but given that I haven’t seen anything so far….”
It was then that he sighed and spoke.
Twang~
A single crimson thread suddenly materialized before my eyes.
As I slowly raised my gaze along the thread that hung like a rope descending from the heavens….
“Hark! I am here! Though I know not thy surname, thy ancestral home, nor the place of thy dwelling, surely there exists a living, breathing soul in this very spot crying out for aid—how canst thou pass by with such indifference!”
The first thing I heard was that relentless, grating manner of speech.
And what I saw next was….
“A Joseon man?”
“Not merely a subject of Joseon, but a premier hunter of the bizarre and supernatural—one who roams the eight provinces vanquishing grotesque spirits and malevolent demons! Driven by unavoidable circumstances and pressing need, I make this shameless plea!”
A Scholar in a traditional gat hat and durumagi robe, dangling from a tree.
“I beseech thee, take my hand and aid me! I shall never forget this kindness!”
And one who spoke an extraordinary amount at that.

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