I Only Baked Bread, but I Was Mistaken for the Best - Chapter 15

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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 15. Delicious Diet (3)
“BP acquisition is harder than I expected.”
“Did you think it would come for free? Owner?”
“That’s not it, but…”
Several days had passed since Ye-seul bought bread, yet BP acquisition remained sluggish.
It was only natural.
There was a limit to how much BP I could extract from a single person.
Though my bakery attracted more customers than before, that still wasn’t enough BP to upgrade the Witch’s House.
“I’m trying not to be greedy, but it’s frustrating when reality doesn’t match my expectations.”
“Don’t harbor strange thoughts, Owner. Even a witch cannot violate the rules of fate.”
“Even if I wanted to, I wouldn’t know how.”
“Excellent. Then all you need do is bake bread.”
Noir, meowing away, only ever demanded one thing from me.
To bake bread.
Since I was running a bakery anyway, or rather, since I introduced myself as a bakery owner, I’d be baking regardless, so it didn’t matter.
“Come to think of it, Ye-seul hasn’t been by lately.”
“She must be busy, Owner. Her subscriber count has grown again.”
“How would you know that?”
“M-meow…”
At my words, Noir let out an unconvincing cat cry and turned his head slightly to the side.
I pulled out my phone and checked the YouTube history—there was a new video from Roro’s channel, “What Did Ye-seul Eat Today?”
“Didn’t I confiscate your YouTube access?”
“That’s your fault, Owner! How could I resist when the phone was right there, tempting me?”
“How did you even know the password?”
“…”
“I’m changing the password.”
“Meooooow!”
Ignoring the cat’s pitiful cries—addicted to the dopamine of modern technology—I checked the video he’d watched.
“I’m glad she enjoyed it.”
So that’s why the sales of pumpernickel, which we’d been pushing as wellness bread, had increased so much.
“Thanks to that, business is breathing a little easier.”
“It appears so. The number of humans wanting to buy bread seems to be growing steadily.”
Of course, it was still insufficient.
Still, I should be grateful that I was managing to pay back the overdue rent little by little.
“If the landlady Grandmother hadn’t been so kind and considerate, we’d already be out on the street.”
“Why ‘we’? At least I can live in the Witch’s House.”
“Listen to you bragging.”
“Anyway, is business finished for the day?”
“Yeah. I need to clean up. And tomorrow’s my day off, so it’ll be quick.”
Our bakery’s official day off was every Monday.
And since today was Sunday, there wasn’t much to prepare.
“So I can spend the whole day researching bread today?”
“No, that’s not it. I have something to do.”
“Meow?”
“I need to register as a Hunter.”
In South Korea—or rather, in this world transformed by the appearance of Gates—Hunter registration was essential to survive.
It was only natural.
If people who gained special supernatural abilities acted without any regulation, problems would inevitably arise.
“I’ve heard that actually caused quite a few problems.”
Awakened Hunters had to visit the Hunter Management Bureau within a month of their awakening to register.
Otherwise, they would become unregistered Hunters and face various disadvantages.
“Since I’m a Hunter too, I should follow the law.”
“Meow. Humans always create such tedious things. Why is that even necessary? The strong should simply maintain control. Besides, we’re just a benevolent Witch and Familier who make bread.”
“Other people don’t know that.”
Besides, even if a man over 180 centimeters tall introduced himself as a Witch, the only response he’d get was, “Are you insane?”
“Humans truly are difficult to understand.”
“What would a cat know? I’ll lock the door and be back, so wait here.”
“Hmm….”
It was just as I was about to flip the sign on the bakery’s front door to ‘Closed’.
“Owner. Wait a moment.”
“What is it? Oh… this is….”
I could only see it by stepping close to the door.
A single, delicate thread of crimson so thin it seemed ready to snap at any moment.
It was so thin that if there hadn’t been a streetlamp in front of the bakery, I would never have noticed it.
“Yes. It’s the Thread of Fate.”
“It means a customer will arrive soon, so I can’t close yet.”
“I’m worried because it’s so thin, but I trust you’ll handle it well, Owner.”
I could understand without further explanation.
The Thread of Fate was destiny made visible, connecting the two beings bound at its ends.
If the thread were thick, it would represent an unbreakable bond of fate, but something this thin could end at any moment.
“I think I know what you’re about to say.”
“Meow?”
“It depends on me, doesn’t it? That’s what you meant?”
“Precisely, Owner.”
I didn’t expect much from you, Noir.
In the end, I abandoned the thought of closing and returned to the counter, settling into a chair.
Meanwhile, Noir leaped onto my lap and began purring, curling into a loaf-baking position.
And so a peaceful overtime shift continued.
Ding~
The door burst open urgently.
And then a woman strode into the shop.
Though her face was hidden behind a mask and sunglasses, and she wore a black cap, I recognized her instantly.
Because I could see the crimson thread connected to the back of her training suit.
“Welcome to—”
“Bread!”
“Pardon?”
“Diet bread! Please! Right now!”
This fated customer who had come today seemed quite assertive.
The fact that she was asking for diet bread—Pumpernickel—the moment she arrived meant she must have seen Ye-seul’s video.
‘But does she really need to diet…?’
I wasn’t trying to judge.
It was simply a genuine question.
Despite wearing a loose training suit, this woman couldn’t possibly have excess weight.
To be more direct, she was so thin that you’d believe her if someone said she was an idol.
“If she clenches her fist too hard, her wrist might break…”
“Pardon?”
“Ah. No, never mind. We don’t have diet bread, but we do have wellness bread. This way.”
I wasn’t sure where the rumor about diet bread had come from, but Pumpernickel wasn’t focused on dieting.
Its effect was to increase workout performance.
So if you ate it without exercising, you absolutely wouldn’t lose weight.
“Ah! This is it! The one from the video!”
Of course, this customer whose identity I didn’t know seemed fixated on the keyword “diet.”
“Is this all you have?”
“Yes. This is all we have right now.”
“Hmm… it takes a while to come by…”
There were only three Pumpernickel left on the tray.
It was already a lot to eat at once, but since this customer had come from far away, she seemed to want to buy a large quantity at once.
“I’ll take these three for now.”
“Of course. I’ll wrap them up for you. Oh, and if you call ahead, we can also take pre-orders for packaging.”
“Is that really okay? Truly?”
“We have enough flexibility for that. Haha.”
If a customer wants more bread given my situation, I should accommodate them as much as possible…
Especially if they’re a customer with the thread of fate.
After hearing my words, the woman nodded enthusiastically, her voice rising higher.
“Then I’ll order ten. And um… if possible, I’d like to receive them quickly. Would tomorrow work?”
“Ah. We’re closed tomorrow. So I can have them ready by Tuesday. Is that alright?”
“Yes, yes! Of course!”
“Then if you could write down your name and phone number, I’ll contact you.”
“Ah… well…”
Something was off—the customer who had been hiding her face behind a mask and radiating good spirits until now suddenly deflated.
I retraced my words, wondering if I’d made a slip of the tongue, but I hadn’t said anything wrong.
After a moment, the woman took a few deep breaths, then swiftly wrote her name and phone number on the notepad on the counter.
“Kim Chae-eun. Confirmed. Since we bake our bread early in the morning, it would be best if you could pick it up early. Or is there a more convenient time for you?”
“Uh… is now okay?”
“Yes, of course. Should I write that down then?”
“Um… well…”
“Yes, is there anything else you need?”
“No… it’s just… do you happen to know who I am?”
“Pardon?”
What kind of unexpected question was that?
“Do you perhaps stream online?”
“Online streaming?”
“Ah… no, I apologize. Someone who does internet broadcasts filmed here before, so I just said something unnecessary. Haha.”
“Ah… yes…”
“I’m sorry. Since I’ve been living just baking bread, I haven’t really engaged in cultural activities… haha.”
It was embarrassing, but it was the truth.
Since childhood, I’d been obsessed with bread, so I’d never gotten into celebrities, games, or TV shows.
During university, I’d even gone abroad to study baking.
That hadn’t changed much now.
“Ah, I see!”
Interestingly, after saying this, Chae-eun’s mood brightened again.
Though it seemed odd, I accepted payment for the three loaves.
“Yes, thank you. Please come again.”
“I’ll see you on Tuesday!”
Ding~
She left the shop smiling all the way to the very end.
Watching her go, I spoke to Noir.
“That was a strange but unique person.”
“I think the owner is stranger. No, wait. The owner was just being the usual owner.”
“What? What are you trying to say now?”
“No, you didn’t even know who just came in and you said that… forget it. The owner should just focus on baking bread well.”
“You need to speak clearly so I can understand!”
Noir let out a long sigh and told me that the person who’d just visited was Hani, a famous idol member of Favor.
While saying it was good fortune, Noir nodded.
My reaction to hearing that was this.
“How did you know that?”
“Meow?”
“She had her face covered and everything—how could you recognize her? And more importantly, how do you know everything when you’re just a cat?”
“That’s because the owner is too out of touch! Meoooow!”
* * *
“You really don’t know, do you?”
After successfully purchasing bread while avoiding the manager’s gaze, the first thing Kim Chae-eun did was search for accounts related to her sighting.
Sure enough, there were SNS posts from several places claiming to have spotted Hani.
“Things like this just get buried anyway.”
But there were no photographic evidence, and besides, she had made sure to keep her face concealed.
What she was really looking for was the Bakery’s account that she’d heard about earlier.
“Usually when a celebrity visits, they promote it immediately.”
But this place was different.
Not only did they not promote it, there wasn’t a single word about it on their Instagram.
It was hard to tell if the owner had any business ambitions at all.
“But honestly, I’m grateful for it.”
My name and phone number were exposed, yet nothing happened.
Experiencing this freedom for the first time since my debut, I exhaled deeply and pulled out the bread.
“Sniff sniff. It really does smell like flowers?”
The bread carried a delicate floral aroma intertwined with the nutty fragrance of whole grains.
Looking closely, the dark exterior wasn’t burnt—just naturally dark in color.
“Oh, I can’t wait. Just one bite!”
Crunch!
And so I placed the bread with the difficult name—pumpernickel—into my mouth.
How much time had passed?
“Huh? Where did my bread go?”
The piece of bread vanished in an instant.

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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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