I Only Baked Bread, but I Was Mistaken for the Best - Chapter 5

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

Chapter 5. Fortune in Gold (1)
“I never realized there was an upgrade element to this.”
“Going forward, whenever people eat the bread I bake, I’ll be able to acquire BP suited to the circumstances.”
Upgrade.
The moment this single word appeared—a concept that made every Korean heart race—I felt my pulse quicken.
But then…
“This is nowhere near enough, though?”
“Isn’t that obvious? I’ve only traded a single loaf of bread so far.”
“So you’re saying I have to keep baking bread and giving it to people like this? Inside the Gate?”
The path ahead suddenly felt impossibly narrow.
In truth, everything I’d accomplished up to this point had been done on a whim.
But if today was any indication, I needed to reconsider my approach.
“Me, who isn’t even a Hunter… inside the Gate…”
Of course, it had already been proven that monsters inside the Gate couldn’t exert influence over the Witch’s Cottage.
But what about the Hunters who might discover this Pastry Shop while exploring inside the Gate?
A headline I’d read yesterday about malicious Hunters flashed through my mind.
‘Malicious Hunters Strike Again Inside Gate. Five Casualties.’
Not all Hunters in the world used their power for righteous purposes.
Some—and frankly, more than I’d like to admit—wielded their strength to crush others and climb over their bodies.
Those who committed crimes in the process were labeled “malicious Hunters” by society.
“If Hunters like that were to come here, it would be a problem. Besides, I just want to bake bread, that’s all.”
“Don’t lie.”
“What?”
“It’s not just about baking bread—you want the happiness of those who receive it, don’t you?”
The words struck true, and I found myself speechless.
But it didn’t matter either way.
My bakery was on the verge of closing due to the economic downturn—did my true feelings even matter?
“The Witch’s Cottage aids the Witch.”
“What does that mean?”
“Exactly what it says. If the Witch’s bread is baked for the happiness of its recipient, then the Witch’s Cottage exists for the Witch.”
The Witch’s Cottage had aided witches throughout the ages, and since each witch was different, the methods varied greatly.
For example, to a previous Witch who wished for no one to go hungry, it provided bread in abundant overflow.
To a witch before that who desired safety in war, it granted a body that no weapon could pierce.
“Going further back, there was even a Witch who achieved her desired revenge. Humans call it the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, I believe?”
I didn’t know the details, but I’d heard of it before.
A massive, frenzied massacre that occurred in Paris, the capital of the French Kingdom.
The Witch’s Cottage could accomplish even such things?
How?
“Even I don’t know anymore…”
“You don’t need to know. This worry exists because you want to ensure your own safety and maintain your Bakery. So the solution is simple.”
Noir approached me with light, careful steps and looked up at me.
“Bake bread. Secure BP. And grow the Witch’s Cottage. Then you’ll be able to obtain what you desire.”
Honestly, it was hard to believe.
That I could save the shop just by baking bread.
But I had already experienced far more absurd things than this.
“Fine. I might as well try something.”
It wasn’t particularly difficult, after all.
No one suddenly declared me a hero and demanded I defeat some demon lord.
I was simply doing work I’d done my entire life, just in a slightly different way.
“Then I should try baking bread using this.”
* * *
“Noir.”
“Meow.”
“You don’t have to pretend you can’t talk.”
“Still, this is the owner’s shop, isn’t it? There’s no benefit to a talking cat being discovered.”
“It’s fine. Who would hear?”
No one was coming anyway.
I’d done everything I could.
The perfect baguette I’d baked using golden wheat was truly flawless.
Not only were the effects properly imbued, but I could confidently guarantee a flavor so delicious that no better baguette could possibly exist in this world.
“So what exactly is the problem….”
“Wait. The Witch’s Cottage is helping.”
“How exactly is it helping? Did it grow hands and feet to distribute flyers and solicit customers?”
“It’s not like that. It strengthens the fate of humans who can find their way here. You simply need to wait.”
The creature spoke irresponsibly, then yawned with its mouth wide open.
Instead, I let out a deep sigh and simply gazed at the shop door that refused to open.
“Huh? A person? But….”
A woman trudged along and began peering in front of the bakery.
She turned her head away with a pitiful gaze as if giving up, then suddenly whirled back, her eyes sparkling as they fixed upon the bread displayed on the shelves.
“What is that?”
A thin thread was connected to the woman’s wrist.
Its end stretched into my bakery.
“That is fate itself. Since you can see it, the owner must certainly be a witch. Though I’m not sure why she’s male.”
Now that I thought about it, I had heard of this before.
The concept of fate was always mythologically connected to thread.
Most notably, the three goddesses of fate in Greek mythology spun and severed thread, and in Eastern traditions, wasn’t fate viewed through the lens of the red thread?
“Then should I go ahead and say something to her….”
“It’s better not to interfere. She was destined to come here anyway.”
Ding.
“Ah… hello?”
As Noir had predicted, the customer finally entered the Bakery.
Her eyes darted around the shop as she adjusted her cap over her head, her one-piece dress decorated with small flowers catching the light.
She stood at roughly 150 centimeters tall.
Moreover, she was so thin that her frail limbs looked as though they might snap with a single tap—precariously fragile.
“Ah… um… I’ll just look around for a bit!”
“Of course. Please, take your time.”
Her voice trembled with tension, her anxious gaze darting nervously about.
She looked as though someone were chasing her.
“Hmm… this one too…”
The woman deliberated intently, picking up tongs and a tray from the counter, then wandered about for quite some time before finally selecting a single baguette with an expression of complete resignation.
“Just one baguette, correct?”
“Yes…”
Still, this was good fortune for me.
My first customer had arrived for the special baguette made with golden wheat flour.
In truth, every time this customer passed near the baguettes, I had silently prayed she would select one.
“That will be 3,000 won.”
“Oh. That’s quite affordable?”
Ah, that stung a little.
Honestly, I had used natural sourdough starter and subjected it to extended cold fermentation.
Moreover, this baguette contained golden wheat—an ingredient I could barely procure at all.
But I couldn’t price bread that wasn’t selling well so extravagantly.
Of course, it worked out well for the customer, and she beamed with delight as she purchased a stick of butter from the counter as well.
“Would you like me to slice it for you before you eat?”
“Oh. Is there a place to eat here?”
“Yes. There’s seating over there.”
“Hmm… yes. I’ll eat here then.”
As I sliced the bread with a soft crackle and arranged it beautifully on a plate, she quickly took it and hurried to her seat.
She appeared to be the type who watched videos while eating, and as she turned one on, an announcer’s voice filled the air.
[E-rank Hunter Joo Gyu-ri, who has become a hot topic for solo-clearing a B-rank Gate! But you’re no longer E-rank, are you? Through an unusual re-awakening, Hunter Gyu-ri has transformed into S-rank. We’ll now conduct an exclusive interview!]
Joo Gyu-ri—my first customer?
Listening to information about someone I knew, I gathered several details.
Through an uncommon re-awakening, she had become Korea’s seventh S-rank Hunter and was receiving the spotlight.
The public’s reaction was favorable, apparently due to her unique, eccentric behavior.
[There really was a pastry shop! I gained a skill after eating the baguette that the black smoke manager gave me!]
“If life were that easy, I wish I could have eaten one too…”
The woman sighed deeply to herself while watching the video.
Then, losing interest in the broadcast, she brought the baguette to her mouth and took a hearty bite.
“Mmm!”
She let out an exclamation of admiration, a smile spreading across her lips.
Even Noir and I, who already knew the taste of this bread, found ourselves unable to look away, utterly captivated.
It was to the point where the baguette she was eating felt like the most delicious food in the world.
“Still, it’s such a waste though.”
“Meow?”
“It’s golden wheat. Golden wheat.”
I searched just to be sure, and as expected, golden wheat didn’t appear on Hunter auctions either.
Since it was bread made with an item whose value was literally whatever the seller demanded, no matter how hard I tried not to think about it, it felt wasteful.
“Do not worry, Master. Destiny always connects by weighing fair compensation.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Both the human who came to the Witch’s Cottage and this human here—they all came for good reason.”
Noir meowed quietly near my ear, careful not to be heard.
“As I said before, destiny is not something hastily patched together. It operates with perfect precision, and its comings and goings function without the slightest deviation.”
Noir added that Gyu-ri, having obtained a skill, would pay me an equivalent price according to destiny.
When I asked why she mentioned payment, she answered like this:
“Humans don’t understand destiny, so it’s good to specify the price clearly—that’s what the great-great-great-great-grandmother Witch told me.”
“But I’m human too?”
“Aren’t you a witch, Master? Even if you’re male.”
“Anyway, are you saying that person will be helpful to me?”
“She’ll be as helpful to you as the emotions she gained from eating the bread. Trust me.”
But honestly, I couldn’t bring myself to believe it.
How could I think that way watching her, lost in her obsession with bread, now spreading butter and devouring the baguette without leaving a crumb?
“But isn’t this way too fast, no matter what?”
“M… meow…”
Noir, flustered, let out cat sounds instead of words, and her opinion seemed to match mine.
How could so much bread fit into such a small body?
And she finished it all in less than five minutes.
She didn’t even eat greedily.
Ding
[Guest ‘Yu Ye-seul’ experiences true happiness.]
[5 BP has been accumulated.]
Right, seeing BP accumulate means this definitely isn’t a dream.
After closing the status window that appeared before my eyes, Ye-seul had already approached the counter and was staring intently at me.
“Um… Customer? Is there something you need?”
“Hey! If you don’t mind! Would it be okay if I filmed here!”
Filmed? What kind of filming?
As I tilted my head in confusion at her sudden question, Ye-seul hurriedly pulled out her phone and opened YouTube, a video platform.
“I’m a mukbang YouTuber, you see? The bread is really, really delicious, so if you’re okay with it, I was wondering if I could film a video here!”
“Yes?”
“Meow?”
On the phone screen, a video was playing of Ye-seul demolishing ten servings of braised pork feet in an instant.

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