I Only Baked Bread, but I Was Mistaken for the Best - Chapter 64

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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 64. New Changes (2)
-If something this big was going to happen, you should’ve given me a heads up! My heart nearly stopped from the shock!
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
Gyu-ri kept her promise to me.
More precisely, the H&G Guild kept their promise.
Seeing that Lee Han-ryul, a hunter recognized for his skills even by the Blue Dragon Guild, and Gwak Pil-seong, the second-in-command of Dragonhill, were assigned to protect Nuri said it all.
Though admittedly, there was the minor issue that both of them gave off the vibe of local thugs who ran their territory with an iron fist.
-But right now we’re drinking together! You get it?
-Of course! Hahahaha!
-Keuuu! This drink tastes amazing!
…Was this really a proper personnel arrangement?
-So don’t worry and just do your job well!
“Understood. I’ll hang up now.”
I spoke honestly with Nuri, who knew my circumstances.
I had requested protection from a hunter I met inside the Gate.
Of course, I introduced myself to Han Yul and Pil-seong as another person helping with Yeon-gi’s request, not just Nuri’s.
“It’s like I’m asking myself for a favor.”
“Meow. Let’s overlook such trivial matters, Owner. Isn’t this the moment to admire something else instead?”
“You’re right.”
Hearing Noir’s words, I lifted my head and looked upward.
“This is what deserves admiration.”
After clearing the Quest and collecting all the BP I gained, I invested everything into upgrades, and the Witch’s Cottage transformed into something completely different from before.
The second floor had felt spacious, but now it had become three stories tall.
“It’s incredibly tall.”
Moreover, several new rooms had appeared, though I had no idea what all these rooms were supposed to be used for.
According to Noir, everything would have its purpose when the time came.
But honestly, what interested me more was the equipment upgrades.
“I upgraded the Oven, the Cauldron, and the Kitchen Garden too.”
Each one had reached Lv.3, bringing significant changes.
The Kitchen Garden’s range expanded, and a small pond appeared in one corner.
It seemed to have evolved to allow cultivation of aquatic crops as well.
But the most revolutionary changes came to the Oven and Cauldron.
“Mass production is now possible…”
As the level increased, the Cauldron and Oven gained a new function—whereas before I could only produce single items, now I could create diverse products in large quantities.
With this, filling the expanded bakery with bread would present no difficulty.
“Moreover, I’ll be able to increase the variety of products handled through Witch Food.”
“Was it difficult before?”
“Of course. The quantities were enormous.”
The number of Subunseo Cheong sold through Witch Food far exceeded my expectations.
By now, not bringing an aide made with Subunseo Cheong when tackling a Gate was considered an outdated strategy.
Handling all that volume alone was absolutely killing me, or so she said.
“Meow…”
“That’s right. Chohong, you’ve been through so much.”
With the frenzied demand, I was able to clear out all the excess inventory that Nuri had been carrying.
So in addition to the six-story Moisture Sprout cultivation facility, I had to grow Moisture Sprouts in my kitchen garden as well.
Instead of me doing bakery work, Chohong carefully tended to the Moisture Sprouts.
“Anyway, that’s why I’ve used up all my BP now.”
“All that BP you had?”
“Of course. I upgraded everything at once.”
I had roughly 100 BP remaining.
BP continued to be supplied through Subunseo Cheong, but now that upgrades required BP in the hundreds of thousands, securing additional resources had become urgent.
“So I’m planning to develop a new product for Witch’s Food.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“Of course, there’s something I need to do first.”
“Meow? What do you mean?”
“I received a quest reward earlier.”
[Reward: ???’s Memory]
[Warning! You must claim the reward in a safe space!]
[Will you claim the reward?]
I had left the reward unclaimed because it said to claim it in a safe space.
I’d forgotten about it with everything that’s been happening.
“Then should I claim the reward?”
[Claiming reward.]
[???’s Memory is being replayed.]
At that moment, my vision was completely consumed by darkness beyond.
* * *
The world was burning.
A woman rushed forward, gripping a sword.
Blood oozed thickly from her battered body.
The woman held a single resolve in her heart.
The resolve to end this endless chain of events here.
And so she forced her barely-functioning body to rise.
She had exhausted every ounce of her witch’s power to reach this place.
Black karma had risen to the brink.
Everything had been destroyed in its own way.
Corrupted, resisted, shattered, torn, crushed, melted, burned, and frozen.
And so the woman, standing once more at the beginning of all things, quietly opened her mouth.
‘My final wish is…’
* * *
“Owner! Come to your senses!”
“Kyuu! Kyuu-kyuu! Kyuuuung!”
A sound seemed to drift from far away.
As if it were resonating faintly from beyond the layered membranes enveloping my body.
As I slowly opened my closed eyes, light seeped through the thread-thin gaps.
Still unable to emerge from the memory of someone I had just witnessed.
“Snap out of it, meow!”
Pow!
“Aaaagh!”
A cat punch struck my nose.
“See that! Junior! This is the greatness of my power, meow! I can actually awaken my Owner, meow!”
“Kyuu! Kyuu-kyuu! Kyuuu!”
“Hehehehe! You may praise me more, meow!”
What I saw was Noir standing proudly on two legs with his front paws placed proudly on his hips, and Chohong clapping around him in admiration.
“What on earth are you two doing?”
“We were making efforts to awaken our Owner who had lost consciousness.”
“Lost consciousness?”
“Indeed. For a full three hours, meow.”
“Three hours?”
At those words, I jolted upright.
Witnessing someone’s memory had felt like mere seconds to me.
Yet three hours had passed in that time?
No wonder Noir and Chohong were worried.
A perfectly healthy human had suddenly collapsed and not awakened for three hours.
“I’ve caused you both concern.”
“Of course. Still, I’m relieved you’ve awakened. Owner.”
“Kyuu! Kyuu-kyuu!”
“And from what I, your Familier, can observe, your stature as a Witch appears to have grown somewhat. Congratulations.”
“Stature?”
Just having awakened and hearing such bewildering words, I tilted my head in confusion.
Ding!
[You absorb the memory of ???.]
[Your Witch’s stature has risen, allowing you to imbue sincerity in more diverse ways.]
[You can now construct the ‘Summoned Creature’s Chamber’.]
“Huh? Summoned creatures?”
“You’ve finally reached the second of a Witch’s fundamentals, Owner.”
“What are you talking about now?”
“Since you were a novice Witch, I couldn’t tell you certain things. But from now on, I shall explain them, so listen well. Meow.”
Noir leaped onto the table and began his explanation.
That the power a Witch possesses could be broadly divided into three categories.
“The first is the power to orchestrate fate.”
“You mean the bread I bake and the drinks I make?”
“On a grander scale, prophecies fall within this as well. Reading fate is also a form of harmonizing power.”
The most fundamental aspect is using sincerity to harmonize fate itself.
Seeing the red thread of destiny, the blue thread of possibility, and the black thread of karma—all of this is part of that practice.
“And the second ability is summoning.”
“Summoning?”
“Yes. It’s the process of twisting fate beyond merely harmonizing it.”
Summoning something that wouldn’t have existed otherwise is indeed twisting fate.
So what could the last one be?
My curiosity was answered quickly enough.
“Creating fate itself.”
“Creating it? How?”
“That differs depending on each witch’s sincerity. Among the Previous Witches, some used scissors to literally cut through everything. Others used magic.”
“I see….”
“Of course, that’s far beyond your Owner’s reach right now, so set that aside. Meow.”
Then why mention it at all?
In any case, it seems that final power can only be wielded once I can fully utilize a witch’s abilities.
Then I should research how to use this summoning ability I’ve just acquired.
“How exactly do I perform a summoning?”
“Two things are required. Sincerity, and a target.”
“A target?”
“You need a material to serve as the medium for the summoning.”
Summoning is literally twisting fate.
That’s why a target is needed to fix the twisted state—in other words, a medium. That was Noir’s explanation.
Anything works, but it’s better if it’s related to the sincerity I’m pouring into it.
“Now that you’ve gained this power, wouldn’t it be good to try it once? Meow.”
*Ding*
[Witch’s Power, Second of Its Kind!]
▷ Try using your newly acquired witch’s power! Though I’m sure you understand that sincerity must be involved?
▷ Summon ‘???’
▷ Reward: 5,000 BP
“That’s a lot of BP?”
“Summoning fundamentally requires more twisting than harmonizing fate. It’s natural that BP acquisition is higher. Meow.”
This Quest was simple in its requirements.
But that made it all the more difficult.
Since no specific target was designated, I had no way of knowing whose sincerity or what kind of sincerity I should pour into it.
I tried using prophecy just in case, but Noir unexpectedly blocked me.
“Using prophecy would be meaningless, Owner.”
“Why? Wasn’t I trying to get a hint in a difficult situation to complete the Quest?”
“You’re the first witch in all of history to treat prophecy as mere hints…. Meow….”
A prophecy reveals how fate will flow in the days ahead.
But summoning itself defies predetermined destiny, so prophecies wouldn’t be particularly meaningful in this case.
“Of course, I might glean some information, but it wouldn’t be especially useful.”
“Hmm… I understand.”
And so even that meager solution was blocked.
I stared at the Quest window with intensity, thinking.
The Witch’s Cottage had opened this Quest window to help me achieve what I desired.
Yet there was no target listed in it.
“Now that I think about it, that makes perfect sense.”
“Meow? Did you figure something out?”
“This is for me, so naturally there’s no target specified.”
A summoning for myself.
Therefore, the sincere wish must be my own sincere desire—something I truly want for myself.
Let me think.
What is it that I desperately need right now?
The answer was simple.
“I need more hands.”
Not only to run the Witch Food, but the expanded shop would absolutely require additional staff.
Yet I couldn’t reveal my powers to just anyone and ask, “Would you like to work part-time?”
I desperately needed employees to bake bread and prepare beverages.
“Let me try solving this with this.”
Manpower, people, and summoning.
The more, the better.
Besides, to accomplish this, I needed to use a method and medium I was already familiar with.
There was only one thing that satisfied all these conditions.
“It has to be that.”
“What are you thinking about, Owner?”
What I pulled from the kitchen drawer was none other than a cookie cutter.
“Have you ever heard of the Gingerbread Man?”
A small human-shaped cookie cutter, to be precise.

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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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