I Only Baked Bread, but I Was Mistaken for the Best - Chapter 68

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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 68. The Giant and the Cookie (4)
When I stepped outside, what greeted me was Siwoo repeatedly enlarging and shrinking himself.
“Success.”
“You could say fortune favored us. The Witch’s Cottage’s arrangements were precise. Owner.”
To be honest, it was a bit frightening.
When enlarged, he became a giant towering well over ten meters, laughing with a voice that seemed to shake the very heavens, but when he returned to normal, he giggled in a voice as high-pitched as a small child’s.
“Well, I understand he’s in good spirits, but….”
“It is rather unsettling.”
“Kyuuuu….”
Seeing that even the two of them reacted this way, it seems I’m not the only one who finds it strange.
And that wasn’t all.
【Giiik giiik.】
【Giiik.】
Golems emerged from the scrap metal heap, responding to the commotion Siwoo had caused.
Those creatures boasted sizes approaching two meters, but to Siwoo, they would appear as nothing more than gum stuck to the bottom of his shoe.
“What? Are you looking down on me because I’m small right now?”
【Giiik. Giiik!】
“This won’t do. You lot? [Gigantification]!”
The Golems, ignoring Siwoo who at best appeared to be an elementary school student, charged forward while rolling their rusted gears.
But before Siwoo with his shackles removed, they would be no different from children.
The moment he cast the skill, his body swelled and expanded into something colossal.
“Now, didn’t you lot look down on me something fierce for being small?”
【Giiik… Giiik….】
Whether his consciousness had regressed along with his physical size, Siwoo bared his teeth at the Golems now far smaller than himself.
Unlike before, a death sentence was swiftly handed down to the trembling Golems looking up in fear.
“Did I really seem like I was avoiding you lot because I was scared?”
Kwaaaaaaang!
A single stomp shook the very earth.
“I’ve been running away because nothing goes my way, but that’s changing!”
Kwaaaaaaaaaang
I merely clapped, yet a sound like bombs exploding accompanied a violent gust of wind.
“These fools think I’m easy prey! I’m not the old Seong Si-woo anymore!”
Kwaaaaaaaaaang!!
Only after his final punch toppled an entire mountain of scrap metal did Siwoo cease his assault.
The Golems that had swarmed moments before were now pulverized beyond recognition.
He snorted with satisfaction and returned to his original form.
“Hmph! Pathetic things!”
His appearance resembled a child who had won a neighborhood brawl, which was endearing, but the reality was that he had just concluded a large-scale battle.
After looking up until my neck ached, finally adapting to looking down, Siwoo came running over and spoke.
“Thank you! Thank you so much!”
“No… what….”
“I’m alive thanks to you, Yeon-gi! Thank you so much!”
Siwoo bowed repeatedly, expressing his gratitude to me.
Then he glanced around hurriedly before suddenly dashing away.
“Wait a moment! I feel too guilty to leave like this—let me give you something!”
“No… hold on….”
Before I could respond, Siwoo hauled his massive frame up the mountain of scrap metal.
I watched to see what he was doing, and he actually pulled out a large steel framework structure that had been embedded at the summit.
“I’ll make something wonderful for you with this!”
“Something wonderful, you say….”
“Just wait! Before I became like this, I was in the sculpture department! I’ll shape it like this… hnngh!”
Veins bulged across his forearms as he exerted tremendous force.
In response, the heavy, thick steel framework bent like taffy.
Up to this point, one might think nothing particularly strange was happening.
I had thought the same thing until I learned the true identity of that steel framework.
[Adamantium]
▷ A rare metal that fell from the heavens and cannot be found on earth. Extremely durable and elastic, it is impossible to work with unless one possesses the strength of a Primordial Giant or the heart of a star.
“Adamantium?”
“Meow? Did you say that’s adamantium?”
“That’s… what it says?”
“That can’t be right! Without the power of a Primordial Giant or a star’s heart, it should be impossible to even change its shape!”
“The status window says so too.”
“Meoooooowwww!”
Seeing Noir react so dramatically, it was clearly some kind of extraordinary metal.
But given my lack of knowledge about the hunter industry, I could only tilt my head in confusion.
From the description alone, I could tell it was a remarkable metal, but I had no sense of just how remarkable.
Meanwhile, Siwoo continued muttering things like “I’ll shape it like this…” as he worked the adamantium.
“Done! Please accept this!”
“What is this….”
What emerged was a massive hammer.
Since it was made purely through force, bending and stretching, it was crude, but its size alone matched my height.
“What is this?”
“A hammer! I know you’re strong, Yeon-gi, but you’ll need a weapon to protect yourself later, won’t you?”
“I don’t need one….”
How was I supposed to use a hammer like this?
No matter how much stronger I’d become from carrying flour sacks compared to ordinary people, I couldn’t possibly swing this thing.
I tried lifting it cautiously, but the hammer didn’t budge an inch.
“I really don’t think I need….”
“Meow! Just take it! Owner! I’m telling you to take it!”
“Why are you suddenly like this.”
“Don’t you understand how magnificent adamantium is?! Take it at once!”
“That’s exactly why I’m confused. Explain it to me!”
“Meow! Listen well, Owner! Adamantium has the epithet of being a metal bestowed by the gods!”
According to Noir’s urgent explanation that followed, adamantium was truly a metal that seemed to exist only in fantasy.
“When dying stars accumulate their essence and it coalesces, that’s when adamantium is born. Because of this, it holds tremendous power! The Previous Witch crafted a staff from it! The magic that emanated from it could split the heavens and shatter the earth, Owner!”
“Is… is it really that powerful?”
[Adamantium War Hammer]
▷ An adamantium war hammer forged with the strength of a giant. Any being caught in the sweep of this hammer will be transformed beyond recognition.
▷ Effects
① Crushing: Applies an additional 50x damage multiplier upon impact.
② Indestructible: Cannot be destroyed.
“Oh… this is insane….”
“Are you not pleased? I thought it was something good, so I made it….”
As I stared blankly at the absurd specifications, Siwoo spoke to me.
He seemed to be gauging whether my gift had displeased me.
There was no way it could displease me.
If I wasn’t delighted by a weapon that multiplied damage fifty-fold and couldn’t even be destroyed, that would make no sense.
But I wasn’t just seeing this weapon—I was seeing a different future.
“Did you know what adamantium was when you made this?”
“Ah… yes! When I become gigantic, I can understand minerals in great detail. Hehe….”
“So making the hammer….”
“I majored in sculpture. And for some reason, when I’m gigantic, I become skilled at making things like this. It’s like I naturally know how to do it, I suppose?”
Siwoo tilted his head while in his enormous form.
I could piece it together easily enough.
The keyword ‘Primordial’ written in the Gigantification skill.
The ability to judge minerals just by looking at them, and exceptional craftsmanship to boot.
Anyone could see this was modeled after the Titans from Greek mythology.
I couldn’t explain why he possessed such skills, but as a Witch myself, I couldn’t call it strange.
“Can you make things like this if you have the materials?”
“Probably… maybe?”
“Would you be interested in working together?”
“Huh?”
“Meow?”
I found it.
My second business partner.
* * *
“So I just need to go to the address written here?”
“That’s right.”
“And I’ll receive a salary too?”
“Of course.”
What Siwoo held was none other than a business card belonging to the Owner of Wichi Food.
“But isn’t this place Food… I mean, a place where people cook, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“Then am I here to cook?”
“That’s not quite it.”
I gave Siwoo the business card to hire him as staff, but not for making bread and beverages.
It was closer to hiring him to create the equipment necessary for making bread and beverages.
“This place has most of what I want, but there are times when I’m missing something.”
“For instance….”
“A dinosaur-shaped cookie mold?”
…It was a bit tacky, but that’s the example I gave.
The Witch’s Cottage does its best to fulfill what I desire, but it inevitably consumes BP.
In my current situation, struggling with BP day after day, I can’t rely entirely on it.
That’s why I decided to recruit Siwoo, who could create the equipment needed for confectionery and baking.
Fortunately, he accepted positively.
“I’m fine with it! I don’t really like going through Gates….”
“There’s a bit of a disconnect from how you looked just before….”
“Pardon?”
“Never mind.”
Since he’s in the form of an elementary school student now, it’s convincing enough, but I couldn’t help but recall the image of him sweeping away Golems when he enlarged himself earlier.
In any case, Siwoo, a self-proclaimed pacifist and coward, accepted my proposal.
He even promised to find Nuri once things were settled after leaving the Gate.
“Then I’ll be going! Thank you so much! I’ll see you again!”
“Yes, if the opportunity arises.”
The moment Siwoo stepped outside the door, bowing repeatedly in gratitude, the scenery beyond the window changed.
Probably all the fates that needed to happen or be changed here have been resolved.
“Where is this place….”
“An unpleasant place, Owner.”
“Kyuu….”
What appeared beyond the window was a swamp.
A swamp painted in the color of something that had been left at room temperature for over a month, rotting and damp.
Even with incomprehensible bubbles rising from it.
Despite the Witch’s Cottage protecting this place safely, it was a sight that seemed to emit a foul odor.
“Gates are all the same—not a single normal one among them.”
“Still, the fact that the Witch’s Cottage came here means there’s a destined one here too, Owner.”
“Probably. But I won’t check now. I have too much to do as it is.”
From developing new menu items to Siwoo’s work.
Since I’ve been at the Witch’s Cottage for a while now, it’s time to pay attention to matters outside as well.
Construction doesn’t turn out perfectly just by leaving it to others.
“If I don’t give precise instructions, it’ll be inconvenient for them to work.”
“Is that all there is to it?”
“… People tend to cut corners when things become inconvenient.”
This is my first expansion, the fruition of my efforts.
I simply want to proceed carefully, paying proper attention to each detail.
You could call it greed, but wouldn’t every self-employed person think the same way?
“So let’s head back for now.”
“Meow. Understood.”
“I’ll see Chohong a bit later?”
“Chirp chirp! Chirp chirp!”
I returned to reality, leaving behind Chohong who maturely understood the situation and nodded in agreement.
“But I have this nagging feeling I’m forgetting something….”
“Meow. I agree. With so much happening, it’s natural to feel that way, isn’t it?”
“I suppose so?”
I didn’t realize it until I headed toward the bakery where construction was actively underway, having a conversation that my future self would have scolded me for if she’d heard it.
What consequences this choice would bring in the days to come.
* * *
“Chirp chirp! Chirp!”
Chohong watched the Owner’s retreating figure as she left through the door, then stretched her body.
Even with the Owner gone, she had work to do.
“Chirp chirp! Chirp chirp!”
Beautifying the yard and keeping the crops fresh was work that Chohong quite enjoyed.
Perhaps because she was a Fairy born from the Bread Maker of Life, watching verdant life sprout filled her with such happiness.
“Chirp chirp. Chirp!”
Of course, the mere thought of being with the Owner brought endless joy as well.
It was while heading toward the Kitchen Garden, thinking of the Moisture Sprouts she would caress today.
Crash!
“Chirp?”
A dull sound from somewhere.
Chohong’s ears perked up at the noise of something falling.
The source was the Kitchen.
“Chirp….”
She was frightened, but this was still the Owner’s space!
In the Owner’s absence, it was her duty to protect it.
Chohong carefully folded away her fear and moved her wings cautiously toward the Kitchen.
What she saw there was….
“Chirp chirp! Chirp chirp chirp chirp chirp!”
A Kitchen in complete disarray.
The Kitchen looked as though it had been bombed, utterly destroyed, and….
“Goro goro.”
In the middle of it all was a human-shaped Cookie, crafting something with its short little arms and legs.

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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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