When Melina opened her eyes early Tuesday morning, the sun was already peeking from beyond the horizon. The sun rose earlier each morning, signifying that summer was coming close.

"Good morning, Sienna," Melina stepped out of the bed and greeted the sleepy ember wyrm, coiled up in the corner of her stone trough. Sienna yawned dramatically, revealing a row of small but razor-sharp teeth. "Did you have a good rest?"

Sienna let out a satisfied chirp and blinked her eyes several times. Melina picked her up and looked outside the window, admiring the garden behind the bakery. What used to be an overgrown jungle had become a carefully cared-for garden with small sprouts growing at the very front and many rows of seedlings growing behind them.

There were still some empty areas which she was hoping to enrich with flowers and fruit trees. At the very end of it, some distance away from Knight's stables, Melina wanted to make a large enclosure for Sienna where she could rest in her original, large wyrm form. But to do so, she would have to make sure that the Church would not discover her identity as a System user.

A few days ago, Melina was forced to reveal to Alistair that she knew how to manipulate mana by bringing the unstable passageway under control. She had expected him to report her to the Church immediately, but he didn't. Instead, he had called her a hero and asked her to call him by his name in exchange for his silence.

"One would think that you'd know a man after fighting alongside him for a decade, but I suppose younger Alistair is a bit different," she muttered. Sienna cocked her head quizzically at her. "Don't worry about it. Let's get ready for the day. We have loads of pastries to make."

Work in the bakery had become more streamlined for Melina. It turned out that having a fire-breathing monster on board was rather handy, and both the oven and the stove could be heated up in less than a minute. Skill <Food Manufacturing> and <Haste Bake> also did a lot of heavy lifting, as the first one provided an extra pastry for each ten pastries made, and the second reduced their cooking time.

Thanks to that, Melina could use the extra time they saved to make tarts, a new favorite among the people of Sunglow. Not even an hour passed in the morning when all of the tarts would be sold out, and the remaining customers would whine for more. But Melina wasn't yet fast enough to make tarts on such a large scale. Not to mention that they lacked refrigerators to keep them cool. The pastry cream didn't keep at room temperature for long.

So the best thing Melina could do was make fresh tarts each morning. This morning was no different.

"Master, what if we hired somebody else to help?" She asked absentmindedly as she arranged strawberries on top of the tart.

"Girl, you already flaunt your magic and abilities around. Do we really need more people discovering that you're a System user?" Gilbert reprimanded. He was still a bit mad about what she had done with the passageway.

It seemed like everyone in town was still mad, even if they only thought that Melina had once again tamed a monster. She received a long lecture from the Guildmaster at the end of which she had to promise to never leave Sunglow again without a proper escort. Leon, Remi, and Erina had talked her ears off about the issue as well. Even Etrian had stopped by and given her the stink eye, although he also appeared to be mildly amused by Gilbert's irritation.

"I'll be careful. But imagine how wonderful this bakery could be if I had more hands on board. We could make a variety of pastries and perhaps even cakes. I mean, we even have a cake on a sign now. It'd be a shame if we never sold any."

"First, people can order a cake if they want. Second, we are a small, decrepit bakery in a small backwater town. How many customers do you think we can have?"

"Yet we are sold out every morning. People pass through Sunglow regularly as they travel further north or cross the sea to Su Xien. It's how Fireside Inn is so successful, isn't it?" she countered.

"Do you know what we need to hire more hands and expand?" Gilbert stared at her pointedly, wiping the flour off his hands on the apron.

Melina sighed, setting a large strawberry in the middle of the tart. "Money."

"Exactly. Money. So instead of having your dreams of grandeur, make do with what you have," Gilbert said, and took a tray filled with rye bread into the shop.

Melina brushed the apricot glaze on her tart, then sighed. He was right. She couldn't dream of expanding the shop unless they had more money. They'd need proper refrigerators as well and a larger space. Not to mention that the person they hired must be trustworthy.

Maybe after a while. I'm sure it'll be easier once my skills rank up.

[You've made <Strawberry-Blueberry Tart – Rank B>. You've gained + 3 exp.]

[Congratulations! You've reached Level 29.]

Oh, it's been a while since I've checked my status screen. Not to mention that I'm really close to Level 30. I should be able to unlock an advanced class once I reach it.

[Name: Melina Dufour]

[Level: 29]

[Class: Cook]

[Familiar: Sienna — Ember Wyrm Level 47]

[Intelligence: 13]

[Agility: 8]

[Strength: 9]

[Skill: 15]

[Charm: 7]

[Active Skills: 6]

[<Refined Edge – Rank D>, <Rhythmic Kneading – Rank C>, <Mask of Deceit – Rank D>, <Gilded Tongue – Rank E>, <Haste Bake – Rank E>, <Arcane Infusion – Rank E>]

[Passive Skills: 3]

[<Archmage's Shadow>, <Chef's Intuition – Rank D>, <Food Manufacturing – Rank D>]

I wonder what skills I'll be able to unlock as a [Baker]. Perhaps something that could help us expand our bakery, whatever that may be. Or maybe a skill that could keep pastries fresh for longer.

Melina looked down at the tart again. Currently, it was just a regular tart without any magical effect imbued into it. But how easy would it be to make it special. Just a bit of feyfruit glaze and a touch of mana, and she could make it special. Erase the nightmare of the one who eats it. Subtly recover their strength. Lessen their headaches.

No, I can't do that! No matter how many customers it would attract, it would also attract the Church. Alistair even warned me that Heiliger will visit Sunglow sometime soon. I have to keep my head low and keep making regular pastries.

Suddenly, an exasperated groan came from the shop. "Melina, you have a visitor."

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"A visitor? This early?"

Melina peeked into the shop and saw Alistair standing by the entrance, looking terribly exhausted.

Alistair didn't know what possessed him to go to the bakery first thing in the morning. If it could even be considered morning, as it wasn't even open yet, and the bakery was the first shop that was open in the mornings.

But couldn't fall asleep anymore—not after that horrible nightmare. At least it had felt like a nightmare, although thinking back on it, there wasn't anything gruesome in it.

He dreamed of a tall tower standing in the middle of a strange forest. He was sure that it was a forest in the Monster Realm, as nothing of the sort could exist in the Human Realm. Trees with purple bark and pink leaves, bushes with black leaves and blood red vines stretching over them. Flowers that looked so alien and strange that he had to wonder whether they were plants at all.

Monsters lurked in the shadows of the trees, but it wasn't them that made the dream feel like a nightmare. Instead, it was the figure who stood at the entrance of the tower that brought chills to his veins. At first, Alistair thought that was just a regular man standing there in a creepy sort of fashion. But the more he looked at the man, the more disturbing features he found.

First, he noticed that his eyes had no pupils, instead, they were all faintly blue, emitting a slight glow. Then it was the man's skin, or rather, it wasn't even skin, nor fur, nor scales. Instead, it was completely smooth and white with light grey streaks, almost like marble. His hair wasn't like hair but rather like watery mist, which held a shimmering crown that seemed to be made out of starlight itself.

But the most intimidating part was the man's aura. Alistair didn't know how he could even feel something that shouldn't be tangible, yet he felt it. It was heavy, oppressive, and made Alistair want to run. As if he was staring death itself in the eyes. When the man lifted his hand and pointed his finger at Alistair, he woke up with a scream, drenched in cold sweat.

After that, he couldn't even think of going back to sleep as the image of the man-creature kept haunting him as he wandered the empty streets of Sunglow. In the end, his feet had brought him to the bakery. When Melina emerged from the kitchen, her apron as well as the tip of her nose covered with flour, he sighed in relief.

"Good morning, Melina, Master Gilbert," Alistair greeted them.

The old baker didn't look pleased at all by his visit, grumbling. "What are you doing here so early in the morning?"

"Master, please, be polite to Alistair," Melina reprimanded him. Although she had initially resisted the idea of calling him by his first name, in the end it rolled off her tongue as naturally as if she had called him that his whole life. Which felt odd, since they didn't even know each other that long. However, it felt right.

"I went for an early morning walk and figured I might as well stop by the bakery," he said sheepishly.

"Have you had breakfast yet?" Melina asked.

"No, I admit I have not."

Gilbert groaned again, but Melina glared at him. "Master!"

"If you want to feed him so much, then you do it out of your own pocket."

"Take it out of my pocket money if you must."

"There's no need to argue. I'll pay for it," he said and laid a gold coin on the counter.

"That is far too much for just breakfast!" Melina shook her head, trying to push the coin back into his hands.

"Count it for all the other times I ate meals here. I feel like I've intruded on you quite a lot."

"So you have," Gilbert nodded in agreement.

"Master, you're supposed to say it's not a bother at all!"

"I do not enjoy telling lies."

Melina let out an exasperated sigh, and Alistair couldn't help but chuckle. His nightmare seemed more distant, and with a smile, he went inside the kitchen.

I made the right choice by coming here. Melina has a way of making my problems disappear. I'd say that she's an angel sent to Sunglow by the heavens, but that'd be way too cheesy, even if her presence really does seem to make everything better.

"So what would you like? I can make a quick omelet or perhaps some pancakes? Or maybe a sandwich?" She offered, pointing to his usual seat at the kitchen table. As he sat down, Alistair realized that he was actually feeling rather tired. "Are you alright? You don't look so well."

"It's not a big deal. Just a nightmare that woke me up a bit earlier than I would have liked," he waved his hand dismissively.

Melina gave him a scrutinizing look. "What kind of nightmare?"

"It's really nothing for you to worry about," he insisted. They stared stubbornly at each other for a while until finally she relented.

"Very well. So what about your breakfast?"

"Omelet sounds just fine, thank you."

It took Melina less than ten minutes to prepare a fully cooked cheese omelet alongside toasted bread and tea. The way she prepared toast, however, made Alistair gape in awe. Instead of cooking it in the pan or the oven, as one was expected to make toast, Melina just pressed a loaf of bread between her hands and... toasted it.

"How'd you do that?" Alistair asked.

Melina flinched back, a worried expression on her face. "Oh, it's nothing difficult. Due to my bond with Sienna, I can easily channel fire magic."

"So Sienna really is your familiar," Alistair noted. He already knew that—it was fairly obvious. Melina was a System user, and Sienna stuck to her like glue, so they had undoubtedly made a pact.

When Alistair saw Melina stabilize the passageway, it was obvious that she wasn't an ordinary person. But he felt that on some level, he already knew that. The girl who could tame an ember wyrm with nothing more than a tart was nothing if not extraordinary. He couldn't deny that he was curious to find out more about her—find out what exactly she could do.

"Yes, sorry about not being honest about that," she said guiltily while placing the toast on his plate.

"No, it's alright. I understand why you did it. I am the only one in Sunglow with an actual connection to the Church. I cannot fault you," he said, and her mood soured even further. No doubt she remembered that representatives from the Church would be arriving in Sunglow soon. "Don't worry, I won't let them find out about you."

"Don't worry yourself over it—I'm sure I'll manage," she replied nervously.

"Girl, you'd be wise to accept all the help you can get," Gilbert said, as he carried another tray of pastries into the shop.

"But you previously said—"

"That was before the boy knew that you were a System user."

"Melina, please, don't hesitate to rely on me. It is my fault that they are coming to Sunglow in the first place," he insisted, but Melina shook her head.

"Let's not worry about a problem that isn't here yet," she countered. "Instead, I believe we should address more pressing issues."

Melina walked over to one of the tarts sitting on the counter. Half of them were already covered with glaze, but a few still didn't have any yet. She pulled out a jar of shimmering jam and added a spoonful of it to the glaze she had been using before.

"What do you mean?" He asked curiously, taking a bite of the fluffy cheese omelet. It was light and easy on his tongue, and he ate toast along with it. It was simple but delicious. Just what he needed.

"I mean, your nightmares. I'm not sure if this is going to work, but it's worth a shot…" Melina muttered. "Sienna, help me out a little bit."

The wyrm quickly ran up to Melina's shoulder and fixed her gaze on the tart. The two of them concentrated hard on it as Melina brushed the fruits with the feyfruit glaze, each movement deliberate and calculated. Alistair watched the scene in awe.

"There, this should solve the nightmare issue," Melina said, putting the tart in front of Alistair. "Eat it this evening and you should be able to rest more easily. The effect probably isn't too strong as this isn't a specialized recipe, but it should lessen the nightmares at least a little bit."

He stared at the shimmertart with wide eyes. "Wait, are you saying that this tart has a special effect?"

He heard Gilbert sigh in the background, and Melina flinched back. "You just have to show all your cards to this boy, don't you?"

"I—" She stammered, looking distraught. Melina appeared nervous every time she displayed her powers, but Alistair couldn't understand why. She should be flaunting her gifts to the world. She'd become the most demanded baker in Alemahria in no time. After the Church pushed their training on her.

But if it's not what she wants, then I cannot push it on her.

"Thank you, Melina. I'll gratefully accept it," he said calmly. In reality, he was itching to ask all sorts of questions about what she could do, but seeing her so distraught, made him still his curiosity. He could wait a bit longer for answers—he still had plenty of time left in Sunglow after all.

I am sure she will tell me eventually, all I have to do is be patient.

"Captain Sinclair!" Remi's worried voice came from the shop.

"Is everyone going to intrude in here before the opening hours?" Gilbert grumbled.

"I am ever so sorry, Master Gilbert! I am searching for Captain Sinclair. Have you seen him?"

"I am here, Remi," Alistair called out. A moment later, Remi's worried face poked into the kitchen.

"Oh, thank the System, I found you! There's a monster attack—we need your help!"

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