Counterattack

The next day, I asked Marie to summon the Bakers’ Guild members. However, we excluded Etsigoya’s bakery, as well as the two brother-run bakeries that had indirectly fallen under Etsigoya’s influence.

Since every member bakery had run out of ingredients and was shut down, they had time on their hands. So, aside from those three bakeries, everyone we called showed up.

“So, Marie-san… why are we meeting here?”

One of the owners complained. Even though Marie had summoned them, the gathering place wasn’t her bakery—it was the bakery where Rachel used to work.

“We met here last time too, so I thought it worked well as a location. And I considered using my shop, but we were attacked by thieves and it’s under repair…”

Marie answered apologetically. There were enough tables and desks, and since the Guild had already held a meeting here before, the space was perfectly fine.

“Well, all I can say is you had rotten luck. You owe me for this.”

“…Yes.”

Marie replied with a crestfallen look. The expression was so cute the bakery owners found themselves staring. Marie was the only woman who ran a bakery in the Guild, so her shop had always stood out a bit. And with the rapid growth she’d had lately—if you counted total store sales including non-bread items—she’d grown to the point where she could compete for first or second in the Guild. Her influence had increased, and as a result, the Guild could no longer pressure her the way it used to. Everyone being idle helped too, but this gathering happened because that influence was working.

“So then, what is the purpose of this meeting?”

The Guild chairman asked Marie.

“I was only asked to arrange this, so I don’t know the details… My employee, Kent, will explain.”

“I’m Kent, as I was just introduced. I’m still a student, but I’d appreciate your time.”

I didn’t have proper clothes, so I was wearing my school uniform. Before any of the owners could question it, I admitted I was a student. Then I explained the chain of events—from the arson at the Guild warehouse to the attack on Marie’s bakery.

“And the reason I gathered everyone today is that I’ve made a plan to punish Etsigoya, who caused this incident.”

When I stated flatly that Etsigoya was the culprit, voices of approval rose.

“Yeah, his shop has always felt suspicious.”

“Exactly.”

“So it really was him.”

Even if they hadn’t said it out loud, it seemed the other owners had suspected him too. But nobody appeared to have noticed the existence of a higher mastermind. As commoners, the bakery owners couldn’t do anything against nobles. Of course, neither could I. But I had a powerful ally. Dealing with the mastermind would take a bit more time until preparations were complete.

“So how do you plan to punish Etsigoya?”

The Guild chairman asked me.

“I can’t explain the details, but I’ve secured a way to obtain flour from a certain source. I will supply it to the Guild bakeries gathered here until the autumn harvest. And the price can remain the same as what you used to pay through the Bakers’ Guild.”

“““Ooooooh!”””

The owners gasped in shock.

“The flour I’ll provide is bread flour—specialized for baking. At minimum, this alone should let you bake better bread than before. But that won’t be a decisive blow against Etsigoya’s bakery, so I’ll also provide this ‘magic powder.’ I brought bread made with it and bread made without it, so please take a look.”

I said that and pulled out bread from a basket I’d brought.

“First, bread made without the magic powder. As you can see, it’s the same as the bread you’ve all been selling. And second, this is bread made with the magic powder.”

I pulled out the second loaf.

“““Ooooooh!”””

A ripple of excitement ran through the owners. And it made sense—this was the fluffy bread sold at Marie’s bakery. For this plan, I’d decided to provide instant dry yeast. Marie’s bakery already had a refrigerator and used fresh yeast, so we could still differentiate ourselves. That was why I judged it wouldn’t be a problem.

“Now I’ll teach you how to use the magic powder. Sorry, but may I borrow the workshop?”

“Sure, if that’s what you need. Use it however you want.”

With the owner’s permission, I lit the oven and started from making the dough. But everyone gathered here had done this work every day for years, and they tore into me nonstop—my hips weren’t set right, I wasn’t putting enough force into it, my kneading wasn’t enough. I almost got discouraged, but I pushed through.

“Now I add the magic powder.”

I took out the instant dry yeast from the bag and kneaded it into the dough. Then I shaped the loaves evenly, placed them on trays, and shoved them into the oven. After a while, they finished baking, and fluffy bread came out.

“Just by adding this powder, the bread changes dramatically. Please taste it.”

I sliced it into small pieces with the bread knife I’d brought and handed portions to each owner.

“Oh—this taste!”

“That fluffy texture is great.”

The feedback was overwhelmingly positive.

“Then please write the quantity you need on this paper. Also, we don’t have transport, so please prepare your own carts or wagons. By noon, I’ll have the ordered amounts ready at Marie’s bakery for pickup. And until the incident is resolved, I ask you to keep everything confidential.”

“This is getting interesting.”

“We’ll give that evil, nouveau-riche bastard a taste of his own medicine.”

“Now we can live without fear again.”

I collected order forms from the excited owners, and the meeting adjourned.

That afternoon, Marie’s bakery became busy. I bought a handcart and made repeated trips between the warehouse behind the bakery and the front of the shop. Marie and Emily handled the front desk, took payment, and put it into the box where we stored cash. They stamped the order forms as paid and passed them to Caro or Rachel. Caro or Rachel called out the quantities to me at the warehouse entrance and handed the forms to Catherine. Catherine received them on the spot and filed them away.

I used the terminal to produce the ordered quantities of flour and instant dry yeast, loaded them onto the handcart, and handed them off in front of the shop. That way, anyone watching would assume we were bringing flour from the back. In reality, there was no stock here—I was simply using the received money as the source funds and pulling the goods directly from the terminal.

Each bakery that received flour and instant dry yeast immediately started baking again. Some even reopened by evening. Naturally, prices included the added cost of yeast, but they returned to about the same level as before. And the bread being sold changed into the fluffy type everyone knew from Marie’s bakery.

The news spread through town.

And in just one day, the kind of bread sold across the entire town transformed—a development later called the “Bread Revolution.”

While we were doing all that, Josette was moving separately.

Josette went to Etsigoya’s bakery.

“Excuse me.”

She pulled up in a lavish carriage bearing the ducal crest and entered the shop with several maids in tow. She wasn’t wearing her school uniform today—she wore a luxurious outfit to advertise that she was high nobility.

“U-um… may I ask what brings you here today…?”

The same female clerk who had served us the other day answered, but unlike her perfect service then, she looked tense.

“I am Josette, daughter of the ducal house. I would like to speak with the proprietor—could you call him for me?”

“Y-yes! Just a moment, please…!”

The clerk hurried into the back. Soon after, Etsigoya appeared, rubbing his hands together.

“My, my, Josette-sama. To what do I owe this honor today?”

“You are the proprietor of this shop?”

“Yes. I am Etsigoya, the proprietor.”

He spoke while carefully gauging why Josette had come.

“The other day, I visited this shop in disguise. And I found the bread sold here very pleasing.”

“Th-thank you very much!”

“Ah—so you were that customer.”

Realizing she wasn’t here to complain, Etsigoya’s expression softened in relief. The clerk beside him, hearing Josette mention the previous visit, seemed to recall her face as well.

“And when I brought it home as a gift for my father, he was most pleased. So today, I have brought a token of appreciation that my father entrusted to me—please accept it.”

Josette signaled to a maid, who carried forward a wooden box. Josette opened it and revealed the contents.

“This is an ornament imported from a far eastern nation—said to improve one’s fortune with money. They say it is effective when displayed in a reception room where business dealings take place.”

She showed a golden beckoning cat about twenty centimeters tall.

“How magnificent…”

Etsigoya had clearly never seen one before, and the gold shine made him assume it was a priceless treasure. In reality, it was something I’d pulled from the terminal for 2980G—expensive by commoner standards, but worthless as fine art. The outside was just plating, and the inside was hollow.

“Will you accept it?”

“I would be honored to accept it.”

The maid placed the golden beckoning cat back into the box and handed it to Etsigoya.

“Wonderful. That is all I needed today, so I will take my leave—but I will visit again.”

“Please continue to favor Etsigoya from here on as well.”

With Etsigoya rubbing his hands and seeing her off, Josette left the shop. She climbed into the carriage with a dignified expression, and it rolled away.

“Ahahahahahaha…!”

Inside the carriage, Josette clutched her stomach and laughed. The maids riding with her were drawn in and giggled along.

Meanwhile, Etsigoya placed the golden beckoning cat from the ducal house in his reception room and stared at it.

“If the ducal house becomes regular customers, my shop will grow bigger and bigger. This really is an ornament that brings wealth… ha ha ha!”

Just thinking about what was to come made Etsigoya unable to stop laughing.