The Lizardonian Baker

~Seven days until the Dragon Festival, Agatra Adventure City, Noble District. At the Agatra Branch of the Noble Houses~

“Now then, let us move to the next item on the agenda. This is the report on the multiple adventurer disappearances that had been occurring in Mitra Forest, north of the plains near the adventure city.”

It was an extravagant room. Candles quietly flickered in brass chandeliers. The fluffy carpet and the many furnishings made by first-rate craftsmen did not look inferior even compared to the main house in the Imperial Capital.

Every member seated around the round table wore tailored tailcoats, the formal dress of nobles.

This was the meeting place of the nobles who decided much of the politics of Agatra Adventure City.

At the branch of the Noble Houses established in the Noble District, they were discussing matters currently occurring in the city that those standing above others had to understand.

“…Oh.”

“…Hmm, what is the matter, my lord?”

The moment the attendant moderator, Adventurers’ Guild Master Heidemarie Snabellua, presented the new item on the agenda, the slightly plump man who turned pale and looked down was Sapan von Teach, Margrave of the adventure city.

A noble seated beside Sapan called out to him with concern.

“No, it is nothing. Guild Master, continue.”

“Yes, my lord. Some of the Guild executives gathered here likely already know the outcome of this matter. To state the conclusion first, the cause of these disappearances was monster damage caused by an ‘ancient species.’”

“What…?! Guild Master, is that true?! Accidental appearances of ‘ancient species’ should only occur inside Herel’s Tower! Are the ancient species outside it not being monitored by Tower-Class Adventurers?”

One member of the Noble Houses raised his voice. There was no one here who did not understand the threat of ancient species.

A singularity among monsters, a name given to monsters among monsters that had existed since before the “Great War,” or possessed power comparable to those old monsters.

They were objects of fear.

“Unfortunately, it is true. In other words, within Imperial territory, an unidentified ‘ancient species’ had appeared outside a Tower.”

“…Is that not a grave situation? The Guild could not foresee its emergence. I hear an ‘ancient species’ is a monster that could destroy even a city by itself. In fact, there are past examples where they triggered monster disasters. What responsibility does the Guild intend to take regarding this matter?”

The elderly man seated opposite the Margrave had slicked-back hair set with pomade and eyes as sharp as a hawk’s. His protruding brow was thick, giving him the features of a warrior.

In the Noble Houses Branch, he was the authority standing opposite the Margrave: Count Jisui Melo Vangady. He was a powerful noble from the Imperial Capital’s military faction, spoken of alongside the martial Teach family.

He was a man sent by the House of Nobles as a counterweight to the Margrave.

“…With all due respect, Count Jisui, regarding this matter, we recognize that the Guild fulfilled its role, that is, its mission of securing the Imperial people’s living area by subjugating monsters.”

The one who answered Jisui’s words was the Guild Master. Quietly, without changing her expression in the slightest, she conveyed her opinion to a person of noble blood.

“…What do you mean? According to the information that reached the House of Nobles, Tower-Class Adventurer Yuto Wetral survived and returned, but the ‘ancient species’ is still active. Mitra Forest should currently remain under entry prohibition…”

“Yes, that is correct. However… my lord?”

The Guild Master turned her gaze to the lord. It was eye contact asking for permission.

“Ah, I will speak from here. My apologies, dear members of the House of Nobles. In truth, the preliminary report from the other day, the contents notified to the House of Nobles by the Guild, contained errors. No, calling them errors would be dishonest. …I ordered the Guild to conceal certain information. The information conveyed to you was not the whole truth.”

““““?!””””

Shock ran through the nobles gathered in the conference room.

The Margrave had confessed that he had distorted the Adventurers’ Guild’s report to the Noble District. Their shock was only natural.

“…Margrave Sapan. We deeply understand and respect that you are favored by His Majesty the Emperor, and that you are the finest family head in the history of the martial Teach family. Even so, are you saying you made a false report to us?”

Count Jisui’s sharp eyes and low voice slightly calmed the meeting, which had almost boiled over. Because everyone had noticed that several veins had risen on Count Jisui’s hand, which lay quietly on the round table.

“Th-that is right! Margrave-dono! What are you thinking?! D-do you look down on us as merely a branch sent from the House of Nobles in the Imperial Capital?!”

The nobles began complaining all at once.

They all understood that if they did not speak up here, their own positions would become dangerous.

“I deeply, deeply apologize regarding that matter. However, I believe the wise members of the House of Nobles, the distinguished members of the adventure city branch, should all already have realized it.”

The Margrave quietly interjected.

Only Count Jisui stopped moving at those words.

“What are you saying?! Right now, Margrave-dono, you are the one who—”

“…Is it related to the Dragon Embassy, Lord Sapan?”

The Count quietly muttered. The meeting fell silent. The nobles who had been shouting until moments before shut their mouths.

“Your insight is excellent. As expected of Count Jisui. You saw through everything.”

The Margrave smiled. Several nobles underestimated him upon seeing that smile, and those several would likely no longer be present in this place in the not-too-distant future.

The mimicry of a venomous insect. That smile was very close to such a thing.

“…I retract my earlier statement. Regarding the Dragon Embassy, we of the House of Nobles have not been granted authority to interfere by His Majesty the Emperor. Rather, I apologize for failing to consider the Margrave’s thoughtfulness and consideration.”

Count Jisui rose from his seat, placed a hand on his chest, and bent at the waist. He lowered his head toward the Margrave.

“No, Count-dono. It is only natural that you would be displeased. To be honest, I have long considered directly petitioning His Majesty the Emperor that negotiations with that embassy should be entrusted to the members of the House of Nobles instead.”

“““……?!”””

The nobles gasped at the Margrave’s words. The Dragon Embassy was a demonic realm among demonic realms for the adventure city, no, for the Empire.

That place was the domain of their guardian dragon, the Hoarding Dragon, and the connection to the Dragon Realm. At present, among the nobles, Sapan was the one primarily standing on the front line of negotiations and exchanges with it.

Every member of the House of Nobles knew how difficult relations with dragons were, and how important those relations with dragons were to the Empire.

Sapan, a great noble trusted deeply by the Emperor, was a thorn in the side of other nobles who stole away vested interests.

However, the nobles understood that at present, aside from the Emperor, no noble except Sapan was recognized as an individual by the Dragon Embassy, no, by the Hoarding Dragon.

“Hmph, you are a spiteful man. Then, Margrave-dono, if the Dragon Embassy is involved, could it be that the ancient species has already been dealt with by the Hoarding Dragon-sama?”

“Oh, as expected of the Empire’s guardian dragon!”

“As the legends say, that noble one is fierce, yet merciful!”

While sweating from their brows, the nobles praised the dragon. To steer the topic away from something as absurd as changing the person in charge of negotiations with the Dragon Embassy, they had no choice but to ride that flow.

Among them, only one person grinned.

As expected, only Jisui noticed Sapan’s faint smile.

“No. Unfortunately, the Hoarding Dragon-sama has not moved this time. Everyone, please recall the Guild Master’s words once more. In this matter, the Adventurers’ Guild did indeed exercise its function.”

“Huh? Wh-what do you…”

The nobles tilted their heads blankly.

“…No way.”

Jisui opened his narrow eyes. He had noticed one possibility.

“Marie-kun.”

“Yes, my lord. Members of the House of Nobles, allow me to apologize using this opportunity. For making a false report to all of you, who have greatly contributed to the operation of this city. And together with that, allow me to report.”

The Guild Master, the bespectacled beauty praised as a talented woman, lowered her head. Several nobles were entranced by her long legs and slender waist.

Marie smoothly raised her face, pushed up her glasses, and calmly announced it.

The fact.

“As for the ancient species in question, provisionally named ‘Lamia,’ it has already been subjugated by a fourth-rank adventurer belonging to this Adventurers’ Guild.”

Silence grew in the conference room.

It took everyone time to digest the Guild Master’s words.

“…Excuse me, what did you just say? Fourth-rank…?”

“You say its subjugation is complete? Impossible! It was an ancient species! A monster that even a Tower-Class Adventurer could barely return alive from! And a fourth-rank adventurer, someone only slightly better than a thug in that area, did it?!”

Murmur, murmur. The conference room grew noisy again. A fourth-rank adventurer had buried an “ancient species.” It was a tale impossible even in fairy tales, an absurd story not even drunks in a tavern would tell.

The nobles raised their voices toward the Guild Master, who had announced it seriously in this place—

“…I see. The ‘Dragon Slayer,’ is it?”

Among them, Count Jisui, the only one who had remained in silent thought, murmured. With that one statement, the clamoring nobles quieted all at once.

“Yes, just as the Viscount says. The one who subjugated the ancient species was the fourth-rank adventurer Tooyama Naruhito.”

Those who understood would have noticed the slight excitement in her voice. The Guild Master’s tone sounded as though she were proud of something.

“Tooyama Naruhito…?”

“Wait, I have heard that name. The name of the adventurer slave the Hoarding Dragon-sama had been searching for before was, if I recall…”

“The information is confusing and uncertain, but recently, in the Noble District auction, there was a trading company that supplied many Titanos Mare materials. I feel like I saw that name on its list of related parties.”

“I saw that name on the Angel Church Inquisition’s list.”

“No way. If so, that is far too…”

This time, the nobles began murmuring in a different sense.

Tooyama Naruhito. The ripples that person had caused in the adventure city were slowly spreading in the form of rumors and reports.

They said he had killed a dragon, laid hands on the Crows, fought to the death with an Angel Church Knight, seduced dragons in the pleasure district, and other absurd stories burst out in the meeting.

What was most absurd of all was—

“Members of the House of Nobles, difficult as it is to believe, everything you have just associated with the name Tooyama Naruhito refers to the same person.”

Most of those rumors, those ridiculous stories concerning Tooyama Naruhito, were likely true.

“I-impossible. Then that person, while being a slave, killed a dragon, and despite being an adventurer, is also involved with a famous trading company, and furthermore belongs to the Angel Church Inquisition?”

“That is far too lacking in discretion. Could it not be hearsay?”

“Even if such a person existed, he would not be normal. I cannot understand what he is thinking.”

“Unfortunately, it is fact. Furthermore, there is an even more headache-inducing problem. Marie-kun?”

To the nobles’ voices of doubt, Sapan snapped out his answer, and added an extra blow.

“Yes. Everyone, please look at the documents at hand. They are copies of a letter that arrived at the Adventurers’ Guild yesterday by messenger hawk.”

The paper was distributed to each of them.

The nobles who looked at it all gasped.

“This is…?! This wax seal, no way…”

“The Magic Academy’s…”

A complex star, and the seal of a great serpent trying to swallow it. The guardian and home of the magicians who existed on the island floating in the sky.

“Yes. The sender is the current headmaster of the Magic Academy. As for the contents—”

“A magician certification for fourth-rank adventurer Tooyama Naruhito by the Magic Academy, and a request to the Guild for rank promotion…”

A noble gripping the paper read the letter aloud in a trembling voice.

“I-impossible… For that Academy to interfere this much with an ordinary fourth-rank adventurer…”

“…And this was confirmed recently, but we hereby report that the founder of that Academy, the All-Knowing Dragon, is currently staying in this adventure city.”

“““““Huh?”””””

At the bomb dropped far too abruptly, the nobles raised their voices at the same time.

“In addition, the one who brought fourth-rank adventurer Tooyama Naruhito back from the forest was the All-Knowing Dragon. According to the testimony of those at the scene, she suddenly appeared without any warning, carrying the unconscious Tooyama Naruhito, reported the subjugation of the ancient species, and afterward vanished from the place again together with Tooyama Naruhito.”

““““What?””””

Violence of information. The nobles’ vocabulary was already in tatters.

“…Wait. What proof is there that this person is that legendary existence?”

Even Jisui bitterly spoke while rubbing his own head as though suppressing a headache.

“The other day, when the Dragon of Human Knowledge-sama manifested at the Guild, both I and the Guild Master were present at the scene. Her reason for appearing at the Guild was to confirm Tooyama Naruhito’s adventuring result. Well, to put it simply, she came to warn the Guild not to pocket his achievements.”

“Wh-why would that dragon, the ancestor of magicians, do such a thing for Tooyama Naruhito…”

“We do not know. However, as for a clue to that… it would be best to ask the substitute attendee from the ‘Church’ seated there, the Second Saint-sama.”

The gazes of every meeting member turned to one person at the round table. To the seat where, normally, the head of the Church should sit.

An ahoge. That ahoge, shaped like a brown question mark, bobbed.

“Pyu, pyui!! H-hefueeeh, um, that, that that, I, Ieee!”

Wrapped in a nun’s habit without a black hood, a petite, small-animal-like girl raised a tearful, scream-like voice.

The Second Saint of the Angel Church. The head of the faction called the Saint Faction, one of the three factions that divided Church power alongside the bishop faction and the knight faction.

Norn Bay Latina. Suddenly having the topic thrown to her, she flinched and shrank back. Until just earlier, she had been unable to join the discussion and had only been thinking about potato sweets, so it could not be helped.

“Norn-sama, please calm down. Guild Master-dono, may I, Ship, attendant to the Second Saint, explain this matter?”

A large man in Church vestments standing behind the Second Saint, who trembled like a little squirrel, requested permission to speak. He was Father Ship Coin, attendant to the Second Saint.

“I do not mind.”

The Guild Master nodded.

“Then. First, allow me to apologize to all gathered here. Originally, the supreme leader of the Angel Church, Bishop Kanosa Tier Field, was scheduled to come to this meeting, but she was unable to appear due to urgent business. As substitute attendees, we have been permitted by the Bishop to speak as representatives of the Angel Church. We humbly ask your forgiveness.”

“…Ship-dono, why would the Church be entrusted with speaking about the All-Knowing Dragon? I remember that you and that person are irreconcilable enemies.”

Count Jisui turned his sharp eyes toward the Saint, who trembled with her petite but curvy body, and the priest, who did not move an inch.

“Pii?!”

“Norn-sama, calm yourself. …Ahem. What the Count says is correct. Yes, well, to put it bluntly, the other day, by the hand of the All-Knowing Dragon, no, currently the Dragon of Human Knowledge, the upper ranks of the Angel Church’s knight faction were literally annihilated.”

“…Wh-what?”

A single statement that was far too shocking.

Count Jisui froze this time.

“It is a headache-inducing matter. The reason is simple. The Knight Order laid hands on the ‘Dragon Slayer.’ That is all. We do not know the details, but it seems the Dragon Slayer also has some kind of connection to the All-Knowing—pardon me, the Dragon of Human Knowledge.”

“…Then is that what this means? The rumors spreading through this city concerning the Dragon Slayer, that he is two-timing dragons, that he has made the finest knight, Stolu Pula, his errand girl, that he is trying to secretly take over the Merchant Guild, that he laid hands on the Crows, that every adventurer who quarrels with him meets a mysterious death several days later—are these absurd stories true?”

“Well, I do not know whether all of them are true. However, at the very least, there is no mistake that the Dragon Slayer is under the protection of the Dragon of Human Knowledge and is also an inquisitor of our Angel Church. …At the very least, I believe the Bishop’s eye for people was not mistaken.”

Unfortunately, all of it was true. But from their perspective, it was an even more ridiculous tale than drunken tavern gossip.

“…If that is true, then while being listed among the Angel Church, he has also been selected by the Magic Academy. In the history of the Empire, no such existence has ever been confirmed.”

“Yes. And furthermore, he is also useful personnel for us at the Adventurers’ Guild. A solo subjugation of an ancient species. Looking only at combat achievements, he is not inferior even compared to a first-rank, no, a Tower-Class Adventurer.”

“What?! D-does the Guild intend to certify that person as a Tower-Class Adventurer? N-no matter how much this is Agatra’s Adventurers’ Guild, the proportion of Tower-Class Adventurers it holds would be far too skewed!”

“…For the moment, the Adventurers’ Guild intends to take a cautious stance regarding Tooyama Naruhito’s promotion. We have no intention of treating the Magic Academy’s recommendation lightly, but Guild personnel matters are ultimately decided by the Guild. For now, the Adventurers’ Guild’s judgment is to wait and see.”

“…I would like to summon Tooyama Naruhito for an audit by the House of Nobles. How does Lord Sapan view that?”

“A bad move. His backing, no, he himself likely has no awareness of it, but that man is far too close to dragons. If handled poorly, our actions could be interpreted as touching the Hoarding Dragon-sama’s collection without permission. And the Dragon of Human Knowledge’s movements are also unreadable.”

“Even this letter from the Magic Academy under the headmaster’s name likely involved the Dragon of Human Knowledge. Therefore, I believe all we can do now is pray that no fire is put to this enormous explosive.”

“…If he belongs to the Angel Church Inquisition, then perhaps Bishop-dono could summon the person himself, the Dragon Slayer, while following proper procedure? Where is Bishop-dono today?”

“Hmm… Norn-sama?”

“Ah, hefyui, hei, chin, hin…”

“…?”

“She… she is not here today because she is handing over a rental propertyyyy.”

The Second Saint did her best. She did her best because she thought it would be wrong to make only the priest do the work.

““““““Huh?””””””

But at her words, delivered with all her might, the noble gentlemen merely tilted their heads.

---

~Three days before the lord’s meeting~

Snap.

I bit through it. Fluffy heat and meat juices spread through my mouth.

The meat juice was hot enough to burn, and it was packed with the meat’s strong, wild flavor. I chewed and swallowed it even though it was hot enough to burn my tongue.

The strong smell of meat slammed into the back of my nose.

Meat. I was eating meat.

“Oh-hoh. Hey, hey hey hey hey, isn’t this a hit? This little sausage that is made with Giant Boar meat.”

In the courtyard, I roasted sausages stuck on skewers over a bonfire. Snap, snap. The skin burst and cracks formed. I stuffed the dripping, juicy thing into my mouth while it was still piping hot.

“Hot, hot, huff, hoho! Hihi! Delicious! Meat!”

Tooyama Naruhito finished eating it in two bites while burning the inside of his mouth.

He reached again for a sausage in the basket, skewered it, and began roasting it over the bonfire. As he spun it around, the skin started bursting with a snap.

“…Amazing. This is the first time I have had a sausage dripping this much meat juice.”

The lizard-man Lazaar, who likewise had his eyes wide open, was also surprised by the taste of the sausage he stuffed into his mouth while burning it.

“Oh, so this is monster meat. Hmm, monster ingredients can be hit or miss, but it seems Giant Boar sausage is a big hit.”

The one who elegantly cut it apart with a fork and knife and placed it in his mouth was Dromora, a middle-aged man with a mustache. He was a merchant cooperating with Tooyama Naruhito.

“We owe Yuto Wetral’s recipe big time. Man, we sure had a hard time getting here. Why the hell did hunting ingredients for sausage turn into a fight to the death with some incomprehensible white snake woman?”

“…I am sorry for that time, Naruhito.”

“Ah, it’s fine, it’s fine. That white snake woman was, you know, a harmful beast that specialized in attacking good people. Can’t blame you for being deceived, Lazaar. I’ll just think of it as getting rid of a troublesome monster early. Besides, we got a harvest from it too.”

Tooyama had not yet explained to Lazaar or Stolu about the reward besides this meat.

Relic Blade’s new stage. It was likely a power he could not have reached without the battle against that monster.

Everyone survived, and he had also obtained new power. Looking only at the result, it was close to a complete victory.

“A harvest?”

“That’s my business. Let’s think positive. We finished the recipe for delicious sausages, everyone’s alive, and besides, the prototype for Lazaar’s bread is complete too. …How’s the preparation?”

Tooyama gave a vague answer to Lazaar’s words and changed the topic.

After the deadly battle with that monster, Stolu, who had cried hard and gotten furious, had forbidden Tooyama and Lazaar from going outside for about two days.

According to Stolu, “Whenever you two go into town, you are certain to pick up some kind of trouble. I will not allow you to leave the inn for at least two days.”

Being lectured without her “disu” speech pattern and with the same doll-like blank expression she had during battle, Tooyama and Lazaar were normally scared and obediently followed the girl’s words.

However, they had not simply been relaxing.

They had pleaded with the innkeeper, borrowed the kitchen, and developed a certain bread.

Lazaar’s genius ability as a baker.

And the knowledge of the Bread Archive, created by converting the entire domain of the Familiar of Knowledge, who originally should have been able to obtain all knowledge in this world, into something specialized entirely for bread.

Because of these things, in just two days, Tooyama and Lazaar had succeeded in developing a bread that did not exist in this world.

“Already done. I put it in the stone oven a little while ago. I am baking it slowly, so it will take a little more time before it finishes. But Naruhito, will it really be all right?”

“No problem.”

“What are you talking about? Tooyama Naruhito, is this about making money?”

“Well, something like that.”

Tooyama grinned at Dromora’s words.

There was another reason he had called Dromora besides the sausage tasting. And that thing would soon be baked.

“………………Paa.”

“……………Pueh.”

“Pupo.”

“Dau.”

The four brats who had eaten sausages earlier, Rida, Niko, Shiro, and Pero, were frozen with sparkling eyes.

For them, who had lived long in the slums, this sausage seemed to be far too powerful. They had even forgotten how to speak.

“Luca, Rida, Shiro, Pero. What the heck are those expressions?”

Tooyama placed newly roasted sausage sticks into each of their frozen hands.

Seeing them silently begin chewing at incredible speed, he could not help laughing.

They were somehow like carnivorous hamsters. After looking at the children, he shifted his gaze to Dromora.

“Still, you did good work. That butcher that Dromora-oji-san persuaded managed to complete the sausage exactly as ordered in no time.”

“Hmph, of course, my friend. That is what I would like to say, but in reality, Tooyama Naruhito, while this flavor also owes much to the wonderful quality of the Giant Boar meat, it seems much of it is due to that manufacturing method you told the butcher. You know, the method of shaping the meat while cooling it with ice.”

“Oh, that. I read it in a manga a long time ago. It said homemade sausage gets crumbly because people don’t control the temperature. Apparently, if you cool it with ice and keep it around ten degrees, you can make tasty stuff.”

“Hmm, I do not know what manga is, but the butcher, Butcher Meat Shop, was deeply grateful to you. They said to please continue patronizing them.”

“Naruhito, you really do know strange things.”

“Well, where I’m from, people are seriously fussy about food if nothing else. Hmm, it’s got a bite, and plenty of meat juice. Just like Yuto Wetral said, that boar monster’s meat was a hit.”

Delicious sausage was the reward for fighting a troublesome monster.

It felt somewhat unbalanced, but in his otherworld life, it was very welcome for the number of delicious things suited to his palate to increase even a little.

“With this, Naruhito, perhaps we could make that hot dog you mentioned?”

“Hmm, yeah. Then after that, we need ketchup. Ketchup.”

“Ketchup?”

“Yeah. See, this sausage, right? Spices are insanely expensive, so we can’t mix them in. Then the meat’s gamey smell bothers me no matter what.”

“Does it bother you that much?”

“It does. No, there are reasons besides hiding the meat’s smell why ketchup is necessary. How do you make that stuff again? Lazaar, do we have leftover tomatoes?”

“Yes, I think some remains from what Stolu bought yesterday…”

“…Ah, Stolu. Crap, what do we do, Lazaar-kun?”

“Yes… To think she would become that worried. We have been restricted from going outside for two days already.”

“…When someone gets angry while crying, it messes with your emotions. Anyway, Lazaar, are you really okay yourself?”

“Thanks to you. No, thanks to the dragon. Naruhito, your network—no, your dragon network—is finally reaching quite the stage.”

“…That pervert dragon. I really don’t know what she’s thinking.”

That extremely beautiful silver-haired woman, no, beautiful dragon who called herself the Dragon of Human Knowledge had apparently saved him again.

Including the time with the Church Knights, this made the second time.

Of course he was grateful. But more than that, the emotion Tooyama felt toward her was—

“No, I am sure the Dragon of Human Knowledge’s thoughts are simple.”

“Huh?”

“She likes you. She wants to be useful to you, just like us.”

“…What the hell is that?”

Tooyama closed his eyes and turned his face away.

“Heh, Naruhito, you close your eyes when you are embarrassed.”

Lazaar’s slightly cheerful voice reached him.

“Shut up. …………What I’m doing is walking a tightrope. Lazaar, I’ve been thinking about something.”

“…What is it, Naruhito?”

“…From now on, worst case, I’m thinking I should go hunting alone. Honestly, all of us surviving this time was just luck. Me, you, Stolu—frankly, it wouldn’t have been strange if any of us had died.”

He was afraid. Belatedly, Tooyama was afraid.

The risks of adventuring. In this world, there were still swarms of monsters beyond his power.

So at the very least, he tried to distance his companions from those things—

“Naruhito, you really do not understand why Stolu cried.”

“Huh?”

Lazaar’s voice was cold, no, lonely.

“I’m baaack, disu. Ah, I knew you two had snuck out of the room. Hmm, the owner of Dromora Trading Company?”

The ones who appeared in the courtyard were Stolu and Niko, who had gone shopping for daily necessities.

Stolu wore a cape over the silver armor of a Church Knight, an outfit Tooyama had specified.

“Hello, First Knight-dono. I apologize for borrowing your inquisitors.”

“Hmph, I am glad the group of grimy men are gathering their heads and having fun. Hmm, what Rida and the others are eating is…”

“Wow! Sausages, sausages! Big Brother, everyone, that’s unfair! You were secretly eating while Stolu-chan and I were shopping!”

Stolu and Niko noticed the sausages roasting over the bonfire.

The smell of meat cooking must stimulate human desire all by itself.

“Now, now, don’t get mad, Niko. Look, I properly roasted your share too.”

“Wow, it looks delicious! Thank you, Big Brother!”

“Niko-chan, you must not be lured by food so easily.”

Niko beamed at the sausage Tooyama offered her, while Stolu slightly pouted.

“Hmm? Stolu, don’t you want one? Sausage made from the Giant Boar we hunted. Since it’s grilled directly over a bonfire, the faint scent of wood and the deliciousness of meat juice will wreck your mouth and nose.”

“…I will take one, disu…!”

But Stolu too seemed unable to resist that smell. Puffing out her cheeks, she received the sizzling, bonfire-roasted sausage offered by Tooyama.

“Thank you, Big Brother! …Ngeh!”

“Eh, delicious… What is this meat, disu? It is completely different from the sausages I ate at the Church…”

Stolu and Niko stuffed the sausages into their mouths.

Niko froze, and Stolu covered her mouth as her eyes rounded wide.

“Mmmmmmm!! It is hot, snappy, and juicy! Big Brother’s sausage is very delicious!”

Niko hopped up and down in delight. For the one serving the food, it was pleasing to see her be this happy.

He felt like he understood why old people wanted to feed those around them.

“Yay, I got you with the sausage bomb. Also, Niko, stop saying Big Brother’s sausage. That’s going to violate an ordinance.”

“??”

“I-it really is delicious, disu… W-with this, we might even be able to serve it at the Dragon Festival…”

“Dromora, how many of these sausages can you procure before the Dragon Festival?”

“Hmm, they do not preserve well. Even if we store them in iceboxes packed with ice from the Frodo Mountains, about a hundred would be the limit.”

“…That’s not many. Even if I say money is no object, that’s the limit?”

“…The expenses incurred so far are already seventeen gold coins. If we spend more than this, it will be difficult to recover it from the Dragon Festival profits alone.”

“…From Dromora Trading Company’s perspective, you might not be able to expect payback?”

“Yes, exactly. Honestly, I was surprised you seized participation rights in the Dragon Festival from the Angel Church at all, but even so, you are spending too much. I am cooperating because I see profitable value in you, but to speak frankly, I have not yet seen whether Lazaar’s skill, which you believe in, is real.”

“I see. Well, that’s true.”

“There are only ten days until the Dragon Festival. I believe it is about time you showed me the chance of victory you spoke of—in other words, Lazaar’s skill.”

“I know, Dromora. You’re an excellent merchant. I succeeded in drawing you in with the Titanos Mare materials, and next I’ll keep you with Lazaar’s bread.”

“That would help. My desire to maintain a good relationship with all of you from here on is genuine. …I want to see the product’s power, whether Lazaar’s skill is as Tooyama claims.”

“…I thought you’d say that. Lazaar.”

“Understood.”

At Tooyama’s words, Lazaar naturally disappeared into the shadows with a splash.

He’s nervous, Tooyama realized from the fact that Lazaar had deliberately used a skill to leave his seat.

“Disu? Tooyama, where did Lazaar go?”

“You’ll find out soon, Stolu.”

“Here we go. Is this fine? Honestly, you work people far too hard.”

After Tooyama’s words, another person appeared in the courtyard.

A white-haired old woman, the mistress of this shabby inn who was kind to children.

“Ah! Grandmother! Good morning!”

“Oh my, Niko-chan, you’re energetic again today. Unlike the man who makes this old woman work.”

The old woman pouted at Tooyama.

“That makes me sound bad, Granny. Did you do what I asked?”

“Hmph, it irritates me, but you lot are good customers who pay properly. Good grief, living long brings surprises. I never thought I would lend my stone oven to a Lizardonian.”

“Hihi, don’t trust him?”

There was no malice at all in the words that sounded like verbal abuse.

“Hmph, don’t be stupid. If he is a good child like Lazaar, I have no complaints.”

During the time they had already stayed at this inn, Lazaar’s personality had opened the mistress’s heart.

Frankly, her attitude was cold only toward Tooyama.

“Um, Bro, what did Lazaar-san go do?”

“You’ll know that soon too, Rida.”

“Um, excuse me, is this the right place?”

People gathered in groups. They were all citizens in fairly shabby clothing.

“Hmm? Who are you people?”

Dromora furrowed his brow. Perhaps it was a merchant’s instinct, but he sensed that the people gathering were not very wealthy.

“Ah, you lot. That’s right, today’s lunch is here. Apparently that cheeky brat over there is treating you.”

The old woman answered the people who had gathered, pointed at Tooyama, and laughed dryly.

“What?”

“Good, good. Looks like Granny properly informed them. They’re people staying at the inn. Dromora, I’ll show you something interesting.”

Tooyama laughed at Dromora, who wore a suspicious expression.

The main event for today. The time had come to show the results of these two days of effort.

“Ah, it smells good…”

“This is bread…”

A gentle scent everyone knew rode on the wind.

The smoke rising from the shabby inn’s chimney gradually grew thinner.

“After coming to this world, the first delicious thing I ate was made by him. And I’m fussy about food. Lazaar’s skill is the real deal.”

Tooyama grinned.

Then he directed his voice toward the people gathering one after another in the courtyard.

“Thank you for waiting, everyone. This is the charity from angels to humans that the Angel Church is proud of, a good thing born from human work and angelic miracles: glossy, steaming, freshly baked bread.”

“Ohh, just like Old Lady Nome said. Everyone, this young man says he’ll treat us to bread.”

The gallery murmured and crowded in.

There were probably fifteen or sixteen people.

This was what Tooyama had asked the old innkeeper to do.

Lazaar appeared in the courtyard carrying a large basket.

His tail stood straight up, and he walked with stiff, clacking movements unlike anything Tooyama had seen before.

“…Using high-quality angel flour, with no admixtures, pursuing only the pure flavor of the angel flour ingredient, baked in a heated stone oven until the outside is crisp and the inside is fluffy. The name was given by Tooyama Naruhito.”

Lazaar muttered in a small voice. The gallery probably could not hear him. That was how nervous Lazaar was.

“Th-this smells like bread. Eh? Is this bread?”

“What an unusual shape…”

“This is not the bread shape designated by the Angel Church… Tooyama Naruhito, what is the name of this bread?”

Dromora murmured as he peered into Lazaar’s basket.

Tooyama grinned widely. Holding one of the wheat-colored, shining pieces wrapped in paper from the basket, he spun his words.

“In 1919, where I’m from, they needed bread that people could eat every day and that was easy to make, something suited for mass production. The bread Tanabe-oji-san created. The properties of angel flour and the flour I know are slightly different, so I made Lazaar do a lot of unreasonable things, but it’s finally complete.”

The knowledge of the Bread Archive had also recorded the breads of Tooyama’s homeland.

Yes, it was something anyone who lived in Nihon had likely eaten at least once.

The first step of Tooyama Naruhito’s bread plan, and something one could call a masterpiece: “bread born in Nihon.”

“The name is ‘Koppepan.’ It is a new bread that does not exist in the Empire’s bread history.”

“Koppe…pan…”

“I-it looks delicious… H-hey, can we really eat this?”

The gallery murmured at that glittering bread. Its aroma and appearance easily stimulated people’s appetites.

“Oh, of course. Today, it’s on us.”

Tooyama offered the bread—

“B-but the one who made it is, you know, a Lizardonian, right?”

That one statement was muttered quietly. But it swiftly seeped into the entire gallery like poison.

“A Lizardonian made it? No way.”

“Wh-what do we do? Bread kneaded by that lizard…”

“…………”

Murmur, murmur.

The gallery took one step back. Then two steps back.

“……………”

Lazaar blinked once, then looked down a little.

“I see. So this is the reaction.”

Once again, Tooyama witnessed the discrimination against Lizardonians. When food was involved in particular, those feelings likely became even more troublesome.

“…I am sorry, Naruhito. As expected, if it is me…”

Lazaar held the bread basket and hung his head dejectedly. His tail too weakly drooped onto the ground.

“No, it’s no problem, Lazaar.”

“But, as expected, a Lizardonian, bread made by me… No one…”

Lazaar was turning into a dejected lizard. It was the exact opposite of his lively appearance when he had borrowed the inn’s stone oven early in the morning and prepared everything.

“I will take one. You do not mind, do you?”

Suddenly, one person.

Dromora approached Lazaar and pointed at the conical bread in the basket.

“Ah, yes! Of course!”

Lazaar’s face shone brightly. Tooyama grinned upon seeing that, while Dromora stared at the bread with a slightly tense face.

Tooyama had not prepared Dromora in advance. He had not told him anything about Lazaar’s bread either.

Therefore, from here on, it all depended on the quality of Lazaar’s bread. This was the preliminary battle that would predict the future of their Dragon Festival stall, and by extension, the opening of the bakery.

The touchstone of Lazaar’s skill as a craftsman was here, now.

“H-hey, that old guy took one.”

“He’s one of them, right? I’m more interested in the sausage roasting over there—”

The people skeptical of Lazaar, of Lizardonian bread, murmured as they watched.

“…It is bread shaped like a much smaller Loaf Bread. Is it a type of white bread designated by the Angel Church? In that case, well, it likely does not violate Church bread law…”

“Just eat it, Dromora. Try our baker’s proud work, prepared before sunrise.”

“…I shall.”

A small bead of sweat trickled down Dromora.

After staring at the bread for a while, he resolved himself and bit into it all at once.

Chew, chew. For a while, he silently chewed.

After that, Dromora stopped moving.

“Wh-what is this?”

A low voice slipped from Dromora’s mouth.

“Ah…”

Lazaar averted his gaze and drooped his head as though giving up on something.

“Hihi.”

But only Tooyama laughed quietly.

“De…licious.”

“………………Eh?”

Those were Dromora’s words. Lazaar’s tail sprang up.

If he had not misheard just now—

“De-li-cious.”

Dromora clearly muttered. His eyes widened as he stared at the koppepan in his hand, looking at something unbelievable.

“And what softness… A-and yet, the more I chew, the more a gentle sweetness…?!”

Chew. In no time, Dromora finished eating the remaining bread as though drinking it down.

“Dromora, this is bread made with a method that you, no, that no one in this world has ever eaten before. A method perhaps no one in this world would normally ever have thought of.”

“D-did you knead sugar into the dough? Otherwise, it should not be this sweet!”

Dromora pressed in on Tooyama, his expression intense. He was genuinely shocked, no, half panicking.

Because he did not remember supplying Tooyama and the others with an expensive item like sugar.

“No, wrong. There is a small trick besides the angel flour, but we didn’t use any sugar. That is the original flavor of wheat.”

“G-give me one more! D-delicious… Wh-what trick is this, Tooyama Naruhito?! There is no bread-specific sourness at all! And for it to be this soft… Bread should be harder!”

Dromora also devoured the second bread in no time.

Tooyama grinned at those words.

His reading had been correct.

The bread of this world, made only by natural fermentation from angel flour, was overwhelmingly harder and more sour than Lazaar’s bread.

Due to the properties of angel flour, bread rose even with natural fermentation. However, every such bread was hard and dry.

Of course, the bread of this world did not suit Tooyama’s palate.

But Lazaar’s bread was different.

“Dromora, how does our bread, the taste of soft bread, feel?”

Soft bread. That alone could become a weapon as a product in this world. And the effect of that weapon was—

“…Delicious. More than any bread I have eaten until now, even white bread made with the highest-quality angel flour designated by the Church, this koppepan is delicious… Wh-what is this softness? It is soft, and yet the more I chew, even this elasticity…”

“That’s called chewy.”

The effect was great, extremely great. Soft bread also suited the mouths of people in this world. It was an unknown taste, yet it would be popular.

“Wow! It looks delicious! Lazaar-san, I’ll have one too! …?!! En?!”

Niko hopped up and down with a full smile, accepted the bread from Lazaar, and stuffed it into her mouth.

Her body trembled and sprang.

“Wh-what is it, Niko?!”

“D-delicious… Rida… everyone, eat it…”

““““…En?!””””

The children who put Lazaar’s bread into their mouths widened their eyes and froze. Though their bodies stopped moving, only their chewing mouths did not stop.

With sparkling eyes, they silently continued eating the bread.

Gulp.

Even the people who could not accept Lizardonian bread watched that scene and swallowed.

They too were not wealthy people by any means. Some had no homes and repeatedly did day labor while staying at this shabby inn, and others were nearby laborers.

Their stomachs were always empty. The sight of the man and children before them eating the bread so deliciously was moving their hearts.

And more than anything, the bread’s aroma and appearance.

They were wavering. Between resistance toward bread made by a Lizardonian, and the simple feeling that it looked obviously delicious.

“…Looks tasty.”

Someone muttered.

The gentle fragrant scent of angel flour, the glossy, plump, lightly browned crust. The steaming white dough.

All of it spoke to their instincts as living creatures. And those instincts began to contend with their reason, their prejudice toward Lizardonians.

“Lazaar, give me one bread.”

“Ah, yes.”

Tooyama took one bread in hand and stood before the gallery.

“Everyone gathered here, I get it. I understand your unease. You feel resistance toward bread made by a Lizardonian. I understand that. Hmm, what a shame. This is a limited-time big chance to eat this for free, but only right now.”

Ping.

An arrow appeared. It pointed at the gallery members who were currently hesitating.

Tooyama’s rhetoric show began.

The message announced what was now needed in this place. Lazaar had naturally accomplished the work of making delicious bread.

In that case, what came next was Tooyama Naruhito’s job.

“L-limited-time? What do you mean?”

One of the gallery members spoke up.

“I mean what I said. In the near future, we will open a bakery. Not just any bakery. The strongest bakery, stocking another world’s bread, all kinds of delicious bread from every time and place, bread that still does not exist in this Empire. Right now, you are being given a chance to sample that bread.”

White steam rose from the warm koppepan in Tooyama’s hand.

““““Gulp.””””

Glossy and shining, the basket in Lazaar’s arms continued to wrap the area in a fragrant scent.

“We slowly heated this inn’s well-used stone oven with firewood gathered in the forest region. Through the far-infrared effect, the warmed bread’s texture is crisp on the outside, chewy and fluffy on the inside. Since we used good angel flour, the heat doesn’t escape either. Look.”

Tooyama split the koppepan in his hand in two. Snap, snap.

The white dough slowly tearing apart had chewy elasticity. Even more warm steam rose from the split cross-section, and the scent of gentle sweetness grew stronger.

“Chomp.”

Tooyama stuffed it into his mouth all at once.

As expected, it was delicious. The chewy dough grew sweeter the more he chewed.

He scooped water from the bucket of well water nearby and gulped it down in one go.

“Delicious! The chewy dough of angel flour fills your mouth! A fragrant aroma! Wash that down with cold well water and, ahh, that hits the spot.”

The warm, soft aftertaste was wonderful.

As expected, delicious food was likely indispensable to a rich life.

It was an exaggerated food report, but the gallery did not take their eyes off the scene.

“Amazing.”

“That dough is so pretty.”

“He eats it so deliciously…”

“Hey, Mom, I want to try that.”

“Y-yes… B-but it was made by a Lizardonian…”

Just a little more.

Following the response he felt, Tooyama delivered the final push.

“Incidentally, the craftsman who made this bread is a Lizardonian, but he is a man who formerly worked in service to the Kingdom’s royal family and is now engaged in official duties for the Angel Church. I guarantee his status.”

“A Lizardonian, for the Angel Church? Th-that is going too far…”

“Stolu.”

“Disu. Hello, everyone. My name is Stolu Pula. I am a person of the Angel Church, disu. I will prove the status of this Lizardonian. I promise to guarantee it on this Church emblem, disu.”

“My! That is the angels’ mark!”

“A seal only Church people can possess!”

“B-but could it be fake?”

“Idiot! If she did that, the Church would execute her! And look, under that girl’s cloak, silver armor! That’s the formal dress of a Church Knight!”

“Then they really are Church people?”

“Hey! Papa! I want to eat that delicious-looking bread! I want to eat it! Those children have been eating it like it’s so delicious too!”

“U-uhh, yes, I suppose.”

Murmur, murmur.

“Hihi.”

The people of the Empire were weak to trends and authority. He had once heard that from Dromora, and apparently it was true.

The authority of the Angel Church, in other words, its brand, had begun eating away at the prejudice of “Lizardonian.”

Just as planned. If reputation and prejudice dragged them down, then he only had to slam them with a bluff strong enough to dilute and crush it.

Tooyama Naruhito’s rough preparation was almost complete. All that remained was the finishing touch.

People moved through emotion and benefit.

The emotion of prejudice toward Lizardonians had been diluted by the brand of the Angel Church.

What remained was benefit. And that was very simple and easy.

“Incidentally, once this koppepan goes on sale after the bakery opens, its price will be at least two or three copper coins. But just for today, it’s free. Ah, there are limited numbers, so once they run out, that’s it. Please hurry.”

“““““—”””””

Free. At that word, the gallery stopped moving.

“U-um! Could I have one? I want to let my child eat it!”

“Hihi, yes, of course. Not just one, have another too. Please enjoy them together, young lady and mother. Lazaar! Koppepan for this person!”

“Ah, yes!”

“Wow! Lizard-san, you have big eyes! Did you make this bread, Lizard-san?”

“H-hey! Stop! That is rude! I-I am sorry, Lizardonian-san.”

“N-no, um, madam, a-are you not afraid of me? That is, are you truly fine with bread made by a Lizardonian?”

Before anyone knew it, Lazaar’s tail was trembling.

It was probably different to serve bread to those close to him, like Tooyama, the orphans, and Dromora, compared to serving strangers.

Tooyama watched Lazaar’s fear, but did nothing.

“Fufu.”

“Eh?”

“Ah, I am sorry. It is just, you are completely different from the Lizardonians I had heard about. You are a very kind person, aren’t you? My thanks for the angels’ blessing, and for the kindness of you who serve them. Could I have two breads?”

“Lizard-san! Hurry!”

“Ah, yes! Gladly! Please, I hope it suits your taste.”

“Wow, thank you! Munch………… P-Pyaaaah! What is this, what is this?! Crispy and chewy! Fluffy and warm! Mama! This is delicious!”

“…D-delicious. It really is delicious… I’m glad, fufufu. Lizardonian-san, thank you. It really is delicious, so much that I want to dance.”

“—Ah.”

Lazaar stopped moving. Watching the smiling parent and child, he stood still while holding the basket.

That man had been loved by evil deeds. His fate originally should have been to walk in shadow, race through the night, and melt into darkness.

“M-me too! Lizardonian baker! Please share some bread with my kid too! I want to let them eat it!”

“Give one to me too! That bread looks seriously delicious! I don’t care about the Lizardonian thing anymore!”

“Ah, m-me too! I want to eat too!”

“Me too! I want bread!”

“Baker! Over here too!”

The gallery surged all at once. The Lizardonian man stared blankly as people gathered before the basket he held, before the bread he had made.

Stealing from others, dirtying his hands, taking away warmth—that had been that man’s karma.

“Lazaar, I told you, right? Your bread is delicious. They want you to make it again.”

But that Lizardonian man met it. He met that foreign object, that thing that continued advancing according to its desires while laughing and sneering in this cruel world.

—I have black bread I made. Want to eat it?

He got involved with it. At that moment, the Lizardonian’s fate was likely infected.

The expanding ego, the greedy figure that continued forward and tried to arrive. The Lizardonian loved by shadow and evil deeds was infected by it too.

“…Yes, I will make it. As many times as needed. I will make it, I will keep making it, Naruhito.”

His vertically slit eyes grew wet. They blurred, and he could not see ahead.

However, that Lizardonian wiped his eyes and firmly looked at the scene before him.

“Delicious!! What is this bread?! Ha, hahahaha, it’s good!”

“Kukukuku, my bread is the plumpest! In other words, this is the masterpiece placed at the center of the stone oven and baked! Center! …Delicious.”

“D-delicious!! Papa, Mama! I have never eaten bread like this before!”

“Yes, I’m glad. It really is delicious… Baker! Thank you!”

“Nice work! Lizardonian! Your bread is seriously delicious!”

“Lizard-san! Thank you! The bread is super delicious!”

There were only smiles there.

The scene that the Lizardonian had once wished for, and yet should have given up on, was there.

Arms that should only have taken things. Arms skilled only in killing and evil deeds had now transformed into things that gave someone warmth and smiles.

“Naruhito, am I dreaming? Everyone is saying thank you for the bread I made, bread made by a Lizardonian…”

“It’s not bread made by a Lizardonian. It’s bread made by Lazaar. And this isn’t a dream. It’s reality. It’s the reality you wished for, worked toward, and reached.”

“I see… Naruhito, thank—”

“Not yet, Lazaar. This isn’t it. The place you should reach is still ahead.”

Tooyama interrupted Lazaar, almost cutting off his words.

“Eh?”

“You have a dream, right? By the lakeside, hihi. Not yet, Lazaar. This is the beginning. We will definitely reach that place. So I’d be troubled if you were satisfied already.”

“…Reach it, huh? In that case, Naruhito, I will give a clear answer to what you said earlier.”

“Huh? Ah, the hunting thing? I was thinking of talking to Stolu later too—”

“The answer is no. To hell with that, Tooyama Naruhito.”

“Huh?”

“You want to let yourself do dangerous things alone while I make bread carefree? Hmph, what a bad joke. I could never accept that.”

“Idiot, you. Look at these people’s faces. You are someone who can make this many people smile with bread, so—”

Tooyama’s words caught in his throat. Seeing Lazaar’s expression, he could say nothing more.

“Tooyama Naruhito, this happened because you brought me this far. On that day, inside that slave carriage. You made me reach this place.”

“…We don’t know if it’ll go well from here on.”

“That is why I will cooperate. This discussion ends here. I will never let you be alone. Never again will I leave you in a place of death.”

“Stupid lizard. …You have no intention of listening to what people say, do you?”

“Great idiot human. Are you one to talk?”

They cursed at each other. But both of their mouths had softened.

“…No matter how shitty reality is, wishing for something, advancing toward it, and aiming to reach it are permitted to anyone, huh?”

For some reason, Tooyama now remembered words someone had said long ago, when he was a student.

He had thought about many things. That white snake woman had been strong, and he had seriously prepared himself for death.

He was afraid of that strength turning toward his companions. That was why he thought he should distance them. He realized now, belatedly, that this was the same choice as before. The same choice as when he had died in that modern dungeon.

In that case, this time.

The continuation of this modern dungeon life would be—

“—Well, if we’ve gone through the trouble of surviving, let’s just do what we want already. I get it, Lazaar. According to our desires, let ‘us’ reach it.”

He stuffed delicious bread into his mouth and washed it down with cold well water. For some reason, just that made him think he was glad to be alive.

“Yes. I will follow you, my friend.”

“Yeah, partner. We’re going to get busy. Let’s keep getting along.”

The two bumped the fists they had extended at some point.

Lazaar narrowed his eyes and looked at the people smiling over the bread.

While chewing bread, Tooyama also renewed his conviction and turned his head.

Angel flour and the spent grain from the beer he had procured from Dromora, yeast bread using yeast in the dough.

Bread production by yeast was natural in the modern era. However, in this world, due to its distorted fermentation system, that method had never been created.

“Lizardonian mister! You’re amazing! This bread is seriously good!”

“Hey, you, this is something else! Could I have another bread?”

“Lizardonian baker, come over here! Actually, I got some liquor from the construction site earlier! Let’s have a drink together!”

The gallery pressed in on Lazaar. Those were not gazes of contempt or disgust directed at the discriminated race of Lizardonians.

They were gazes of praise and respect toward a skilled craftsman who made delicious bread.

“Wh-whoa, N-Naruhito?”

“Go on, Lizardonian baker. They’re potential future customers. Go take a taste survey or something.”

Seeing Lazaar get pulled into the gallery, Tooyama sat down on a wooden chair.

Watching Lazaar enter the circle completely, he chomped on bread.

“Tooyama Naruhito, for now, I suppose you could say the first stage is cleared.”

Dromora smoothly appeared. Looking at him, his face had gone slightly red. A wine bottle was held in his hand.

“Yeah, Dromora. Lazaar’s bread is the real thing. It’ll definitely be accepted in this Empire too.”

“I will acknowledge that. His bread has power. Honestly, since coming to the Empire, there have been so many surprises that I have not been bored. However, Tooyama Naruhito, we still have problems remaining.”

“Yeah?”

“…This bread requires liquor lees. The expenses are higher than bread made only with ordinary angel flour. And the Church will not stay silent either. They are strict about bread.”

While pouring red wine into a wooden cup, Dromora directed a quiet gaze toward Tooyama.

It was a gaze that seemed to be testing Tooyama, and also one that seemed to expect something from Tooyama.

“Hihi, no problem, Dromora.”

“What do you mean?”

“There’s someone, isn’t there? Someone Doraemon-like who can solve the cost, money, and Church law problems all alone.”

“Do-Dora?”

“Relax, Dromora. Three days later, on the day we move, everything will be solved. There’s someone, isn’t there? A wonderful sponsor who is greedier than a merchant, loves money, and holds power over the Church.”

“…Ah, certainly. She exists.”

“Yeah, for the founding of Lazaar Bakery. Last time was a threat, but this time is different.”

An early afternoon wrapped in the scent of bread. Only Tooyama Naruhito, as healthy as ever, was plotting his next scheme.

“It’s the beginning of Operation Home Party. We’re going to break the Angel Church’s law!”

Even after fighting a monster, nearly dying, and stepping into a new stage of his Relic, that man did not change.

He simply continued advancing according to his desires. Therefore, Tooyama did not notice.

He could not notice the change in himself that had begun, slowly, slowly.

The water he swallowed was strangely cold. Even after it fell into his stomach, Tooyama at present could not notice the sensation of that coldness seeping into his body.