CHAPTER 07……
Two loaves. Characters, please disappear (praying) (2)
“But they said I could buy baguettes if I came here.”
“All our bread is sold out before 9 a.m.”
It was currently 10 a.m.
Ellie, who had already sold out all the bread early in the morning and was cleaning up the shop, regretted not flipping the sign over in advance.
“This is… inconvenient.”
Golden hair, as if spun from pure gold, swayed gently.
Her perfectly balanced, prominent features somehow all fit on a small face—it was almost miraculous. A thick neck and broad shoulders gave off a strong, solid impression, but the slightly drooping eyes softened everything.
“There’s nothing I can do.”
Ellie forced herself to speak coldly.
Because of his drooping eyes, the man looked particularly pitiful and almost cute. Feeling that way about a man two heads taller than her could only be because his face was absurdly handsome.
“You’ll have to come back in the morning.”
“I have training in the mornings.”
So what.
“Then there’s nothing to be done. Please go back now. It’s closing time.”
“Could you make an exception? I’ll pay handsomely.”
“That wouldn’t be fair.”
“Ah.”
Ban blinked as if he had just been smacked in the back of the head.
“There are plenty of people who line up from six in the morning to get our bread. I can’t give you special treatment just because you’re a knight. Either come early or give up.”
Ellie replied in an affectedly haughty tone, channeling a certain café owner who only posted notices on Ins*gram.
“I can’t give up.”
Ellie was a bit taken aback by the seriousness in his gaze.
Was buying a single loaf of bread something to be this dramatic about?
“But you’re right. It wouldn’t be fair.”
“…Right?”
What are you even agreeing to? Just leave, saying it’s dirty and unfair and you won’t eat it.
But instead of leaving, he nodded and broke into a broad smile.
Stop smiling and just get out, Ellie cursed at him with her eyes. If Maurice were here, he’d tease her, “What’s the point of keeping quiet when your eyes are swearing?”
“My name is Ban.”
“Ah… yes.”
I know, Captain of the Knights.
Not giving his surname was probably his idea of being discreet, but Ellie already knew it.
Ban Michel Cronin.
The third son of the Cronin family and captain of the Badger Knights, who defended the capital.
Ellie had memorized the faces and ranks of important people to avoid them if needed—it wasn’t hard since you could just check the newspapers.
Though he could have joined the Royal Guard thanks to his prestigious lineage, he had chosen the Badger Knights.
His good looks, kindness to commoners, and upright character made him extremely popular.
Though with that face, he’d be popular even if he were unemployed.
Fans would probably line up to bring him snacks even if he spent his days lying in the park drinking.
But not with Ellie.
To her, this handsome knight was among the top three people in the world to avoid.
“So?”
Ellie kept her lofty, aloof tone.
“And your name?”
“Ellie.”
She was aloof but still answered properly.
No matter how prickly a small fry is, being fragile is its nature.
“Ellie. That’s a beautiful name.”
“…”
What is that smell of trash?
She was certain there were plenty of people who would misunderstand his casual kindness. The fact that he had no ulterior motive made it even worse.
Ellie eyed the man suspiciously as he smiled innocently.
“Ellie, a new recruit recently joined our order. He’s a hard-working lad.”
“And…?”
Ellie made no attempt to hide her bored expression. Ban didn’t flinch.
“His mother went to great lengths to get him bread from this shop.”
“I see.”
“The recruit is very fond of me, and he shared the bread with me, saying he couldn’t eat it alone.”
Ban was clearly the type to repeat himself when drunk.
“The moment I took a bite! I felt as though a vast field stretched out before my eyes! The nuttiness of the wheat, the cloud-like softness, the crisp, firm crust embracing it all—just like a knight’s armor!”
“…What?”
“I never imagined bread could have such texture, taste, and fragrance!”
A baguette crust compared to a knight’s armor…?
Her appetite instantly died. She almost imagined it smelling like sweat.
Ellie realized—
This guy’s not just weird. He’s really weird.
“I had to reflect on my own narrow view of the world. I was lucky enough to grow up in a wealthy family, eating the best food, but I never thought bread could taste so heavenly…”
Being the third son of the Cronin Marquisate, of course he ate well. Ellie smirked—it was more than just “wealthy.”
“I always thought bread was something to accompany meat, soup, or a richly flavored sauce. Even freshly baked bread, I thought, could only play a supporting role. But to discover such bread exists… I was astonished. I couldn’t bear not coming here. For the first time in my life, I wished training would end sooner. I couldn’t sit still.”
He talked too much.
She appreciated the compliment to her bread, but his ever-lengthening speech was tedious.
You could’ve just said it was delicious.
So he had a gourmet streak—big deal.
Ellie still didn’t want to sell him bread.
“From the moment I tasted it, I couldn’t stop thinking about baguettes. I couldn’t focus on anything, and I couldn’t sleep even when I closed my eyes.”
“Um… maybe you’re sick?”
Shouldn’t he be going to a hospital instead of a bakery?
It was like he was a full-blown addict.
“No, I’m perfectly healthy. How kind of you to worry.”
“…”
“The baguette was perfection. Its simple, clean taste needed nothing else. No meat, no sauce. It was exactly the ideal of a knight I strive for!”
“…”
“Upright and steadfast, yet pure in flavor…!”
Could he not entrust the ideals of knighthood to a loaf of bread?
“So it was you who brought such bread into the world, Ellie. Even though I couldn’t get a baguette today, meeting you is an honor.”
“Ah… yes… if you say so.”
God, this is embarrassing…
She wanted to slap a hand over his mouth and kick him out, but aside from the realistic assessment that force wouldn’t work, those gleaming eyes were unsettling.
After the “scone maniac,” now came the “baguette maniac.”
Two victims of her infernal, demonic talent already.
“Ellie.”
His voice was sweet, as if calling out to a lover he had missed for a thousand years.
But Ban wasn’t calling to Ellie—he was calling to the baguette. Though her flustered face was reflected in his bright eyes, he wasn’t really looking at her.
“Tomorrow, I’ll come earlier than anyone to find you. Please wait for me.”
“…Ha ha.”
Ellie decided to throw this uselessly handsome, large-breed nuisance customer out.
Ban was a pest—one that offered no help, only threatened her future.
Even small fry have the right to say no.
She had no intention of letting danger into the bunker she had built to hide from the world.
But being a small fry meant she couldn’t openly refuse without drawing attention.
The bitterness of the weak welled up—
Small fry, in debt.
Ellie once again channeled the famous Ins* café owner.
She clasped her hands and gave him a haughty, cold-eyed stare.
Ban’s face lit up with a sunshine-like smile at her round-faced grin, but she kept her polite smile in place and spoke coldly:
“Goodbye, sir.”
The door is that way.
