The Art of Healing Baking (3)
Soi Spoon was in shock when she saw Iriel.
The confident Iriel she knew was nowhere to be seen.
Only a patient, seemingly on the verge of death, lay on the bed.
*Wheeze—*
*Wheeze—*
Her breath was thin and shallow, as if it might cease at any moment.
“H-How could this….”
Soi had thought Iriel would be fine after the instructor saved her, but it wasn’t the case at all.
With trembling eyes, she looked at Zeke.
“You have to heal her.”
“……H-How can I?”
“Bake bread.”
“……You’re saying, I can heal Iriel with that……?”
Zeke nodded resolutely.
He was certain that Soi’s talent, the one he had witnessed, could actually heal better than drugs—no, it could truly heal.
However, from Soi’s perspective, everything was just sudden and absurd.
Zeke’s demand to bake bread in front of Iriel in such a critical condition was strange enough.
But even if she did bake something… what if it failed?
No, was it even okay to feed a patient bread?
What if Iriel’s condition worsened after eating her bread, what if she died?
Could she bear the responsibility, the guilt?
“I’m just, just an ordinary commoner. Baking is all I’m good at…. To suddenly be called here and asked to bake bread……”
“Yes, that’s right. Bake me some bread.”
“What good is bread! It's just ordinary flour dough, not a miracle or anything!”
Soi Spoon protested, but Zeke's expression remained unchanged.
“Soi Spoon.”
Zeke called her real name, not Elise, in a serious voice.
“This is something only you can do.”
“…….”
But Soi avoided his gaze.
“Well, it can’t be helped if you don’t want to. Then Iriel will die like this….”
“Die…!”
“Yes, she’ll die after suffering terribly. Or, even if she doesn’t, she’ll go through an even more agonizing process.”
“An agonizing process?”
“Yes, an exorcism.”
“Exorcism……?”
Zeke gestured to Selena, who was standing nearby with a complicated expression.
As if on cue, she explained to Soi.
“An exorcism is a ritual performed by the Central Holy Church to drive out evil spirits and demons.”
“Evil spirits and demons……”
Having briefly seen Iriel’s state, Soi almost nodded unconsciously.
If she wasn’t possessed by something like that, how else could she have changed so much in such a short time?
“I’ve heard that the process is excruciating. Once it starts, they restrain the person completely. They can’t eat or drink anything, they just have to keep praying. There’s no set end time, it continues until the target is cured. Otherwise, the evil spirit or demon is said to possess the priest performing the exorcism….”
“Th-That’s…. If that’s not the case, then Iriel will…!”
Selena lowered her head with a complicated expression.
“And even if she’s cured, there’s still a problem…. Being the duke’s daughter, she won’t be physically harmed, at least. But she’ll probably be treated as a non-existent being by everyone.”
“Why…. Why…. She’s cured, so why would they……?”
“Because no one wants to be friends with a girl who’s been possessed.”
At that moment, Zeke intervened.
“However, Iriel isn’t afflicted by some petty evil spirit.”
Zeke declared with a confident look.
“Then…. Why……”
“Iriel’s mind is completely exhausted right now. Fear and terror are consuming her. Her mental breakdown has manifested physically.”
“So…. Then there’s no need for an exorcism…!”
“That’s why I need your help, Soi Spoon. Doesn’t Iriel love your bread? Wasn’t she happy eating it?”
Zeke’s words struck a chord with Soi’s wavering heart.
‘Really…. If it’s just, her mind that’s shaken…. If she eats my bread and feels better…. Could she be cured…?’
She bit her lip firmly.
“……I’ll try.”
“Good, I’m glad you’ve come around.”
Zeke patted Soi’s head.
“Selena.”
“Yes…? Yes.”
“Let’s borrow the kitchen for a bit.”
“Yes….”
“Just Soi and I will be inside. Make sure no one else comes in.”
“By the way, why do you keep calling Elise, Soi…. What’s with the……”
“Ah.”
***
The spacious kitchen of the Yohaiden Residence.
With no servants around, a quiet atmosphere prevailed.
“So…. What kind of bread should I make……?”
Soi was the first to break the silence.
“Hmm, make the bread you’re most confident in.”
“I can make almost anything. But lately, I’ve been making a lot of…. Baguettes.”
Baguettes.
Ever since she met Zeke and started making baguettes for his swordsmanship training, Soi had gone through countless trials and errors.
She had to shape the baguettes so that they could be held comfortably, and make them hard enough to be used as weapons.
And since Zeke ate the bread instead of it being thrown away, she had to make sure it stayed tasty for a long time.
No, she had to make it taste even better after some time.
She had tried and researched so many different recipes.
In the process, her baking skills had improved dramatically.
When it came to baguettes, there were few bakers in the capital who could rival her.
But even so.
‘Can my bread really save Iriel?’
She couldn’t help but doubt.
Soi shook her head, clearing her mind of distracting thoughts.
“Hmm, this is…. Flour…. And salt…. Yeast….”
The ingredients were luxurious, unlike anything she usually used.
Soi took in the sight of each one.
“Is this all?”
“Yes.”
“Then let’s begin.”
“Yes.”
*Hoo—*
Soi took a deep breath and started making the bread.
It was a familiar task, but she made a few mistakes because the ingredients were different from what she was used to.
Even so, her practiced hands quickly got the hang of it, and she began to knead the dough as usual.
While she was in the middle of kneading.
“That’s not it.”
Zeke intervened.
“……Yes?”
“Discard that and try again.”
Soi did as Zeke said and discarded the dough she was making, starting over.
“Again.”
“Again.”
“Again.”
“No. Again.”
“That’s not it either.”
Zeke kept interrupting her work.
One hour, two hours.
She had endured the first few times, but as Zeke continued to demand she start over, Soi found it harder and harder to hold back.
She was certain there was nothing wrong with her baking.
She was confident that the bread would be much better than the ones from Hillaise Bakery because of the high-quality ingredients.
But Zeke kept interrupting her, whether she was kneading the flour, letting the dough rise, or baking the bread.
“What’s wrong with it?!”
Finally, Soi Spoon’s patience snapped.
“Everything.”
He was rejecting everything she had baked so far.
“It’s all wrong.”
Soi glared at him.
“What do you know about bread?! You don’t even know how to make it!”
“You’re right, I don’t. But I know it won’t work as medicine.”
“That’s what I said I couldn’t do!”
If he had told her to do it from the start, she would have said she couldn’t.
But now he was telling her to try something new.
She couldn’t gamble with Iriel’s life like that.
“You have too many distracting thoughts, Soi Spoon.”
“Stop calling me Soi Spoon.”
“Do you really want to save Iriel?”
Soi’s lips closed tightly.
“Then why do you keep thinking about other things?”
“I’m not thinking about other things!”
“Yes, you are. I can see it in your eyes. If I were Iriel, I would have spat out this bread, saying it’s tasteless.”
“What do you know?!”
Zeke picked up a piece of dough that had been thrown in the trash.
“This is…. Hmm, worry?”
“And this is guilt? No, a sense of responsibility.”
“This is distrust.”
“Anxiety.”
“Anger.”
“Sadness.”
“Frustration.”
Zeke rummaged through the trash, picking up each piece of dough and speaking.
Every word he uttered pierced Soi’s heart like a dagger.
“……How did you know……”
“How do I know? I told you before. From now on, when you bake bread, you must only think happy thoughts. Otherwise, your negative emotions will seep into the bread, and it will affect whoever eats it.”
“B-But even so, controlling my emotions, how is that even possible? They’re my emotions.”
“You have to, because you’re the only one who can do it.”
Zeke replied in a cold voice.
“If you can’t do it, then give up on baking and swordsmanship and just live a normal life, counting money. But I promise you, you will never be able to create anything or give anything with your heart ever again. I swear on my name.”
Zeke’s voice was sharp as a blade.
“So, will you give up?”
Soi had a feeling that this was the moment Zeke had been waiting for.
Give up?
Did she want to give up?
Really?
As she pondered, the image of Iriel lying in bed flashed through her mind.
“……No. I’ll try.”
“Pour all your emotions into it. Put your heart into it. Think about what kind of expression and words you want Iriel to have when she eats this bread.”
Soi nodded and closed her eyes.
She didn't rush to knead the dough like before.
She slowly brought Iriel to mind.
Her friend, who always enjoyed her bread and, with a proud look, would raise a finger, asking for one more.
Her friend, whose confident demeanor was admirable, and whose occasional clumsiness was utterly endearing.
A long time ago, when Iriel had offered to help repay the debt Soi owed her father, Soi couldn't express it well, but she was truly grateful.
For Iriel’s consideration despite their difference in social standing.
There were still so many things Soi wanted to talk about with her, and she wanted to go shopping together again.
This time, not with borrowed money, but as equals.
And she wanted to introduce Iriel to all sorts of delicious food.
If it was her mind, not her body, that was unwell…
If Iriel could smile brightly again after eating her bread…
As she pictured that, tears welled up in Soi’s eyes.
A teardrop trailed down her cheek.
“Oh…?”
The teardrop fell onto the flour.
She couldn’t use this now.
It was contaminated.
Soi rubbed her eyes, wiping away her tears, and tried to brush away the flour.
At that moment.
“Continue.”
“Y-Yes…? B-But this is….”
“Continue. Just like that.”
Zeke nodded.
Soi moved her hands instinctively.
And after a long time, a simple baguette was complete.
It was nothing special, just an ordinary baguette.
White steam rose from the freshly baked bread, carrying a fragrant aroma.
*Smirk.*
Zeke smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the bread.
‘I didn’t expect Soi’s awakening to be completed so soon. Now I can start her real training.’
“I hope… Iriel enjoys it.”
“She will.”
Zeke headed to Iriel's room with Soi.
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