I flinched inwardly, but I deliberately asked in a calm voice.
“What curse?”
“The curse of mismatched body and soul.”
My eyes widened. But Hiser didn’t stop there.
“And it seems like something is controlling you as well.”
My jaw dropped. What the—! So he’s not a dragon, but some kind of shaman?! I was so shocked I muttered blankly.
“How do you even….”
Hiser’s eyes curved into half-moons. He seemed certain from my reaction.
“Do you want the curse removed?”
I almost immediately said yes, but I hesitated.
If the curse were lifted, it would mean I’d be freed from possession. But if that happened, what would happen to me?
If I disappeared and this body returned to the original Shuen Felicita from the novel….
‘That can’t happen.’
The original me had already burned to death. There was nowhere for me to go back to.
Besides, thinking of Isel made it even more impossible to give up. The original Shuen would only torment Isel horribly again.
‘My favorite character—I have to protect him!’
I shook my head. Hiser, who had been waiting for my answer, narrowed his eyes slightly.
“I don’t want the curse removed. But being controlled….”
I was struggling to explain it when—
“I think I can help you.”
“You… can help me?”
“Yes. But first, I have a question.”
Hiser poked the baby dragon I was holding in my arms with his index finger.
The baby dragon let out a “Kyaung!” and thumped its tail in annoyance. It really seemed to dislike Hiser.
“What exactly did you feed this thing?”
As expected of a Dragon Lord, he seemed to see through everything.
I blinked, remembering how I had fed the baby dragon bread. I was about to answer when Hiser suddenly stepped closer. Eagerly, he fired off questions.
“Dragon horns? Or the heart of a great mage?”
“What? Horns? Whose heart?”
I shook my head in panic.
“No, I didn’t feed it anything weird like that.”
Hiser frowned at my answer.
“And yet Akaterian has grown this much?”
He came even closer. The baby dragon hissed, clearly ready to bite him on the spot.
But Hiser didn’t care. His sand-colored eyes, gleaming with curiosity, narrowed.
“Then what did you feed it?”
His lowered voice carried pressure, making my shoulders shrink instinctively. I answered in a frightened voice.
“…Bread.”
“What?”
“I gave it bread I baked myself….”
Hiser’s eyes widened.
Akaterian, unable to hold back any longer, slapped Hiser with its tail.
Smack.
But Hiser didn’t react at all. He just stared at me in a daze and murmured to himself.
“Bread?”
The oblivious baby dragon shouted proudly.
“Shushu bread! Tasty!”
I slowly edged away from Hiser. Is it really forbidden to feed bread to dragons?
‘But Akka eats it just fine…’
Hiser stood frozen, looking at me with a confused expression. After a moment, a strange light flickered in his eyes.
“You’re not lying.”
I nodded quickly. Why would I lie in front of him? If I did and got caught, I’d be heading straight to the afterlife.
“It’s true.”
Hiser’s tightly pressed lips curved into a soft smile.
‘Why is he suddenly smiling?’
I quietly moved a little further away. Hiser watched me retreat and said,
“Then let’s verify it.”
“Verify what?”
Before I could finish, he snapped his fingers.
A huge magic circle appeared beneath our feet. Though the color was different, it felt strangely familiar.
It was the same kind I had seen when we teleported to the bedroom with Akaterian after it blew up the kitchen.
The moment I gasped—
Bright light engulfed us.
Afterward
So this was what he meant by “verify it.”
I stared into a furnace where bread was baking until golden, then closed the lid again. Just moments ago, I had been in a bedroom.
Now I was somehow baking bread again.
I sighed and recalled what had happened.
Me, the baby dragon, and Hiser had all been transported by magic to an unfamiliar place. I had asked where we were, but Hiser just smiled and said one thing:
“Bake bread.”
So I started making bread in this unfamiliar, luxurious kitchen. It was even larger than the kitchen in a noble manor. It had everything imaginable.
An oven big enough to bake pizza, countless cooking tools, and gold-rimmed plates. The pantry was filled with high-quality ingredients.
I recalled that Marquis Felicita had introduced Hiser as a viscount. Maybe this was Hiser’s estate—I could only guess.
Hiser sat quietly in a chair.
He watched me mix and knead the dough like he was observing a strange animal. The baby dragon sat beside him, both of them watching intently.
‘Is this his first time seeing bread being made?’
It felt like I was demonstrating something in front of students.
I handed the bowl of dough to Hiser.
“Please just cool this slightly.”
Today I was making croissants.
There were many ways to make croissants, but I preferred low-temperature fermentation in a refrigerator. It created a richer flavor.
But there was no refrigerator here. Only a dry storage room.
So the only option was to keep the dough cool enough that the butter wouldn’t melt.
Hiser nodded.
“Should I freeze it solid?”
I hurriedly stopped him just as he tried to cast magic. I had to explain that it shouldn’t be frozen, just kept cool. It was exhausting.
The baby dragon frowned deeply.
“Shushu… do we have to wait again?”
Then I had an idea.
“Akka, can you turn time back just for this dough like last time?”
If Hiser’s cooling magic held the temperature steady, and Akka reversed time… maybe we could speed up fermentation.
“How long?”
“Eight hours!”
Akka squeaked and cast the spell.
When I checked the dough again, it had perfectly undergone low-temperature fermentation!
Amazing. No fridge, no fermentation machine—and yet it worked.
‘I love magic!’
While I hugged the dough in joy, Hiser was glaring at Akka.
Then he suddenly grabbed the baby dragon by the nape of its neck.
“Kyaung!”
Akka struggled in midair.
“Put me down!”
“So you had this ability as well.”
Hiser looked at the dragon with a strange expression. It seemed even he hadn’t known Akka could manipulate time.
“So the title wasn’t given for nothing…”
He muttered meaningfully, then turned to me with a smile.
“So, when will my bread be ready?”
“Just starting now.”
I layered butter onto the flattened dough, folding and rolling it repeatedly.
Layer upon layer, carefully built.
Finally, I cut it into triangles and rolled them into crescent shapes.
Hiser and Akka both stared wide-eyed.
After brushing on egg wash, both dragons gasped.
“Ooooh…”
“Moon! It’s a moon!”
I stopped the baby dragon from trying to eat it raw and placed the dough into the oven.
A soft, buttery aroma filled the kitchen like silk.
Soon, the croissants puffed up beautifully.
I placed them on a tray.
Akka was already wiggling in excitement.
“Now it’s ready. Please try.”
I handed a plate to Hiser. Akka had already launched itself at the tray.
Hiser looked at the bread and murmured,
“I’ve never seen bread so glossy before.”
That made sense. This world had extremely underdeveloped baking techniques.
There were no pastries, no refined desserts—only basic meal bread, often dry and bland.
Even tea-time sweets barely existed.
I kindly introduced the bread.
“It’s called a croissant.”
“Coo-rutang?”
Akka tried to mimic the pronunciation while chewing.
Hiser carefully tore off a piece. The croissant stretched beautifully, flakes shining with butter.
He placed it in his mouth.
I watched nervously.
Then he stopped.
“….”
Why is he silent? I took a bite myself.
‘It tastes fine though?’
Not perfect like in my past world, but this was the best I could make with what I had.
Then Hiser suddenly pressed a hand to his forehead.
He exhaled sharply, then murmured in a trembling voice:
“This is… impossible…”
