FS-novel Chapter 211 – Spellbound Pastry
Chapter 211 – Spellbound Pastry
Much to Melina's relief, the weekend arrived soon, and she could take the time to properly experiment with her new skill.
In reality, Melina has had
It would give any non-mage access to magic that they normally would never have a chance to execute. Melina didn't have to think long to realize that this kind of ability would instantly turn her into a target. Even more than she already was.
She hadn't even wanted to test the extent of this skill, but with Heiliger's arrival inevitable, Melina couldn't help but think that this was actually a chance. Could she bake shield spells into cream puffs and distribute them among the populace? Give fire spells to the adventurers along with other battle spells? Could she perhaps even coordinate a large-scale ritual by putting the necessary components into several pastries?
The more she thought about it, the more excited she grew. She wanted to know how this skill worked.
"Yip-yip?" Mango cocked her head curiously. It was still early in the morning. It was dark, and everyone was still asleep. But the little fox had been up with her, seeming too nervous to leave her alone after the attack.
"Let's start with something simple. How about some fresh bread with a light orb spell within it?" Melina asked.
Mango just turned her head to the side, not understanding. Melina couldn't blame her; it seemed impossible.
She started by making a batch of bread dough and leaving it to rise for just half an hour. Once done, she rolled a loaf into shape and activated
A correlation between pastry and spell suddenly made sense. She could see how to put the spell structure within a pastry in a way that would contain and allow it to be used later, after consuming it. Melina also instantly saw the limits of the skill at Rank F.
Anything beyond the most basic of spells would be impossible until it ranked up. Imbuing spells in anything more complex than bread would also be impossible.
"Alistair isn't going to like this… But I think I need to do some serious skill grinding," Melina said to Mango, as she finished folding the Light Orb spell inside the bread loaf. She wasn't sure whether she had placed the spell construct correctly on the first try.
Mango once again looked confused, yawning sleepily and curling up in her little bed in the corner of the kitchen. Melina smiled at the fox and continued weaving various simple spells into bread loaves. While the skill gave her a rather good idea of which spells she could imbue into a pastry, some of them were on the edge, so she wanted to make sure which would stick at Rank F and which wouldn't.
A few hours later, Melina had the whole kitchen filled with bread loaves filled with various spells.
[You've made
[You've reached Level 33.]
[Your skill has ranked up.
"Girl, what have you done now?" Gilbert exclaimed, walking into the kitchen. It was still early morning, and he was the first to witness Melina's new experiments.
"I'm experimenting with a new skill of mine," Melina replied with a smile.
"New skill? Are you grinding again?" The old man asked skeptically.
"Yes."
"Y-Yes? Are you actually going to outright admit it? I wonder what your fiancé will think of that?" Gilbert frowned.
"I think he'll be worried but also amazed. As will be anyone who learns of this skill."
Gilbert narrowed his eyes. "What is this new skill of yours? And why does it require you to bury our kitchen in bread?"
"Taste this, Grandfather," Melina said, offering Gilbert bread with the Light Orb spell within it.
Gilbert took a bite and looked at her with confusion. "It tastes like bread. One you didn't give quite enough time to raise."
Melina frowned. "I guess you need to eat the whole thing. Shall I prepare you some breakfast for you to eat the bread with?"
"I suppose. I wouldn't mind some toast with eggs."
Melina got to work, slicing the bread in half and frying it in the pan with some butter and eggs. This was also a good test to see whether the spell would remain within the bread even if sliced and cooked again.
Gilbert eyed Melina suspiciously while he ate his breakfast, still confused about the whole thing. She watched his every bite. Only when he ate the last bite did his expression change.
"Wh-What is this?" He asked in open surprise.
"How does it feel?" Melina leaned in curiously.
"I… You… You put a spell inside the bread?" He asked incredulously.
"Yes! Try using it," Melina smiled, fascinated.
Gilbert looked mostly shocked, but raised his hand and allowed the magic to flow. A small orb of light appeared in his palm, illuminating the kitchen with its gentle light.
"This… It shouldn't be possible. I've never been able to use magic!" Gilbert exclaimed. The light orb fizzled out rather quickly.
"Hmmm, it appears the duration of spells at Rank F is rather short," Melina observed.
"Girl! What is this skill you acquired? Can you really just bake spells into pastries?"
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"I can," Melina confirmed with a nod.
Gilbert gaped at her for a moment. "Do you understand the ramifications of this? Nothing like this has been achieved before!"
"I understand. I'm going to use this skill to protect Sunglow."
"Protect? Are you just going to have every citizen flinging spells left and right?" Gilbert asked in horror.
"If that's what it takes to protect everyone."
"Do you know how dangerous something like that can be? Once everyone finds out about this ability—"
Melina smiled. "Don't worry, Master Gilbert. This isn't an ability I'm going to hold for long. But for the time being, I need to get it as powerful as possible. To set things straight once and for all."
Gilbert stared at her for a moment, then sighed. "I'm not sure what you mean, but you're not trying to shoulder everything alone again, are you?"
"No, Grandfather. I'm just giving everyone a chance to fight and protect what is dear to them," Melina said firmly.
"Very well. I'll trust you on this. But if you're going to be baking spells into pastries, how about a spell to clean the whole house?"
Melina chuckled. "I'll see what I can do."
When Alistair woke up in the morning, Melina was already gone. He wasn't too surprised. She had a habit of waking up early, although he would be lying if he said he wasn't a bit disappointed. It was the weekend, so it would have been nice to sleep in together. Feel her warmth next to him when he wakes up.
But there have been a lot of things on Melina's mind lately. Alistair could see that she was pushing herself hard—doing everything within her power to give them better odds of success. It was a bit hard to watch, especially after she broke down at their meeting a few days before.
Only then did he realize how sensitive Melina was. Alistair still remembered her as the all-powerful [Archmage]. Not afraid of anyone or anything. Facing any challenge head-on. Even after the realms were split apart, she persevered. She searched for the time ritual to fix everything.
So he hadn't considered that Melina might actually despise fighting. The thought that there might be an upcoming battle in Sunglow was enough to send her into a panic.
Alistair so desperately wished he could take all of her burdens. Convince her to head to the Sinclair mansion and remain there with Charlotte and Mother. They would welcome her with open arms, and she would be safe. But he knew Melina would never agree to it.
He did not doubt that even now, Melina was hard at work, doing something to help turn the tide of the battle.
"Lord Sinclair, good morning. Shall I prepare breakfast for you and Miss Melina? Is she still in bed?" Daisy asked, rustling about in the kitchen.
"I'm afraid not, Daisy. She's likely long since at the bakery. I shall have my breakfast there," Alistair said.
Daisy puffed out her cheeks. "I swear! Miss Melina should learn to sleep on weekends. I never get a chance to make her breakfast! Please, allow me to prepare something for you, Young Lord. Otherwise, I feel so utterly useless in this house."
"Daisy, you are plenty helpful. This house was a mess before you and Henry came along," Alistair pacified her. "Some quick bacon and eggs will suffice. And coffee perhaps."
"At once, Young Lord!" Daisy beamed, all too eager to have something to do.
After a quick breakfast, Alistair put on a coat and headed towards the bakery. It was late morning, and gentle snowflakes were falling from the sky, slowly burying Sunglow in a white, wintery coat.
Kids were cheering at the snow, making snowmen and snow animals, and throwing snowballs at anyone unfortunate enough to come into range.
Alistair enjoyed the peaceful morning, slowly making his way to the bakery. A variety of delicious smells were already wafting in the air, making him wonder whether Melina was experimenting with something new again. Hopefully, she wasn't pushing herself too hard.
However, as he entered the bakery and met with Gilbert's stern gaze, he realized that something wasn't quite right.
"I tried to stop her, you know. But she was insistent that the new skill needed to be ranked up as quickly as possible. I don't think even you can stop her this time," Gilbert said and hobbled upstairs.
Alistair raised an eyebrow. What had his lovely fiancée done this time? Surely, she wouldn't… They had talked about the matter in the past, and Melina had promised not to grind skills anymore.
But as he stepped into the kitchen, seeing Roxie giggling in amazement at the tiny flame burning in her palms and Adrien levitating an array of different pastries around into various baskets, his jaw dropped.
Adrien using magic wasn't that surprising. Melina had been training the boy, albeit he had never seen him be so proficient with the levitation spell. But how was Roxie, somebody with no inclination for magic whatsoever, creating a flame in her hands?
Not to mention that Melina was standing by the counter, folding what he believed to be puff pastry.
"What is going on here?" He asked in shock.
"Good morning, Lord Sinclair!" Roxie squeaked out, the flame in her hands disappearing.
"Good morning!" Adrien remained just as cheerful, levitating the many pastries into their rightful places. There were tarts, cream puffs, eclairs, and even macarons.
"Good morning," Melina said, with a somewhat guilty expression. She turned away from him right away, pretending to be busy.
"Would you all mind if I spoke with Melina alone?" Alistair said to the youngsters.
"Of course!" They both replied in unison and ran out of the kitchen, likely sensing his ire.
Once Alistair was sure they were gone, he walked up to Melina. Close enough that her back would occasionally brush against his chest as she worked.
"Melina…" he bent down, purring into her ear.
He knew it was a sensitive spot for her, and she reacted instantly, her cheeks flushing red. Nonetheless, she didn't stop folding the puff pastry.
"What is it?" She replied, weighing nonchalance. "Mango, would you cool this pastry for me?"
Mango gave Alistair a happy yip and cooled the pastry down with one icy breath, not at all sensing the heavy atmosphere in the room.
As soon as the fox was done, Melina resumed rolling out the dough, trying her best to ignore Alistair's stare. It was a bit adorable, but he knew all too well how to bring her out of this state. With a gentle caress, he ran his palm from her shoulder down to her palm. She shuddered at the touch and stopped.
"What are you doing, my darling?" He asked, whispering in her ear while rubbing her forearm with his thumb.
To his surprise, she whirled around, grabbing hold of his hand and staring right up at him. Her eyes were filled with fire. Something he hadn't seen in her for a while now.
"I'm making pastries filled with spells!" She said with a smile.
"What?" He blinked and took a step back. Her proximity was making his mind wander in the wrong direction.
"Pastries filled with magic. Just eat one!" She said and offered a cream puff to him.
Curious, Alistair put it in his mouth. The moment he was done, he felt a surge within himself.
[You're able to use the spell
"What?!" He exclaimed.
"Try it out," Melina urged eagerly.
Still confused, Alistair commanded the System to use the spell. It seemed unnatural. He wasn't a mage. He didn't have the knowledge to create and control spells. Yet at a mere thought, a large water bubble appeared in front of him, hovering in the air and waiting for his direction. Melina poked it with her finger playfully, making the spell collapse.
[1
"How did you accomplish that?" Alistair gaped at her.
Melina smiled. "It's a skill I received while leveling up as [Archpatissier]. I believe it might be able to turn the odds in our favor."
Alistair's head was growing dizzy with possibilities. All the adventurers, all the soldiers, and even civilians could be equipped with spells. Everyone could be a mage. That… was incredible. But at the same time, he realized that if word got out about what Melina could do, she would become the most desired target for anyone to acquire. Including the King.