A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

“It’s us,” Bray nodded.

"Do you have breadgrass?" Duncan asked.

"No."

"Then why did you come here? It's clearly written on my authorization letter. If you have nothing to offer, why are you contacting me? Are you trying to ditch me?" Although Duncan's words were harsh, he didn't seem too angry.

"I just wanted to ask about the specific details of the commission," Bray said.

"The specific details and such..."

Before Duncan could finish speaking, an untimely voice rang out.

"Brave, Levy is hungry." Levy put on a sleepy expression =A=.

Early in the morning, Levy wanted to eat breakfast.

“Let’s buy some bread first,” Bray said.

The others present were speechless.

---

"Delicious." Levy sat on a chair to the side, wagging her tail rapidly, and munching on a long bread roll.

This bread has pork floss in it! Levy loves it!

"Fireball, eat." Levy tore off a small piece of bread and stuffed it into Fireball's mouth.

"Meow~" Fireball excitedly nibbled on a small piece of bread.

Once upon a time, fireballs had very high requirements for what they ate.

But now it has become a mascot lion that eats everything and is not picky about food.

"Brave, didn't you say you wanted to get down to business?" Naruko mumbled to Bray, her mouth full of unchewed bread.

Bray glanced at Naruko; surprisingly, he understood what Naruko had just said.

"I'm about to ask you something, but you should finish eating before you speak."

"Gulp—" Naruko quickly swallowed the bread.

"Speak, do you want to know what breadgrass looks like, or where Longshan is?" Duncan asked calmly, tapping his fingers on the table.

His attitude always gave the impression that the task was unimportant.

“Rewards,” Bray said earnestly, looking at Duncan.

Duncan showed no surprise whatsoever.

"Tsk tsk tsk, indeed, I remember when I posted the commission, the fee wasn't high," Duncan said nonchalantly.

“No one would take on this commission if it were 7000G,” Bray said.

"So why did you accept it?" Duncan squinted.

Brei noticed Kaya's hesitant expression as she stood beside him, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

However, he quickly turned his attention back to Duncan.

"How much more do you want?" Duncan asked Bray with amusement.

“I can do it without money,” Bray said, making a startling statement.

"Eeeeeeeeee—" Naruko let out a strange cry. If Bray doesn't make money, who will support the family!

Although Levy didn't know what serious thing had happened, she became nervous when she saw Naruko looking like she'd seen a ghost.

"Hmm..." Levy slowed down her pace of eating bread.

After finishing her meal, Levy quietly licked her fingers and sat obediently on the stool.

"Free of charge?" This time, Duncan was quite surprised.

An adventurer accepts this quest not for the money? Then what is it for?

"I just want you to make me a cake."

"Cake?" Duncan found Bray a bit ridiculous.

"Can you make a cake that tastes just like the one my foster mother makes?" Bray asked, making an absurd request.

"Ha." Duncan just sneered.

Do you know what you're saying in your sleep?

“…” Bray remained silent.

"The exact same taste? You're talking about nostalgia, or something else."

Kaya also looked at Bray strangely.

The guy who makes such a request must be an idiot.

“That makes sense.” Bray realized he had been a bit presumptuous.

Duncan stared at Bray for a long time.

“However, I actually have a way of doing what you’re talking about.” Duncan opened his right eye and looked at Bray.

Bray raised an eyebrow almost unconsciously.

Duncan actually said that his absurd request might be possible?

"But if you want me to do it, you'll have to give me more than just a bundle of breadh.

“It’s at least three bundles.” Duncan held up three fingers.

"..." Bray lowered his head and fell into deep thought.

After a long while, Bray raised his head and accepted Duncan's request.

“Okay, I won’t charge you, but you have to actually make it for me,” Bray said earnestly.

“Dad, this kind of thing…” Kaya looked at Duncan with a puzzled expression.

Make it exactly the same as someone else's? That's impossible.

Just like the "taste of home" that ordinary people talk about, it's not a tangible taste at all.

Suddenly, Kaya seemed to remember something, and her expression changed.

Duncan certainly saw his daughter's expression change, but he didn't care.

He knew what his daughter was thinking.

"Breadgrass, actually I'm not sure if that's what it's called."

“I just happened to pick a few on Dragon Mountain,” Duncan began to tell Bray about breadgrass.

"It's mainly because this grass tastes like bread, which is why it's called bread grass."

"You're going to use it to make bread?" Bray asked.

“No, I’m making a cake,” Duncan replied casually.

"But that was in the past. Now, breadgrass is no longer of any use to me."

“…” Bray fell silent for a moment.

"But since you've accepted the job, I'll still pay you."

"Just bring it back to me."

The "breadgrass" that Duncan mentioned is a very short grass with leaves shaped like fan blades.

If you smell it up close, you can smell the aroma of wheat, and it tastes just like bread.

This grass is usually a light purple color and is actually quite easy to find in the mountains.

The biggest problem is that Longshan is very dangerous.

Longshan, where Yalong travels all over the place, is basically untouched by anyone.

That place has many A-rank monsters, and even some S-rank monsters.

Strong adventurers wouldn't go up Dragon Mountain for no reason.

After all, rewards are valuable, but life is priceless.

"Is that all there is to it?" Bray couldn't believe that Duncan would issue a commission just because of the smell of breadgrass.

While breadgrass has a unique flavor, it's not exactly a top-quality ingredient.

"Bread or cake made with breadgrass won't have a specific flavor," Duncan said wistfully.

"The sweetness remains the same, the aroma remains the same, and nothing else will be changed."

"But the person tasting it will taste the flavor they most desire in their heart."

"Including what you said, the taste of the cakes made by your adoptive mother can be reproduced."

"Amazing, isn't it? There are plenty of amazing things in the world." Duncan noticed the surprise written in Bray's right eye.

“It’s truly amazing.” Bray stood up.

“I accept this commission,” Bray said earnestly to Duncan.

“If you bring back three bundles, I’ll naturally make them for you.”

"But I'm not paying, you said you didn't want it." Duncan was quite cunning.

"I don't want the money." Bray shook his head, meaning he meant it.

"Then let's go quickly." With that, Duncan climbed the stairs, ignoring Bray and his group.

"Dad, isn't this a bit inappropriate?" Kaya complained.

“They’re not customers of the bakery, and I don’t care about the bakery,” Duncan said bluntly before going upstairs.

“They bought so much bread, not counting the guests…” Kaya glanced at the paper bag next to Levy.

A paper bag could probably hold four or five loaves of bread; the paper bag next to Levy...

Kaya was too lazy to count how many there were.

"Naruto, Levy, let's go, time for a mission," Bray called out.

“A commission without money,” Naruko complained.

Without income, Naruko suddenly lost her motivation.

“There’s cake,” Bray said.

"Ugh, it's just a cake, and I didn't even get to eat it in the end," Naruko complained bitterly.

This cake is for Lux.

---

Upstairs, Duncan Fran, the former baker, watched Bray and his group walk away.

"Tap tap tap—" A series of hurried footsteps sounded.

Kaya climbed up from downstairs and stood next to Duncan with her hands on her hips.

"The bakery is still open, hurry up and go downstairs, what if something gets stolen?" Duncan tried to get rid of Kaya.

"Dad, what's wrong with you... Didn't you say you didn't need that thing anymore?" Kaya sighed.

"Your mother is gone, so there's really no point in me bringing this grass," Duncan said calmly, taking a sip of tea.

Duncan issued this commission 4 to 5 years ago.

Like Bray, he wanted to recreate a certain flavor.

For his wife.

Duncan's thoughts drifted back to a few years ago.

The couple both loved making pastries, and running a bakery was a very enjoyable experience for them.

After tasting breadgrass by chance, he had an idea.

He wanted to make a cake.

Duncan knew that his wife always missed her deceased parents.