I Reincarnated into the World of Otome Game with a Cheat Ability - Chapter 5

 The Bakery's Day Off

The next day, the bakery was closed for its regular day off. Because of that, I was able to have a relaxing morning for once.

Having some extra time and feeling hungry, I ended up eating all my remaining bread for breakfast—only to suddenly realize something very important.

"Ah. The shop is closed today, which means I won't be getting any bread... What am I going to do for food?"

Even if I wanted to cook for myself, I had absolutely no kitchen utensils. Left with no choice, I’d just have to buy something to get by. With that in mind, I decided to head to the nearest bakery that was actually open today.

"Welcome!"

A single shop assistant was watching the store alone. The only item for sale was a single type of bread, just like Marie-san's shop used to be. Naturally, it was the un-yeasted, flat, brick-like bread. For now, I decided to buy two loaves to cover lunch and dinner.

"Thank you very much. That will be 120G."

That worked out to 60G per loaf. Since Marie-san's shop used to sell the exact same thing for 50G, it felt a bit pricey. Then again, Marie-san's shop was currently selling the new yeasted bread for 70G a loaf. So technically, this place was 10G cheaper.

"Thanks."

I paid the money and took the bread. My remaining funds dropped to 440G. I went back home for a moment to get ready for school.

"Seriously, though, living on nothing but plain bread for days on end is going to become a real nutritional problem..."

I pulled out my terminal to search if there was anything cheap and good that went well with bread.

"Oh, this goes perfectly with bread and has a decent amount of calories. Plus, it can be stored at room temperature."

Kent purchased a large 450g squeeze bottle of mayonnaise for 300G. His remaining cash on hand plummeted to 140G.

"This is a pretty generous amount, so it should last me a while."

I headed off to school, and once the morning periods wrapped up, lunch break arrived.

Today, I had brought my mayonnaise along with my lunch, but since it was still just plain bread, I felt too embarrassed to let anyone see me eat it. I headed to the back of the school building to eat in private. Sitting down on the same bench as yesterday, I pulled out the bread and squirted a healthy dollop of mayonnaise over it.

"I see it is not the fluffy bread today."

Someone spoke up from right beside me. Looking up at the source of the voice, I realized Josette had already sat down next to me without me even noticing.

"Ah, Josette-san. The bakery where I work is closed today, you see. So I had to buy this from a different shop."

"Is that so? And what exactly is that substance you are squeezing onto your bread?"

"It's called mayonnaise. It goes amazingly well with bread and makes it taste delicious."

Curiosity completely getting the better of her, Josette stared intently at the mayonnaise-covered bread.

"Want half?"

"I gladly accept."

I had braced myself for some sort of roundabout, haughty refusal, but this time she answered instantly and without hesitation. Kent tore the bread in half and handed one piece over to Josette.

"Ahhh... nom. Mmm..."

Josette chewed the bread with a look of pure, utter bliss on her face. Kent took a bite of his own, but since it was a flavor he was completely used to from his previous life, he didn't find it particularly mind-blowing.

"If this flavor were paired with that fluffy bread, I imagine it would be infinitely more delicious," she remarked.

"Yeah, definitely. Truthfully, mayonnaise is meant to be a seasoning used alongside other ingredients to make it even better."

"Such as?"

"Let's see... like hard-boiled eggs mashed up and mixed in... or canned tuna... and it's also great with ham and fresh vegetables."

"I have no idea what 'canned tuna' or 'ham' are, but if it tastes this good with just the mayonnaise, I am certain it must be wonderful... Oh dear, my apologies. I must be going... Thank you for the meal."

With that, Josette turned and glided back toward the school building. Consequently, my lunch had been cut exactly in half, meaning I had to sit through the afternoon lectures with a slightly rumbling stomach.

After school, as I was getting ready to head home, I spotted Rachel in the hallway talking intimately with the Prince.

Wait... is this that one event?

I paused to observe the situation from a slight distance. Before long, Cedric—the Prime Minister's son, who was short, slender, and had green hair—and Marc—the Knight Commander's son, who was tall with pitch-black hair—approached Rachel. The four of them began conversing.

(If I remember right, isn't this the event where the four of them walk home together? ...And the Villainess is supposed to jump out halfway through to make a scene.)

Sure enough, the moment the four of them stepped outside the school gates, the Villainess, Josette, materialized exactly as Kent had predicted, flanked by her two loyal lackeys.

"Oh my, look what we have here. It seems someone entirely out of their station has mingled into your group."

"Indeed, Lady Josette. I can practically smell the stench of a country bumpkin from here."

The two lackeys immediately lobbed insults at Rachel.

"Lord Gordon (the Prince's name), Lord Cedric, Lord Marc. Walking alongside someone of such low birth will only tarnish your dignity. It would be most wise to cease this immediately, would it not?"

"Josette, that is quite enough. I was the one who invited her to join us. Refrain from speaking ill of her," the Prince replied, his tone sharp and stern.

"Oh? My deepest apologies then. Very well... see that you remember this."

Josette glared fiercely at Rachel, then turned on her heel and marched away with her entourage. In that exact moment, her eyes accidentally met Kent's. Realizing he had witnessed the entire display, a deeply uncomfortable, awkward look flashed across Josette's face.

"I apologize for causing such an unpleasant scene. Shall we depart?"

"Yes!" Rachel beamed.

With the Prince offering his apologies, the four of them resumed their walk home as if nothing had happened.

Since Kent didn't really have anything left to do at school, he decided to head home too. Because the bakery was closed today, I had zero plans. I figured I should at least wash the clothes I was currently wearing.

Between my underwear and my school uniform, I only owned a single outfit to my name, and I didn't even have casual clothes for when I was at home. I'm going to have to do something about this next, Kent thought to himself.

The next morning, Kent headed to the bakery for his morning shift.

"Good morning."

"Morning! Were you able to get some proper rest yesterday?" Marie-san asked, sweeping the floors as I offered my morning greeting.

"Well, the shop was closed, but I still had school."

"Ah, right, of course."

"Morning, Onii-chan! Let's do our best today!"

"Morning, Catherine. Let's work hard today."

Because the shop had been closed the previous day, a swarm of customers who had been desperately craving the new bread packed the store right from the morning. The moment the frantic rush finally subsided, it was time for me to head to school.

"Since the shop was closed yesterday, you probably don't have anything for lunch, right? Here, take this with you."

Marie-san handed Kent a fresh loaf of bread.

"Thank you so much! I'll gladly take it."

Accepting the bread, Kent made his way to school.

During first period... I felt a gaze locking onto me. During second period, I felt that exact same gaze coming from the exact same direction. The source of the intense staring was none other than Josette.

When lunch break arrived, Kent headed to the secluded area behind the school building to eat his bread in peace, sitting down on the bench. Right on cue, Josette slid onto the bench right next to him, just like yesterday.

"You... you saw what happened yesterday, didn't you?"

"Uh... yeah, pretty much."

"I believe this makes it the second time you have witnessed such a thing..."

"Could be."

(Kent knew absolutely every single piece of harassment Josette would inflict upon the protagonist, Rachel, throughout the game. By the late-game stages, she becomes a genuinely malicious existence who acts as nothing but a massive hindrance.)

"It appears further hush money is required."

With those words, she brought her face close and pressed her lips squarely against Kent's. This marked their third kiss.

However, this time was completely different from the previous two. Something slid smoothly into Kent's mouth. It was Josette's tongue. It moved deliberately, tracing and exploring the inside of his mouth as if thoroughly coating every inch.

"Pff-haaa!"

After a long, breathless moment, their lips finally parted.

"Why... why do you keep kissing me every time you say it's 'hush money'?" Kent asked, completely out of the loop and utterly bewildered.

"Why, indeed... Perhaps the first time is to blame..." Josette muttered, her voice barely a whisper.

"The way my heart raced back then... I have been unable to forget it. I do not truly understand it myself. I simply thought... I must silence your mouth, I must plug it... and my body acted on its own the second time. And just now..."

Her face flushed a furious shade of crimson, and she fell dead silent, unable to finish her sentence.

"Enough! We are done discussing this topic! I shall be having some of your bread today as well!"

Deflecting fiercely, she reached into Kent’s bag and yanked out a loaf of bread. Once Kent squirted some mayonnaise onto it for her, she began eating happily.

"As I thought, this bread is vastly superior for this flavor."

Josette’s cheeks puffed out like a squirrel stuffing its face with food as she happily munched away. Watching her, Kent couldn't help but find the gesture incredibly cute.

The sheer gap between her two personas was staggering. Kent felt it was almost impossible to believe that the girl who carried herself as a harsh, villainous noblewoman was the exact same person currently sitting next to him, eating bread with such pure, unadulterated relish.

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