Melina stood silently, trying to come up with something to make Alistair less suspicious of her. Dozens of options went through her mind, but none of them seemed convincing enough. Just as she opened her mouth to respond, Gilbert's distinct footsteps could be heard on the stairs.
"Oh,...
2025-05-02 11:44:24 +0000 UTC View Post
"When it rains, it pours," Melina said with a sigh, picking up the last bits of the glass from the floor.
"So it seems," Gilbert nodded ruefully, looking over the scene.
"I'll pay for the damages," Alistair said resolutely and prompted up the remains of the broken door against t...
2025-05-01 06:20:01 +0000 UTC View Post
When Melina turned on the sign that morning, indicating that the bakery was open, her hands were shaking a little bit. It felt odd because she never was one to care much for public opinion as an [Archmage]. Then again having all of the world's strongest magic at your fingertips made one feel they...
2025-05-01 06:15:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Seeing Alistair in pain, Melina quickly set down the soup and bent down next to him, putting her hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong?"
He breathed heavily and clutched at the side of his neck, exactly where his scar used to be before the time was rewound.
Oh, no… Is he per...
2025-05-01 06:13:00 +0000 UTC View Post
After her long talk with Master Gilbert, Melina returned to her bedroom utterly exhausted both physically and mentally. Her mind was racing at the possibilities of what townspeople would do to her and Sienna, but her heart was pounding with excitement. In short, her emotions were completely all o...
2025-05-01 06:09:01 +0000 UTC View Post
"Miss Melina, are you sure that's a good idea?" Alistair asked, his expression distraught as were those of other adventurers.
I am absolutely certain that it is not a good idea. It will most certainly scare the townsfolk and I honestly can't claim that I'll be able to contain this monst...
2025-05-01 06:06:01 +0000 UTC View Post
The lines on the ember wyrm's body began to glow and the ice around it began to crack. Alistair and the others watched in horror how more and more cracks spread through the ice until it finally shattered.
"Don't give it time to recuperate! Attack all at once!" Guildmaster Arianne shouted an...
2025-05-01 06:03:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Update! We've reached 100 patrons! Thank you all so much for your support. Never thought I'd get so far with a story about baking. There will be an extra chapter tomorrow and a new milestone. Next milestones will come every 20 new members since... I don't think I keep up with you...
2025-05-01 06:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Panting and gasping, Melina ran through the Sunglow back to the bakery, clutching her purchase from the apothecary close to her chest. But her approaching monthly visitor was nothing more than a mere afterthought. Instead, her thoughts were filled with Alistair.
The monster currently at...
2025-05-01 06:00:07 +0000 UTC View Post
"Sound the alarm! Evacuate the townsfolk away from the wall!" The Guildmaster ordered, standing on the wall with the town watch and Alistair. It was his time to patrol, but when his <Danger Sense> went off, he retreated to the town immediately. The skill gave him a clear indication that thi...
2025-04-29 06:00:21 +0000 UTC View PostSome of you might have already noticed, but I've replaced most images for Taste of Magic chapters. I recently ran across a new AI which I believe is much better at making coherent images than the last one I used.
I know some people are not fans of AI generated stuff, but these are meant mo...
2025-04-28 06:41:04 +0000 UTC View Post
It was four in the morning. Darkness and silence still covered the world so when Melina's alarm clock went off, it felt like a magic spell had been broken. The grating noise scraped against Melina's ears, and she grabbed the clock, shutting it off and setting it down on the nightstand with a bit ...
2025-04-27 06:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Once again, Melina was faced with the undeniable truth that she was weak. In fact, her body was so weak that it could not keep up with a girl of approximately the same age and build as her. After several hours of digging the soil and picking out rocks as well as revitalizing it with fertilizer, M...
2025-04-25 06:00:17 +0000 UTC View Post
Melina set the bread and pastries on the bakery shelves, her stomach tingling from excitement. She felt foolish and nervous, but apparently, even with experience, one couldn't help but worry about others' thoughts.
This morning, Master Gilbert showed her how to make proper pear and ginger j...
2025-04-24 06:00:09 +0000 UTC View Post
Melina kneaded the dough, preparing one of the many batches necessary for tomorrow. <Rhythmic Kneading> kept her hands steady and precise, helping her exert less energy on the arduous task. But the whole time she was working, her mind went back to Alistair's letter which Master Gilbert curr...
2025-04-22 06:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post
How did this even happen?
Alistair suppressed the urge to groan. All he wanted to do was to drop by the bakery to deliver his letter to Master Gilbert and maybe buy himself something to eat before his patrol began. Yet somehow he ended up with this Leliana girl sticking to his hand...
2025-04-20 06:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
Melina carefully tiptoed towards the shop, trying to remain as quiet as possible, when another knock resounded. She peered over the threshold and saw that behind the glass door stood… that red-haired girl she met at the party.
What was her name again? Le… Leila… No. Laila? No. Lei...
2025-04-18 06:00:16 +0000 UTC View Post
"Girl, what were you thinking?!" Master Gilbert growled at Melina as they finally arrived home, stopping the cart by the still-broken backdoor. "Why would you deliberately give that noble brat a way to discover us?"
Melina winced when he called Alistair a brat but remained calm. She had exp...
2025-04-17 06:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
Alistair couldn't believe what he had seen. This wasn't like those previous flashes of scenes he had before. Those had been so brief, so vague that he had dismissed them as mere hallucinations. Images conjured by his sleep-deprived and tired mind. But this time the vision was clear.
He was ...
2025-04-15 06:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostNothing major, but I decided to make a post so nobody is surprised. I've changed the price of Fan tier from 9$ to 8.99$ and Admirer tier from 13$ to 12.99$. Starting next month, everyone gets to pay 0.01$ less. Why the change?
It's a preparation for when I release Taste of Magic on RoyalRo...
2025-04-14 07:33:51 +0000 UTC View Post
"System user?" Remi asked curiously. Melina clenched her fists tightly, doing her best not to show her nervousness. Alistair trying to find other System users was bad news for her. He could start looking for clues or even try to acquire a skill that would let him identify individuals.
"Yes....
2025-04-13 06:00:12 +0000 UTC View Post
Suddenly an idea popped into Melina's mind. She plucked a single hair from her head and carefully wrapped it around the mana crystal.
"What are you doing?" Milo asked, watching her movements closely.
"I'm not sure if this will work, but I think it's worth a try," she said and began ti...
2025-04-11 06:02:56 +0000 UTC View Post
The contest was moving forward in full swing as Melina transferred the risen dough to the work surface which she had generously covered with flour. She did not notice the audience around her, nor did she care about Curt's or Felipe's piercing gazes. Her only thought was to make the bread rolls as...
2025-04-10 06:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
"We have our four contestants, so here are the rules. I believe they are rather simple." Auden announced to the crowd gathered around the market plaza. "You have to make a baked dish and present it to me within an hour and thirty minutes."
"Hour and thirty minutes? But that's hardly enough ...
2025-04-08 06:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
"This is absolutely amazing!" Remi flitted from one merchant stall to the next, Melina barely able to catch up with her. Yesterday, the elf girl had remained inside the inn all day, too worried about humans reacting to her elven ears to go out. When Melina found that out in the evening, she promi...
2025-04-06 06:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
With Melina's apprenticeship settled, Master Gilbert and Melina headed back to the main street in search of breakfast. Many wonderful smells wafted through the air, and her stomach growled in response, eager to feast on any of the delectable-smelling dishes.
Much to Melina's surprise, she s...
2025-04-04 06:00:06 +0000 UTC View Post
Alistair could not sleep a wink, instead tossing and turning in his bed for most of the night, until he finally got up. He got dressed and left the inn before dawn. The chilly night air instantly clung to his skin, bringing clarity to his thoughts.
That girl… Melina was her name. When...
2025-04-03 06:00:08 +0000 UTC View Post
"M-Miss… A-Are you an e-elf?" The innkeeper stammered out, taking shaky steps towards Remi.
"She's a half-elf," Melina hurriedly said, trying to prevent a whole heap of trouble that could follow. As an Archmage, she had often witnessed what happened when an elf came to a human city. They ...
2025-04-01 06:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
No, stop…
The scene was so horrifyingly familiar to Melina that she wanted to scream. Why was Alistair always protecting her like this? Why has fate deemed that he needed to risk his life to protect hers? She couldn't even help him with magic.
Hobgoblin roared, contin...
2025-03-30 06:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
This truly is quite a blessing.
Alistair was nearly humming with delight as they traveled through the rather narrow, uneven road that led to Pertia. He had honestly thought that it would take much longer than this for him to get to the city, but luckily the local baker had some imp...
2025-03-28 07:00:06 +0000 UTC View Post