As hours passed, the setting sun dyed the Royal Capital with an orange hue, while students walked out in droves from the gates of the Vizwel Royal Academy.
One such student was Rob Fortune, a young man around the age of 15, with long, messy black hair, and lightly tanned skin. His dark brown eyes stared at the streets in front of him in a daze, a small, imperceptible smile encroached on his face, causing him to appear more like a demon than an ugly pig.
His pudgy belly jiggled underneath his black robe, and he even snickered inwardly, thinking, What a great day of harvest. 9000 F Rank luck… that’s 0.9 D Rank luck! That’s just 90% of a normal person’s luck! Sigh, in a day, I would be twice as lucky as any random person in the streets here.
Fortune Stealer had also gotten a lot stronger, and could already steal up to 5 F Rank luck per minute, from 5 different sources, at a range of 5.8 meters! Rob shook his head and dismissed his imperceptible smirk to pick up his pace and go back home. There were still a lot of things he hasn’t done and explored regarding his ultimate golden finger, Fortune Stealer!
After walking down the road with great familiarity, Rob soon arrived in front of a simple but appealing house that was standing right beside a cute bakery that had a signboard on top with the words ‘Fortune Bakery’ written on it.
Stopping in front of the door, Rob grabbed the handle by habit, twisted it open with an audible click, and shouted in an exhausted tone, “I’m home!”
From inside the humble abode he called home, a woman’s voice called out to him, “How was school?”
“It was fine!” Rob shouted back, took off his shoes, and placed them on the shoe rack before he then entered the living room.
The room was also plain and simple, with a few chairs around a long wooden table, while also having a spanking new Magi-TV on the opposite end of the room for the family’s entertainment. There were also some bookshelves filled to the brim with books, books that Rob can fondly remember reading day in and day out.
“Did you meet that Anna girl?” Vivia Fortune—Rob’s mother—walked out of the kitchen with wet hands, wearing an apron, and had her long brown hair tied into a little bun.
She was undoubtedly a beautiful woman, with lightly tanned skin, light brown eyes, and long brown hair that flowed like an earthen river. She had a beautiful face, with soft pink lips and a slim figure.
One can only wonder just how someone of her appearance could give birth to the ugly pig known as Rob Fortune, but that’s simply another mystery of life, and she still loved Rob regardless… for the most part.
“You mean that spoiled noble brat? Then, yes.” Rob walked into the kitchen to grab a cup of water and drank it all in one go, letting out a refreshed sigh.
“Heh, you must have received a real earful.” Vivia Fortune chuckled and also returned to the kitchen to finish cooking their dinner.
“Where’s dad, by the way?” Rob asked and returned the cup back into a drawer.
“He’s in the bakery. Why don’t you go help him out for a change?” Vivia chortled while rinsing a few carrots and potatoes clean.
“Sure, sure.” Rob yawned and slowly walked up the stairs, and for a while, Vivia proceeded as usual. That was until she realized what Rob just said.
Huh? Did he just… say sure?
Without a complaint at all?
He just said yes…
Am I hallucinating?
As her thoughts churned like a wave, she heard the door click open, and Rob’s voice shouted out loudly, “I’m going out now!”
“O-Okay! Take care!” Vivia shouted back, her hands unmoving under the bowl of water with her mind turned into a mess.
…
Rob soon entered their baker with a new set of clothes. It was a simple white linen shirt, and dark brown pants along with a pair of shoes, he really wanted to wear slippers since it was more convenient, but he had to upkeep his appearance and all that. It wasn’t the most appealing outfit that definitely doesn’t complement well with his frail appearance, but it at least elevates him from the level of wild and naked animals.
As the door opened with a ring, a man walked out from the door behind the counter. The man was imposingly tall, with a bald head and long black beard. His dark brown eyes were sharp and fierce, with the air of a man who experienced the vicissitudes of life. He was muscular with muscles that bulged under his white linen shirt and light brown apron.
He was Herve Fortune, the man known as Rob’s father. He was previously a Knight that worked for some nobles here and there, amassing his own wealth so that he and Vivia can finally start their own bakery and live a simple life.
After years of hard work, he can finally live a life away from danger, and raise his son. And, while he did have a talented son with great potential in magic, he was simply too… ugly and lazy, like a pig in human skin.
So, when he saw his son walking through the door, he instinctively thought, Is he here to get more food? Argh, he really should get on a diet! But Vivia doesn’t want him to do so because it might stunt his growth.
If only he can start working out! I can buy him a gym membership if he wants to.
Even though he had extremely degrading thoughts of his son, he still smiled and asked with a smile, “So, how did your first day at school go?”
Rob smiled and approached the counter, and said, “It was pretty alright. I even beat up a classmate for combat training.”
“Oho?” Herve raised his eyebrow in surprise. I guess he’s still talented. Hehehe, as expected of my son!
“Well, what are you here for?” Herve asked while fixing some of the pastries and bread on display beneath the counter.
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“I’m here to help obviously,” Rob responded with an impassive face, entered the area behind the counter, and walked through the door behind the counter while grabbing a light brown apron along the way.
Herve stayed crouching on the ground, his eyes staring at the bread and pastries in front of him with his eyes flickering in a daze light.
Did I hear it wrongly?
He slowly turned around, and through the open door, he could see Rob putting on the apron with unnatural familiarity, looked around the room, and grabbed a bag of flour, a bowl, and even eggs and a cup of water, ingredients needed for baking bread.
“Hey, Dad! What do you need me to bake? Some garlic parmesan? Haven’t they been selling like hotcakes lately?” Rob asked from the kitchen, causing Herve to break out of his reverie.
“Y-Yeah…” Herve nodded his head when he regained his clarity and hurriedly entered the kitchen with clear worry. “Are you sure you know how to? What if you messed it up? Why don’t you just sit behind the counter and let Papa do the baking?”
“Sheesh, you don’t have to worry!” Rob shook Herve away and puffed up his chest. “You might not know this, but I already know the recipe by heart, and casting Earth Magic has caused me to gain some pretty high hand dexterity, so you don’t have to worry about anything.”
“Just let me cook a single batch, and if you find it bad, then I’ll just sit my ass on the counter. Is that fine?” Rob revealed a confident smile, easing some of the worries in Herve’s heart, but he still can’t help but think about what would happen if Rob failed.
Tsk, I’ll let him have his way. It’s only a single batch anyway. Who knows, maybe the kid really isn’t just boasting and pulling stuff out of his ass.
“Fine, fine. I’ll let you have this one.” Herve sighed, and as he walked out of the door, he heard the door behind him closed with a loud thud.
“You better not mess this up!” Herve shouted loudly from behind the door.
“Yes, yes!” Rob shouted back, and with Herve finally relenting to his son’s wishes, he sat down on a chair to wait and wait for customers to come.
Now all alone inside the kitchen, Rob wore an excited grin as the hovering lump of soil and garlic parmesan bread on his head flew down and rested on the table in front of him.
It glowed with a dim brown light, illuminating the area around it with an earthen smell that only he could perceive.
Kekeke, let’s see what would happen once I alter my luck.
Fortune Stealer, go!
With a wave of his hand, the loaf of bread growing atop the lump of dark brown soil started to expand, sucking all of the nutrients away from the dark brown soil and transforming into one big loaf of bread shining with dazzling stars.
An aromatic scent wafted through the air, and the loaf of bread glowed brightly with a golden light. It was pretty large, around half the size of his body, and the golden stars rotating around it were dazzling to the eye.
Sigh, to think I’d be this happy to have luck in the form of high-quality bread. When I was living my life in that cultivation world, not once would I think this would happen. Oh well, let’s see what kind of bread I’ll make with this kind of luck.
As he processed the ingredients with great familiarity like it was an intrinsic skill that he had practiced for years, Rob slowly followed the simple recipe in his mind.
He cracked and whisked some eggs, mixed them into flour, and put some baking powder, along with all the other ingredients he’ll need. After that, with a wave of his hand, he allowed the lump of dough to rest and expand and checked the time.
4:10. I still have plenty of time.
With the free time he now had on his hands, Rob sat down on a chair and slumped down his shoulders. He slowly closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. Inside his body, he could feel his heart pulsate with mysterious energy, half of which already covered his heart. With each heartbeat, the mysterious energy would flow through his bloodstream and invigorate his cells.
This world sure has a nifty power system. Knights and Mages rely on mana to either enhance their bodies or strengthen their Mana Hearts, allowing them to acquire great strength beyond the norm.
Even by pure intuition, I can expand on this world’s Mana Heart and go on to evolve my entire body, creating a body suited entirely to Mana, but… that’s too lame! Who would want that to do that when you can just rely on fortunate opportunities to pave your path to greatness?
As he circulated the mana through his breath and into his heart, he checked the time and saw that the dough should have rested enough. So, with swift movements, he checked the preheated magical oven, split the dough into equal parts, placed them on a tray, and slid it right inside the oven.
After a short while, he pulled it out after hearing a ding and was greeted by fresh loaves of bread.
Adding in the finishing touches, he was presented with garlic parmesan bread!
The smell of the bread, garlic, and cheese, mixed in the air to create a mouthwatering scent that caused Rob’s stomach to growl in hunger.
Grabbing one to taste it for himself, Rob bit into its golden brown skin and was greeted by an audible crunch. His eyes widened as an extremely pleasant taste and a soft yet crisp texture invaded his tongue.
Not bad, not bad!
“Papa! I’m finished!”
Hearing his shout, the door creaked open, and Herve Fortune walked in with an expectant gaze. As soon as he was greeted by the aromatic scent wafting through the air, his eyes widened and his gaze landed on the illusory glowing loaves of bread that were resting on a tray.
It was definitely a large batch, so taking one for himself wouldn’t be that big of a deal.
So, Herve unceremoniously grabbed one for himself, inspected its appearance, and nodded in approval.
“It looks good, it looks good!” He nodded his head in approval, but his eyes shifted as he became more serious. “But does it taste good?”
“Heh, get ready to be dazzled!” Rob chuckled as he leaned back on his chair with a confident smile.
With a single bite, an audible crunch rang through the air as Herve’s eyes widened from sheer shock.
This taste, equal parts sweet, sour, and salty?! The outer layer is extremely crunchy while the inner crunchy is soft and fluffy like cotton?! With each bite, I can feel my teeth sinking down on something like the crispy skin of chicken, and the soft texture of bready cotton!
“T-This… This is simply marvelous!” Herve stared at Rob in shock, unable to believe what he just ate.
“Hehehe! They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover!” Rob laughed loudly.
“Rob… I thought you were a good-for-nothing son who wouldn’t inherit the family business, but it seems you’ve been hiding your true skill all this while!” Herve laughed proudly and patted Rob on the back. He wiped the tears from his eye as he wore a wide grin, and said in a proud tone, “Now, go on and bake more batches.”
Ugh, more work. Rob held back his desire to roll his eyes. Shouldn’t you reward me with a little break instead?
Rob simply groaned in response, stood up, and patted his floury apron. He then nodded his head, and said in a helpless voice, “Fine, fine.”
“Good! If you work hard enough, I’ll increase your allowance this week!” Herve walked out of the door carrying the large tray of bread. The door then closed with an audible clack, leaving Rob alone inside the kitchen.
As Rob shook his head and sighed, he wore a subtle grin and muttered, “Even though I stole their son’s body, in a way, I’m still Rob Fortune regardless.”
“Sigh, family is such a chore no matter the universe or reality I’m in,” Rob mumbled. At least they aren’t trying to sacrifice me to some demonic god for unrivaled power or something.
When he thought about the topic of family, various memories replayed in his mind, memories that weren’t so bright and lively as the warm and wholesome familial love one would expect.
In some of those memories, Rob was a dying old man sacrificing an infant child on top of a blood-red magic matrix. Some had him as a newly born spider having to desperately eat the corpse of his mother so he could deal with the intense hunger. Others were even more devious, displaying horrific sights that would make one puke in disgust.
Sigh, how many parents did I have to kill for my survival? How many of my children did I have to kill because those little pricks wanted to betray their father?
I do hope that I don’t have to encounter something extremely tempting and the requirement is something crap like sacrificing a thousand human souls or sacrificing your entire family to acquire ultimate power. Because if that’s the case, then I wouldn’t be able to stop myself.
A malicious light flashed in Rob’s eyes which then disappeared as quickly as it came. He continued to mix eggs with flour, slowly making another lump of dough to whip up some high-quality bread.