Before dawn, Livia awakens in the quiet loft above her bakery. Gray light seeps through the shutters, and the cursed cowbell remains fixed around her neck, giving a dull chime as she shifts.
Her white top feels tighter than yesterday from the curse's overnight effects. Below, the prepared workroom waits with clean pails, mixing bowls, flour, sugar, and cooling racks.
Livia Bellagarth
The overnight growth is more noticeable than yesterday.
The bakery is otherwise empty. Hearth ashes rest beneath the oven, ingredients stand measured on the counter, and the front shutters remain barred against the sleeping town of Sindaria.
A faint sweetness lingers in the air from yesterday's pastries, mingling with warm wood, yeast, and the clean scent of washed utensils.
Time presses quietly toward opening. The collected milk must be handled, the morning dough prepared, and the ovens brought to heat before customers begin arriving.
The cowbell gives another soft note in the stillness, while the empty bakery offers Livia everything necessary to begin.
✓ Quest Accepted
Prepare the collected milk for baking
“After milking myself, take the milk bucket downstairs to the kitchen and begin making dough.”
SUCCESS (Great Crafting, rolled +2)
Livia works methodically in the loft, milking herself into the clean pail until the pressure eases and her white top settles more comfortably against her body.
The cowbell gives a muted chime as she lifts the filled bucket and descends the narrow stairs. Dawn light now touches the bakery’s shuttered windows.
Livia Bellagarth
The milk is cool, and the bucket is heavier than yesterday.
In the kitchen, Livia sets the bucket beside the worktable, then measures flour into a broad wooden bowl with practiced precision.
She adds sugar, yeast, and warm water, then pours in a measured portion of milk. The mixture clouds the bowl with a soft, sweet scent.
Her hands fold the ingredients together, scraping flour from the rim and turning the shaggy mass until it begins to hold as dough.
By the time the first kneading is underway, the kitchen carries the familiar rhythm of work: wood creaking, dough thumping softly, and the bakery waking around her.
✓ Quest Accepted
Prepare the bakery for opening
Quest Complete
Prepare the collected milk for baking
The Hu-Cow character's milk production continues constantly.
“Use the dough to make a large quantity of French toast, and brownies. Then, assemble them in the display cabinets for sale.”
SUCCESS (Great Crafting, rolled +1)
Livia divides the risen dough, slicing part into thick pieces for French toast and folding the rest into a rich brownie batter with cocoa, sugar, and milk.
The griddle warms over the hearth. She dips each bread slice, lays it onto the hot iron, and turns them as their edges brown and their centers soften.
Livia Bellagarth
The milk replenishes even while I bake.
A second pan receives the brownie batter. Its surface darkens smoothly in the oven, filling the bakery with chocolate, toasted sugar, and warm spice.
Livia stacks the finished French toast in neat portions, dusting them with sugar, then cuts the brownies into generous squares once they have cooled.
She wipes the display cabinets clean and arranges the breakfast slices on one tier, the glossy brownie squares on another, with small cards marking each price.
Morning light reaches the front shutters as the cabinets gleam with fresh goods. Behind them, the bakery smells ready for Sindaria's first customers.
Quest Complete
Prepare the bakery for opening
The Hu-Cow character's milk production continues constantly.