Survival Queen of the Frozen Wastes novel Chapter 43

Chapter 43 Baker’s Tale

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Riley met her earnest gaze and felt a touch of warmth toward this kind, somewhat innocent girl.

“Fair’s fair,” Riley said, picking up the One–Time Blueprint–Arcane Oven. “Here–you take it.

“You were pretty good with those cakes earlier. Might come in handy for you.”

TartKing blinked, then her eyes went wide.

An oven.

For someone going by the name TartKing, that was basically the holy grail.

“Wait… you’re really giving it to me?” she stammered, hardly believing it.

“Take it,” Riley insisted, pushing the blueprint into her hands. “It’s no use to me anyway. I can’t bake to save my life.”

That was the truth.

In Riley’s inventory, the blueprint was just dead weight. But in the hands of someone who already knew her way around an oven–maybe it could actually be worth something.

TartKing accepted it like it was a priceless heirloom, her cheeks flushing with excitement.

“Thank you, boss! Seriously–thank you so much!”

They found a relatively secure spot and sat down to catch their breath.

After fighting side by side, the tension between them had melted away.

“Boss, you were incredible out there,” TartKing said between bites of the bread she’d baked earlier, looking at Riley with genuine admiration. “That was a leveleight elite! That other guy… He went down in two hits. And you just took it out like it was nothing.”

Riley shrugged it off with a faint smile. “Just got lucky. I’m a bit stronger than most, and your pastries made all the difference. Without those, I’d have been in deep trouble too.”

Hearing her baking praised, TartKing scratched the back of her neck, a little embarrassed, though a hint of pride still shone through.

“Actually… I kinda lucked out too.”

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14:01 Tue, May 5

Chapter 43 Baker’s Tale

She started opening up.

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“Right before the crossover happened, I was pulling a late shift at my family’s bakery, finishing up a big custom order. I remember thinking, ‘Man, I wish I could just bring this whole setup with me.‘ And then when the countdown hit zero… I woke up here with everything–me, the oven, all of it.”

Riley raised an eyebrow. “You brought your equipment with you?”

“Yeah!” TartKing nodded eagerly. “Not just the oven. I had bags of flour, butter, sugar–even the stand mixer came along. But with no electricity now, most of it’s just taking up space.

“The system must’ve given me some kind of compensation, though. My crafting menu unlocked Basic Pastry Making right away. As long as I’ve got ingredients, I can whip up small cakes and breads by hand.”

She let out a tired sigh.

“The problem is, chopping wood takes forever. I’m so weak that bringing down one tree eats up half my day. Most of my energy goes into just gathering enough firewood to get by. If I didn’t start with plenty of supplies, I probably would’ve starved by now.

“I never thought the food was anything special–until I got into this dungeon. That’s when the item descriptions changed. Now they say my pastries can give temporary stat boosts. Too bad my own stats are so low that even after eating them, I’m still… well, me.”

Riley turned it over in her head.

So that was how it worked.

It looked like she wasn’t the only one who’d crossed over with “professional gear“. Everyone just landed with different starting points, so they grew in different directions.

TartKing was the classic supportandsupply type. Her combat skills were practically

nonexistent, but given time and a safe spot, she could turn ingredients into seriously valuable recovery food.

“So how did you end up getting chased by that troll?” Riley asked.

At that, TartKing’s expression dimmed. She bit her lip, her earlier excitement fading.

“I… I was teamed up with someone.

“Right after we got in. A guy named OngoingDusk. He said if I kept him fed, he’d protect me and help take down monsters.

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14:01 Tue, May 5

Chapter 43 Baker’s Tale

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