Chapter 159: Did the cabinet just screamed

Penelope had no idea how long she had been following the little puppy.

The tiny detective marched confidently through one street after another, its tail wagging as if it knew exactly where it was going.

After several more turns, Penelope finally stopped walking.

She placed both hands on her hips and looked around.

Rows of unfamiliar buildings surrounded them.

There was no park. No swings. No Sky. No, Jenny. Not even the other children.

She lowered her eyes to the puppy.

"Detective Puppy..." she said suspiciously. "Where exactly are we going?"

The puppy looked up at her and happily barked.

"Woof!"

"...That’s not an answer."

It had been quite a while since they left the park, yet no matter which road they took, they couldn’t find their way back.

Penelope frowned. "Puppy..." she asked seriously, "...do you think we’re lost?"

The puppy simply tilted its head.

Penelope let out a long sigh. Most children her age would have burst into tears by now. But Penelope wasn’t like most children.

Instead, she squeezed her little forehead, trying her hardest to think of a solution.

"Think... think..." she muttered.

A few seconds passed.

Nothing.

"I can’t think," she sighed dramatically. "Maybe my brain is tired."

Right on cue—her stomach growled loudly.

Grrr...

Penelope blinked before pouting. "My last candy..."

She remembered Jake snatching it from her earlier at the park. Now her little backpack was completely empty.

"Great..." she mumbled. "Now my stomach is empty too."

"Woof... woof..."

The puppy looked up at her with big, pleading eyes before letting out a tiny whine.

Penelope’s expression softened immediately.

"Are you hungry too?"

She knelt beside it and gently rubbed its head.

"Oh no..."

The puppy licked her hand in response.

Penelope searched through her backpack one last time.

A handkerchief.

A tiny hair clip.

A crayon.

No food.

Not even a biscuit crumb.

She looked around the street.

"I don’t have any money," she whispered.

"If we stay hungry, my brain won’t work..." she said, tapping her forehead. "And if my brain doesn’t work, I won’t be able to find Sky."

She frowned deeply.

"This is a very serious problem."

Just then—

A delicious aroma drifted through the air.

Warm.

Sweet.

Freshly baked.

Penelope’s tiny nose twitched.

She sniffed once.

Then twice.

Her eyes suddenly sparkled.

"Detective Puppy!" she gasped. "Do you smell that?"

The puppy’s ears perked up immediately before its tail began wagging furiously.

"It smells like... cookies!"

Penelope closed her eyes and inhaled dramatically.

"Fresh cookies!"

She pointed excitedly toward the street ahead.

"Come on! Let’s find the cookie place first."

Then she added with complete confidence,

"Smart people always think better after eating."

The puppy barked excitedly.

"Woof!"

"Exactly!" Penelope nodded as though they had just reached the same brilliant conclusion.

Without another second to waste, the little girl and her self-appointed Detective Puppy raced toward the irresistible smell of freshly baked cookies, completely unaware that they were wandering even farther away from the park.

***

Meanwhile, Lily had just finished baking the last batch of cookies.

She carefully slid the tray onto the cooling rack before pulling off her oven gloves with a relieved sigh.

"I really hope the children like them," she said, stretching her sore shoulders. "I’ve never baked this many cookies in one day."

Since Clara had ordered Gen to take a break after overworking herself, Silvia had taken over decorating the cookies. With surprising concentration, she carefully piped colorful icing onto each one, turning them into adorable little animals.

A rabbit. A bear. A sleepy panda. Even a tiny puppy.

Looking at the finished cookies lined up on the table, Silvia couldn’t help smiling proudly.

"Like them?" she laughed. "Lily, if I were one of those kids, I’d refuse to leave after eating these."

Lily chuckled. "You’re just saying that because you helped decorate them."

"Of course not." Silvia placed both hands on her hips dramatically. "I’m speaking as a professional cookie taster."

Lily raised an eyebrow.

"...Since when were you a professional?"

"Since about five minutes ago."

The two burst into laughter.

Earlier, Clara had been informed that children from the orphanage had also been invited to the charity event. Mr. Adrian had specifically requested that the little guests be treated with extra care and that they enjoy the desserts the most.

Knowing that, Clara had personally supervised every recipe and refused to compromise on the quality.

She wanted the children to remember today as something special.

Silvia looked at the mountain of cookies and smiled warmly.

"Madam put her whole heart into these. I’m sure the kids are going to love them."

"I hope so," Lily replied softly. "Seeing children smile after eating something you made... that’s the best compliment a baker can receive."

Once the icing had fully set, the two women carefully arranged the cookies inside decorative boxes, making sure none of the little animal faces were smudged.

When they finished, Silvia stepped back and admired their work.

"They’re almost too cute to eat."

Lily laughed.

"Don’t let Madam hear you say that. She’ll tell your food is meant to be enjoyed, not admired."

The two shared another laugh before placing the neatly packed boxes on the counter, ready to be taken to the event as soon as Clara finished the phone call she was having outside.

***

Just then, Clara walked back into the bakery after finishing her call with the event manager.

"Girls, is everything ready?" she asked as she slipped her phone into her pocket.

Since she had reserved an entire stall for herself at the charity event, there were a few last-minute details she needed to discuss with the manager. Now that everything was settled, it was finally time to leave.

Lily and Silvia nodded in unison.

"Yes, Madam."

"Good." Clara smiled. "Then let’s load the boxes into the car."

She walked toward the counter and began counting the neatly packed boxes before picking them up one by one.

Halfway through, she suddenly paused.

A slight frown appeared on her face.

"Lily..."

"Yes, Madam?"

"Did you double-check the number of boxes after packing them?"

Lily nodded confidently.

"I did. Is something wrong?"

Silvia, who had counted them with Lily earlier, stepped closer.

"We both checked them twice. There shouldn’t be any mistake."

Clara silently counted the boxes again.

Once. Then a second time. Her brows knitted together.

"...Why are a few boxes missing?"

"What?"

Lily and Silvia rushed to the counter.

The moment they counted them themselves, their expressions changed.

"...Madam is right," Silvia muttered.

Lily stared blankly at the empty space on the counter.

"But... that’s impossible."

"I counted everything before sealing the boxes," she insisted. "There wasn’t a single mistake."

Clara folded her arms, deep in thought.

The bakery had been closed for the entire day to prepare for the charity event.

No customers had entered.

No deliveries had gone out.

There was no reason for any boxes to disappear. And because the shop wasn’t open for business, they hadn’t even bothered turning on the security cameras.

"So they didn’t magically grow legs and walk away..." Silvia mumbled, scratching her head.

Lily looked just as confused. "Could someone have taken them?"

Clara slowly shook her head.

"If someone had entered, one of us would’ve noticed."

The three women fell into silence, each trying to figure out where the missing boxes had gone.

Then suddenly a muffled voice suddenly echoed from inside the cabinet beneath the counter.

"Ah...!"

The three of them froze.

Silvia slowly turned toward the cabinet.

"...Madam." She paused for a moment.

"Did... Did the cabinet just scream?"