The quiet bakery became the new, unexpected operational headquarters. Minji (The Strategist, YMS) sat in the back room with Original Minji (The Baker, YMB), Jungkook, and Tae-Hyun, the scent of cinnamon mixing strangely with the metallic tang of high-tech comms gear.
Tae-Hyun, ever the loyal friend, leaned against a flour sack. "So, let me get this straight. You two are... clones? One got the CEO life, one got the pastry life. This is way beyond hostile takeovers."
YMS chuckled, a rare, relaxed sound. "It's the ultimate narrative contingency, Tae-Hyun. The universe tried to kill the side character; our intervention made the side character immortal."
YMB, though initially stunned by the metaphysical truth, approached the situation with a baker's pragmatism. "So, the writer's magic split, and now there are two of us. I got the knowledge, and you got my life. What's the problem?"
"The problem," YMS explained, displaying the Cassandra anomaly result, "is that if the universe needed a Yoon Minji to fulfill the 'side character's death' in the past, it might still need a Yoon Minji to fulfill other minor, plot-related incidents that we've ignored, like the 'brief, happy scene' followed by a minor tragedy in Chapter 10."
Jungkook sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "We dismantled the primary villain, but we didn't file for divorce from the narrative itself."
YMB frowned. "Chapter 10? That's when I—we—were supposed to win a local baking contest. The prize was a small contract, but the book mentioned the winner's cake was anonymously poisoned. Minor sabotage, nothing fatal, but enough to destroy the bakery's reputation."
Jungkook leaned forward. "A plot point designed to weaken the 'baker's daughter' before her final end. The universe tried to kill one Minji; now it will try to sabotage the other. We must neutralize this Chapter 10 threat."
"The stakes are different now," YMB stated, her eyes sharp. "Back then, it was just bad luck. Now, it's a cosmic principle trying to reassert itself. If my reputation is destroyed, it introduces instability into our entire peaceful reality. We need absolute perfection."
"Perfection," YMS agreed, leaning back. "A concept I am unfortunately well-versed in."
YMS and YMB exchanged a look. Two minds, one origin, both armed with the script's knowledge.
"I have the current schedule for the 'Seoul Artisan Baking Competition'," YMS said, pulling up the data. "It's next week. I can use Dusk's security protocols to filter all outside ingredients and staff."
"Too bulky," YMB countered, folding her arms. "The sabotage was anonymous. They won't target the whole bakery; they'll target the final product, the one thing that leaves my direct sight. I need someone inside, tasting the batter, watching the frosting."
YMS paused, realizing her corporate-focused solution was too broad for this domestic threat. "You're right. My perimeter defense is too wide; yours is product-specific."
"I know how the kitchen works," YMB said simply. "The weak point is always the moment of presentation, the final flourish before the judging."
Jungkook smiled, an appreciation for the subtle difference in their strategies shining in his eyes. YMS thought corporate; YMB thought domestic and detailed.
"The problem isn't who the threat is, but when they strike," Tae-Hyun chimed in. "The plot requires the cake to be poisoned, not the bakery to be burned down. It's a precise strike."
"We have an inside man," YMS declared, looking at Jungkook. "You'll be the official, anonymous 'patron' who funds the contest, giving you complete access to the kitchen. You'll watch the cake."
"My cover?" Jungkook asked, already running scenarios in his head.
"The inscrutable, impeccably dressed billionaire with an inexplicable passion for artisanal yeast," YMS deadpanned. "It's practically your real life. You'll be wearing an earpiece, reporting every suspicious flicker of movement near the cooling rack."
Jungkook grinned, appreciating the return to high-stakes espionage, even if the target was a pastry. "Consider the perimeter secure, and the batter tasted. My objective: absolute purity of the final product."
"And what will you two be doing?" Jungkook asked.
YMB grinned, a flash of the side character's resilience shining through. "We'll be baking the cake. And we'll bake two. The real one, and the poisoned decoy. Let's see how well the plot handles two protagonists."
"Two identical cakes," YMS confirmed, the strategist's gears grinding again. "One pure, one poisoned, switched at the last possible second. We force the plot to expend its malicious energy on the decoy, while the real win is secured."
YMB clapped her hands, dusting flour onto the map of Seoul. "It's the ultimate counter-narrative strategy: a double bluff. You handle the surveillance, Jungkook. We handle the delicious chaos."
"Double the strategy, half the plot," Minji (YMS) whispered, a final, confident smile passing between her and her original self. The battle for the continuation of their unscripted life was back on, fought over frosting and foil.