Chapter 27

Sometimes, consciousness suddenly emerges from the drowsiness of a light sleep. I usually sleep so soundly that I wouldn't even notice if there were a fire, but this time, a creepy feeling woke me up. I wasn't fully awake, though. I remained lying down, opened my ears, and took in a deep breath of the cold night air. My head was covered by a thick mesquite cloak. My hearing, sense of smell, and touch awakened one after another.

I was contemplating whether to open my eyes when Mesquite patted my shoulder, trying to put me back to sleep.

"It seems my vigilance has been passed on to Jay. It's nothing serious, so there's no need to worry."

Mesquite's voice was low and soothing. The steady rhythm of the patting made me feel like I would fall back asleep, but my curiosity about the vigilance kept a part of my consciousness firmly anchored to reality.

"What is it...?"

Thinking I had fallen back asleep, Mesquite was looking into the distant darkness.

"I sensed some movement. They probably discovered us first. They showed signs of preparing for battle, so I was on guard."

"…Is it dangerous?"

"I wasn't worried because there was no hostility directed at us. They seemed to be trying to eliminate other distant lights. Ironically, they are showing us consideration by circling around us. The battle started and ended quickly. All the lights within a few dozen meters of us are probably gone now."

There must be another druid. I would like to see another druid's battle...

Actually, my consciousness, which had stubbornly held on, was gradually sinking under the influence of Mesquite's soothing voice.

Stealing my hunting ground... I felt a bit annoyed as I fell back asleep.

***

It had been a while since I had a dream.

Having heard so much about the World Tree since coming here, it appeared in my dream.

Actually, I don't know if it was the World Tree. The only times I've seen the World Tree were in the patterns on wax seals and stamps, and in the branches of the orchard.

Yet, I felt certain it was the World Tree.

A massive tree stood tall in the distance. It was so large that even from far away, I couldn't see the whole tree.

Crazy, it's a dream, so I knew it was a tree, but how would I know it was a tree if I saw it in real life? It was incredibly huge.

The trunk of the tree was as white as jade, but the color gradually turned to a dark shade as it reached the branches.

I had heard that the reflected sunlight in a snowfield could cause blindness, and I felt that way now. The tree was so white that it was blinding, and I couldn't open my eyes fully. I even shed some tears.

Still, I continued to look at the tree. I don't know why I was doing this.

There was no wind, yet the golden leaves shimmered and fluttered like flower petals in front of me. It was a beautiful scene that made my heart ache, and the branches swayed desolately.

Suddenly, one of the thinnest branches slowly approached me. It was strange that a tree moving on its own didn't feel creepy.

The thin branch was almost black, unlike the other branches that shimmered. It was also bare and had no leaves, with only a small, transparent fruit hanging from it.

The branch stopped when it was within reach of my outstretched hand. The transparent fruit, hanging on the bare branch, looked so tempting and easy to pick.

So I picked it. It fell easily into my hand, like a persimmon in late autumn.

The fruit was cold like ice, unlike the other fruits I had held in the orchard. I warmed it with my hand and stared at it endlessly. What is this fruit?

Suddenly, the branch started slapping my cheek. Hey, do you just attack without warning? We were getting along just fine a moment ago! Why are you doing this all of a sudden?

Then the branch started talking.

"Wake up, sleepyhead."

Is it true that my excessive sleeping has become a rumor even among the World Tree? It's a bit creepy.

"I really can't wake up. The sun is already high in the sky."

"Druid! It's time to get up!"

The branch mimicked Elder and Daisy's voices. What is this World Tree?

"Druid! We need to continue our journey! If we don't, we might never reach the 28th Terrarium!"

And I suddenly opened my eyes.

***

The sky was already bright. The dryads from the artifact were watching over me.

Wow... I overslept. I felt as embarrassed as if I had been the last to wake up at a school trip.

"Who slapped my cheek? Elder?"

"It wasn't a slap. It was a tap."

"If you tap with your strength, it's a slap!"

It didn't hurt, but I felt embarrassed for not being able to wake up, so I pretended to be indignant.

"Oh, okay. I'll be more careful in the future."

Elder answered with a serious expression. When he says it like that, I feel guilty. I thought he would argue, but it made me even more embarrassed, so I just rubbed my cheek.

I still felt groggy, so I drank some water to clear my head.

It was surprisingly refreshing, even though it should have been at my body temperature. It felt like the temperature when I first bought the water bottle from the general store.

I tried to share the water with my dryads.

Do you want some water? Are you thirsty? Surprisingly, they all said they had just felt a similar sensation and were no longer thirsty. Because I drank the water... I wondered if this was what it meant to be one with water...

"Daisy? Daisy ate a lot of different things, didn't she?"

I handed the water bottle to Daisy, who had eaten several servings at the inn, just in case.

"At that time, I was no different from a human and ate to survive! But the food at that inn was so delicious that I still remember it. Now, I don't feel the need to eat anything. I'm not hungry either."

She smiled wistfully while telling a very sad story. I thought she was just a small body that ate a lot... I thought she was eating happily, but it turned out to be a matter of survival.

Sigh, I could feel the child's pain and my heart ached.

I... I'll eat well. I'll do well. In an attempt to fill my stomach, I took out the emergency rations.

Including the ones I won as prizes, I bought as many as I could from the general store. This was my breakfast.

The emergency rations looked like energy bars.

When I peeled the wrapper, my thoughts changed. There's no chocolate coating! When I tried to break it with my hands, it crumbled. Damn, there are no additives. No nuts or anything! I could imagine the taste.

I put a piece in my mouth with a dubious expression, and it was dry and gritty, making me feel like I was eating to survive.

It wasn't a tasteless diet food. It was completely tasteless, with no seasoning at all.

I have a lot of these in my bag. The store owner said they would take care of all my hunger during the adventure, but was it just to clear out inventory? Who would buy this tasteless stuff? I bought a lot because I had a lot of diamonds. Damn...

"Why are you doing that?"

"No... I just have a lot on my mind."

Daisy asked worriedly, seeing my sour expression. I had already peeled one, and I was hungry, so I ate it, but... it was sad. I had a lot of diamonds, yet I was eating this tasteless stuff.

Strangely, the more I ate, the fuller I felt. It was a very small size, and I finished it in four bites, but by the time I was done, I was full.

It felt like a bloated stomach. Was it to suppress my appetite so I wouldn't crave food anymore?

"Hehe, it seems to be tasteless."

"I haven't tried it, but it feels like chewing sawdust. I felt a bit like a hamster just now."

Mesquite laughed and picked up the water bottle I had put down, then rinsed his mouth with water.

I had forgotten my earlier resolve and even considered just enduring hunger in the future. Koreans live by their meals...

Before we set off, we reviewed the route we were going to take.

Elder pointed to our current location with his finger. We were a bit away from the 26th Terrarium but quite far from the 28th Terrarium. Ah, I'm already tired.

Since we were now far from the World Tree's branch blessing area, we decided to change the main druid to Mesquite.

The probability of encountering strong monsters had increased, so we prioritized the team's safety.

I transferred the soul connection with Daisy to Mesquite.

Immediately, a translucent film was overlaid on the dryads. With Mesquite, who is defensive, as the leader, the party's defense increased.

The journey ahead was surprisingly smooth. Despite making Mesquite the leader and preparing thoroughly, nothing happened for a long time.

Daisy, who had been chattering like a small bird to liven up the atmosphere, fell silent halfway through, as the conversation ran out.

The cheerful whistling that had come naturally also faded as I got tired from walking for a long time.

If there had been some fire or something, it would have been a mood changer, but no fire appeared until we reached an unpaved road, which clearly showed that the area was sparsely populated.

Who swept my hunting ground clean? Could it be the druid who circled around us at night? What a lack of manners.

Mesquite said they were showing us consideration, but from my perspective, it wasn't the case.

There's no experience. I need to level up, but if they take all my potential experience, what will I do? Leave a few for me. Even at a tasting corner, you leave a few for the next person. There's no human decency.

My breakfast was ruined, my hunting was ruined, and I was walking monotonously with sore legs, feeling a bit depressed.

Yesterday was dynamic, but maybe I had too high expectations for today. After all, not every day can be like a movie or a novel. Maybe tomorrow will be the same, just walking forward.

I walked with my head down, looking at the ground, and suddenly, small yellow flowers started peeking out from the soft grass, like a rug.