Chapter 62

What is he saying, right now?

"And besides, dandelions can be used for more than just battles. Wouldn't it be better to grow them a bit more and make them into Panacea, even if it's a small amount, like the one Mr. Jay has? When the 28th Terrarium was visited by a traveler in the past, there was someone who specifically wanted to pick dryads that could become medicinal herbs. Dandelions were also on that list. If that person had visited the dandelion colony, they might have picked them all…?"

"Wait a minute. Why does the artifact story come up after the suggestion to send them to the 28th Terrarium?"

"Mr. Jay's artifact is currently connected to the 28th Terrarium, right? The 28th Terrarium is practically an artifact itself. Movement within the artifact is free."

Can you use it like that? Why didn't you tell me sooner?

"Did you know this, Mesquite?"

"Well, it's my first time being an administrative dryad."

She said with a light laugh. Indeed, if Mesquite knew, she would have told me right away. It's Daisy2's fault for not telling me in advance.

"The water that springs up here can only restore Bark, not remove the inner vitality or debuffs. So when those children come and awaken the power of recovery, it will be a great help. There won't be a need for a healer to reside here. Travelers passing by will definitely have to visit the 28th Terrarium. As the number of visitors increases, the market will become more active, and…."

Daisy dryad was talking non-stop, envisioning the future of the dandelion children and the distant future.

"Are you seriously… Is it because there's a lack of manpower to clean the terrarium? You seem overly enthusiastic."

"Ah, carrying heavy things and building strength…."

Her words became fewer, as if she had hit a nerve.

We discussed sending the dandelion children to the 28th Terrarium. Before that, I asked Mesquite if I could handle two dandelion children, given the limits of my soul. I can't see it, after all.

She said I could handle it, given my rapid growth. However, she quietly asked if it was necessary to waste a soul slot, echoing Dandelion's words.

You don't know. The flower of card games is collection!

Although the children will have to stay within the 28th Terrarium, it is wider and safer than the colony.

Daisy dryad also thought that they could become an offensive type, and there could be a dryad to support Daisy dryad in case of emergencies. The role model would be Daisy2, who is of the same species as our Daisy.

"The children are still young, so one of them can't become the King of the Forest yet."

Dandelion gave me plenty of opportunities to mold the children and earnestly pointed out the situations I should be cautious about, perhaps worried that I would take on the children who are not yet helpful.

"If so, they can become the King of the Forest when they grow up!"

Since there is a colony nearby, if one of the two children is ready… I might get a dandelion dryad of Dandelion's level, right? This is more impressive than I thought.

Seeing that I was determined, Dandelion changed her attitude. She switched to telling me how the children could help me.

"That young sapling is similar to our dandelion, so perhaps when the dandelion children awaken their power, the sapling can learn from them. Do you know what preparations are needed to bring wild dryads?"

"Yes! I need unripe fruits! I'll go to the 26th Terrarium orchard to buy them. I need to stock up since I don't know when I'll need them. Anyway, I have to pass through here again to go to the 18th Terrarium."

"Then I'll teach the children as much as possible before you return with the fruits. Thank you for making a tough decision for the children's future."

What tough decision? Since the COST is left over, I should use it.

Upon hearing that they could leave the colony, the two dandelion children started to flatter me. They will be the future owners, after all. We don't have a bond yet, though.

Just as I was about to go to bed with the intention of leaving early in the morning, I saw Dandelion take out a blue diamond from her bosom and stare at it endlessly, with a calm and composed look.

I turned my body to avoid seeing her and closed my eyes. What is she thinking?

***

I feel like I'm returning to the Primordial Village.

As I approached the 26th Terrarium, which is like the Primordial Village to me, the air felt different. I could feel the intangible blessing from the 26th World Tree's branches.

At a certain boundary, the blessing was evident in various forms around me. The flames, which were once strong, now rolled around weakly, like deflated soccer balls left on an empty playground.

It seemed that these things were intimidated by the momentum of our dryads and pretended not to see us, as if they were pretending to be non-aggressive mobs when a high-level player passed by.

Knowing their initial aggressive nature, it was hard to adapt to this change. It was a culture shock.

Come to think of it, if the terrariums had found balance and these small flames were the original monsters for beginners, I had been playing in hard mode from the start. Not just hard, but more like a hellfire mode?

Daisy has to cut those flames twice to get them. Thinking about it, it's too much.

As we walked smoothly toward our destination, Mesquite stopped us lightly. There was some commotion nearby. From her expression, it didn't seem like a serious issue. It didn't look dangerous at all.

Was it a consideration for my curiosity, which is piqued by everything? She lowered her head and looked at me. Her eyes seemed to ask if I was curious about the commotion. Of course!

As we got closer, I finally heard the commotion.

"Good! You're doing well!"

A high-pitched girl's voice was heard, lively enough to infer her cheerful personality. A sharp whistling sound followed.

Wow, it's a druid! It's the first time I've met a druid outside since the sapling, and my heart was racing. It's even a girl! I'm even more excited! Is it a battle with fire?

"Good! Smash it! Destroy it! Don't show mercy! Tear it apart!"

Elder's expression stiffened slightly at the unbridled language. As we reached the clearing where the battle was taking place, I saw a dryad fighting a rugby ball-sized flame in the distance.

A little further away, a druid was shouting at the top of her lungs, fists clenched. The purple-haired druid was swinging a saw as big as her body, a threatening weapon that looked like the blade of a chainsaw.

Although the flame was weak enough for our Daisy to one-shot with a thrown sword, the participants treated it as if it were a boss raid.

"Ah…."

"Why are you like that?"

Daisy asked worriedly as I covered my mouth and sobbed.

"Newbie… Newbie…."

Of course, I'm also a new user, but this wasn't about pride. There's a peculiar feeling that most game players have.

The target of this feeling is players who are behind in the game. This feeling is intensified by the Korean tendency to meddle, and it explodes in games with few new players.

For example, when existing players of a game discover a new player, they often give away all their resources, equipment, and items, and even go as far as to offer their liver and gallbladder.

This behavior is called "putting the sleeve in." Of course, the new player's perspective is not considered. It's a ritual to give as much as possible so that the new player stays in the game.

However, this game is not that old, and I'm not desperate for new players, so my feeling was different.

I used to be like that, and it made me feel nostalgic. Seeing the dryad swinging the saw at a small flame reminded me of our Daisy's struggles….

It's a good team, working hard. Should I give them some diamonds to encourage them? What if they get upset? Still, raising dryads requires a lot of money….

While I was thinking, the battle ended. Unlike when Daisy split the flame to find a solution, this dryad beat the flame randomly until it retired.

"Amazing! You're really strong! I have a feeling that if you keep fighting a bit more, our soul connection will get stronger! Get stronger quickly and let's go to the 27th Terrarium. I heard there are free fruits there. Maybe we can make more companions and explore further?"

I was considering the right moment to appear, but it was unnecessary. Mesquite and Elder were immediately noticed by the druid. The druid, upon seeing us, made an 'O' shape with her mouth and stiffened.

"Such a weak dryad."

Elder mocked as usual. Mouth, mouth! This pretty mouth! She looks pretty, but the words are foul!

When I glared at her, she said, "Why? That's a normal-grade dryad," a completely predictable response.

"That's really rude. If you say that in front of the druid… well, it's no different from a sapling."

It seemed to be a good piece of advice. Elder's pretty face crumpled, and her mouth shut tight.

"Hello?"

Nice to meet you, nice to meet you. I waved with a harmless smile. Just a passing user1. Unlike in some games, we don't immediately challenge each other to a duel.

"Wow, there are dryads… four of them. Amazing… They're all cool!"

She shouted to her dryad, "You can do it too!" Good attitude. After seeing druids who treated normal-grade dryads poorly, it was refreshing to meet one who treated them well. She understands that good dryads can grow with proper care!

"I haven't seen dryads outside the terrarium in a long time."

You're the second one.

"Really? There are more druids around here. Usually, druids don't come out alone; they form parties of three or more, or they avoid the direction of the 27th Terrarium."

She pointed to where other druids might be.

"Recently, the environment has changed, the flames have become smaller and weaker, so the situation has improved. Everyone says now is the best time for adventures, so they've all come out."

Indeed, the 28th Terrarium's recovery has brought balance to the area. By the way, they usually come out in parties? How fearless was I to come out alone…?