Chapter 64

In fact, I already had a dryad in mind to become a honey mate as soon as I heard the story about the butterfly. It was Daisy. That was the case back then, when my desire to raise Daisy was burning fiercely. Of course, it's not that I don't feel that way now.

However, after discovering another Daisy dryad in the 28th terrarium, my initial intention was reset. It seemed that Daisy dryads are a species that can be easily found without attaching a butterfly. Now, I was pondering which dryad to attach the butterfly to.

Mesquite is already strong, so enhancing Elder might be a good idea. Following my initial thought, enhancing Daisy further could also be good. Should I leave it to chance? Honestly, enhancing any dryad would be fine. Letting the butterfly choose directly might be...

Elder nudged me, urging me to send Mesquite to the artifact quickly. It's tempting, isn't it? But I didn't really want to give up on Daisy either. Bago just looked at the butterfly with curiosity, without any other thoughts.

Well, I couldn't bring myself to choose any one dryad with my own hands!

I took the collection box from the old man and abruptly opened the lid. Before Mesquite could return to the artifact, the butterfly fluttered out and flew up. The butterfly immediately danced between my dryads.

As expected, it showed a great interest in Mesquite. It hovered around Mesquite's shoulder, almost as if it was about to land...

"Huh?"

It suddenly fell off. The old man, who was explaining that the butterfly would become a honey mate once it landed on a dryad's shoulder, fell silent. He seemed to have not anticipated this.

On the contrary, Mesquite, upon seeing the butterfly, had a look as if he understood the reason.

Surprisingly, the butterfly was conflicted between Elder and Daisy. The other Daisy dryad, having grown stronger after recruiting another Daisy, was a fragrant flower from the butterfly's perspective. And Elder used a cheap trick.

The sweet scent of Elder Flower filled the room. Damn, before I could even call it a foul, the butterfly quickly landed on Elder's shoulder.

The sight of the mysterious opal-colored butterfly perched on Elder's shoulder, and Elder's white hair gently fluttering with the butterfly's small wing beats, was so spectacular that I was speechless.

Elder, with a victorious smile, looked down at Daisy arrogantly. Daisy had a very regretful expression.

The butterfly, like Elder's pet, stayed within a certain distance, circling around.

"Play fair! It seemed like you were also considering Daisy."

"It was attracted to both because it's a normal field butterfly. But it would have chosen the higher-ranked one anyway."

Elder's tone was overly confident. That's not fair to the butterfly's perspective. Emitting a scent that could even charm humans! Charming the butterfly!

"That's a bit wrong, kid. It wasn't a field-limited butterfly. Right?"

"Right. That butterfly is special. Since you saved our 26th terrarium, I wanted to give you a more special butterfly, not just an ordinary one."

Honestly, I would have been happy to receive just a regular butterfly. What did I know? But why is it special? More vibrant and mysterious appearance? Of course, looks are important. But that's not all.

"Other butterflies hatch from eggs, go through the larval stage, and imprint on a field. But this butterfly is not imprinted on any field. The cause is unknown. It flew around without being restricted by a specific collection box that emits field energy. If the butterfly had chosen, it might not have been a normal field dryad..."

"Yes. It could have chosen me. But that wouldn't have been possible."

Seeing the notification about the terrarium share ownership that the old man promised to send, I asked Mesquite as I left the room. What's the reason? Tell me, I'm very curious.

The butterfly followed Elder, who passed by, and then stopped in a specific direction. When Elder approached, it flew up to a certain distance again. It seemed like the butterfly was calling Elder to its location.

Ah, that's it. The butterfly was supposed to show the location of wild dryads of the same species as Elder, acting as a guide. So, does the butterfly know where other Elder Flowers are? Other dryads like Elder! Do they also have a crazy appearance like Elder? Surely not their personality too...?

"My master, Jay. The butterfly judged that forming a honey mate with me would not be beneficial. There is only one host to gain strength from."

"Wow..."

Hold on. Did I just hear something incredible? The two short dryads clung together beside me, looking at me as if to say, "What's so surprising?" Did you not understand...?

Mesquite just said... there is only one host to gain strength from. That means... there are no wild Velvet Mesquite species in this world. The unique, strongest dryad! My dryad!

"Can't we follow the butterfly first?"

Elder asked cluelessly. There are so many places to go and so much to do. He wants to delay everything and go to his forest to hunt.

"Aren't you surprised? There are no wild Mesquite species."

"Well, I was surprised to learn that there were wild dryads of my kind. But in her case, I had a rough idea. I've never seen or heard of any other Velvet Mesquite dryads since I was a sapling. It's no wonder she's a special grade."

He said this with a spiteful tone. It would be understandable to feel bad, but Mesquite just looked at Elder like a spoiled child. That's the experience of raising Elder...

"Ah! Are you done with everything? Here are the unripe fruits you requested."

The guide approached as if he had been waiting. When he stepped aside, two boxes of wooden crates were stacked.

Are these the fruit boxes, filled to the brim with the number I can carry, without asking about the price? The glass-like fruits, empty inside, sparkled in the orchard's ceiling lights. When gathered together, the box looked like a treasure chest.

Honestly, I only needed two right now. Fruits to contain the dandelion saplings. The rest are for any wild dryads I might meet during my travels.

I can't visit the terrarium often, so I wanted to prepare in advance.

"You can store them for a long time, but don't forget that they have an expiration date, okay?"

That was the problem. I learned later that, being fruits, they have a storage period and are not permanent items.

If the storage period is too long, the blessing in the fruit will disappear, making it ordinary. But with my pride, I can't ask for a refund even if I have a lot of diamonds.

"How much are they?"

"Each one costs 100 diamonds, and each box contains 20."

And two boxes. 4,000 diamonds is a considerable amount for a regular person. You really know me well to prepare them without asking.

In department stores, real VVIPs don't even look at price tags; they just pick and hand over their cards, right? But I'm curious about the price. Regular fruits cost 300 diamonds, but unripe ones are 1/3 of that.

He brought a box with numbers on it, just like when I pulled a dryad fruit. As I woke up my phone, Elder approached with a haughty look. Even with a haughty look, his face is as beautiful as the butterfly following him.

"What are you going to do with so many? You don't need them all."

The point is, he's complaining about waste and spending diamonds. But look at my phone. These little gnomes are causing a fuss, telling me to spend diamonds. You didn't see them, did you?

As I pour diamonds into the box, his frown doesn't ease. Since I've returned to the terrarium, should I go shopping?

I need to get new equipment; what I'm wearing is low-level. I should visit the artifact workshop again, right? Since I've recruited Bago, I need to decorate him with artifacts.

I'll get rid of the bad-tasting emergency rations and buy something edible. I also want to eat a proper meal again.

I told him I would stay in the terrarium for a day to rest and shop leisurely, and that I would buy everything he wanted. Only then did his face relax. He's so easy to handle, and his thoughts are so transparent, it's annoying. That beautiful face is definitely a countermeasure for his personality.

After paying the full amount and putting the unripe fruits in my inventory, I left the orchard.

I took in the vibrant streets with my eyes.

I wish my terrarium had such a place. Does the inn have to end at three floors? Why not stack it up to dozens of floors like a hotel? Should I make a food alley? A park would be nice. I'll plant more trees and flowers.

"Druid, we don't have the manpower to clear the debris immediately."

Look closely. When I play management games, I've only built pre-made buildings; I've never built anything subjectively.

Should I build a lot of hospitals and offer free treatment? Then our terrarium might become famous for medical care.

"Druid, we lack people and dryads..."

There are orphans here, but no orphanage. According to what Daisy said before, they lived in the village's community hall because they had no other place to stay. Should we build an orphanage? For children with no place to go...

"Druid, there are no people, let alone children."

With my experience, I stuck close to Mesquite, covering my body, and was able to observe the town. I was projecting and looking around the town and the 28th terrarium from the perspective of a temporary administrative officer.

I linked Daisy2 to an artifact and chattered away, realizing I sounded like a strict boss who keeps nagging even on an external assignment. Very strict...

"That's not true, Druid. I'm happy. I'm happy no matter what you say. Are the dandelion saplings ready yet? I'll do my best to realize your dream, so send more hands... Oops, no. To guide the growing saplings on the right path..."

While listening to Daisy2, whose thoughts were as transparent as Elder's, I found myself in a bustling square with shops.

Do I have a shopping instinct? No, I was just distracted by the sights and followed Elder's white robe fluttering in front of me...

No, it wasn't my instinct, it was yours!