Chapter 78

"Don't be discouraged! You could really become a great alchemist of worms, second only to the earwig! Just think how amazing it is that a non-dryad organism survived the blessing of the World Tree! Even though you're only at the cellular stage, you've created a life form that's almost a little dryad! The Alchemy Tower committee doesn't even recognize that and rejects your research...!"

"...Now that I think about it, I am pretty amazing. I want to quit being a researcher and continue the family business, but my talent won't let me rest."

"Calling a parasite a little dryad... how low are you going to degrade dryads?"

Ignoring my words, the two of them were busy praising Loop, and I became serious. If I am part of the World Tree... a druid with the blessing of the World Tree in my soul...? Am I going to eat those parasite brats too?

I'm called a small World Tree...? This is extreme disgust...? No, dryads...? Dryads are also born from the World Tree...

"If it's something that has separated from the World Tree, something that embodies the blessing of the World Tree, I eat everything except living things. Leaves, bark, sap, fruits—anything except the designated host. I never harm any other living beings."

"Fruits?"

"That's why you don't need to be so repulsed and keep your distance. I wouldn't think you didn't consider such a risk. I'm competent. I'm a first-class researcher, almost an apprentice alchemist. I don't create research items that would make users anxious."

Loop, who was highly excited by Phylla's praise, shrugged and said.

"But the customer's wallet will be anxious."

Phylla muttered.

"Did you think druids would use those parasites?"

"Only druids who can earn diamonds directly can afford the cost. 99% of the Alchemy Tower's items are targeted at druids. Of course, we need to be prepared for safety since some alchemists in the Alchemy Tower are also druids."

Loop looked like a living quality assurance certificate. Well, that's fortunate. I had a lot of fruits, which was quite surprising. I had only intended to buy two but ended up purchasing thousands of diamonds worth of them.

I started taking out the unripe fruits from my pocket. They poured out in large quantities, just like the inventory function in a game. As I placed the transparent fruits on the desk without any gaps, Phylla and Loop covered their mouths with both hands and watched the scene.

"Sir...! With this much, you could even teach the parasites to speak...!"

"Stop saying such disgusting things."

The only small life forms that can speak are dwarves. If parasites can speak, how far are they going to test my extreme disgust?

Phylla asked if she could use all the fruits, and I said she could since I had plenty left as a reserve.

"Perfect! I've entrusted the predatory nature of the wasps to the parasites, so when they're hungry, they'll try to eat the parasites' food instead! Now the main diet of the wasps will be fruits instead of insects, but you don't need to worry, sir!"

She was saying that the wasps' diet had been upgraded.

While I was chatting with Loop about her and her family, Phylla had been fusing the wasps and parasites.

When she gave me a transparent board to install in my wallet, I thought it was something else, but it turned out to be a beehive... No, it looks exactly like a screen protector?

"Here, the original Loop parasite is inside this queen wasp, and I've infected the male wasps. To control the parasite's 'purpose,' leave the queen wasp in the beehive. And I've fed them both so much that you won't have to worry about their food for a while."

She showed me what she was holding in both hands. Instead of the fist-sized wasps, there were small chips like SIM cards. I picked up the chip called the queen with a mix of complex feelings.

When I poked the SIM card slot of my phone with a safety pin from Phylla's desk, a blank board popped out. I should have expected that my phone, which had lost its smart functions and was filled with all sorts of bizarre features, wouldn't have a SIM card.

When I inserted the chip with the queen, I thought I heard a buzzing sound, as if the wasp with the parasite was inside my phone... I want to cry...

When I shone light on the black screen of my sleeping phone, hexagonal holograms that looked like beehives appeared and disappeared. My phone has become a bit prettier; this is the alchemy edition.

I suddenly remembered how the stagnant water in the phone game eventually led to paying for profile picture frames. Even if no one else sees it, it's nice to see it myself...

After the SIM card was inserted, a page like an app installation popped up. The fist-sized wasp I had seen was wriggling in my phone.

Sometimes when I try to use my phone for other tasks, I hope the dwarves don't suddenly jump into this screen. The eyes of the wasps were as big as dwarves. Our diamond-obsessed dwarves would never be able to withstand the stingers of wasps larger than their bodies.

When Phylla first introduced them by lifting the cloth, they were making threatening buzzing sounds, but now they were quiet. Perhaps they were full, as Phylla suggested.

Then, how do I use this to send messages? Since it's inside my phone, it won't sting me when I touch it, right? I'm a coward, so I'll use my fingernail. Tap tap.

Suddenly, two buttons appeared above the wasp.

[Enhance] [Input Message]