Chapter 43

42. Zephir

Hui was very pleased with the new golden unicorn that had arrived in the garden. It sparkled gold, and being small, it seemed like it could live with her and the fairies in their house.

The pet's name, as confirmed on the temporary registration card, was Zephir. Zephir meant "breeze," a name that seemed thoughtfully given by its former owner, who knew it had the ability to fly.

Hui and Taeju asked if it wanted a new name, but Zephir preferred to keep the name given by its former owner. Taeju nodded and allowed it to keep its original name.

"Zephir, here."

Hui handed Zephir a candy she cherished. Zephir ignored the candy Hui offered, perched on a large branch, folded its legs, and buried its head, remaining still.

"Taeju, what do we do?"

"Hmm. Let's give it some time. We'll wait until Zephir gets used to this place."

"Okay. I'll wait, Hui."

Having watched the garden deteriorate after losing the gardener, Zephir seemed to have been hurt emotionally. Despite being so thin that only bones and skin remained, it refused to eat and continued to huddle on the branch.

'How can I make it as lively as Taesan or DdanDan?'

Taeju, who had Taesan as his first pet, had almost no knowledge about such matters. He planned to ask people around him what to do when he returned to reality. For now, he just wanted to show consistent care and attention.

The number of trees in the garden had increased several times, and there were more decorations. Many trees had yellow, dried leaves, and many were just branches. The number of trees that needed attention had suddenly increased.

Taeju used all the fertilizer materials he had collected to make fertilizer and started watering the trees. It didn't seem like it would be finished in a couple of hours.

The magic water can was light but had a very large capacity, so usually, filling it two or three times was enough to water all the trees in the garden. But now, he had no idea how many times he had refilled the water can.

"The trees are so dry. I need to give them a lot of water."

As Taeju moved around with the water can, DdanDan followed him. It seemed that the water can Taeju was holding was the one DdanDan usually used.

"DdanDan. I'll water the trees today. Can you check on Zephir for me?"

"DdanDan."

When Taeju spent time in the real world, DdanDan often watered the trees with the water can. Although he had hired DdanDan as a worker, Taeju didn't really plan to give him much work. But DdanDan had taken the water can from the storage and started watering the trees on his own.

Thinking about it, DdanDan had never asked for anything. When Taeju tried to set up a separate sleeping area for him, DdanDan dug a hole under a large garden stone and made a bed with leaves. This was different from Taesan, who boldly demanded a den.

'He's so quiet and doesn't ask for anything, so I end up paying less attention to him.'

There was a risk of neglecting him. Although DdanDan was a worker, Taeju thought of him as a pet and decided to pay more attention to him in the future.

Taeju looked around the garden. In one corner of the garden, several large rocks were piled up, forming a rock cluster. It was a decoration given by the Blue Lion Gardener.

Taesan seemed to like the rock cluster, jumping around and playing on it.

Another gardener had given a giant bell. The bell, covered in moss, grass, and flowers, was installed in one corner of the maze. With this, the maze now had five destinations: a small performance area, a slime cave, a moonlit pond, and a tea wine fountain.

"Still, the number of trees has really increased. I don't even know what kinds of trees are here."

Hui flew over to Taeju's side.

"Can I tell you?"

"Ah! You know what kinds of trees are here?"

"Yes. Clove, cinnamon, zephyr, sumac..."

"Except for cinnamon, I don't know any of these trees."

Most of the tree names were new to him. He was only familiar with cinnamon, which he often used in cappuccino.

Taeju mainly planted fruit trees in his garden. He liked fruits and planted many to sell in the store for DP. The other gardener seemed to have planted these trees for a specific purpose, but he couldn't know until he checked the plant encyclopedia.

"Neigh."

While Taeju was watering a small tree, Zephir, which had been huddled on a large branch, approached with a neighing sound.

"Zephir?"

Zephir neighed but Taeju couldn't understand. Taeju urgently asked Hui to translate.

"Okay."

"Hui, what did Zephir say?"

After sprinkling wing powder on Zephir, Hui explained to Taeju. The tree Taeju had just watered was planted by the former owner to commemorate Zephir's arrival in the garden.

"Ah! I see."

The tree was withered. It was a small tree, about waist-high, with yellow, dried leaves.

"It's a golden bell tree."

"Ah, I see."

It was a unique tree with a memorable name. It bore small bell-shaped fruits that were golden. It was one of the precious tree species, used in cooking when it had a sour taste.

"Hmm. Let's do this."

Taeju decided to plant the golden bell tree next to the breadfruit tree near the well. It would be easier to water it there, and it was in front of the cabin, making it easy to check its condition. As Taeju started digging a hole with a spade, Taesan seemed to want to help and entered the hole.

"Meow!"

Taesan dug the ground vigorously with its front paws. It seemed to be enjoying digging, making a purring sound. Taeju had already been pushed to the side to avoid the dirt flying around. The golden bell tree was a small tree, about waist-high, so it didn't need to be planted very deep, but the excited Taesan was digging a deep hole like a den.

"Taesan, stop. Stop digging."

"Meow!"

"That's enough. Can you move a bit?"

"Meow!"

"Ugh, really. Okay, you can stay there."

Taeju's forehead was creased with veins. Taesan didn't seem to want to move and continued digging. Unable to stop the excited Taesan, Taeju looked for another spot to plant the tree.

He needed to choose a spot that was visible from the cabin. Taeju wanted to check on Zephir when it came to see the tree. He drew a circle with a spade near the cabin window and started digging quickly to prevent Taesan from interfering.

"Let's surround the tree with stones."

He brought fist-sized stones and arranged them in a circle around the golden bell tree. After watering it and stepping back, Zephir approached the tree. Zephir flew up and circled the tree a few times before returning to the large branch. It was a good spot to oversee the golden bell tree.

"Fortunately, it seems to like it."

"Yes, Zephir did this."

Hui made a narrow-eyed expression, indicating that Zephir was expressing its happiness. Seeing Zephir's mood improve, Taeju's mood also improved as he filled the hole dug by Taesan.

*

At the store, Taeju bought the recipe and materials for a hot air balloon. Hui wanted to buy a magic net cannon, but Taeju had no interest. Hui looked around the store with disappointment, but Taeju only bought the materials for the hot air balloon and closed the store.

Taeju laid out the hot air balloon recipe he bought from the store on the table and examined it slowly. The hot air balloon was a bit different from those on Earth. It could take off and land vertically with a button and could be moved in the desired direction using a tablet-like control panel. It was quite large, enough to fit about five to six adults.

"It's like a helicopter. Can I control it well? It would be nice if someone else could control it while Hui and I catch shooting stars."

Only Hui and Taeju could control the hot air balloon in the garden. DdanDan and Taesan were too short to reach the control panel.

"Can't help it. I'll control it and let Hui catch the shooting stars."

Taeju tore the recipe to make the hot air balloon.

When the recipe asked for a design for the balloon's outer layer, Taeju thought of Hui and Taesan. The design options included a cute tiger face and Hui's appearance. As Taeju thought about it, the images of Hui and Taesan were engraved on the balloon's outer layer.

He got into the gondola of the completed hot air balloon. The gondola was wider than expected. It didn't seem crowded even if Taesan and DdanDan were in it. There was a cargo hold and handles in front of the control panel.

"Hui, let's ride the hot air balloon."

Taeju also took Taesan and DdanDan, who were curious about the new item in the garden. Taeju called Zephir last, but Zephir turned its head, showing no interest.

"Shall we take off?"

"Haha. Yes, let's take off."

Taeju's mouth curved into a wide smile. It was his first time riding a hot air balloon. Since getting the garden, he had experienced many new things. Even though it was just a demonstration flight, his heart was pounding like a child about to go on an adventure.

Whoosh.

The magical flame ignited, and the hot air balloon inflated.

Hui also seemed excited about flying, as wing powder was spreading. The sparkling wing powder near the control panel made it seem like they didn't need to turn on the lights.

The hot air balloon slowly rose into the air. Taesan and DdanDan, sniffing the smell inside the gondola, made anxious sounds and clung to Taeju's legs.

"It's okay, it's okay. It's safe."

Trying to calm them down didn't work. It seemed that flying was too much for them. As Taeju sighed and was about to land the hot air balloon, Zephir, who had been watching from a large branch, flew over.

Neigh.

Zephir lightly stepped into the gondola and approached Taesan and DdanDan, rolling its right front paw. A 'thud' sound came from where Zephir's paw touched the floor.

Immediately, a golden wave spread out, enveloping Taesan and DdanDan.

"It's a protective shield."

"Protective shield?"

"Yes, Taeju. Zephir will protect them."

Zephir had cast a protective shield when Taesan and DdanDan were scared. It seemed to be a skill Zephir possessed.

With the protective shield around them, Taesan and DdanDan calmed down. They separated from Taeju's legs and started sniffing the gondola again.

"Thank you, Zephir. Thanks to you, we can fly safely."

"..."

There was no response, but the curious gaze from Zephir, who didn't turn away, was evident. Seeing that Zephir wasn't upset, Taeju explained about the hot air balloon.

"You can move the hot air balloon with this control panel. See this button? This is how you set the direction."

"..."

Zephir was already at Taeju's shoulder height. It was standing on its hind legs, ears perked, checking the control panel and nodding.

'Adorable.'

While Taeju marveled at Zephir's cuteness, Zephir climbed onto the control panel and pressed the forward button with its front paw. The hot air balloon moved forward with a 'whoosh' sound. Zephir lifted its paw, then pressed it again to check the speed.

"Neigh."

"Haha. Zephir, you're really good at controlling it."

Zephir soon became proficient at controlling the hot air balloon. Hui, standing next to Zephir, pointed in the direction of the shooting stars.

Hui pointed to a cluster of small stars moving in the sky. Even though it was just a demonstration flight and they didn't have the tools to catch shooting stars, Hui wanted to go in that direction.

"Neigh."

"Yes. Hui wants to catch shooting stars."

Suddenly, the speed of the hot air balloon increased.

Zephir and Hui seemed to be whispering to each other, and it looked like they were on the same page.

Whoosh.

"Wait. It's too fast. Zephir, Hui, it's too fast."

Zephir glanced at the surprised Taeju and rolled its right front paw. Another 'thud' sound was heard, and a protective shield enveloped Taeju's body.

'Not a protective shield, slow down.'

Ignoring Taeju's exasperated expression, Zephir stared at him as if wondering why he wasn't saying thank you. Unable to resist the proud gaze, Taeju muttered a thank you. Hearing the gratitude, Zephir nodded and turned back to the control panel.

'Not a runaway hot air balloon, please slow down!'

His internal plea was useless. Taeju, watching the sky change rapidly, felt dizzy, but Hui and Zephir were focused on chasing the star cluster. It seemed that the flying speed was no problem for them, as they had flying skills. They showed no intention of slowing down.

A net cannon, which Hui had somehow summoned, was floating around her. It was a demonstration flight, but seeing the star cluster, Hui had gotten excited and summoned it.

Taesan and DdanDan were lying on their bellies in the gondola. They didn't seem to be affected much since they couldn't see outside.

Taeju lowered his body and approached them. He squeezed between them, holding one in each arm, and leaned against the gondola.

Feeling their body heat, his fear seemed to lessen.

"Zephir, to the left."

"Neigh."

"Zephir, good. Now Hui will catch them."

Taeju's first flight was not a pleasant memory, thanks to the unicorn who got interested in controlling the hot air balloon and the fairy who was focused on chasing the star cluster.