Terrarium Adventure - Chapter 45

“Jay, the World Tree was burned, right? The fire probably absorbed some of the power of that dryad… as well as the World Tree. We can’t stop it. We have to run away.”

“No! I know how desperate we are right now, but the branches of the World Tree are still alive. If we leave it now, it will really be over for good. I just need some time to find a way to restore the power of the branch…!”

At that moment, Daisy sprang up.

“I have quick feet, so I’ll turn its attention!”

“Daisy! It’s dangerous!”

“I have just taken a step to become the king of the forest. I’m not afraid! I’m the fastest out of everyone here, so it would be best for me to make time as master druid wished for.”

Mesquite had already determined that this battle was hopeless, which was unlike her. It was a dangerous fire. There was no way that little child could endure it.

“Please have trust in me! I’ll drive it away and come back soon!”

Without any further notice, Daisy jumped to the top of a building and drew the attention of the giant caterpillar-shaped fire. It swung its head around as if Daisy was an attractive prey. That creep! My child is not food!

“I’ll stay here.”

Elder spoke while sending a buff to Daisy.

“I can support that kid from a distance. She won’t die easily since she has me.”

How can I be calm after sending my child inside a fire?

“You know best that kid is fast. If she abandons attacking and focuses only on evasion, she won’t be caught easily. So, find a way in the time we will have. If the branch of the World Tree is revived, there will be a chance against the fire.”

Elder hurried me while focusing on Daisy. Mesquite confined me inside her shield and glanced toward Daisy.

“Make a decision, Jay. Little Daisy’s courage is not in vain. You made it happen, Jay. You empowered her to be courageous like that. It’s time to show faith in the courage you’ve created.”

“… Let’s go back to where the branches are.”

Please help Daisy last long. Please help everything be okay.

I was turning back while wishing when another roar broke out. Elder suddenly started running to the front and a huge curtain of fire suddenly appeared where he was. Who is entering battle mode with that boss…?

My phone rang. It was obvious what it was. It’s probably an adjacent terrarium artifact. Fuck you, Seedling! My babies are trapped now!

That stupid bastard! How did he even get in here? What kind of person goes into battle mode without even thinking?

“It’s dangerous!”

The curtain came close and Mesquite dragged me back.

“We really don’t have time anymore! Dryads isolated from their druid won’t be able to use their power properly! Do what you can!”

That dumbass Seedling. I really won’t let it go this time. When I’m done with everything here, I’ll finish him off. I gritted my teeth and ran to the room where the branches were.

When I got there, the branches were quiet, as if the screaming warning had not happened. It seemed like it was tired after squeezing out the remaining life force it had to speak.

But there was no time. Please tell me what to do.

At that moment, the inside of the orchard shook from an earthquake caused by the crawling fire pushing the ground with its huge body. It seemed dangerous to even breathe deeply now as the building was on the verge of collapsing.

Even if we got lucky and didn’t burn to death, we had to worry about death from becoming buried in debris.

“Hurry… please tell me what I should do.”

I held the branch and begged. You told me I was hopeful. Tell me what I should do. I’m going crazy not knowing what my isolated dryads are doing out there.

As Elder entered the fire curtain, the shield around me disappeared. It was a clear indication of the disconnection between me and my dryads, and blood flowed to my head.

“Do you need diamonds? Would you like me to pour diamonds into you? You said you haven’t received diamonds for a long time! I saw it in the journal of the administrative officer. But to save a big tree like this, it would be difficult for me to break each one by my teeth for you!”

Maybe that did it. The drooping branches began to tremble.

As if it was holding my hand, the branches in contact with my hands shook in a rhythm of joy, as when shaking hands with someone they had been waiting for.

A slender, snake-like stem slithered down my arm from my left hand. The terrarium artifact also shined with subtle light. It was a bizarre stem with a bluntly pressed end.

Mesquite was surprised to see me directly interacting with the World Tree.

“Jay, did you hear the answer?”

“No. No matter how much I ask, it doesn’t say anything. I guess it doesn’t have any more energy.”

I hope it’s not trying to swallow my arm. Did hope mean that you were going to use me as fertilizer? I pulled the end of the trunk with a wide square shape.

Hm…? This looks familiar.

“Oh my god… could this be?”

To form a consensus, I showed the end of the tree trunk to Mesquite. Should I call this novel… or ridiculous…?

In that urgent situation, I burst out into laughter. However, Mesquite looked like she didn’t get it.

Yes, if you say I’m hope… you’re right to say that. You’ve come to the right place. 

The end of the stem resembled a USB cable. Of course, if you open it in detail, it would be different, like not having a metal pin. I had heard that the orchard uses a special method to supply diamonds for the branches of the World Tree, but never imagined that it would be this way.

I took out my phone and woke it up. It was difficult to move my arm since the stem was holding onto it so tightly.

[Master! We have waited for you! Do you need diamonds?]

“Yes! A lot! Prepare a bunch!”

[Master! Will you take it now?]

The dwarves pushed the hose towards the screen, and I stopped them from doing so. Not that way, guys. 

Is it correct to do this? I placed the end of the stem at the bottom of my cell phone. I once heard that if I use an unverified cable, my phone might stop working. Now that I think about it, it’s also my first time using a plant-made USB. Well, dwarves live in this cell phone, so there’s nothing that can be said about what I’m doing now… 

With a clicking sound, the stem was sucked into the groove of my cell phone. At that moment, I suddenly felt weak.

It felt like getting sudden weakness in crowded places such as the subway or a concert hall. I felt like I couldn’t control my body and drooped. I couldn’t move my legs as if they weren’t mine. Mesquite hurriedly supported me.

I heard a long beep in one of my ears, my vision became unclear, and I felt nauseous. It felt like I was under something very heavy and my body was not mine.

“Stop it! What are you trying to do? If you are sacrificing yourself to save the branches of the World Tree, please stop!”

Mesquite’s remarks were surprising. The World Tree was a god-like figure for Mesquite, and it was also her parent since she was born there. I was stunned to learn that I was the higher priority.

“Jay, your soul is unstable. It will break if you continue!”

My soul will break… when did I hear a similar story? Oh yeah, it was when I was told that my dryads were crouching to the size of my soul. My soul is like the pottery where the dryads rest, so they hide their power until the limit grows. 

Maybe this branch is…

I took a rough breath in to wake up. It was my own solution whenever I felt nauseous.

I looked at the phone screen with a faint vision. The screen of <Infinite Diamond> was caught in the blinking field of view. Something that looked like a giant funnel towered.

The dwarves ran loudly avoiding the funnel, fell, and looked surprised. They looked at the funnel once, then at me, and pointed at the funnel. Yes, that.

“It’s fine. I’m really okay. I think I’m feeling better now. Still, it would have been nice if the branches of the World Tree had made a statement before making me go through this kind of thing. Of course, I can’t say anything now.”

I enjoyed Mesquite’s support to the fullest and left my back in her arms. She willingly hugged me to create a stable posture.

“Put all the diamonds in there.”

On my order, the dwarves screamed in excitement, threw all the pickaxes they were holding, and started pushing the cart. From the beginning of <Infinite Diamond> until now, the diamond cart, which had never moved from that position, started moving on the rail to where the funnel was.

Whenever the cart moved, piles of diamonds overflowed to the floor. The dwarves succeeded in pushing a huge cart hundred of times their body size and moving the faucet in the center to fit the opening of the funnel.

Several of them became attached to the handle and moved as if spinning a wheel. Other dwarves brought drums and giant gongs and began to sway. The dwarves turning the handle used the sound as a working song.

They look like me when I’m using real money to buy buffs…

As the handle began to rotate, the diamonds began to fall from the snout; a huge amount compared to my conventional spending. Other dwarves on the cart threw the diamonds as if they thought the pouring was insufficient.

The numbers started to go down very quickly. In an instant, it broke through the thousands, then the ten thousand.

Some anxious dwarves picked up their pickaxe thrown on the floor and started running back towards the mines when the branches changed.

“Hey… look there.”

I could barely speak due to the dizziness which made my tongue twisted. I pointed at the branch with difficulty. The black ashes began to fall. Mesquite raised her shield and blocked them from falling on my head. As the ashes fell, the white essence and powder fell together.

In the place where the ashes fell, an ivory-colored wood that gave off a light was revealed. I thought it was clearly a sign that I was doing well. Just keep going like this…

But that only lasted for a while, and the tree started to show abnormal symptoms. Water droplets started to form on the surface of the branches. As if the branches were shedding tears, the water droplets began to fall and the spaces where the droplets had formed began to fester.

Oh my god, are the dwarves pouring too many diamonds into this? Was this something that required professional touch?