Terrarium Adventure - Chapter 2

Where am I? When I took my shoes off, I was definitely in front my house…

Why am I outside all of sudden? What is this lengthy coat? Where is the coat that I bought with hard-earned money?

When I looked around, I was standing in a place I never imagined.

Although it is in Seoul where the land is small, I couldn’t see any tall apartment buildings. Instead, all I saw were low buildings that were close together along with a clear view.

I know this society respects individuality, but it was a strange outfit that wouldn’t be seen in indie culture… Perhaps this is armor?

Many people on the street with various hair colors and skin tones… Their skin is green? It’s not art?

Where the hell am I? I looked at my phone to use the GPS service but my phone died so the screen was black. Ah…

Drowning in despair, the scenes which I would see in RPG games or movies were confusing me as it all had become a reality. Did something happen to my head when the phone broke…?

“What? Are you a customer? If not, don’t obstruct my business and get the hell out!”

Gosh, I must be blocking the entrance of the building. From inside, a chubby man came out and looked at me from head to toe then became angry while shaking his fist.

It seems like those old men still have their temper. Anyway, I swiftly avoided it as I didn’t want to get punched by a giant fist. Still, even if I dodged it, it was just the same.

“We don’t accept beggars!”

“Why are you staying around here? Do you know how much the entrance fee is?”

“Don’t stand in front of my lodge! You are going to distract all the potential customers!”

“Do you expect to get a room while dressed up like that?”

As all buildings were close together, when I moved, I blocked the entrance of each building. That’s why the ‘owner’ of each building quickly came out.

I do feel sorry for blocking the entrance but why are people treating me like a beggar…? It seems like the last bit of philanthropy is going to fade away. Since when was this nation was so harsh without any empathy…

I didn’t have any choice as I avoided them quickly without any specific idea, and at last, I was standing in a dark alley. I doubt that someone will tell me to move away from here.

As I hid my body in the darkness, I looked at the bright street to see what was going on. On a street that looked like a movie set, people with strange clothing and appearances were strolling around.

The sound which seemed noisy was heard clearly as I calmed myself and focused on listening to their conversations.

“Offering you better deals than the market! Lower Enhancing Stone cost 10 Diamonds!”

“Examining your weapons! Special discount of 3 Diamonds!”

“Take your self-made potion. It’s cheaper than the Alchemic Tower! It’s 5 Diamonds per bottle!”

Diamond? Did I just hear things because I’m obsessed with ? What Potion and Enhanced Stone? Why is it that the terms which I normally hear in-game are here as if they are selling mackerel inside a traditional market?

“A diamond only used for wedding rings…”

[Master!]

“Gosh! What’s up?”

As I became sensitive to someone telling me to move away, I sprung up as I heard a sound right next to me.

There is no one around me? Where did I hear someone talking? It must be a ghost…

My heart raced as I was surprised.

[Master! Do you need a diamond?]

“Why is a ghost talking about diamonds? Where on the earth am I hearing this?

[Master! It’s here! Here!]

As I followed the voice which said ‘Here,’ I slowly turned my head and looked at my phone which I held in my hand. A dead cell phone started talking.

“…Hello Siri…?”

[Master! Do you need a diamond?]

“Huh? Infinite Diamond?”

My phone which seemed to be dead had revived and a familiar screen was visible. It was the game screen. If it was normal, the dwarfs were supposed to pickax intensively but they were looking at me and shook their two hands.

Honestly, it gave me goosebumps. If I didn’t have hope of my cellphone reviving, I would have thrown it away a long time ago.

As I looked at the phone in a distance with a serious face, dwarfs stopped shaking their hands.

Then, they got on top of the diamond cart then held their diamonds on hand and began to shake their hands again. What am I supposed to do…

“Two potions please.”

“Here you go. It’s 10 Diamonds in total!”

At the same time, with active soliciting, a merchant managed to make a deal.

I was very curious how many diamond carats are being traded so I quickly looked at the side.

A person who was preciously holding two bottles filled with liquid gave me a… blue diamond. So, that looks like the same one inside my screen which was held by the dwarfs.

“That… that…”

[Master! Do you need a diamond? We have tons in the cart!]

[Master! There are tons also at the warehouse located in the basement!]

[Master! There are lots of diamonds at the fountain instead of marbles!]

I looked once at a blue diamond going inside the merchant and also saw dwarfs shaking blue diamonds like a light stick. As my dumb head stopped functioning, I was just blinking my two eyes…

Hey, are you able to talk to me? You are just dotted images…

“What can I do with those diamonds?”

[Take much as you want! All the diamonds in here belong to you master!]

[Master! Do you want me to use a shovel?]

[Master! Do you want me to use a bucket?]

These dotted images… What do you want me to do with diamonds which are mere graphics…

“What are you guys? Since when were you AI? Since you can answer, it seems like you are smarter than Siri.”

[It’s inside Master’s wallet!]

[You need a lot of diamonds to go on an adventure! There are lots of diamonds!]

[Hurry and take your diamonds! Buy clothing, weapons, mercenaries and food!]

I’m so stupid. I’ve been a moron from the beginning. The problem wasn’t diamonds or the phone screen.

“Do you guys know where you are?”

Where is this place? It feels like I’m not in Seoul. However, I don’t hear any foreign language so I can’t assume that I’m not in Korea.

The dwarfs who were chatting like birds closed their mouths to my questions. Then, they looked at each other and whispered — sometimes they would move their shoulders and nod their heads.

[Master! I don’t know what you are talking about!]

“Do you know where I’m right now?”

[We are not sure! We are just a faithful wallet for you master! Use diamonds! Answer your curiosity with diamonds!]

Do you think this world is ? Do you think it’s like a game where everything can be paid with diamonds?! I feel like I’m about to die from suffocation. The dwarfs didn’t understand me and were constantly singing I should use diamonds.

“Good, fine. I will. How do I obtain diamonds?”

[Take it out!]

If my phone wasn’t out of production, I would have thrown it away a long time ago. How is it possible for someone to talk about taking diamonds out from a cell phone like taking diamonds out of a wallet?

I was pissed and flipped the screen then tapped. 6 blue diamonds dropped to the ground like medicine.

They weren’t dotted graphics but real diamonds were rolling to the ground. I held on firmly as I was surprised and I felt cold stones with decagonal shapes.

[Master! Take more! This isn’t enough!]

As a test, I put my palm again and tapped the cell phone like taking a pack of gum out, then two diamonds came out.

Wow, this really… is too real to be a dream.

Dwarfs shook the diamonds in their hands more intensively as they wanted me to take out more diamonds. I couldn’t stay still as my hands were full of diamonds.

“Hey…”

“It’s crazy… is it for real? How on earth can a cell phone turn a graphic into 4D? Did I come to the future without knowing it?”

“Hey… excuse me.”

“Gosh, so people in the future wear armor like that?”

“Hey! Druid!”

I ignored it as I thought the dwarfs inside the screen were saying useless things, but this time it was a bit different. As I turned my head towards the sound, there was a little girl standing at the entrance of an alley.

Since when were you standing there? Did you see me talking to myself? That girl has a weird outer appearance…

The child was wearing a mediocre one-piece which was made with some random cotton and had red hair that she probably dyed 3-4 times. As I looked cautiously, she was intimated.

“Hello, Druid. Nice to meet you. I’m guiding people in this village. If you are looking for a lodge, I know a good place. So will you let me assist you?”

The girl folded and unfolded her legs while holding the end of her skirt. I recognized that greeting as something I’d seen in Middle Age movies. Oh, it’s strange. I didn’t reply and the child quickly commented as she may have interpreted it in a different way.

“You will get ripped off if you try to look for a lodge around the market at this time! There will be many druids wanting to go on a trip. It’s a bit far, but if you go to a lodge located on the outskirts of the village you can stay at a cheaper price! I won’t ask a lot for compensation! I just want you to get some bread and give me some… Just one loaf of bread…”

This seemed like a system tutorial when playing an RPG game. When it begins, a fairy would be there to say ‘Hello!’

“Lodge?”

“Yes. Tomorrow, the tree in this world will have fruits so everyone is here because they don’t want to be late for it. Lodging around here is full so they will ask for high prices for new guests. If it’s your first time visiting this village, I wouldn’t mind…”

I have no clue what she was saying but I know for sure that the girl is way more beneficial and helpful than the dwarfs inside my phone.

Since it is a girl, I wasn’t that wary although she talked to me in a random and strange unknown place. If it was another situation, I would’ve thought, ‘Who is this fraudster?’

“Do you take things other than bread?”

“Um… a clean bottle of water is fine. Right now, the well in the village is drying out due to a ‘fire.’ Or fruits…”

Gosh, that’s troublesome. I don’t have bread, fruits, or water right now. Why is the requirement food rather than money? Just in case, I shook one handful of diamonds in front of the children.

“Do you accept this?”

The kid had an active reaction beyond my expectation. Her two eyes were shaking intensively and they were saying no as they were intimidated.

“Too much! That’s too much for me! I just want leftovers after the druids make purchases!”

Okay. I see that this diamond is a valuable thing. I can use this to buy things and the kid had a surprising reaction.

“I will give you this but you need to help me.”

“I don’t have the capability to maintain this even if I accept it…”

Although she says that, her eyes were constantly on the diamond as I shook it. However, all I have is diamonds coming out of my cell phone and a cheap coat.