Terrarium Adventure - Chapter 28

There were burnt marks in patches but the tall grasses covered them adequately.

Once I started to take in the view I noticed how beautiful and fairytale-like the view was. The green canvas dotted with yellow painted melted my heart.

Like stars in the morning sky, the yellow flowers lit up my path.

Just like this path was an event in my life, I’m sure dynamic things were soon to come.

In Seoul, it was rare to see beautiful scenery unless I made an effort to visit a park.

The sky was blue and cotton-like clouds floated in the sky and the air was refreshing.

The days where I had to constantly cover my nose and mouth from haze, were stories of the past.

I exhaled deeply and was filled with the refreshing scent of grass and the sweet scent of flowers. My lungs polluted from a habit of smoking seemed to be purified.

A breeze blew and I gently ran through my hair. White flower seeds blew in the breeze.

The yellow flowers in the grass and white flower seeds were a familiar sight. They were common dandelions we could see everywhere. They were flowers that greeted you even in the grayest sceneries.

“Feels like I’ve entered the colony of dandelions.”

Elder complained as he dusted off the white flower seed on his clothes. Mesquite came to a sudden stop. We who had been trailing her large shadow also came to a stop.

“If we are lucky, we may see a wild driard. The bright energy is sufficient. Master Jay. Have you ever seen a nature bred driard grown in the wild before?”

I glanced at Daisy in case the word wild triggered a reaction. Unexpectedly she was looking at mesquite with a look of excitement on her face.

“Is a naturally bred driard a rare sight?”

“Even if they grow up in the field it is rare for a driard to be born in nature. A nature bred driard is blessed with the pollen pollinated widely by the world tree. But not all plants that come in contact with the pollen turn into driards. Only those that meet the specific requirements. In short, only those generated with the perfect requirements will become driards once blessed with the world trees pollen.

The widely spread dandelions were now fully packed on the field. Mesquite looked around as she continued her story.

“This terrarium is rather secluded so they will receive the pollen’s energy and since it is a national park the chances of a perfectly generated plant are very high. If we are lucky we may encounter a dandelion driard.”

Oh, I started to feel nervous all of a sudden. How did a dandelion driard look?

The small yellow petals are densely bloomed so maybe it’s a lovable driard like Daisy?

No wonder the number of dandelion seeds seemed to have increased. Along with the increase in seeds, it seemed to increase Elder’s annoyance as he continuously dusted them off his clothes. Daisy picked a dandelion seed from her hair and looked at it in awe.

The white flower seeds stood out in contrast to Daisy’s red hair, which reminded me of a white cat shedding it’s fur and made me chuckle.

Mesquite lifted her hands and entrapped a seed and looked intently to one spot.

“Maybe they’ll approach us first. These seeds were sent to sense the nature of the trespassers. To see if we are welcomed visitors to greet or unwanted visitors here to destroy their field of flowers.

What…these cotton-like flowers were inspection tools?

If Mesquite was right for the last ten minutes this must have been the skill of the driard. I changed my mind.

Since it grew in nature, what if it was a wild driard? If they interpreted us to be trespassers then it seemed like a pretty dangerous situation.

With a heavy heart, I followed Mesquite’s gaze. From afar a bunch of yellow flowers started to move.

“Even so, from what I know dandelions are only a normal rank.”

Elder’s blunt words made me silly for tensing up.

The face of that rank. To be so full of themselves for being a unique rank! Of course in a card game, a rank may seem important! They are born with it from birth because it’s already a completed card.

Even if they don’t train they are able to see the effect right before the match. I guess the feeling you get when you get a high ranking in a lucky draw is satisfying! There was that time when I thought my heart would drop when I scored the special Mesquite.

But ever since Daisy became my special Driard I changed my mindset to believe that nurture was more important than nature.

I believe I can become extremely skilled while taking an elite course with my endless supplies of diamonds.

That at least for me I would never let a birth rank be the limit of someone and treat them according to their ranks. This was something that would shake my beliefs.

In a card game I used to play there was a second highest-ranking card that all users use, it was referred to as the national wide deck. Even though it was of a rank that was easy to throw out in normal cases.

Because of this case, it had once been hot news on a professional gaming site. Because of which it gained high praise from no charge users.

With a precedent case perhaps that could happen to too? You never know what could happen in the future right?

And of course, if it was something that didn’t work I would make it work. Because I was skilled enough or more than enough! WIth diamonds! I will invest generously and break the prejudice mindset that normal standards were a bad thing.

If I had met a driard over a handphone screen I would never have had such thoughts and would have just used them as a strategy in a game.

Even though I knew in my mind that this was just a gaming world when I had these direct relationships with the driards it was hard to think like that. Was I really…really in a game?

“Jay, Look over there. That’s a dandelion driard. No, it’s a dandelion forest. There are so many wild driards.”

Mesquite stopped talking about what was on her mind to stop and watch what was in front of her. It was a wonderful scenery that made me catch my breath.

A group of yellow driards were gently approaching us.

With yellow petals and white seeds traveling in the air and the gentle swaying of the driards’ yellow dress. It felt like I was watching a parade of fairies for a spring flower festival.

So if you had a group of the same driards in one group together like this they make a wonderful scenery.

Every one of them was a small petite and child-like driards and the yellow dress made them look like nursery students at first glance.

The stick they were clutching tightly with their two hands had a white bell attached, the green cape draped like a blanket made such a wonderful color combination.

The driard standing in the back row held a large fan made out of the sharp leaves of the dandelion, and as they drew these fans the only mature looking female driard appeared.

On her back were a pair of leaves like wings resembling those of a butterfly layered with dandelions so that she looked like she was wearing a yellow dress.

On top of her white hair that resembled the white seeds flying around was a flower wrath that looked like a crown.

The stick she was holding was bigger than the ones the younger ones seemed to have.

She resembled a fairy from a fairytale in appearance but there was an intimidating presence about her.

“…so this is how the nature park was maintained.”

Elder mumbled. Mesquite nodded as though she agreed. Was I the only one unable to stay calm in this crazily beautiful scenery?

I looked at Daisy and she was covering her mouth with both hands while her eyes sparkled.

Thank goodness. I wasn’t the only one.

“Master Jay, this is a very rare sight. This is a large forest community of driards and the forest king as well.”

The dandelion driards maintained a distance and came to a stop. The young driards stepped aside and made way then the King slowly walked to the front.

“I am the king of the dandelion driards Woo Sung Jong. I am ‘dandelion’ responsible for the role of the road. I am honored to meet the small blessing of the world tree, an honor to meet you, druid.”

“Oh, my…it..it is my honor.”

Wow, the presence of a king automatically made you want to submit. King? Isn’t that a super important person? Elder, how is that person of normal rank? Oh! Was this a stereotype?

“We sensed a presence in the nature park so we were rather defensive. Had we known that it was you, druid, we would have sent petals to welcome you instead of the seeds to warn you. All druids of the world are the hopes and a small god to us driards. I hope you will mercifully forgive me.”

To be treated like this for being a druid. I felt a little uncomfortable as I was too ordinary to be treated this way. I could feel myself becoming smaller.

“We were just passing by! Even the white seeds looked like snow and were very pretty! They were not rude at all!”

I continuously refused to acknowledge that the seeds were a hostile act. It was true! It was a great scenery! The only person unhappy with the situation was Elder!

“It’s amazing. To lead and reign a forest in the wild. You must be an inspiration to all wild driards.”

Mesquite spoke in a respectable and formal manner just as she had when we first met.

The dandelion king who had been observing me then saw Mesquite and seemed shocked. Not because of what she said but just by her appearance.

Did Mesquite have something that indicated for other driards to instantly identify her as a special rank?

“It is simply the responsibility of one who has many souls to take care of. I am humbled to hear praises from someone so special.”

Dandelion bowed his head slightly to express his thanks. Her small movement caused flower petals that radiated a golden glow to fall gracefully like pollen.

I stared at this sight in awe. It was such a tranquil scenery almost enough to mistaken for a dream.