I don’t know where Daisy went either, saying she had urgent business. I didn’t even know the location of the village community hall where the kid stays overnight. Looking at this, I realized I was pretending to be close to Daisy while knowing almost nothing about her. It felt a bit bitter.

Come to think of it, the innkeeper was close with Daisy, right? If I ask her, wouldn’t I be able to find out about Daisy’s whereabouts?

Before I knew it, I had arrived at the street where I first fell into this world. Since I have bad memories of the innkeepers here, I quickened my pace.

The street was still bustling. I could now recognize that the oddly dressed and peculiar-looking people I had seen before were dryads.

The feeling of the street was clearly different for me, who had just fallen into this world with no leisure, compared to now. I felt like I had truly become a part of the game.

The inn I arrived at was still quiet. Perhaps because it was located on the outskirts, it was in a place I likely wouldn’t have visited if Daisy hadn’t specifically dragged me here.

Whether I had been the only customer for the past two days, the innkeeper standing at the counter wore a very bored expression.

“Hello. You remember me, right?”

“Oh, the druid who came with Daisy! How could I forget? How was the orchard?”

“Well, I got some good dryads.”

The owner sincerely congratulated me. She glanced behind me with a wistful expression. At first glance, one might mistake it for her wanting to see my dryad, but judging by her expression, she seemed to be looking for Daisy. So Daisy hasn’t returned here.

“Excuse me, do you know where Daisy might have gone? We parted ways at the orchard, and I have something I need to tell her…”

“Daisy? Well, I’m not sure. I do look after the child, but she doesn’t come by often.”

Should I ask about the location of the village community hall? If I wait there endlessly, I might meet Daisy. Just in case, should I ask more about Daisy?

“By the way, did you know that Daisy was a dryad? Hmm, I feel like you might have known already…”

“So you’ve finally figured it out. I thought the druid had known ever since he first met Daisy. But after watching a bit more, I realized that wasn’t the case.”

“I found out Daisy was a dryad in the orchard. I didn’t know until someone else told me.”

“That child is really… a pitiful one.”

Ah, this flow! Could it be that I’m about to learn about Daisy’s past?

But am I allowed to know? Daisy and I only met yesterday, and she might want to hide what the owner is about to reveal…

However, my desire to know about Daisy was stronger. Ever since I heard about Daisy’s identity from the guide, I had wondered, and if possible, I even wished Daisy would become my dryad.

While I was debating whether to listen, the innkeeper’s story had already begun.

“That child is truly… a pitiful one. She came to the village around this time last year. Do you know what that time signifies?”

“…Now is when the World Tree’s branches bear fruit.”

“That’s right. The child is not a naturally occurring wild dryad. She was born in the orchard.”

Wha… I felt as if someone had suddenly struck me on the back of the head. Why is a dryad born in the orchard wandering around alone…?

“Does that mean… Daisy was a dryad who had an owner?”

“She did. Briefly. She was abandoned soon after.”

I prayed I had misheard. What did the guide say? That a dryad whose soul bond is severed would suffer from bitter cold, unrelenting thirst, and the pain of their body rotting away?

They said it would be a very unpleasant experience, didn’t they? So Daisy has been enduring that kind of pain all this time?

But she always seemed so cheerful in front of me… Suddenly, I recalled the way Daisy had eaten her food so ravenously. That was an act directly tied to her survival… And I had no idea; I just thought she ate adorably with such gusto…

Even as I watched right beside her, I hadn’t noticed. I felt like I’d go mad from pity for Daisy. Her bright smile seemed to shatter into pieces.

“It was the child’s grade. I wasn’t there, so I don’t know the details, but it seems the druid who bloomed Daisy without checking her grade treated the child harshly on the spot. He must have been furious that the fruit he barely saved gave birth to a Dryad of the lowest Normal grade. On top of that, he apparently got even worse when she wasn’t a recovery type. When he tried to use violence against the child, another druid who couldn’t stand it offered his own fruit, and the situation ended. Daisy had her soul severed right there and fled the orchard as if chased out.”

How could a person do that? I felt a rage so intense at that druid—Daisy’s former master, whose name and face I didn’t even know—that my whole body trembled. If I ever met him, I wanted to slap him across the face.

But since I couldn’t do that right away, I clenched both fists so hard my nails dug in. How could he give Daisy such an indelible wound? To that good child, how could he do such a thing….

So that’s why Daisy ran out of the orchard like that… fleeing as if chased. Her past was layered on top of it… I didn’t even know that….

The more I raged, the more the terrarium artifact on my left wrist vibrated as if resonating with my anger.

“I learned about Daisy drifting around, took pity on her, and started giving her food. Even though we couldn’t communicate through words, she was such a pure child that all her emotions showed in her expressions and actions. They say a Dryad separated from a druid for a long time can’t live long, so it’s admirable she’s held out until now… Having suffered such harsh treatment right after being born, I can’t tell you how heartbreaking it is that Daisy doesn’t resent anyone, including the druids.”

I wondered if I had ever felt such terrible disillusionment toward someone in my life. She might have hated me since I’m a druid like her former master, but she treated me so well.

How kind is Daisy? Isn’t she festering inside? Where is Daisy now? Is there anything I can do for that child?

Suddenly, Mesquite and Elder popped out of the terrarium artifact. Mesquite immediately wrapped her arms around my shoulder.

“My master, Jae. What’s wrong? What on earth is making you so angry? We are beings connected by soul; we can feel your intense emotions too.”

“What is it? A person? A Dryad? Want me to kill them?”

I wondered if my angry eyes looked like that. Somehow, I felt my Dryads were looking at me with the same eyes. Mesquite’s amber eyes blazing like fire, and Elder’s emerald eyes gleaming like sharp blue blades.

“Daisy… if I go to the hall, can I find that child?”

“Hmm… That seems most likely. I’ll tell you the way to the guild hall. I hope you can embrace Daisy’s wounds. You seemed like such a good druid when dealing with children.”

The innkeeper, though startled by my dryads suddenly appearing, calmly continued his reply.

“That brat’s name is Daisy? Want me to kill them?”

I pushed Elder’s face away with my palm as he kept spouting nonsense. Kill, my foot.

“My master, Jae. Are you worried about that child named Daisy? A dryad, I see. But it’s clearly not a dryad connected to your soul.”

“I want to find that child. They’re probably suffering a lot right now. I want to help. That kid is really kind and deeply wounded. A being who helped me so much… and I knew nothing…”

My eyes grew hot.

Mesquite lifted her cloak and gently wiped at my eyes.

“Don’t cry, Jae. When you cry, my heart aches too. Do you want to find the dryad Daisy? It might be hard to find since it’s a common type, but it’s not impossible.”

I clutched the rough map the innkeeper had drawn of the guild hall and left the inn. I felt like I’d burst into tears the moment I opened my mouth, so I kept it shut and walked staring only at the ground.

“My master, Jae. Let me be of help.”

Mesquite gripped my shoulder, making me stop walking. I suddenly looked at her face. If Daisy had been a Special grade, a Unique grade, or even just a Rare grade, they wouldn’t have been so cruelly abandoned…

“I am the guardian of the desert, I can be a guide to underground water, but my thick, straight roots aren’t limited to finding only groundwater.”

Mesquite carefully stroked my cheek with her gauntleted hand.

“My master, Jae. Is it enough just to find Daisy? If they’re dryads born from the World Tree, I can find them based on genetic information. I can dig up and find information about the land your target dryad has trodden, from deep within.”

“I’m here too.”

Elder cut in abruptly. He swung his staff adorned with a cluster of white flowers.

“My title is a gift from the gods, but on another hand, it’s also a charm of luck. My flowering branch has been used as a talisman for prayer. If I cast a luck-boosting buff on Mesquite, the chance of finding the dryad you seek will increase.”

It wasn’t his usual pathetic face, always going on about diamonds. He had a very serious expression, conveying with all his might his desire to help me.

For the first time, I felt that these were truly my dryads. At the same time, the anxiety that had me desperate to find Daisy was quietly fading away. I felt a belief that with the two of them together, they’d find Daisy right away.

“My connection with Elder runs deep, so Elder’s buff will have a great effect on me. I might even find that dryad in one go. Do I just need to locate Daisy’s bell?”

“She has red hair.”

“So it’s a red daisy. Narrowing down the traits is helpful.”

Elder raised their staff and drew a circle around Mesquite. White petals blooming with a sweet scent fluttered, enveloping Mesquite. Then Mesquite closed their eyes and drove the tip of their lance into the ground with all their might.

*Rumble…!*

A loud sound rang out, and a strong earthquake began to shake the ground.