The Alchemy Tower, which had been a landmark of the 16th Terrarium, was finally scheduled for demolition.

The tower can no longer be operated in this terrarium. I heard that outside opinions aren’t favorable, and there won’t be any more applicants in the future.

The Alchemy Tower, built endlessly huge to run the Seed Repository, also came with high maintenance costs.

To operate that massive building again, unless we had fuel like burning branches of the World Tree to generate heat, extensive additional construction would be needed. So, in the end, it was decided to demolish it and build something else.

Papillion, who had lost both administrative authority and his wallet, had to get my approval for every single matter requiring large sums of money.

Iris, watching from the side, remarked that because my concept of diamond value was so weak, I was about to approve all the absurd cost estimates Papillion casually tossed out as a joke.

Anyway, after becoming the administrative manager, all diamonds were flowing out of my wallet. I didn’t care how much was spent, but she said that would just fulfill Papillion’s desires in the 16th Terrarium.

Thinking from the perspective of players who enjoy territory-building games, I understood what she meant. Got it, got it. Build everything possible, make sure it’s better than other territories, and see it through to the end.

Since I have to go on adventures, I couldn’t stay in the 16th Terrarium forever to approve things, so I needed an alternative method entirely.

So I set aside a full-year budget for the 16th Terrarium. Based on the diamonds used there last year, I made it a bit more generous.

Since the new World Tree branches are spreading starting from the grove, I need to adjust the orchard’s location, and after demolishing the Alchemy Tower, I have to build something new. It’ll probably require more diamonds than last year.

“I’ll decide your salary based on how efficiently you use the annual budget.”

Even if he’s indebted to me with his life, I still have to pay him while ordering him around. Papillion finally withdrew all those ridiculous approval documents meant to test me.

Watching a big chunk of it disappear, I seriously considered giving him a good slap.

Finally, on the day I planned to depart, as I made up my mind to head to the terrarium on the lower end, a list of matters to resolve in passing was organized. Since the destination was clearly a terrarium with a very high number, all I had to do was keep moving downward.

As it happened, Iris’s party, which was scheduled to carry out the mission of assisting the migration of Loop and Pila’s families, ended up accompanying me, along with Siedling.

For now, I decided to follow where the butterfly of the Elder led. I’d search for the Elder’s wild species along the way. Since a long time had passed even after obtaining the butterfly, Elder was excited, asking if its turn had finally come.

Since I was going down the numbers anyway, I also planned to check on the development progress of the special bullets I had commissioned for research at the 18th terrarium.

It was good that the dryads were growing stronger, but upgrading myself was also important.

Additionally, for the first time in a while, I planned to make an official stop at the 28th terrarium. They said that the crop trio—the Golden Pumpkin Chamber of Commerce, Jewelry Cone, and Great Bean Federation—had finally visited and was proceeding with development.

However, the visit order got turned upside down. It was because of what Daisy 2 said.

“Master Druid, there are some strange people here right now.”

With the development work in full swing, I lifted the entry ban on the 28th terrarium. The original reason for the ban was the reconnaissance sent by Papillion, but since the matter of the 16th terrarium had also been resolved, I couldn’t keep it blocked forever.

And so, it seemed outsiders had visited the 28th terrarium. If they intended to migrate, they’d be more than welcome, but since Daisy 2 called them strange people, I grew worried.

“Strange people? What are they like?”

Guided by Daisy 2, I looked into the artifact and could understand why he had said that.

On a wagon carrying a huge violet tent adorned with many decorations, I saw about five or six people wearing robes made of a fluttering silk material with the same color as the tent.

Was it something like a circus troupe?

“They introduced themselves as a traveling fortune-telling troupe, people who wander and receive lodging and food in exchange for telling fortunes. They said they felt a strong pull this time and made up their minds to visit the 28th terrarium. They insist on meeting the Master Druid?”

“Oh… that kind of thing exists here?”

A traveling fortune-telling troupe… I was amazed that fortune-telling was possible even in this world. How did they tell fortunes? But why did they suddenly visit the 28th terrarium? Why did they specifically want to meet me? Could they be suspicious people?

Thinking I should check it out myself, I borrowed a large wagon from the Golden Pumpkin Chamber of Commerce stationed at the 16th terrarium, and we all headed to the 28th terrarium.

The sights I witnessed along the way were quite astonishing. The dryads, which had been transported while wrapped in a virtual artifact space made of diamond, were scattered here and there along the route.

Before I could even question why not even a small fire appeared, I saw them handling every flame the moment it arose. They were like the guard NPCs in a game that deal with monsters approaching the village.

It wasn’t that they were densely packed in large numbers; rather, if you deliberately looked around, each one had bloomed their own flower and settled in a spot they liked. I thought the security against fire must be excellent.

I had no idea that the dryads I had taken in were playing such a role without my knowledge.

Even though they couldn’t leave the cramped virtual artifact space and were essentially trapped, all the dryads wore satisfied expressions. They meticulously tended their small space as their own territory, and when the carriage we were riding passed by, they instantly noticed and waved.

“I thought all of them had been moved to the 28th terrarium, so how are these dryads here on this path?”

The guild members didn’t know that the two World Tree branches I had claimed had activated the entwined growth effect, granting me this privilege. Those who had been in the garden knew the identity of these dryads, but outsiders might have thought they were wild, naturally occurring ones.

Until we arrived at the 28th terrarium, I calmly explained to them about the privilege I had gained.

“Then, if you want, can you summon them into any space between the 16th and 28th, Master Jae?”

“Hmm… Papillion could summon them freely in the alchemy tower and the garden, so I should be able to as well, right?”

In the alchemy tower, the virtual artifact space appeared as if a trap was triggered, but in the garden, countless black dryads were summoned all at once. Since Papillion could do it, maybe I could too?

“This isn’t just about improved security against fire. It’s like you’ve planted eyes and ears for yourself all along the path. Look at that. While they aren’t in every area, they exist at regular intervals. If a person or carriage passes this way, at least one of them will witness it.”

So, they serve as watchtowers? If there’s any suspicious movement, like an invasion of my terrarium, I could prevent it in advance. As Iris said, it felt strange that this turned out to be a useful military feature.

After riding the carriage non-stop for quite a long time, we finally arrived at the 28th terrarium.

The surroundings of the terrarium, which I hadn’t seen in a while, had changed a lot. Lush saplings were sparsely arranged like a fence, encircling the terrarium.

It was clearly the work of the Viburnum dryad. Viburnum, a fire-resistant tree, would make an excellent hedge once fully grown.

Furthermore, surprisingly, in the area where the saplings were densely planted, there were properly raised burial mounds and roughly carved stone monuments.

Before that gravestone, a portrait of Scarecrow that had hung in the office was placed alongside a branch bearing small, white flowers piled up. That spot was where Mesquite had used its ability to bury Scarecrow deep underground.

This must be the grave Viburnum arranged for Scarecrow. Back then, to prevent the fire druid’s body from being consumed by flames, we hastily hid it underground and had forgotten about it until now.

I hadn’t thought of preparing a grave, but I felt relieved that Viburnum had properly taken care of the honor for the former administrative manager of the 28th Terrarium, which once thrived.

Seeing how well-maintained it was and how the flower branch looked as fresh as if just cut, it seemed he visited and tended to it every day.

Is it because he lived in human society for so long that a dryad honors the dead like humans do? It felt unfamiliar, as I’ve only ever seen dryads vanish along with human deaths.

I deliberately got off the carriage near the graveyard. I explained the identity of the grave to the guild members and held a brief moment of silence. Although it’s located outside the Terrarium, as long as Viburnum guards it, nothing will be able to harm this place.

Not only that, I could see artificially modified dryads positioned around the 28th Terrarium even more densely than at the crossroads. Thanks to this, the area around the Terrarium became a place where no fire could approach. A massive fire once took over the Terrarium, but it was only after weakening the remaining fires with the power of the World Tree branch that they were driven away.

Even during the auction of the 28th Terrarium at the 18th Terrarium, the issue of security around the Terrarium had been a hot topic.

Since it had been attacked by fire and neglected for so long, there were attempts to devalue the 28th Terrarium, saying that raising security would require hiring mercenaries to clean it up, costing a lot.

Now, there was not even a trace of fire to be seen. So much so that Iris said this place’s fire security was top-notch, even better than single-digit Terrariums. She added that it was peaceful enough for any plant colony to take root.

If a colony forms… wouldn’t it be Red Daisy?

As if challenging Viburnum’s saplings, seeing the red Red Daisy flower field decorating the entrance made me let out a hollow laugh.