We quickly found a compromise.

Like the conditions the child initially proposed, I would buy things and give part of them to her.

Saying the market here was expensive because it’s crowded with travelers, the child led me to the outskirts of the village.

On the way, seeing me frantically turning my head at the unfamiliar scenery, she laughed and said, “You must find everything new since it’s your first time here. But this place is affected by the branches of the World Tree, so it’s better. Most of the villagers are full of vitality.”

What exactly is the World Tree? Watching the girl, who looked like she hadn’t eaten in a long time, gobble down the bread and milk she’d given me, I felt too sorry for her to ask immediately.

As expected, diamonds were used as currency in this village.

At the bakery the child led me to, one diamond could buy three loaves of bread and two bottles of milk. Crazy prices… Thinking of the lump of diamonds jingling in my coat pocket somehow frightened me.

It’s practically like carrying a large sum of money unprotected, isn’t it? Especially since in my phone…

“Do you want more to eat…?”

Suddenly feeling tense and at a loss, I got the urge to be kind to the kid next to me for no reason.

I have a strong feeling, child, that even though I only met you today, you’re the only one I can trust.

But the child refused, saying the reward was far too generous for what she had done.

Then, as I wondered what to do with the leftovers since she wasn’t hungry, the child casually said, “Why not just put it in your pocket? You can eat it later.”

No way this fits in such a small pocket, I thought as I tried… but it went in easily.

No matter how much I put in, the pocket didn’t bulge at all, as if it contained an unknown space. I couldn’t even feel the weight.

Oh, this keeps getting more and more detached from reality…?

“It’s here. It’s far from the ‘orchard,’ but you can get a good room at a low price. You’ll have to wake up a bit early, though.”

The child faithfully led me to an inn while I was lost in confusion.

It wasn’t like a motel as I knew it, but a wooden inn straight out of a fantasy.

A real inn where the first floor operates as a restaurant and the second as lodging—the kind of place where mercenaries might clink glasses and spill crucial information.

I started to suspect that maybe this place wasn’t Korea.

“I’ll be going now. Thank you for sharing your food. May fortune shine on your path, Druid!”

“Wait, wait. Don’t you want to work for me a bit more? I need your help. I’ll pay you whatever you want.”

“Um, is it something I can do? I don’t have any special skills—all I can do is show you around the village.”

“It’s something only you can do!”

I can’t just grab some random passerby and ask, ‘Hey, where the heck is this place?’ I’m a complete stranger here, and I need a lot of information to confirm my suspicions.

‘The nail that sticks out gets hammered down’—how dangerous would it be for a clueless little girl to wander around in a foreign land with no connections!

But at my words, the child instead became wary and stepped back hesitantly.

“Someone like you, Druid, truly needs the help of a little girl with no abilities like me?”

I get what she’s worried about. I have no idea what that ‘Druid’ title means, but it must be strange for an adult like me to ask a child for help. It sounds just like a kidnapper’s trick.

“Ah, first, thanks for introducing the inn. But I’m really curious about this village. You know it well, right? If you’re worried, how about we talk at the inn’s restaurant downstairs?”

The first-floor restaurant isn’t that big, it’s open, and there seems to be someone at the counter who looks like the owner standing there all the time—wouldn’t that put the child at ease?

Fortunately, the child agreed to my request, saying, “Ah, if that’s the case, I should help you!”

“Oh, Daisy! Long time no see. Did you bring a guest? You’ve really grown up now. Ah, welcome!”

So this child’s name was Daisy. I’ve been traveling with her all this time without even knowing her name. Compared to the grumpy innkeepers near the market who told me to get lost, the owner here was truly kind.

The child looked very at ease, as if the owner treated little Daisy well too. I was genuinely grateful to Daisy for guiding me to a proven good place.

Not knowing what else to order, I went with the owner’s recommendation and ordered two servings, one for me and one for Daisy. I also said I’d stay for about a day. I paid two diamonds for the cost.

The owner’s face brightened as he called out toward the window overlooking the kitchen, “Two lamb stews over here!”

By the way, Daisy had already eaten bread and milk—could she still eat more? Contrary to my worries, the child looked very happy. Guess she wasn’t full….

“Thank you for treating me to a meal! The food at this inn is incredibly delicious. The landlady has always taken good care of me.”

“Really? If you say it that enthusiastically, I’m really looking forward to it.”

“Ask me anything! I’ll explain everything I know as best I can!”

We sat at a spot far from the counter. From now on, if the questions I ask are common knowledge around here, those people might find them really strange.

I managed to guess that the currency here is diamonds, but how could I possibly know what counts as common sense? To make sure Daisy could eat comfortably, I planned to keep the questions as simple as possible until the food arrived.

From how quickly she ate the bread earlier, I doubted she could give proper answers once the food came, busy as she’d be eating. Alright, what should I ask first?

“Where is this? Ah, that question was a bit odd. What’s the name of this village?”

“This is the ‘26th Terrarium of the World Tree.’ Sometimes, like you, Druid, some people get confused about the number.”

Hmm, it’s a place name that sounds unfamiliar even by Korean standards, right…? I really seem to have ended up in a strange place. How do I get back home? By the way, I’ve heard of ‘terrarium’ somewhere… where was it?

“Hmm… does the number mean something?”

“It means the place touched by the 26th branch of the World Tree. The smaller the number, the closer it is to the World Tree, they say.”

Daisy, her wariness toward me completely gone, seemed eager to share all the knowledge she had with me.

Beyond repaying me for the food, she seemed to want to show off how helpful she could be, despite being young.

Her white cheeks flushed with excitement as she moved her mouth nonstop, talking fervently.

Through the child’s words, I learned about the naming convention of the villages. The Nth Terrarium of the World Tree—places influenced by the World Tree are named this way, with N determined by the branch that extends from the World Tree.

The smaller the number N, the closer it is to the World Tree, and the larger, the farther it is. Also, it is said that the farther you are from the World Tree or in places less affected by it, the greater the damage from ‘fire.’

To be honest, I have no idea what she’s talking about. What’s the World Tree, and is ‘fire’ the same as the ‘Fire’ I know… But this seemed like such common knowledge that I couldn’t bring myself to ask.

“Wow, you’re really smart. You know so much?”

It came out in a bit of a textbook-reading tone, but I did my best to praise Daisy. Praise makes even whales dance, and I hoped the excited child would add more and chatter on about this and that. Sure enough, Daisy, when excited, became incredibly talkative.

“But why do you call me a druid?”

This isn’t common knowledge, right? Please, please….

“Well, that’s because you came here to go on an adventure. Am I wrong? People rarely visit other villages because of the fire danger. Plus, you arrived just when the World Tree’s branches are bearing fruit, so I made a guess… Could I be mistaken?”

“No, no. I guess I am a druid. Maybe?”

Wow, as soon as the child answered, a hypothesis suddenly sprang to mind, and I felt like I’d been hit hard in the head. Could this be <Terrarium Adventure>? That game the classmate showed me for pre-registration.

But back then, I was worried about the <Infinite Diamond> server shutting down and didn’t really look into the game properly. Still, this place strangely evokes the setting of an RPG game, so I think it’s a reasonable idea. I’ve seen words like ‘Terrarium’ and ‘druid’ in the pre-registration success message too….

But why am I inside a game that hasn’t even launched yet? Virtual reality games, which only appear in novels, haven’t been invented at this point in time, right? Not to mention <Terrarium Adventure> is just a mobile game.

[???] A strange key popped out from the reward for completing an achievement, then my phone glitched out because of the key, and suddenly a white light engulfed me… When I came to my senses, I was in some weird place, not at home. Ah, I could use a smoke.

I took out my phone, which was in sleep mode, and stared at it with mixed feelings. Is this a dream? It feels oddly real for a dream?

“Hey, do you know what this is?”

I hope Daisy recognizes the phone. If Daisy has a phone too, maybe I could borrow it? Or maybe I could use a phone at the inn. My phone is busted, and if I wake it up, those dwarfs will start chanting about diamonds again.

“Isn’t that a wallet?”

“Wallet, huh. Do you have one too?”

“No, I don’t have enough diamonds to need a wallet. I don’t have a single one.”

Damn it. Based on my common sense, this is a phone, but here it seems to be a wallet. Even the dwarves called it a wallet.

I took a deep breath. It was time to finally accept reality.

Honestly, I had a feeling ever since the dwarves talked to me and diamonds popped out of the phone, didn’t I? That this world was vastly different from the reality I knew.

Even if people burst out of the kitchen clapping, revealing it was a hidden camera, I’d accept it kindly right about now.

As I was tearing at my head, feeling like it would crack from frustration, the food arrived. Daisy stared at the generous portions of meat piled in the bowl, her mouth agape. I gestured for her to eat first.

“But… are you sure it’s okay for me to eat first, when you, the druid who paid, haven’t eaten yet?”

“I’m actually not that hungry. But if we don’t eat the food the chef worked hard to make and leave it behind, he’ll be very sad. I’d become a total jerk. So, can you help me out a bit?”

It was nonsense, but it worked. My request was on the level of asking a fish to swim in water, as Daisy cheerfully worked her spoon. She ate well. Her appetite was honest, focusing straight on the meat.