Chapter 36: Mandragora (2)

Grrrraaaaa—!

“What the…”

I looked at the flailing Mandragora, wearing a helpless expression.

“Chuchu!”

Then Chuchu pulled a long stick from its belly pouch.

It resembled a switch or a disciplinary rod.

“Chu!”

Tap tap!

Chuchu began tapping the Mandragora with the stick.

It looked exactly like it was scolding it, telling it to sit still.

Grrrrraaaaaa—!

But the Mandragora kept squirming.

It was like it was screaming that it didn’t want to die.

“…Sheesh.”

Was it just me, or did it really feel like it had a personality?

I scratched my cheek, visibly conflicted.

『Kyuuu… poor plant.』

“Popo!”

Dania and Popo stared at the Mandragora with pity in their eyes.

Guys…

This is today’s daily meal, you know…

How are you going to eat if you get emotionally attached?

‘Well, it can’t be helped.’

I decided to play the villain.

As pitiful as the Mandragora’s burning will to live was…

There was no way I could just let this precious thing go to waste.

Just eating it once could shoot my level straight up to 35.

Not just me—imagine how much the other Guardians would gain too.

That’s why…

I had to make a heroic decision for the greater good.

Grrrrraaaaaaa—!

Did it sense what I was thinking?

The Mandragora let out another pitiful wail.

It flailed its limbs at Chuchu.

“Chuchu?”

Grrrraaa—!

“Chu?”

Grrrrraaaaaa—!!

Every time the Mandragora shouted, Chuchu nodded.

Wait—are they communicating right now?

“Chuchu!”

Chuchu came running up to me.

“Chu! Chuchuchu!”

Then it began flailing its arms and legs at me in desperation.

‘…What?’

The more Chuchu spoke, the wider my eyes became.

***

A little while ago.

The Mandragora, having been kidnapped into Seojoon’s lair, experienced something… strange and wondrous.

Fwaaaash!

A radiant light of five colors wrapped around its body, warm and soothing, as if healing the wounds of its soul.

Grrraaaa—!

Right after, the Mandragora realized the energy within it had grown stronger.

Its arms and legs thickened.

Its simple thoughts started to grow more complex.

It had become… smarter.

Fwaaash!

Then, another change occurred.

A seed was born from the flower it had bloomed.

“Alright, today we’re going to slow-boil this guy together with some Nagattara meat.”

That’s when the human male plucked it out of the ground.

The Mandragora realized.

Ah.

So this was the end—it was about to be eaten.

But strangely, it was okay with it.

Why?

『Grrraaa…』

Because it had succeeded in creating a seed.

For the Mandragora, this wasn’t the end, it was a new beginning.

There was no need to resist.

And besides, once a Mandragora expels its seed, it can no longer move the way it used to.

Because the small trace of spirit it had… flows into the seed instead.

And so,

It quietly accepted its fate of being eaten.

“Grrraaa?”

But something was off.

Why wasn’t its mind fading?

It was startled to realize that its ‘spirit’—which should have been passed into the seed—was still intact.

Bubbling…!

Then it began to feel heat rising from beneath.

It was terrifying.

Grrrrraaaaaaa—!!

So it began to struggle again.

Please, just listen to me for a second!

But there was no way to communicate with the human, who was about to toss it mercilessly into a boiling hell.

A moment of despair.

But then,

“Chu?”

The golden-furred creature that had first kidnapped it understood what it was saying.

Grrroooaarrr—!

(Can it really understand me?)

“Chu!”

(Yes.)

Grrroooaarrr!

(Spare me… I will work for you.)

“Chuchu!”

(No. Master, you eat me and get stronger.)

Grrroooaarrr!

(I’m a special Mandragora. If you keep me alive, I’ll be a great help in cultivating Mandragoras.)

“Chu?”

(You’ll help us grow Mandragoras? How?)

Grrroooar!

(Mandragoras will constantly try to escape. I can keep them under control.)

“Chuuu?”

(Interesting.)

The Mandragora realized it.

That this golden-furred being in front of it was its lifeline.

The fact that it had been kidnapped by this creature no longer mattered.

Grrroooaarrr—!

(I’ll do my best!)

The golden fur nodded once.

Then it ran over to the human man and began explaining fervently with gestures and motions.

‘Please! Oh heavens!‘

‘Oh god of the Mandragoras!‘

‘Please have mercy on me!‘

“Huh, it says it’ll take charge of the Mandragoras we’ll be growing?”

“Chuchu!”

I let out a bewildered laugh at the unexpected statement.

‘Now that I think about it, this one does seem a bit different.’

I hadn’t seen other Mandragoras, so I couldn’t compare.

But my unique intuition was whispering to me that the Mandragora before me was indeed a special one.

‘What should I do?’

I glanced at the pot of Clearwater Herb boiling vigorously and hesitated for a moment.

Should I take a chance and trust it?

I’d been wondering what to do if the three Mandragora seeds I’d accelerated with <Rapid Bloom of Spirit Herbs> grew again overnight and tried to escape.

“Hmmm.”

As I stroked my chin,

Grrroooaarrr!

The creature let out another pitiful cry.

Sigh… I’m getting soft-hearted.

“Alright.”

I made my decision.

I’d prioritize long-term gain over immediate benefit.

If it really could command the other Mandragoras, then maybe I could someday run a large Mandragora farm.

“I’ll watch and see if what you said is true.”

Gr-Grrroooaarrr!

“But remember this—there’s only one chance.”

Grrroooaarrr!

It nodded with all its might, as if begging me to believe in it.

In the end, the Mandragora was spared and returned to its place.

“Heh heh heh…”

Looking back on the situation, I couldn’t help but laugh wryly.

Now I’ve come to the point of negotiating with a plant.

“Well then, for today, let’s have some more Tai Yin Yang Essence and Heaven-Earth Revitalizing Soup.”

[Dania wants to eat meat!]

“Oh, this? You want me to grill some more?”

[Yeah. Grill the meat.]

Tai Yin Yang Essence, Heaven-Earth Revitalizing Soup, and Nagattara meat.

That was tonight’s dinner menu.

There was a bit of palate fatigue from eating them all in a row, but even so, it wasn’t bad.

Once dinner was over—

「Your level has increased.」

My level went up again: now 34LV.

「Guardian <Popo>’s level has increased! 108LV → 109LV」

「Guardian <Chuchu>’s level has increased! 146LV → 147LV」

Popo and Chuchu also leveled up!

And the one who leveled up the most—

「Elemental Dragon <Dania>’s level has increased! 110LV → 111LV」
「Elemental…….」
「Elemental Dragon <Dania>’s level has increased! 113LV」

Dania went up four levels at once!

‘So this is the difference in growth potential.’

Wow.

An astonishing leveling speed.

Dania used to be lower level than Popo, but in just one day, it overtook it.

「The energy of the First Horn (Horn of Potential) grows stronger.」

And maybe because of the level-up, the First Horn got a little bigger too.

My <Dragon Blood> responded to that.

Thump~! Thump~! Thump~!

At this rate, Dania’s potential might awaken again!

Ah—

114LV!

That must be why everything except <Elixir Master> was locked in that special skill shop.

Both my max level and the potential-related perks like that seem to become less restricted as Dania grows stronger.

‘Good. I’m absolutely getting Dania to 1000LV.’

The more I learn about Dania, the more I realiz,

Dania growing stronger = Me growing stronger.

And maybe now I understand a little…

Why my trait is 「Dragon’s Oath (EX)」.

So I’ve got to raise Dania’s level no matter what!

“Aigo, my little bundle of blessings, when is your second horn going to grow?”

『Kkyu? Second horn needs more level-ups!』

Hmm…

Looks like it’s going to emerge around 120LV or 130LV.

I had hoped maybe it’d show signs around 115LV, but…

Too bad.

“Well then, shall we go plant these next?”

『Kkyu? What’s this?』

“Chuchu?”

“Popo!”

I pulled out the seeds sent earlier by Bangbaedong Gourmet.

• [S] Shine Muscat Seeds x10
• [S] Kiwi Seeds x10
• [S] Cabbage Seeds x10
• [S] Green Onion Seeds x10
• [S] Carrot Seeds x10

Five types of crops, all S-rank, just as requested.

Wow.

If we grow all of these, our food supplies will be even richer.

‘After all, you can’t live on spiritual herbs and elixirs alone.’

“Here, take one each and plant them in the soil Chuchu dug out, in order!”

『Kkyu! Okay! Dania wants to try!』

“Popo!”

“Chuuuu!”

The four of us huddled together and worked hard to plant the seeds.

Since we did it as a group, we were done in no time.

“Nice job, everyone… huh?”

I stood up with a satisfied smile and was startled by what I saw.

A sprout poking out of the ground with a little pop.

That sprout,

「Eldrias Seed, LV 500」

It was from the legendary tree that gives birth to the Spirit King!

At last, the seed had sprouted.

『Kkyuu!! Smells so nice!』

“Popo!”

“Chuchuchu!”

Dania, Popo, and Chuchu all bounced and jumped around the Eldrias sprout in a fuss.

I think I know why they’re so excited.

‘What is this scent?’

It was like the pure and refreshing scent of early morning dew in a deep forest.

With a gentle hint of sweet grass and the faint aroma of tree sap.

Every time I inhaled, I could feel the natural energy within the fragrance as if the life of an ancient forest had gathered and was breathing right there.

It cleared my mind, as though my body were being purified.

‘No way… could this be…’

『This! Spirit! Smells! So good!!』

Dania gave me the answer.

Yes—this was the scent of a spirit.

‘Wow. It really does smell amazing.’

The more I breathed it in, the more uplifted I felt.

No wonder those three are so excited.

[Uwoong! I’m excited! Baby sprout, grow big and strong quickly!]

“Popo!”

“Chuchu!”

The two spent their time just staring endlessly at the sprout of <Eldrias>.

And then,

[Kyuuuwoooong! Seojoon! I’m sleepy!]

Dania came fluttering over with its wings flapping.

It seemed like it was finally getting sleepy.

“Haha, okay. Come here. Let’s take a nap.”

I gently stroked Dania’s back as it curled up in my arms, and we drifted off for a short rest together.

I hoped that, when we woke up, the freshly planted Mandragora would be fully grown.

***

While Seojoon, Dania, and the Guardians were taking a brief nap…

The aura of <Elixir Master> flowing from Seojoon’s body accelerated the growth of the Mandragora.

As a result,

Graaaah!

Groooaaar.

Gwooooo.

All three Mandragora had fully matured in a dazzling flourish.

Uwooooongwooooong!

Their internal energy rapidly surged to its peak.

GRAAAAAAH!

Groooh.

Gwooo.

Crack! Crackle-crack!

They pushed up from the earth, rising fully with roots and all.

GRAAAAH!

The one in the lead pointed toward a distant underground tunnel.

Seeing this, the three Mandragora tried to sprint off toward that tunnel together…

GROOOAAARRR!

A massive Mandragora blocked their path.

GROOOAAARRR!

It gestured, telling them to go back to their original positions.

Groooh…?

Grooooh!

Gwooo…

In the end, they were forced to retreat by this new Mandragora and returned to where they had been.

That first Mandragora, the one Seojoon had given a single chance, was faithfully carrying out its promised role.

GROOOAAARR!

It didn’t stop there. Using the <Breath of the Seed> it had received from Chuchu earlier, it enabled the other Mandragora to begin bearing seeds.

Then—

One of the three Mandragora succeeded in forming a seed before the others.

GROOOAAARRR!

The first Mandragora approached.

It reached out and harvested the seed.

Gwooooo…

The Mandragora that had just borne the seed suddenly slowed.

Yes, this is the normal state of a Mandragora after releasing its seed.

Its spiritual essence flows into the seed, and the remaining body becomes a lump of potent elixir.

Only the first Mandragora stands apart from this usual cycle.

Gwooo….

After fully releasing its seed, the Mandragora spoke its final words—and its movements came to a complete stop.

The first Mandragora looked at the now-still one and spoke.

GROOOAAARRRR—
(I will remember you.)

This was not the end for the Mandragora, but a new beginning.

The first one offered its blessings for this new start.

Then it turned around.

It planted the two harvested seeds into the pre-dug earth.

And gently laid the motionless Mandragora’s body next to the sleeping human.

GROOOAAARR!

The first Mandragora, having perfectly fulfilled its role, let out a powerful cry.