Chapter 25

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 25

Chapter Title: Fast Travel

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"Found it again."

Pushing through the overgrown bushes in the garden, I trimmed back the excessively grown branches with my [Pruning Shears] until I uncovered a small stone path clearly meant for people to walk on.

At first glance, this garden had looked like nothing but a dense thicket, but it turned out there were actual paths people could use. It was just that when I'd first set ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠foot here, the weeds had grown so wildly chaotic that finding any path was impossible.

-Shoooaaaah...

I immediately fired up the [High-Pressure Cleaner] on the stone path, blasting away the accumulated debris of leaves and moss, along with the mud encasing it. This revealed the neat, quaint arrangement of stones underneath. How much time must have passed for a path laid out so meticulously to end up buried like this?

'Has it really been about a week already...?'

It had been a full week since I'd discovered this bizarre garden inside the ruins and tussled with those treants. After that day, I'd searched the garden's interior for any passages or doors leading elsewhere, but came up empty-handed. So I'd decided to focus on cleaning for now.

After all, in this godforsaken space, cleaning was the only thing I could do.

'I wonder how much it's dropped...'

I cleaned around the newly exposed stone path and checked the [Main Quest]. The pollution level had noticeably dropped compared to before. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before it dipped below 90%.

A simple calculation showed that in just over a week, I'd reduced the pollution by 10%. Do that nine more times, and the [Main Quest] would be done... but...

"It won't be that easy..."

My conclusion after surveying the garden for a week was that this accursed ruin didn't end at just this garden. Watching the pollution drop as I cleaned, even if I scrubbed the entire garden spotless, it probably wouldn't go below 70-80%.

And the reason I'd reduced it so quickly this time was thanks to some extra help.

-Shurik!

Speak of the devil. As I thought about her, the soil nearby stirred, and a single tree root burst out, tickling my cheek.

"Alright... I'll give you water, so let go. You're getting me dirty."

"...~~~!!"

I peeled the root off my cheek and spoke to it like I was soothing a child. The root shook back and forth as if it understood, then tugged at the [High-Pressure Cleaner] in my hand, urging me on.

-Shoooaaaah...

I sprayed the root—no, 'Dry'—with water, and it eagerly ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sucked it up for a good while. After dousing it with a hefty amount, I made a request of her.

Who's Dry? It's my shorthand for 'Dryad.' Erzsebet griped at first that it was tacky, but Dry seemed to like it, so whatever.

"Same as yesterday. Thanks."

"...!!"

No sooner had I asked than an ominous vibration rumbled from the ground. Staying calm, I gripped the root Dry extended toward me. Soon, something erupted from the soil around us.

-Krunch! Kraaack!!

Brown tree roots tore through the earth everywhere, bursting forth. The roots then latched onto nearby weeds and rotten trees (not treants) before yanking them out roots and all.

'Trees uprooting other trees... it's still creepy no matter how many times I see it.'

I watched the scene with a bead of cold sweat trickling down as the awaited system message appeared.

"...??!!!"

"...Yeah. Thanks."

Dry approached after uprooting every rotten tree around, and I forced a bright smile while petting her root.

Over the past week, while scouting and cleaning this vast garden, Dry had kept extending roots from trees somewhere in the woods, demanding water and nutrients from me. Just like Erzsebet said, she really seemed to see me as some kind of parent.

I'd considered ignoring her at first, but she showed no hostility, and Erzsebet insisted that with enough water and nutrients, Dry's true self would awaken. So I'd decided to raise her.

I still needed info on this mysterious 'Demon God's Ruins' space... and it was obvious Dry, planted here, knew something about the ruins. My reasons for contracting with Erzsebet were similar, after all.

With Erzsebet as precedent, there was no reason to refuse a dryad.

'But I didn't expect her to be this helpful...'

And surprisingly, over the week, Dry had been a huge help with my cleaning. She could extend roots anywhere in this massive garden. Whenever I started cleaning and removed annoying weeds or decayed trees, she'd watch... well, observe somehow... and extend roots to pull them out for me.

She guzzled water like crazy, but... whatever, water's infinite.

"Tsk tsk. Gobbling water again? Master, instead of 'Dry,' you should call her 'Water Hog Hippo'... Ow!"

-Smack!

Erzsebet, who had been handling the treants scattered around the garden in my stead, clicked her tongue as she appeared—only to get smacked by a root. Those two really didn't get along.

Their first meeting wasn't great, so I got why they disliked each other... but it felt deeper, more fundamental somehow?

"All burned up!"

"Good. Take care of this too."

Rio appeared with a bright smile, a bit of grass stuck to her cheek, so I handed her the freshly uprooted weeds.

Rio was on incinerator duty again. Ever since awakening her [Seed of Fire] talent, she'd been even more eager to stick to the incinerator.

She was immune to fire damage anyway, so I felt safer entrusting her with it now than before.

"Ugh... Master! How long do we have to keep just cleaning?"

Erzsebet, who'd picked a fight with the root and ended up with swollen cheeks, took it out on me for no reason. Hey, you started it?

"What can I do when scouting turns up nothing?"

"Can't we just go outside?"

I couldn't go outside, so... I couldn't exactly say that. Maybe once we built more trust, but for now...

"Just burn the treants you caught with Rio's help and spread the ashes around Dry's roots."

"Yaaawn... I'm sleepy... Do you have OCD or something...?"

I issued another 'order' to the sulking Erzsebet. I'd learned over the week of cleaning: she wouldn't take initiative unless I directly commanded her.

Whatever. Time to check the rewards. I'd hoped for something like this, and sure enough, dropping the 'pollution level' by 10% triggered a bunch. 5,000 points was nice... and <Fast Travel>?

'This was in the game too... Was it locked?'

To be precise, it was one of the unlockable features in the game's [Options] menu. Players could toggle it on/off since it broke immersion. What it did was...

'Let's test it out.'

To confirm if it was what I thought, I tapped the new <Fast Travel> button in the system window. A translucent pane like a map popped up in front of me.

'It really works?'

As I'd mentioned before, in the Cleaning Game, maps grew exponentially huge in the late game. Even with buffs ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like [Meals] for movement speed, the character's sluggish pace made traversing them a slog. But <Fast Travel> let you instantly warp to completed areas.

In other words, limited teleportation.

'The map... only shows places I've cleaned?'

Excited by the sudden map, I hoped it might reveal the ruin's layout. But it only marked the trap area I'd cleaned, Erzsebet's room, and the entrance passage.

For a test, I tapped the spot where Erzsebet had awakened.

-Whoosh!

"Huh?"

In an instant, the scenery flipped. The fresh garden vista was replaced by a dim, spacious chamber like a ritual hall.

"Whoa... this is awesome."

It felt like I'd gained superpowers. Sure, the 'system' was a kind of superpower itself, but compared to the mundane abilities, teleportation had that thrill that stirred a man's heart.

I tried using <Fast Travel> again on the still-open map, but a system window blocked me.

'Aw, bummer...'

I'd hoped for infinite teleports, but there were limits. Judging by the timer, a 1-minute cooldown? Still, better than nothing. It only worked to cleaned areas, not anywhere... Huh?

Waiting to try again, two green markers appeared on the map of cleaned sections. Curious, I tapped one.

"...Huh?"

It wasn't just me? In the game, <Fast Travel> only moved the player... Cooldown was up anyway. Let's see...

-Whoosh!

"What? Who dares move this lady... Kyaa?!"

-Thud!

"Oh."

I selected my current position on the map, and Erzsebet popped out of thin air, landing flat on her butt. It really worked on others too? Time to check cooldowns and limits...

"...Master. Was that you? Did I do something wrong...?"

"...Ah, sorry."

First things first, apologize.