Chapter 11: Little Garden
Surprisingly, nothing happened during the night and Kim Jae-hoon was able to sleep well without any disturbances.
The next day in the morning, the young man opened his eyes and was welcomed with warm sunlight touching his skin.
"It's sunny today as well." He mumbled to himself.
"You woke up?" A familiar male voice resounded.
When he turned to look at the person who spoke, Kim Jae-hoon saw Park Sun-jae sitting beside him right under the tree as well.
"Did you sleep well?" The person asked.
"Yeah." he replied. "How about you? What did you do all night?"
"Welp, I got bored after sitting in the same position for so long since I can't get sleepy or tired like normal people. So, I took a stroll here and there while discovering some unique creatures on the way." The ghost grinned.
"Good. Let me wash myself up first. Then, we will talk about those creatures later."
"Okay. No problem."
Kim Jae-hoon then stood up while stretching his arms and went by the river bank to wash himself up.
Meanwhile, Park Sun-jae went somewhere else.
Sometime later, the young man finished with his business and Park Sun-jae returned soon afterwards.
"Kim Jae-hoon, I found food for our breakfast. See!"
The ghost showed him a mushroom-like vegetable in his hands.
Kim Jae-hoon raised his eyebrows. "What is this food item? Where did you get it?"
"This is Pilchu. It is edible and tasty to eat. Not far from here, there's an area where lots of these are present. Let's go!"
"You are sure it's safe to eat?" The young man asked cautiously.
"Of course! I read it in the book. So, let's go!" Park Sun-jae said excitedly as he started advancing to the direction where the place was.
Kim Jae-hoon sighed and followed him right after he heard the growling sound from his stomach.
After a few minutes of walking, they reached a place that looked like a garden with colourful flowers all around and as the ghost said, it was indeed filled with mushrooms called Pilchu as well.
Unknowingly, as soon as he entered, the young man was stunned and mesmerized by the beauty of the place.
"Isn't this place wonderful?" Park Sun-jae said.
"Yes, it is." Kim Jae-hoon replied in a daze. "I feel so relaxed after coming here…"
"Obviously, you'll feel that way…" Park Sun-jae laughed while hiding his facial expressions.
But the young man sensed his laughter and woke up from the trance he was in.
"Park Sun-jae, tell me honestly. What is this place." He asked in a serious tone.
"You catch on fast." Park Sun-jae said while scratching his head with an awkward smile. "This place is called 'Little Garden'. A neutral zone of the forest. Most of the beasts can't come here."
"A neutral zone?"
"These flowers that you see around here are actually raw materials for scented candles that we make, back in our town."
"So what? What does that have to do with monsters?"
Kim Jae-hoon was aware of the fact that flowers are mostly used to make perfumes and scented products. Back on Earth, the procedure was the same as well. However, he couldn't understand one part: how the hell do these flowers keep the monsters away from entering the area where they grow?
"Wait! Let me finish explaining first! These flowers are not just your ordinary fragrance plants. They are much more powerful and lethal than you think." The ghost stated.
"How so?" the young man questioned.
"Most of the flowers here have relaxing properties in them. Some are able to relax the muscles in your body like painkillers while some can relax your mood overall. However, these two types of flowers are just catalysts to the chemical effect of the third type of flower, which is the real reason this garden is dangerous for beasts."
"Third type of flower?"
"Yes, do you see that purple flower over there?" he asked randomly.
Kim Jae-hoon nodded.
"Its name is Pulse Flower. It secretes a unique scent that makes you hallucinate for a period of time but is fatal for animals if they breathe in the substance along with the relaxants that spread into the air."
The young man twitched his eyebrows after listening to the explanation and spoke. "I don't get one thing though. Why is this Pulse Flower only fatal to the monsters and not humans?"
"Before that, let me explain how they work and attack the monsters to be called lethal. Then, we'll talk about why they are not dangerous to humans." The ghost took a momentary pause before speaking again. "When a beast inhales these three types of substances altogether in its body, the first two chemicals immediately reach their brain system and make it slower to react against any harmful substances that enter their body. Hence, the immune system results in failure. Meanwhile, the chemical secreted from the Pulse Flower goes through the lungs before reaching the heart and makes it stop beating until the beast is dead."
"As for humans, they can defend themselves from the chemical invasion these flowers produce. Let me tell you why." Park Sun-jae said calmly.
When this part of the explanation came, Kim Jae-hoon sharpened his ears and listened carefully.
"You see, there is a reason behind it. Inside our body, we have a certain chemical that our brain produces which nullifies the first two chemical effects immediately after they reach the system. As a result, the immune system never fails and is able to react or fight against any harmful substances that may enter into our body." Park Sun-jae explained.
"I see."
Kim Jae-hoon was impressed by his friend's intelligence. He thought he was in a science class or something.
"Any other doubts?" he asked.
"No!" Kim Jae-hoon shook his head vigorously when something clicked in his mind. "Actually, yes. What's the purpose for you to bring me here? I doubt it has anything to do with procuring food rations. So, tell me. What's the actual reason?"
Upon hearing his question, Park Sun-jae smirked. "As expected of you."
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