"Alraune, good morning."
When my bud opened, I found the Little Witch’s face hovering right over me.
It seemed morning had arrived.
I wondered idly how long it had been since I’d woken up to the sound of another’s voice. I’d always been alone in the mornings until now, and I realized once again how pleasant it was to spend the early hours with someone else.
The fact that the Little Witch was right there also meant I was still alive.
Thank goodness. I hadn't withered yet!
"Good morning," I replied.
The Little Witch looked down at me, a puzzled expression on her face.
"I was just wondering... were your leaves always such a pale color?"
The color of my foliage?
I looked down at myself. Beneath my red corolla, my green leaves were visible, but they looked shriveled. It was as if the color had been drained right out of them.
Wh-wh-wh-what was I going to do?
I was starting to wither!
I’d had a sensation of being watered in my sleep, but as I’d suspected, it had been nothing more than a dream. In reality, I was still suffering from a severe lack of water. My desperate need for moisture must have conjured that vision.
This was an emergency. I needed water, and I needed it now!
"I want water."
I pleaded with her, desperate for a drink before I dried up completely.
"I know. I'm hungry too, so let's go find a river."
The Little Witch transformed into a White Bird and took flight, clutching me in her talons.
I was relieved she hadn't asked for nectar for breakfast. I didn't have a shred of energy left to produce any. Perhaps she was actually being considerate.
Oh, Little Witch. Please take good care of this dying Alraune sprout in her little pot.
The White Bird glided between the trees, gradually gaining altitude. The sounds of various forest creatures echoed from below—the chirping of birds and the distant roars of beasts. Ignoring the calls of the inhabitants, she continued to ascend until we were high in the sky.
I took the opportunity to survey the forest from above.
The Tower City we’d seen on our way here now looked like a tiny model. We must have landed quite far from civilization because the distance between our current location and the tower seemed vast.
Strangely, the trees near the city seemed brighter than the ones in this area. Perhaps it was just my imagination.
"Alraune, look over there."
The Little Witch’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. In the direction opposite the city, I saw a large body of water that looked like a pond.
Success! Water!
"Water, hurry."
"I'm heading there now, so don't panic."
Easy for her to say! How could I stay calm? It was a pond! All the water I could ever want!
It had been over a year since I became an Alraune, yet I’d never seen a proper body of water. Aside from the Little Witch’s bucket, the largest amount of moisture I’d encountered were the raindrops that collected on my petals. My excitement was through the roof.
Before long, we landed at the edge of the pond. It was quite large and appeared to be fed by a nearby river. I could see the water flowing steadily downstream.
The Little Witch shifted back into her human form.
"I'm thirsty too," she said, reaching down to scoop up some water with both hands. However, she stopped just before her fingers touched the surface.
"...This water doesn't look very clean."
She was right. The water was murky, and the bottom was completely obscured.
"I don't think I can drink this..."
She seemed ready to give up. While it might have been undrinkable for a human, I didn't mind at all. From a plant’s perspective, it wasn't that bad. I wouldn't be drinking it with a mouth; I’d be absorbing it through my roots.
Regardless, I needed her to water me.
"I want water."
At my insistence, she reluctantly dipped her hands into the pond.
I still wondered why the water was so muddy when there was a river nearby and the surrounding forest was so lush. As I scanned the area, I noticed something unsettling. The bones of a large animal were half-buried in the bank. And those weren't the only ones. There were skeletons of animals and monsters scattered everywhere.
Why were there so many bones?
As I turned my gaze back to the Little Witch, I noticed ripples forming on the surface near the shore. I strained my eyes and saw a massive shape moving underwater. A tail broke the surface momentarily. A giant creature was slowly stalking toward her.
Hard scales and two ferocious eyes rose from the depths.
That wasn't just a crocodile... it was a monster!
My heart sank. It was hunting her!
"Run!"
The moment I screamed, the beast lunged. It burst from the muddy water with a massive splash, its jaws gaping wide.
Thankfully, the Little Witch reacted instantly to my warning. She used her black magic to activate Levitation, soaring into the air just a split second before the creature's teeth could snap shut.
She’d escaped by the skin of her teeth. I shouldn't have been surprised; she’d spent plenty of time dodging my vine traps, after all.
However, she hadn't escaped the splash. Her face was coated in mud, and it looked like some had gotten in her eyes. She flailed blindly in the air.
I turned my attention back to the predator. It was a crocodile monster, the Glukokrokodil. It was a giant about the size of a large truck. The bones on the shore were undoubtedly the remains of its previous meals. Most creatures would be sent to the afterlife in a single bite from those jaws.
Mr. Crocodile is terrifying, I thought. Suddenly, my world tilted.
Before I could process what was happening, I was dragged into the pond.
The Glukokrokodil’s sudden leap had created a massive swell of muddy water. The wave had reached my spot on the bank, and as the water receded, it swept my bucket right into the depths.
Wha—?! Wait, wait, wait!
I screamed internally as the current pulled me toward the center of the pond. I realized I was floating, but I wasn't alone. A swarm of crocodiles was closing in from all directions. They must have been drawn by the commotion, hoping to snag the Little Witch.
This was bad. Very, very bad.
On top of being surrounded by predators, my wooden bucket felt like it was starting to sink. I was going to be submerged—or eaten—any second now.
"Little Witch! Help me!"
But she was still high above, rubbing her eyes. "It hurts... Alraune, where are you?" she cried, her vision still compromised.
A massive crocodile swam up to me as if to offer a greeting.
Oh, hello, Mr. Crocodile. Lovely weather, isn't it? Listen, I have some important news for you. I'm actually a plant, not an animal. I've heard you prefer meat, so I really wouldn't taste very good. Why don't you close that big mouth and wait for a nice, juicy deer to come by for a drink?
Wait—stop! Why are you charging at me? And why are your friends joining in? Are you all... vegetarians? I've never heard of a vegetarian crocodile! I don't have any meat on me! You're making a huge mistake!
My desperate mental pleas fell on deaf ears. Two of the beasts pounced, sending another wave crashing over me.
"Don't eat me!"
Summoning every last bit of my strength, I released a cloud of poison pollen. The crocodiles recoiled and veered away, narrowly avoiding swallowing me whole.
However, the resulting turbulence knocked me right out of the bucket.
Glub, glub, glub...
I sank beneath the surface, pulled down by the churning current.
This was a disaster. The water was crawling with monsters, and I was completely separated from the Little Witch.
Yet, even in this life-threatening predicament, there was one silver lining.
I was finally in the water.
The drought was over. I felt like I was at death's door, but the moisture began to revitalize me.
This water is delicious...!
Even as I sank, I marveled at the life-giving power of water. At the same time, my will to live reignited. I couldn't afford to drown here. I hadn't survived a forest fire just to end up as pond scum.
I was going to get out of this.
I made that vow to myself as I drifted toward the bottom, watching the massive silhouettes of the Glukokrokodils circling above me.