My name is Alraune, a plant monster girl.
I had just undergone a massive growth spurt, returning from the form of a young girl to that of my original self: the Saint.
Floating in the air nearby, still paralyzed by shock, was one of the Four Heavenly Kings—Garda-fresvelg of the Radiant Crown. It seemed my sudden transition from a little girl into a mature lady had been quite the blow to his psyche. Then again, he had been my stalker for years.
He clutched his head, repeating a frantic mantra. "Impossible. This is impossible."
"Such divine beauty... such radiant light energy... a presence I couldn't have imagined from that brat just moments ago. It is as if she is Saint Iris herself..."
"Hehe. Good day to you, Mr. Stalker."
"S-Saint...?! No, impossible, impossible! No matter how much her face resembles that woman, this creature is a mere plant monster! There is no way she could be Saint Iris, the one who harbored that immense holy power!"
My stalker King began to claw at his head. Apparently, he couldn't reconcile his worship of the Saint with the fact that she had fallen to the state of a plant monster. Honestly, his denial worked in my favor.
"...Hmph. It matters not if my Light Magic fails to take hold. Even if you have grown, the result is the same. A direct assault from my swarm will tear a mere Alraune to pieces. Behold!"
The birdman pointed a finger toward the sky. Above the forest canopy, a massive host of bird-type monsters had congregated.
"My Heiligenschein blasted a hole through a section of the Dryades' Barrier. Though it has already sealed itself, it served its purpose by allowing this many of my servants to enter."
Upwards of a hundred bird monsters of all shapes and sizes—hawks, golden eagles, falcons—circled the sky.
"Go! My feathered legion! Tear that impudent Alraune limb from limb!"
The swarm dove toward me in a singular, coordinated wave. Even in my current form, being swarmed by such numbers would be a lethal problem. If I tried to fight them conventionally, the sheer weight of numbers would overwhelm me.
Well, that would be true if I were still a little girl.
"Good day, my fine feathered guests. I am truly touched that you have all gathered to celebrate my growth."
My internal monologue shifted into the elegant cadence of my former life.
"As a token of my gratitude, I shall perform a welcoming concert for you all. My instrument of choice? The Teppou-uri Machine Gun."
I looked up at the diving swarm, my expression a mask of serene hospitality.
"But oh, a solo performance with a single instrument would be so terribly lonely, wouldn't it? Please, do not worry. I am quite capable of acting as an entire orchestra by myself."
I waved a hand, and the forest floor responded.
"Pray, observe. I have generated forty Teppou-uri Machine Guns for the occasion."
I was practically overflowing with power from the excess photosynthesis I’d performed earlier.
"The instrumentation is composed entirely of Teppou-uri Machine Guns, but I trust you will forgive the lack of variety. And now, under the baton of Conductor Alraune, please enjoy a performance by the Alraune Teppou-uri Symphony Orchestra."
Zupopopopopopopopopopon!!
I unleashed a rapid-fire barrage of poison seeds. Each was twice the size of those I had fired as a child. Their velocity and destructive power were on an entirely different level. The Poison Seed Symphony echoed through the woods, played by forty barrels of botanical fury.
The bird monsters seemed absolutely moved by my performance—so much so that they began to fall from the sky one after another. They were foaming at the mouth, clearly overwhelmed by the sheer brilliance of my music.
I swept my arm like a conductor’s baton, directing the Teppou-uri Machine Guns toward a fresh cluster of birds. With every rhythmic burst of seeds, members of the audience were sucked down to the earth.
Ah, what a delightful sensation...!
I could feel it—a tangible sense of absolute control over the stage.
"Alas, though I am loath to end such a spirited performance, the concert must conclude here. That was the Alraune Teppou-uri Symphony Orchestra, conducted by yours truly. I bid you all a very good day."
Bravo! I cheered in my heart.
Yes, that was a wonderful concert. Thanks to my efforts, the only one left in the sky was the Golden Birdman himself. He looked as though he had taken a few hits from the poison seeds as well. Back when I was a little girl, his hardened feathers had deflected the seed-thorns, but now that I’d grown, my attacks were finally finding purchase.
However, Garda-fresvelg was frantically casting Light Recovery Magic on himself. While it kept him from succumbing to the damage and the poison, the twitch in his face told me he was feeling the pressure.
And then, I realized something.
Based on the potency of his healing, Garda-fresvelg was a specialist in offensive Light Magic who had never bothered to master the restorative side. It made sense; he was a member of the Demon Race who had simply stolen the Light Magic of others. Even if he had devoured nine Apprentice Saints, there was a limit to his capacity. He had clearly prioritized his resources into large-scale destruction.
To be blunt, even if you combined nine Apprentice Saints, they wouldn't equal a fraction of my power from my prime. Seeing him spam such massive spells, it was obvious he hadn't had the room to master the nuances of recovery.
With that in mind, I opened fire with the Teppou-uri Machine Guns again.
As I expected, the Golden Birdman began to dart through the air, desperate to avoid the seeds. He dodged skillfully, but he failed to realize he was being herded.
After taking a few intentional grazing shots, the Golden Birdman’s movements suddenly seized.
Among the barrage, I had mixed in Sundew seeds. They had embedded themselves in his flesh, and now, sticky vines were sprouting from his body, coiling around his limbs like grasping fingers. The viscous Sundew mucilage robbed him of his freedom.
I had used a Child Alraune as ammunition against the Giant Eagle before, but it seemed I could also achieve similar results by forcibly parasitizing enemies with other plants. A valuable bit of experimental data.
"Now then, since you’ve stopped moving, it's time for the finale."
Even after firing what felt like an infinite number of seeds, I still had energy to spare. In this form, I could perform large-scale plant generation that had been impossible before.
"Let’s end this."
I summoned a Giant Venus Flytrap from the earth, modeled after the massive steel electrical towers I had seen during my days as a high school girl. It tore through the soil, racing toward the sky with a low, tectonic rumble. Compared to the ones I’d made as a child, this was a monster on a different scale—taller, wider, and far more lethal.
"Garda-fresvelg of the Radiant Crown, this is the end. I’ll catch you like the fly you are."
Restrained by the Sundew vines and cornered by the wall of fire from my machine guns, the birdman could do nothing as the massive trap rose from beneath him. Two enormous, jagged lobes snapped shut around him with merciless force.
"HIGYAAAAAH!!"
Garda-fresvelg was crushed between the trap's leaves. I had designed this particular flytrap with a little something extra. The teeth-like spikes lining its mouth were needles that injected high-grade anesthetic and poison upon contact.
Even if he tried to purge the status effects with his recovery magic, he wouldn't be able to escape. If he tried to blast his way out with Light Magic, the energy would simply heal me. Conversely, even if he tried to out-heal the damage to his own body, my digestive fluids would dissolve him faster than he could mend. His stolen magic lacked the power to keep him alive inside a stomach—unlike me when I died.
"T-This... this cannot be... I am a King of the Demon King's Army...!"
"And I... am the bodyguard... of this forest."
"A mere plant monster... a bodyguard...?"
"Besides... you looked down on plants. You shouldn't have done that. Plants are... actually quite amazing, you know?"
The anesthetic and poison had already robbed him of his speech and movement. He stared at me with eyes full of terror, as if he were looking at a true monster.
I was no longer a merciful Saint. I was an Alraune. I had no compassion left for him.
I mimicked a crushing motion with my hand. Simultaneously, the flytrap swallowed Garda-fresvelg whole. Then, the entire structure retracted back into the earth.
Dogogogogogogo!
With a thunderous roar, the plant buried itself deep beneath the soil and vanished. The stalker King was gone.
"Thank you for the meal."
It looks like you were the one who ended up being devoured, Garda-fresvelg. But you were digested in the stomach of a Saint, so perhaps you should consider that a blessing.
"I must be dreaming... There's no way... one of the Four Heavenly Kings could lose to a damn Alraune..."
From the edge of the decimated clearing, the Poison Fairy crawled out. She was staring at me, her face pale with disbelief.
Ah, that’s right. She was still here. I had almost forgotten.
"Now that the stalker is taken care of, it's your turn."
I cannot forgive a naughty fairy who pours herbicide on beautiful flowers.
I sent a mass of vines surging toward her. The Poison Fairy was instantly hoisted into the air, her limbs pinned by countless undulating tentacles.
"There. I caught you. Now then, it's time to punish the bad girl."