I was an Alraune, a plant monster girl.
Uncle Teddy had kidnapped me, and I was currently being air-lifted by a dragon.
Since I was still stuck in my flowerpot, I naturally had no way to move on my own. To make matters worse, the dragon seemed to be flying at a staggering altitude. Escaping was impossible.
Kiri... Treant... Little Witch....
I missed everyone so much. This was the first time I’d ever been kidnapped since becoming an Alraune, and the uncertainty left me incredibly anxious. Back during my Saint era, I could have escaped by using light magic, but I no longer had access to those powers.
I wondered if I’d ever see Little Witch again. The thought of never going home was unbearable.
Just as nectar began to pool in the corners of my eyes, a massive mountain appeared ahead. The dragon flew straight toward the summit.
"Um... where... are we... going?" I asked.
"We are returning to the castle," Uncle Teddy replied.
"......Which... castle?"
"The Demon King’s Army Castle, obviously."
——No way.
Wait, wait just a minute. A Demon King’s Army Castle was bound to be a dangerous place no matter how you looked at it. If I were still human, it was the kind of place where I’d be turned into a slave at best, or killed at worst.
Besides, it wasn't actually the Demon King’s Castle—the place where the Demon King himself lived—was it? It had to be a smaller Demon King’s Army outer fort, right?
Sensing my agitation, Uncle Teddy’s merciless voice rained down on me.
"It will be a hassle if you struggle. Let’s have you sleep again."
"W-Wait, please! Anything but th—"
"Zeitglocke Nacht. Oh, it seems night has already fallen."
——Fuehh.
Good... night....
Zzz...
So sleepy... Wait, gah!
Oh, I was so frustrated! He’d put me to sleep again!
Curse you, Uncle Teddy. I can’t believe you knocked me out twice. I won't let you get away with this the next time we meet!
Just as I was about to check my body to see if anything had happened to me while I was defenseless, I realized I was surrounded by greenery. Plants were growing on either side of me. In fact, there were plants everywhere I looked.
As for me, it seemed I had been repotted into the ground while I was out. There was no one else around; Uncle Teddy and the transporter dragon were both long gone.
I took a closer look at my surroundings. A paved walkway ran right in front of me, and on the opposite side, more plants were lined up in a neat row. When I looked up, I saw a transparent, glass-like ceiling.
It seemed I was inside a building. Even the walls were transparent, allowing me to see the world outside. The temperature felt a bit high—it was essentially a greenhouse.
"Where... am... I?" I murmured to myself.
To my surprise, someone actually answered my question.
"This is the botanical garden, newcomer."
Wait, where did that voice come from?!
"Don't look around so restlessly. I am right here."
The voice came from the plant directly in front of me. Across the walkway stood a strange plant consisting of five stem-roots topped with massive balls of golden fluff. Then, to my utter shock, the speaker emerged from within that fluff.
"Nice to meet you, lovely flower."
Eeeeeeek! A person just came out of the cotton!
A beautiful girl, looking as though she were wearing a coat of golden fleece, had sprouted from the fluff. She had a gentle, somewhat fragile-looking face, and she offered me a soft smile.
"You don't need to be afraid. There are no predators here to hunt us."
Who was this girl? No, she wasn't exactly human. She had two horns like a sheep’s growing from her head. Her upper body was human, but from the waist down, she was covered in what looked like golden cotton fruits, all supported by plant stems.
She looked quite similar to me. She wasn't a flower, but she gave off the impression of being a Golden Fluff Alraune.
"I am Barometz. Since we’re both plant monsters, I’m on your side."
——Barometz?
The name sounded familiar, but I couldn’t quite place where I’d heard it before.
"You're an Alraune, right? Where are you from? What kind of environment did you grow in?"
I-It was overwhelming to be hit with so many questions at once. I wasn't very good at talking to begin with....
"Oh, perhaps you were a wild Alraune? If so, I’m sorry—you probably wouldn't know your place of origin. Let’s see... what does it say here? You were born in the Dryades' Forest of the Kingdom of Gardenia."
"............How... do you... know that?"
"Because it’s written right there on your sign."
A sign?! I’d noticed a white wooden stake driven into the ground nearby, but I didn't realize that’s what was written on the other side.
——Wait, no. I was on the "back" side, and the walkway was the "front."
"Since you’re from a forest, you really were wild. Those symbols on the board are 'letters' used to convey information, and they’ve used them to introduce you."
Barometz-san was being incredibly kind and helpful. I turned my attention to her own sign.
『Species Name: Barometz of the Golden Fleece』 『Place of Origin: Glanz Empire, Imperial Capital Glanzweisheit, Herrlichkeit Palace Courtyard』
T-The Empire?! Did that mean Barometz-san had been kidnapped just like I was?
"I was brought here from the Empire. As fellow plant monsters, let's get along."
Since she was a plant monster like me, I felt a sense of kinship, but something else was bothering me even more. I scanned the other plants in the area.
Just as I thought, none of them were normal. I could see rare magic flowers, demon trees, and even a few plant-type monsters like Man-eaters scattered about. These were all rare specimens that didn't just grow anywhere. Given that they all had explanatory signs, I had to wonder where I really was.
"Um, where... is... this place?"
"I told you already. This is a botanical garden."
Unbelievably, it seemed I had been transplanted into a botanical garden.
I remembered thinking about this back when I first became an Alraune—that instead of the "eat or be eaten" world of nature, I wanted to be sold to a botanical garden where I could live out my days in peace. I never dreamed that wish would actually come true now.
——But wait.
Uncle Teddy, the man who brought me here, was a member of the demon race. He had said we were heading to a Demon King’s Army castle. This couldn't be just any ordinary botanical garden.
"Is this... a Demon King's Army... botanical garden?"
"Oh, you're quite well-informed. The manager said this botanical garden is located on the grounds of the Demon King's Castle."
"No way..."
This was the Demon King's Castle Botanical Garden?!
"The maintenance is top-notch, and they water us every day. Everything is provided for us, almost like a palace. The Demon King’s Army seems like a wonderful organization."
From a plant monster’s perspective, I suppose the Demon King’s Army wasn't necessarily an "evil" organization.
With that thought in mind, I looked through the transparent wall. In the distance, I saw an ominous fortress. It was several times larger than the royal castle of the Kingdom of Gardenia, with a design that made it clear at a glance that the demon race lived there.
"Is that... the Demon King's Castle...?"
The final goal I had sought to reach as part of the Hero’s party during my Saint era. To think it was now so close.
My body began to tremble. I had been brought to a truly terrifying place.
W-What was I going to do? This was a situation I could never have imagined back when I was a Saint.
I’d been planted in the botanical garden of the Demon King’s Castle!