I was Alraune, a plant monster girl.
I had just recently realized that this place was apparently the private botanical garden of some high-ranking individual in the Demon King's Army. Although no one would tell me who "that person"—the owner of the garden—actually was, I had a sneaking suspicion that it might be someone I knew. I tried to tell myself it was impossible, but then again, I didn't know anyone else in the Demon King's Army.
Eventually, Vergissmeinnicht, the Dryades of the Four Heavenly Kings, left with a lingering promise to return.
The following day arrived.
As was our habit, I was spending time with my friend, Barometz.
"Barometz, have you seen this before?"
"It’s my first time seeing it. It looks like a long, slender red fruit."
"Well then... try a... bite."
"Oh, thank you. I shall partake."
Barometz reached out with her cotton hands, plucked the red fruit growing from my vines, and popped it into her mouth in one go. A second later, she began to scream with such force I thought she might actually breathe fire.
"This is hooooooooot!"
With tears in her eyes and her tongue sticking out, Barometz continued to wail. I understood her pain; chili peppers were quite the experience.
In truth, during my nightly rounds as a phantom thief, I had managed to predate on some of the chili peppers growing within the garden. Chili peppers belonged to the Solanaceae family, just like me. They were red, just like my corolla, so I felt a certain sense of kinship with them.
"M-my mouth is stinging! It feels like it’s on fire!"
"Here... have some... water."
I had prepared for this exact prank and immediately handed her a drink. I let Barometz guzzle down water from the kangaroo pocket storage sacs I had generated on my vines.
That’s right—this was yet another new plant I had predated on within the garden! The kangaroo pocket was a fascinating plant capable of storing water within its leaves. These "water storage sacs" were plump, swollen leaves that held liquid, a signature characteristic of the species. Apparently, it was named "Kangaroo Pocket" because those sacs resembled a kangaroo's pouch.
Since I had consumed one in the botanical garden, I had immediately tried growing my own storage sacs on my vines. I decided to put them to good use as a chaser for Barometz’s chili pepper experience.
With these water storage sacs, I could stockpile water during the rainy season. In other words, I now had a countermeasure against droughts! I remembered that adventurer who used water magic—what was his name again? Drink Bar, I think? I felt like these would be incredibly efficient if I ever had to fight a water mage like him again.
Since I had gone to the trouble of filling them, I used the rest of the water in the sacs to play with Barometz. We splashed each other, frolicking and laughing. As plant monsters, we both loved moisture. The water was refreshing!
While we were mid-play, the Four Heavenly King made her appearance for the second day in a row. It was the fallen Dryades, Vergissmeinnicht.
"I’ve returned."
She was still riding atop that massive land tortoise. I wondered if this Spirit Princess had nothing better to do than visit the botanical garden every single day.
"Barometz, could I ask you for the usual?"
"Of course, Lady Vergissmeinnicht!"
It seemed she had business with Barometz. The Dryades used her blue ivy to begin a tactile inspection of Barometz's body. She touched everything thoroughly: the stem, the cotton fruit, the joints where the plant and human anatomy merged, the interior of the coat-like cotton, the face, the hair, and the horns.
"As I thought, Barometz is a perfect fusion of plant and animal. I’m almost tempted to dissect you just to see how it all works."
"I would... greatly prefer it if you didn't."
When the Dryades said that, Barometz glanced at me for some reason. She immediately lowered her eyes, looking apologetic. I wasn't sure what that was about; perhaps she was just embarrassed about being touched so much.
"Now then, next let me examine the Alraune princess."
No, thank you. I’ll pass. I really don't need a checkup.
...Oh no. I could already feel her ivy crawling over my skin.
"What a magnificent bulb. And such lovely red petals. My fairy subordinate has a bit of a nasty streak; if she saw how beautiful you were, she’d probably have started spraying herbicide just to watch you wither."
I knew exactly what she meant. That Poison Fairy had already tried to kill me once. I had firsthand experience with that particular nightmare. But right now, there was a more pressing issue.
It tickled!
Being felt up by my nemesis was nothing short of humiliating! And for some reason, she was starting to poke around my chest area with her ivy!
"For a plant, you’re quite the little mimic, hiding your chest with vines like a human girl. It’s adorable. Where did you learn that?"
"...I... thought of it... myself."
"Is that so? Well then, let's have a little look at what's under those vines."
Stop it! If she stripped off my vine bra, I’d be completely naked!
Perhaps sensing my desperate resistance, the Dryades didn't try to forcibly peel the vines away. It seemed she wasn't going to push the matter. It was strange; I’d pegged her as a wicked spirit, but seeing her playing somewhat playfully with plants didn't quite fit the image I had. Between what the Poison Fairy Oin had done and how Vergissmeinnicht had used blue flowers to mind-control the Golden Birdman, I had assumed she was pure evil. This was unexpected. Maybe she was only kind to plants because she saw us as her own kind?
"Say, Alraune princess. Why don't you come with me? If you decide to leave this place of your own free will, I might be able to use my authority as one of the Four Heavenly Kings to get you out of here."
"If... that happened... what would... become of me?"
"You'd get to participate in breeding experiments in my lab. Congratulations—you’d finally get to become a woman."
I knew it! She just wanted to experiment on me! There was absolutely no way I was going to be forcibly pollinated. Being treated like an object was... well, I was a plant, but still!
As I used my vines to form a big "X" in a gesture of defiance, a savior intervened. The garden manager, Hydra, spoke up while he was watering the nearby plants.
"It would be quite a problem if you scouted our Alraune."
"I was only joking, obviously. I wouldn't dream of damaging 'that person’s' property."
The Dryades left the garden, tossing a final "Call me if you change your mind" over her shoulder.
Ugh. Every time I dealt with that woman, she completely dominated the conversation. At this rate, I’d never get an opening to defeat her. She was a terrifying spirit—mostly in the sense that my modesty was in constant peril. If this had been a garden directly under the Demon King's control, I’d probably be a lab rat for that mad scientist by now. I might have been carrying the seeds of some random male flower.
The only reason that hadn't happened was thanks to the owner of this garden, "that person." I was truly grateful. If even the Four Heavenly Kings couldn't touch his things, he had to be someone incredibly important.
I only knew one person in the Demon King's Army who was that powerful.
But... surely not. There was no way...
Just as the thought crossed my mind, the atmosphere shifted. The temperature inside the garden spiked. It was already summer, but it suddenly felt like a blistering heatwave had arrived. It was as if a drought had spontaneously struck the area around the Demon King's Castle.
Wait. A drought?
No. It couldn't be...
I looked up. Through the transparent roof, I saw a massive shape floating in the sky. It was a dragon as large as a mountain, boasting two colossal wings. Its entire body burned like flowing magma, and its tail glowed with the intensity of a white-hot furnace. It was a divine, yet horrific sight.
I could never forget that form.
There was no mistake. It was the Flame Dragon Lord, appearing before me for the first time in months.
The Flame Dragon Lord descended, landing in front of the castle. THOOM! The impact traveled through the soil and vibrated through my very roots. A moment later, his massive presence vanished. He had likely entered the castle. He was so enormous I figured he’d probably break the building just by stepping inside, but I had no idea how he’d actually managed it.
Regardless, I had bigger things to worry about. I had just laid eyes on the one person in this world I absolutely could not afford to meet.
The Flame Dragon Lord wanted me dead. He had already burned me once before. I was only alive now because I had managed to pollinate myself and transfer my consciousness into a Young Girl Alraune body. If he ever discovered I was still alive, he would incinerate me in an instant.
What was I supposed to do if the owner of this garden—"that person"—was exactly who I feared?
I wanted to run away before I was discovered, but I couldn't.
Because, well... I was a plant.
Chili Pepper: An annual plant of the Solanaceae family. The Scoville Scale is used to measure its pungency.
Kangaroo Pocket: A climbing epiphytic plant of the Apocynaceae family. Despite the name, they are found in Australia as well as Southeast Asia.
Next time: I Already Know the Name of the Dragon I Saw That Day.