I am Alraune, a plant monster girl.
When I was brought from the botanical garden to a room within the Demon King’s Castle, the red-haired man I’d met earlier that day was waiting for me. Since Barometz-san had praised his looks so highly, I remembered his face clearly.
He looked no different from a human, but the two horns growing from his head marked him as a member of the demon race. Besides, I couldn't imagine a human actually living in the Demon King's Castle.
The room was enormous by human standards. I stood nearly three meters tall including my bulb, and since I was currently settled in a flowerpot, I was even taller than that. Yet, despite my height, my head didn't even come close to the ceiling. This room had clearly been built with the demon race in mind. Even the one-horned Minotaur, who stood four or five meters tall, didn't look particularly cramped in here.
The decorations throughout the interior were incredible. I could tell that the person living here held a very high position. Just who was this red-haired man? To be honest, I was starting to have a bad feeling about this.
The man was sitting on a chaise longue at the far end of the room. When Uncle Teddy approached him, he gave a respectful bow.
"Glüh-sama, I have brought the Alraune in question."
C-could it be that 'Glüh-sama' was short for 'Gryuschwanz-sama'...?
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!! It really was him! This man was the Flame Dragon Lord himself, Gryuschwanz-sama!
Wait, was this his human form? Can you even turn into a human, Flame Dragon Lord? I’d never heard of a dragon doing that before! Well, I suppose living would be difficult if he stayed the size of a giant monster. He would be far too heavy, and the Demon King's Castle would probably collapse instantly.
I could understand why it was more practical for him to live like this, but seeing the Flame Dragon Lord—who usually had such a terrifying draconic appearance—dressed like a human felt completely wrong.
"Good work," the Flame Dragon Lord said, offering a few words of appreciation to Uncle Teddy and the Minotaur. Then, his eyes met mine.
—S-scary!
W-w-w-w-what was I going to do? My life was in the Flame Dragon Lord's hands. What would happen if he realized I was that Alraune from the forest? He might burn me to a crisp again to avenge his subordinate, the Eyepatch Minotaur.
I had been burned by his blue flame once before, so he must have assumed I was dead. However, since my appearance hadn't changed at all, he might have already realized the truth.
Even though I was a plant, I felt like I was breaking into a sweat. Because I was so terrified, I found myself transpiring through the stomata on the underside of my leaves. For me, transpiration was the equivalent of a cold sweat.
The Flame Dragon Lord gestured for the Minotaur to place me near the chaise longue. "Put the Alraune here."
Once the Minotaur set my flowerpot on the floor, I found myself face-to-face with the Flame Dragon Lord. I was so scared my eyes were darting around in a panic!
While I was trembling, the Flame Dragon Lord spoke to the one-horned Minotaur.
"Dippkopf, I'm sorry for the trouble."
Wait, that name sounded familiar. I was pretty sure the Eyepatch Minotaur I ate back in the forest had the same name...
"It has been several months since you succeeded to the name of the Chief of the Minotaur Tribe. How is it? Do you feel you can manage the responsibility of leading your people?"
"Glüh-sama, you struck down my predecessor's enemy with your own hands. I will surely perform in a way that meets your expectations."
"I have high expectations for you."
"Yes, sir!"
Giving a final bow, the one-horned Minotaur left the room. The Flame Dragon Lord began to speak slowly, as if addressing me directly.
"That man's predecessor died in the line of duty back in early spring. He took over the position and the name."
Wait, was he talking to me? He was staring at me as if he expected a response. I felt like I would get in trouble if I stayed silent, so I decided to answer.
"I... see."
"The predecessor was a Minotaur who wore an eyepatch."
"O-oh."
"His name was Dippkopf. Does that name ring a bell?"
"...It doesn't."
W-what should I do? The Flame Dragon Lord wouldn't take his eyes off me for a second. He definitely suspected me, didn't he? I really didn't want to be burned by him again!
"The one who killed the predecessor was a plant monster from a certain forest. Coincidentally, it was an Alraune, just like you."
"What a... coincidence..."
"You are apparently three months old. It was just about that long ago that I encountered that other Alraune."
"What a... coincidence..."
"That Alraune even went as far as eating Dippkopf. Therefore, I burned the creature with magic flame to avenge my subordinate, but..."
The Flame Dragon Lord paused, then leaned in to question me.
"Have you ever eaten a Minotaur?"
Hieeeee! I was being interrogated!
"I... haven't..."
"If that is so, then fine. But strangely enough, you and that Alraune are two of a kind."
"For there to be... such a... coincidence..."
"However, the coincidences do not stop there. I once tasted that Alraune's nectar."
Yes, I remembered that very well. Because I hadn't wanted to be burned, I’d tried to beg for my life by letting him taste my nectar. I’d almost secured a job as his breakfast dessert and pet houseplant, but my lie about eating Mr. Cow was exposed, and he burned me anyway.
"I could never forget the taste of that nectar. However, I confirmed that the Alraune had burned to ashes. I felt a small amount of regret, thinking I would never enjoy that delicious flavor again."
That meant he had actually come back to check if my previous body was properly incinerated. That was a close call... It was lucky my new form hadn't sprouted yet when he came looking.
"Nothing identical to that nectar could be found within the territory of the Demon Kingdom. Thus, I ordered rare plants to be collected from all over the continent so I could harvest nectar from their flowers."
So that's why Uncle Teddy was collecting plants. Since they were for the Flame Dragon Lord's personal use, the place I'd been staying wasn't a military facility, but his private botanical garden.
"When I finally tasted the nectar harvested from that garden, I was shocked. One of the plants produced a flavor exactly like that Alraune's."
So the Flame Dragon Lord had been searching for me all along. Or, to be precise, he wanted a flower that could produce my nectar.
"When I learned that the flower producing the nectar was an Alraune—and that it looked identical to the one before—I could not hide my surprise."
I knew this story. I felt like I’d heard something just like it during my high school days in my previous life. It was the story of Cinderella riding a pumpkin carriage to a castle ball to meet a prince.
When the clock struck twelve and the magic began to fade, a panicked Cinderella dropped her slipper on the stairs. The prince then used that shoe as a clue to find her.
In my case, it wasn't a glass slipper, but the taste of my nectar that led him to me. And now, I had been brought to the Demon King's Castle. I was just like Cinderella!
"It is useless to hide it. You are that Alraune from that time, are you not?"
What should I do? Cinderella was about to be found out.
The human version of the Flame Dragon Lord was only slightly taller than an average man, which meant that as an Alraune, I was actually bigger than him. Because of that, I ended up looking down at him from above.