I was an Alraune, a plant monster girl.
The Witch Queen and her subordinate hovered in the air, the Little Witch clutched in their grasp.
The Witch Queen had been pulling the strings behind the scenes fifty years ago, meddling with the Hero and his party. She was the one responsible for warping the fates of the Dryades sisters and the original party members.
Furthermore, it seemed she was the one who had tasked the Demon King's Army with finding the Little Witch. She claimed she wanted the girl back because she was the one responsible for turning her into a witch in the first place.
But if that were true, there was one thing that didn't sit right with me.
"Why... didn't you... take her with you... back when you... made her a witch?"
"Oh, turning her into a witch was just a little whim of mine~. But seeing that pure white hair, it looks like she inherited quite a lot of my power. That means I have to bring her to the Witch's Village and educate her so she can become an executive."
In other words, it was as if she had scattered seeds in the dirt and ignored them for years, only to come back and claim the harvest now that they had grown into large, ripe fruit. She was being entirely too self-serving, never once considering the Little Witch’s own feelings.
Still, I couldn't help but wonder—what if the Little Witch actually wanted to go to the village?
Perhaps living with her own kind would be better for her happiness than staying with me. In a village of witches, she could lead a life that was at least somewhat human, unlike her life among plants in the forest. It might even cure her distrust of people.
As these thoughts swirled in my head, I began to worry that my desire to keep her with me was nothing more than my own selfishness.
"I intend to cherish this child as one of my successors. So, Crimson Flower Princess-chan, you have absolutely nothing to worry about~."
The Witch Queen might have been right. However, the Little Witch was still unconscious. Until I heard her say she wanted to go to the Witch's Village with her own ears, I had to protect my friend with everything I had.
"Even so... for now... I’m taking her back!"
I lashed my vines toward the sky. However, the Witch Queen moved with effortless freedom, easily evading my reach.
"It seems you have no intention of obeying quietly~. In that case, I'll just have to educate this little flower that won't listen to its betters."
For some reason, the Witch Queen looked at me with an expression like a child who had just discovered a delicious dessert.
"Groa, take this child and head back ahead of me."
The Witch Queen handed the Little Witch over to her subordinate. It seemed the Queen's Assistant was a witch named Groa.
I wasn't about to let them leave without a fight. Lady Dryades clearly felt the same, as she immediately shifted into a battle stance.
"You trapped my sister. I believe you owe me a very detailed explanation."
I was going to fight alongside Lady Dryades. My "younger sister," the Amazoness Treant, also seemed ready for a fight. Even the Dryades sapling, Fair-chan, chirped in, "Mother, I'll help!"
Alright, let's show them the strength of the women of the Dryades' Forest!
"Spirit Magic: Dominion of the Great Forest (Herrschaft Pflanze)!"
Lady Dryades attempted to force the plants underground into a state of rapid growth. During my previous battle with Big Sister Dryades, I had used Nina's body to unleash the Heiligenschein, which had obliterated all plant life in the immediate area. It seemed she intended to start by regenerating the forest.
Watching the spirit magic unfold, the Witch Queen let out an amused laugh. "Nya ha ha!"
"Dryades are such a pain, aren't they? Well then, let's just seal off your means of attack."
With the White Witch Queen at the center, a sudden storm began to howl. Great shards of ice and snow whipped through the air, carried by a freezing gale. A violent blizzard descended upon the forest.
I wondered if witches could manipulate the weather at will, but this was on an entirely different level from a mere storm. The sheer pressure was so intense I felt as though I were facing an Ice Dragon.
Before I knew it, the ground was encased in a thick layer of ice. The plants Lady Dryades had tried to cultivate were frozen solid. Worse, even my younger sister, the Amazoness Treant, had been turned into a block of ice.
How dare she? How dare she do that to my sister?
I couldn't forgive her. I was going to make her taste my Teppou-uri Machine Gun.
"You should freeze too, Crimson Flower Princess-chan~."
Wait, just a second—!
Before I could even launch an attack, I was encased in ice. The temperature had already plummeted far below freezing. Not just me, but Lady Dryades and Fair-chan were also trapped within the frost.
I couldn't believe it. Not even Lady Dryades could lift a finger against the Witch Queen. It was frustrating... so frustrating.
But I couldn't let it end here. I wasn't the kind of woman—or plant—to be defeated by a little cold!
I triggered my self-heating ability, a trait inherited from the Skunk Cabbage. The version of me that was helpless in winter was a thing of the past. The icy shackles binding my body melted away in an instant.
...Wait.
What was this sensation?
It felt as though performing selective breeding on my own body had become much easier than before. In fact, I had lost track of the adjustment, and my body temperature had soared far too high. What was happening to me?
"Heh~, you can actually melt the ice. Not bad, Crimson Flower Princess-chan."
The Witch Queen looked down at me with amusement as I thawed out like a spring flower.
"That's a Unique Monster for you. As the one who named you, it makes me proud."
"Named... me?"
"The name 'Crimson Flower Princess'—I was the one who came up with it~."
I had first heard that name from the adventurers who had come to the forest to subjugate me. I had assumed the Adventurer Guild had decided on the title; I never dreamed the Witch Queen had anything to do with it.
"I suggested that name to the Adventurer Guild while I was disguised as a Dwarf adventurer. Do you like it~?"
Was that true?! I was stunned to find out there was such a connection between us without me even knowing. It was a very complicated feeling.
"Harvesting the monster I named with my own hands... that sounds like quite a bit of fun, too."
The Witch Queen licked her lips as she watched me. She had been looking at me with a strange, unsettling gaze for a while now.
"Since you're an Alraune, a Unique Monster, you'll make an exquisite base for an aphrodisiac. I'm looking forward to it~."
...I felt like I just heard something I absolutely couldn't ignore. It was a phrase I never would have heard back when I was a human.
"What... do you... intend... to do... with me?"
"Nya ha ha! Why, use you for compounding medicine, of course. I'm a witch, so plant monsters look like nothing but ingredients to me~."
"...Ingredients?"
"Alraunes make for excellent aphrodisiacs~."
Did that mean... I was going to be turned into a love potion?
No... no way. I didn't want to become an aphrodisiac!
"Crimson Flower Princess-chan, you might be under the wrong impression because you've been eating big game by absorbing the Saint and the Dryades, but no matter how strong you are, you're still just a plant monster."
The Witch Queen spoke as if delivering a final verdict.
"A pitiful plant that cannot even leave the ground. Do you really think you've become a companion to demons or humans just because you've gained a little intelligence?"
She looked down at me with genuine pity. To a witch, a plant like me wasn't an equal; I was just raw material for her cauldron.
It had been a long time since I felt the sting of such blatant discrimination between species. In the Dryades' Forest—aside from the local adventurers—everyone had accepted me as a friend. Even in the Demon King's Castle, I wasn't treated poorly for being a plant monster. Thinking back, the Flame Dragon Lord and the other demons had truly accepted me as one of their own. It made me feel a bit nostalgic.
Because I had lived with the Little Witch, I thought I understood her kind. But clearly, I hadn't known the true nature of witches at all.
"Nya ha ha!" The Witch Queen's eyes sparkled as she made her final declaration. "I'll brew you into a highly effective aphrodisiac and put you to good use, Crimson Flower Princess-chan!"
(While they are Mandragoras/Mandrakes rather than Alraunes, they were actually used as aphrodisiacs from ancient times through the Middle Ages. For that reason, Mandragoras are also called "Love Eggplants" in Japanese.)
Next time: I don't want to become an aphrodisiac.