The following continues from the POV of the newbie Saint, Nina.
My name was Nina.
I was a newbie Saint who had come to the Alraune’s Forest as a member of the Four Heavenly Kings Subjugation Party.
That Alraune was, in truth, the Lady Saint Iris—the woman who was supposed to have passed away. Having been dispatched to Tower City as an Apprentice Saint, I had been reunited with the now-transformed Lady Iris and had even begun to interact with the monsters who supported her.
That was why I knew the Treant currently charging toward us while waving its branches was an acquaintance...
"A Treant is attacking!"
My comrades fixed their gazes on the creature and readied their respective weapons. At this rate, they were going to exterminate one of Lady Iris's friends. If that happened, I wouldn't have the heart to ever face her again!
"Everyone, wait! It hasn't been confirmed that it’s an enemy yet. Let’s observe a little longer!"
Lord Hoffmann, the Knight Commander of Tower City, snapped back at my plea.
"How could a monster not be an enemy? It’s obviously one of the Alraune's plant monster lackeys!"
He was technically right about it being an ally, which made things difficult. If this continued, a battle was inevitable. I wondered what I could possibly do to stop it.
Before I could find an answer, the Treant skidded to a halt. It looked at me and waved its branches even more vigorously, taking a truly shocking action.
"Oh, hey, isn't that Nina over there?"
I couldn't believe my ears. The Treant had actually spoken to me!
Wh-wh-wh-what?! That Treant could talk?! And its voice was much cuter than I expected! Perhaps it was the contrast, but even its appearance was starting to look adorable to me. It was a cute withered tree!
"It is Nina! You’re back from the Royal Capital already~"
That casual, friendly way of speaking... I felt like I had heard it somewhere before. Then it clicked. That wasn't the Treant's voice; it was Kiri the Fairy.
"One, two, three... Ugh, there are six humans here..."
Just as I suspected, a tiny fairy flew out from behind the Treant's trunk. Like the Treant, she was one of Lady Iris's companions. Since Lady Iris was now the plant monster Alraune, she had almost no human allies left.
Lord Wolfgang, the leader of my current party, looked at me as if to confirm his suspicions.
"Saint of the Yellow Wings... surely you aren't acquainted with that fairy?"
"W-well, you could say I know her, or you could say I don't..."
"The creature seemed to know your name, didn't it?"
"I... I might have just become famous during my time in Tower City. Maybe she learned my name and face without my knowledge..."
Lord Wolfgang’s gaze was piercing. He was likely suspecting me of colluding with monsters. My stomach began to churn. I desperately craved the Saint Nectar...
"I heard Nina went to the Royal Capital, but she's already back in town. Did you come to get some of Lady Alraune’s nectar?"
Kiri, please, just stay quiet! If it was discovered that we were acquaintances, everything would be ruined. My position as a Saint was already on thin ice. If the party thought I was in league with the enemy, they'd kick me out before I could even see Lady Iris again!
"Who else do I know... Blegh, even that Knight Commander is here."
Fairy Kiri made a face of pure disgust as she pointed at Lord Hoffmann. Infuriated by the gesture, Hoffmann let out a roar.
"I will not tolerate an inferior fairy looking down on humanity! I’ll exterminate you! Erde-Kavallerist!"
Hoffmann used his Earth Magic to manifest a riding bull. He mounted the construct and charged straight at Fairy Kiri.
"Hoffmann, stop! Don't act on your own!" Wolfgang shouted, but the Knight Commander ignored him, intent on cutting the fairy down.
Fairy Kiri flitted through the air to dodge the blade, murmuring with an air of composure.
"I wonder how many decades it's been since a human last picked a fight with me. I’ll have you know I’m Lady Alraune’s fairy! I won’t lose to a pipsqueak Knight Commander from Tower City!"
"Hmph! What could a mere fairy possibly do?"
"Then watch this! Spirit Magic: Nature's Vibrant Colors (Natur-Wiederkunft)!"
I had heard that high-ranking fairies could use Spirit Magic as well as spirits themselves. Since humans couldn't use it, it was a legendary, mysterious school of magic rarely seen by the public.
A shower of light erupted from Kiri’s magic, raining down on Lord Hoffmann’s earthen bull. As soon as the light touched the construct, the solid earth began to crumble into dust.
"Wh-what is this!?"
Hoffmann tumbled from his mount and slammed into the forest floor. The bull he had been riding was now nothing more than a pile of dirt. Fairy Kiri looked down at him with immense pride.
"I am a fairy who manipulates nature. Returning Earth Magic created by a mere human back to its natural state is a simple task."
It was incredible. She had completely nullified Lord Hoffmann’s magic. The dryad Vergissmeinnicht had used powerful Spirit Magic as well, but Kiri’s was just as impressive.
"But I’m really not the aggressive type~. This is a bit of a bother."
"Impudent brat! If magic won't work, I’ll just hack you to pieces with my sword!"
Hoffmann lunged at the hovering fairy with his blade. Just as the tip of the sword was about to reach her, Hoffmann’s body was suddenly sent flying sideways.
"Treant, thanks for the save!"
To protect Kiri, the Treant had tackled Hoffmann. To knock away a man in full plate armor like that... that Treant possessed incredible physical strength.
"You really are the strongest in the forest!"
The fairy and the Treant shared a high-five. It was a bizarre sight, yet oddly heartwarming. However, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a blast of fire heading toward them. It was Lord Wolfgang’s Explosive Flame Magic. He had waited for an opening to launch a surprise attack.
"Nullifying this fire is going to be a bit tough... Let's run, Treant!"
The Treant scooped Kiri up and bolted into the thicket. With a speed that defied its appearance as a withered tree, it successfully escaped the range of the Explosive Flame.
"Don't let them escape! After them!"
At Lord Wolfgang’s command, the entire party gave chase. Strangely, the Treant fled slowly, stopping occasionally as if to make sure we were still following. I realized then that with its speed, it could have easily lost us.
Then, the truth hit me. The Treant wasn't heading deeper into the forest; it was leading us toward the edge. It was acting as a decoy to draw us away from the deepest part of the woods where Lady Iris was. It was trying to keep us from finding her. What a clever monster!
"Everyone, hold on a second, if you please."
Diesel, the mercenary, suddenly brought us to a halt.
"That Treant is acting mighty suspicious. I reckon it’s trying to lead us somewhere else."
Diesel crouched down and brushed the ground with his hand, murmuring to himself.
"Look here. There’s another set of footprints over this way, separate from where the Treant ran off to. I’ll bet that Treant came from this direction before it bumped into us."
Lord Diesel was far too sharp! Those footprints likely led straight to the heart of the forest, where the Crimson Flower Princess Alraune was hidden. That was the final destination for our subjugation party.
"If that Treant really wanted to run, we’d never catch it in this forest. Besides, our goal is to take down the Alraune. Why waste time on small fry when we can strike the enemy's headquarters directly?"
"And what exactly is at the end of those tracks!?" Hoffmann demanded, his voice raspy.
"Isn't it obvious? The Lord of the Forest herself—the Crimson Flower Princess Alraune."
Diesel gave a knowing smirk. He seemed certain that she was just ahead.
"N-no, we shouldn't!" I blurted out. "We can't just leave the Treant alone. It might be a trap! We should keep chasing it!"
"...Saint of the Yellow Wings, you’ve been acting a bit strange today, haven't you?"
"Eh?"
"First you claim the Treant might not be an enemy, then those monsters call you by name like old friends. And now you’re trying to steer us away from the obvious path. You wouldn't happen to be hiding something from us, would you?"
"N-not at all..."
"Then there’s no problem. Let’s follow the tracks, shall we?"
The rest of the party agreed with Diesel. Ignoring the Treant, we began our march toward the depths of the forest. We were heading straight for Lady Iris. This was bad—terrible!
And worse... was I being suspected? If they found out I was in league with the Crimson Flower Princess Alraune, what would happen to me? I’d be stripped of my title as a Saint and branded a criminal for my deception. I feared that outcome, but I feared betraying Lady Iris even more. I would stay on her side until the very end!
"Look. The area up ahead is unusually clear."
Lord Wolfgang, walking at the lead, signaled for us to be on our guard.
We had finally arrived. I knew this place all too well.
"What in the world is that...?" Wolfgang whispered.
In the center of the clearing stood a massive growth, visible even from a distance. It was a bulb as large as a boulder, topped with a vibrant, crimson flower bud.
"What is this place? The vines are everywhere." "I’ve never seen a flower that huge." "But I don't see the woman from the wanted poster." "She’s probably sleeping inside that bud. This might be our lucky break."
My comrades shared their thoughts as they stared at the entity. Then, Lord Hoffmann, who had faced Lady Iris before, cried out.
"There's no doubt! That is the Crimson Flower Princess Alraune who rules this land!"
We had finally come face-to-face with the Crimson Flower Princess Alraune. For me, it was a reunion with Lady Iris after months of separation. It was a moment I had waited for, but it had come to pass in the worst possible way.
Thank you for reading!
I apologize for the delay in updates. I haven't fully recovered my health yet, but I hope to continue updating little by little. Thank you for your support.
Next time: Newbie Saint's Forest Dungeon Conquest - Latter Part.