My nectar seemed to have completely closed Vol-nii’s wound.
As if to prove he was back on his feet, Vol-nii raised his sword high with his right hand while reaching out with his left to gently stroke my head.
“I never dreamed I’d be able to speak with you like this again.”
However, the arm he extended stopped abruptly just before reaching me. His gaze drifted downward. Right, I understood. More than the shock of finding me alive, he still hadn't quite reconciled the fact that his cousin, a Saint, had been reincarnated as a plant monster.
Certainly, if a wild Alraune suddenly claimed to be Saint Iris, no one would believe her. But in the end, Vol-nii had. I was sure he would eventually come to accept the rest, just as Nina had.
To facilitate smoother communication between us, I moved my vines while maintaining the best smile I could manage.
“My... appearance... has changed... a little... but... I am... the same... as ever... you know.”
I wrapped a vine around Vol-nii’s arm and guided his hand, letting him pat-pat my head. I moved the vine with a bit of force, initiating the kind of skinship we’d had as children to help him remember those days.
“...Right. I was wrong. Forgive me.”
I nodded. He had burned my clone when we first reunited, but I decided to let that matter slide.
“I... forgive you. But... let’s talk... after... we... survive... this.”
“If we make it out alive, I’ll apologize as many times as you like. Now then, shall we try fighting together for the first time in a while?”
Even with Vol-nii on our side, we were still vastly outnumbered. It was just me, Nina, and Vol-nii against the Witch Queen, her army of thirty witches, and that skinhead mercenary. Since witches were masters of mysterious black magic, there was no telling what they might do. We needed every ally we could get.
“Hey, Dog-ear Leader! What is the meaning of this?!” the female swordsman who had been with Vol-nii shouted as she ran toward us.
“You! I told you a thousand times to keep my ears a secret!” Vol-nii snapped back. He then began a lecture, insisting they were wolf ears, not dog ears.
If I remembered correctly, this girl was a member of the party that had come to hunt me. While the skinhead mercenary was clearly an enemy, she didn't seem to be. More than that, her face looked familiar. She reminded me of someone.
“More importantly, Leader! I’ve been wondering—were you just calling that Alraune ‘Lady Iris’?”
“That is...” Vol-nii started, but I cut in to answer her myself.
“I... do not... know... but... apparently... I look... like her.”
The Witch Queen and her minions were listening. I couldn't risk the word getting out that my true identity was Saint Iris.
“Now that you mention it, you do look like the Lady Iris I saw a long time ago...”
I was surprised. This girl had actually seen me during my time as a Saint? Perhaps that was why she looked familiar to me as well.
“The Lord... of the city... has already... guaranteed... that I... resemble... the Saint.”
“I see. Well, if the Leader is siding with an Alraune, then I’m an ally too. I owe a debt to Lady Iris, and since I can never pay her back now, I’ll settle it by helping her look-alike instead!”
Owing me a debt from my Saint Era... I must have treated her with light recovery magic at some point. I wondered when that was. Regardless, we now had three allies. Compared to when it was just Nina and me, our combat strength had doubled.
“Nyahaha, is the strategy meeting over nya?” the Witch Queen asked, smiling playfully from her cat form.
Strangely, the witches hadn't attacked at all while we were talking. It was a golden opportunity for them, which made their restraint all the more unsettling. It felt eerie.
“I have a bit of history with that witch who stabbed me,” Vol-nii said, signaling toward the Witch Queen’s Assistant. The assistant gave a sharp nod and moved to face him, the two of them tensing as they squared off. It seemed they really were old acquaintances. I wondered how they knew each other.
“In that case, I’ll take care of Diesel! Grandpa always said never to forgive a traitor,” the female swordsman declared, stepping forward to challenge the skinhead mercenary.
That left Nina and me to handle the rest of the Witch Army and the Witch Queen herself. The white cat flicked her tail and spoke to me.
“This is our second meeting, Crimson Flower Princess-chan. I couldn't finish you off last time, but I’ll make sure you wither today~”
“If... that is... the case... then... I will... have you... become... my... nutrients.”
“Talking about plants in this forest makes me think of Vergissmeinnicht. I think I’ll have you scatter just as fragilely as that Fallen Spirit Princess did, nya~”
Vergissmeinnicht—the Fallen Dryades and one of the Four Heavenly Kings. She was originally the spirit of this forest before the Witch Queen’s schemes drove her into the darkness. She used to visit the festivals in the Tower City in secret and had even fallen in love with the Hero fifty years ago; she was supposed to love humans.
Yet, that same woman had proposed that we eradicate humanity to create a Plant Paradise together. The Vergissmeinnicht I had met didn't look like a spirit who loved humans at all; she seemed to despise them.
But the facts remained: she had once loved a man and cared for the city enough to protect it. The root of the evil that had twisted a Spirit Princess into such a hateful creature was standing right in front of me.
“Witch Queen... I... will... not... forgive... you.”
Vergissmeinnicht was likely never a spirit who craved conflict. I knew that from seeing her sister, Lady Dryades. After all, she had protected the city and the forest as its guardian spirit while looking after her shut-in sister. Therefore, as the one who defeated her and inherited her spirit power, the only thing I could do was protect this forest as she once had.
“As... a Forest Spirit... I... will not... lose... to you.”
“Nyahaha! Crimson Flower Princess-chan, you seem to be misunderstanding something~”
Misunderstanding? She had kidnapped the Little Witch and come here to kill me. What was there to misunderstand?
“I have a promise with that dragon, you see. I told him I wouldn't lay a hand on Crimson Flower Princess-chan.”
She was referring to Flame Dragon Lord. I had promised my nectar to him in exchange for the Witch Queen backing off.
“You... are... laying... a hand... on me... right now... though?” I glared at her, making it clear she was breaking that promise.
“Nyahaha! I just tagged along with the humans to kill some time. Even if I change my mind and decide to kill these humans here, I still won't lay a hand on you~”
“How... do you... explain... Rufe?”
“The one who kidnapped Rufe-chan wasn't me, it was Diesel. It has nothing to do with me~. I actually tried to stop him, you know?”
She was utterly shameless, lying through her teeth.
“So, I don't intend to attack you, Crimson Flower Princess-chan. Instead, I’ll just have the city attacked~”
“...What?”
At the Witch Queen’s signal, the witches lurking in the woods took flight simultaneously.
“I’m going to burn down that Tower City you love so much and massacre every human in it. That way, I can keep my promise to the dragon while still making you suffer~”
This woman was truly vile. She claimed she wouldn't touch me, yet she intended to strike me where it hurt most. But surely she didn't think I would just stand by and watch.
I focused every nerve I had spread throughout the forest, forcing the plants to grow at an explosive rate. This entire forest was my body. I knew exactly where every witch was hiding, even with my eyes closed.
Before the witches using Levitation Magic could clear the canopy, I took control of the trees. I visualized the Spirit Magic once wielded by the Fallen Dryades: Dominion of the Great Forest (Herrschaft Pflanze).
I forced the trees to surge upward, enclosing the forest in a massive dome. I coated the branches with sticky Sundew, catching the witches like flies in a spiderweb. I then used the "Strangler Tree" Gajumaru vines to bind the struggling witches tight. Those who hadn't been caught by the Sundew and were drifting in the air were snapped up directly by my Venus Flytraps. I made sure to inject them with plenty of paralytic poison.
The survivors tried to fight back, lashing out with Wind Blades and lightning to clear a path. But that level of resistance meant nothing to me now. I wouldn't let a single witch escape this forest. One by one, I snatched the remaining witches with my Flytraps.
Yes... thank you for the meal.
“Nyahaha! I’m shocked you can use Dominion of the Great Forest (Herrschaft Pflanze). And taking out that many witches in an instant... you really are ruthless, Crimson Flower Princess-chan~”
“Are you... not... going... to save... them?”
“Well, if I try to save them, will you promise not to attack me?”
“I... cannot... make... that promise.”
“Nyahaha! Then I wonder if telling you this will make you change your mind?”
The Witch Queen turned her gaze toward the Tower City.
“I have witches lurking in the city, too. I gave them very specific instructions: if anything strange happens in the forest, immediately turn the city into a sea of fire and offer the humans up as a Witch’s Sacrifice.”
I immediately reached out through my roots to check the status of the city’s plants. Agitation was rippling through the people. I could feel points of intense heat; fires were already starting. The Witch Queen wasn't lying.
“You want to save the city, don't you? Go ahead. I won't touch you, so feel free to go and protect it.”
If I created a clone and teleported to the city, I could wipe out the witches there in an instant. However, my main body would be left completely defenseless. I might save the city, but the Witch Queen would likely kill me the moment I split my consciousness. Conversely, if I stayed to fight her, I might defeat the enemies here, but my friends in the city would be in grave danger.
Lord Manfred, the Corporal, Drink Bar-san, the Master Carpenter... and even the Demon Maid. I had so many friends there now. So many people who had accepted me and looked up to me.
The Saint I once was had died, and I had been reborn as a monster, but by some miracle, I had found a way to live among people again. I would never abandon the people who had accepted me for what I am.
“As... a Forest Spirit... I will... protect... the city... and... its people... along with... this forest.”
I would stall the Witch Queen here while finding a way to save everyone in the city. I refused to let things go according to her plan.
The first volume of the manga adaptation of "Plant Monster Girl Diary" goes on sale tomorrow! Please check it out. To celebrate the release, another update is planned for tomorrow. Next time: The Genius Beautiful Girl Swordsman's Melancholy.