The revelation the Witch Queen shared was almost more than I could believe.
She claimed she had witnessed the exact moment I was devoured by a plant monster. Because of that, I couldn't stop myself from demanding confirmation.
"Were you... at that place... when Iris... was eaten...?"
The Witch Queen’s lips curled into a smirk as she answered slowly.
"I was there~. Since you know about that spot, it proves Crimson Flower Princess-chan really is the plant monster from that day. You’ve grown into something so magnificent; I’m practically a proud parent~"
I struggled to process the fact that she had been there. Aside from myself, there should have only been two people present: my fiancé, the Hero, and that Shitty Junior Apprentice Saint.
Why had the Witch Queen been in that forest in the first place?
"Why... were you... in that place?"
"Because Saint Iris was a very dangerous existence to us~. I had to see her death with my own eyes to be certain."
"In other words... you were... monitoring Iris?"
"I wasn't monitoring her; I was trying to kill her~"
The Witch Queen continued, her voice drifting as if she were reminiscing about a fond memory.
"I was lurking in the woods in the form of a cat. I was waiting for Saint Iris to be alone, but then the human Hero and his friends went and killed her themselves~. Ahh, I was so disappointed that they beat me to the punch; I practically cried."
She began to sob with laughably bad, theatrical acting. I wasn't so naive as to take her words at face value, though.
"Could it be... that you... were plotting... something?"
This woman was the mastermind behind the assassination of the Former Hero fifty years ago. She had transformed into the Big Sister Dryades, the Hero's lover, to tear their relationship apart. She had a long criminal record of such deception.
"Nyahaha, you caught on after all~?"
At her words, a sudden realization struck me like a bolt of lightning.
Wait. If that was the case, then back then, for me too...
"Saint Iris died exactly as I’d planned. It was such a relief. My, I really did a wonderful job~"
"...So, you... were the mastermind... all along."
There was no longer any doubt. The Witch Queen had been complicit in my death. Everything finally clicked into place. I understood now why the Hero had been so utterly convinced that I was a traitor.
When I had assimilated the Big Sister Dryades, I had seen her memories. Just like fifty years ago, the Witch Queen must have transformed into me—into Iris—and whispered poison into the Hero's ear. She drove wedges into human relationships. That was her signature tactic.
If that were true, then the Shitty Junior Apprentice Saint had likely been used by her as well... no, that girl was still guilty. She had been all too happy to steal the Hero away from me. She was the one who directly called me a traitor and laid hands on me. She was the one who hacked off my arms and legs and fed me to a monster. And then she went and married him. Just remembering it now made my blood boil. I’ll never forgive her—that absolute trash of a junior!
And the Hero, who refused to believe in me and left me to die, was just as much a criminal.
Thanks to the Witch Queen's words, the hatred I thought I’d moved past began to sprout anew. But I also couldn't forgive the woman standing before me, the one who had orchestrated the entire tragedy.
"Why... did you... want to... kill Iris?"
Why had she targeted my life? It was the same with the Former Hero. I didn't see why a Witch would need to get involved. I might have been a threat to the Demon King's Army, but the Witches were supposed to be independent of them.
"Nyahaha, the Demon King and I are old friends, so I help him take out his enemies~. Besides, Saint Iris was the Saint that That Person hates more than anyone..."
The connection between the Witches and the Demon King ran deeper than I’d imagined. And she had mentioned one more thing that bothered me.
"Who... is... That Person?"
"There are plenty of things in this world that a mere Alraune doesn't need to know."
The Witch Queen raised both her hands. A massive amount of mana began to coalesce above her head. It seemed she was finished answering questions.
"If Saint Iris had kept growing, she eventually would have become strong enough to challenge the Demon King himself. Seeing Crimson Flower Princess-chan, who took Saint Iris into herself, I’m more certain than ever that I was right to be afraid."
"I am... happy... to receive... your praise."
"I wasn't actually praising you, though~"
Ahaha. The truth was that I wasn't some monster that ate Iris—I was Iris herself. I wasn't about to give her the satisfaction of knowing that, though.
"Well then, it's a shame I won't get to see Saint Iris’s face anymore, but let’s wrap up our goodbyes."
Accompanied by a surge of overwhelming mana, a storm capable of total annihilation descended upon the forest.
"Bye-bye, Crimson Flower Princess-chan."
The forest screamed. The dome I’d grown using "Spirit Magic: Dominion of the Great Forest (Herrschaft Pflanze)" was instantly shredded. The trees that were an extension of my own body were torn away one by one.
The earth began to shudder with heavy, rhythmic thuds. In a situation this dire, I suppose the normal reaction would be terror. Instead, I felt a surge of pure joy.
"I thought so... back then too... but it seems... I am... very lucky... after all."
I had been betrayed by my fiancé and eaten by a monster, yet I had been reborn as an Alraune. That was a miracle in itself. But now, I realized I was even luckier than I had imagined.
With this immobile body, I should never have been able to get my hands on the person who killed me. And yet, the culprit had come straight to me. How could I not feel lucky?
"And... I made it... in time."
The ground had been vibrating for a while now. Those thumping tremors weren't my imagination or the storm—they were the footsteps of someone approaching. The impact was so great that the forest floor was literally bucking.
"Wood Golem... go... get her!"
The Wood Golem I had secretly summoned back from Tower City finally arrived. Connected to me through the root network, the golem was no different from my own limbs. I could move it as easily as my own hands. To counter a massive area-of-effect attack, I would use a massive golem.
"Why is the Goddess's Giant here!?"
The Witch Queen’s panicked voice drifted through the howling wind. The golem held the dormant power of the Goddess’s light. Using that energy as a catalyst, I forced it to undergo a transformation into a tree giant of infinite growth.
"Great Forest Giant Tree (Herrschaft Riese)!"
Countless massive trunks erupted from the Wood Golem, thrusting toward the heart of the storm. I had adapted my Spirit Magic: Dominion of the Great Forest (Herrschaft Pflanze) specifically for use through the Wood Golem.
The great forest surged toward the sky like a living tide, forming a gargantuan bud that sought to swallow the storm whole. The spirit-imbued giant of the woods collided head-on with the Witch Queen’s "Storm Disaster (Turbulenz)."
"It was neutralized? My strongest magic... and I am the Witch Queen!"
The massive thunderheads that had choked the sky were devoured by the wooden bud. The raging winds were forcibly quelled by the power of the forest. As I dissolved the bud and returned the Wood Golem to its base form, the "Storm Disaster (Turbulenz)" vanished entirely.
Silence returned to the woods.
"As I thought... a storm... is best... blocked... by a forest."
"Crimson Flower Princess-chan, that wasn't a windbreak... that was an assault."
A forest in the shape of a giant had literally punched the storm out of existence. It was clear the Witch Queen hadn't prepared for that.
Broken branches and leaves fluttered down from the sky like confetti. As the Witch Queen watched them fall, her eyes caught on a specific object drifting through the air.
"What is this?" she muttered, captivated by a strange plant dancing among the leaves.
"Those are... Winged Gourd Seeds."
The seeds of the Winged Gourd were shaped like gliders, allowing them to ride the currents. While I was slamming the "Great Forest Giant Tree (Herrschaft Riese)" into her storm, I had used her own winds to scatter the seeds high into the atmosphere.
"Now... you... cannot... escape."
Over a hundred seeds were now circling the Witch Queen. I could manipulate plants at will—and that included forcing different species to bloom from their seeds instantly.
"These are seeds too!?"
The Witch Queen tried to conjure a gust of wind to blow them away, but she was too slow.
"I’ve got... you!"
The seeds surrounding her sprouted all at once. From the tiny pods, the "Yellow Vampire" known as Dodder extended like a swarm of snakes, lashing out and piercing the Witch Queen’s body. I didn't give her a single inch of space to dodge.
"The tables... have turned... haven't they?"
The Witch Queen was dragged down to the forest floor. Her body was completely bound by my vines. With my parasitic roots piercing her skin, I could even begin to erode her from the inside out.
"Is this the spirit magic 'Life Absorption (Energy Drain)' nya? It feels like my mana is being drained away by these weeds..."
As a half-spirit, I could wield the same magic as the Dryades. With this, the Witch Queen was paralyzed, both physically and magically. Her life was now entirely in my hands.
"Nyahaha, to think that I, the Witch Queen, would actually lose."
"If you... admit defeat... then... answer... my questions."
She was too important a link to the Demon King to let go. I intended to keep her restrained.
"Fine. What do you want to know, nya?"
Even in this position, she spoke with that same unsettling smile. It sent a shiver through me. Why was she so calm?
"What... are you... hiding?"
She knew about the Demon King. She knew about the first Saint. She knew about this mysterious "That Person." And I wanted to know exactly what she had done the day I died. I was going to dig up every single secret she possessed.
"To be honest, I didn't think you’d push me this far. So, I’ll give you a reward."
Her smile became unnaturally wide and hollow.
"The truth is, I haven't actually admitted defeat yet."
She glanced down at the ground. Following her gaze, I looked at the soil.
"Nyahaha! You should always save your trump card for the very end!"
There, piled atop the dirt, was a layer of pure white powder that looked like fallen snow. Had she used magic to make it snow? No, that was impossible.
"Could it be..."
I used a vine to scoop up a bit of the white substance. Bringing it close to my eyes, I looked at the tiny, square crystals clinging to the plant matter and felt a jolt of pure horror.
This was salt.
Without me even realizing it, a massive, lethal amount of salt had been scattered across the entire forest floor.