Once the Spirit Festival ended, daily life returned to the city.
Visitors from neighboring villages and towns began their journeys home. They had experienced a mysterious Spirit Festival unlike anything they had ever seen, and they returned to their homelands carrying plenty of souvenirs—the local specialties of the city.
"Both the Saint Nectar and the fabrics made from Golden Cotton seem to be very well-received."
It was Nina, newly appointed as a Saint, who reported this to me. Based on information passed on by Manfred-san, she provided me with the approximate sales figures.
"The Lord also seemed delighted that the city's famine had not only been resolved, but the export of specialty goods had brought a period of economic prosperity to the city."
Thanks to my provision of large quantities of vegetables, the city's food problem had been solved. At the same time, they were selling products derived from me to fund the reconstruction efforts.
I was no longer a Saint, yet I could still contribute to the people of my homeland in this way. I was happy to be of even a little use to the city. I intended to continue offering plenty of cooperation in the future.
"So, Alraune... no, Iris-sama. What was it you wanted to talk about?"
Nina asked me while keeping an eye on Vol-nii, who stood beside her. I had already told Nina that Vol-nii was aware of my true identity as Iris. Only the three of us were present: me, Nina, and Vol-nii. All of us knew the truth.
Before getting to the main subject, I beckoned Nina closer.
"Before that... Nina... you've become... truly... splendid."
When I first met Nina, she was only ten years old. She was a little girl, an Apprentice Saint, crying all alone behind the cathedral. She had a face that suggested she found her training painful and unbearable. I remembered giving her a handkerchief back then. When I learned that she still cherished it, I was moved.
In my mind, the image of Nina crying had always been the most vivid. But now, she had finally been formally appointed as a Saint. Vol-nii had told me that she was known as the Saint of Yellow Wings and that the kingdom expected great things from her.
"To think... you were... so small... yet you've already... become a Saint... it is... a surprise."
"Oh, Iris-sama... I'm not a child anymore."
Nina was already sixteen. In other words, next year she would be seventeen—the same age I was when I died. In fact, the year after that, she would exceed my age. My time as a Saint remained frozen, but for Nina, it had only just begun. In a few more years, Nina would become a fine adult and easily leave my human age behind.
It was a bit complicated to have a junior surpass me in years. I felt a pang of envy, but no senior would fail to welcome the growth of their protégé. Furthermore, only a handful of Apprentice Saints ever truly became a Saint. One could not reach that position through effort alone, and talent by itself was rarely enough to climb that high. Therefore, I made sure to praise Nina's hard work.
"You worked... hard, didn't you... Nina. You are... very admirable."
"Iris-sama..."
Nina shed a few tears. I gently stroked the head of my dear junior.
"Please... look after... the Kingdom of Gardenia... in my stead..."
I could no longer stand up for the sake of the country. Saint Iris was dead. Therefore, I would pass on the duties of a Saint to the next generation. I would leave the future of the kingdom to Nina, the new Saint.
"I understand... I will do my absolute best for your sake as well, Iris-sama!"
I embraced Nina for a while. I engraved this moment into my mind, reconfirming the time we had lost. After a moment, I slowly pulled away and turned to Vol-nii.
"It's been... a long time... Vol-nii. I'm glad... you're well."
"I'm just glad you're alive, Iris... though should I even put it that way? Your appearance has changed quite a bit."
The only things about me that remained the same as the old Iris were the shape of my face and the color of my eyes. The golden hair I had been so proud of had turned pale green, and my lower body was now entirely that of a plant. Additionally, my chest had grown a little larger. From the perspective of Vol-nii, who only knew me as Saint Iris, my current form must have been unbelievable.
"But since I thought you were dead, I'm just happy that you're here like this, Iris."
Vol-nii was my cousin. He had known everything about me since I was small, and he had been a member of the Hero's party alongside me. To me, Vol-nii was a reliable older brother figure. I was glad to have reunited with him. He had attacked me once, thinking I was a monster, but I had let that go. In exchange, I intended to rely on him heavily from now on.
"Though I... look like this... now... please look after me... from here on... Vol-nii."
"Yeah, Iris is my cute little sister figure, after all. No matter what you look like, that won't change."
I used a vine to shake hands with Vol-nii. A lot had happened, but we had finally made up.
"So Iris, is it true you released the Witches you were holding?"
"Yes. I returned... all of them."
I had sent the captured Witches back to the Witch's Village. Apparently, some of them had looked after Rufe during her time there. Setting aside the Witch Queen, it seemed they weren't all bad people at heart. I wanted to build a friendly relationship in the future, and I judged that returning them wouldn't be an issue.
Of course, I made each Witch promise never to lay a hand on us again. I threatened them that if they ever broke their word, they would end up as a Plant Seedbed just like the Witch Queen.
"If that's what you decided, Iris, then it's fine. I have to take those bastards back to the Royal Capital anyway. Having less cargo actually makes things easier."
The Knight Commander, who viewed me as an enemy, and my childhood friend Rudiger—Vol-nii promised to take responsibility for bringing them back to the Royal Capital. Those two were currently under house arrest, under the guise of an invitation to the Lord's Mansion. Because of that, there was no longer any worry about them coming to the forest to cause a rampage. If Rudiger were to reunite with me now, it would likely lead to all sorts of trouble. Not meeting him felt like the right choice, so I decided to part ways like this. As for the Knight Commander, I never wanted to see his face again, so I wanted him taken away as soon as possible.
Come to think of it, there should have been a female swordsman among Vol-nii's companions. I wondered if she was going back to the Royal Capital as well.
"When I return to the Capital, I'll report that the claim of Alraune being one of the Four Heavenly Kings was a false report. I'll also tell them that you were friendly toward humans."
The catalyst for this commotion had been the spread of false information claiming I had joined the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon King's Army. It seemed the Harpy Parca was involved, so I would have to get the details out of her the next time we met. The one who had given orders to Parca was the Prime Minister's Sister Dragon. I would eventually have to settle things with her as well.
"So, there's a reason you called us here, right?"
"Yes. I have... a favor... to ask... of you both."
I asked Nina to gather information on Saint Zelma. And I asked Vol-nii to look into the Hero. I expected information to come in from the Witch Queen eventually, but she was unreliable. There was no guarantee she would provide the truth. Thus, I wanted to establish my own trusted information sources.
"By the way... what is... Zelma... doing... now?"
I knew she had become a Saint in my place and that she was married to the Hero. However, almost no other information had reached me. What on earth was that Shitty Junior doing in the Royal Capital?
"Zelma doesn't come out of the Royal Palace much. Apparently, she's living however she pleases now that she's Royalty."
As I thought, the Shitty Junior hadn't changed at all. If I were still alive as a Saint, I would have kicked her in the backside to make her work harder.
"I don't hear many good things. Rumor has it she keeps men she likes as pets by her side."
That Shitty Junior. Just because her chest was a bit large, she was still using it to seduce men. Not only had she become Royalty, she was a woman with a husband—what was she thinking?
"There is... a suspicion... that Zelma... is connected... to the Witches. Please... be careful."
"Her, with the Witches?! No way..."
"The Witch Queen... confessed. Most likely... Zelma... is a traitor."
I told them that the Witch Queen had been providing Zelma with love potions. I also told them to make anyone who had been drugged drink my Saint Nectar. With Nina's current proficiency in Light Magic, it was doubtful whether she could neutralize the Witch Queen's potions. However, my Saint Nectar was powerful enough to revert a human who had undergone Trollification. A mere love potion could surely be dispelled by it.
"There's something I have to tell you about Zelma, Iris..."
Vol-nii spoke with a strained expression.
"When Zelma became a Saint, a certain great noble house became her guardian."
A great noble house... I wondered which one. It was likely one of the Four Great Ducal Houses, but surely it couldn't be mine.
"That great noble house is... Iris, it's your own family."
"What... our house!?"
"There's no mistake. I witnessed Zelma leaving the mansion in a carriage bearing the crest of your house."
Zelma came from a commoner background. To become an official Saint, she would have needed a proper backer. I understood that, but why was my family acting as her guardian? Father, Mother, do you realize that woman is the very person who killed me?
"The story is that Iris defected to the Demon King's Army, but that information is a state secret held by the upper echelons. She probably offered to protect your family from the scandal of having a traitor in exchange for their cooperation."
If a Saint from a Ducal House were found to have defected to the Demon King's Army, the entire clan would be placed in a dire situation. At worst, it would be the end of our lineage. That Shitty Junior... to think she was blackmailing and using my family. I would never forgive her. Someday, I would storm the Royal Capital and make her pay.
"I understand... about Zelma. What about... the Hero?"
"The Hero doesn't come out of the Royal Palace much either. Apparently, he frequently visits the Holy Capital of the Kingdom of Myrte Holy Light, but that's about it."
The Kingdom of Myrte Holy Light was a religious nation where the Church Headquarters was located. The Moon Goddess's Tower in Tower City was built as a replica of the original "Moon Goddess's Tower" in the Holy Capital. I had been there a few times; it was a beautiful place, arguably the most prosperous location on the continent.
"I've never been there, but is there something in the Holy Capital that the Hero has taken a liking to?"
"The Shrine Maiden of the Goddess... is in... the Holy Capital. He is... surely going... to see her."
The Hero had been obsessed with the Shrine Maiden for a long time. After all, the person who had first identified the Hero's power was the Shrine Maiden of the Goddess herself.
"The Shrine Maiden of the Goddess... is that the one from the myths? You mean she actually exists?"
"The position... has apparently... been passed down... for a thousand years."
Only a few top executives of the Church knew of her existence, along with the Hero and the Saint.
"Nina will... likely meet her... soon. Vol-nii... please pretend... you didn't hear... that."
I understood the situation regarding the Hero and the Shitty Junior for now. However, I hadn't called Nina and Vol-nii here just to hear these reports. It was time to move on to the main subject.
"There is... something... I want... to tell... you both."
The people of Tower City had accepted me as I was. Therefore, I had decided to take a step forward as well.
"Don't you... want to know... the circumstances... of how... I became... an Alraune?"
Nina and Vol-nii gasped. I could feel the tension in the room spike instantly. I had been killed by the Hero and my junior Apprentice Saint. I was about to tell these two the truth I had never disclosed to anyone.
"In exchange... you will be... involved... in my affairs. Is that... alright?"
Nina and Vol-nii looked at each other. Then, both of them gave a deep, firm nod.
—Thank you.
Respecting their resolve, I slowly began my explanation.
"I shall... tell you... the real reason... why I... died."
Thus, for the first time, I began to tell others my story: the final moments of Saint Iris, and the tale of the former Saint who woke up as an Alraune.
Vol-nii witnessed Zelma leaving Iris’s family home during the events of "Travelogue: The Lone Wolf Magic Swordsman is Invited by the Second Saint."
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Next time, sisters washing each other.