Kusukusu the Sphinx had leapt onto the spire of the Duke’s mansion to activate the city’s Urn Golems.
But at that exact moment, dark clouds gathered overhead, and a bolt of lightning struck her directly.
"No way... Kusukusu-san was hit by lightning!?"
What in the world!?
How could something like this even happen?
Well, normally it wouldn't.
But if the Little Witch was using storm magic inside the mansion, it was entirely possible that lightning might strike someone outside.
The timing was just atrocious, though.
"Ah! Kusukusu-san is falling...!"
She tumbled from the spire and slammed onto the roof of the Duke’s mansion.
Her body bounced off the shingles and plummeted toward the inner courtyard.
"I-I have to save her!"
I extended my vines and caught her mid-air.
Phew, that was a relief... Wait, Kusukusu-san was charred completely black.
Even so, she still seemed to be breathing.
To survive a lightning strike—she really was a member of the Demon Race.
I scanned my surroundings, screaming in my mind:
Is there a doctor?! Is there anyone here who’s a doctor?!
...But of course, there was no one.
In the courtyard, there were only motionless statues, flowers, me, and the Urn Golem acting as my legs.
Fine. I would heal her myself.
It didn’t matter if she was a member of the Demon King’s Army or an enemy.
After all, I was a former Saint.
I couldn't just stand by and watch a life flicker out before my eyes.
Besides, I’d actually started to like Kusukusu-san.
I couldn’t forgive her for trying to attack the city, but she hadn’t seemed particularly enthusiastic about the plan.
If she was only doing it because she was forced to, then all I had to do was stop her.
Once I gave her some of my nectar, she’d surely become more cooperative.
"Here, Kusukusu-san... please, drink this."
It was no use. She was unconscious and couldn't swallow.
I suppose I’d have to force it.
I coated one vine in a thick layer of Saint Nectar and used another to pry her mouth open.
Then, I shoved the nectar-slicked vine inside.
"Ah, she swallowed it."
Her consciousness must have flickered back for a moment, because she gulped the nectar down.
Instantly, her body began to glow with a faint light.
The Saint Nectar was working; she was recovering.
Yet, at the same time, I sensed a strange presence deep within her.
Now that I was looking closely, it was unmistakable.
I could see the Aura of the Goddess of Darkness Hecate swirling inside Kusukusu-san.
"Wait, why!?"
Why did she have the power of the Goddess of Darkness Hecate in her?
What could this possibly mean?
It looked as though Hecate’s magic power was slowly eating away at her from the inside out.
As I puzzled over it, Kusukusu-san finally opened her eyes.
"Huh... Alraune-chan?"
"You’re awake, I see."
"Why am I alive? I’m pretty sure... I got hit by lightning..."
"I healed you. You’re going to be fine now."
"I-It’s true! My body is all better! Actually, I have this weird, overwhelming urge to drink nectar... I really want some nectar... Whyyy?"
Well, her physical condition seemed fine.
There was the slight side effect of her becoming a nectar-loving Sphinx, but otherwise, there were no issues.
"I don't really get what happened, but I know you saved me, Alraune-chan. Thank you... But, you know. Even though you went to all that trouble... I don't have much time left anyway..."
"...What do you mean by that?"
"There's nothing left for me to do, and I'm basically trash now. Since you're my savior, I'll be honest with you."
Kusukusu-san then began to tell her story.
It seemed that before she came here, her superior in the Demon King’s Army had taken a dislike to her and forced her to drink a special medicine.
As a result, she had been poisoned by the drug, and her life was measured in minutes.
"According to my boss, Ifreet-sama, that medicine was created by Vergissmeinnicht-sama of the Four Heavenly Kings. By drinking it, I can host the power of the Goddess of Darkness for a short time. That’s how I got enough strength to unleash all those golems across the city."
I remembered the strange urns I’d seen at the Pilz Trading Company.
To control that many golems at once required the skill of someone on the level of the Four Heavenly Kings.
They had used the medicine to temporarily inflate Kusukusu-san's power.
"But in exchange for that power, I'm going to die soon..."
I could see her will to live visibly draining away.
Even though my Saint Nectar had just fully restored her body, her expression was growing darker by the second.
That black aura inside her was sucking the very life force out of her.
There were so many things I wanted to ask.
I wanted to ask about Vergissmeinnicht, the "Fallen Dryades" of the Four Heavenly Kings, and I wanted to confirm if this "Goddess of Darkness" was indeed Hecate.
But more importantly, Kusukusu-san really didn't have much time.
By my diagnosis, she would pass away in just a few minutes.
"To sacrifice a person's life like that... how cruel..."
"There are nice bosses too, I guess I just got a bad one... It can't be helped. More than that, Alraune-chan... I have a favor to ask."
"A favor?"
"I know I shouldn't ask a stranger, but... if you ever meet my family, please tell them that I fought with the pride of the Sphinx Tribe until the very end..."
"................No."
"Eh...!?"
"Tell them that yourself. I have no intention of letting you die, Kusukusu-san."
Having spent time on battlefields as a Saint, I was well-acquainted with death.
But, you see...
I never could get used to the death of one of my patients.
There was no patient that I, Saint Iris, could not heal.
Even if I’d gone from being a Saint to an Alraune, I would never give up.
"Don't worry. I'm going to cure you, Kusukusu-san."
"I-It’s impossible! There is no cure! This is the Goddess's Medicine—power bought with a life! You can't fix that!"
Under normal circumstances, she would be right.
The fact that the Saint Nectar hadn't touched the aura of darkness was proof of that.
But in that case, I simply had to use a different method.
There were many things I was capable of now.
In fact, I had already dealt with a case very similar to this one.
"Trust me, Kusukusu-san. When it comes to the power of the Goddess of Darkness, I’m quite experienced."
"W-What does that mean!?"
I thought back to the incident when the Goddess of Darkness Hecate had descended into the Little Witch's Body.
I had fought alongside Pandia-san, an angel, and during that battle, I had taken a portion of Hecate's power into myself.
That was how I had driven Hecate out of the Little Witch's Body.
The method was the Spirit Magic of a Dryades: "Energy Drain."
By using Energy Drain on the possessed Little Witch, I had successfully stripped Hecate's magic power from her.
I hadn't turned into the white Alraune this time, so I didn't have power on par with a goddess.
Still, I possessed power greater than an ordinary spirit.
And this time, my opponent wasn't Hecate herself, but merely a lingering residue of her power within a drug.
Against a mere fragment like that, I was definitely stronger.
"Kusukusu-san, I'm going to fix this now—'Energy Drain'."
"Eh... My whole body... it suddenly feels so light...?"
Through my vines, the dark aura inside her body flowed into me.
Just as I’d planned, I successfully absorbed Hecate’s Aura of Darkness.
As I did, my crimson corolla slowly began to turn white.
"Am I actually... getting better? But how did you do it!?"
"I told you, didn't I? I’m going to save you."
I was the Former Saint Alraune, after all.
No matter what, I would save my patient.
To my great joy, the number of reviews has exceeded 3,000!! (ノ*>∀<)ノ
I read all of your reviews.
It is thanks to everyone's reviews that I am able to continue writing like this!
Thank you so much for always writing wonderful reviews m( )m
Next time: The Recruiting Alraune.