I teleported to the outskirts of Edelweiss, intending to intercept the Demon King’s Army gathered there.
But as I arrived, all I saw was a vast, desolate wasteland stretching out before me.
The Demon King’s Army had already been decimated.
What on earth happened here?
Just as the thought crossed my mind, something stirred beneath the soil.
A burning hand thrust out from the earth, and the figure used its arms to haul its body onto the surface.
“…Eh? Is his body on fire?”
No, that wasn't it. It wasn't that his body was burning; his body was literally made of fire.
The entity that dragged itself out was about the size of a large man. Remarkably, its entire form was composed of flickering flames. It looked like a moving, humanoid blaze with eyes and a mouth fixed onto the fire.
He certainly wasn't human, but he didn't feel like a common member of the Demon Race either. I could sense a formidable amount of power radiating from him. His presence far surpassed that of the Beast Ogre, Mantiger, whom I had defeated the other day.
Just as I was wondering who he could be, our eyes met. He pointed at me, his mouth agape in shock.
“That form… and that aura… You’re the Crimson Flower Princess, Alraune!”
“I am indeed Alraune. And you are?”
“My name is Ifreet! The great Commander of the Third Legion of the Demon King’s Army!”
That name sounded familiar. If I recalled correctly, Kusukusu-san’s boss was named Ifreet.
Thinking back, Kusukusu-san had been despised by this man and forced into a solo suicide mission against the city. Not only that, he had forced her to drink a medicine made by Big Sister Dryades—a former member of the Four Heavenly Kings—which had nearly killed her.
Based on everything I’d heard, he didn't seem like a nice guy at all. Though, I suppose he wasn't technically a "guy," but a Fire Spirit.
“You’re a spirit, aren’t you?”
“Hoh, so you can tell? Well, you reek of a spirit yourself, so I suppose it’s only natural.”
By absorbing Big Sister Dryades, I had become a spirit of the same class. I had started as a half-spirit, but after working hard and growing, I had become an existence identical to a true spirit. In fact, Pandia-san the angel had even given me her stamp of approval, stating that my power actually exceeded that of a normal spirit.
So, I’d really prefer it if he didn't lump me in with just any old spirit.
“I’m surprised the rumored Alraune has actually reached the level of a spirit. However, you’re nothing but a cheap imitation, a sham. Comparing you to me—a spirit by birth—is almost pitiable. You are a lowly, inferior creature.”
How infuriating!
I hadn't met someone this annoying in quite a while. He was the type who believed his race was inherently superior and everyone else was beneath him. When I first became the plant monster Alraune, I was often treated this way by humans and demons alike.
But lately, as I’d grown stronger and gained more power, those kinds of people had stopped appearing. Everyone around me understood exactly how strong I was. And yet, this Ifreet person was looking down on me. I couldn't tell if he was incredibly confident or just an idiot.
“By the way, how did you know I was the Crimson Flower Princess?”
“Don't play dumb! I already know you manipulated Witch Queen Kirke to wipe out my legion!”
…What was this spirit talking about?
I manipulated Witch Queen Kirke?
It was true that I’d planted a Mistletoe in her, so I had restricted her freedom. But I had never once ordered her to attack the Demon King’s Army.
Wait, did that mean…?
“Did you… see the Witch Queen here?”
“I just said that, didn't I?!”
So that was it! The Demon King’s Army had been wiped out by Witch Queen Kirke.
That meant the mysterious Witch Queen I saw at Duke Edelweiss’s mansion hadn't been a hallucination or a trick of the light; it really had been her. If a Legion Commander who was on good terms with the witches said so, there was no mistaking it.
“The Witch Queen doesn't seem to be around anymore. Where did she go?”
“How should I know?! After launching that assault on my Third Legion, she took to the sky and vanished!”
So she was already gone. She must have fled. Witch Queen Kirke was definitely afraid of me—after all, if she stayed close, I’d just plant another Mistletoe in her.
But the word was that she was supposed to be in the Royal Capital. How did she escape?
And more importantly, why would she decimate the army she was supposed to be allied with? I couldn't imagine her betraying the Demon King’s Army. The Goddess of Darkness, Hecate, had been searching for her, and there was no way Kirke would betray Hecate. After all, she was Hecate’s own daughter.
The only other possibility was that she was a fake. But a fake wouldn't have the power to destroy an army of ten thousand. Besides, the lingering residue of magic in the air was unmistakably hers.
Now that I thought about it, I’d felt that same residue on my old dress. The magic from the slaughter that happened here must have clung to the fabric as it fluttered down through the sky. I couldn't think of any other explanation.
So, was it really the real Witch Queen? No matter how much I turned it over in my head, I couldn't understand why she would be here doing this.
Alright, I decided to stop worrying about it. I could just ask her the next time we met.
The most important thing to me was Rufe. No matter how many times the Witch Queen or the Goddess of Darkness showed up, I was going to protect that little witch!
“So… Ifreet-san. I take it that makes you my enemy?”
I mean, he did come here to attack Edelweiss, right? That made him an enemy. There were decent people in the Demon King’s Army, like the Flame Dragon Lord, but this guy was clearly one of the bad ones.
“An enemy? Don't make me laugh. As the nemesis of the Prime Minister, you are simply a target to be eliminated.”
“The Prime Minister?”
I wasn't sure why, but it seemed I was hated by the Prime Minister—the Flame Dragon Lord’s older sister. I didn't know what I’d done to earn her grudge. Sure, I’d repelled every member of the Four Heavenly Kings and the Demon King’s Army that had attacked me, but that was it.
I really hadn't done anything wrong.
“My Third Legion has been nearly decimated, but we haven't been wiped out yet! If I kill you and conquer Edelweiss now, I can still salvage this!”
“You keep saying 'legion,' but isn't everyone else already down?”
“My legion isn't weak enough to be finished by a mere storm! Come forth, my strongest elites!”
Ifreet shouted, raising both hands. Suddenly, the ground behind him began to bulge and churn.
“Wait, were they hiding underground?”
“Exactly! Not even that lightning and wind could reach them beneath the earth!”
One by one, demons began to crawl out of the soil. They looked like humanoid moles. Thanks to their burrowing abilities, they had managed to survive the Witch Queen’s magic.
“But… there aren't very many of them, are there?”
There were maybe a hundred at most. Honestly, after hearing there was an army of ten thousand, this was a bit of an anticlimax. I mean, what were a hundred mole-demons going to do? I felt a little insulted.
“Go, my brave warriors! Slay this Alraune and we shall seize Edelweiss!”
“OHHHH!”
“KILL THEM ALL!”
“DEATH TO THE ENEMY!”
The mole-demons let out a chorus of battle cries. They were saying some pretty violent things for moles. I supposed I should clean this up.
My roots were already spread deep into the earth throughout this entire area. This was my territory.
“Well then… bon appétit.”
“Hm? Something is growing from the ground… W-What is this bizarre plant?!”
Using Plant Generation, I summoned a hundred Venus Flytraps from the earth. The spiked edges of their leaves loomed over the mole-demons. Naturally, they were large enough to swallow a person whole.
I’m sorry you just went through the trouble of digging yourselves out, but I’m going to have to ask you to go back into the ground.
—Snap.
A hundred Venus Flytraps clamped shut like giant bivalves, each one snatching up a mole-demon. Just like that, the demons stopped moving and were quietly pulled down into the plants' maws.
My Venus Flytraps weren't your garden-variety plants. They were stronger than most demons and packed a potent venom that paralyzed the target the moment the trap snapped shut.
I retracted the Venus Flytraps back into the earth, mole-demons and all. Now, the only ones left on the surface were me and Ifreet.
“Phew. Thank you for the meal.”
“M-My subordinates… in an instant… W-What was that horrific sight?! Is this… the work of a spirit?!”
“Oh, did I not mention it?”
I didn't actually consider myself a spirit. I was an Alraune. I might have been the former Saint, but right now, I was just a gluttonous plant monster with a penchant for photosynthesis and a constant craving for water.
Maybe it was because I’d spent so much energy destroying those Urn Golems in the city, but I was starting to feel quite hungry.
I leveled my vines at the Fire Spirit and gave him a polite warning.
“Now, it’s your turn.”