Bear-papa brought his wife along to see me.
It had been quite a while, Bear-papa.
However, the killing intent radiating from the two of them was so thick it was practically overflowing; it was honestly terrifying. They were completely set on finishing me off. Or rather, they were here to lick me.
Bear-papa must have finally finished off that Special Nectar Ball I gave him when he attacked me before. Having never forgotten the Taste of Nectar, he had returned to my side once again.
His goal was likely my nectar, but the real question was what he intended to do with me once he got it. If he would have been satisfied with just a few licks and then gone on his way, I would have gladly asked him to leave, but I doubted it would be that simple.
Mostly because Bear-mama was here too.
I hoped Bear-mama wasn't a pervert as well. A husband-and-wife pair of perverts would be beyond redemption.
Sadly, they turned out to be a well-matched couple. As they drew closer, I watched as Bear-mama’s eyes gradually grew crazed. It seemed she was after my nectar too.
If I were licked by the two of them at once, my body wouldn't hold out. I had already experienced the hell of being licked by Bear-papa for hours on end. If Bear-mama joined in, they would probably take turns. I wouldn't have a single moment of peace.
I’d likely end up sucked dry of nectar, withering away from malnutrition. I could already see the scene: a Withered Alraune left behind in the forest to decay and return to the soil.
If that happened, I might meet Hachi-san, my Lady Knight, beneath the earth. Though, since we would both be Fertilizer by then, I wasn't sure we’d even recognize each other.
The Female Laobubear's Horn came in a pair of two. However, they lacked the length of a male's, so she likely wouldn't use them as weapons. Bear-mama was roughly seven or eight meters tall—a bit smaller compared to the ten-meter-tall Bear-papa, but massive nonetheless.
I couldn't handle both of them at once. At the very least, I had to take them on one at a time. I decided to target Bear-mama first, as she was smaller and looked more agile.
Bear-mama, shall we have a Tea Party together?
Of course, the gentleman is excluded. Just a Female Flower and a Female Bear, getting along peacefully. I’ll prepare some delicious nectar drinks and wait for you.
But first, I had to send out the Invitation. Otherwise, the madam would be troubled, unable to consult with Bear-papa.
"Just a moment while I prepare it," I thought.
I bit down on the tip of one of my vines. I coated it thoroughly with nectar, creating a Nectar Vine. This would serve as my Invitation.
I hurled the Nectar Vine toward the madam.
Whether she liked the contents of my invitation or not, Bear-mama reacted instantly. She stepped out in front of Bear-papa, lunging for the vine covered in nectar.
Perfect. She was hooked!
Feeling like a fisherman, I began to reel the vine back toward me. Lured by the scent, Bear-mama broke into a run. Bear-papa chased after her, but the smaller Bear-mama was much faster than her heavy husband.
Not yet. I had to draw her in, closer and closer...
Now!
I officially welcomed Bear-mama to the Tea Party Table.
A Briar Wall slammed into Bear-mama while her eyes were still fixed on the nectar. I had hidden the Briars, which I had modified into saprophytic-like plants, underground as a trap. It was a simple mechanism that caused them to burst toward the surface the moment she passed over them.
I wrapped Bear-mama in a Briar Net. Forcibly, she was seated in my Custom-made Chair.
"Now, shall we begin our tea party?"
Bear-mama began to howl. Oh, was this her first time experiencing poison? This was the most popular item at my party. I had infused the Briars with my Custom-made Poison, and I hoped the madam would find it to her liking. Every other guest who had come to greet me had been so "delighted" they foamed at the mouth.
They were my pride and joy, those Briars.
Bear-mama thrashed about, trying to escape, but the more she moved, the deeper the Briar Thorns sank into her flesh. Even trying to push the vines away only resulted in more pricks. Thorns were painful enough on their own, but having poison injected directly through them was truly unpleasant.
"Well then, shall we have some tea?"
It was time to introduce the Poison Pollen into that wide-open mouth of hers.
"Now, say 'ahh.'"
I pried Bear-mama's mouth open with a vine and forced her to inhale the Poison Pollen. She screamed and wailed as if crying out how delicious it was. She seemed to have taken a real liking to it.
"Then, let’s have another cup."
I poured more Poison Pollen down her throat, urging her to gulp it all down. Poor thing. It seemed she had grown full before we could even reach dessert. Bear-mama's eyes rolled back into her head as she began to foam at the mouth.
Such behavior was quite unseemly for a lady. She would never make it as the Lord of the Forest's wife at this rate.
But it was fine. I was going to turn her into nutrition, so she wouldn't have to worry about her duties as a madam anymore. She could rest easy now.
And with that, Bear-mama was finished.
That only left Bear-papa.
However, the husband wasn't going to be as easy to take down as the wife. After all, he was the true Lord of the Forest. He was in an entirely different league than the members of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Forest (Provisional)—the Kriegtiger, also known as Tiger-san; the Wolf of Hell Hellwolf; or the Wahnschlange I called Anaconda.
I could tell just by facing him. The pressure he exerted was incomparable to the others. I could feel the composure of an overwhelmingly powerful being and the confidence born from a lifetime of combat experience.
When I had first encountered Bear-papa, I couldn't even fathom the depth of his strength. But after a month of preying on countless monsters, I had accumulated a significant amount of experience. I could finally understand exactly how strong he was.
And I could say it with total certainty: Bear-papa was stronger than me. If we fought head-on, I would surely lose. He wouldn't fall for the same tricks as Bear-mama.
But on that day a month ago, I had made a vow.
If I could help it, I never wanted to endure the humiliation of being licked by Bear-papa ever again. I didn't want to be licked. He smelled like a bear, his drool was filthy, and the feeling was sticky and disgusting. My body and soul had been defiled; I had been treated as nothing more than a bear's plaything.
He had licked me so, so much. It was only natural that I never wanted to experience it again.
So, this time, I wasn't going to go down without a fight. I was going to prove that I wasn't the same plant I was back then.
"Come, Bear-papa. Let us settle this."