I’m an Alraune, a plant monster child.
And right now, I’m being attacked by a fairy who’s spraying some kind of mysterious liquid on me.


In the dead of night, when even the grass and trees are asleep, a small glowing fairy came to us while the little witch and I were asleep.


The moment she poured that liquid on me, I started feeling sick.
It felt like I was about to wither at any moment.


There’s no doubt about it. This mysterious fairy is attacking me.
It wasn’t water. I’m pretty sure she sprayed me with something poisonous.

Of course, I have no intention of quietly accepting this.
I have to catch the culprit!


I quietly moved the vines I had hidden underground, positioning them around the mysterious fairy.
Then, the moment the fairy stopped spraying me with liquid, I striked with my vines!


But the darkness worked against me.
Whether it was because of the poor visibility or simply because she was so tiny, I failed to catch her.


“This flower… it was awake!?”


The voice came from the fairy.
So she really had come here thinking I was asleep.

Luckily, the moon, which had been hidden behind the clouds until moments ago, slipped back into view.
Thanks to the sudden light, I was finally able to get a good look at the fairy’s face.


I didn’t recognize the fairy. Her skin was a warm, wheat-colored brown, as if kissed by the sun.

Compared to Kiri, her eyes were much sharper.
She’s definitely not a fairy I knew.


“What… do you want?”

“Just looking for something. I heard it was around here, but I guess it’s not here right now.”


So she really had been looking for something.
But what, exactly?


“You’re working with her, aren’t you? Where the hell are you hiding her?”

“Who… are you talking about?”

“Don’t play dumb. The fact that you’re here is proof enough.”


The fairy is insisting that I’m working with someone.
But I have no idea who she’s even talking about.


“Tch. Still playing dumb? You’re awfully cheeky for a flower. I wish you’d just hurry up and wither already.”


Hold on. I can’t just ignore that.
Why am I being called that and told to wither by some fairy I’ve practically just met?
Even someone as broad-minded as me has limits.


“Wait… you’re that flower from before, aren’t you? I’m surprised you’re still alive. Why haven’t you withered yet?”

“…What do you mean?”

“I don’t like pretty flowers like you. So when I saw you in the western forest the other night, I sprayed you with weedkillers. I figured you’d be dead by now.”


I see.
So if she saw me in the western forest, that means the one flying around me that night wasn’t Kiri. It was her.


Wait. Did she just say weedkillers?
Is that like herbicides from my past life?

Don’t tell me… that night, when I thought someone had watered me in my dream—
That wasn’t water at all. It was weedkiller?


So that’s what happened.
That’s why the next morning my leaves had looked shriveled and pale, like they were withering.
It wasn’t from a lack of water. ​​It was because this fairy had sprayed me with weedkiller.

Which means I was on the verge of being withered to death without even knowing it.

Seriously…
Being killed by chemicals… that’s terrifying.


To think I was attacked and nearly murdered just because someone doesn’t like me. It’s absurd.
Besides, aren’t fairies supposed to be under Lady Dryad’s command?
So how does it make any sense for one of them to try to kill me?


“I’m not interested in you, Alraune. Withering you here would just be a bonus, but… ah! I’ve just thought of something good!”


The mysterious fairy cast a spell, making her body glow.
As she did, droplets gathered near her from both the air and the ground.
A purple liquid formed in midair, looking unmistakably toxic.


“My spirit magic can create poison from natural substances. So I’ll wither you with this.”

“If you make me… wither… will that satisfy you?”

“That’s part of it, sure. But if I kill you, she might show up. She likes pretty flowers like you. If you die, she’ll probably come running, all sorry and sad.”


She? Who is that?
The only ones I know are the little witch—still hidden beside me under my vines—my little junior Treant, the fairy Kiri, and Lady Dryad.

All four of them seem like the type who’d appreciate beautiful flowers, so that doesn’t narrow it down at all.


But one thing is clear.
A fairy I’ve never met is trying to kill me.


A fairy who appears in the dead of night and wields poison.
I suppose you could call her a poison fairy.

Judging from the fact that she’s trying to wither me just because she doesn’t like my flower, and even kill me to lure someone out, her personality must be pretty awful.


No matter the reason, I don’t deserve to be killed by a fairy.
Honestly, I should complain to Lady Dryad about this.

“Fairy… if you continue… I’ll tell Lady Dryad.”

“Go ahead and tell her. I’m here on Lady Dryad’s orders anyway!”

“…………What?”


On Lady Dryad’s orders?

Does that mean Lady Dryad has given permission for me to be killed…?


The little witch did warn me not to fully trust Lady Dryad or Kiri.
At the time, I thought she was just being overly cautious. I never imagined it would turn out to be true.

Right now, I’m about to be killed by a fairy claiming to act on Lady Dryad’s orders.
Does that mean we’ve been betrayed by Lady Dryad?
No… have I been betrayed again…?


“So anyway, for the sake of my job, hurry up and wither. Be a good little bait and lure her out for me, okay?”


The poison fairy hurled the purple liquid at my roots.

I blocked instinctively with my vines, but the herbicidal fluid splashed and spilled down onto the soil around my bulb.


“It’s a fast-acting withering potion. I boosted the concentration, too, so there’s nothing you can do about it, Alraune.”


My body suddenly grew heavy.
It’s like the internal mechanisms that kept me functioning as a plant were breaking down.
I’ve never felt this sick before.


“Hey, how’s the weedkiller? Tasty?”


I could hear the fairy’s shrill laughter as she cackled ‘kyahaha.’


She is really starting to irritate me.
Should I strangle her around my poisonous thorns?


“…Huh?”


I tried to transform my vines into poisonous thorns, but for some reason, I couldn’t produce a single spine.
I tried generating a squirting cucumber machine gun instead, but that didn’t bear fruit either.


The weedkiller must be disrupting my plant hormones.
That’s probably why my body isn’t responding like it usually does.

What should I do?
This weedkiller is terrifyingly effective.


Before I knew it, my leaves had begun to shrivel.
The sheen of my flower crown was fading too.
It felt like I was in the middle of withering away.


“An Alraune like you never stood a chance against me. Now, shall I finish you off.”


The fairy conjured more purple liquid into the air with spirit magic.

Ah, this is bad.
If any more of that gets poured on me, I really might wither.

Please… stop…!


As if drowning out my silent cry, the poison fairy sprayed me again in a torrent of weedkiller.
A purple withering liquid splashed down over my head.


My vines began to tremble uncontrollably.
I felt my petals trying to close up, as though protecting themselves by turning back into a bud.

No. This wasn’t my flower trying to shield itself.
It had truly started to wither, shrinking in on itself.


The weedkiller’s effects surged through my body.
I watched as my chlorophyll drained from my leaves, turning them pale.


At the same time, I sensed myself losing control of my body.
This might really be bad…

My vision collapsed into darkness.


I’m… withering.

***

Author’s Note:

Thank you for reading.

Next time: I Won’t Lose to Weedkiller