I’m an Alraune, a little plant monster girl.
And just as my army of adorable baby Alraunes was blooming all over the dragon, Nina, a saint apprentice, showed up.


Why is Nina here?

The town should be in complete chaos with all those trolls. I never expected her to come all the way out to the forest.
And if she’s here at the sanctuary, she probably has a reason for it.


Nina and the other humans with her stared at Drago in shock.


“Why is that Alraune here?”

“What the hell is that dragon? There’s a woman’s body growing out of its head.”


I could hear the humans whispering among themselves.

Well, that’s only natural. A dragon with a Dryad growing out of its head and tiny Alraunes blooming all over its body—anyone would be thinking, ‘What in the world am I looking at?’


Apparently, Drago wasn’t expecting Nina and the others to show up either. She clicked her tongue in irritation as she muttered under her breath.


“That human’s a saint apprentice… which means that fool failed too. The other Spirit Beasts are all useless compared to us.”

“You’re… awfully… confident.”

“Of course we are. We’re the fusion of a spirit and a dragon. Species-wise, there aren’t many creatures capable of surpassing us.”


Water poured out from Drago’s body.
The overflowing water transformed into countless swords and shot towards the baby Alraunes.


“Let’s start by getting rid of these pesky little Alraunes. Rain of Water Blades—Wasserklinge!“


Blades of water pierced my children.
She really hates being parasitized, huh?

Well, too bad, that level of water magic doesn’t work on the baby Alraunes.


“My children… use your… Kangaroo Pockets.”


At my command, the baby Alraunes replied, “Mama!” and “Okay!” as they formed Kangaroo Pockets, water-storage sacs, along their vines.
They absorbed the water blades embedded in their bodies, storing all the water inside the pouches.
Their wounds were healed instantly through recovery magic, leaving them as good as new.


“Impressive… but if water won’t kill them, we’ll simply cut them down with something else!”


Drago reached out and touched a nearby tree. When she did, one of its branches transformed into a gigantic scythe.
She must’ve created the weapon using spirit magic.


“Let’s see you absorb this!”


Drago swung the scythe, cleaving one of the baby Alraunes clean in two through her bulb.
With a dull thud, the human half of the Alraune fell to the ground.


My child—!
H-How dare you hurt one of my children!
I won’t forgive you!

But you know, my children aren’t going to die that easily.


The severed bulb of the baby Alraune began to regenerate.
In the blink of an eye, she was back to normal, as if she had never been cut at all.


Just like me, the baby Alraunes can regenerate as long as their roots remain intact.

The dodder’s haustoria had already taken hold inside the dragon’s body.
Which means, unless those roots inside its body are destroyed, my children will continue regenerating forever.


“Ggh… my body’s getting weaker…”


Drago grimaced.

The nutrients my baby Alraunes need to regenerate were being drawn directly from the dragon’s body.
In other words, the more of my children she destroys, the more of her stamina is drained away.
Well, they were siphoning her energy even when she did nothing, so it was all equally pointless.


“T-Then I have no choice… Ultra-High-Pressure Water Cannon—Wasserschneidemesser!“


To my surprise, Drago fired the water laser at her own dragon body.
It seems she was trying to carve away her own flesh in order to separate the baby Alraunes right from their roots.

A chunk of the dragon’s chest was sliced off, and one of the baby Alraunes fell to the ground, still attached to the severed flesh.
I guess this is what they would call losing a battle to win the war.
Nicely done, Drago.


If this kept going, my baby Alraunes were going to lose their precious food source.
As their mother, I have to make sure my children have something to eat.

All right, mama’s going to do her best!


Just as I steeled myself, Nina called out loudly from where the humans were gathered.


“Are you the Dryad who’s one of the Four Heavenly Kings?”


It seems like she mistook Drago for Feagismeinnicht.
Considering her appearance and strength, though, it wasn’t an unreasonable assumption.


“Nina… she’s just… the Heavenly King’s subordinate!”

“You resemble her… but you’re not the Alraune I know. Just who are you?”


N-Ninaaaaa!
No, it’s me!


The last time Nina had seen me, I looked exactly as I had when I died as a saint. That’s why she was able to recognize me immediately back then.
But Nina had never seen my appearance when I was around ten years old. She was younger than me, after all.

You’re kidding me…
And just when I thought we finally understood each other too. Are we back to square one?
Ugh… If only Nina hadn’t been knocked unconscious by that exploding bottle back then, I could’ve explained everything to her.


“If tiny Alraunes are growing all over that dragon, that must mean you’re one of the Heavenly King’s allies too. As a saint apprentice, I shall bring evil monsters like you to justice!”


Nina raised her staff like a bow, preparing to fire an arrow of light magic.
I don’t want us to become enemies.


“The dragon… tried to kill… the Alraunes. That Dryad… and I are… enemies.”


“…Now that you mention it,” Nina said while turning to look at Drago.


Humans see all monsters as enemies. That’s what makes this so troublesome.
At least she no longer thinks I’m on Drago’s side. Now I just need her to realize that I’m Iris.
But I can’t simply say, “I’m Iris,” out loud.

It’s not just Drago, the little witch might be listening in from behind.

I have to send Nina a message that only she would understand, using the very words that first made her believe I was Iris.


“Nina… did you… get the handkerchief… from the corporal? I hope… it didn’t… get dirty.”


Nina froze.


“Could you be…?”

“Nina… with your special eyes… you should be able to tell… what’s true.”


If anyone could perceive the aura of light magic, it was Nina.
She should’ve noticed that I, an Alraune, possessed Iris’s aura of light magic, and from that, known the truth.
After all, it was this aura that made her believe I was Iris the other day.


“Nina… believe in me!”


Our eyes met.
Nina slowly closed hers for a moment, then raised her staff high.


“Sir Holger, support the Alraune! Our enemies are that dragon and the Dryad!”


Nina took her battle stance, directly facing Drago.

I did it! My feelings reached her!
Everything that happened when we fought each other in the forest wasn’t in vain.


All right, now we’ve got another ally.

It’s a united front between Nina and me.
Come to think of it, this is the first time I’ve ever fought alongside Nina.


Back when I was a saint, Nina was still just a little girl. I never imagined the day would come when we would stand shoulder to shoulder in battle.


“Do you really think adding more humans to your side is enough to defeat us?!”


Drago let out a furious roar.
She doesn’t seem to have any intention of losing.


Well then, let’s teach this artificial Dryad a lesson.
Nina, lend me your strength.


It’s time to show her the power of a saint!

***

Author’s Note:

With the misunderstanding finally cleared up, the time has come for Nina and the Alraune to fight together!

Next Time: The Battle for the Sanctuary (Part Four)