It appeared my nectar carried a bewitching allure to it. 

It was unbelievably sweet and tasty, to the point where it felt strange.
No wonder it kept producing so many nectar-licking addicts.


The little witch moved.
She was trying to forcibly take more nectar from me.

Hey, stop that!

I can’t give the little witch any more nectar.
I’m still malnourished.
I’ve only just sprouted from a bud, so I don’t have much to spare.

Besides, if I let her consume even more nectar, something irreversible might happen.
What if the little witch fully awakens as a nectar-addict!


To prevent that, I needed to divert her attention away from the nectar somehow.
That’s it—I’ll change the subject.


“I’ll give you… nectar later. But in… exchange, I want you… to tell me about something… right now!”

The little witch snapped back to her senses, as if remembering something.

Thank goodness.
It looks like I managed to stop her from transforming into a nectar-obsessed, lick-happy freak.

Thankfully, because she was only in the early stages of nectar exposure, I wasn’t too late to stop it.
What a relief.

She was craving nectar like some kind of addict, so I was really worried for a moment.

All right then. Since we’re here, I might as well ask the question that’s been bothering me.


“What are we… doing after… this?”

Will we stay here and live in the forest ruins?
From our conversation, it felt like the little witch lived in a nearby village.


“We’re leaving, of course. This place isn’t safe anymore. The Demon King’s army has discovered this place, and the village is in ashes anyway.”

“The Demon King’s army?”

Now that I think about it, the minotaur had been carrying a picture of the little witch.

That terrifying Fire Dragon-sama had also mentioned something about searching for someone.
Could it be that they were looking for this little witch?

“For some reason, the Demon King’s army is after me.”

A witch targeted by the Demon King’s army.
That was surprising.

Maybe it was because she’s a rogue witch.

Considering the minotaur had sleeping drugs, killing her probably wasn’t the goal.
In that case, maybe they intended to abduct her and make her one of their own.

But now it all makes sense.
The person the Fire Dragon had been searching for was the little witch.

And the one the kingdom’s soldiers were searching for was also this little witch.

She was being hunted by humans as part of a witch hunt.

The kingdom’s army and the Fire Dragon must’ve ran into each other by chance, causing a huge commotion. That’s how the fire started.

In any case, I’m glad the little witch escaped the witch hunt.
If she had been captured, she surely would have died.


Witches and monsters.
We’re both enemies of humanity, so I feel like I can get along with the little witch.

It’s fine. Even if the little witch was being targeted by the Demon King’s army, it didn’t matter to me.
If needed, I’d take care of the enemies myself.
I will protect the little witch, my precious Prince Charming!


Of course, that doesn’t apply if the opponent was Fire Dragon-sama.

When a monster shows up, the golden rule is to run away.
The little witch can escape, but I would be left behind.
After all, I’m a plant……

“Everything burned down in the fire, so this land is finished. That’s why I was thinking of moving to a nearby forest.”

A forest, huh.
I’m all for it, but is the little witch really okay with that?
She is human, so wouldn’t it be better for her to live closer to people?

“I’ll stay with you, talking flowers, and more importantly, I hate humans. If I lived in a town and they discovered I’m a witch again, I’d get hunted like last time…”

Witch hunts…
That really would be awful.
In that case, let’s go with the forest.

But… you see, I can’t walk.
How does the little witch plan to move me?

“I can’t walk. Moving… is impossible.”

“Then you can use this.”

The little witch pulled out a bucket.

That’s just a normal bucket, right?
I don’t see how a bucket is supposed to give me legs.

But perhaps… with the little witch’s dark magic, it could somehow work?
I held on to a spark of hope, even if it was just a little.

I looked at the bucket with excitement.
Then, for some reason, the little witch suddenly starts digging a hole in the ground.

She vigorously scraped at the soil with both hands.
The dug-up dirt piled up like a small hill.

Why was she digging up so much dirt?
Was she planning to use it for something with dark magic?

After digging the dirt, the little witch carefully laid the soil into the bottom of the bucket.

With that, she smiled brightly, as if to say the job was done.
It seemed her goal was not the hole itself, but getting the soil.

What was she going to do by putting dirt into a bucket?
I still can’t picture myself being able to walk.

“What is this?” I asked the little witch.

“This is your new home, talking flower.”

Huh, this is my home!?

W-W-Wh-what does that mean??


“It’s fine. When we reach the new forest, I will properly plant you back into the ground.”

…Oh no.
I think I’m starting to understand what this bucket was for.

“Okay, talking flower, I’m going to move you into this bucket now.”

The little witch looked at me with a serious expression.
She didn’t look like she was joking.

“It might not look great as a flowerpot, but size-wise, the bucket should be just right.”

I knew it!
This bucket really was meant to be a flowerpot substitute!

Wait… No way.

Am I going to be put inside a bucket now?
Am I supposed to have my roots buried in a bucket of soil??

I pictured a tiny Alraune girl growing right out of the bucket.

Ugh… that’s so embarrassing!


“About flowerpots, you see…”
The little witch began explaining to me what a flowerpot was, carefully and in detail.


As I thought, this little witch was really kind.

Even if she thinks of me as a wild Alraune born in the forest, if she really intended to treat me like an object, she wouldn’t be taking such good care of me.

I felt as if this little witch treated me like family.

Perhaps because I was a plant, and also looked like a little girl, the little witch was overflowing with enthusiasm, as if determined to do her best as an older sister.

Watching her energetically trying to fulfill this unfamiliar big-sister role, I just couldn’t bring myself to say no.


White Bird-san had been good to me until now, after all. I can’t just brush aside her goodwill.

So I made up my mind.
From now on, I’ll be living in that bucket…………


The little witch issued her final declaration.

“Alright then, talking flower. I’m going to transplant you now.”

“Yes……”

Strangely enough, I felt no joy at finally being able to leave this land.

Soon I would be moved into a bucket.

Once I was fully placed inside, soil would be piled over me to hide my roots.
And with that, the potted-bucket Alraune was born.

Ah…
As my vision started to fade, the faces of my family, back when I was a duke’s daughter, floated in my mind.


──Dear Mother and Father,
The days have been blessed with gentle spring warmth.

How have you both been?
I trust that everyone in the family is in good health and spirits.

Even though I’ve become a plant, I’m still blooming, day by day, full of life.

Though, I can’t help but wonder what kind of daughter I seemed to you.

I became a saint and grew into someone people admired.
I like to believe that, as your daughter, I became someone you could be proud of.

And now, though it’s a little difficult to say, I have something to report to you.

I will be moving to a new home soon.

Now, please don’t be surprised, but my new home is that bucket over there. Yes, a bucket.

After becoming a saint, I ran off to defeat the Demon King against your wishes, and for that, I apologize for not becoming the obedient, sheltered daughter you hoped for.

So you see, since I have been reborn like this, I have decided to become the sheltered daughter you always wished for.

Though, I can only hope a bucket will suffice as shelter. A bucket.

If you were to see your only daughter sprouting from a bucket, would you be pleased, Father and Mother?

I am overwhelmed with emotions, to the point that nectar is flowing from my eyes.
Unlike me, I am sure that you, Father and Mother, would shed a liquid with a much higher salt content.

But please do not worry.

My nectar is very sweet.
And so, even this life in a bucket will surely become a comfortable one, sweetly tinted with nectar.

Please rest easy.
From here on, I shall live on inside this bucket.

With the lingering chill of spring upon us, please take good care of yourselves.

──Sincerely yours.


“Talking flower, I’m going to lift you up.”

My consciousness, which had drifted far away, was pulled back to reality by the little witch’s words.

My roots were separated from the ground by her hands.
Held like a child being carried, I was moved straight into my new home.


Ah…………

This bucket fits my small body perfectly.

By the little witch’s hands, I was transplanted into the bucket.

And at the same time, I realized something terrifying.
Without the little witch’s help, I would never be able to get out of this bucket again.

On top of that, I could no longer draw moisture from the earth.
If I were left like this, I would surely wither.


I nearly went blind with shock, realizing this was what it must feel like to be a potted plant.

But there was nowhere left for me to run now.
Because now, my body simply wouldn’t survive without the little witch.

“The potted-plant look really suits you. You’re adorable like this”

“Uuu……”

And so, my life as a potted plant began.

***

Author’s Note:

Thank you very much for reading.
If you thought this story was interesting or felt that I am doing my best, I would be very happy if you could support it with a bookmark or five stars. Your support is a great motivation for me to keep writing.

Next Time: Diary; The Little Witch’s First Plant Cultivation Project (Summer)


TL’s Note:

Changed black magic to dark magic, it just sounds better. I’m changing prior chapters too.

Also, I’ve decided on a new release schedule for these translated chapters. It’s Monday/Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday/Sunday.
More information on the post I made in News.