Continuing from the perspective of the little witch, White Bird-san.

***

I’m Rufé, a witch.
And today, I’m going to be killed by humans for the sole crime of being a witch.


It all started when a villager saw me transform into a bird.
I was careless.

I thought I had been careful to stay out of sight, but it seemed I hadn’t been paying enough attention that day.

Alraune had finally warmed up to me, and my eagerness to see her again robbed me of my usual composure.

Because of that carelessness, I was captured and branded as a witch.


If I were just Rufé the village girl, and not Rufé the witch, maybe none of this would have happened.

But I wasn’t a village girl.
I was a witch.

Even though I was still a child, I had white hair and an eerie appearance.
That alone seemed enough, in their eyes, to mark me as a witch; the villagers had long been suspicious of me.

One of them, already wary, followed me—and saw everything.

It’s impossible for humans to turn into birds.
“You’re a witch,” they said, seizing me on the spot.


I hate myself for being a witch.
Even more than that, I hate the humans who call me a monster and throw stones at me.

They pulled my hair and slammed me into the ground.
They even stuffed pebbles into my mouth, saying that if I was a witch, I could eat stones.

Apparently, since witches weren’t considered human, people could do whatever they wanted to me.
It’s cruel.
Aside from being able to use dark magic, I was no different from an ordinary human.


For the first time, I truly came to hate humans.
Until now, I thought that even though I was a witch, I was still human as well.

But at that moment, I realized that I wasn’t human at all.
Just for being a witch, I would never be accepted among their kind.

The last time I felt hatred strong enough to want to kill someone was when the monkey monster murdered my parents.



A group of soldiers and high-ranking mages arrived from the royal capital.

The one who seemed to be the mages’ leader examined my body.
After that, I was dragged out to the village square.

Waiting there was a cross-shaped stake driven into the ground.
I was going to be burned there.


The only reason I managed to escape was because the mages didn’t know about levitation magic.

I guess they believed that witches could only fly with brooms.
Or perhaps they assumed I could only fly by turning into a bird, and let their guard down.

The moment I saw an opening, I floated straight up.
Then I fled into the forest.


But that mage was one step ahead of me.

It seems I had been marked, and I was quickly captured again.
I could feel just how vast the difference our power was. Mages from the royal capital were truly terrifying.

In the end, my fate was to be killed as a witch.

If only I could have seen Alraune one more time.
I wanted to water her properly… just once more…………



Then, suddenly, it happened.

The sun fell from the sky.


That blinding object wasn’t the sun, but a gigantic dragon.
Its entire body was wreathed in flames, and its tail glowed with a radiant light—both terrifying and mystical.

The dragon fired a beam of light.
The forest, the village houses, the villagers, and even the soldiers were blown away by it.

Nothing remained.

I heard the mage leader shout, “The Demon King’s army?!”

I see…  so this dragon was one of the Demon King’s.
Which means… they might have come to capture me.

For some reason, the Demon King’s army was also after me.
They don’t seem intent on killing me, but even so, if they take me, it definitely won’t end well. In any case, I’m terrified


While the mages fought the dragon, I managed to slip away from the battlefield.

I don’t understand how the Demon King’s army knew where I was.
It hadn’t even been that long since the villagers discovered I was a witch.


But none of that matters now.
Right now, escaping comes first.

And then I saw it.
The forest… it was burning.

I’m worried about the Alraune.
With flames like this, the talking flower would surely burn.

I stopped running and headed toward the river.
I had hidden a bucket there earlier, planning to water her later.

I transformed into a bird.
Carrying the bucket, I rushed toward the Alraune.

As I feared, she was on fire.

Don’t let her burn.
She’s my flower.

Still in bird form, I poured water over the Alraune.

Thank goodness. I made it in time.
I managed to put out the flames somehow.

But now, the Alraune seems suspicious of me.
A bird using a bucket to put out a fire. That’s strange, isn’t it?

Still, even if she ends up disliking me, that’s better than letting her burn.

I’m sure I made the right choice.

More than anything, I was relieved that the Alraune hadn’t burned.
Nobody wants to be burned, right? I hate it too.

I put out the fire, but what now?
The forest fire wasn’t over yet.

Worse still, the dragon was flying this way.
It seemed to have noticed me.

I needed to leave this place quickly, but what about the Alraune?
There was no way I could grab something as large as her and fly away.


No… it’s frustrating, but I have to give up on the Alraune.

With a heavy heart, I decided to flee on my own.

I feel bad for her, but the one being targeted is me.
Maybe it’s safer if we’re not together.

Thinking this might be the last time, I finally decided to speak to the talking flower.

I told her a dragon was coming, and that she should hide.
If it didn’t find her, there might still be a chance she’d survive.


“Talking flower… somehow survive, okay? Then I’ll come and water you.”

If she managed not to burn, I’d water her again.
Though, I don’t even know if I would survive myself.

Even so, if by some miracle that future came to pass, I would draw water for the Alraune. For my precious Alraune.



After that, by sheer luck, I managed to escape the dragon.
The fire died out, and the forest had transformed into a sea of blackened earth.

Not a single tree had survived the blaze.
There was no way any living thing could have endured those flames.

Still, clinging to a faint hope, I returned to the place where the Alraune had been.




The Alraune was nowhere to be seen.
In her place was the charred remains of a large burned mass.

So she didn’t make it after all… my Alraune…


As I stood there dejected, I noticed a small flower growing from the blackened soil.

Floating closer, I was shocked to see that it was an Alraune.
From the flower sprouted a tiny, adorable little girl.

The Alraune, who had once looked older than me, had turned into a child!

What? Why!?

What could possibly make an Alraune turn into a child?
And into a little girl, no less??

What should I do? She’s so cute.
This tiny Alraune is way too cute!


To my delight, she remembered me.
She waved her vines at me in greeting.

I was so happy.
But above all else, I was just glad she was alive.

Besides, this little one was really cute.
I could feel my protective instincts being stirred.


After that, I was able to properly talk with the Alraune again.
Being able to get this close to the talking flower felt like a dream.

I confessed that I wasn’t a bird, but a witch.

Witches were enemies of humans, just like monsters.
That meant I could be allies with a plant monster like her.

I told the talking flower I wanted to stay with her.
To my immense joy, the Alraune accepted my wish.

That made this Alraune mine now.
And this nectar too… mine…………

That’s right.
She let me taste her nectar, and it was unbelievably delicious!

I’d never eaten anything so sweet and wonderful before.
It felt like my brain was about to melt.

Before I knew it, I was asking her for more nectar.
That was fine, right?
After all, you’re my Alraune.

Maybe because she wasn’t used to being around humans yet, the Alraune began to cry.
Even her tears were nectar. She really was a flower.

And her eyes were golden.
At first, I just thought they were beautiful. But after tasting the nectar, I felt differently.

Those eyes were the same color as the nectar.
Nectar-colored eyes.

They looked so delicious…
Just looking into those nectar-colored eyes made my whole body crave nectar.
My desire for nectar surged through me like a wave, filling my mouth with saliva.

It seemed the Alraune possessed bewitching eyes.


After a while, once I calmed down from the sweetness of the nectar, I realized something.

I really did love this Alraune.

Alright. I’ll take responsibility and raise her properly.
I’ll water her a lot too.
After all, I promised.

Oh, I’ve got a good idea.


I decided to use the bucket as a makeshift flowerpot.

That way, I could carry the Alraune with me as I traveled.
With such a small Alraune, flying while holding her would be easy.

The Alraune, now a little girl, seemed to be crying tears of joy at my idea.

I guess she was just that happy to be able to leave this place.
She’d been unable to move for so long, after all.


I’m glad, talking flower.
From now on, I’ll carry you in this bucket.


Alraunes are plant monsters.
So she wouldn’t reject me for being a witch.
She wouldn’t attack me, thinking I was a monster.

Flowers are good.
Because they aren’t human, I’m sure they won’t betray me.


Until now, I’d been emotionally supported by the Alraune.

But starting today, it’s different.
We’ll support each other, emotionally and physically, and live on together—one person and one flower.

I’m going to live with Alraune!


That’s why I’ve resolved to become Alraune’s big sister.
I’ll raise this little Alraune into a splendid flower once more.

She’s already like family to me.
There’s no way I could abandon such a small, adorable flower. She’s like my little sister.


A year has passed since my parents died.
My lonely, solitary life as a witch is finally coming to an end.

I’ve gained a family, someone to act together with.
Within me, something precious has taken root, something I’d be willing to risk my life to protect.

I can feel my heart pounding hard in my chest.


The spring of my life has arrived at last.

***

Author’s Note:

Thank you very much for reading.

And that was the story from the perspective of White Bird-san, aka the little witch.
This chapter reveals what happened over the past year, things that couldn’t be seen from the protagonist’s point of view. It seems the two of them had already spent a long time together.

Next Time: Skyborne Journey with White Bird-san