I’m an Alraune, a self-proclaimed ordinary flower.
And as of today, even though I’m just a plant, I’ve become the new ruler of the forest.

Yes, I finally did it.
I defeated Papa Bear.

I’ve poisoned the nectar addict with nectar.
Victory is mine!

That’s the fate of those who’ve licked me. Mercy? None, of course.

Munch, munch.

As expected, Papa Bear is really satisfying to eat.

I’ve been eating him bit by bit, but it’s going to take a few more days.
He was a ten-meter tall bear, after all. It’s not easy digesting this much.

Mama Bear is just lying over there.
She’ll be my emergency rations for now.


Oh, it started raining too.
Even the heavens must be celebrating my victory!

Thanks to it, I can take a shower too, and that makes me happy.
Nothing’s better than rain after a battle.

Ahh… fresh, delicious water.



Papa Bear has fallen.

And so, this forest now belongs to me.

With one of the Four Heavenly Kings gone, the chaos finally ended, and peace returned to the forest.

After all, all the battle-crazed monsters are gone now.
Well, sure, a lot of them found a new home inside my belly, but not all of them, okay?

Don’t get the wrong idea.
I’m not that much of a glutton.

Ahhh, I’m stuffed.
Before I knew it, I’d eaten all of Papa Bear.
Oops~

Well, time for seconds. Come on, Mama Bear.
Live happily with your husband in my stomach.


And so, this place became my forest.

The big, powerful monsters went extinct, and fights nearly disappeared.
With the territorial wars over, the smaller creatures who’d once hidden themselves away began to reappear. 

And among them… I saw some familiar faces.


Yes, we’ve finally reunited.
After defeating Papa Bear, I was able to meet with my old friends. I was so happy.


In front of me hovered several bee-type monsters, the Zornbiene.

Good day to you.
It’s been a while, bees. Have you been well?

My female knights, the bee brigade, seemed to have a few survivors.

To them, Papa Bear was the enemy of their kin.
Maybe they had vanished from my side out of fear of him.

But worry not.

Papa Bear and his wife are now being digested together inside me.
There’s no more perverted bears left to harm you.

I’m so glad, bees.
Now we can live together again.


So then, let’s rebuild the lily garden and restore our forest circle.
I’ll need to increase my number of female knights so they can all surround me.

To that end, I’ll give the bees plenty of nectar.
Take it back to your nest and raise even more loyal knights, okay?

Wait a second, Ms. Bee.
Who’s this lady knight charging in, trying to pollinate me?

Could she be a new recruit?
Well, you need to make sure the newcomers have received proper training before coming here.

I almost got pollinated there for a second!
Now that I think about it, there was another bee who tried that before. Wasn’t she that villainous noblewoman?

If you don’t want to meet a bad end, then you’ll join my forest circle too.
Grow into a fine knight and take care of me.

I wonder if Her Majesty the Queen is still doing well.
Ah, I see. That’s good.
So Papa Bear didn’t get to her, after all.

Then please give my regards to my sister, Her Majesty the Queen. Farewell for now, my bees.


As I waved my vines and saw the bees off, another acquaintance appeared.

Though this time, it was the white bird, that birdbrain.

Last time you escaped me, but here you are again.

Could it be you haven’t realized I’m trying to eat you?
You really are a birdbrain.

You may be an acquaintance, but you’re still food to me.
So hurry up and become nourishment in my stomach.


The white bird circled just beyond the reach of my vines, soaring gracefully far above me.

Even if I rapidly grew my vines, it’d be hard to reach that high.
And even if I did, it’d easily dodge.

To a bird that can fly freely, vines creeping up from below must look like they’re standing still.


You white bird…
You’re smarter than you look. Even if you’re still an idiot.

Grr.
As I glared at the bird, something fell from the sky.

That dumb bird dropped something again.
How clumsy can it be?

What it dropped was a flower.
Last time it was a red rose; this time, it was a blue one.

It was a flower I had never seen before, not in this world or my previous one. Yet there was nothing remarkable about it.

I tried eating it, but it didn’t seem like it would let me do anything new.
All that changed was that I could now make blue flowers bloom on my vines.


What was that bird’s deal?
As soon as it saw me make the new blue flowers bloom, it just flew off somewhere.

I don’t get it.
Would a bird even use flowers to build a nest?

Same with that rose.
They’re supposed to use small twigs and branches to build nests, but if they take flowers, it’ll just wither away. Useless.

If it were for decoration, sure, maybe. But what bird decorates its home?

That white bird really is strange.


And ever since then, the white bird has been dropping flowers and plants near me every so often.

Is this… harassment?
It’s definitely doing it on purpose.

Maybe it’s a challenge, like, ‘I’ll peck you apart like I did these plants.’

Or maybe it’s taunting me, like, ‘Look at these flowers, way prettier than you.’

Either way, I won’t stand for it.
That bird is picking a fight.

White bird, I won’t forgive you.

As payback, I scattered toxic pollen toward a few small birds perched on a nearby tree.

They tried to flee, but after inhaling the poison, they dropped down helplessly.

Gulp.
Hmm. Eating small birds really doesn’t satisfy me.

They’re too small, so they don’t have nearly enough nutrients.

Still, it’ll do as revenge against that birdbrain.
Guess this week’s prey will be bird themed.


It seems the white bird realized I’d been targeting birds on purpose.

Sensing danger, it stopped dropping plants on me altogether.

You cowardly bird.

If only you had come to challenge me for its comrades’ sake, I’d have gladly devoured you too. What a pity really.


The white bird stopped dropping things.

But in its place, I started receiving tributes, offerings in the form of my next meals.


Offerings that came walking toward me on their own.

A raccoon, for instance, came to present itself to me.

It must have mustered the courage to become a sacrifice, choosing to nourish me to save its kind. That spirit is admirable.

But really, I’m not that scary, you know.

Don’t get the wrong idea.
It’s not like I want to eat you because I like you or anything.
Since you were offered as tribute, I’m being considerate by turning you into nourishment, that’s all.

I’m just a lovely flower, you see.
To become one with such a beautiful blossom as me, that’s got to make you happy, right?

No need to worry.
No need to be afraid.

I’ll make it painless and easy.
So don’t look at me with those teary eyes. Don’t tremble like that.

I’m really not that terrifying.

It’s tough being misunderstood, isn’t it?


It seems I’ve become someone so feared and revered by the forest creatures that they’ve started to bring offerings to me.

***

Author’s Note:

Today too, there will be two updates.

Next time: It Hurts Me to Take a Sacrifice, but I Can’t Deny the Feeling of a Full Belly