Peace has returned to the forest.


The brutal fight against the Demon King’s minotaurs was finally over.

Now then, shall I sort through my spoils of war?
I started unpacking the belongings carried by the minotaurs and the cow-type monsters.

Ta-da!
Look at this. I got some animal meat they’d stocked up as marching rations.
And look, water flasks. Four of them!

Now I can store water.
Even if another drought hits this summer, as long as I have these flasks, things won’t turn into the disaster they did last year.

If I ever need water, I can just sprinkle myself using whatever’s inside the flasks.
This is awesome!


Now then, I wonder what happened to the minotaur who owned one of these flasks.
I mean the one who was part of the backup force. The cow-type monster that carried his luggage belongs to me now.

I did let one minotaur escape in the end. I hope that doesn’t become a problem.

He must have been secretly watching the battle between the eyepatch minotaur and us of the Forest Club.
So he should know that I defeated them.

I just hope he doesn’t show up with reinforcements to get revenge.


Either way, it might already be too late, but I might as well hide the evidence.

Well then, cows, it’s all-you-can-eat time.

I’m starving after dancing so much at the ball and need some nourishment.

Chomp.

Munch, munch.

There is more if I want seconds.


Ah, and now I’m thirsty. I want water.

But today I’m different.
Because I’ve got a water bottle right here!

I poured water from a flask around my roots.

Ahh, delicious.


This is what it feels like to be alive

I’m so glad I survived.



Still, not everyone made it.


The female knights and the butterflies who followed Lady Butterfly.

It looks like just over half of them were killed.
The remaining bees and butterflies fluttered sadly over their fallen companions.


I’m sorry, everyone.
I couldn’t protect you.

Thank you for coming to help me.
Because of you, the forest was saved. And I wasn’t burned alive either.

I gently carried the bees and butterflies from where they’d fallen and put them together.
I couldn’t just leave them like that.

I agonized about what to do, and in the end, I decided to return them to the soil.

I thought about letting them become my nutrients so we could all become one in a way, but I chose not to.

They were born in this forest, fought the enemies invading this forest, and died here.
So the best thing is to return them to the forest they came from.


I assiduously dug a hole with my thorns.

A single thorn wasn’t enough to break through the hard soil, but when I bundled several together into something like a thick rope, they became strong enough.

I arranged the bundled thorns into a shovel shape and scooped out the dirt.
I learned how to dig a hole.


I placed the bee and butterflies inside, gently covering them with soil.

For a grave marker, I cut off one of my own thorny vines with my axe and planted it there.
Then I bloomed a man-eater flower and cut that off too.

Everyone has flowers laid with them now, so I think this is enough.
It’s probably the second-biggest flower in this forest, after mine. I hope they’ll be happy with it.

For the final touch, I dripped a little of my nectar on the marker.

You all liked my nectar, didn’t you? You can come have some again anytime.


I gave the remaining bees and butterflies some nectar.

Thank you, everyone.

If it wasn’t for all of you from the Forest Club, I never would have beaten those minotaurs.

And for those who returned to the soil, when you’re reborn, let’s all dance together at the ball.
I was reborn once, after all.
I can’t help but hope you all will be too.

Even if that is probably impossible, I couldn’t stop wishing for it.


So much happened in just one day.

We were enjoying a dance at the ball when the Demon King’s minotaur barged in.
We defeated the intruder, but then his fellow minotaurs and the cow-type monsters arrived, and the bee knight and Madam Butterfly rushed in to help, so the Forest Club ended up in a martial arts tournament against the Demon King’s army.

We were sure the danger was over, but then the eyepatch minotaur set the forest ablaze. We barely managed to stop it, and the backup minotaur fled into the woods.

In the end, I dug a grave for my friends.
And so the Forest Club’s chaotic ball came to an end.


I think this might be the first time so much has happened in a single day.

It was exhausting, but being with Ms. Bee and Lady Butterfly made me happy.

Thank you again, everyone.
Let’s keep taking care of each other.


Once I finished giving out nectar, the Ms. Bee and Lady Butterfly’s group returned deep into the forest.
The bees took one of the defeated minotaurs as a souvenir.

I’m sure they’ve returned to their families.
After all, everyone has a nest of their own.

But I’m all alone here.

Ah, today was such a noisy day.


Because it was unusually eventful and lively, I couldn’t help but remember.

How precious the warmth of others feels.

The feelings of Ms. Bee and Lady Butterfly were so warm.
When I realized they had come to help me, my heart felt like it was about to boil over with heat.

Humans cannot live alone. We all lived by helping one another.

Maybe after living nearly a year as a plant, I had completely forgotten that.
I had been alone for too long.

But thanks to them, I remembered how happy it is to spend time with someone.


“Ah, It’s cold…”

The season was spring.

The warm sunshine lingered, keeping the air pleasant even in the evening.

Even so, I couldn’t help murmuring those words.


My hometown and the royal capital are far away.

My relatives are slowly forgetting the me who died, and the Hero who betrayed and killed me, along with the apprentice saint who helped him, are now happily married. They surely don’t even remember me anymore.

My past life in Japan, my previous world, is nothing but a dream I can never return to.
The faces of my parents from that life have already faded into hazy memories.


Right now, I am completely alone in this world.

Even if I have friends from the Forest Club, or the white bird who visits me, they remain strangers.
I have no family.

I have no family to rely on.
Worse yet, there isn’t even a single person I can talk to.

I simply stand here in the forest by myself.

Yesterday, today, and surely tomorrow.

I will remain alone in this world from now on.


——There is no way this could be fair.

That is right. I am dreaming that I became an Alraune.

Let me close my eyes now.
When I open them, I’m sure I’ll return to being a saint.

Then my father and mother, my family, and even the Hero, my fiancé, will come to welcome me home.
There, my place of warmth awaits me.

So this must be a dream.
When I open my eyes, the dream will end.
All I need is a little courage.

When I opened my eyes, a dimly lit forest lay waiting for me.
I did not feel disappointed. Like Zhuangzi’s butterfly dream, I didn’t worry about which was the dream.

Running away from reality is futile. The past will not change.
I am an Alraune.

A lonely Alraune.

“It’s so lonely…”

I have whispered those words inside my heart countless times this past year.

But this was the first time I actually said them aloud.

“I’m really… lonely…”

Ms. Bee, Lady Butterfly, white bird.
Anyone is fine, just stay with me.
Comfort me.

And if you could water me too, I would be grateful.

***

Author’s Note:

Thank you for reading.
There will be two updates today as well.

Next Time: I’m Going to Be an Actress