Chapter 7

This is no good, it's too much.

In my previous life as a high school girl, I was a girl who had never had a boyfriend, an otaku with a history of not having a partner. Even during my time as a holy maiden, I didn't have a boyfriend, but I did have a fiancé, the hero.

So I had decided to give my first time to the hero.

But I was betrayed by a junior holy maiden who stole my fiancé, and now I am about to be ravaged by a swarm of bee-type monsters.

In the end, I am covered in pollen from some unknown male flower, and it is forced into my mouth. The pollen moves toward the ovule in my stomach, and I am pollinated.

I will bear the seed that will become my offspring.

And thus, my life as an Alraune will come to an end.

No way, I absolutely don't want that!

Even when I was betrayed and killed by the junior and the hero and became an Alraune, I managed to survive somehow.

So I should be able to survive this time too.

Thinking this, I focus my strength on the bulb.

I concentrate on recovery magic, proliferating the vines, and making them grow at the same time.

I wrap the vines around my body, creating a cocoon-like structure to protect myself.

My strategy is this:

Cherish life!

Defense is the only option.

After all, there's no choice.

No matter how many vines I grow, I can't be confident that I can repel all the bees if they attack en masse. I might be able to handle ten or so, but a hundred? I'd have to give up.

So defense is the only option.

As expected, the swarm of Zolbine bees clung to the vine cocoon.

I can hear the sound of them gnawing on the vines.

But this is all part of the plan.

Even if they gnaw through, I can regenerate the holes by making the vines grow. This should prevent the bees from reaching my body. Let's make this a war of attrition. I won't give up my chastity so easily.

Ah, I'm getting thirsty.

My body as an Alraune can't use magic, but it seems to consume water instead. Every time I regenerate the vines, I get thirstier. I want some water.

I hope this ends soon.

Hold on a minute.

How long are these bees going to keep gnawing?

By my estimation, it must have been a few hours.

Give up and go home. Your queen bee is probably waiting for you back at the nest. Go home and have dinner with your family.

Oh no, this isn't good.

I'm running out of water.

The vines are getting limp compared to when I started.

The regeneration of the vines is slowing down, little by little. At this rate, it's only a matter of time before the vine cocoon is broken.

What should I do?

Even if I fight with the vines now, I don't have the confidence to win.

After all, if even one bee touches me, it's over. It's impossible to knock them all away.

Then how can I make them leave without touching me?

Think, me.

In the first place, why did these bees come to me?

Right, they came for my nectar.

If I give them the nectar, they might be satisfied, right?

With that in mind, I bit into the vines near my body.

I licked the nectar off with my tongue.

Then I extended the nectar-coated vines outside the cocoon.

I was surprised. The bees' response was even better than I imagined.

I could tell the swarm of bees had moved to the nectar-coated vines.

Their disciplined, coordinated movement was like an army marching in step.

Good, this will work!

I diligently licked the vines, coating them with saliva and nectar.

I extended them one by one outside the cocoon.

The bees started collecting nectar from the new vines.

This process repeated itself.

When I started feeling dizzy from the depletion of nectar and water in my body, I noticed the presence of the bees outside the cocoon had disappeared.

Cautiously peering outside, I saw the sky was pitch black.

It must have been night already.

There was no sign of the bees.

I made it...!

I had survived unscathed from that perilous situation.

Of course, the vines were in tatters. They had been gnawed and licked, ravaged beyond repair.

But my body as an Alraune was unharmed. This could be called a glorious victory.

Ah, I'm so tired, I'm getting sleepy.

Most of all, I'm thirsty.

I wish it would rain.

Thinking this, I closed my bud and prepared to sleep.

I must have felt safe, because I fell asleep immediately.

But the nightmare began when I woke up.

The next morning.

When I opened my bud, a few Zolbine bees were waiting for me.

Oh, good morning, bees.

We met yesterday...

I never thought I'd see you again so soon.

Did you like my nectar so much that you couldn't wait to see me again?

That's nice, but I never wanted to see you again.

Am I destined to offer my body to the bees and be pollinated?

As a last resort, I coated the vines with nectar and extended them to the bees.

I clasped my hands together and pleaded, "Please go home."

Then something strange happened.

The bees began to collect the nectar from my vines calmly.

When they finished, they hovered in front of me.

The bees let out a strange cry.

You can make that sound? I don't understand what you're saying.

What is it? It feels like they're asking for more nectar.

But I'm sorry.

I'm exhausted. Look at my petals.

They're withered and have lost their luster. My bulb is dry and its mouth is open in a frown.

Did my display of injuries and exhaustion get through to them?

The bees flew off into the forest.

Huh?

Did I survive?

I was wondering why they didn't attack me when they came back.

It's too soon. I haven't fully recovered yet. I can't produce more nectar.

The bees dropped something solid on the ground in front of me.

This is... a boar!?

The bees had brought a boar-type monster, a Varnschwein.

Did they bring this for me?

Is it a gift?

I looked at the bees with a puzzled expression, and they nodded up and down.

Could they be saying, "Eat the boar to regain your strength and produce more nectar for us"?

It's unbelievable...

But in this situation, I can't think of any other intention.

Suspicious of a trap, I gratefully accepted the boar.

I took a bite.

It seems there's no problem.

Seeing me eat the boar, the bees seemed satisfied and flew off somewhere.

I remember hearing that flowers and bees coexist in nature.

Bees take nectar and pollen from flowers, and flowers are pollinated by bees.

In a sense, flowers and bees have a symbiotic relationship.

This seems to apply to the bee-type monster Zolbine and the plant-type monster Alraune as well.

The Zolbine bees came to me for the Alraune's nectar.

Instead of forcing me to give up my nectar, they chose to share it amicably. They must have understood that I didn't want to be pollinated. I can't think of any other reason.

Could my nectar be that attractive?

Something that can make monster bees submit.

A few bees were circling around me.

Could they be protecting me?

The bees look like knights.

It's like a loyal guard protecting a princess. I remember a girl in my high school club who was the only girl and became the club's princess. It's a similar image.

I don't want to be the club's princess, but being the forest's princess isn't so bad.

Actually, I was originally a duke's daughter, a pure princess.

You flying bees, your heads are too high!

So, in exchange for offering them nectar, the bees became my friends.

I recognized the greatness of the Alraune's nectar and became friends with the bees.

My first friend as a plant. Even if they are bees.

Thank you for reading.

If you notice any typos or missing words, please let me know.

I plan to update again today.

Next time, it's the Forest Alraune Girls' Academy.