Chapter 27

“Master!”

My heart raced.

How long has it been?

The beautiful glimmer of the silver hair I’ve missed was striking.

And that person standing next to him…

『 ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ 【Nis】 Jörmungandr LV□□□ 』

“Of course, 7-star rank! His level is invisible!”

Nis…

It was the name I heard back when I was a manager, living peacefully with Master in the Dungeon.

You must be the ruler of another Dami Palace…

And if you’re Jörmungandr, does that mean your true form is a giant serpent…?

“My goodness! What beauty!”

Just then, a voice I’d never heard before rang out.

An elegant yet playful tone.

Nis’s crimson eyes sparkled.

“These ruby-like petals, as dark as midnight are the stems, and such a graceful posture… Prostia, where did you find such a child?”

“Hehe.”

Without realizing it, my petals flushed red.

To be praised so highly…

“Excuse me.”

Suddenly, Nis turned towards me with a serious expression.

“Could it be… a real flower?”

“Yes.”

At Master’s short reply, Nis’s eyes widened in astonishment.

“I… I thought you were someone as beautiful as a flower…”

“Hmm?”

What does that mean?

I should greet Master first.

《Master, welcome!》

As I carved words into the ground with my roots, a smile spread across Master’s face.

But Nis laugh even louder.

“My goodness! How enchanting! Could it be some kind of magic? And the handwriting is so cute too?”

《T-Thank you…?》

When my roots wrote again, Nis was even more amazed.

“I… Is this really? A flower with the will to write words?!”

A proud smile spread across Master’s face.

“That’s why I said this one’s special.”

“Hehe. Special…”

“I can’t believe it… Oh, I apologize. I was so startled… My name is Nis. I am the ruler of Deathmeier.”

Nis greeted elegantly despite still looking shocked.

“AH! That’s right, Deathmeier!”

The deep Dungeon said to be located somewhere in the abyss, one of the Eight Great Dami Palaces.

It’s ruler!

Of course, the only thing I knew about Deathmeier besides it being located in the deep sea, was nothing at all.

《It’s an honor to meet you!》

My roots trembled slightly.

Nis circled around me, inspecting me closely.

“Excuse me, what is that over there?”

Nis’s gaze turned towards the corner where Verlez was hiding.

As Frost Mose fluttered his wings and approached in greeting, Nis jumped back in alarm.

“Ah! A… bug!”

《Nis, it’s fine! They’re very friendly!》

The young butterfly fluttered around Nis, who had collapsed on the floor.

Soon more Verlez began to gather.

“Prostia, what is the meaning of this?”

“Riko’s subordinates.”

“Excuse me? Subordinates?”

With an astonished gaze, Nis turned towards Master.

“You… how dare you bring so many… hundreds of them!”

“I said they’re not mine, they’re Riko’s subordinates.”

Coldly, Master corrected Nis.

Nis seemed to regain her senses after staring blankly at the Verlez for a long moment.

“Hmm… Your petals have such a beautiful color, like the crimson of blood. And the shine on your stem… Ah, and the sharpness of your roots! Prostia, you’ve really nurtured this one well?”

After inspecting every inch of my body, Nis spoke.

“Hehehe…”

I felt like I might twist in delight.

I’m so weak to compliments…

“This is my handiwork,” Master said, satisfaction clear on his face.

《That’s right!》

“By the way, what is this? Is this honey? Let me just…”

“HNG!”

Nis gently touched a sensitive part of me.

Involuntarily, I released some pollen.

Too much stimulation for a strong person!

“My goodness! Such an adorable response!”

“Nis, stop teasing her and…”

“Tsk, Prostia, why did you ask me to teach you polymorph if you’re going to be like this?”

Suddenly, imaginary ears perked up.

Of course! Master brought Nis here for me!

《Um, can I also become human like Master and Nis?》

“Hmm… If you’re talking about polymorph for plant-type monsters, you should have asked the World Tree.”

With a cold glare toward Master, Nis spoke.

As if realizing something, Master remarked,

“Do I look like someone who knows the World Tree?”

Nis paused for a moment.

“That’s true… However, considering how your body is brimming with abundant magic and your intelligence is high…”

Excitedly, my petals fluttered.

Master too seemed tense, watching Nis carefully.

“Approximately seven hundred years.”

《Huh…?》

“It’s too early for you. If you attempt the transformation now, your body will shatter. Your magic density is still unstable…”

Seven hundred years…

Disappointed, my petals drooped.

“See, I told you.”

Master said, and Nis shook her head.

“Seven hundred years is relatively fast. Normally, you’d have to wait a thousand years, but this child is growing at an extraordinary speed.”

“Hmm…” Nis’s eyes sparkled with a thought.

“Actually… there is a faster method.”

《Really!?》

My heart raced.

Please! Seven hundred years is too long!

“Yes, if you wish to transform into a human form… absorbing human magic is the fastest way.”

《Human… magic…?》

A chill ran down my spine.

That means…

“So, by killing humans and stealing their magic,” Master’s icy voice rang out.

“Should I bring some humans from the nearby village?”

《No, no!》

I quickly carved words with my roots.

《Not that… please don’t.》

‘How could we… harm innocent people just for polymorph?’

The Verlez, unaware of my feelings, seemed ready to fight, wriggling around.

Of course, if they were bad people…

Yes, if they were enemies, it might be unavoidable…

Still, I didn’t want to harm innocent humans just for the sake of polymorph.

I still have memories from my previous life as a human…

‘Even Mikel-sama, who loves slaughter, wouldn’t approve of indiscriminate killing…’

Would he?

“That’s adorable!”

Nis chuckled jokingly.

“So you truly desire this polymorph?”

《Yes… but not that…》

“Alright. Then let’s see if there’s another way.”

Nis’s eyes gleamed suspiciously.

Like a snake eyeing its prey.

‘Snap.’

But soon, that gaze shifted behind me.

“Oh my, and what is this?”

Cecilia seemed to have noticed the conversation had come to a close as she fluttered closer.

‘Perfect timing to change the subject!’

《Ah! This is my daughter, Cecilia!》

“A daughter!?”

Once again, Nis wore a shocked expression.

‘Her reactions are too perfect…’

She really seemed like someone who could befriend anyone, the ultimate socialite.

Completely opposite to our Master…

“Hmm, you’ve turned into a butterfly.”

He didn’t elaborate, but really, he and Nis are complete opposites!

How did they ever become friends?

Lost in thought momentarily, I felt two pairs of eyes on me.

“Oh!”

《Yes! She evolved just a few days ago!》

Shyly, Cecilia flapped her wings.

While Nis remained surprised, Master stayed calm.

《And Cecilia, at first, she was an egg from a Frost Lunaris monster…》

As I spoke, Cecilia buzzed happily around us.

《When she hatched, she kept trying to eat my petals, so I was worried. But she kept eating my poisonous petals and got poisoned every time… Each time, I saved her with recovery pollen. She would eat again, get sick, and get healed again… And one day, she burned the poison with fire and became this beautiful butterfly!》

“Dear me, what a struggle you went through! Controlling fire to overcome the poison…”

Nis scrutinized Cecilia anew.

Her gaze was like a scholar looking at an experimental subject.

“Yes! Despite being poisoned everyday, she never gave up! I kept saving her, and she became so strong! Now her flames can brighten the corners of the Dungeon!”

Maybe because she felt what I was thinking, Cecilia proudly unfurled her wings, tiny flames scattering in the air.

“Hmm…”

Nis’s eyes glimmered curiously.

The way she looked at Cecilia was different now.

Deeper, more serious.

“Beautiful.”

Master spoke briefly.

Then his gaze turned back to me, continuing.

“Still, Riko is more impressive. Every day she sprinkled recovery pollen and didn’t give up… Without you, Cecilia would have just been an ordinary fire moth.”

‘Master…’

Truly, better than a socialite who’s kind to all, is a Dragon who’s usually cold but warm to me!

The best!

“And there was another amazing thing! The Hero and the Maiden of the Divine came to the Dungeon…”

“Huh? A Hero and Maiden of the Divine?”

Nis frowned slightly.

“Really? Humans these days have gotten so brash. To dare enter the edge of Dami Palace like that without a care.”

《Beatrice and Seraphina… The Hero wields a silver holy sword, and the Maiden uses divine powers… They were very strong…》

“You mean there were such people, Riko?”

Master also looked at me, surprised.

“Yes! The Verlez also tried to fight them, but I thought it might be a trial placed by Mikel-sama. The Maiden seemed to misunderstand Mikel-sama, so I felt I needed to correct her.”

“A trial from Mikel?”

Nis’s expression grew even more intrigued.

“Yes! So I pulled the Verlez back and fought them alone. I obscured their field of vision with a mist of blood, attacked with toxic roots… and in the end, I won!”

“You fought the Hero and the Maiden of the Divine alone?”

Nis’s voice was full of admiration.

“Indeed. My intuition was correct.”

Nis wore a significant smile.