Nis 2

‘Master!’

My heart raced.

It had been a while.

The silver hair I had missed sparkled beautifully.

And the person next to him…

『 ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ 【Nis】  Jörmungandr  LV□□□ 』

‘As expected, 7 stars! Can’t see the level!’

It was Nis…

A name I had heard when I was with the Administrator and Master in the labyrinth.

Must have been the ruler of another Great Labyrinth…

And Jörmungandr, if I recall correctly, is a massive snake in its true form…

“Oh my, such beauty!”

A voice, elegant yet playful, rang out.

Nis’s bright red eyes sparkled.

“These ruby-like petals, the black stem, and this elegant demeanor… Frostia, where did you find such a child?”

‘Heh.’

I couldn’t help but blush.

Being praised so much…

“Wait a minute.”

Nis suddenly looked at me with a stern expression.

“Could it be… a real flower?”

“Yes.”

Master’s short reply made Nis blink in surprise.

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

‘Huh?’

What did that mean?

I should probably greet Master first.

《Master, welcome!》

As I carved the words into the floor with my roots, Master smiled faintly.

But Nis laughed even louder.

“Oh my, you can write! What kind of magic is this? And the handwriting is so cute?”

《Th-thank you…?》

I carved more words into the floor with my roots, and Nis was even more astonished.

“This… This is! A flower with a will, writing letters!?”

Master’s smile broadened, looking pleased.

“That’s why I said you’re special.”

‘Hehe… Special…’

My whole body tingled.

I guess I’m weak to praise…

Master spoke with a satisfied expression.

“Yes, I raised her.”

《Yes!》

“Anyway, what’s this? Is it honey…?”

‘Huh!’

Nis touched my sensitive part.

Unconsciously, I scattered pollen.

It’s too stimulating for the strong!

“Oh, what a cute reaction!”

“Nis, stop teasing…”

“Aww, Frostia, you’re the one who asked me to teach polymorph…”

Suddenly, my imaginary ears perked up.

Right! Master brought Nis here to teach me!

《I-I also want to become human like Master and Nis!》

“Well… For a plant-type monster’s polymorph, you should have asked the World Tree.”

Nis glared coldly at Master.

As if I didn’t know I’m a plant!

“Do you think I’m acquainted with the World Tree?”

Master’s words made Nis fall into thought.

“Well, you do have an abundance of mana and seem quite intelligent…”

My petals fluttered with anticipation.

Master also watched Nis intently.

“You’ll probably have to wait about 700 years.”

《Huh…?》

“It’s still too early. If you try polymorph now, your body will shatter.”

700 years…

My petals drooped in disappointment.

“See, I told you.”

Master’s words made Nis shake his head.

“Well… It’s actually quick for you. Normally, it would take about a thousand years… This child’s growth rate is truly remarkable.”

Nis seemed to think of something.

“Actually… There is a faster method.”

《Really!?》

My heart raced.

Please, 700 years is too long!

“Yes~ If you want to take on a human form, absorbing human mana is the fastest.”

《Human… mana…?》

A chill ran through my heart.

That means…

“So, you’re saying I should kill humans and steal their mana.” Master’s cold voice echoed.

“Should we bring some from the nearby village?”

《No!》

I quickly carved words into the floor with my roots.

《Please, don’t do that.》

‘Just to become human, you’d harm innocent people…’

The insects around me stirred, ready to fight, sensing my emotions.

Of course, if they’re evil…

But I didn’t want to harm innocent people just to polymorph.

Especially since I still have memories of my past life as a human…

‘Even Michel, who loves slaughter, wouldn’t want mindless killing.’

Probably…

“Oh my, you’re so kind!”

Nis laughed playfully.

“But you really want to polymorph that badly, huh?”

《Yes… But that’s…》

“Alright, let’s look for another method.”

Nis’s eyes sparkled suspiciously, like a snake eyeing its prey.

‘Eek.’

But his gaze soon shifted behind me.

“Oh, what’s this?”

Cecilia fluttered over, now that the conversation had died down.

‘Perfect timing to change the subject!’

《Oh! This is my daughter Cecilia!》

“Your daughter!?”

Nis was once again astonished.

‘Your reactions are so intense…’

He seemed like the life of the party, someone who could get along with anyone.

On the other hand, our Master…

“Hmm, she became a butterfly.”

Master didn’t elaborate, but Cecilia fluttered proudly around us.

‘Heh heh…’

It was clear who the favorite was.

“Really? She started as an ice monster’s egg, right? From Frost Lunaris…”

Nis watched Cecilia with the curiosity of a scholar examining a specimen.

《Yes! At first, she hatched from the egg and only wanted to eat my petals! I worried she might not survive, but every time she got poisoned, I healed her with recovery pollen. She kept eating, and I kept saving her… Until one day, she used her flames to burn away the poison and became this beautiful butterfly!》

“Oh my, what a tough journey! To master fire and overcome poison like that…”

Nis looked at Cecilia with newfound interest.

《Yes! Every day, she got poisoned but never gave up! I kept saving her, and now she’s strong enough to light up every corner of the labyrinth with her flames!》

“Hm…”

Nis’s gaze turned deep and serious as he watched Cecilia.

“She’s lovely.”

Master spoke briefly.

But soon turned to me and continued.

“But Rico is even more amazing. Healing her every day, never giving up… If it weren’t for you, Cecilia would just be an ordinary fire butterfly.”

‘Master…’

As always, kind to everyone but especially warm to me.

Not the life of the party like Nis, but… Dragons are the best!

《And something else amazing happened! A hero and a saint came to the labyrinth…》

“What? A hero and a saint, you say?”

Nis frowned slightly.

“Oh, how bold humans have become. Daring to venture to the edge of the Great Labyrinth.”

《Beatrice and Seraphina… The hero uses a silver holy sword, and the saint wields divine power… Both were incredibly strong, but…》

“Rico, did that really happen?”

Master looked at me with surprise.

《Yes! The insects wanted to fight too, but I thought it was Michel’s trial for them. Since the foolish saint misunderstood Michel, I had to correct her.》

“Michel’s trial?”

Nis’s expression grew even more intrigued.

《Yes! So I had the insects stand back and faced them alone. I obscured their vision with a bloody mist, attacked with my poisonous roots… And in the end, I won!》

“You faced a hero and a saint alone?”

Nis’s voice was filled with admiration.

“As expected, my intuition was right.”

Nis smiled meaningfully.