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Chapter 30

「Whoa… it really is running. What is this? How could it evolve like this?」

Nikolaus seized the Mandragora that ran into the room, grabbing it in one swift motion. He lifted it by the stem—firmly gripping that part to hoist it up.

I had only ever seen people lift the seedlings gently by the body like cradling a child, so this new method made me want to scream. Naturally, the green-colored seedling being grabbed also trembled as if screaming internally.

「…A Mandragora raised with purification flowers? …Not dragon blood…?」

After observing the seedling closely, Nikolaus muttered with a puzzled look. And the moment I heard those words, a chill ran down my spine.

That’s information from the seedling’s status description. …Could it be—he can see other beings’ status?

(This is bad—really bad…! My status description is a total disaster…!)

According to my own entry, I’m classified as a 「calamity.」 Despite being gentle and harmless in person, my abilities—depending on how they’re used—could cause massive damage to humans. I’m effectively labeled not just a dangerous beast, but a dangerous weed.

「This Mandragora is one of your familiars, right? …But your status…」

(AAAAHHHH!!! Don’t look at it!! PLEASE!!)

I was internally shrieking louder than I had since the day I was yanked out of the ground, but Nikolaus simply frowned in concentration before falling silent with a deep sigh.

…Maybe I can’t live as a human anymore. Maybe I really do have to go back to that awful demon forest and live in hiding. But I don’t want to kill someone to keep a secret—that would make me the enemy of all humankind, and I can’t do that.

All I’ve ever wanted… is to live peacefully in the human world as a gentle little monster.

「…Can’t see it. That’s annoying. Even if I’m tired, the gap in magic power is way too big.」

(…Wait. You can’t see it…?)

「You’ve got more magic power than I do. That much is clear—you’re definitely not human. …And this Mandragora isn’t mine. If it were, it would’ve said it was raised with dragon blood.」

(…Huh?)

Something he said just now caught me off guard. My status clearly states: 「Raised in dragon blood, a premium Mandragora overflowing with mana.」 Curious, I quickly picked up the pen on the table and scribbled on a piece of paper.

Nikolaus placed the seedling on the table and leaned in to read what I wrote.

‘What do you mean by that?’

「I like experimenting with monsters. A hundred years ago or so, I planted Mandragora seeds in the land where a dragon had died. The place is overflowing with dense magic. I figured if I used that soil, I might get some interesting evolutions from plant-type monsters.」

So basically—he was the one who buried Mandragora seeds in the demon forest.

(Then everything I went through—all the terrifying things, the danger and chaos—was all his fault…!?)

What a thing to do. Because of that, I was yanked up by a goblin, forced into battles, and lived a life that was the definition of a 「monster’s「 experience. If I’d been raised in a greenhouse or flowerpot, I could’ve lived so much more peacefully.

「When I went to harvest them, one was missing. I figured you were the thief… But I guess not. If it had been mine, I would’ve taken it back and run a bunch of experiments on it…」

(Sorry about that. …But honestly, I’m so glad you didn’t raise me directly… I would’ve ended up a lab plant for sure…)

The seedling trembled in fear, clinging to my hand and dripping liquid from its eye sockets. That wasn’t a tear—it was a special Mandragora fluid that had a mild healing effect.

It seeped through my sleeve and tasted rather pleasant, but it felt weird, like I was consuming a fellow Mandragora—or more accurately, a piece of myself.

(So Nikolaus-san is technically the one who 「created「 me… Does that make him my parent? …Though, since I raised myself after I gained consciousness, he doesn’t really feel like one.)

If anything, I feel more like blaming him for burying me in such a terrifying place in the first place.

That aside, it seems he really does have the ability to view status info. My own skills let me see the status of myself and plants I’ve absorbed—but not other people. Nikolaus’s ability must be something else entirely. But if I think too hard about wanting it, I’ll probably end up spending my last 10 skill points, so I’d better drop the thought.

It seems the ability to read someone else’s status depends on the difference in magic power. Since my mana is immeasurable, not even Nikolaus—the most powerful mage in the country—can read mine.

(So if he can’t see it, no one probably can. …If anyone did see it, I’d be done for—it clearly labels me as a 「calamity-level monster.」)

My goal of someday changing that label to 「harmless monster「 remains unchanged—but for now, at least I don’t have to panic. That alone is a relief.

Just then, the light-blue seedling returned. Nikolaus picked it up too.

「…Another one. But this one’s different again. …Wait, how many of these do you have?」

(Three more are on their way… Maybe it’s better to just show them all and convince him none of them are his.)

The remaining seedlings returned one after another. Each was promptly grabbed, inspected by Nikolaus, and declared, 「This one’s not it either」 before being placed on the table. The last to arrive was the purple one. But when he picked that one up, unlike the others, he stared intently at it.

「…Hey. What is this?」

(Well… Ritter-san saw it mid-evolution, so I had to finish what I started…)

「Monsters usually choose their own evolutionary path, right? So it chose to become this? Why? Is this because it observed you? What kind of dumb… no, genius thought process is this? This Mandragora is fascinating.」

Nikolaus looked extremely intrigued, clearly seeing it as an exciting research subject. As its former body, I was internally screaming in horror, expecting the worst. But instead, the purple seedling—despite being held by the stem—struck a bashful pose.

It was practically saying, 「Oh, you~!」 in a flirty voice. …Yeah, this one really is weird. Where does it even learn this stuff?