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Chapter 28 – The Arrival of Winter
I'm Arlaune, a plant monster girl.
I haven't been feeling well these days.
I'm sure this is the cause.
That's right, winter has finally come to this forest!
Because it's winter, the daytime is shorter, so I have less time to photosynthesize.
Because it's winter, the sunlight is weakened, so photosynthesis didn't produce as much nutritions as before.
Because it's winter, the animals have gone into a hibernation, so I hadn’t caught anything these days.
On top of that, I couldn’t get enough water because the soil is dry.
I wish someone would come to water me even if only during winter.
I will give them honey as a salary.
Ugh, it's painful....
My leaves and corolla don't seem to be in good condition as well. Maybe because the dry air have taken away the moisture from them. Just plain water won't be enough at this point. I also want some moisturizing cream. Of course, I still want water the most.
Lately. I also have been feeling especially lonely. My female knights have stopped coming and I won't be able to see them until the winter ends in a few months.
In winter, bees shut themselves in their hive. It's not like they are hibernating. They are just huddling together inside to keep their bodies warm. I'm sure it's called bee ball or something.
Forget about having a flower on both hands, my big sister --- Her Majesty the Queen, is literally having a lily garden surrounds her. How enviable!
Onee-sama, by all means, please invite me, too.
I'm feeling lonely and cold here.... no, wait, if I physically get in contact with the lily garden, I will be pollinated.
Should I continue to endure the cold? Or should I give up on my chastity for some warmth? It's a difficult choice.
Well, I don't want to be pollinated, so I won't go even if they invite me.
I’m fine being alone in this lonely forest.
Speaking of which, that white bird still comes regardless of the season. Does she enjoy to harass me that much? I really want to eat her, but if I do that, I will be completely all alone.
I will give up on eating her for now. Instead, let's listen to her chirping to burn time. I have less entertainment in winter than in other seasons because there are no visitors. My time for photosynthesis and basking in the sun has also decreased considerably.
The question is --- can she chirp? I mean, I’ve never heard that white bird making any sound until now. Normally, birds would be lively even if we left them alone. However, that white bird is always silent and just staring at me.
Maybe I should make a request here. There are even several type of birds that chirp like they're singing. I'm sure she also has a sense of professionalism as a bird. If I ask her, she will surely respond to my request.
"Hey, White Bird!"
It's been a long time since I've spoken. I still need a lot of practice.
I can't speak any louder than this, but I'm sure my voice have reached that white bird. In any case, I will just try to talk to her. I have nothing but free time on my hands, after all.
“Don’t you sing?”
There was no reaction from the white bird, only a silence.
Yeah, there's no way she could understand my words. I just wanted to try it because I'm bored.
When I was about to give up, there was suddenly a change of situation.
"Tweet.... "
Oh, she chirped! For birds, it's something like their job, after all. That being said, she doesn't seem very good at chirping. How do I put it, she sounded somewhat awkward.
I guess that white bird is not a pro singer, but an amateur. I'm sure she is also not good at talking, just like me. I feel a little closer to her now.
Maybe because she understood that she was not good at it, the white bird only chirped once and fell silent again after that.
Practice is the key to everything, White Bird.
"Once more!"
I asked for an encore.
".....tweet!"
Hmm, well, I guess it's better than before.
Okay, one more time!
I feel like a teacher in a music class right now.
"Louder!"
"Tweet! Tweet! Tweet!"
Yeah, she is getting better little by little.
But what is this? Did that white bird really understand my words?
Nah, there's no way she understands human language. This must be because I haven't talked to anyone for too long. It’s just something similar to when you call out to your pet bird, they would chirp in response.
In any case, this is quite fun.
This is exactly a kind of entertainment I need right now.
Oh, hey, wait, don’t run away! We are still in the middle of lesson.
The white bird flew away into the sky.
I'm back being alone again now.
I won't try to eat you anymore, so please come to visit me again later.
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I wish only birds that are white....
When I woke up in the morning and opened my bud, I noticed that there was some kind of white coating all over my body.
That's right, I’m covered in frost!
Frost is water vapor in the air that has sublimated into ice and adhere to objects that have been cooled below zero. In other words, my body was frozen like the contents of a refrigerator. It’s really really cold.
Even after I cleared all the frost with my vines, my body temperature shows no signs of rising at all. I'm a plant to begin with. I don't have a heart like animal, let alone a blood stream.
Moreover, everything is pure white as the whole forest seems to have completely covered in frost. The chilling air and frozen ground only emphasizes the coldness.
I also need water so much.
I hope all this ice would melt soon and turn into water.
Ugh, not good.
It's so cold that my body is losing more and more of its strength.
Instead of freezing to death, I feel like I'm going to die from exhaustion at this rate.
My stomach is also cold. I haven't eaten any preys for days and photosynthesis could only produce a small amount of nutrients.
I am already lack of nutrients, and now this cold weather. I wonder what will happen to me.....
Speaking of which, like how animals go into hibernation, deciduous trees shed their leaves to survive the winter. Then how about Alraune?
Leaves play an important role in producing nutrients through photosynthesis, but they are sensitive to low temperatures, freezing, desiccation, and also require considerable amount of nutrients to maintain.
That's why in winter, when sunlight is scarce, deciduous trees would shed their leaves so they don't have to work so hard to maintain them.
Hold on, isn't my situation seriously bad...?
My body hasn't been feeling well lately. Due to lack of sunlight, even if I photosynthesize, only a small amount of nutrients are produced. To make it even worse, I also couldn't get water from the ground because it's frozen.
If this continues, won't the flower, which is me, be shed to cut the maintenance costs?
I'm sure a new flower will bloom again in spring, but there's no guarantee it will have my memories as a human. Maybe I will return to being a mere plant monster at that time. If that really happens, it will be the same as death for me.
Say, what should I do? I might defoliate....