"Utterly annoying!　What the hell is wrong with that guy?

　In a room of the palace, Lily shows her anger without hiding it.
　At that, everyone else gathered here was in agreement.

...... I'm sorry. I've been so ungrateful.

It's not your fault, Singh. It's that guy, Massouda, or whatever he is.

　Lily remembers the events of a while ago.


◇ ◇ ◇ ◇


　A search party has gathered to search for Kyou.
　But just as they were about to leave, they were intercepted by a man.

What do you think you're doing, Brother Massauda?

　To Singh, who approaches in a hurry, the man called Massauda, however, reacts coldly.

"What do you mean by that? You're the one who knows what you're doing.

　There, with obvious contempt, Masoudha tells Singh, "All the soldiers of this country belong to me.

The men of this country belong to me. No matter how much blood you have in your veins, the rights of me, your rightful heir, are greater than yours. Therefore, you do not have the right to move my men.

...... still reigns as king of this country, father. Even though your brother is the first in line to the throne, he is not in total control.

It will happen. . no exaggeration to say that it will happen soon.

　That statement upset not only Shin, but also the soldiers gathered here.

You know this. My father, the king, is ill and not much longer. When that old man dies, you know who will be king of the land, don't you?

　Against his father and the king of the land, however, no one here could refute his rhetoric, because it was none other than Masoudha, who is now acting as the power of the land on behalf of the sick king.
　Because it is none other than Massauda who now assumes power in this country on behalf of the sick king.

"And last time you took the liberty of leading an army to reinforce one country or another before I could stop you?　I don't see how we can allow them to move their troops here again, when they haven't even been punished yet.

　It's a good thing that you can't talk back to them.
　It's not a good idea to send out a search party.

It's unfair to send out a search party. The soldiers gathered here quickly return to their posts. That is all.

　After saying that, Masoudha left with the priest who was waiting next to him.
　As soon as he left, the soldiers who had gathered here also quietly disbanded.


◇ ◇ ◇ ◇


"I don't know if I'm the first heir to the throne of this country or what, but I still get angry when I think that he's the reason I lost my eyesight to find Kyou.

　Lily is not shy about complaining.
　But it is a feeling felt by everyone here.

How about we just go looking for Kyou-sama?

It would be ...... possible, of course, but the desert is vast. With this number of people, it would be difficult to share the workload ......

　Shin gives Fitis a difficult look at his statement.
　Together with Shin, there are only a few people here. Finding a human being who has disappeared from such a vast desert with that many people is as difficult as finding a diamond in the middle of a large amount of sand.
　It is precisely because they knew this that everyone here kept their heads down.
　But in the midst of this atmosphere, a girl's cry resounds.

...... oh no!

　It was Rock, who grew up as his child, who knew Kyou better than anyone else.

Oh no! ...... If you give up looking for Papa, oh no!

　So saying, Locke desperately clinging to Lily's legs while whimpering.

You can find out more at ......!　Rock, I'm going to go find one. ......!

　Seeing Locke shed tears as she said that, Lily smiled slightly with an expression of sadness, but immediately smiled to reassure Locke and sat down to the same gaze as her.

It's okay, Rock. I was planning to go alone to find him, and above all, I will find him.

　Saying that, Lily held the lock, picked up the sword by her side, and stood up to leave at once.
　Everyone else who was watching, whether in surprise or dismay, had a common smile on their faces.

"That's just like Miss Lily. So, I guess I'll just follow Miss Lily's example.

Yes, we should. Even if we have to look for it on our own. I just can't let you get there first.

"Then of course I'll go with you.

　Jack, Fitis, and Shin step forward to follow Lily's lead.

Thank you, guys.

　After thanking everyone for their help, Lily shrugs her shoulders and declares, "Let's head out to the desert to find Kyou!

Then let's head out to the desert to find Kyou!


◇ ◇ ◇


"...... apparently could have worked.

　Muttering I was staring at a demon that had been successfully cultivated in front of me.



"Master, what in the world is this ......?

　Now in front of me and Dora, there was a transparent gelatin cocoon-like thing.
　It was about a meter in size. It's growing out of the ground.

Well, if you wait a little longer, you'll know soon enough.

　Then Dora and I observe the cocoon-like thing in front of us.
　After a while, the cocoon starts to tremble, and then it blooms like a flower, from which an upper body female demon appears.

...... wow.

　The child yawns languidly and loudly.
　It looks like an adult version of Dora-chan.
　She has green hair that drapes over her shoulders and a face that resembles Dora-chan's. But the big difference is her lower body.
　But the big difference is her lower body.
　At first glance, the lower half of her body appears to be buried in the ground like a doliad, but there is something like a jellyfish umbrella in the lower half of her body.

　After scrubbing her slightly seated eyes with her fingers, whether she's out of bed and dazed or not, she notices me standing in front of her and bows her head with a smile.

...... Oh, hi, good morning. Mr.

　A woman saying that and greeting with a somewhat downbeat attitude, with dark circles under her eyes.
　At the same time, the lower half of her buried body - the umbrella part - stood up.
　Emerging from it were literally countless tentacles that looked like jellyfish legs.

　The upper body is a woman. The lower half of the body was a jellyfish, a rather strange monster at first glance.
　If I were to describe its appearance, it would be similar to that of Arlaune.
　The lower half of the body is united with large petals and buds.
　I've heard that mandragoras and Arlaune were originally demons of a similar nature, so this change may have come from that.

　While I was thinking about this, I was observing the child's lower body when she called out to me from a seated position.

"Hey, master. It's s*xual harassment to look at a woman's lower body so intently. Are you that concerned about the inside of my umbrella?

"Huh?　No, no, not that kind of thing, I was just looking at it because it's a bit unusual: ......!

Oh, really? I thought your husband was interested in my body!

　The woman gazed at me in a panic as she gazed at me happily.
　By the way, Dora-chan's cheeks are puffed up inside my chest, saying "mmmm~".

You'll be able to understand me?

Well, maybe a little bit. But it's only because he is the husband who gave birth to me. And that's it. I only know that Mr. Mandragora over there is my sister.

　Then he said, "Oh, but in this case, is she more of a mother than a sister?　The child in front of me who starts to worry, "Hmmm.
　Dora, on the other hand, said, "I wonder if she's my sister ......? And a complicated look on your face.
　Well, it's true that we should have inherited the same genetic material, but our personalities are very different.

By the way, what should I call you?

"My name?　Hmmm, I guess so.

　Hmmm, and after a moment's pondering.

"Well, then, mandrage.

　Mandrage?　...... Ah, a name that is a combination of mandragora and jellyfish. I thought it was so easy.
　But I couldn't think of any other candidates, so I decided to use that name.

Mandrage, by the way. By the way, Mandrage...do you know why you were born?

Hmmm, well, I know something about it. I think it's the same biology as your husband thinks. Oh, by the way, you can call me "Drage-chan".

Goodbye, Drage. Can I get on with it?

"I'm sorry.

　With that unwilling reply, Drage approached the slumped boy and grabbed one of the tentacles on his lower body, ripped it off, and thrust it into the boy's mouth, forcing him to eat it.

"You're so violent, man!

It's a little rough, but don't worry. This tentacle of mine contains the effect of the cure.

　I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to make it, but Drage said so, so I nodded my head to ...... and said, "Well, there's no problem.
　It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them.

　I'm sure you'll be happy to know that she's the new demon I've created.
　It is a new kind of demon that combines the characteristics of a mandragora and a desert jellyfish, with the therapeutic properties of a mandragora given to its tentacles, which are the plant parts.

　Ordinary desert jellyfish bury their bodies in the ground and use their tentacles, which are grasses, to capture their prey, but I cultivated them with the opposite image.

　If the tentacles are part of the plant, I wanted to give them the role of roots.
　To grow in the harsh environment of the desert, the role of the roots in absorbing water is very important.
　The tentacles of the desert jellyfish were reminiscent of algae at that time.
　And algae have the ability to absorb a lot of water.
　And I figured if it had the slenderness and abundance of jellyfish tentacles, it would have the ability to absorb a lot of water, even in a harsh environment like the Kalahari watermelon.

　Above all, it is in those roots that more nutrients will be gathered.
　If you think about it, Mandragora might have been worthy of the "root" in plants.
　There is a theory that mandragora was said to have been 'thankful for its roots'.

　It was this image that gave birth to the mandrage and gave its root-worthy tentacles a therapeutic effect.
　Most importantly, there were several parts containing the remedy, and the ideal first condition was that it should be a harmless part to take.
　There are many tentacles, and if they served as roots, they would have the ability to sprout back naturally even if they were torn off.

　As I learned during my last monster cultivation session, I realized that the most important thing is to have a precise image of the monster I want to create.



　It is based on the imagination I have in my head, which affects the actual cultivation.
　This may sound like a fantasy to say, but it is my "creation skill" that makes it possible.

　Originally, this skill is not just a skill, but one that should be possessed by a god.
　As Goddess explained to me before, this skill I possess is specialized for creating demons, but it has the power of creation, which is unmistakably that of a god.

　And the most important thing in such a creation is the image, or "imagination".
　The last time I saw a jack-o'-watermelon and the tree that produced the cockatrice, they both grew "exactly as I imagined".

　A pumpkin-shaped watermelon and a tree that gives birth to demons.
　They may look impossible from the outside, but creating them is my "creative skill".

　My father told me to have confidence. I finally understand what he meant.
　If you are bound by existing rules and common sense, you will not be able to create what you can create.
　In the case of this fusion of animal and plant forms, it was because I was confident that I could do it that I broke through all the conventional wisdom and gave birth to such "new life".
　It's just creating the imagination.
　My certainty proved that these new demons could be born.

Huh?

　As I was gathering my thoughts, Drage, who was feeding the boy the cure, tilted his head in front of me.

What's up, Drage-chan?

No, she's not getting better.

"Huh?

　At Drage's words, I involuntarily leaned forward and looked into the boy's face.
　It's true that his complexion has improved a bit, but he still looks as unwell as ever and is breathing out.

　Didn't the cure work?　Or did not take over the efficacy of the cure?

No, the cure is definitely coming through. And I'm sure he's doing well.

　While I was wondering like this, Drage-chan was next to me and explained to me.

We were able to treat the problem. Nevertheless, this child continues to suffer. That means it's something else.

"?　What does that mean?

　I seek an answer to Drage's meaningful words.
　To which Drage replied clearly.

That means her disease isn't her body. It's her mind that's sick.