I Picked Up a Witch from a Novel

Episode 3-a. A flower that smells of decaying corpses.

Adventurers, or travelers.

The resonance that word carries always echoes long in the hearts of people.

They are the ones who move towards the unknown, pioneering new paths.

Each of them had their own cherished dream.

Treasure, fame, a lover, or something else entirely.

Each individual, whether small or large, had their own aspiration.

Some may have wished to visit the gigantic forests where elves live, while others may have desired a famous sword made by dwarves.

The two children trailing behind me wanted to end wars, and the awkward man pretending to be a doctor, albeit poorly, dreamed of curing all diseases.

A certain noblewoman dreamed of the happiness of commoners, and an old dwarf living alone perhaps dreamed of the aspirations of the dwarf race.

I, too, had a dream.

I dreamed of something so vague and far-fetched that I moved forward.

I merely harbored the wish to rescue a single gray-clad lady in my childhood.

For that humble dream, when I took a step forward and looked ahead, the destination seemed impossibly far away.

To me, saving just one woman was no different from changing the entire world.

And, sooner or later, adventure and travel took on that meaning for me.

And.

Regardless of its size, all adventurers and travelers must take risks for their dreams.

Venturing towards the unknown means embracing the dangers that come with it, and only those who understand and accept these risks are called adventurers or travelers.

Even if it means pushing themselves to death, these are the people who take another step, and another, towards what they desire.

Though many along the way flicker out and die, never reaching their dreams, only leaving their stories unfinished.

Still, they continue, simply hoping they won’t be the protagonists of such tragic endings.

At my query about the whereabouts of the three people, the middle-aged villager chuckled and replied.

“Ho ho, the three must be just up ahead, no?”

“But I don’t see three people at all, Uncle.”

Pointing toward the flowers with my hand, it seemed the unusual attire of the three wasn’t visible to me, if my eyes were indeed normal.

Nevertheless, the villager scratching his head in frustration while walking toward the flowers continued.

“Hmm, they must be invisible due to the flowers nearby. Come over here and take a look, young man. How can a young one already have failing eyesight?”

With his hand beckoning me forward, his back remained ramrod straight as he led the way.

Even after toiling to pick fruits since morning, without once complaining, his pace was calm and steady.

This was true for the old man I met in the village and all the other residents diligently picking fruits.

Passing by the suspicious villagers, I approached the flower, but still didn’t see the three individuals.

“Excuse me, Uncle, but I still can’t see the three people.”

“Ah, young man, I didn’t know your eyesight was so bad. Here, look closely. The three are right there.”

The man turned and gave me a serene look, raising his hand to slowly point toward the flower once more.

And then,

Whack!-

As my body approached the flower closely enough, someone behind me pushed me forcefully.

Although it wasn’t enough to knock me down, it was as if I was pushed to touch the flower.

“…”

“There you go. You’re in the right spot.”

Finally, as I got close enough to the flower, I could see the three people like the villager had said.

Still, I wondered.

The villagers’ words and actions, their expressions and gestures, seemed so casual and at ease that it briefly crossed my mind that they might be playing a prank together with the three.

Until I confirmed for myself the faint shapes of the three people within the stalk, I had been nurturing such wild imaginings.

“…Are they still alive?”

Their shapes flickered but weren’t clear enough to determine if they were alive or dead.

“Ho ho, we’re not sure either, but wouldn’t it be faster for you to ask them directly?”

“…Hmm.”

Before I could turn to look at the villagers, roots grabbed my ankles and wrists.

So perhaps, as the villager said, the most expedient solution would be for me to enter and find out if they were alive.

Since the roots grabbing my ankles and wrists were gradually pulling me towards the stalk.

In other words.

The smell of decaying corpses that the flower emitted was probably not just the odor of decay but the real smell of flesh being devoured and breaking down.

I had thought it was merely a rafflesia emitting the smell of decaying corpses, but in fact, it was a nepenthes that also trapped humans.

“Initially, they were villagers.”

“…”

As the roots tightened their grip on my legs, dragging my body closer towards the stalk, a detached voice behind me spoke.

“When I was young, there was a tradition of selecting a few useless individuals from the village to offer as sacrifices. Sadly, it was usually the elders or the physically impaired who were chosen first.”

“You hypocrites, crying over killing innocent people.”

“Well… humans are like that. We naturally only value ourselves and our immediate surroundings.”

Even as he spoke, I could feel the strength gradually ebbing from where the roots had grabbed me.

“There was a time long ago when we could offer animals as sacrifices, but at least during my lifetime, that wasn’t the case.”

“…”

A flower that drains life.

And the bright red, round fruits it bore, resembling droplets of blood.

“Then we thought, why must it be us? If a few strangers sacrificed themselves, wouldn’t everyone be happier? After all, adventurers are said to advance despite the risk of death, so surely they are prepared for the worst.”

“…Madmen.”

“Ho ho, hurling insults won’t change anything. We simply didn’t want to die.”

The villagers called this flower the treasure of the village and ate its fruits that ripened once a month.

Perhaps because of this, none of the villagers appeared sick or weak.

“But breaking such an ancient tradition passed down to all residents isn’t simple. So we concluded that if someone must be sacrificed to the flower, it need not be us.”

“…”

The long-term consumers of the life force contained in the fruits wouldn’t be able to see the likes of adventurers and travelers sacrificed as offerings.

And amidst such musings,

I saw someone rushing desperately from a distant hill.

A dwarf wielding a bloodied hammer, two kids running with vials of potion, and a man in a white coat.

The villagers were all still staring at me and the flower, seemingly unaware.

“In fact, for adventurers who could die anywhere at any time, perhaps it’s not bad to die here. We can simply send anyone too strong to offer to the flower back the usual way.”

“…What a farce.”

Even their subtle consideration of calling me useless was on full display.

Dogshit.

“Then, young man, it’s about time you leave.”

“Not going anywhere, you scumbag.”

“Ho ho, those with foul mouths are usually weak. You seem quite frail, don’t you?”

So you see, it seems they expect me to reciprocate their gratitude by giving them a substantial gift.

Thinking thus, I rummaged through my chest pocket and pulled out several stones.

Each one was absurdly expensive, worth more than a month’s salary at any grocery store, which is why I had always kept them intact, never using them — one-use explosive stones.

Combined, they were probably worth the severance pay I received from Uncle Rendo.

Clenching these explosive stones tightly in my fist, I muttered while staring at the stem of the flower that was drooling in anticipation of devouring me.

“Alright, alright, ugly flower like yourself should eat as much as you can and grow big.”

Cancelling that compliment about how beautiful it looked under the moonlight.

On second look, this wasn’t a celestial being but just an ugly piece of shit.

Long and thin stem, extravagant head — it looked like a well-endowed man’s dick.

“Uh? What are you doing young man…?”

“What do you mean ‘what’ you son of a bitch? Feeding the flowers so they can grow properly.”

With that thought, I thrust my fist into the stem, planting the stones inside before hastily pulling it out.

Even in the short moment my hand was inside, I could feel my life force being drained so much that my arm dangled limply when I pulled it out.

“…That son of a bitch!”

With that hand, I flipped them off before drawing my sword to cut away the root binding my feet.

But the root was incredibly tough, and swinging my sword with the hand bound by the root did not easily sever it.

Unlike the stem, which was softer than expected, the root was tougher than imagined, and I couldn’t cut it easily with an unpowered blade.

As I swung my sword several times like this, the villagers glared in anger, grabbing hoes and pitchforks and charging toward me.

“Kill him! It’s a shame to turn this despicable man into an offering, but he must be killed!”

Look at them talk.

Anyone watching might think I’m the one who committed the crime.

While watching this commotion, I turned my gaze toward my nearby companions and shouted.

“Horn!!”

“Got it! The hammer is coming down!!”

With a *boom*, a villager’s head disappeared entirely.

Brains and blood splattered over the other villagers, and the once-peaceful situation turned chaotic instantly.

Even amidst the chaos, Avery’s slow-following toss of a potion bottle exploded with a *bang*, intensifying the confusion.

Of course, some villagers, with eyes filled with rage, continued to charge toward me, but I had no time to deal with them, having to quickly crouch down.

It’s because…

*BOOM!!*

I was mentally counting the time remaining until the explosion inside the flower, since being caught in the explosion would mean my death as well.

The thick stem behind me shattered with a tremendous sound, spurting out a copious amount of sticky fluid.

The villagers rushing toward me were unable to evade the explosion and disappeared without even letting out a scream, leaving only their ankles behind.

After cutting the tough roots several times to finally break free, I rushed into the stem and pulled out the shapes of the three people.

“Ah… Someone, help here… uh.”

The villagers were still being herded by Horn as he swung his hammer violently.

The villagers rushing toward me had been wiped out in a single explosion, and the giant flower’s stem was tilting dangerously after half of its base had been blown off.

Still, my mind was far away.

Even though we had only shared a few days in a barn, still…

The three looked far too light to be grown adults.

Even though my own strength was waning while carrying them, there was no problem running with all three.

I urgently ran to where Avery was and carefully laid them down.

“…Avery, these three, are they still alive?”

“Give me a moment. I’ll check.”

He seemed to have just struggled to get up after groaning for a while and was still trying to comprehend what had happened. Nonetheless, he carefully examined the three I had laid down with a solemn expression.

Half of them were mummified.

The muscles once present in the muscular body of Goldsun were gone, leaving only a skinny frame, and the two women were skeletal.

Avery carefully examined the three like this, then pulled out some medicine from his robe and slipped it into their mouths.

“At least they’re breathing faintly, so I’ve hurriedly given them recovery and nutritional drugs. Frankly speaking, though, their eyes won’t open.”

“…”

As I could already tell from their mummy-like appearance.

There was neither a priest who handled holiness nor modern medicine in this place.

I knew it was ridiculous to even ask if they could save people in this state.

Just…

If they had talked about being childhood friends, or first loves, or living together harmoniously,

If they had laughed heartily talking about starting a proper family soon because they liked children and living together happily,

Then at least, isn’t it proper decency to open their eyes after being saved?

You bastards, Goldsun, and Gara girls.

With that thought, I picked up a handful of bright red fruits and kept feeding them to the three.

Meanwhile, screams from the villagers and shouts from Horn were audible from behind, but I was busy squeezing juice out of the fruits that the three couldn’t properly eat.

How much time had passed?

I left the task of feeding the fruits to Avery and the two kids and helped Horn finish the remaining tasks.

With a *crash*, the giant flower’s stem collapsed.

It was too big to cut down with a sword, so I had to use more valuable bombs to sever the stem.

And under the sight of the stem continuously spewing goo, there were only the corpses of villagers who had died under Horn’s hammer and my sword.

All the proud men of the village had died, leaving only the elders and women the village boasted about, who lost their will to resist.

Ironically, only their sorrow remained.

Only the resentful glances of those who had used the sacrifice of others to survive remained.

“…Feels like we’ve become the villains here.”

“If they lived on others’ deaths, they should’ve been prepared for their own.”

Horn spat bitterly as he said this, looking wryly, and I calmly looked on before answering him.

People say adventurers and travelers always prepare for death when they move forward.

But their deaths don’t come without sorrow.

The lives of those running toward their own dreams were no less valuable than those of others.

Perhaps because they were the ones ready for death, their lives were even more precious.

So, surely no adventurer or traveler wanted to meet their end as food for a man-eating flower.

With that thought, I turned my body and entered the barn.

In the barn, the three who were now in much better condition lay down, although their eyes still remained shut.

In fact, it was taking longer than expected for them to recover.

It wasn’t like we could just load them onto a creaking cart and take them to another city; we had to keep on nursing them where they lay among the hay.

“Avery, how are the three?”

“Um… their physical condition continues to improve, but their eyes still haven’t opened… On the bright side, thanks to the fruits given as recommended by Ain, their recovery speed is much faster…”

“So you think. Is it still a stretch for them to ride in the cart?”

“Um… In my opinion, this seems fine…”

Fortunately, after a few days, they were in a condition where putting them in a carriage wasn’t impossible.

I thought to myself that it was lucky while sticking out my tongue and saying as much.

“Put them on the carriage they came in. Horn’s going to drive our cart, and I’ll drive that one to the next city.”

“Ah, let’s do that…!”

It was time to leave.

Truthfully, we stayed way longer than we should have, but I truly believed it was time to leave that village.

It was a place I no longer wanted to look at.

The carriage creaked as it moved forward.

Of course, we didn’t leave behind the bright red fruits that had been so plentiful in the basket.

The petals, fluids, stems, and roots of the toppled flower were also more than sufficiently packed for Avery’s research.

In short, our stay in this place where we had only intended to rest reaped many rewards.

Avery even mentioned that he found quite promising materials for research.

So the unease buried deep within was probably…

The sight of the three lying on the creaking carriage with their eyes closed, and the hate-filled stares of the remaining villagers who watched our departure, probably had nothing to do with us.

We should have just shaken off all discomfort and focused solely on our original purpose.

Though…

Even if I thought that, the prickly, uneasy feeling didn’t go away.

So, while I quietly murmured under my breath while the carriage creaked and moved forward,

“What a disgusting mood, really.”

It was because the smell of decaying corpses seemed to still linger on my clothes.

I was thinking that once we reached the city, I’d take a long shower and wash all this filth out.

So…

If it weren’t for the weak voice coming from behind, I might have continued thinking about this.

“Haha… Mister. What troubles you so, Mr….?”

“…You.”

“Thank you… mister. Because of you, I’m alive… haha…”

Even with his weak voice, the man continued to laugh and address me as ‘mister.’

If there hadn’t been that man who called me ‘mister’ in gratitude, I might have continued driving the carriage with an uncomfortable feeling.

“You, you…!”

“Ah… all three of us…” alive, and it’s truly a blessing… haha…”

“You son of a…! Why can’t you all just be more cautious while you’re a piece of shit?”

However, those internal conflicts continued to spill out as harsh words.

“Hmm, is this finally… informal speech? Haha…” *wheeze*. Sorry… it’s too hard to talk…”

As soon as that familiar yet noisy voice reached my ears, the tension finally eased.

With a sigh of relief, my stiff back relaxed and leaned heavily against the driver’s seat.

The small village gradually disappeared from view.

What remained was only the enormous fallen flower and the villager’s corpses.

The ones left behind gazing with eyes filled with resentment, and the three who had been left permanently disabled.

And…

Bright red and spherical, fruits resembling drops of blood.

—

A small village and a bizarre flower.

Emitting the smell of decaying corpses while bearing sweet fruits, a large flower.

Initially, that flower was not a flower that ate people.

It was Ananta, a flower that sucked the life force of other living beings to produce life-filled fruits.

It was a long-forgotten plant from ancient times.

Starting as a small insect-eater, this ancient experimental plant evolved over decades, centuries, and even longer.

From tiny insects to small animals, then to appropriately sized wild beasts, and across the Imperia to humans, it grew by seeking out the living beings with the richest life force, eventually becoming what it is today.

You might be wondering about the small village’s reason for existence.

Yes, everything exists for a reason, even the smallest things.

Although the villagers had forgotten the original purpose over time, the reason for this small village’s existence was to be a reserve of food for Ananta’s growth process.

The cruel idea of some ancients who could glimpse the future through prophecy led to the creation of this village.

The ancestors of the villagers were thus carried forward, and although they were initially subdued by ancient magic and couldn’t even think about fleeing, the survival instinct proved to be a persistent force.

Driven by a strong desire to not die, the villagers found the opportunity and began pushing travelers in their place.

—

This.

Is the answer to your question, Ain, about the reason behind the existence of this small village, and why it had to be this way.

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