"Master, what should we do! Everyone in the village has been turned into these things! How are we supposed to get to the Mushroom Kingdom now!" Nishi paced back and forth anxiously.
"There is a sound over here."
Cyan walked toward the back of the house.
"Eh?"
Nishi blinked, pricking up her ears to listen, but she didn't hear anything. She followed behind Cyan toward the backyard.
In the backyard, there was a well covered with a wooden lid, with a heavy stone pressing down on it.
Cyan walked over and knocked on the lid; a cry for help came from inside the well.
"Can anyone hear my call for help? Save me!"
Cyan sent the stone flying with a single punch, flipped the lid, and saw a person who looked like a sentient mushroom soaking in the well.
"Please, save me and pull me up!"
Toad saw the light and looked up at the people peering in, his face showing a look of surprise and joy.
"Master, I have a rope here!"
Nishi produced a rope she had "borrowed" from somewhere unknown.
"Let's save him quickly!"
Nishi lowered the rope and pulled the resident out of the well.
Cyan and Nishi learned from the resident that this village, called Gugu Village, was inhabited by a race called Toads—it was both the race's name and the individual's name. Not long ago, something terrifying had happened here.
Everyone in the village had been turned into various objects; he had only escaped because he accidentally fell into the well.
Nishi's eyes darted around as she hatched a plan. She patted the trembling Toad on the shoulder and inquired, "Big brother, with such a major event happening in the village, shouldn't you report it to the Kingdom?"
Reminded by Nishi, Toad realized what an important matter he had forgotten. He held his head in his hands and said, "That's right... I need to reach the Kingdom as soon as possible to report this to the Mushroom Chancellor."
Mushroom Chancellor... truly a Mushroom Kingdom...
Nishi almost burst out laughing when she heard Toad's words, but she managed to hold it in.
"You might encounter danger on the way. Why don't we protect you? We happen to have some business at the Kingdom as well."
"Really? That's wonderful!"
Toad's gaze couldn't help but drift toward Cyan. That black leather trench coat plus sunglasses, with a circle of fur on the collar. In Toad's eyes, this look was both cool and fashionable. Combined with the blade at her waist and her stoic demeanor, it all proved she was a powerhouse with explosive combat ability—safe, reliable, and trustworthy!
Hey! Why do you keep staring at Master!
I'm the one talking to you, can you stop looking at Master with such an expectant face!
Nishi noticed that Toad kept staring at Cyan and was very dissatisfied. She couldn't say it out loud, so she just puffed out her cheeks in a pout.
[Using Bronze Card, obtained 500 Survival Points and Fire Nectar.]
[Fire Nectar]
[Type: Recovery Item]
[Function: Restores 50 Health and Spirit, removes all status ailments.]
[Special: This recovery item can be used 3 times. 3/3]
[Note: Bowsette likes to use the nectar from Fire Piranha Plants as a face mask! Giving this nectar to Bowsette might make her happy?]
Not equipment... but being able to use it three times is not bad.
While being stared at by Toad's expectant eyes, Cyan was checking the item opened from the Bronze Card.
Next time, I'll let Nishi try; her luck is much better than mine.
Cyan remembered how Nishi had used a skill to steal the right arm bone of the Yokai Gaki the last time they faced it.
Thinking of this, Cyan looked at Nishi and saw a light glowing on her hand as she quickly swiped something from Toad's body.
I saw nothing...
Cyan pushed up her sunglasses, pretending not to see anything, and asked, "Is there anything you need to take? If not, we should set out immediately. The situation is urgent and we cannot afford to be careless."
"Yes! Let's go quickly!"
Hearing Cyan's words, Toad straightened his back, completely unaware that he had been robbed once by Nishi's Steal skill.
Led by Toad, Cyan and Nishi headed toward the Mushroom Kingdom capital.
"So big!"
Nishi's eyes widened as she looked in shock at the giant green-shelled turtle that was larger than a person.
"That's a Koopa Troopa, a soldier of the Koopa Kingdom!"
"What do we have here? I didn't expect to run into people from the Mushroom Kingdom while out for a stroll."
Atop the Koopa Troopa, a Goomba—looking like a sentient shiitake mushroom with fangs—peered out and saw Toad, Cyan, and Nishi.
(Goombas are also called Kuribo. In fact, Goombas were originally one of the primary residents of the Mushroom Kingdom; however, a portion of them defected to the Koopa Kingdom.)
"Traitor! A bad mushroom who joined the Koopa Kingdom!"
Toad clenched his fists in anger, glaring at the Goomba.
"Koopa Troopa, stomp them flat!"
The Goomba was enraged by Toad's use of the word 'traitor' and commanded the Koopa Troopa to attack.
Although its name was Koopa Troopa, its speed was actually not slow. Its thick shell provided extremely high defense, and it ran like a heavy tank.
Cyan grabbed Nishi with her left arm and Toad with her right, focusing Ripple into her legs.
Ripple Overdrive!
Using the power of Ripple to make her legs burst with even greater strength, Cyan left two footprints in the ground and launched into the air nearly ten meters high like a rocket.
"Waaaaah!"
The sensation of rapid ascent made Toad scream in terror.
"Kyaa!"
Nishi took a look at Toad's reaction, closed her eyes, and let out a somewhat performative scream while holding Cyan tightly with both hands.
"Shut up."
Listening to the dual-channel screaming from both sides, Cyan said impatiently.
Toad and Nishi immediately shut their mouths.
Bang!
As Cyan descended, she stepped on the Goomba, snapping its neck with her knee.
Hearing the Goomba's scream, the Koopa Troopa extended its head and saw the three people standing on its back.
Nishi seized the opportunity, and a clump of thick, black mud appeared in her hand.
Splat!
A clump of thick, black mud was smeared onto the Koopa Troopa's head.
The Koopa Troopa shook its head but couldn't shake off the mud covering its eyes. It retreated into its shell and began to spin, attempting to throw the people off its back.
As the Koopa Troopa began to spin, Cyan jumped off its back while holding Toad and Nishi.
Noticing the Goomba's corpse being flung toward them in mid-air, Cyan stepped on the corpse, performed a double jump in the air, and landed on a brick floating in the sky.
"Hide well."
Cyan placed the two in this temporarily safe spot and charged toward the Koopa Troopa, which was slowing down its rotation.
A brick that can float in the air! How much could this sell for!
Nishi looked at the brick under her feet, her eyes shimmering with the light of money; she almost wanted to kiss it.
Toad didn't know what to say looking at the expression on Nishi's face.
The Koopa Troopa felt the weight on its back disappear, stopped spinning, and poked its head out to look around.
"Where are you looking?"
Iai!
With a flash of the blade, a wound appeared on the Koopa Troopa's head.
The Koopa Troopa let out a cry of pain and retracted its head into its shell.
Cyan stepped on its shell, rolled to the ground, and crouched slightly with her back to the Koopa Troopa, gathering sword qi on her Demonic Blade.
Mugen-ryu: Gale Slash!
Cyan turned and severed the Koopa Troopa's legs before they could retract into the shell, then plunged the Demonic Blade deep into the shell.
Holy Flame!
Pale gold Holy Flame erupted from within the shell, taking away the Koopa Troopa's last bit of health.
Cyan looked at the completely dead Koopa Troopa and flicked the blood off her blade.
The Koopa Troopa's movement speed wasn't exactly fast, but it certainly wasn't slow either. The shell on its body provided powerful defense, but it also became its fatal weakness.
No card...
Cyan was disappointed that no card dropped after the Koopa Troopa died.
If I hadn't killed it, could it have become a means of transportation?
Cyan thought of the image of the Goomba sitting on the Koopa Troopa earlier and felt it was very feasible.
However, it was already killed and there was no way to regret it; she just wondered if the shell could be recycled for something.
"You are incredible! To kill a Koopa Troopa so easily!"
Toad hopped down from the floating brick, his eyes shining as he looked at Cyan, seemingly having become her little fanboy.
"How far is it to the capital?"
Cyan checked the time. Out of the two-hour limit, 1 hour and 20 minutes remained. If it was too far to the capital, she would have to find a way to speed up.
Toad looked thoughtful and after a moment said, "At our pace, if we don't encounter enemies, we should arrive... probably before dark."
"Too slow. Toad, is there a closer route?" Cyan interrupted Toad and inquired.
"There is, but we would need to cross Lake Goxin. Ferocious Cheep Cheeps and Bloopers live in the lake, and I'm afraid it will be very difficult to get across..."
Toad said worriedly, "I know you are very strong, but trying to cross Lake Goxin is just too difficult."
"The residents of Gugu Village have been turned into those things; the longer it takes, the deeper the effect on them will be. If we delay too long, who knows what the consequences will be. Toad, we need to reach the capital at a faster speed, even if it means taking risks. This is for the safety of the Gugu Village residents."
Cyan said with righteous selflessness. At this moment, her expressionless face behind the sunglasses was filled with a dauntless spirit of braving danger and disregarding her own safety, just like a hero.
In Toad's eyes, Cyan's aesthetic seemed to change, and the soft lines of her face appeared to become resolute.
"But, how should we cross Lake Goxin?"
Toad was deeply moved, but doing so was too dangerous. He tried to persuade Cyan to give up the idea of crossing Lake Goxin.
"We have this."
Cyan patted the Koopa Troopa's shell. Thinking of the small boats she often saw at the coast, Cyan felt that with a little modification, this shell could be turned into a shell-boat with decent defense to cross Lake Goxin.
"Time is tight, lead the way."
Cyan picked up the shell—she actually carried the shell on her shoulder!
"Yes!"
Toad's eyes widened in shock at the strength Cyan displayed by carrying the Koopa Troopa's shell.
If she ate a Super Mushroom, how powerful would she become!