W-Wait hold on for a second! I really thought the Mushroom Hero was some dummy thing, not really… serious, you know? I thought this whole dungeon was a baby dungeon for new players but it ended becoming a plot-relevant quest! And to make it worse, the Mushroom Hero wasn't a Mushroom like I thought… What a terrible disappointment!
…Anyways, when I looked into his Status he was a Level 18 Boss! Above all, it had some powerful attacks and mostly specialized in using the sword… and some magic I think? He seems to have died long ago but his corpse was well preserved… and now the Demon King used his powers to reanimate him as some sort of bizarre Undead oozing out with black sludge through all his body.
"P-Planta! What do we do?!" Asked Rita.
"We fight!" I said.
"I'll hold him on!" Roared Titan, as I showered him in buffs and then he put himself right in front of the Hero, who was slowly walking towards us while materializing a black sword made out of the miasmic mold forming all around his body.
"RAAAH!"
FLASH!
Suddenly, he was encompassed by pure darkness and flew directly towards us in a flash of shadows, reaching up to Titan and clashing against him using the blade. Titan hit the ground with his arms, sticking them into the ground below.
"I'll show you that I can also use my powers in certain ways! Wooden Shield!!!"
TRUUUUUMMM…!
Suddenly, Titan merged the Wooden Shield Spell with his own body and formed an enormous barrier of several layers made of super hardened wood! The wood began to spread across and grow thicker and thicker, as the blade of the Hero clashed against it!
CLAAASH!
The impact of his blade unleashed miasma and darkness everywhere, cracking through the entirety of the wooden shields made into layers, cracking and then shattering into many pieces. His miasma spread out through the wood, consuming it and turning it all into ashes! W-Wait a second! That type of attack is…!
"Decay Attribute!" Said Titan in shock. "This is bad! This Attribute can instantly kill low leveled players if they hit us, it drains our HP like crazy! Stay away from him!!!" Titan roared as he continued to form large walls of wood which the Hero slashed through with his blade leisurely, he was devoid of any emotion and seemed like the puppet of the Demon King.
For a few seconds, I was suddenly able to see gigantic claws manipulating the Hero's corpse through strange black threads… As if he was really being controlled like a puppet. But what is this? Can anybody else see this?
CLASH!
CLASH!
CLASH!
"UUUOOOGGH!" Titan roared, continuing to deplete his Mana into generating walls of wood that the Hero was slaying constantly without any issue.
As I was about to act, I noticed the threads suddenly moving and dangling, making the Hero slowly move around the walls that Titan was creating, constantly pressuring him.
"My child!"
And then, I heard the gentle voice of someone I knew… I had heard her before, a week ago when I started playing this game. It was… the voice of Gaia, the Goddess of Souls and Life?!
"Y-You're… Gaia?!"
"Yes… It is me. This is… an unexpected development beyond what all of us thought you could accomplish…"
"Eh? "Us"? Are you watching me with other people? What's going on?"
"I've granted you the ability to see the Phantasmal Strings of the Dark Demon King of Miasma, which are controlling the Mushroom Hero's carcass."
"S-So that's it… But is this allowed? Wouldn't it be unfair for the game? Are you an NPC or… a gave developer?"
"I am… me. Listen, child. Not everything is… as you've ever believed. For now, listen carefully. You must defeat this Hero before things go out of control. If you end up losing, he'll go loose into the outside world, and he might even consume all life in the forest and continue his rampage, growing stronger and stronger…!"
"What? That's a thing?!"
"The Dark Demon King of Miasma has been looking for ways to conquer the Continent of Verdant for a long time now… And yes, it is possible. Things… had gone out of control. This dungeon was sealed in a pocket dimension after all, it shouldn't had been available to the public! The System is really doing things that go beyond her boundaries!"
"Huh?"
"A-Anyways, dear. Now that you can see the strings, you must help your friends slash each of these strings, there are four of them, one for each limb. After you destroy each string, you can purify the mushroom hero by piercing his chest, where his core lays… Now go, I will be praying for you in the high heavens!"
"This is a bit too sudden!"
"I know, and I am very sorry…!"
"Okay, okay, fine! Let's do what we can do!"
Without realizing it, this battle ended turning into something greater than I could had expected. If we don't defeat this boss right here and now… The entire forest might be lost as it is absorbed by the miasma of the Dark Demon King of Miasma. All the friends I've made, and the ones I will make in the future… I cannot possibly let this happen to this beautiful forest that has brought… so much happiness to my life!
"Planta… Achlys, please do something! Stop sitting there!!!" Titan roared, snapping us out of our daze. I quickly hit the ground with my staff and immediately decided to do something, all while Acorn was hiding beneath my back.
"Acorn, give me mana potions!" I said.
"A-Alrighty! W-What are you planning on doing?!" Asked Acorn.
"I am going all out!" I roared. As I began to concentrate and activate several Skills and Magic Spells together. Through my journey in this game, I had learned something very important and an amazing feature that this game has… skills and spells can fuse their effects and even interact with one another to generate new effects! Fusing spirits to create even stronger ones, and more… I've learned all of this through that! And now… what if I fuse these spells with various other skills at my disposal… or my own body?
This is all experimental, but it is worth a try!
"Wooden Shield! Geomancy! Land Spirit Summon! Plant Manipulation! Spirit Enhancement!!!"
FLAAASH!
