Chapter 35: Ring

Chapter 35: Chapter 35: Ring

The towering canopy filtered the mottled sunlight, scattering fine specks of light onto the slick green lichen like little golden flowers.

Staring at the giant mushroom before him, its stalk as thick as an arm and its cap incredibly vibrant, Lu Wei sank into thought.

For some reason, it seemed like they just couldn’t get away from mushrooms on this adventure.

’I think this is called a fly agaric. The prototype for the mushroom monsters in Super Mario.’

’Then again, this one is way too big.’

’It’s almost a meter tall.’

’How could a mushroom even get this big?’

’Could Bai Ya have been mistaken? Was that big parasol mushroom from earlier actually poisonous? Am I already poisoned, and this is all just a hallucination?’

’Nah, that’s probably not it...’

After a quick scan of the area revealed nothing unusual, Lu Wei turned to Bai Ya.

"This one’s not edible, is it?"

"That’s right. It’s poisonous."

Bai Ya lowered her voice, her expression cautious as she advised, "We should get out of here, quickly."

Furen was taken aback. "Why?"

"Because..."

Bai Ya opened her mouth, just as she was about to explain.

But just then, the huge mushroom, mere inches away, suddenly twitched.

Seeing this, Bai Ya’s expression changed. There was no time to explain. She immediately raised a Wooden Stick she had picked up for convenience and brought it crashing down on the vibrant, crimson cap.

"WHUMP!"

It was like hitting a pillow. With a muffled thud, a large dent instantly appeared in the plump, round cap.

Then, to Lu Wei and Furen’s astonishment, the big mushroom swayed back and forth twice, almost like a person.

Then it limply toppled to the ground.

"SQUELCH~"

...

...

"That’s a Walking Mushroom. They’re also called ’Pujis’ because they make a ’puji puji’ sound when they walk."

"Unlike mushroom-folk, a Puji is still essentially a plant, it just happens to have legs. If its environment turns hostile, it will run off to find a more suitable place to grow."

"Usually, though, they stay still and disguise themselves as ordinary mushrooms to attract prey."

"When prey gets close, they spray a hallucinogenic powder. That’s why you have to knock them out before they can do that."

"There’s also a lot of toxic powder on the cap, so if you touch it, you have to wash your hands thoroughly..."

Three minutes later, Bai Ya continued her lecture while using a waterskin to wash Furen’s hands.

He had just yanked the Puji out of the ground.

Just as Bai Ya had said, the creature did indeed have two legs... or perhaps, two branches of its stalk.

’It’s actually kind of cute. Probably the monster I’ve seen so far that most resembles something out of an anime from my past life.’

"So, can we eat it?"

Shaking the water from his hands, Furen asked curiously, "It’s huge. That should be enough for a few meals, right?"

"Yeah. If you remove the legs and cap, the main body is edible."

Bai Ya replied honestly as she capped the waterskin, "But you can’t eat it raw. It has to be cooked."

"..."

’This scene and conversation feel so familiar. I feel like I’ve been through this before.’

Lu Wei glanced at the big mushroom on the ground, which had been uprooted "legs" and all, and lavished praise on Bai Ya.

"We really have you to thank for this one."

"No, no, I was just doing my part."

Bai Ya blushed at the praise. She tried her best to remain composed, but the corners of her mouth curled up into an irrepressible smile.

Just a moment ago, she’d been blaming herself for being a burden to the team. Now, she had immediately proven her worth. Nothing made her happier than earning her teammates’ recognition.

"But that was incredibly fast!"

Furen, standing beside them, added his own sincere praise. "If you’d been any slower, we’d probably all be poisoned by now."

"It wouldn’t have been a big deal, actually. A weak poison like that is easy to cure."

Even more delighted, Bai Ya volunteered, asking Lu Wei, "This Puji is just unconscious. Should I kill it?"

Lu Wei thought for a moment. "Is it valuable?"

"Er, not really. Even though it can walk, it’s still just a mushroom."

"Then let’s just leave it. Time to get back on the road."

"Okay... Oh, right."

Suddenly, Bai Ya remembered something else. "The books say Pujis love to grow near corpses, especially human ones. Should we take a look around?"

"If we find an Adventurer who died recently, we might be able to pick up some loot and Equipment."

"..."

’Seriously? I’ve never heard that one before.’

’And why does she look so excited about it?’

"In that case, let’s search."

No one could turn down a free lottery ticket. Lu Wei nodded, then stressed,

"But if we find a body, no one keeps anything for themselves. Everything comes to me first, and we’ll distribute it all together later."

"Right!"

"Of course!"

Bai Ya and Furen immediately nodded, agreeing that they would never do something so despicable.

’Excellent!’

Lu Wei gave a slight nod, very pleased with their response.

’It’s only been half a day, but with my strict guidance, they’re finally starting to look like a proper Adventurer Squad!’

...

...

About ten minutes later, Furen was the first to find the corpse.

Hearing his shout, Lu Wei and Bai Ya quickly followed the sound. They found a skeleton next to a large boulder.

The bones were scattered all over the ground, but they were picked clean. It looked like an anatomical skeleton model from a classroom had been smashed to pieces.

’This clean, and right on the surface... it was probably eaten by wild animals.’

’Large beasts, smaller animals, insects, ants... if they all took their turn, it would end up looking like this.’

’As for the cause of death...’

Crouching beside the skeleton, the keen observation granted by his high Perception quickly came into play. With just a single glance, Lu Wei spotted a faint mark on one of the ribs.

"Look here. This isn’t a bite mark. It’s an injury from a Sword or a blade."

"A blade wound? You think it was a bear goblin?"

Furen and Bai Ya, gathered around, both looked surprised.

After all, as far as they knew, bear goblins were the only creatures around that used bladed weapons.

As a subspecies of goblin, bear goblins possess great size and Power, as well as a higher level of intelligence. Some can even use Magic Items.

They tend to prefer heavy weapons like hammers and axes, but with no arms dealers in the forest, they usually have to make do with whatever they can get their hands on.

So it wouldn’t be strange to see one wielding a Sword.

"Impossible. Given a bear goblin’s Power, a mark like this wouldn’t be so shallow. It would have cleaved the rib clean in two."

Lu Wei analyzed, "Besides, we’re not that deep in the forest yet. It’s unlikely a bear goblin would be wandering around here."

"Then maybe a Kobold? I’ve heard some of them use weapons."

Furen offered his own theory, stealing a glance at Bai Ya, worried the topic might bring up painful memories for her.

But Bai Ya seemed to have moved past that dark memory. She nodded openly.

"Yes. I remember several of the Kobolds from that pack a few days ago were carrying Stone Daggers and Wooden Spears."

"Perhaps. But my gut tells me this was the work of a human."

Lu Wei stood up, having reached his conclusion. "After all, if it were a goblin or a Kobold, there wouldn’t be just one mark. They’d have kept hacking away at the body even after the person was dead."

"Ah..."

Mouths slightly agape, Furen and Bai Ya’s expressions turned to shock.

"How could someone do that!"

A moment later, Furen clenched his fists, his face filled with anger. "The forest is dangerous enough as it is, but to kill one of your own... People like that are despicable!"

"People will do anything for personal gain."

Lu Wei shook his head in resignation. "Let’s go. Looks like we won’t be finding anything here."

"Aren’t we going to bury him?"

Furen asked hesitantly, "Isn’t it wrong to just leave his remains here like this?"

"..."

Lu Wei looked at Furen and Bai Ya. If he were alone, he definitely couldn’t be bothered with something like this.

But seeing how downcast they both were, he could only agree.

"Fine. Let’s dig a pit and bury him. Be quick about it, don’t hold us up."

"Okay! I’ll do the digging!"

Furen agreed, pulling a small shovel from his pack and immediately getting to work.

Lu Wei gathered the scattered bones.

Meanwhile, Bai Ya picked a small bouquet of colorful wildflowers.

Soon, the skeleton was placed in the shallow pit. Once covered with dirt, a small burial mound stood before the three of them.

"Friend, we don’t know your Name, but may you find Rest."

"May your journey lead to eternal starlight."

Facing the small mound, Furen and Bai Ya each murmured a prayer.

A breeze swept through, gently rustling the petals of the wildflower bouquet. Silence and tranquility enveloped them, broken only by the whisper of wind through the leaves.

"Wait..."

Suddenly, Lu Wei’s gaze fixed on the side of the small mound. He seemed to have spotted something.

As Furen and Bai Ya watched in confusion, he strode forward, squatted down, and skillfully plucked a silver Ring from the loose dirt.

He brushed off the dirt and examined it closely.

It was very plain, with no patterns or decorations. The only marking was a Name engraved on the inside, now too worn to make out clearly.

[Silver Ring]

[Species: Accessory]

[Level: Ordinary]

[Value: 70 Copper Coins]

[Introduction: An Ordinary Silver Ring, engraved on the inside with the name ’Luna Rossi.’ Aside from any sentimental meaning, its Value is equivalent to its weight in silver.]

[Note: Though its Value is not high, a young maiden once spent her entire savings on it.]