Chapter 2071: Entering The Abyssal Myconid Village, Treated As One Of Their Kind?

A group of Abyssal Myconid stepped out from the thick shadows that lined the edges of the passage. Elayne immediately wondered if they were the same wild ones she had encountered higher up in the Netherworld, but it quickly became clear that they were not. These ones stood taller and looked far more humanoid, with stronger, more refined builds. They wore simple clothes made of cured leather and carried practical weapons at their sides.

They belonged to a more civilized, smarter, and social kind of Myconid.

"A large group this time. Are you aware that you are once more trespassing the territory of the Shadow Cap Tribe?" asked the leader, a larger and more muscular humanoid mushroom with a giant dark cap covering his head and a pair of glowing red eyes. "Those that wish to go to the colosseum must go through the Nether Crystal Passage!"

"And be devoured by even scarier monsters?" sighed Marble, crossing her arms. "Don’t you even realize why everyone takes this route instead?"

"Hmph, you’re not respecting our territory, and you speak to us with such a tone? Who are you to—" The leader suddenly stopped mid-sentence and his glowing eyes widened. "A White Ghost...! Two of them...? Hm."

"I am Marble. I am a regular visitor here," she said calmly. "I am an acquaintance of Queen Spectria..."

"The Flame Monarch..." the large Myconid sighed with a mixture of respect and caution. "But what is this strange group the two of you are bringing along? Undead? Zombies... a Shadow! And... another ghost?"

"I am Elayne. Nice to meet you, sir," Elayne said as she walked forward and offered a polite greeting to the leader.

The moment their eyes met, something between the two of them clicked. The large Myconid clearly felt an unexpected connection. Elayne was confused at first, trying to understand what this strange feeling was.

"You’re... one of us?" he asked in open surprise, analyzing her appearance as his eyes ended at the top of her head, as if he was looking for something missing that every Myconid possessed. "But where is your cap?"

"Cap?" Elayne tilted her head as she looked at the top of her head and touched it with her hands, then she opened her eyes wide. "Ah! That! I... I shed it off in order to continue growing stronger, yeah!" Elayne explained. "But I did indeed evolve into an Abyssal Myconid. That power still remains within me... I suppose."

As she spoke, she allowed mycelial roots to grow from the soles of her feet and expand deep underground. The roots touched the vast colony that existed beneath the surface. Through that connection she felt a deep and ancient bond, along with memories that stretched across centuries of history. She sensed the progress this great aboriginal tribe had made in comparison to their wilder variants, and she became aware of the three dominant queens who ruled different sections of the territory. The youngest of the three was plotting something devious, while the other two worked to keep her ambitions in check.

Marble watched in quiet shock. She had never known any of this, yet it explained why she had always sensed some kind of Myconid power lingering around Elayne.

"Hmm, this is... a member from afar? And also... you are indeed very strange, even bizarre. You are not just one of us, but also something else... a hybrid? But that should not be possible..." the leader muttered as he studied her carefully. "And those giants standing behind you..."

"They’re my Sporeborns, living colonies grown from my own spores," Elayne explained calmly. "I mean no harm at all. I came here because I wanted to save people, but this woman has asked me to prove myself in the colosseum. The Queen of Flame is a distant relative of my spirit, Ignis." She gently summoned Ignis so the Myconid could see the spirit for themselves. "We want to meet her. Ignis seems sad that she has changed so much over the years."

"..."

"..."

"..."

The gathered Myconid looked at one another in silence for a long moment before they finally nodded in agreement.

"We will allow your passing, but with one condition. You must visit our village first," the leader said. "You see, our Queens are right now locked in some kind of cold war for territory and power... Our Queen, the middle sister, seems sickly. You who have traveled the reaches of the Netherworld might be able to find a cure for her. A warrior from our tribe has already gone to the colosseum in hopes of winning the tournament and obtaining a wish from the Flame Queen..."

"Oh wow, that’s a lot to take in. Do we really need to bother with these side quests?" Sailor asked, sounding impatient. "Let’s just move on and..."

"If you try to trespass without her permission, you will face our full wrath!" the large warrior declared firmly.

"Oh yeah? I’d love to see that," Sailor sneered as his aura began to surge with aggressive energy.

"If there is a way to solve this without violence, of course I would prefer that," Elayne said firmly. "Even more so when these Myconid are clearly civilized and not savages. Look at how they speak and carry themselves, Sailor. Please stop being so confrontational... you’re embarrassing me."

"Ah?! S-Sorry..." Sailor panicked the moment he realized how foolish he had been acting. "I apologize... I’ll follow her lead from now on."

"Hoh," the large Myconid warrior looked surprised by how easily Elayne had controlled the aggressive ghost. "Incredible. You can even control those that are not mushrooms. Are you perhaps a young queen yourself?"

"I did have the option to evolve into that path, but I refused it..." Elayne answered carefully. "So—"

"So she has the potential?!"

"A new queen!"

"A new queen has appeared? We must tell our queen at once!"

"W-Wait a second, I didn’t mean to stir up so much trouble. I only meant to say that I am not— Uwah?!"

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