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After taking off the strange little girl's hat, Amamiya Natsuki clearly saw a small purple mushroom growing among her golden hair.
"Eh, eh, eh?"
Tsubame-senpai was startled and instinctively took half a step back: "How can she have mushroom growing on her head?"
"Stay calm." Amamiya Natsuki said calmly, as if nothing had happened, "Many people even grow various stones on their joints, some as large as pigeon eggs. It's perfectly normal to have an mushroom growing on one's head, right?"
Koyasu Tsubame's lips twitched slightly: "Stones growing on joints... that sounds very familiar."
Amamiya Natsuki said in surprise:
"Tsubame-senpai also has gout?"
"Of course not!"
Tsubame-senpai couldn't help but exclaim.
Those gout stones usually only grow on people who overeat, right! She diets and exercises every day to maintain her figure; she won't get gout!
"Tsubame-senpai, the random quest is complete." Amamiya Natsuki reminded her.
Koyasu Tsubame looked at the quest panel and said in surprise: "It's really complete."
After speaking, Tsubame-senpai's eyes shifted, and she couldn't help but look at the little girl held in Amamiya Natsuki's hand.
The two of them hadn't looked for any other mushroom at all; in other words... the mushroom on the little girl's head was the quest target.
Amamiya Natsuki was constantly on guard, ready to unleash Seize and Eliminate Evil on Little Red Riding Hood, but this little girl seemed to be just an ordinary person; after being caught, she had nothing special about her except for trembling.
"This mushroom..."
Amamiya Natsuki extended his right hand, gently touched the mushroom on the little girl's head, and tugged it slightly, finding that it wasn't an ornament but something genuinely growing.
"It, it hurts." The little girl's eyes welled up with tears, like a pitiful creature suffering violence, and she pleaded softly, "Please don't pull it out, I'll die!"
"Don't worry, you're not an ordinary person; believe in yourself." Amamiya Natsuki comforted her, "An ordinary person wearing such thin clothes would have frozen by now."
"Please don't continue!" Little Red Riding Hood trembled, her eyes misty, begging incessantly, "I really will die!"
Koyasu Tsubame felt a little unbearable, but she also knew Amamiya Natsuki was doing something important, so she didn't stop him, only saying:
"Li... Little Red Riding Hood, right? Why do you say you'll die if the mushroom is picked?"
The little girl looked at Tsubame-senpai with teary eyes, sniffing, "Because Grandma died that way... I don't want to die like Grandma."
Koyasu Tsubame felt even more unbearable.
Aside from the mushroom growing on her head, this Little Red Riding Hood looked completely like an ordinary human child. Let alone her being a novice, even if Chika were here, she would definitely feel compassion.
"Natsuki-kun, let's not pull it out yet, okay?"
Tsubame-senpai bit her lip, looking over hesitantly.
"Tsubame-senpai." Amamiya Natsuki raised an eyebrow. "Come here."
Hearing this, Tsubame-senpai's heart skipped a beat.
Did her words make Natsuki-kun angry?
Did he want her to come over to bully someone to vent his anger?
Don't overthink it; Natsuki-kun isn't such a rough boy!
"I'm here."
Koyasu Tsubame took a deep breath and walked in front of Amamiya Natsuki.
"Tsubame-senpai, try touching the mushroom." Amamiya Natsuki pointed at the mushroom on the little girl's head.
"Okay."
Koyasu Tsubame nodded lightly and reached out to touch the mushroom on Little Red Riding Hood's head.
The next second.
Game item identification appeared before her eyes.
[Name: Hallucinogenic Mushroom]
[Category: Cursed Item]
[Effect: The Hallucinogenic mushroom produces invisible spore powder, enveloping a certain area with the host as the center. Ordinary people entering this area will gradually experience hallucinations and eventually become mentally confused.]
[Note: Violently removing the mushroom will result in the host's death.]
"The mushroom actually has a hallucinogenic effect?"
Tsubame-senpai's expression changed slightly.
The seemingly ordinary mushroom was actually super dangerous... Well, an mushroom growing on someone else's head isn't ordinary at all.
Amamiya Natsuki said calmly:
"If I'm not mistaken, the time it takes for someone to completely fall into an illusion should be ten minutes."
Koyasu Tsubame instantly understood.
The ten-minute time limit given by the mission was actually the escape time; if they exceeded ten minutes, they would likely fall into an illusion and be unable to leave.
As for what would happen after being enchanted by the little girl… this was a dangerous game dungeon, so it certainly wouldn't be anything good.
"Natsuki-kun, I'm sorry."
Tsubame-senpai took a deep breath and apologized earnestly.
If Amamiya Natsuki hadn't discovered the secret of the mushroom, after ten minutes, both of them would probably have become prey.
"Senpai is right, you really can't just pull it out, so…"
Amamiya Natsuki spoke while letting go of the mushroom on Little Red Riding Hood's head, and patted the little girl's head.
"I've decided to use a knife."
A chef's knife appeared out of thin air in Amamiya Natsuki's right hand.
Koyasu Tsubame: "…"
Violently pulling out the mushroom would kill someone, and cutting it off with a knife would also kill someone!
"Don't worry." Amamiya Natsuki took out the dark chef badge and chose to wear it. "As a senpai chef, I have a lot of experience in handling dark ingredients."
That's right.
Just as Amamiya Natsuki saw the mushroom, a text prompt appeared before his eyes.
"You have discovered a dark ingredient. You begin to think of a hundred ways to stew mushrooms."
Since it was a dark ingredient, then there was no problem.
One must know that in Haunted Town, he had made many kaidan tremble and soak themselves with his dark cooking skills.
At this moment, after wearing the dark chef badge, the method of picking the mushroom on the little girl's head quickly appeared in Amamiya Natsuki's mind.
"Senpai, have you heard of deer antler?"
Amamiya Natsuki turned to look at Koyasu Tsubame.
"I have." Tsubame-senpai nodded. "The antlers on the head of a sika deer. It is said that after being cut off and processed, they can be used as a tonic, but I'm not sure if it's really effective."
"Whether deer antler is useful or not is a matter of opinion." Amamiya Natsuki looked at Little Red Riding Hood. "But fresh deer antler often requires the freshest picking method… Senpai, help me tie up this Little Red Riding Hood and hang her upside down on a tree."
Koyasu Tsubame: "…Coming."
After experiencing the dangers of the dungeon world again, Tsubame-senpai finally made up her mind. From now on, no matter what Amamiya Natsuki said, she would seriously execute it, even if it meant aiding evil.
"What, what are you going to do?"
The little girl's expression was panicked.
Amamiya Natsuki smiled, as if he were the evil hunter:
"Don't be afraid, I'm a senpai chef, and my knife is super fast."
"…"
Apart from the special mushroom on her head, this Little Red Riding Hood herself was quite ordinary, showing no extraordinary strength or physical qualities, so she couldn't escape Amamiya Natsuki's clutches at all. In a short while, she was tied up with a rope.
Koyasu Tsubame now understood that everything Amamiya Natsuki did was purposeful and not out of idle impulse, so although she was puzzled, she didn't ask many questions, just silently helped.
A moment later.
The roles of hunter and prey were completely reversed, and Little Red Riding Hood was hung upside down on a tree by the two of them.
"Different ingredients require different picking methods." Amamiya Natsuki explained, "To pick the mushroom from her head without harming her life, this is the only way."
After putting on the Dark Chef's professional badge, the method of harvesting the mushroom naturally appeared in his mind. It was indeed necessary to hang the little girl upside down, and it was not a mischievous prank.
"Is that so."
Koyasu Tsubame nodded, half-understanding.
"No… don't pick my mushroom! I'll die, I'll really die!"
Little Red Riding Hood hung upside down under the tree, struggling like a caterpillar, causing the accumulated snow on the tree to fall rustlingly.
"Don't be afraid, it will only hurt a little." Amamiya Natsuki comforted her, "My technique is very good, no need to worry about heavy bleeding."
Koyasu Tsubame's lips twitched slightly, and she couldn't help but glare at him.
She's still a child, don't tell dirty jokes in front of children!
After waiting a moment longer, Amamiya Natsuki spoke:
"Senpai, hold her."
"Okay."
Tsubame-senpai heard this and stretched out her arms, hugging Little Red Riding Hood tightly, not letting the little girl move.
Amamiya Natsuki held the chef's knife, and with a swift motion, the knife fell.
"Congratulations, the operation was very successful."
Amamiya Natsuki held the mushroom in front of Little Red Riding Hood.
The little girl only glanced at it, and her eyes instantly filled with despair.
"Natsuki-kun." Koyasu Tsubame said from the side, "Can we let her down now?"
"Yes."
Amamiya Natsuki nodded, his gaze falling on the small and cute mushroom. The game actually gave an item certification.
"Item: Hallucinogenic mushroom"
"Type: Ingredient"
"Attribute: After consumption, greatly increases mental resistance for a short period."
"Please note, this mushroom needs to be specially cooked before consumption, otherwise you will be in a state of confusion and disorientation."
"Remarks: This item can be carried out of the dungeon space."
At the same time, Koyasu Tsubame had already put the little girl down.
Little Red Riding Hood's expression was despairing, but after waiting for a while, nothing happened, and a puzzled expression appeared on her face. She reached out to touch her head and murmured:
"The mushroom… is gone?"
Amamiya Natsuki raised his hand and said:
"It's here with me."
The little girl's expression was blank: "I didn't die?"
"That's why I said the operation was very successful." Amamiya Natsuki returned the hat to the little girl. "Now can you tell us what happened with the mushroom?"
The little girl put on her hat, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, and began to narrate intermittently.
She forgot how long ago, for some unknown reason, some residents of the fairy tale kingdom suddenly grew mushrooms on their heads. At that time, some people violently removed the mushrooms, but they would die on the spot. If left alone, as the mushrooms grew larger, people would become evil.
Like just now.
After Little Red Riding Hood discovered Amamiya Natsuki and the other person, she immediately started counting mushrooms—
In the icy and snowy land, everything was desolate, and even animals had nowhere to forage, let alone humans.
Where did the food come from?
Humans and mushrooms were no different. Since humans could eat mushrooms, it was normal for mushrooms to eat humans.
The two that the little girl had just counted were actually Amamiya Natsuki and Koyasu Tsubame, two emergency rations.
It was nothing when she had the mushroom on her head, but now that the mushroom was removed, Little Red Riding Hood immediately became scared and stammered out the reason.
Amamiya Natsuki listened noncommittally, then said:
"Do you know about the nightmare seed?"
The little girl's expression was blank, "I don't know."
"Wait a moment."
Amamiya Natsuki took out a small mirror the size of a palm, which he had borrowed from Takanashi Rikka yesterday. It was a truth mirror that could determine whether someone was telling the truth.
Rikka was staying in the real world, so borrowing a prop was naturally no problem.
Holding the mirror in front of Little Red Riding Hood, Amamiya Natsuki asked the question again.
"I don't know."
The little girl still shook her head blankly.
"It seems that the nightmare seed is not easy to find." Amamiya Natsuki pondered, "Of course, I need to verify it a few more times before I can draw a conclusion."
"Natsuki, is this the surprise that can only tell the truth?"
Koyasu Tsubame looked over curiously.
"It's not absolutely capable of judging truth or falsehood, it can only judge the player's psychological recognition. For example, there are still many foreigners who firmly believe that the Earth is flat. Even if those people say the Earth is a top, as long as they sincerely believe it, it will not be judged as a lie."
Amamiya Natsuki finished speaking and handed over the Witch's Mirror. "Senpai can try it herself."
Tsubame-senpai looked at the mirror: "What should I say?"
Amamiya Natsuki said from the side:
"Senpai can say she's not cute and see the effect."
"I'll try…" Koyasu Tsubame looked at herself in the mirror, exhaled lightly, "I'm not cute."
As soon as the words fell, Koyasu Tsubame felt her mouth being controlled by an invisible force, and she involuntarily shouted:
"I, I am very cute!"
Amamiya Natsuki said from the side: "Senpai, be a little more modest."
"It's not like I wanted to say it." Koyasu Tsubame's pretty face flushed slightly, and she handed over the mirror. "I couldn't control it."
Amamiya Natsuki took the mirror, and a flash of inspiration suddenly passed through his mind.
Wait.
Perhaps he could use that method to find the nightmare seed…
"Shall we continue to look for Chika-chan and the others?"
Koyasu Tsubame cupped her hands to her mouth, exhaling to warm them.
Amamiya Natsuki nodded: "Let's go."
First, gather the team, then consider the mission.
After taking two steps, Amamiya Natsuki's clothes were suddenly tugged by someone.
Turning to look behind him, Little Red Riding Hood reached out her right hand, grabbing Amamiya Natsuki's clothes. Her small face was full of pleading, and she bravely said:
"Brave person, please save my grandma."
Before entering the dungeon, Amamiya Natsuki had specially changed into a cosplay costume and used the acting skill to play the Brave person, although his actions had nothing to do with a Brave person.
Amamiya Natsuki raised an eyebrow and said:
"Didn't you say grandma died?"
"Actually, no." Little Red Riding Hood said pitifully, "Grandma also has a mushroom on her head, that's why I didn't want you to go forward, because you would encounter grandma, and once grandma discovered you, I wouldn't get my share."
"Is it just ahead?" Koyasu Tsubame raised her hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "It looks like it's on the way."
Amamiya Natsuki glanced at the senpai, then looked down at Little Red Riding Hood again: "What special ability does your grandma have?"
If the old grandma was quite terrifying, then he would definitely hide as far away as possible.
"Special ability…" The little girl tilted her head, "Grandma seemed to say that she has an ability related to the Big Bad Wolf. If she is eaten by the Big Bad Wolf, she can still come out of the Big Bad Wolf's belly."
Come out, your sister! Even in a fairy tale world, there should be some logic!
Being eaten by the Big Bad Wolf and still being able to jump out of its belly is simply unscientific!
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"Has your grandma verified it?"
"No." Little Red Riding Hood shook her head. "Grandma was never eaten by the Big Bad Wolf."
"It's better not to let your grandma verify that," Amamiya Natsuki said faintly. "Because that's a super special ability that can only be used once in a lifetime."
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars and become a Sequence: 9 Reader for hundreds of additional chapters and over a dozen stories