Reincarnated as a Mushroom?

Chapter 43: The Monster's Wrath 2

With a growl, the gunner slammed his weapon against the ground. A surge of magical energy coursed through the machine's core, causing the barrels to glow a searing red. Then, without hesitation he pulled the trigger once more.

This time, the bullets weren't just bullets. They burned with arcane energy, turning them into molten projectiles that hissed through the air, melting through stone upon impact.

Bo's smirk vanished.

She twisted midair, firing again but this time, something was different.

A bullet she shot was no ordinary bullet.

It shimmered as it spun, cutting through the air unnaturally fast. The moment it made contact with the gunner's bullets, an explosion erupted midair, canceling out the projectiles.

The gunner's eyes went wide.

Bo landed gracefully on the ground, rolling her shoulders before exhaling another puff of smoke. "Didn't I say you're too slow?"

But the battle wasn't over. Not yet.

Meanwhile, the sword warrior stood before the priestess, his breath steady but heavy. "I'll be needing your blessings again."

The priestess nodded, gripping her staff tightly. The moment she began her incantation, the stone embedded in the staff pulsed with an intense, blinding glow. The air around them thickened with divine energy, swirling in golden currents. A warmth spread across the warrior's body as the blessings poured into him, his muscles tensed, his mind sharpened, and his very spirit roared with newfound power.

The priestess, however, remained focused.

She had done this before. Many times. And every time, it was necessary. These invaders never stopped. They kept coming, and coming, and coming. It was always the same humans encroaching where they didn't belong.

As she chanted, unaware of the looming danger, a presence slithered towards her from the shadows.

A mushroom mage.

Cloaked by the dim battlefield, its hands were already raised, a deadly incantation forming at its fingertips. The air around it crackled, dark energy coalescing into a sinister spell.

But before it could strike.

A hand.

Large. Hairy.

It lunged from the side.

The mage's instincts flared, danger screaming in its mind.

Without thinking, it moved.

A fraction of a second too late.

The beast tamer's claws scraped past its robe, tearing fabric but not flesh. A miss. A close one. But now, the mage had been seen.

The beast tamer inhaled deeply, her nose twitching. Her golden eyes sharpened.

"I caught your scent," she said, turning toward him with a slow, deliberate motion. "You can't hide from me."

The mage stiffened.

She pointed directly at him. "There."

He had no choice now.

With a deep breath, the mushroom mage emerged from the darkness, his glowing eyes meeting hers. A wry chuckle escaped him. "Impressive. But your trump card… is the creature in that bag of yours, isn't it?"

She smirked. "What do you think?"

The ground beneath them trembled.

The mage took a step back, gripping his staff. Then, with deliberate intent, he slammed it against the stone floor. A ripple of red energy pulsed outward.

From the soil, something stirred.

A red tip, barely visible, peeked out first.

Then it rose.

A massive body burst forth from the earth, its flesh thick, its form monstrous. A towering beast of fungal might. The war mushroom.

It loomed over them, an apex predator of its kind, its gaping maw twisting into something akin to a smirk.

The mage gestured toward it. "Let's see if your little pet can handle this."

A moment later, the war mushroom's body convulsed. A protrusion at its tip contracted before suddenly.

BOOM!

A viscous, venomous substance shot forth, streaking toward the beast tamer with terrifying speed.

But she didn't flinch.

Instead, she patted the side of her bag.

"Dinner time."

A mouth, sharp and gleaming, emerged.

In an instant, the wolf-like beast devoured the toxic sludge whole.

The mage's eyes widened.

Then.

The beast burped.

The girl grinned.

The battle had only just begun.

The battlefield trembled under the weight of unfathomable forces clashing. The war mushroom's venomous payload had vanished devoured whole by the beast tamer's pet.

The mage's fingers tightened around his staff. A dark, unreadable expression flickered across his fungal features. That attack should have been fatal. That venom wasn't just a simple toxin it was an alchemical concoction brewed from the most poisonous fungi deep within the forest. No living creature should be able to ingest it without suffering an excruciating death.

Yet, her beast… ate it.

And worse it burped.

The girl's smirk deepened. "I told you. You shouldn't just assume my little pet is weak." She knelt down, gently patting the surface of the bag. "You okay in there, buddy?"

A deep, guttural growl rumbled in response, vibrating the air. The very sound of it sent an eerie chill down the mage's spine.

He didn't like this.

But he wasn't done yet.

Lifting his staff once more, he channeled energy into the war mushroom. "Fine," he muttered. "Let's see if your creature can handle a real fight."

The war mushroom's body twitched.

It expanded.

Its pulsing flesh swelled grotesquely, its fungal form stretching higher, its red-tipped cap enlarging until it loomed over the battlefield like a monstrous tower. The protrusions on its surface began to contract once again but this time, they weren't secreting venom.

No.

They were spitting spores.

A dense, hazy fog erupted from the war mushroom's body, spreading in all directions like a slow-moving tide. It thickened in the air, coating everything in a fine, glimmering mist. A single breath of it would be enough to paralyze a fully grown beast, shutting down its nervous system completely.

The beast tamer's eyes narrowed.

The mage smirked. "Breathe in deep. Let your lungs fill with despair."

But instead of panicking, the girl remained calm.

Her hand brushed against the bag's fabric once more. "You hear that?" she whispered. "He thinks we're weak."

Another growl.

The bag twitched.

And then.

A clawed hand burst forth, faster than the eye could follow.

A giant dark claw.

(AN:

"Important Note to My Readers

I want to take a moment to apologize for the high privilege coin requirement for accessing my content. I realize it may be out of reach for many of you, and for that, I'm truly sorry.

As a new writer, I'm still learning the ropes, and I made an error when setting the privilege levels. Unfortunately, I've been informed that changes can't be made until next month.

In the meantime, I appreciate your understanding and patience. If anyone has any suggestions on how I can adjust the settings, please feel free to reach out.

Thank you for your continued support, and I hope you'll bear with me as I work to resolve this issue.)