Chapter 245: The Largest and Most Dangerous Forest in Promethia: The Active Forest — Part 2.

As they delved deeper into the humid, pulsing heart of the forest, the "nanny" routine began in earnest. Johnn wasn’t just fighting; he was curating the environment for Maddy. If a stray vine so much as leaned toward her path, Johnn’s tonfa was there to swat it aside with the delicacy of a butler clearing a cobweb.

"Careful, Maddy! Don’t step on that damp patch—might be a sludge trap!" he’d chirp, literally using his cape to sweep a path for her.

Maddy’s eye twitched. She felt less like an adventurer and more like a porcelain doll being carried through a hurricane. Every time her hand even twitched toward her own blade, Johnn would let out a dramatic gasp.

"Ah-ah! Partners don’t let partners get sap on their gear! Watch the master at work!"

[New Monsterpedia Entry Added: Walking Mushroom]

[Walking Mushroom — Habitat: Forests / Swamps / Damp Caves]

[B RANK — Magic: 340,000 | Might: 180,000]

[A small, mobile fungus creature that drifts or waddles slowly through damp environments. Walking Mushrooms release spores into the air, which can cause hallucinations, drowsiness, or poisoning depending on the variant. Though individually weak, they often appear in clusters, creating hazardous zones filled with airborne spores. Some are harmless, while others are highly toxic.]

[New Monsterpedia Entry Added: Mandrake]

[Mandrake — Habitat: Forests / Fields / Herbal Groves]

[B RANK — Magic: 400,000 | Might: 150,000]

[A small, plant-like creature resembling a root vegetable with a humanoid shape. Mandrakes are known for their piercing, supernatural scream, which can disorient, paralyze, or even incapacitate nearby creatures. They remain buried underground until disturbed, at which point they emerge violently. Variations exist among Mandrakes—some have simple clusters of leaves growing from their heads, while others possess blooming flowers with tooth-lined mouths that emit their own shrieking cries. Despite their size, they are highly dangerous in groups or when encountered unprepared.]

A cluster of the strange creatures emerged from the bioluminescent undergrowth. The Walking Mushrooms waddled their caps bobbing ridiculously. Beside them, the Mandrakes pulled themselves out of the soil, their little wooden "toddler" arms flailing as the mouths inside their head flowers snapped at the air.

Johnn let out a boisterous, genuine laugh.

"Look at them, Maddy! It’s a parade of groceries! A mushroom with legs? And that one looks like a grumpy garlic bulb! Ha!"

Maddy didn’t laugh. She adjusted her cloak, her eyes scanning the stats hovering over the creatures’ heads with a cold, culinary precision.

"You’re right about one thing, Johnn—they are groceries. In fact, once you’re done playing with them, we’re going to harvest the lot."

Johnn eyes widened in confusion.

"You are... joking, right? I mean look at them, they do not look like something you can eat—"

Johnn’s eyes widened in confusion. "You are... joking, right? I mean, look at them! They do not look like something you can eat—they look like something that would give you a stomach ache just by looking at them!"

Before he could argue further, the lead Walking Mushroom’s cap began to vibrate violently. With a sound like a punctured bellows, it unleashed a thick, neon-purple cloud of Paralytic Poison Gas. The mist expanded rapidly, hissing as it touched the surrounding leaves.

"Great job, Johnn," Maddy deadpanned, not moving an inch. "You made them mad. Now they’re seasoning themselves with toxins."

"Whoops! My bad, Partner!" Johnn yelled, his grin never wavering. "Don’t breathe that in—I’ve got a specialized ventilation system right here!"

He didn’t back away. Instead, he planted his feet and brought his heavy tonfas together with a deafening CLAP. The impact of the two magical wooden weapons created a localized sonic boom.

A massive, focused gust of air erupted from the point of impact. The gale didn’t just blow the purple gas away; it compressed it. The toxic mist was forced back onto the mushrooms and mandrakes with such pressure that it turned the gas into a corrosive vapor.

The creatures shrieked as their own poison, intensified by Johnn’s mana, began to melt their fungal bodies into a colorful puddle. In a flash, the "parade" was reduced to a neat pile of harvested ingredients.

Johnn spun his tonfas and winked.

"Clean as a whistle! Though... are you sure you want to eat something that just melted itself?"

"Of course I’m not going to eat that now!" Maddy snapped, her voice dripping with venom as she stared at the glowing, multicolored sludge bubbling on the forest floor. "How are we supposed to eat them when you’ve literally turned them into a chemical soup? You didn’t harvest them, Johnn; you liquidated them!"

Johnn’s triumphant grin faltered, his shoulders slumping slightly. He looked down at the puddle of melted mushroom and sighed.

"Aw, man... but partner, they were spraying poison everywhere! What was I supposed to do? Let them turn us into statues? I was just looking out for your lungs!" 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Maddy let out a sharp, frustrated breath, her hood shaking as she turned her back on him.

"We have a literal mountain of high grade antidotes in the bag you paid for, you idiot! You take the hit, drink the potion, and keep the meat intact. It’s basic survival math."

She didn’t wait for a rebuttal. She adjusted the strap of her heavy shield and began marching deeper into the humid, pulsing greenery, leaving the "Hero" standing in a pile of sawdust and slime.

Johnn stood there for a second, watching her retreating figure. Instead of being offended, his eyes began to sparkle with an even deeper level of admiration. He hoisted his gear and hurried to catch up, a goofy, smitten smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

Wow, he thought, his heart thumping with excitement.

"She really is something else. Most people scream and run from a poison cloud, but she’s thinking about the nutritional value! She isn’t scared of anything—not the forest, not the monsters, not even eating a toxic Mandrake. She’s so hardcore!"

"Wait up, Partner!" he called out, his energy returning tenfold. "Next time, I promise! I’ll let the next garlic toddler bite me right on the arm if it means you get a decent steak! I’m learning! I’m learning!"