As if tuning into Luigi's internal weeping, Nishi trotted over to Cyan's side and, with a highly conspiratorial flourish, produced a green mushroom covered in white spots.
[1-Up Mushroom]
[Type: Resurrection Item]
[Function: Carrying a 1-Up Mushroom is equivalent to possessing an extra life. Automatically resurrects the user upon death. The user can choose to revive within the current Survival Game world or return directly to the Survival Space.]
[Description: Ah~! Praise life~! There is absolutely nothing more important than staying alive, isn't there?]
"Hehehe~! I just swiped this from that big-nosed uncle. Here, it's a gift for you~!"
Wearing an expression that practically screamed 'look how generous I am', Nishi cheerfully held out the 1-Up Mushroom to Cyan.
"Life..."
Cyan didn't immediately reach for the mushroom. Instead, her gaze hardened. "I never want to experience the sensation of dying ever again. I won't die. Not a chance..."
"A 1-Up Mushroom? That is easily the rarest type of mushroom in this entire world."
Bowsette watched the transaction from her throne, a flicker of genuine surprise crossing her face as she eyed the item in Nishi's hand.
"Well, you're definitely not getting your hands on it!" Nishi shot Bowsette a deeply defensive look, physically forcing the 1-Up Mushroom into Cyan's palm.
"Humph!"
A flash of annoyance crossed Bowsette's features. Planting her hands on her hips, she snapped, "Do you honestly think I would resort to stealing your things? A 1-Up Mushroom is rare, sure, but it's not like I don't own any!"
"So that was your actual trump card?" Cyan murmured, a realization dawning on her as she recalled Bowsette's earlier threats.
"Naturally!"
Bowsette lifted her chin with pride, her heavy, spiked tail swishing lightly against the floor.
"Even though Kamek's betrayal is keeping me from mobilizing my true strength, I am no soft pushover the Mushroom Kingdom can just squeeze! What I told you earlier wasn't a bluff—if I truly wished it, I could sink this entire castle directly into the volcano's core!" Bowsette boasted with a smug grin, though her expression carried an undeniably villainous edge.
"I see. That kind of trump card would completely dictate the flow of the battle. The Mario brothers would absolutely have to retreat to ensure Prince Peach's safety. Their withdrawal was mathematically guaranteed."
Cyan quietly analyzed the true scale of Bowsette's contingency plan. The data suggested that even without her and Nishi's intervention, Bowsette likely possessed the means to force a pyrrhic victory.
"However, with Kamek backing them up, pulling the trigger on destroying the castle would have been incredibly difficult," Bowsette added honestly. "If Kamek had used his magic to transmute my activation mechanism into something harmless the moment I pulled it out, I would have been in serious trouble. I really would have been dragged back to the Mushroom Kingdom and forced to marry Prince Peach."
Just the mental image of the porcine, morbidly obese Prince Peach made Bowsette shudder with revulsion. If that actually happened, it would remain a permanent, unerasable stain on her entire existence...
A world where that happens might as well just burn to ashes!
The mere thought of that timeline triggered a violent spike of destructive intent within Bowsette, making her desperately want to smash that specific possibility into microscopic pieces.
"Master, just keep the 1-Up Mushroom in your inventory," Nishi urged, squeezing Cyan's arm. "If I die, I can just respawn. But if you die, it's game over for everything."
"Alright."
Cyan wasn't one to waste time on needless sentimentality. Given Nishi's logical breakdown, she smoothly deposited the 1-Up Mushroom into her system storage.
Shortly after, Bowsette summoned her remaining units to clean up and repair the damaged grand hall, while assigning a set of guest quarters to Cyan and Nishi. Just like that, the duo officially took up residence within the volcanic fortress.
Having originated from the war-torn Bakumatsu era of the Samurai Shodown Zero world, this was Nishi's very first time staying inside a massive, fully fortified Western-style castle. Her pure excitement was palpable.
She practically turned into a curious toddler, wandering through every accessible corridor. During their initial infiltration, she hadn't had the luxury of sight-seeing due to the constant threat of triggering aggro or exposing their positions. Now that she was recognized as an official guest of the sovereign, she could stroll through the fortress completely unbothered. The patrolling Koopa soldiers even bowed respectfully whenever she passed, which did wonders for her ego.
Cyan, meanwhile, remained safely anchored in a tactical vantage point. Cradling her demonic blade, she quietly processed environmental data. Because Bowsette's combat capabilities were severely compromised, the risk of an assassination attempt or an external raid remained high. Cyan had no intention of letting her primary quest target interact with unverified entities alone.
(Though, from Cyan's strict survival perspective, literally every single one of Bowsette's loyal subordinates counted as an 'unverified entity'.)
Eventually, Bowsette walked out onto the castle's open terrace, taking in the intense ambient heat radiating from the surrounding landscape. Inhaling deeply, a small spark of ignition flickered in her throat. Fire was the core engine of her life force; honestly, jumping directly into a pool of raw magma would probably accelerate her cell regeneration significantly faster.
"Exactly how long do you intend to shadow me?"
Bowsette cast a sideways glance at Cyan, who was standing at a perfectly measured tactical distance. Having an inseparable bodyguard glued to her flank was a massive adjustment for someone used to absolute solitary rule.
"My directive is to ensure your survival. Until your baseline strength is restored, I will maintain proximity," Cyan replied in her usual deadpan tone.
"That pale-golden fire you deployed earlier... what exactly was it?" Bowsette asked, stepping closer to Cyan.
"Holy Flame."
"I require that fire," Bowsette stated bluntly, staring intently at Cyan's expressionless face, a rare hint of hesitation tracing her features as if she were worried about a rejection. "Fire containing specialized divine or holy properties will allow my internal core to bypass the Ice Flower's suppression and heal rapidly."
"Clang!"
The demonic blade slid smoothly from its scabbard. As Cyan routed energy into the skill, a bright, pale-golden Holy Flame erupted across the length of the metal.
"I cannot maintain it indefinitely..."
Cyan presented the hilt with both hands, offering the burning blade to Bowsette.
Gulp.
Staring at the incredibly appetizing, concentrated essence of the Holy Flame, Bowsette visibly swallowed her saliva. Caught beneath the direct, piercing gaze of Cyan's clear, silver-white eyes, her cheeks flushed slightly. She let out a sharp cough to clear her throat.
"Can you... look away?"
"Understood."
Cyan complied instantly, closing her eyes.
Bowsette leaned down, tentatively taking a small, experimental sip of the Holy Flame off the blade. Her eyes lit up instantly. Abandoning all restraint, she began to devour the fire voraciously.
Under Bowsette's borderline predatory consumption, the Holy Flame was siphoned continuously from Cyan's hands. Suddenly, Cyan's Spirit Power (SP) pool felt like a bucket that had just had a massive hole blown through its bottom, draining at an alarming rate. Normally, 5 points of SP could easily maintain the Holy Flame for a full second. Right now, the system was logging a catastrophic drain of 10 to 15 SP per second. As Bowsette's eating speed accelerated, the drain multiplied.
[Cyan's Current Spirit Calculations]
[Base Spirit Attribute: 13]
[50% Attribute Stat Enhancement: +6 (Brings base to 19)]
[Gear Stat Modification: +3 (Brings total attribute points to 22)]
[System Note: 22 Attribute Points translates to a baseline pool of 220 SP. Combined with the flat +20 SP granted by her Magic Mithril Ring, Cyan possessed a max pool of exactly 240 SP.]
Under Bowsette's absolute whale-like consumption, that substantial reservoir was rapidly approaching rock bottom.
Almost as if she were instinctively trying to prevent Cyan from cutting off the supply, Bowsette's long, spiked tail snaked down and wrapped tightly around Cyan's leg. She pinned Cyan's hands in place, her lips completely enveloping the girl's fingers to catch and inhale every single particle of the Holy Flame the millisecond it manifested from her skin.
"Enough..."
The moment her pool ticked down to just under 40 SP, Cyan forcefully deactivated the skill. Beads of cold sweat rolled down her cheeks; burning through that much mental and spiritual energy in such a condensed window was an incredibly taxing physical experience.
"I'm still not full!"
Bowsette finally released Cyan's fingers, which now bore faint indentations from her teeth. A distinct, subconscious trace of a whine colored her voice—a pampered tone she didn't even realize she was making. Her watery, deep-blue eyes locked onto Cyan with pure craving.
"Next time," Cyan managed, taking a firm step back. She looked at the Bowser Queen as if facing a high-level boss entity.
She had run countless combat simulations, but she had never anticipated that Bowsette's rate of elemental consumption would be this monstrous. It had taken less than ten seconds to completely hollow out her entire spiritual reserves.
Glancing at Bowsette's health bar—which had already recovered by roughly one-fifth (20%)—Cyan felt a sudden, overpowering urge to turn around and sprint out of the castle. Even when facing the most lethal threats in the survival arenas, she had never felt this specific flavor of fight-or-flight panic.
"What an absolutely exquisite flame... that is hands down the most delicious thing I have ever tasted~!"
Bowsette gently patted her stomach, her tongue darting out to lick the corner of her lips with immense satisfaction.
The sight made the hairs on Cyan's neck stand completely on end, prompting her to take another cautious step back.
"What are you acting so terrified for? It's not like I'm going to eat you," Bowsette laughed, flashing her rows of sharp, pearlescent fangs.
You are significantly more terrifying than a literal man-eater... Cyan muttered silently. Outwardly, she maintained her perfect poker face, her silver eyes locked onto Bowsette with extreme vigilance.
"When exactly will your energy pools replenish?" Bowsette inquired, the blatant subtext being: When can I eat again?
"Tomorrow," Cyan answered after a brief calculation. Given her passive recovery rates, a full night's rest would easily top off her SP reserves.
Besides, the quicker Bowsette made a full recovery, the sooner she and Nishi could check off the completion criteria for Survival Quest 2 and finally exit this bizarre Super Mario Bros dimension.