Episode 3: Hide-and-Seek in the Glowing Mushroom Forest

In the deepest and most secret valley of the Lumina Forest, there was a mysterious secret flower garden hidden by sunlight even during the day. It was a ‘luminous mushroom colony’ where giant mushrooms the size of houses each emit fantastic neon fluorescent lights of turquoise, purple, and pink. It was the best playground on earth for pranksters in the forest, where soft spore dust floated like fireflies under the mushroom cap, and soft velvet moss created a blue haze every time you stepped. On a small moss rock at the entrance to the valley, the old snail guard captain ‘Snelly’, whose shell was covered in fluorescent moss, slowly waved his antennae and welcomed the two friends.

“Oh my, it’s Ollie the little owl and Benny the squirrel! Are you coming to explore the mysterious mushrooms again tonight?” “Hello, Uncle Snelly! We’re having the hide-and-seek match of the century here today!” Olly patted his stomach and greeted him cheerfully. Uncle Snelly smiled happily as he looked at Ollie's yellow star shorts.

“Hehe, those yellow stars shine like a lighthouse even in the dark, so you don’t have to worry about getting lost. But you should never go near the ‘Sleep Spore Mushroom’ on the inner cliff side. If you touch it by mistake, you will wander around in sleep for three days and nights.”

“Yes, uncle! I’ll keep that in mind!” Benny responded by wagging his tail, but his eyes were already full of adventure, determined to find the best hiding place. “Oli! You’re the tagger this time! You can’t open your eyes until you count to ten!” Benny the squirrel tightly closed his acorn bag and darted behind the giant purple glowing mushroom stem. Ollie rested his forehead against a large turquoise mushroom pillar and covered his round eyes with his two small wings.

“One, two, three… four, five… Benny, don’t go too far! Deep valleys are dangerous!” “Don’t worry! I’m the king of hide and seek in the forest, so you’ll never find me!” Benny's playful voice echoed distantly through the dreamy spore fog.

“Six, seven, eight… nine, ten! I’m looking for you!” Ollie opened his eyes and looked around. The whole place was shimmering with colorful fluorescent lights. Overhead, scarlet mushroom caps were spread wide like umbrellas, forming a soft roof of light, and underfoot, luminous moss was spread like a carpet, so that not even Benny's small footprints were left behind. On the left, the 'Melody God Mushrooms', which emit a brilliant xylophone tone whenever they are touched, shake with a do-re-mi-pa sound, and on the right, the naughty 'Fart Mushrooms', which emit rainbow-colored scented smoke when lightly touched with their feet, stimulated Olly's curiosity.

“Wow... every time you step on the melody mushroom, music plays along with the sound of the bell!” Flutter-! Pong, pong, pong! Every time Ollie took a step, the silver bells in his shorts pocket made a clear sound, and the melodic mushrooms added a soft harmony.

“Oh, I’m going to be caught because of the bell sound and the mushroom melody!” Olly burst out laughing and gently held the bell with the tip of his wing. However, Ollie's yellow star shorts showed off their unrivaled presence even in this luminous mushroom forest. This is because the yellow stars on the cobalt blue fabric were shining brightly like nebulae in the night sky, receiving the purple and blue-green fluorescent lights emitted by the surrounding mushrooms.

“Benny! Where are you hiding? It looks like one of the squirrel’s tail hairs is sticking out from behind the mushroom over there.” Ollie exclaimed slyly as he stalked through the giant pink mushroom forest. But that was right then. An urgent and sharp scream came from the deepest rock wall of the colony.

“Wow! Ollie! Help me! My foot won’t fall off!” It was Benny’s tearing scream! Ollie's heart sank. He released his hand that was holding the bell and started running furiously as if his legs were powered by a motor towards the dark canyon where the sound came from. Crash! Crash! Where Ollie ran, the ‘Giant Sleep Spore Mushroom’, the most notoriously dangerous animal in the forest, was wriggling its hideous purple wrinkles. Benny was so greedy that he wanted to hide in a place where others would never find him, and ended up falling upside down into the sticky crevice of the spore mushroom crater.

Even the precious acorn bag was stuck to the crater's sticky material and was on the verge of sinking. “Benny! Hold on tight!” Ollie shouted, but the situation was extremely dangerous. The spore mushroom that was stimulated began to open the crater at the top, making a strange breathing sound. Sweet yet dizzying purple sleeping spore powder was rising from inside the crater. If you inhale that powder, you will fall into a deep sleep for several days and there is a great risk of being exposed to wild beasts in the forest.

“Cough! Ollie, my body is losing strength... my eyes keep closing...” Benny was moaning in a hazy voice and was being sucked deeper and deeper into the mushroom crater. “Benny, wake up! Don’t close your eyes! Look at me, Benny!” Ollie looked around. It would be nice if he could fly up and catch Benny, but Ollie can't fly yet. Ollie, who was stomping his feet, caught his gaze on his yellow star shorts.

‘Yes, using this sturdy suspender strap and spring mushroom!’ Without hesitation, Ollie quickly climbed up the stem of the huge blue-green ‘elastic rubber mushroom’ that was rising right next to the spore mushroom. Ollie, who had climbed to the top of the mushroom cap, unbuttoned one button of the sturdy leather suspender strap hanging from his shoulder. The suspender straps that my mother, Serena, had woven tightly with the moonlight silk thread of the silver spider Arachne, were surprisingly tough and highly elastic.

“Benny! Grab the end of my suspender strap!” Ollie firmly grasped the edge of the cap of the elastic mushroom with his claws, launched his body into the air as if he was bungee jumping, and threw the suspender string as hard as a fishing line towards the spore mushroom. Whisper - thump! The golden acorn button at the end of the suspender strap touched Benny's small paw exactly.

“Gotcha, Ollie!” “Good! Squeeze with all your might! Pull!” Ollie placed all his weight backwards, pressing the soft butt padding of his shorts against the surface of the elastic mushroom cap. The elastic mushroom bends backwards like a taut bowstring, and then ting! With a loud roar, Ollie was thrown into the air with great elasticity. Poooong-! Ollie's body rose up like a rocket and pulled Benny, who was hanging on his suspender strap, out of the sticky spore pit in one go. Even the acorn bag came together like a miracle. The two friends drew a parabola in the air and were well out of the range of the spore mushroom.

And then it fell down onto the soft luminous purple moss on the floor. Rustle- Boom! Thanks to Ollie's puffy yellow star shorts perfectly absorbing the impact like an airbag, the two friends were unharmed. “Puha… I lived!” Benny was held in Ollie's arms, breathing heavily and rubbing his chest.

“Benny, are you hurt anywhere? Are your eyes closed anymore?” When Olly brushed Benny's cheek with a worried face, Benny hugged Olly's neck with tears in his eyes. “Oli... I’m sorry. I was so stupid and greedy... If it weren’t for you, I would have been stuck and become food for that scary mushroom.”

“Fool, what kind of apple is an apple? It’s okay as long as you’re safe! We’re best friends!” Ollie smiled brightly and patted Benny on the back. At that moment, finger-sized fairies of light emerged from the surrounding fluorescent moss bushes. These were the ‘Lumi Moss Spirits’ who guarded the mushroom colony.

“You brave little owl! I am deeply moved by your wisdom and courage to save your friend.” The head fairy of the moss spirits handed Olli and Benny a small acorn cup filled with silver dewdrops. “This is the ‘starlight honey dew’ that forms only one drop from a thousand-year-old fluorescent mushroom. If you drink it, the fatigue from your whole body will disappear as if it has been washed away, and your night vision will become brighter.” Ollie and Benny carefully took a sip of the sweet honey dew. The cool scent of mint and the sweet taste of honey spread throughout my mouth, Benny's head, which had been hazy due to sleeping powder, woke up, and warm magic surged up to the tips of Ollie's wings.

“Wow... my energy is soaring!” Benny waggled his tail. The head fairy of the moss spirits stroked his beard as he looked happily at the silver note and luminous badge on Ollie's shorts. “Good and brave little owl, let me tell you a secret legend. After midnight tonight, the ‘Great Rain of Shooting Stars’, which comes once every hundred years, will pour across the sky of our Lumina Forest. There is a legend that if you make a pure wish with all your heart from the top of the tallest tree in the forest, the stars in the night sky will give your soul the wings of a true miracle.”

“Really, Chief? Can a shooting star give me wings to fly?” Olly asked, his eyes wide and clutching his chest. “That’s right. But that wish is not just for yourself, but can only be fully realized when you have an altruistic heart that loves and cares for others. If you have the courage to throw yourself for your friend today, the stars in the sky will definitely listen to your sincerity.”

“Thank you, Chief! I won’t forget you!” Ollie felt an overwhelming flame of hope burning deep in his heart. Benny took out the raisins and roasted sunflower seeds he had saved from deep in his acorn bag and placed them in a small amount on Ollie's palm.

“Olly, this is a special snack that is like my lifeline, and I’ll give it to you today! Your suspender shorts are truly the coolest superhero outfit in the world. Tonight, during the Shooting Star Festival, I will definitely come up with you and pray for your wish to come true!”

“Thank you, Benny! You are the best friend in the world!” Ollie crunched the raisins and buttoned his shorts suspenders again. That night, after returning to the oak nest, Ollie was held in the arms of his mother, Serena, and excitedly told her about his adventure in rescuing Benny with his suspenders and the legend of the moss spirit village chief's shooting star.

“Mom! I wouldn’t have been able to save Benny if it weren’t for the acorn buttons and suspender straps you gave me! And if you make a wish on a shooting star from the top of a high tree tonight, you can get real wings!” Mother Serena's eyes were filled with emotion and she gently kissed Ollie's forehead. Then, I gave the hot evening primrose soup freshly boiled in the kitchen, topped with plenty of roasted acorn powder, and handed it to Ollie.

“I didn’t know that our Ollie would use the clothes so wisely to save others. Even if you don’t have wings, if you have big wings in your heart, you are already a true hero.” Mom added in a soft voice, pointing to the Milky Way pouring through the nest window.

“The stars in the sky shine in different colors and sizes, but none of them are precious. The yellow stars on our Ollie’s shorts will one day take your dreams to the highest place.” Ollie lay down on the nest moss bed and gently traced the yellow stars on his shorts with his fingers. Even though I couldn't fly yet, I wasn't afraid of any danger as long as I was wearing these clothes. The little owl's night was deepening with the most dazzling wings of friendship, courage, and earnest dreams toward the starlight.