PM Post-Chapter 6: Hidden Secrets

So, what's Peach going to get up to this time?

It's time to pull out the disguise umbrella.

Sounds good!

Unfortunately, it doesn't work on Twink. This is mainly because he's a party follower and the game doesn't put as much into making party followers have presence in the world as NPCs. Besides, I think this is just a disguise umbrella, Peach is hardly going to adopt Twink's physics.

Despite the fact that the far Koopatrol should be able to spot you if you try and sneak up on the rear one, these guys won't spot you unless you talk to them.

Making it easy to tag them.

The Koopa Troop has been hard at work since last time we checked their pulse.

And the news does not look good.

With our newfound freedom of access, we can walk into this room, and-

...Wait, this is our room.

Anyway, this is your last chance to deposit the Jammin' Jelly. And any other Badges you've picked up so far.

There are Hammer Bros. in the library. I never really though to check in here before, actually.

This guy doesn't really understand why bother keeping Peach confined to quarters.

Although I reckon he's hit the nail on the head with this guess.

I won't tell Bowser you're looking at the romance novels if you don't tell him I'm about to steal your face.

...I have never known there was a Shooting Star in here until I found it here. Pure utility, this isn't great, but still, it's free.

Into the box it goes.

All right, so what's up here?

...The mood in the castle is much different than usual. Bowser is taking this seriously.

Meanwhile, it turns out these guys have to deal with scheduling errors just as much as anyone else.

If we want to get up here, we're going to have to find this guy, and either drag him here or transform into him and force him to appear. Somehow I'm guessing the latter.

And we have another key to our name! Peach can actually leave her castle!

...Er, no, we won't be able to get outside without it. We've already been able to get downstairs.

No u.

Quiz show's been disassembled again, but not cleaned up. Amateurs. If you're gonna squat in Peach's Castle, at least treat it with respect.

All right, all right, I get it. Tetchy...

Of course, the Toad knows better than to come out when you're in disguise.

Found him. Of course he's sleeping on the job. I guess it is the night shift.

You thought it'd be that easy? I don't think this door is locked from the other side when Mario uses it, but we're never going through this door. Peach might be able to jump off and float down from here, but her parasol has never been depicted as protecting her from that sort of fall damage.

No. You're needed at your post. You can sleep there if you want, but get moving!

Rolls eyes idiot.

He's not even awake enough to notice we've stolen his face. Or, well, care, he's noticed.

This line is semi-interesting- Koopatrol jumps to the conclusion that Clubba is not supposed to be in the castle. Then again, it's not like we've seen them around often, this is probably more confusion than inter-enemy rivalry.

Sleeping.

As much as he's in the wrong for shirking his responsibilities, I do have to point out this patrolling is still pretty useless. Besides, you hired him.

This Clubba is about to have a really horrible day.

Now, what you're supposed to do is go through that door and go have a look at what's going on upstairs. Most people do this immediately, bringing the Clubba disguise.

I felt like having a change. I tried to catch this Hammer Bro while he was patrolling, and the instant I did so, I got caught.

The "you got caught" skit seems to have overwritten the fact I am currently in disguise.

Although the game has failed to recognise that I am in disguise so badly that it doesn't even take it away. This is amazing and I am so glad it happened to me.

...You guys really need to fix this window, you know. Regardless of when it happens, you're still paying the damages.

Climb some stairs, come up here, and...

You do need to still be in disguise to trigger the next cutscene. The game does not care about which one- Koopatrol, Hammer Bro, or Clubba- but you will be sent back to your room as Peach.

This rule is selectively enforced, but Peach's is not? I guess they got a thorough chewing out after last time.

Getting too close will make Kammy appear and be suitably ominous for her role in the story.

If that has any substance to it, we have good reason to be terrified. Bowser doesn't exactly have the best track record of his gloating coming with substance.

They have yes-men to keep them on whatever plan this is. So they better make it count.

She indicates Peach here. I think Peach actually looks around shocked.

(This is even funnier if you're still the Clubba- you know, the guy who is loafing his way out of doing the job for which he is paid).

Kammy's competent brain cell kicks into gear, and she notices that this soldier is non-regulation.

Although of all things, her perfume gave her away. Apparently, the same merchant that's giving Peach all the luxury cooking ingredients has also been hooking her up with perfume to keep herself smelling as nice as usual.

"And whichever one of you nincompoops let her possess the ability to create perfect disguises is getting fired out of a cannon into the sun."

I've gotta admit, I struggle to take Kammy seriously here, because her idle animation feels more like she's chewing gum than keeping up her ominous... actually, what is her "chewing" animation supposed to be portraying? Probably irritation.

Now for us to meet with our Star Spirit.

We're done with the cool Star Spirits. Back to the plain old "why did we bother giving them faces" Star Spirits.

Neat animation of Klevar blessing us with his power while not dropping his book.

Time Out is a Stop Watch, attempting to apply the Stop status to all enemies. Unlike the Stop Watch, a successful Time Out applies for 5 turns before the enemy's turn modifiers. Unfortunately, I am not aware of which boss is particularly weak to it, making it purely utilitarian and unlikely to see use. Speedrunners like to use it on one of the final bosses, but that's 30% odds with a -2 penalty. And yes, speedrunners hate it too.

Probably. I should use it more. The long recharge time on Star Powers doesn't encourage it.

You'd think a Star Spirit with a book and a bow tie would be more interesting.

Wise Wisterwood even takes over to congratulate us. Not that he had much more personality, but he did.

Sorry, there's nothing in Flower Fields I'm going to want to come back to.

These guys are having fun now.

Not really a question you want to ask. Either they're not spreading rumours or you'll learn uncomfortable truths about yourself.

If streamers are any indication, not good. Society was not prepared for the consequences of social media.

...It's still Lily who has the more pleasing design. The rose did not translate to the paper aesthetic.

Lakilulu has set up here, to be an NPC for the rest of the game.

And this whole song and dance continues to be what they're selling the relationship on. Spike changing his name is clearly supposed to be about peer pressure, but that's really not how they sell it in practice if he hasn't yet stopped asking people not to use his deadname.

It's also dumb heteronormativity all around. These two are not going to end well for each other.

So long, Flower Fields!

I'm glad to do it. But I'm also glad to see the back of it.

Also, she had a letter.

This letter is so weird. Narratively, the lore behind the letters is that Parakarry dropped them while doing his rounds, and we're finally getting around to deliver them. This letter doesn't really make sense unless it was written and sent after the game began- this letter probably could be delivered to pre-game Minh T., but it's so obviously about what Minh T. has done for Flower Fields during Chapter 6 that it kinda has to be written with that assumption. So Wise Wisterwood writes the letter during the cloudy state and then... dumps it in the grass for us to find?

And invites Minh T. over despite us not having saved the place yet. He has faith in us, at least!

...Good question. Maybe the Bub-ulb that told her about Flower Fields sent the message back. Which would confirm the letter comes from after we arrived.

Star Piece is ours.

...Yeah, now might be the time to say something. If only so you can get an answer of any kind.

...Although that might be overkill. And make things more awkward if it fails.

Three letters today, for mostly the later partners. I was worried when I only saw one.

Dear Mr. Kooper,
I must apologize for sending a letter out of the blue.♥ But I had to! I saw you walking in Toad Town with Mario. You seemed so strong and brave. So dashing...♥ If it's OK, I'd really love to have a talk with you. (Oh♥ How embarrassing♥) I'll write to you again soon. Good luck, brave Koopa!
Your Fan

...I don't really want to know, but at the same time, if you want to meet Kooper, you've kinda got to introduce yourself.

Dear Mom,
First I heard you were lost in the jungle, then I heard you were traveling with Mario! Don't do anything dangerous. Come back as quickly as you can. I'm waiting for you. You're gonna be a grandCheep! I want you to see the small fry!
Your daughter, Sashimie

The only thing worse than Sushie's name is the fact she passed that down to her kid. Hopefully Sashimie has a better name than Himono for the small fry.

And yes, Sushie is an older fish if she's got grandkids on the way.

Dear Lakilester,
Where are you? You'd better be a good Lakitu and return soon. I'll be faithfully waiting for you near the Wise Wisterwood. If you don't come back, I'll search for you 'til the end of time. I'll give you such a Spiny Storm you'll... I'm sorry, love... I get mad when I worry...♥
Your Lakilulu

...Probably should've let Spike go out on his own for a little bit more before getting this? We don't have many chances for Spike to get mail, though.

The Toads have gotten increasingly desperate for Peach to come back.

Oh yeah, no Twink. Not that Peach saw our next destination, but still. It's not like they couldn't have thrown him at us after leaving the Fields.

I live in Australia, and I still bundle up in long sleeves while indoors. I would be a popsicle in Snowman's Land.

Yeah, it is none of your business. Just stay down here in the warmer climates like a sane person.

Reports from the Bizarre Interdimensional Door: Another World, Same Story
A world populated by flowers lies on the other side of the mysterious door in Minh T.'s flower garden. It should come as no surprise to learn that Bowser's goons were causing trouble there. But guess what? Our own Mario did a little extermination of the pests in that garden! By kicking Bowser's underlings out of the world, he also saved another Star Spirit! Now that's flower power!

I think the funnier version of this billboard came earlier.

Door to Another World Opens In Center of Toad Town
Behind an unremarkable door that appeared in the center of Minh T.'s flower garden, a flower world seems to exist. Toad Town officials are considering a scouting team but there's probably no point, as Mario has already stepped through. We await word from him. Where did the door come from? And why? And how?
Mysterious Events Investigation Team

I just love we've gotten to the point where Toads are like "we could do something, but Mario's already there..."

××× and ○○○○ are ♥♥♥♥. Did you know that? Now their secret's out!
A gossip-loving Toad

...Uh huh.

Rowf's done, and it seems he's going to use all that cash we've given him over the game to move on to greener pastures. Good for him.

Yes, yes he is. It'll be no trouble, but I will have to actually try this time.

Oh yeah, remember how there were people in the castle other than Peach? It's been a while.

I... I don't want to say I'm sure they are. They probably are getting food, but on the other hand, this is Bowser we're talking about.

...I think there were a few more issues with this. Can people send care packages to real hostages?

...A lot of characters, in general, are stopping being relevant to the incoming chapter and are more setting up for the final showdown.

At least this guy has stopped doomsaying. Even if he hasn't stopped yelling.

...It's almost starting to get a little depressing. I think this is where the tone of TTYD and SPM came from.

"It's just a kid's game, it won't be so hard."
*Later*
"What do you know? The people who played the game for longer are the people who are better at the game!"

And we can't have that indignity on his pride! If I know kids, though, they'll be glad to have put their father on the backfoot. If they can still win, that's a huge boost to their ego. If they lose, it means Dad's really gone all out to match them at their own game and thus he's really engaged with playing with them.

So how's the wife reacting?

So far so-

That's such a great line. I think the father's unusual reason for being unemployed is part of the reason this arrangement is going so pear-shaped, but still. This family has been all over the place.

Sadly, the kids don't seem to talk about what their father is doing with them. Although they do make it clear they're idolising him for doing it.

To you. The person you love getting mad at you is genuinely a terrifying experience, because of all those conflicting emotions you get in the pit of your stomach. Plus, you probably did something to deserve it.

Please do not give him a hard time.

It's a known fact that Miss Tayce T. is the best cook around. Everyone says so. I've had the good fortune to try many of her dishes, and believe me, they're heavenly. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be her Yoshi Cookie. According to Tayce T., the recipe calls for Cake Mix and a Melon. Try it if you get the chance. I highly recommend it.

Healing 15 HP/FP a pop for two accessible (if tedious) ingredients? The Yoshi Cookie truly is one of the higher value recipes around.

I just heard a rumor... Apparently, there's a shop somewhere under Toad Town. I can only wonder what kind of goods they sell there. Some folks are saying you can find real bargains there, while others have been ripped off. Who's telling the truth?

This is about Rip Cheato. Everyone got ripped off, some people just made out with good items at over-valued prices. Like me!

In hot climates, Snowman Dolls seem to sell very well. It makes sense that warm folks want cold goods, right? On the other hand, people who live in cold areas pay dearly for Fire Flowers. One could make quite a profit if one bought and sold wisely.

An allusion to the variable sale prices found in Paper Mario's stores. Since we're heading to a cold place next, this obvious setup of taking the cold items to hot places and the hot items to cold places is about to be relevant. Snowman Dolls can be bought for 8 coins in the ice area and sold to Dry Dry Outpost for 12 (or Yoshi's Cabana for 10), while Fire Flowers can be bought from Yoshi's Cabana for 5 coins and sold back in the cold place for 8. For other suggestions, Tasty Tonics can be taken from Yoshi's Cabana for 2 coins and sold to Dry Dry Outpost for 5.

...Yeah, there's better ways of making money in this game than selling items- most selling items with actual cash are made from Cake Mixes, Ultra Shrooms and Jammin' Jellies. SPM has a much better "buy here, sell there" profit loop.

Koopa Village folk adore any food that has a bit of Koopa Leaf mixed in it. Koopa Leaf is an extremely delicate ingredient, so unless you cook it correctly, it won't taste very good. In these dark times, there are only a couple of people in the world who can successfully make Koopa Leaf dishes. I recall a shopkeeper at Koopa Village complaining about this...

And on that note, many recipe items with a Koopa Leaf as an ingredient, particularly the ones Koopa Koot asks for during his favours, have a higher selling price in Koopa Village than in other places. This is meant to be a clue to that, and it's an interesting implementation of the world-building.

Now how the hell did Luigi get on that? Luigi can jump higher than Mario in most games, but that much? Mario, why did you make him stay home?

Chalkboard. Almost out of Badges to pick up, that's kinda upsetting. And a few of those will be the ones up with Merlon.

...The more letters push down Rowf's, the more I wonder why I got that so early.

Dear Mario, The volcano stopped erupting! Please come back and visit! The village leader wants to see you, too. Everyone does! And we want to play with you! We bet you've been on all kinds of wild adventures! Remember to bring your stories!
The Yoshi Kids

Sushie: Panics.

I heard a rumor that I actually have lots of fans. Wow! What great news! To live up to their expectations, I want to play the lead in an adventure! Of course, my name would have to be in the title. That'd be sweet... But I know it'll never happen...

Luigi's Mansion, Mario & Luigi, New Super Luigi U, Dr. Luigi... the fans asked, and Nintendo delivered.

I heard that a door appeared in Toad Town. They say it leads to Flower Fields. I guess lots of Flower Spirits live in that flowery place. Flower Spirits... I bet their souls are as beautiful as the prettiest flowers...

Nah, they're jerks with vanity issues.

Next up on Koopa Koot, we need to find a package.

...Yyyyyeah. Let's go with that. I can just talk to them all, I guess.

"We became great friends, but not like I remember his name or any identifying features". I guess he is old.

Six chapters in, he's finally adopting some manners!

This one's the Boo we want.

Heh. Cute.

At least all we need to do is reload the map.

By the way, while we're here, Victoria accepted this guy's proposal.

For some reason, though, Bow's presence is required for the wedding to go ahead. I don't think she's the officiator (although I don't see why she wouldn't be), but this line sets up the reason this optional content is so impactful to the epilogue.

For some reason, Victoria's suitors continue to attempt to pursue her even though she's now engaged. Presumably, the setup to get these two engaged doesn't have a lot of under-the-hood stuff, and would likely not include a trigger to change these.

...Although on the other hand, they could just use the same trigger as the groom?

Going to visit the wedding NPCs was enough to get the Package to spawn. Thankfully.

Something I didn't find out until afterwards: You can go and talk to Yakkey in the Windy Mill!

You know what I need? A new secret to guard. Except this time, I want to guard some happy secret, like a present or something. Wouldn't that be the best? Guarding a gift... That's my new wish.

He knows his life's purpose, he just doesn't have one now.

Here you go.

This line sorta hints at the fact that Lava Piranha is a species, not a boss. The alliteration wouldn't be preserved if they used its current name "Venus Fire Trap"- nor would any sense of rhythm no matter what words they use.

Even Koopa Koot doesn't know what he got.

How rude. There was no reason to hide that from us.

"Something called a coconut", even if coconut is a rare delicacy, still sounds wrong. I mean, even if you've never seen or consumed a coconut in real life, you probably know about it from anything the least bit tropical- or from the fact their shells make excellent horse noises.

Manners gone.

Not in this game- Super Mushrooms don't give me a size boost.

I... think you might want a sharp object? Looks like the process requires several steps, wow.

And for the last favour... an ancient artifact from Dry Dry Desert.

..."According to popular opinion" about how to acquire an item. I don't think you can have an opinion about how you acquire something- those are facts, and you form opinions on how possible, ethical and reasonable those methods are.

If you remember, way back in Chapter 2, I showed off this combination and proved you could acquire the item whenever you pleased. Koopa Koot, now that we need the item, tells you three of the items, but forgets the fourth. It was a Dried Shroom.

"Yes, you've got nothing to go on, but good luck!"

...Do Sky Guys swoop? I think they mostly shoot, but I vaguely recall them swooping on the field.

Ah, so it's just going to gather more dust. I was wondering what you wanted it for.

And that was the end of the Koopa Koot favour chain. Of course, the last favour gives Star Pieces. But we no longer need to sit through this whole deal.

Onto Quizmo.

This is one that might throw you if you're not fully familiar with jewelry. He's talking about the blue jewel that sits on Peach's chest, as opposed to the rest of the outfit that's pink. We're talking about a game aimed at kids, I'm fairly sure putting Pink as an option was done for exactly that reason. Surprised they didn't put White as the other one.

How familiar are you with the Flowers? Lily is an easy one to remember, though. A question with a correct answer of Posie and distractors of Petunia and Lily might've sucked, though.

Lakitofu. In case you wanted someone with a worse name than Lakilester.

Interesting that it's not a switch. ...Also, I'm not sure if we ever got an explicit hint how to get down there until now. Koopa Koot told us it was there, but not exactly where.

"Composer" is a rude one. The Composer lives in Dry Dry Outpost- you start with the Lyrics and have to find someone to make a Melody. It is far harder to write music in the reverse order.

That music note above the Shy Guy who opened the path to the Toy Box says otherwise. Groove Guys and idle animations are what I think they're alluding to with "Dance".

In the JP version, "Neighbours" was instead "Lovers". Moving on.

Star Piece acquired. I think I still need to amass enough wealth to get the third one, though.

...No Star Points for Dark Koopas anymore. It had to happen eventually, I guess.

This pit of spikes here is the only thing outside Flower Fields and the final dungeon worth using Spike on. With that said, Spike can carry you across the lava in Mt. Lavalava (not the stuff blocking access, but the various lava puzzles). Despite the fact you have no good reason to revisit the volcano (unless you missed one of the Star Pieces), every single room with lava in it has a ledge on both sides that Spike can climb out from. That is the only purpose of those ledges, and it prevents a softlock.

Down here, we've got Spinies.

And Hidden Blocks with goodies.

...Killing Spinies with Spiny Flip, how barbaric.

Stop Watch and Volt Shroom. Not great. (The visible block is a Coin.)

...This could be a fight if I let it.

Huh. I can't reach any of these blocks, and there definitely feels like something should be here.

We need the Ultra Hammer to get past this block. Since it's already locked behind Spike, this feels unnecessary. Maybe it was in an earlier draft of the Tunnels.

Knock down a spring, and...

...Another high block to leave. I know what we're going to find in that chest.

But first, for demonstration purposes, this block can be destroyed by jumping from the ledge. They really should've moved the block further to the right, but that might cause the spring to land on your head. Although they do have a routine for Mario avoiding things on his head.

Down here were our Ultra Boots, increasing the power of Mario's Jump to 3+3 at base. If you're struggling with Huff N. Puff, it is possible to grab these before him, and many recommend it. If have a plan, though, you'll be just fine with Super.

The Tornado Jump is identical to the Spin Jump in every way except Mario gains a small amount of additional height. This small amount of height is enough to hit every single block suspended "just out of reach" we've seen. Clearly, they were having trouble with the field move for Ultra Boots.

Incidentally, Ultra Boots are mandatory to beat the game.

Smashing!

Life Mushroom in the Hidden Block.

Shooting Star in the block right next to the Ultra Boots pipe.

And coins in this bridge path we have to make.

...Of course it is. This is the game's way of keeping you out of Chapter 7 until you beat Chapter 6.

...Now I feel bad for going back and talking to Luigi. I actually forgot to do this until Chapter 7 started, so I had to go back quickly, but clearly I shouldn't have bothered.

Not as good as you, though- Tornado Jump isn't enough to get me on top of that block.

This Toad is talking about how to progress past where the Master abandoned his training. He was hoping Merlon had advice.

It did not go well. Although I'm sure this guy would say otherwise.

Rude, but I guess you are right in that the other ingredient is variable. With that said, when Koot asked for his, he knew that a Koopa Leaf was involved but not a Cake Mix. This means you can bake a Kooky Cookie purely on in-game knowledge.

That is, if he doesn't fall asleep.

...Huh. That came out of nowhere.

Oh. The detective novels are a plot element of Chapter 7.

Hm... Shrink Stomp, Star Piece, three Super Blocks, Power Smash, five warp pipes, Ultra Boots, miscellaneous inventory items, and weird guy selling ripoffs.

"Read horror fiction", they said. "It'll let you face your fears in a safe space", they said. Now my safe spaces are horrifying!

A lot of residents of Toad Town are suddenly taking up literature now that this guy's going to be important.

Obviously, a play on Ernest Hemingway, although I believe Hemingway was not famous for detective novels in particular. I'm not entirely sure him as a character is supposed to make you think of the real Hemingway or Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

"You know the Star Wars number one movie? Imagine that, but without the laser swords."

(I was about to make a joke that this game predated Phantom Menace, but no, it's a good solid year later. Predates Attack of the Clones, though.)

This Toad spitting facts. As much as we can agree Bowser was never going to get his wishes granted, his anger at the Star Spirits actively spiting him is still valid, and this Toad kinda brings up why: any system where moral judgements come into play is a system that is vulnerable to bad morals being fed into it. Whose to say Luigi's wishes are any less worthy of being granted, even if they are about as selfish?

These two are still here, but the dialogue remains the same.

I was good, but I spent them all on a weird sewer bargain guy for pieces of a star so I could trade them for Badges I'll never wear.

Avoid Boo.com, I hear the bubble's going to burst before TTYD. Maybe housing for the people that refused to join the Koopa Troop?

So this is the exact moment I learned these Toads were sisters and not lesbians. That's... kinda disappointing. I guess we're too early for generic NPC lesbians.

I'm getting sick of your negative attitude, mister.

Yes, it sucks your sewer system is full of squid, but I think that's outgoing water?

At least she's satisfied with her life as a generic NPC.

Fortunately, we're not the only thing on the bulletin board, but also we've been all over the world.

I'll get there WHEN I GET THERE!

...Sorry.

Hopefully with a rod and not a gigantic net.

The whale is making friends! Or at least people are starting to like it. I hope they don't force the whale to stay if it wants to leave.

That, though, be my guest.

At least you haven't been everywhere-

Koopa Koot made it do the Fields?

And you saved the Wisterwood? I...

...

If this is true, I had that guy all wrong.

Or maybe it's true, but in the same way Kolorado is a successful adventurer. The more depressing outcome is Kolorado

...Wanna switch? I kid, we really need to set up a way to visit that doesn't end with you being eaten by a Jungle Fuzzy or stung by a Bzzap!.

At least you have goals. I'm not sure when Fuzzipede first appears here, but he winds up here in the end.

To progress the story, we need to pay a visit to Merlon, who is hosting a... thing.

Knowing Mario, he could mean this literally. We only get there by warp pipe anyway.

And this important thing requires we go in person. Because sending a message with the messenger is passe.

For those who haven't been keeping track of the Merlon family, this makes him either the father or the uncle of Merluvlee, Merlee and Merlow. Merle is probably the most extraneous of the wizards, barely being remembered by fans of this game and unceremoniously excluded from TTYD.

I did my sidequesting earlier.

...We're not planning on introducing what that was? That is a Ninji, a weird ninja-based enemy from Super Mario Bros. 2 that reappeared in Mario World. In its original appearance, those two red dots represented its mouth, but World reinterpreted them as buttons and that's stuck ever since, including retroactive releases of 2. They attack by jumping in unusual patterns, and only later did they adopt ninja techniques like smoke dashing, shurikens and substitutes.

Somewhat ironically, for such a remote design, these enemies only appeared as actual enemies to fight in the modern Paper Mario games- they're NPCs here and they sat out the other games. They're not the only enemy like this, either- they dug a little bit into the nostalgia bin for Sticker Star.

Objective noted.

Incidentally, the Shiver region is known as the "Cold Cold" region in Japan. The characters used to represent Shiver Mountain (サムイサムイ山) are different from those used for Super Mario 64's Cool Cool Mountain (さむいさむい マウンテン), so it may be less likely to be a reference than it seems.

Look how close Merlow is to completion. That's 13 Star Pieces remaining out in the world.

I'll take these off your hands.

...Oh come on, I can't have been that desperate for cash? I suppose I was more doing it to get these out of my inventory.

The biggest wastes of 256 coins you could imagine.

At the very least, I could use a Dried Shroom for this. Shroom Steak will be important later.

This is for the utility. Going back and finding Dried Fruit for these is not fun, but it's gotta be done.

And there's my Yoshi Cookie.

Now that's an emergency ration supply. ...Maybe I didn't sell the Maple Super? Whatever I did, it worked, and I have a decent inventory of emergency snacks for the road.

After talking to the Ninji in Merlon's house, and no sooner, this door unlocks, and access to Chapter 7 is available. Assuming you have the Ultra Boots, of course.

We're not quite there yet, although we've found the frozen part of the Tunnels.

The only purpose of this room seems to be to hide a Super Block. One more to go!

Air Raid it is.

Now we get to Chapter 7.

Next time: The mystery unfolds.