Found this as a little kid, skip works as follows (tested on original hardware only):

1. Start the game with 2 characters using 2 controllers* (requires TurboTap adapter).
2. Kill the 2nd character off ASAP (I use the lone green cheerio before the first dungeon).
3. In Melba Village (outdoor section after the first dungeon), go down to the destroyable green Ruvid Statue at the bottom of the screen. It's blocked by a pushable stone.
4. Revive the 2nd character.
5. Start pushing the stone as far to the right as you can with your 1st character.
6. Use the 2nd character to walk back up, pushing the camera upwards until the Ruvid Statue de-loads.
7. Keep pushing the stone as far to the right as you can, your 1st character will be inside where the Ruvid Statue was at this point.
8. Kill off the 2nd character to snap the camera back down and reload the Ruvid Statue.
9. You should be inside the Ruvid Statue's hitbox. Shoot to destroy it.
10. Head down the stairs and continue the run as normal.

In the current Fighter% WR (as of 01 Jan 2026) Gutworm Dungeon takes ~80sec, so despite not picking up the boss gem, I think there's a timesave possible using this trick if allowed. As far as a true Any% tech, Princess% is still faster and gets this skip for free.

*I'm pretty sure it's possible to do this skip casually using only one controller, by holding start after selecting your character and unplugging from slot 1 without letting go to begin the game, then swapping the ports as needed.