This won't do.
If they continued like this, they'd self-destruct from internal conflict before even encountering the monster.
Lin Qingyue immediately focused her mind and swiftly activated the Adeptus Breathing Method.
Thanks to her recent "extreme training" with Ilanier, the technique now flowed with far greater ferocity and efficiency than before.
The faint heart-fire, stirred by the rules, was almost instantly extinguished by the cool, cleansing energy.
Thank goodness, it's not completely out of control, but this is only a temporary reprieve.
Lin Qingyue silently credited Ilanier for her distant assistance.
Her Majesty's "sparring sessions" have proven remarkably effective.
She stepped forward, Holy Light swirling at her fingertips, transforming into two gentle, warming currents that she laid on Lin Xiyue and Xia Lian's shoulders.
Then, with a delicate backhand motion, she lightly touched the back of Su Wan's hand with an even gentler wisp of Holy Light.
Cleanse Spell.
This lazy person's Divine Skill, which she usually used in place of bathing, now became a life-saving balm.
A refreshing energy washed over their minds, acting as a neutralizing agent for their overheated or chilled brains.
As a side effect, it also dyed their hair a vibrant shade of pink.
"Thank you, Sis/Sister Qingyue/Qingyue."
Lin Xiyue's resentment, Su Wan's panic, and Xia Lian's shame seemed to be soothed by this gentle force, rapidly stabilizing their emotions.
Su Wan exhaled deeply.
Her heart, which had been pounding against her chest, finally returned to its normal rhythm, though the vivid blush on her cheeks lingered stubbornly.
Lin Xiyue also regained her composure, but her gaze toward Su Wan grew unusually complex.
It held shock, bewilderment, and a hint of secret delight that even she herself didn't fully recognize.
Staring at Su Wan, she murmured softly, "I... I was planning to hide some money... to buy you a little surprise gift..."
The moment the words left her lips, Su Wan's face flushed crimson. She jerked her head away and mumbled in response, "...You don't need to hide anything. I never asked you to hand over your paycheck."
Lin Xiyue: "!"
Xia Lian felt like she was about to ascend on the spot. She shouldn't have heard a single word of that conversation!
"Alright, we all understand the rules now," Lin Qingyue clapped her hands, barely suppressing a laugh as she drew the group's attention back.
"The increased gravity? Just treat it as constant weighted training."
"The inability to lie? We'll cut the small talk and communicate more with our eyes."
"As for the amplified desires..."
Her gaze flicked between Su Wan and Lin Xiyue before glancing at Xia Lian, who had already drifted off into her own world. The amusement in her eyes nearly overflowed.
"...let's just say it'll help build team cohesion."
"Our primary objective now is to leave this forest, find a settlement of intelligent beings, and figure out exactly what's going on in this Dungeon."
Lin Qingyue's calm and clear instructions gave the near-disbanding team a renewed sense of direction.
"Understood," Su Wan nodded first, eager to distance herself from Lin Xiyue and occupy her mind with strategic thinking.
"Let's go," Lin Xiyue replied, though her gaze kept drifting toward Su Wan.
Xia Lian nodded vigorously and stepped forward to take the lead, beginning the reconnaissance mission.
The four women began to trek through the forest.
The increased gravity was palpable, slowing their pace by at least thirty percent.
After about half an hour of tense silence, the trees ahead gradually thinned.
"There's a road ahead!" Xia Lian's eyes lit up as she pointed.
A well-worn dirt road appeared before them, bearing two distinct tire tracks.
"If we follow this road, we're sure to find someone," Lin Xiyue said, her spirits lifting.
The four women stepped onto the road and began walking in the direction of the deeper tire tracks.
After another ten minutes of walking, a strange clank-clank sound and hissing steam emanated from ahead.
Following the noise, they cautiously rounded a bend in the road.
The sight that greeted them made all four freeze in their tracks.
Before them lay a vast expanse of farmland.
In the fields, several massive, strangely shaped metallic constructs were slowly advancing.
Propelled by thick metal treads, each machine trailed a long, multi-jointed mechanical arm. At the arm's end, a massive circular saw blade spun at high speed.
The buzzing saw blades sliced through the waist-high, wheat-like crops, cutting them off at the roots and drawing them into the machine's interior.
From the top of each construct rose a tall smokestack, rhythmically hissing out plumes of white steam.
At the edge of the field, a farmer wearing a straw hat sat leisurely atop a crude machine resembling a tractor.
He took a swig from his canteen, lazily monitoring the steam-powered behemoths at work.
Lin Xiyue stared, her eyes wide with astonishment.
"What... what are these? Steam-powered harvesters from the Steam Age?"
Su Wan's brow furrowed deeply. "Alchemy-powered constructs using steam as an energy source? The technological level here... it's completely different from what we expected."
Xia Lian murmured, "It seems this isn't purely a cold weapons world after all."
Lin Qingyue stared at the massive, steam-belching machines, her mind involuntarily conjuring images of gears, bronze, and colossal airships.
I thought this was pure Western fantasy, but it's Western fantasy mixed with steampunk?
This genre-blending art style is kind of interesting.
I wonder if this world's combat power comes from martial arts and magic, or from steam-powered tanks and airships?
As they stood there, caught between astonishment and uncertainty, the farmer driving the tractor spotted them.
He waved cheerfully and shouted, "Hey! You folks must be adventurers from out of town, right? Heading to Blackrock Stronghold up ahead?"
Blackrock Stronghold?
Lin Qingyue felt nothing upon hearing the name, only a vague sense of familiarity. In her memories, places with that name were either lairs of Dark Iron Dwarves or staging grounds for Demon Lords.
Lin Xiyue waved back at the farmer and shouted, "That's right, Uncle! We're looking for a place to settle down. How far is Blackrock Stronghold?"
The farmer grinned, revealing a hearty, honest smile, and pointed toward the end of the road.
"Not far now. Just follow this road for another hour until you see that big mountain belching black smoke—that's Blackrock Stronghold. It's the most prosperous city for miles around!"
"Thank you, sir!" Lin Xiyue called out her thanks.
The four continued on their way, their mood now markedly different from before.
"A Western fantasy world with a steampunk aesthetic?" Su Wan mused aloud as they walked, "This kind of civilization usually implies one of two possibilities: either magic and technology have developed in tandem, mutually reinforcing each other, or magic has declined, and technology has risen as a replacement."
"Given the farmer's relaxed demeanor and the widespread use of advanced machinery, the latter scenario seems unlikely."
Xia Lian, trailing behind, whispered, "Besides, that uncle seemed very friendly and showed no wariness toward us outsiders. That suggests the social order here must be remarkably stable."
"Stability is what worries me," Lin Xiyue grumbled, "The more peaceful a place, the harder it is to find clues about the Dungeon Core. We can't exactly tear Blackrock Stronghold apart, can we?"
"Not exactly, but we could..."
A slow, deliberate voice drifted from the side—it was Lin Qingyue.
Six pairs of eyes turned to fix on her.
Lin Qingyue shrugged innocently. Under the "Truth" rule, she could only voice her most genuine and efficient thoughts.
"If the Dungeon Core is indeed within the city, and there are no other gentler methods, then demolishing the city would be the most efficient solution."
She paused, then added, "Of course, this would be a last resort."
Lin Xiyue: "...Sis, are you serious?"
Su Wan: "Logically speaking, it's the most efficient approach. It would save us a tremendous amount of search time."
Xia Lian: "..."
She was already picturing Blackrock Stronghold being flattened under her sister's "Gundam Flying Kick."