Of everyone who had been separated, Himeko worried most about March 7th.
After carefully putting away the map, Himeko had more or less recovered. Luckily, no one had come looking for trouble during that time, or she would have had another reward to deal with.
"Found her! Himeko's over there!"
Washana and the others hurried over from the distance. The first thing they noticed was the Haunted House, which had been razed to the ground.
"That's way too brutal."
Taco clicked his tongue. He knew Himeko was strong, but he had never expected her to be comparable to a human tank.
"Don't tell me you did this with your fists."
"An attack on that scale isn't possible with bare hands alone."
After cleaning the grime off herself, Himeko approached them. [Chariot] appeared in her hand, and she returned it to Weir.
Its walkie-talkie function really was decent. The other skills were pretty good too; it was just a shame she hadn't had a chance to use them.
Weir took it, and the skills attached to [Chariot] returned to his hands.
He was very satisfied with his skill set. Counting his Guardian Deity's effect, he had a full three escape skills!
"We have enough Exploration Progress to leave now. What are you all planning to do next?"
Weir already wanted to get out of there.
Loot, fight, extract. Once the looting and fighting were done, it was time to extract!
Most importantly, everyone else could hop into a vehicle and drive off when they left. What about him?
He had to walk to the next stop!
Who knew how far away the next stop was? If ten kilometers became a hundred, how long would he have to walk? He might get erased before he even arrived.
Himeko glanced at the Exploration Progress.
[Exploration Progress: 67%]
"This is still far below the standards of the Trailblaze. But if any of you would like to leave first, I can take you to your respective exits."
The quest wasn't finished, and Exploration Progress wasn't maxed out either. Himeko wasn't planning to leave just yet.
"I'm fine either way. My Go-Kart isn't slow, after all. Rather than leave, I'd rather take a risk for a bigger reward and stick with Miss Himeko to see if I can get anything else," Taco said with a shrug.
"You're certainly not shy about it. But it really is a good suggestion. Unfortunately, I can't ride a Chess Piece to the next stop, so I'll have to leave first."
"Me too."
Weir and Washana spoke in turn.
Since the two had made their decisions, Himeko had no intention of forcing them to stay.
After returning to the Restaurant and picking up the supplies they had organized, Himeko accompanied them to the Amusement Park's other exits.
Along the way, Himeko even tried stepping outside to see whether she could do some trailblazing.
But even Himeko could do nothing about the National Destiny Battlefield's rules. She could only watch them step onto the main road and suddenly disappear.
After Washana left, she was still able to suddenly return and run up to Himeko.
"Ms. Himeko."
"What is it?"
"We'll be able to meet again, right?"
"Of course. Reuniting with friends is a common occurrence on the path of the Trailblaze. Though next time we meet, I'd prefer it if you didn't suddenly stab someone."
Even as they said goodbye, Himeko didn't forget to tease her a little, leaving Washana somewhat embarrassed.
But that shyness only lasted a moment before Washana's eyes filled with resolve.
"Himeko, I'll remember everything you said. I want to help more people, just like you."
With that, Washana climbed onto her Robot Vacuum and vanished from Himeko's sight.
"Can I really not beat her up?"
Taco still couldn't get over having been stabbed.
But no matter how much it bothered Taco, Washana was on their side now, and a good teammate who had spared him another stabbing. He really couldn't think of a reason to beat her up.
"Do you absolutely have to beat her up?"
The behavior of her rather muscle-brained teammate always left Himeko feeling helpless.
They returned to the Amusement Park. Himechi Cat hadn't gone through the gates with them earlier, but had waited inside the Amusement Park for their return.
After escorting the others out, Himeko and Taco began considering where to go next.
Himeko opened the map and named the locations one by one. Each time she read out a name, Taco told her its danger level.
The other areas all felt somewhat lacking. The only place that might offer a bigger increase in Exploration Progress was the area Himeko had visited at the start.
"The Wax Museum... There's no better choice."
"Other than a copy of you appearing after you go inside, isn't the Wax Museum free of other dangers? I looked around, and it didn't feel like there was much worth exploring."
Compared with Taco's superficial understanding, Himeko saw a little deeper.
Everyone knew that Wax Figures appeared after someone entered the Wax Museum, but why did they appear?
"Himechi Cat, what do you think?"
"So why exactly is she called a cat? No matter how you look at her, she's a fox!"
"I'm a cat," Himechi Cat said solemnly.
"You can actually spout nonsense with such a straight face?"
The question of why a fox was called a cat ought to be directed at Himechi Cat's creator, Teacher Ma, rather than used to interrogate the creation herself. Himeko steered the conversation back to the point.
"What secret is hidden in the Wax Museum?"
Himechi Cat stopped emphasizing her species and adopted an equally serious tone.
"When I was projected from Himeko's heart, I did learn a few things." Himechi Cat paused.
"Putting KPIs aside, there's naturally another reason the Wax Figures risk their lives to hunt down their originals. No one works themselves to death just because the company asks them to, unless they get a share of the profits."
"So what's the reason?"
Himeko was a good listener.
"After killing their original, a Wax Figure can take their place, transforming from a [Wax Figure] into a [human]. Otherwise, when the visitor leaves the Wax Museum, the Wax Figure dies.
"Speaking of which, normal Wax Figures can't leave the Wax Museum. I only managed to get out thanks to your power of wishes.
"You want to know about the mastermind behind the Wax Museum... It does exist, and it's inside the Wax Museum. I just don't know its exact location. If you want to increase Exploration Progress, you'll have to uncover the secrets there."
With Himechi Cat's confirmation, a trip to the Wax Museum became all the more necessary.
"You're really not planning to attack Himeko and take her place? That doesn't fit my stereotype of an Amusement Park Monster."
Taco rubbed his chin, his head beginning to turn pointy.
"Some souls take that path to preserve their own existence, while others scoff at it. Even setting all that aside, I was projected from Himeko's heart. Every move I make comes from Himeko. Thoughts that could never exist in her heart naturally wouldn't appear in mine either."
"How come I never knew I was this lively?"
Himeko picked up Himechi Cat, firmly disassociating herself from some of her behavior.
"Do you think you were as elegant and composed as you are now when you first set out on your journey?"
The woman and cat kept arguing. As they spoke, they arrived in front of the Wax Museum once again.
"Something's wrong."
Himeko frowned. Her instincts told her something wasn't right inside.
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