However, their luck was not very good. Had this problem occurred at any other time, they might have been able to finish the job and make a clean escape.

But unfortunately, recently happened to be the agreed shipment time. This village was an old man's heavily relied-upon secret weapon factory. The armor and weapons produced here had to be transported out periodically and must strictly adhere to the schedule, with absolutely no room for error...

Even though they were quite thorough, not leaving a single person behind, the problem was still detected immediately.

So, before their ambitious dreams even started, they were caught red-handed by the three arriving individuals and dealt with promptly.

"Hmph, letting them die like this, they really got off easy." The second young lady gritted her teeth and then looked toward the path continuing up the mountain. "Let's go have a look; this village is very hidden. The true road leading to the forge up the mountain is concealed within the tunnel of the village shrine..."

As someone once favored by the old man as a successor, she naturally knew this inside and out.

"So, could there be an insider? It indeed raises suspicion..."

Gu Mo nodded, then glanced at Hidechika, who had been frowning silently. This black-haired girl was observing the tragic scene around, looking at the horrific corpses of villagers killed in the houses on both sides of the road, and couldn't help but show a look of compassion, hesitating as she looked at him.

"Alright, let's deal with these bodies and then move on. It won't delay us much, and in this weather... leaving them could cause an epidemic, which would really be troublesome."

Gu Mo blinked and nodded readily.

The black-haired girl quickly nodded in agreement, showing him a charming smile, partly relieved, as doing nothing was not a choice she wanted to see.

"You... no, how do you know what sister is thinking?"

The second young lady eyed the two suspiciously. Had they just shared any communication? Why would a mere glance from her sister make him understand? Was it some special tacit understanding?

"Explaining this to you, second young lady, is hard. But I truly understand Ah Xiu's thoughts..." Gu Mo laughed, spreading his hands as he spoke. He wasn't being perfunctory. Right now, the skills requiring spiritual power to maintain are also greyed out due to limitations in his skill bar.

Neither spiritual power scan nor mind chains were usable at the moment.

Yet miraculously, he didn't need to use any mind power to read emotions or hidden information among dispersed thoughts and spiritual wavelengths. He simply understood Ah Xiu's thoughts, naturally comprehending what she was thinking without any extra elements.

Upon hearing this, Hidechika blinked her eyes, casting a peculiar gaze at him.

"Hmm..."

The second young lady's smile turned a bit forced. So it was about that strange understanding? Although it was indeed a good thing, indicating mutual understanding and trust between her sister and him... why did she feel as if she shouldn't have been there?

Though she didn't know the term "third wheel," it didn't stop her from empathizing at this moment. Clearly a team of three, yet she seemed implicitly marginalized.

Taking a deep breath, she refocused her attention and glanced at the great tachi on the ground, bending down to pick it up by its handle.

"Impressive craftsmanship, but if you're looking for a weapon change, I have something better..."

Gu Mo spoke with a smile.

A few days ago, because of projection magic, a unique skill that requires "internet" connectivity proved that the dungeon worlds are different, their laws and rules not completely consistent, and environment parameters varied. Not all skills could be universally applied, finally clarifying the seemingly inexplicable skill bar setting he once wondered about.

Even "single appearance" may not necessarily be due to its transcendence...

Nor because he from the beginning wasn't limited to a single world advantage...

Possibly just because it's the only red-quality skill badge, so even though he felt there was no difference equipping it or not, he still swapped out the original projection magic for this legendary skill badge due to a kind of subtle compulsion, equipping it in the skill bar.

Perhaps for this reason, his "single appearance" can function between different dungeon worlds, truly overcoming world's separations.

Of course, this also led him to realize the issue of differing world rules. Considering projection magic's distinctiveness, once removed from the skill bar, it couldn't function in a world without a magic base... yet other magic had fewer restrictions, being more universally applicable in similar environments.

If not for removing this magic-type skill, he might have taken much longer to understand the crux of the problem.

But now, the projection magic has been re-equipped, and the current combination among the ten skill bars results from careful selection. He now has the confidence to project artificial treasure, definitely surpassing the so-called famous sword's fantasy forging techniques of this dungeon world.

......

...

Real world.

Moon Ring City.

In a room clean enough, slightly futuristic, a white-haired demon hunter girl sat somewhat restlessly on her bed, as before her stood the imposing witch fox, arms akimbo, eyeing her scrutinizingly.

"..."

"..."

The air was thick, the silence a bit intimidating.

Unable to bear the pressure, Hiri broke into a cold sweat, attempting to explain meekly, "Miss Tamamo no Mae, I... I'm not your enemy, you... you don't have to do this..."

Given some time together, she knew this fox elf's character had hidden yandere traits, perhaps now thinking of eliminating her, seen as a potential rival...

Thinking this, Hiri felt near tears. Her luck was really bad; she had no relation to this vortex, so why was she first to be targeted?

"Humph, not an enemy now doesn't mean it won't be the case in the future..." Miss Fox Spirit softly snorted twice. "But I don't intend to go that far. This time I came to you for your help in opening a teleportation gate."

"Tele.. teleportation gate?"

"Yes, I want to go find Master!!" Miss Fox Spirit nodded repeatedly, her eyes sparkling. The opportunity to monopolize Master had come. How about we consider this a honeymoon?

"Ha? Didn't he... go to Jupiter's Moon Europa or something?" Hiri was stunned, not quite understanding.

"What do you know..." Miss Fox Spirit pouted. In the real world, competition is fierce; she plans to use dungeon mechanisms for a shortcut! The different time flow speeds, besides allowing for time alone with Master in a world for two, would conveniently ditch those troublesome rivals. Simply a perfect plan!