Truth in the Stones

Truth in the Stones is the second part of .
==Steps==
# Head to the mining site that Uncle Dai mentioned
# Look for clues
# Look for more clues
#* Approach Kun Jun
#* Talk to Bravo
# Report the outcome of your investigation to Uncle Dai
# Find Kun Jun
==Dialogue==
;(Head to the mining site that Uncle Dai mentioned)
: Paimon: Whoa, this mine is huge...
: Uncle Dai: This is where the incident occurred.
: Uncle Dai: Six days ago, a group of us left the site to attend to other matters. When we returned, the four men we'd left behind had vanished.
: Uncle Dai: I led a team around the entire mine but found no trace. That's when I decided to enlist help.
: Zhongli: So four miners have disappeared.
: Uncle Dai: Yes. There were ten of us. We lost Long, Bold Cen, Brave Cen, and Mao. I worked with all of them.
: Zhongli: Workers in this trade are usually young men in the prime of their lives. Could it be that the four of them left for another mine?
: Uncle Dai: Unlikely. There's no other lodging for miles around, and we didn't pass any other mines on the way over.
: Kun Jun: Huh... such a huge mine. Did you really manage to explore every corner?
: Uncle Dai: Underground, overground... we left no stone unturned. We tried everything short of digging further into the earth itself. How could four sturdy young men just vanish into the bedrock?
: Zhongli: We'll need to explore the site ourselves before extracting any conclusions.
: Uncle Dai: Very well, I'll wait here, please proceed wherever you'd like. If you come across any clues, let me know straight away.
;(After cutscene)
: Paimon: So strange... how could the four of them just suddenly disappear...? Did they run away from something?
: Paimon: Let's look around first and see if we can find any clues!
;(Talk to Uncle Dai again)
: Uncle Dai: I'll leave the investigations to you.
;(Talk to Kun Jun before approaching the first clue)
: Kun Jun: We'll work more efficiently if we split up. I'll start my investigations here.
: Kun Jun: Hmm... let's start with the details... what type of rocks do we have here...
----
;(Approach the first clue)
: Paimon: Over here! What's this?
: Paimon: A pile of shirts, some trousers...
: Zhongli: A few everyday items, they must belong to Uncle Dai and his men.
: Paimon: One, two, three, four...
: Paimon: Huh... that seems right. Ten shirts, ten pairs of trousers.
: Paimon: These must be spares, right? Look, Uncle Dai's clothes are identical.
: Zhongli: The four of them have been gone for six days without a change of clothes.
: Paimon: There's also a few handkerchiefs and some soap lying around... Oh, and some tool belts.
: Zhongli: Items for washing one's face before the dawn shift... mining equipment...
: Paimon: So... they didn't take any supplies...
: Zhongli: Hmm, correct.
: Maybe they didn't need them?
: Maybe they just forgot them?
: Zhongli: Improbable.
: Zhongli: There are four pickaxes missing. It seems likely they left with the tools of their trade.
: Zhongli: They had time to take their tools, but not their everyday items? Curious.
: Paimon: Huh... why would someone set off with their tools, but leave their luggage behind?
: Zhongli: One: They were working close by and didn't need to move their personal effects. But seeing as they've yet to return, this seems an unlikely hypothesis.
: Zhongli: Or, two: They were forced to leave and had no time to think about their supplies.
: Paimon: Oh...!
: Do you think... someone kidnapped them?
: Zhongli: It's certainly a possibility. We'll need more clues before any further inference can be made.
: Paimon: If they didn't leave, maybe they were made to leave... Let's make a note and let Uncle Dai know.
----
;(Approach Kun Jun)
: Paimon: Kun Jun, what do you have there?
: Kun Jun: Oh, right on time.
: Zhongli: Did you find anything?
: Kun Jun: There's a chunk of ore here, perhaps there are clues within.
: Paimon: Ore? What does it have to do with the disappearance?
: Kun Jun: Let's find out. I'll give it a try. A moment please.
: Kun Jun: ... Okay...
;(Kun Jun sees a vision)
: Zhongli: ...
: Paimon: Uh... Looks like he's concentrating really hard. What's he up to?
: Kun Jun: I see... four men... following someone out of the mine... it looks like a child.
: Paimon: A child? What's a child doing in a mine!?
: Kun Jun: I'm not sure...
: Paimon: Also, how did you "see" anything exactly?
: Kun Jun: Oh! I don't mean "see" in the traditional sense... I—I would appreciate it if what I'm about to tell you remained a secret. It's a little odd... I've never dared to tell anyone before.
: Kun Jun: I can... perceive the memories of ore.
: Paimon: Huh—!?
: Zhongli: "Perceive?" So there's no... conjecture at work?
: Paimon: You mean you can put your hand on a rock and — boom! It just happens?
: Kun Jun: I've always sensed that ore contains "memories." Sometimes it records events that occur in the surrounding area. All I have to do is touch one and focus my attention, and the memories come to me.
: Paimon: Amazing! So you can find out everything that ever happened there!
: Kun Jun: It depends on the ore. Some ores have astounding memories. Others, like Iron Ore and White Iron Ore aren't up to much. Their memories are hazy.
: Kun Jun: Cor Lapis and crystal memories are much stronger. They record more events and in greater detail.
: Zhongli: Stone-seeing... fascinating. A rare ability indeed. It was prudent of Uncle Dai to recruit you, Mr. Kun Jun.
: Kun Jun: Haha, I'm glad I can be of assistance.
: Kun Jun: Based on what I saw, I believe they followed this path.
: Zhongli: This will take us north, away from the mine.
: Paimon: North... another clue for Uncle Dai! Let's make a note of it.
;(Talk to Kun Jun again)
: Kun Jun: Could it be that the child I saw kidnapped them? Hmm...
;(Observe Stone)
:Observe Stone: (It looks like... some sort of Cor Lapis?)
:Observe Stone: (It was able to record the information we needed. A curious stone, indeed.)
----
;(Talk to Bravo)
: Zhongli: Excuse me sir, are you one of the workers here?
: Bravo: Ah! Yes, yes! You must be here about the disappearance. Please find them if you can!
: Bravo: I... I don't know what happened. The weather was gloomy that day, the foreman left with a few men.
: Bravo: I stayed behind with the other four. After a while I decided to take a break... just to catch my breath!
: Bravo: I ended up falling asleep in the shelter inside. When I woke up, there was no sight of them! I'd only just been speaking with them and suddenly... they'd vanished...
: Bravo: Maybe... maybe I'm next...
: Zhongli: So the men that were out working disappeared, with the only one left to tell the tale having been asleep in a shelter.
: Zhongli: Perhaps an accident occurred on-site.
: Paimon: Oh... What a scary thought...
: Paimon: An on-site accident... We should note that down too.
;(Report the outcome of your investigation to Uncle Dai)
: Paimon: We've found some clues. Time to report back to Uncle Dai.
;(Talk to Bravo again)
: Bravo: Where did my friends disappear to? Ugh... I tremble just thinking about it.
----
;(Talk to Uncle Dai)
: Uncle Dai: You're back! How are the investigations going?
: Zhongli: We found three clues in the vicinity.
: Zhongli: First, there are four missing pickaxes, yet everyday items are still in their place. This suggests that your men didn't leave of their own accord, but were forced to.
: Uncle Dai: Forced to!? But... who would kidnap miners?
: Zhongli: Who, indeed. Second, there were five workers at the mine. One of them left the site to take respite. When he awoke, his colleagues had disappeared without a trace.
: Zhongli: Those who kept working all disappeared. The one who left early emerged safe and sound. It would appear that the incident occurred on-site.
: Uncle Dai: Now that you mention it, I recall Bravo saying that he took a break.
: Uncle Dai: Could someone have entered the site and simply walked away with them!?
: Zhongli: This leads me to my third point. Mr. Kun Jun here made good use of his... expert techniques... to arrive at a conclusion. It was a child that took your men away.
: Uncle Dai: A child!? But there are no settlements here for miles around! There's no way a child would have made it over to the mine!
: Paimon: Unlikely as it sounds, that's our conclusion. Your men were following a child.
: Uncle Dai: Where did they go?
: Zhongli: We believe that they followed the road north, away from the mine and toward the ruins.
: Uncle Dai: North! Right, I'll rally my men and head in pursuit.
: Do you need help?
: Uncle Dai: You've been invaluable to the investigation, but leave the legwork to us. If we set off now and make haste, we might be able to catch them.
: Zhongli: Not so fast. The incident occurred six days ago. Even if they set out on foot, they will have covered a lot of ground by now.
: Uncle Dai: *sigh* You're right... New plan. I'll lead my search party over to the settlements further out and make some inquiries.
: Uncle Dai: There are only a few settlements around here with lodging for the night. We'll go investigate and see if we can come up with anything.
: Uncle Dai: In the meantime you could keep looking for clues. If we don't see each other, let's reconvene at Wangshu Inn tomorrow evening.
: Zhongli: Agreed.
: Uncle Dai: Alright, me and my men will get going!
;(Uncle Dai leaves the area)
: Paimon: So... they're gonna talk to the people over at the settlements, while we keep investigating here...
: Zhongli: Correct.
: Paimon: But... there aren't any more clues at the mine... Shouldn't we go north?
: Zhongli: Wait... I believe we're missing someone.
: Paimon: Huh?
: Paimon: Oh yeah, where's Kun Jun? Paimon bets he's still investigating. Let's go find him!
----
;(Find Kun Jun)
: Paimon: Kun Jun! What are you searching for? We're all out of clues! Let's get going!
: Kun Jun: Ah, apologies, I'm conducting a quick search for my own benefit. I'm looking for a precious stone known as Dragonfall.
: Zhongli: Dragonfall?
: Never heard of it.
: Not my area of expertise.
: Zhongli: Dragonfall is often used in forging. What use do you have for it?
: Kun Jun: I... I don't know.
: Kun Jun: I—I'm sorry, I don't recall why I'm seeking it... I've been feeling very... absent lately. Name and address aside, I'm having trouble remembering things.
: Kun Jun: In fact, I've been feeling extremely... anxious... as if there's something I've forgotten to finish. It's... an unpleasant sensation.
: Paimon: Oh, Paimon knows that feeling! When you know you've forgotten something but you can't remember exactly what it is.
: Kun Jun: Ugh... I don't even know where to start with it, I've been... aimlessly wandering. That day at the market, I overheard a conversation while I was buying something. They mentioned Dragonfall.
: Kun Jun: It sounded so familiar to me, as if whatever it was I had to do was linked to that stone... So I decided to look for some.
: Kun Jun: Perhaps if I can retrieve some, I'll remember what it is I have to do.
: Zhongli: I see... If I am able to during our endeavour, I will help you look for this stone.
: Kun Jun: Really? Oh, thank you Mr. Zhongli! You're too kind!
: Zhongli: Think nothing of it.
: Paimon: Shouldn't we get going?
: Zhongli: Heading north from The Chasm, we'll reach Lingju Pass. If this is indeed the path they chose, there will be traces.
: Paimon: Great! Let's have a look!
==Other Languages==
==Change History==