
RisaMelima |

idk if there is anything you can or maybe should do to stop them from going there early. this part of the adventure is very sandbox-y and somehow restricting the party from doing something will be difficult to justify.
so, chapter 4 might just happen early and that's not such a big deal.
you can stretch out the research for the wall of ghosts instead.
two ways come to mind:
- if nobody in the party speaks the two languages that are needed to translate zoudou's notes, that will be a roadblock going forward! perhaps the party needs to ask shinzo to bring them a dictionary, and he'll conveniently only find one by the end of summer.
- or simply stretch out the research. either up the number of points that are needed (and can be gained with each method) or make every method take 2-3 weeks instead of just 1?
other things come to mind: making a side quest more important and take more time. perhaps the old village expansion actually takes a month to complete, or the new governor thing evolves into a political drama that involves the party as the two factions try to win them to their side. (if your party likes political drama)
just some ideas, do whatever you prefer ^^
in my own game, i had a very similar thing happen, funny enough! the party cleared the lumber camp in week 3 of summer and are now already doing research on the wall of ghosts. it's week 6 of summer and they already have 4 research points! xD
personally i don't mind that accelerated pace. if i feel it's going too fast, then i'll hit the breaks later. either by adding a time-skip when they return from the monastery (a month or two pass while the party only experiences a few days) or getting to the governor's place will take way longer or the transmigrate ritual takes longer. (or i'll think of smth else, involving backstory and town drama)
but i'm not too worried about it and if the pace keeps up, some of the people that are aware of the time loop will be impressed by the party's progress and will comment on it, when it's their time to reveal their truths (like zhi hui or shinzo).