On the morning of the day he had promised to meet Reinhard, Jin left the Sea Roar Pavilion with Reiko and headed toward the Port-front Central Square.
Unlike during the race, the square was deserted and felt rather desolate.
"Ah, that scent of the tide mixed with the smell of fish... it’s unique to this place."
Jin felt a touch of nostalgia. Even though it was the same sea breeze, it felt different here than on the shores of Hourai Island. Jin imagined it was likely because of the presence of people living their lives here.
"Father, a carriage is approaching."
Reiko’s voice broke his reverie. It seemed their ride had arrived. Two carriages, each drawn by a pair of horses, pulled up to the square.
"Heh, it actually has a suspension system, of sorts."
With a single glance at the lead carriage, Jin saw that the arms supporting the wheels served as its suspension. The arms extended forward and backward from beneath the passenger cabin.
"But it doesn't have any dampers."
With only springs, the vibrations would persist for a long time, making it easy to get motion sick. Modern automobiles use dampers—shock absorbers—to quickly settle vibrations, but this carriage lacked them.
"The wheels are shod in iron."
The circumferences of the wheels were clad in iron. They would be durable, but they looked like they would be noisy. Well, if the ground was soil, they probably wouldn't make too much of a racket.
The carriage behind it was roughly the same model, but it looked a bit older and its decorations were more understated.
"I wonder if we're in the back carriage?"
While Jin was considering this, the carriages stopped in front of them. A man who radiated the aura of a professional butler stepped down from the second carriage and opened the door of the first one.
The person who appeared from inside was a girl with near-silver blonde hair, light blue eyes, and fair skin. It was Reinhard’s cousin, Elsa Randol.
She hopped down from the carriage without anyone's help. Jin noted how she characteristically held her skirt down as she did so to ensure it didn't flutter up.
Today, she wasn't in a swimsuit, but in a light green dress befitting a noble daughter. It was simple, but the fabric had a fine luster and the tailoring was meticulous. Lace adorned the collar, cuffs, and hem.
"Jin-kun, Reiko-chan, it’s been a while."
"Yes, it has been quite some time."
The butler glared at Jin for his casual response, but Jin didn't notice.
Jin offered a handkerchief he had kept in his pocket, just in case she needed to dust herself off. However, Elsa shook her head.
"No. You keep it, Jin-kun."
After saying that, Elsa gave instructions to a man who looked like a servant—who had also stepped down from the rear carriage—to load Jin and Reiko's luggage. Since they didn't have much, everything was loaded in a single trip.
"Now, get in."
Elsa invited Jin and Reiko into her carriage.
The cabin looked like it could seat about six people, with benches for three facing each other.
When Jin asked if anyone else was coming, Elsa replied that it was just the three of them.
And so, Jin and Reiko sat in the rear seat facing the direction of travel, while Elsa sat in the front seat near the driver, facing backward.
"Is it okay to leave now?"
When Jin nodded at Elsa’s question, she pulled a cord. The end of the cord seemed to lead to the driver’s seat; she likely used it to give simple instructions like "stop" or "go."
This time, the servants' carriage took the lead and started moving. With a clatter, the wheels hit a stone. The cabin swayed with a soft, springy bounce. One could easily feel nauseous if they weren't used to it.
As if anticipating this, Elsa spoke up.
"If you feel sick, tell me. I’ll fix it."
It seemed she had some way of alleviating it. She continued, "Big Brother Rai couldn't come because of work, so I came instead."
Elsa explained that Reinhard was quite busy with various matters in the royal capital.
"I see. Thank you for coming."
Jin, still struggling to find the right level of formality, spoke with a slightly awkward tone. Seeing him like that, Elsa spoke up.
"Please don't be so formal. I want you to speak to me the same way you do with Big Brother Rai."
Hearing that, Jin relaxed.
"In that case... Thanks for coming all this way to pick us up today. Is that better?"
"Mm."
Elsa nodded.
"I wanted to take the time to talk with you both. That’s why I came."
She took a breath and continued.
"Big Brother Rai is a top-class magi engineer even back home. Yet Lorelei, which he built, lost. I want to know about your technology."
It was a remarkably blunt question. Judging by the way she spoke, she didn't seem to be very good at conversation.
"Well, I think it’s better to have those kinds of talks when Reinhard is there too," Jin said, dodging the question skillfully.
Elsa nodded, agreeing that made sense. "In that case, is there anything you want to ask?"
Jin thought for a moment about where to start.
"Then, first of all, where is this carriage headed?"
"North. From the port town of Port Rock, toward the region where the capital of this country is located. Where Big Brother Rai is."
"What is the name of the capital?"
Elsa’s eyes widened slightly, seemingly surprised by the question. However, they soon returned to normal.
"The capital of the Kingdom of Elias is Borgia. Didn't you know?"
"I didn't. I lived on a remote island, so I’m poorly informed about the state of the continent."
When Jin shared a bit of his established backstory, Elsa said, "Come to think of it, I believe you did mention that. Then, I’ll tell you a little about the Kingdom of Elias."
She began her explanation.
"The Kingdom of Elias is on the Elias Peninsula, and the Elias Peninsula juts out to the south of the Lauren Continent."
"Ah, I think I knew that much."
"The Kingdom of Elias is divided into four provinces. You can think of them roughly as North, South, East, and West."
"I see. So Port Rock is in the South Province?"
"Exactly. And where we are headed now is the North Province. It’s called Nord."
Elsa paused there. Jin called to mind the terrain that Sky 1 had reported. He understood the layout quite well now.
"There are four major highways in the Kingdom of Elias. All of them extend North, South, East, and West from the capital, Borgia. Is that clear so far?"
"Yeah. So I should assume the highway to the north leads toward the Lauren Continent, and the one to the south leads to Port Rock?"
"That's right. The East and West highways are less important compared to the North and South ones."
"...Wait a second."
"What’s wrong?"
"Father?"
Elsa looked at Jin with a suspicious gaze for interrupting her, but she quickly realized the reason. Reiko, however, didn't seem to understand why Jin’s face had suddenly turned pale.
"Leave it to me."
After saying that, Elsa took Jin’s hand.
"Eh?"
"...Heal <Verheilen>."
A warmth flowed in from Elsa’s hand, and Jin, who had been feeling unwell, felt his nausea clear away instantly.
"How is it?"
Elsa asked as she let go of his hand.
"A-Ah, I feel much better. Thank you. Was that magic just now?"
"Yes. A Shouro Empire-style incantation."
"I see, I thought so. But, since you seem so used to it, do a lot of people get motion sickness?"
When Jin asked, Elsa replied, "Yes. Most people who ride for the first time feel sick."
"I see..."
"..."
Reiko was sinking into a dejected silence. Even though Jin was feeling unwell, she had failed to notice it, and to make matters worse, she had let a stranger in front of them heal him.
"It would be great if it had dampers, though."
Jin was talking to Elsa, unaware of Reiko’s inner turmoil.
"Dampers? What are those?"
"Ah, how should I put it... A device to suppress vibrations, I suppose."
"Suppressing vibrations..."
From that explanation, Elsa seemed to get a vague idea of what Jin’s "dampers" would do.
"It looks difficult with this structure, though," Jin said, and he began to think about how he might install dampers somehow, if only for his own sake.
"You really are mysterious, Jin-kun. I want you to teach me all sorts of things during our journey."
Elsa stared at Jin with a look of intense curiosity.
"Sure, okay," Jin replied lightly.
Reiko watched Jin in silence.