April 19. Reinhard was staying in the regional city of Astan.
It had been a grueling forced march from Tansten, where they had stayed the previous night. To compensate for the pace, his childhood friend Mattheus—captain of the 3rd Company of the Shouro Empire's Imperial Guards and leader of his escort—had scheduled a three-night stay here in Astan.
This was possible because Astan served as a supply base for their home nation, the Shouro Empire.
"I want to give the troops a rest, so we're staying here for three nights. It's going to be another forced march after this, so make sure you get plenty of sleep," Mattheus told Reinhard as he went over the itinerary.
After the three-night stay, they would depart Astan early on the morning of the 22nd. They would push hard through that entire day to reach the regional city of Pororon by nightfall. On the 23rd, they would reach the city of Ganys; on the 24th, the border town of Toscosia. If their passage permit was processed immediately, they would be back within the Shouro Empire by the 25th.
"At the latest, we'll have our feet on home soil by the 27th," Mattheus said with a grin. Then, he made sure to drive a point home.
"And let me be clear: absolutely no wandering off alone, you hear? No sneaking off to brothels, either. You'll be back with Berche in ten days, so behave yourself."
He hadn't forgotten the warning from the butler, Claude, who had mentioned Reinhard’s troublesome habit of roaming about on his own.
"...I know, I know," Reinhard replied, sounding disgruntled. However, everything Mattheus said was perfectly reasonable, so he couldn't find a way to argue.
"Traveling with Jin was certainly more exciting," Reinhard mused to himself as he lay back on his bed, reminiscing.
The morning of the 20th arrived.
The restriction on his movement remained in place for the following day as well. Despite the beautiful weather outside, Reinhard was forced to remain confined to his room.
As he spent his time staring vacantly out the window or lounging listlessly on the sofa, one of the maids approached him.
"Um, Master? I heard something interesting a moment ago," she said, relaying information she had picked up in the lobby.
"Apparently, a man named Donald Carroux Alpha, a royal magi craftman of the Celuroa Kingdom, is currently staying in this city."
"What?!"
Reinhard bolted upright from the sofa at the news.
"Alpha." That title designated the absolute pinnacle of the manufacturing profession in the Celuroa Kingdom. Though Reinhard had never met the man personally, he had certainly heard the name.
"Hmm, I wonder if there's any way I could meet him?"
If the man was willing to come to him, there shouldn't be a problem with the escort. With that thought, Reinhard summoned his butler, Claude, to discuss the matter.
"Understood, sir. I shall go at once to inquire if it would be convenient for him."
"Yes, please do."
Depending on how much authority the Celuroa Kingdom granted their royal magi craftmen, Reinhard—as a diplomat—was at least their social equal.
Feeling a surge of excitement, Reinhard waited for Claude to return.
Roughly an hour later, Claude returned with favorable news.
"I have returned, sir. The gentleman has sent word that he would be honored to visit this afternoon."
"Oh! Excellent! I'm looking forward to this. Claude, Beth, Dolly—please prepare to receive a guest."
"Yes, sir."
Reinhard issued orders to his butler and maids. He couldn't provide anything too lavish while on the road, but as the host, he wanted to do his best to show hospitality.
He spent the rest of the morning trying to contain his mounting anticipation.
The man arrived accompanied by a golem.
He was of medium build with hair as white as snow. However, his dreamy blue eyes held an unmistakable intelligence—and perhaps a faint glimmer of madness.
"A pleasure to meet you. I am Donald Carroux Alpha. It is an honor to be invited, Lord Reinhard."
"The honor is mine, I assure you."
The two men shook hands and exchanged brief formalities before Reinhard invited him to the table.
"Is that golem your creation, Lord Donald?"
Unable to contain his curiosity, Reinhard spoke up before the maid had even finished serving the tea.
"Indeed. This is Number 457. It handles my daily needs and personal care."
The golem known as 457 stood two meters tall. Its physique was remarkably human-like.
As Reinhard observed it, a soft murmur escaped his lips.
"An endoskeleton type..."
Hearing this, Donald looked slightly surprised.
"How did you recognize that? Could it be that you also construct endoskeleton-type golems, Lord Reinhard?"
From Donald's reaction, Reinhard knew his intuition had been correct.
"Well, yes. Using an endoskeleton allows for movements that are much closer to those of a human."
Donald nodded vigorously at this.
"Precisely, precisely! To understand that at such a young age... Lord Reinhard, you are quite the formidable individual," he said, sounding genuinely impressed. Reinhard felt a bit bashful, but he was not so careless as to mention Jin’s name in this company.
"I have recently had some personal revelations regarding golem architecture," he replied simply. His restraint was a testament to his experience as a diplomat.
"Hmm. Your golem is the Schwarzritter, the Black Knight, if I recall. I heard you defeated the Beta’s Adamas Warrior."
"Beta" referred to the magi craftman ranked second in the kingdom, just below an Alpha like Donald.
"That was already a year ago. I'm sure your country has developed far more powerful golems by now, hasn't it?"
There was a hint of irony in Reinhard's voice, directed at the Celuroa Kingdom's ongoing war with the Kingdom of Egerea, but Donald didn't seem bothered in the slightest.
"Hahaha, quite true. It seems Beta has also been making further improvements to the Adamas Warrior. Technology only advances when there is competition, after all."
"I agree with you on that point."
Reinhard bit back the urge to add that he did not approve of war.
The conversation remained lively from there, and evening arrived before they knew it. Donald expressed a desire to return the next day. Since this was exactly what Reinhard wanted, he readily agreed.
Donald then departed into the deepening twilight.
"Ah, that was a wonderful time."
Discussions with a magi craftman from another nation were always fruitful, even when both parties were careful not to divulge state secrets.
"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself, Lord Reinhard."
"Yeah. It's thanks to you, Beth. Thank you."
When Reinhard thanked Beth, the maid who had first told him about Donald, she looked flustered.
"Oh, please, sir, I don't deserve such thanks."
"No, I mean it. You and Dolly both have done a wonderful job. You've stayed by my side and followed me away from our home for nearly two years. That's almost over now. You'll be able to return to your families soon."
"Not at all, Lord Reinhard. Our families have served your house for generations; it is only natural for us to look after you," Dolly replied this time.
"Even so, being separated from your husbands must be hard. I do feel a bit guilty about it. Though, it was my father who insisted on assigning married maids to me."
Since Reinhard had a fiancée, his father had made the calculated decision to assign him married maids to ensure he wouldn't start any dalliances during his travels. Incidentally, the fact that both women had rather modest figures was no accident either; his father had taken that into consideration as well.
"The master surely had his reasons," Claude the butler added from the side.
He made the comment knowing full well that Reinhard had a preference for large-breasted women. The two maids, however, hadn't quite realized that part.
"Well, anyway, we'll be heading home in ten days."
"Yes, sir. We are looking forward to it."
The following afternoon, the 21st, Donald arrived exactly as promised.
Today, in addition to Golem 457, he was accompanied by an automata.
The automata had long, flowing blonde hair like silk, skin as white as fine porcelain, and eyes of a deep, burning crimson. Her craftsmanship was so exquisite that one could easily believe she was human.
"My name is Elena," the automata introduced herself. Her voice was beautiful—a clear, crystalline soprano that sounded like the song of a bird.
Reinhard found himself staring, mesmerized and unable to speak. It was Donald’s voice that finally snapped him back to reality.
"Lord Reinhard? What do you think? Is Elena not magnificent?"
Startled, Reinhard felt his face flush slightly.
As a diplomat, he had frequent opportunities to see beautiful women: royalty, noble daughters, high-ranking ladies, their staff, and even the women of the pleasure districts.
However, the automata named Elena possessed a beauty that surpassed them all.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Elena. I am Reinhard, a magi engineer of the Shouro Empire."
Perhaps it was a small spark of professional pride that made Reinhard introduce himself using his official title from the Shouro Empire.