The next day, July 27th, in the capital city of Loizart. The time was noon.
Reinhard stood in the square in front of the Imperial Palace, waiting for Jin.
"He should be arriving any moment now..."
Two hours earlier, he had spoken with Jin via manacam. During that conversation, Jin mentioned he expected to arrive around noon.
"Lord Reinhard, look there."
Noir, standing at his side, pointed toward the western sky over Lake Tosmo.
"An airship?"
A flying object was visible, silhouetted against the sky.
"No, it's smaller than that... and wait, are there two of them?"
There were indeed two flying objects, and they were gradually drawing closer.
At that moment, a blue-haired automata was teleported to Reinhard's side. It was Anne.
"Lord Reinhard, those are the hot air balloons carrying Master and Elsa-sama. Please inform everyone in the castle of their arrival."
"I-I see."
Reinhard hurried to find a nearby royal ritter and gave the instruction. He made sure everyone was informed that these were the hot air balloons of the Magi Craft Meister, Jin.
Knowing Jin, it was unlikely a stray magical shot would do him any harm, but Reinhard decided to be thorough and requested that the message be relayed to the Empress as well.
A few minutes later, the hot air balloons drifted directly over Reinhard’s head.
"...Jin-kun has gone and made something new again, I see..."
Turning at the sound of the familiar voice, Reinhard saw the current ruler of the Shouro Empire, Gerhardt Hilde von Rubiss Shouro, standing behind him. She was, naturally, flanked by five royal ritters.
"Hmm. Is that not the vehicle known as a 'hot air balloon' that the Unifilar once used?"
The speaker was the Magic Technology Minister, Degauss Fruit von Manischras.
"There are two of them. Jin-dono is in one, and in the other... is that Elsa-dono?"
This was Chancellor Jung Fowles von Kebsler. Many others had gathered as well, including Christoph, the Administrative Vice-Minister of the Ministry of Magi Technology, and the royal ritter captain.
It seemed everyone had rushed out, abandoning their midday meals, upon hearing that Jin was arriving from the sky.
The hot air balloons carrying Jin and Elsa descended slowly. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, they touched down in the square before the Imperial Palace.
The doors of the gondolas opened, and Jin and Reiko stepped out from one, while Elsa and Edgar emerged from the other.
"Lord Jin Nidou, welcome! You are most welcome here!"
The Empress was the first to voice her greeting. Jin and Elsa bowed deeply in response.
"Your Majesty, please forgive this sudden visit."
"Do not give it a thought. It is only right that we welcome the Magi Craft Meister and an honorary baronet."
Once the hot air balloons had completely lost their buoyancy, Jin removed a certain magic tool from one of them and requested it be placed under guard.
"Your Majesty, could you please have someone look after these?"
"Of course."
The Empress selected two royal ritters and entrusted the care of the hot air balloons to them.
With that settled, the party moved inside the palace.
"Once again, I apologize for the suddenness of our arrival."
After moving to a conference room adjacent to the main office and taking their seats, Jin began with an apology.
"Do not worry about it. I take it you have some urgent business?"
In a casual tone, the Empress prompted Jin to continue.
"Thank you. There are several topics I wish to discuss... starting with a report regarding the demon race."
"Yes, I received a letter from Maquina-dono last night. It said the demon race had appeared in the Klein Kingdom."
To lend the story more credibility, Jin had sent word under the name of Maquina in advance.
"Indeed. Furthermore, a short while ago, in the Celuroa Kingdom..."
Jin proceeded to explain the events in the Celuroa Kingdom that had led to Stearena’s defection.
There were no laws in the Shouro Empire to judge acts of illegal entry into the Celuroa Kingdom. Reinhard had already confirmed this fact, so the Empress did not mention it. However, she did frown at the news concerning the demon race.
"I see... so such things have been happening."
"And while I have no definitive proof for this next part..."
Jin added that it seemed likely a member of the demon race had been the one manipulating Marcus.
"That is a serious matter!" the chancellor interjected, his expression hardening.
"It is still unclear what the demon race aims to achieve. However, judging by their actions in various countries, their intentions are clearly not friendly."
"Indeed, that is true. Jin-dono, have you discovered anything else?"
"Yes, regarding the magic they employ."
"That was also mentioned in Maquina-dono's letter," the Empress said. "Gravity Magic, Teleportation Magic, and Explosion Magic, was it not?"
This, too, had been part of the information Jin provided beforehand.
"Yes. Their power is not to be underestimated. We must remain extremely cautious."
"In any case, we must be on high alert to ensure that no members of the demon race have infiltrated our borders," the Empress said, her face clouded with concern.
"I agree. And I believe this is a matter that needs to be discussed not just within the Shouro Empire, but with other nations as well."
"Quite right. Your Majesty, let us raise the subject during the scheduled afternoon communications."
The manaphones that Jin had distributed to various countries through Nostalgia were now being used as an effective means of international communication.
First, there was the scheduled communication network. Due to the time zones, the local times varied slightly, but in the Shouro Empire's capital of Loizart, communications were held at 8:00 AM and 2:00 PM with the Celuroa Kingdom, the Kingdom of Egerea, the Kingdom of Franz, the Klein Kingdom, and the Kingdom of Elias.
The time difference with Alban, the capital of the Klein Kingdom—which was the furthest to the east—was two hours and forty minutes. This meant that the scheduled times in Alban were 10:40 AM and 4:40 PM.
Through this network, coordination against the demon race would be established between the Allied Kingdoms and the Shouro Empire.
"Next, I have a gift for you."
The Empress guessed his meaning immediately.
"Could it be... those flying hot air balloons?"
"Yes."
When Jin nodded, the Empress looked so delighted she seemed ready to pull him into an embrace.
"Truly? That is wonderful! Jin-kun, you have my gratitude! No, gratitude alone is not enough. Is there anything you desire? I will do whatever I can."
"Actually, I do have one request."
"What is it?"
The Empress straightened her posture, showing her readiness to hear Jin's terms.
"I would like a permit that grants free entry and exit to the Shouro Empire. If possible, for my companions as well."
"I see. So that is the reason for the hot air balloons."
The chancellor seemed to have realized why Jin had brought the vehicles.
"Yes. When traveling by air, one does not pass through checkpoints. It would be ideal to have a permit so that we are not seen as having entered the country illegally."
Jin then explained that he intended to gift two hot air balloons each to the Kingdom of Egerea and the Klein Kingdom as well.
"I see, so you are heading to the countries that recognize you as a Magi Craft Meister. You intend to make the same request there, don't you?"
"Yes."
This was a strategy Jin had discussed the previous night with Laojun, Anne, and Elsa. Rather than constantly moving back and forth in secret, it would be better to use the title of Magi Craft Meister to travel openly.
He intended to make a similar proposal to the Kingdom of Elias later on.
"I understand. Very well—if it is for your companions, I shall grant a permit for up to ten people, provided they are accompanying you. How does that sound?"
"That would be perfectly fine. Thank you very much."
The Empress immediately ordered the chancellor to begin the procedures for issuing the documents.
"Regarding the hot air balloons," Jin continued, "I have decided to officially name them 'hot air balloons' to distinguish them from the ones used by the Unifilar."
He began to explain the finer points of his design.
"A 'hot air balloon'... that sounds appropriate. According to our research, they float by trapping hot air inside that sphere, correct?"
"Yes, that's right. The Unifilar used fire-attribute magic to generate the heat, but my hot air balloons function differently."
"Hmm, pray explain in detail," the Magic Technology Minister, Degauss, said, leaning forward.
"I think it would be best to explain while looking at the actual craft."
"You are right. In that case, let us head back to the palace square!"
At the Empress’s word, the group moved back out to the square in front of the Imperial Palace.