The morning of October 8th.
The rain that had been falling over Kaina Village had finally stopped, though the sky remained a leaden gray.
Nevertheless, the cloud base was high, and visibility had improved considerably.
"Alright, is everyone ready?"
A large crowd had gathered in Nidou Castle Square. Every face in the crowd was turned upward at the same diagonal angle. They were all staring at the airship floating in the sky.
"…So he’s really going to fly through the sky…"
"He’s gone and done something outrageous again…"
"Well, it is Jin, after all…"
A mixture of exasperation and admiration rippled through the onlookers.
"J-Jin-sama, are we really going in this!?"
"Yeah, that’s right. With this, we can reach the Shouro Empire in two days."
"T-Two days!?"
It was an airship Jin had reinforced, capable of flying at speeds of about 100 kilometers per hour. The distance between Kaina Village and Loizart, the capital of the Shouro Empire, was just under 900 kilometers. If they pushed it, they could fly there in a single day, but that wouldn't be very interesting.
Therefore, they planned to stay a few nights in the Kingdom of Egerea. Beena and Count Kuzuma were getting married soon, and Jin wanted to see them.
When Jin explained the plan once more, Barrow and Belle nodded firmly.
"Yes, we understand. We will conduct ourselves as your butler and maid so as not to bring shame upon you during the journey."
Jin had heard these words just the other day, but hearing them again made him realize just how much the two had grown.
"…But can it really fly?"
Even so, they still looked half-doubtful about the prospect of actually taking to the air.
"Honi-hyan, hitte-hasshai!"
Hanna’s parting words—a slurred version of "Jin-nii, have a safe trip"—rang out. Since this trip was less for sightseeing and more for reconnecting with old friends, a homecoming for Barrow and Belle, and a business trip to set up a desiccant plant for Reinhard, Jin had decided that Hanna wouldn't find it very enjoyable.
"Yeah, if that’s the case, I’ll stay and look after the house this time."
Hanna, who had listened and understood his reasoning, looked a little more mature than usual.
Seeing her brave face made Jin’s heart ache. He decided then and there that once his business was concluded, he would use a Warp Gate to call Hanna to the Shouro Empire to join them.
"We’re off."
The airship—carrying four humans and two golems: Jin, Elsa, Reiko, Edgar, Barrow, and Belle—slowly rose into the air.
"Ohhh!"
"It floated… no, it’s flying!"
"Amazing! That’s our Jin for you!"
"Honi-hyan, hitte-hasshai!"
As the ground receded, the voices of the villagers grew fainter and fainter.
"Whoa, w-we’re flying!" Barrow clung to the gondola, trembling slightly.
"Wow, what a view!" Belle was enchanted, gazing down at the world from the sky for the first time.
"Alright, let’s pick up speed!" Jin declared, activating the propulsion system.
The airship began to move slowly, gradually picking up pace. It stopped accelerating once it reached about 80 kilometers per hour.
"Jin-nii, what parts did you improve this time?" Elsa asked, leaning in close to him. After deciding to head to the Shouro Empire, Jin had spent about two days refining the vessel.
"Ah, a few things. Some are experimental. First, there's the resistance reduction barrier."
"From the name, I can more or less guess what it does. But I can't imagine how you implemented it," Elsa said, tilting her head slightly. The gesture made Jin’s heart skip a beat.
"E-Err, you understand air resistance, right?" After Elsa gave a small nod, Jin continued. "Until now, I used a wind barrier to reduce resistance, but this time it's different. I’m not using a barrier for that specifically."
"Eh?"
"Look, you can hardly feel the breeze, can you?"
"Now that you mention it…"
Previously, because the barrier only "reduced" the wind, they had still felt a slight headwind.
"I’m pushing from behind with wind magic."
"Eh? But the recoil… Ah, I see."
"You figured it out? Right. I’m moving the entire mass of air that surrounds the airship."
This was an application of the propulsion system used by the giant ships developed by House Techles in the southern Celuroa Kingdom, which used wind magic to blow wind into sails. Jin had adapted that principle.
Ordinary wind magic has no recoil. No matter how powerful a gust one creates, the caster feels no reaction. Jin had turned that quirk of magic to his advantage to generate propulsion.
"But the efficiency is fairly low, so it maxes out at about 100 kilometers per hour."
"Even so, it's amazing. You really are a Magi Craft Meister, Jin-nii."
As she spoke, Elsa snuggled even closer to Jin, perhaps feeling a bit of a chill. Jin, meanwhile, had been a nervous wreck for some time now.
(Until now, I always thought of Elsa as a sister figure, and I didn't actually feel anything… Is this because my body was ‘activated’?)
His hypothesis was correct. The reason Jin had been able to maintain a detached attitude and appear uninterested in women was entirely due to his reconstructed cells being inactive.
The primary cause had been a lack of hormones and neurotransmitters like adrenaline, noradrenaline, dopamine, and serotonin—or rather, their minimal impact on his body. Now that his system had been activated and all its functions normalized, the emotions and physical reactions natural to a man of Jin’s age had returned.
Because the change was so sudden, he was left bewildered, struggling to handle the rush of feelings.
Elsa, unaware of Jin’s internal struggle, was projecting all her gratitude for him curing her illness and the deep affection she had nurtured until then directly at him.
Reiko, for her part, was feeling a bit dejected. She worried that she might have caused Jin discomfort all this time because the parts supplemented when she summoned him had been inactive—a misunderstanding on her part, but one that weighed on her nonetheless.
Regardless of the thoughts of those on board, the airship flew on.
From Kaina Village to Blue Land, it was a straight line of about 500 kilometers—a flight of just under seven hours.
The airship headed southwest. Had Barrow or Belle been at all familiar with navigation, they surely would have wondered how the ship could fly so unerringly. The secret lay with Regulus 5, the Quinta unit stationed in Blue Land, acting as a landmark, and Reiko’s precise steering.
Lunch was eaten high above the earth. Looking down at the world while eating was a magnificent experience. The tea from the magic bottle was hot and refreshing.
Though Barrow had been terrified at first, he had become completely accustomed to the flight after three hours and was now cheering along with Belle as they watched the ground pass beneath them.
"We’ll be passing the Klein Kingdom soon. We'll be over the Liebus Region in the eastern Celuroa Kingdom before long," Jin explained.
The Liebus Region was mostly mountainous and sparsely populated. Since the country was not particularly friendly, Jin increased their altitude. To prevent the air pressure from dropping, he activated a wind barrier to maintain a comfortable cabin pressure.
He raised their height from 2,000 meters to 3,000 meters. Since they were over a high-altitude region, the actual distance to the ground was less than half that—about 1,200 meters. Still, at that height, the airship would look like nothing more than a speck from the ground.
After flying like that for about two hours, they finally entered the Kingdom of Egerea. About five hours had passed since their departure.
"We should reach our destination in about two more hours."
They planned to land on the outskirts of Blue Land.
The mountainous terrain that had stretched from the Celuroa Kingdom gradually leveled out. Jin lowered the airship’s altitude in response.
"Ah, what is that tall mountain?"
"Oh, that’s Mount Galat. It makes for an excellent landmark."
Mount Galat stood like a titan between the capital, Asunt, and their destination. By the time that mountain was behind them to their right, the fortress city of Blue Land came into view below.
"Reiko, do you see the landing spot?"
"Yes, Father. Regulus 5 is already waiting."
Even at a distance Jin could not see, Reiko’s eyes were sharp. She clearly spotted Regulus 5 standing in a clearing about five kilometers ahead.
"Lowering altitude."
With Jin’s airship, altitude changes could be made without tilting the gas bag. This meant they could descend steeply without the angle of the gondola changing. They angled down at about 30 degrees toward their target.
"It’s right there."
In the center of a clearing, two figures—Regulus 4 and 5—were waving. The airship descended precisely beside them. Just before the gondola touched the ground, Regulus 5 reached out to steady it.
"Welcome, Chief."
"Good work."
Regulus 5 held the gondola steady. Jin, Elsa, and Edgar stepped out first, followed by Barrow and Belle.
"U-Um, Jin-sama, who are these people?"
"This is Beat. And he is Mark."
Beat was Regulus 5, and Mark was Regulus 4. Since Jin hadn't yet shared the full details of his organization with Barrow and Belle, their confusion was expected.
"I see. Mr. Beat, Mr. Mark, it is a pleasure to meet you."
Finally, Reiko stepped down.
"Father, engine check complete. All systems are normal."
"Good work. Mark, please look after the airship for a while."
"Understood."
Mark—Regulus 4—boarded the airship and slowly moved it toward the cover of the forest. Watching him go, Jin turned back to Beat.
"And the Count?"
"Yes, he said he would meet you with a carriage."