"That was a slip of the tongue."
Reinhard scratched his head in contrition. Elsa, her cheeks puffed out, looked away from him.
"...What exactly is this 'bare hands oath'?"
The question came naturally from Jin. Elsa remained turned away, her face still flushed a deep scarlet. Reinhard wore a troubled expression.
"...It can't be helped. Miss Elsa, I apologize for my husband's blunder. Jin-sama, may I be the one to explain it to you?"
With her face still averted, Elsa gave a silent nod.
"When an adult noblewoman attends a public function without gloves, it is essentially a sign that she 'assists with the household chores.' From there, it has become an expression that 'I serve a specific master,' and by extension, that 'there is someone to whom I have pledged my heart'..."
There was a sudden, loud clatter. Looking over, they saw Elsa nearly knocking her chair over as she stood up and fled the room. Her face was crimson.
"...Ah... I'll have to apologize to her later."
Reinhard looked truly apologetic as he bowed his head toward Jin.
"I suspect Elsa intended it only as a private vow to herself. But then I went and pointed it out... Sorry, Jin."
Reinhard bowed again. Jin, however, told him not to worry about it.
"...Elsa's feelings are something I have to face myself," Jin muttered, staring at the door through which Elsa had vanished.
"Jin, do you still think of Elsa as just a 'risky little sister'?"
Reinhard apparently remembered the words Jin had used when they had spoken back at the Kunlun Island hot spring.
"...No."
Jin shook his head as he answered.
"I don't think of her as 'risky' anymore. She is a splendid woman now."
"Elsa-san would be delighted to hear that," Bell said.
"...Don't you dare tell her, all right?"
"Yes, I understand. Please, Jin-sama, tell her those words yourself."
"...Eventually. Once I've sorted out my own feelings."
When Jin replied as such, Reinhard and Berche both let out a small, shared sigh.
The next morning, Jin finished the final preparations for the airship and boarded with Reiko, Elsa, Hanna, and Edgar.
However, Elsa acted as if she were avoiding Jin, giving him no opportunity to speak with her. Jin was somewhat optimistic, thinking things would work out once they reached Hourai Island.
First, they made a brief landing in front of the Imperial Palace. Chancellor Jung and Magic Technology Minister Degauss were waiting there for them.
"Miss Elsa, Lord Jin Nidou, we are counting on you."
The Chancellor handed Elsa a cream-colored robe that identified her as a Reichsarzt.
"Thank you very much. I will... do my absolute best."
Afterward, Elsa was briefed by the Chancellor on various precautions regarding the Klein Kingdom. Jin used that time to ask Degauss if they could take some desiccant samples with them.
"Hmm, that is a fine idea. I shall have some brought over immediately."
While they were occupied, the Empress arrived at a light run.
"...I made it in time. Elsa, I am counting on you. Jin-kun, I leave matters in your hands."
As she spoke, the Empress handed Elsa a letter.
"Show this once you reach the Klein Kingdom. Good luck."
"Thank you very much."
The document appeared to be a personal, handwritten letter from the monarch. She mentioned that she had just been speaking with the Chancellor of the Klein Kingdom via manaphone.
"Just to ensure there are no misunderstandings, you see."
At that moment, the desiccant samples were brought in. Degauss explained Jin's intentions to the Empress.
"...I see, that is a wonderful thought. Thank you, Jin-kun."
With the sixty kilograms of desiccant loaded, they were ready to depart.
"Be careful, Jin-kun. Stay strong, Elsa. Hanna-chan, let's meet again soon."
The Empress offered a final word to Jin's group.
"Yes. Well then, we're off."
Jin had the airship's mooring lines released. The vessel rose slowly. A somewhat strong west breeze was blowing that day, and Jin's airship gained speed as it ascended into the sky.
The Empress, the Chancellor, and the Magic Technology Minister all looked up at the sky until the airship was no longer in sight.
Riding the tailwind, the airship flew east at a speed of about sixty kilometers per hour. They increased their altitude to around three thousand meters.
After an hour of flight, a sea of clouds spread out beneath them.
"Wow, it's so pretty!" Hanna cheered.
Jin patted her head and muttered, "It should be arriving soon."
"Eh? Onii-chan, what's coming?" Hanna asked, sounding puzzled.
Jin smiled mischievously and continued to pat her head. "Just watch."
True to his words, a massive object appeared about five hundred meters ahead. It was Condor 3, equipped with a Warp Gate. It had been sent to this location via transporter.
"Wow, it's that airplane I saw before!"
Hanna seemed to remember using it on the return trip from their previous visit to the Klein Kingdom. The airship moved forward at a crawl toward the massive Warp Gate on Condor 3.
"...Ah, this might be a bit risky."
Jin decided against flying the airship directly into the Warp Gate.
"Jin-nii, what's wrong?"
Elsa had been avoiding Jin since the previous night out of embarrassment, but given the circumstances, she couldn't avoid speaking to him.
"The wind is a bit strong today, so the airship would likely be too unstable. Docking would be dangerous."
Airships and balloons were highly susceptible to the wind. While that applied to all aircraft, vessels that relied on buoyancy were particularly vulnerable.
"We'll moor the airship to Condor 3 and enter the Warp Gate on foot."
Thinking that he needed to develop more countermeasures for high-wind conditions, Jin brought the airship down onto Condor 3.
The aviation golems Sky 21 and 22 came out and securely moored the airship. Once it was fixed in place, Jin took Elsa and Hanna by the hands and led them out of the gondola. Reiko and Edgar followed close behind.
"All right, let's go."
The group passed through the Warp Gate. Condor 3 would carry the airship back to Hourai Island.
They traveled from Shinkai back to Hourai Island. After several transfers, Hanna seemed to have grown completely accustomed to the process.
"Wow, we're already at Hourai Island!"
Hanna ran out of the laboratory, brimming with energy. Her personal Secret Mobile Unit guards, Iris and Azalea, joined them there. Since those two couldn't be brought onto the airship, they had returned to Hourai Island ahead of time using the Warp Gate hidden in the basement of the Loizart mansion.
From Loizart, the capital of the Shouro Empire, to their destination of Alban, the capital of the Klein Kingdom, was approximately eight hundred kilometers.
It was a distance that could be covered in a single day if they pushed themselves, but Jin had left Loizart stating the trip would take two days. This meant they could afford to spend a full day on Hourai Island and still have time to spare.
Jin intended to use this time to put various measures into place.
"Now then, shall we begin?"
Jin held out a recording magi-crystal to Elsa.
"...Jin-nii, what is this?"
As Elsa looked on dubiously, Jin explained. "It is the key to further knowledge."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Jin felt a flush of embarrassment at his own grandiose phrasing. However, Elsa was staring at him with serious eyes.
"Jin-nii, does that mean... this magi-crystal contains scientific knowledge...?"
Elsa understood exactly what Jin was implying.
"Yeah. You previously had the beginner-level knowledge transferred via Trans Info, right? This is the mid-level edition."
The beginner-level had covered science roughly equivalent to a middle school education, but the mid-level reached high school levels. It also included portions of Adriana Barbora Tsetse's magi craft knowledge.
"I believe you can handle this now, Elsa."
"Jin-nii..."
"Think of it as a parting gift for your decision to go to the Klein Kingdom of your own volition."
For Jin's part, he wanted to do everything in his power to ensure Elsa's safety.
"...I'm happy."
Elsa accepted the magi-crystal with a shy smile.
"Trans Info."
She immediately transferred the data to her own magi-crystal and then absorbed it. Receiving knowledge far more advanced than the beginner-level caused Elsa to stagger for a moment, but she quickly recovered.
"Are you all right?"
"...Mm."
Jin reached out to steady Elsa and helped her into a chair.
For about ten minutes, Elsa remained with her head down, as if mentally organizing the influx of information. Eventually, she raised her head. When her eyes met Jin's worried gaze, she gave him a bright, radiant smile.
"Jin-nii, thank you."