It was well into the night by the time everything finally drew to a close.
Jin had just finished washing away the day's sweat. Now, he stood by the window, letting the night air cool his flushed skin.
"...Jin-nii."
A voice called out from behind him. It was Elsa. Her hair was still damp, making it clear she had just come from the bath herself. The skin peeking out from her magisilk bathrobe was a rosy pink from the heat.
"Want to sit?"
Jin gestured to the sofa by the window. Elsa nodded.
"The breeze is nice," she murmured, sitting down beside him.
As Jin’s own temperature began to drop, he found the lingering warmth radiating from Elsa to be quite pleasant.
"..."
A heavy silence settled between them. Jin was the first to break it.
"The night air is getting chilly. I’m going to close the window so you don't catch a cold."
"...Okay," Elsa replied softly.
Silence descended once more. This time, it was Elsa who spoke first.
"...Jin-nii, about earlier today..."
"Hmm?"
"Earlier today... thank you. When you asked if I was safe... it made me happy."
"Ah, yeah."
"...But... after all this, am I still just... Jin-nii’s sister?"
Elsa’s speech was even more hesitant than usual. The flush in her cheeks was certainly not from the bath water alone.
"..."
When Jin struggled to find an answer, Elsa pressed on.
"I’m the one who started calling you Jin-nii. I know it’s selfish of me to say this now. But... right now... I want to be more than just Jin-nii’s sister. That’s how I truly feel."
Having bared her heart, Elsa stood up, intending to flee the room. However, Jin caught her hand, stopping her in her tracks.
"...Jin-nii...?"
"...Elsa. I should be clear with you, too. I... about you..."
"Father."
Reiko’s voice suddenly rang out. Startled, Jin snapped back to his senses and reflexively let go of Elsa’s hand. Elsa remained where she was, frozen.
"...W-What is it, Reiko?" Jin asked, his voice slightly flustered.
"A message has arrived from Laojun."
"I-I see."
"...Did something happen?"
Elsa, looking as if she had been roused from a dream, seemed concerned by the mention of Laojun. She sat back down on the sofa, her expression now one of curiosity.
"Yeah. I’ll explain in a moment. Just wait....Laojun, what is it?"
『My Lord, I apologize for the late hour, but a situation has arisen that requires your judgment.』
Laojun’s voice emanated from the manacam.
"What’s the situation? Has there been progress?"
『Yes. In fact...』
Laojun proceeded to summarize the events of the last five days—reports he had withheld out of consideration for Jin while he was busy in the Klein Kingdom.
"I see. So this merchant, Oliver, is looking to hire a magi engineer."
『Precisely. I believe it is highly probable that he has some connection to the foreign tribes.』
"Right. That’s definitely a lead. We can use my body double as Laozi’s master, but as for the magi engineer..."
Jin fell into thought. He wanted to investigate personally, but knew he couldn't leave his current position. In that case...
"Alright, let's use the Deus Ex Machina."
He would use the Second Generation body he had prepared. It was equipped with high-level functions that made it indistinguishable from a human. Most importantly, Jin could take direct control of it whenever he wished.
Normally, Laojun would handle the operations, and Jin could sync with it whenever he had a spare moment.
『Understood. I shall make the necessary arrangements.』
"Thanks, I’m counting on you."
『What name shall he use?』
He could hardly use a name as conspicuous as Deus Ex Machina.
"Let’s see... Elsa, do you have any ideas?"
Lacking confidence in his own naming abilities, Jin decided to take advantage of Elsa's presence and consult her.
"...John Dini."
"Eh?"
"I rearranged the letters in Jin Nidoh."
"Let's see... J-O-H-N D-I-N-I. I see. That works."
Whether it was a "good" name was up for debate, but it was just a pseudonym. Jin decided to roll with it.
"Alright, Laojun. Let's go with John Dini."
『Understood. I shall contact you again when there is further progress.』
The transmission ended.
"I'm looking forward to this..." Jin muttered to himself. He was already feeling a spark of excitement, imagining the unique materials and techniques the foreign tribes might possess.
Elsa watched Jin’s profile intently for a moment before finally standing up again.
"Elsa?"
"...I’m going to sleep now. Good night."
Before Jin could react, Elsa leaned down and pressed a light, grazing kiss against his cheek.
Turning bright red, she spun around and dashed toward her bedroom.
"...Good night," Jin finally managed to whisper, having been turned to stone by the sudden gesture.
＊ ＊ ＊
At that same moment, on Hourai Island.
『John Dini, is it? It would be wise to differentiate his appearance from Maquina's.』
Laojun began the process of altering the physical features of the Deus Ex Machina No. 2.
『The black hair and eyes can stay. I shall adjust the height to approximately 160 centimeters.』
Since the unit was an automata designed for multi-purpose deception, its physical frame could be modified to a certain extent.
『Now, to prepare My Lord’s body double...』
This was the "master" he intended to introduce to the merchant Oliver in Ismar.
If he made the unit look exactly like Jin, there was a risk that someone might recognize the face and uncover his true identity. It was a delicate balance.
『I shall change the hair and eye color for this one.』
He opted for brown hair and brown eyes—common features that wouldn't draw unnecessary attention.
『Next, the carriage...』
He debated between a golem carriage and a standard one. However, since they didn't actually own any living horses, the choice was clear.
『It will also serve as a demonstration of technical prowess.』
As a precaution, he decided to "de-tune" the units—a process of intentionally lowering their performance.
He added a new toggle to their programming to make their movements appear more mechanical and stiff.
Normal mode would retain their standard, fluid movements.
The new "downgrade mode" would be used for concealment. Laojun took it upon himself to implement these efficiency-reducing measures. The modes could be swapped with a simple command.
When Laojun watched the golem horse walk in its new mode, seeing the clunky, jerky gait gave him a complicated feeling.
『It is a pity to suppress the performance My Lord worked so hard to create.』
Nevertheless, this should suffice to meet Oliver and introduce the magi engineer.
The carriage itself was a conventional model, though it was equipped with a Warp Gate for emergencies. Even if it went unused, there would surely be other opportunities for it in the future.
What waited for them across the desert?
Laojun found himself eagerly anticipating the day he could report his findings back to Jin.