On the morning of January 9th.
Jin, Reinhard, Elsa, and Reiko were invited to the magi-laboratory in the Outer Palace, where Kelichdore, the minister of magic, served as the chief.
This was the Kingdom of Egerea's cutting-edge institution for researching magi-engineering.
"This is what I wanted you to see."
Before them was a magi-screen. It was an artifact that had been used as a monitor during the Golem Boat Race.
"Could it be that you reproduced the magi-screen?"
"Indeed. Though it would be presumptuous to call it a true reproduction."
Kelichdore replied with modesty, but his face still held a look of pride.
"We have provided a prototype to the survey team currently out in the Former Leonard Kingdom for a trial run."
On the screen he indicated, the state of a distant land was indeed being projected.
However, the image quality was poor, and the movements of the team members appearing from time to time were choppy. It was like watching a film with a low frame rate.
"Since it is still a prototype, there are various issues, but the greatest advantage of this magi-device is that the Magi Machine equivalent to a magic eye can be kept small," the minister explained.
"It is sized to be easily carried on a shoulder. In exchange, this side—the magi-screen—has ended up being quite large."
Even so, being able to monitor the status of a survey team from so far away was incredibly useful. It was only a pity that they couldn't pick up audio.
"If they need to notify us of something from their end, they can write it down in text. Unfortunately, we have no way to contact them from our end yet."
Nonetheless, this was a major step forward. Even with an artifact to serve as a model, the fact that they had reproduced and applied a lost technology in this manner deserved recognition.
"Since it feels bold to use the original name, I intend to call it a 'magi-monitor'."
"A magi-monitor... I see."
Jin nodded and stared intently at the device.
"Do you have any opinions, Jin-dono?"
"Let's see..."
To be honest, "an opinion" didn't begin to cover it.
The reason the image was choppy was that the data transmission speed was too slow, and the poor image quality was likely due to the low polishing precision of the magic eye's lenses.
The excessive size of the overall device was probably due to inefficiencies in how the magi-sequence for magical control was organized...
However, Jin knew well enough that pointing all of that out right here would be a mistake. Therefore, he limited his feedback to a single point that would be relatively easy to accept.
"Regarding the image quality, I believe it is likely because the polishing precision of the magic eye is low."
"I see, polishing precision... Now that you mention it, that makes a lot of sense..."
Kelichdore placed a hand to his chin as if recalling something for a moment, then nodded in realization and offered his thanks to Jin.
"Hmm, I am grateful, Jin-dono. I shall try to pay more attention to that area in the next model."
"Yesterday, the survey team reached a set of ruins called Soldrake. They have just begun a full-scale investigation of the ruins today."
Just as he said, the magi-screen was projecting the state of ruins that even Jin had never seen before.
＊ ＊ ＊
The Soldrake Ruins were located to the southwest of the former capital, Diaa.
The surrounding area was a grassland dotted with reddish-brown rocks.
Although it was located north of Asunt, the capital of the Kingdom of Egerea, the temperature was roughly the same due to the low elevation.
However, compared to the inland Asunt, perhaps because it was closer to the sea, the air was more laden with moisture. Consequently, it was an environment where plants flourished.
The survey team had reached the site by forging a narrow path through the growth.
"Alright, Jade-dono, I request your investigation first."
The survey team captain, Bruno Thales Bright, made the request to the magi craftman, Jade Nephroi.
"Yes, leave it to me."
Before them stood a ruin with the appearance of a fortress, built from reddish-brown sandstone.
Such ruins were often rigged with magical seals or traps, and an excellent magi craftman could disarm them.
That was the primary reason Jade Nephroi was accompanying the expedition.
The previous day, they had disarmed four traps to reach this door, but they had run out of time as the sun set. The investigation of the interior had been deferred to this morning.
Jade investigated the threshold thoroughly before eventually turning back to report.
"...There are no traps. Only a seal. I can release this immediately."
Just as he promised, the door opened in about three minutes.
"Oh, it opened."
"There is a possibility of traps inside. Please be cautious."
"Understood."
Then, with Captain Bruno in the lead, the group stepped inside the ruins. Bringing up the rear was the non-combatant, Jade.
It was 8:00 AM local time, and 7:15 AM back in the capital, Asunt.
"Hoh..."
A voice of what sounded like admiration or realization echoed, though it was unclear who had uttered it.
Unlike the exterior, the interior's floors, walls, and even the ceiling were covered in stones like marble, which glittered in the light of the group's magi-lamps.
"In times like these..."
Jade Nephroi lit a Light Ball. It was a magical light that would stay lit until the magical power funneled into it was exhausted.
"Oh, it's gotten much brighter."
The intensity was several times that of a magi-lamp. It was as if a twenty-watt bulb had been swapped for a hundred-watt one; the room brightened all at once.
This allowed them to see the details clearly. The room was an elongated rectangle, roughly ten meters wide and twenty meters deep.
"There is nothing here."
The entry chamber was spacious but empty.
"What is that?"
Wait—in one corner, there was something like a pile of rubble.
When they approached, they found it was a mound of magi-crystals, though their quality was not particularly high.
Even if they were low quality, they were piled up nearly to eye level, suggesting they held considerable value.
"There is another door straight ahead," one knight pointed out.
"Alright, let's go."
That door had no gimmicks and opened normally with a push.
Once again, Captain Bruno stepped inside first. When he illuminated the space with the magi-lamp in his hand, he saw stairs extending downward.
"A basement. Is that the main objective?"
Judging by the height of the ruins, one could guess that the real secrets would be held in a basement.
Bruno thought for a moment and decided to leave the youngest knight at the landing.
"Tauto, stay here. If anything happens to us, I'm counting on you."
"Y-Yes, sir!"
"Counting on you" did not mean he expected a rescue. It meant Tauto was to rush back and inform the King of the emergency.
The young knight was sharp enough to understand the gravity of his post.
The stairs continued straight down to a depth of about twenty meters.
At the bottom sat another door, and beyond that, another room.
"...What is this place?"
It was a cramped chamber. In terms of floor space, it wasn't even four and a half tatami mats. Only the ceiling was high, reaching about three meters.
"...Another door?"
Directly ahead was a metal door. Since a thick bolt had been set from the inside, they removed it carefully.
When they opened this door cautiously as well, they found a similar room and a similar door.
After passing through three such small chambers, they finally reached a massive hall.
And there—
"W-What... is this...?"
"...Golems...?"
Countless golems were lined up in perfect formation.
They stood two and a half meters tall. Their outer shells were forged from steel. Their armaments varied: swords, spears, clubs, and axes.
Though they seemed countless at first glance, a quick estimate put their numbers at over five hundred.
The entire survey team—save for Tauto—stood frozen as they looked upon the hall. Meanwhile, in the magi-laboratory, Jin, Reinhard, Elsa, Reiko, Minister Kelichdore, and the rest of the staff watched the same scene through the magi-monitor, equally stunned.