The three members of the repair team—Jin, Reinhard, and Yalmar—arrived at the spot where the Lyon units stood dormant near the Detached Palace.
"Fortunately, they’ve been halted thanks to Deus Ex Machina-dono, so they pose no danger."
With that assessment, they decided to start with the most troublesome task: the Lyon series. Up close, their bodies—standing over twice the height of a human—were truly massive.
"Did you decide on this four-meter scale yourself?" Jin asked Yalmar.
"Yes. I experimented with various sizes, but I found that if they were any larger than this, their structural integrity dropped and their movements became sluggish. There simply weren't any benefits."
It seemed Yalmar had arrived at this specific height through exhaustive trial and error rather than pure calculation. It must have required an extraordinary number of prototypes and tests.
Jin then asked about another point of concern. "Was the fact that the Master-Slave hierarchy recognized only the Former King based on his own instructions?"
"...Yes, unfortunately. His Majesty declared that he could trust no one..."
While watching Yalmar remove a control core, Jin continued his questioning. "It’s quite inconvenient, or rather, it creates a point of failure, doesn't it?"
Having only a single authorized commander might be secure from a lockdown perspective, but it was incredibly dangerous in a situation like this.
"Do they not even listen to you, the creator?" Jin asked. Normally, the technician who crafted the unit was treated as an exception in the hierarchy.
"No, for those were his explicit orders....Ah!?" Yalmar suddenly cried out. "The magi-formulas in the control core are all gone... Even the control system..."
His shoulders slumped in defeat.
In computing terms, the control system was equivalent to an OS—the basic program required to operate golems and automata. All fundamental actions, such as standing, walking, running, or punching, were governed by it. Because a creator's unique style often manifested in these systems, a knowledgeable observer could use it to identify the artisan.
This was precisely why Elena had been able to identify the golems and automata crafted by Jin’s predecessor, Adriana Barbora Tsetse.
The reason that control system had vanished so completely was the effect of the magic tool Jin had crafted, which utilized Master-Slave Rewrite Magic: Erase.
It was no wonder Yalmar was dejected. Unlike Jin, who could manifest such things in an instant, crafting a control core required a significant investment of time and labor for a standard technician.
Jin felt a slight twinge of guilt.
For the time being, they removed the control cores from the twenty-three units that hadn't been physically damaged. As for the seven units destroyed by Reiko, they planned to remove their cores and then perform whatever repairs were possible.
Jin used the opportunity to conduct a thorough examination of the Celuroa Kingdom’s golem technology. First, he looked at the metal composition.
"...It is undoubtedly carbon steel, but the metallic structure has been refined to provide high toughness..." Jin mused as he inspected the damaged sections. It was clear proof that the parameters for the Heat Treat—the thermal processing—were perfectly tuned.
While it might seem like a minor detail to a layman, it was in these foundational elements that the true essence of a technician was revealed. Jin felt a growing respect for Yalmar’s high level of skill.
Next, he looked at the power source for movement. While soft magi-resin was used, it had been heavily optimized. It reminded Jin of polyethylene tape—extremely strong along its length, but easy to tear if pulled widthwise. This soft magi-resin showed similar properties, demonstrating immense power in the specific direction required for muscular contraction.
"Hmm, I see the marks of great ingenuity here. Its high performance is perfectly understandable."
Meanwhile, Yalmar was constantly impressed, stealing glances at Reiko as she assisted them.
"Jin-dono’s automata, Lady Reiko... was it? To disable these Lyon units so effortlessly... she is truly a formidable creation. One day, I would like to craft a high-performance automata myself... even if I cannot hope to reach her level."
Reinhard was also busy observing the damaged sections. "Yalmar-dono, the structure of the Lyon series is a brilliant concept. Using magi-resin only at the joints to maximize reaction speed... impressive."
"Hahaha, you flatter me. I simply wanted to see how far I could push the performance of the soft magi-resin method."
"It’s true that magi-resin in areas other than the joints can be a hindrance in its own way," Reinhard agreed.
A certain percentage of the mana required for Forming would diffuse, reducing efficiency. It seemed Yalmar had chosen to utilize the bare minimum amount of resin to achieve movement. Since Jin had never focused on pushing that particular minimalist method to its limit, he found the technical exchange quite informative.
After dealing with the thirty Lyon units, the three men set to work repairing the other broken golems.
"Ah... for this one, it would be faster to build a new unit from scratch than to fix it."
Before Jin lay a pile of golden fragments—the wreckage of the gaudy golem brought by Count Guarana.
"Indeed....I am ashamed," Yalmar said.
"No, it is not something you should apologize for, Yalmar-dono," Reinhard consoled him.
Yalmar shook his head, his voice tinged with sadness. "Nevertheless, it was done by a golem I created. I must bear some of the responsibility."
"You are a man of deep integrity, Yalmar-dono."
Reinhard turned his attention to the next golem. It was Wipper, the unit Reiko had disabled.
"Why did you choose a whip as its primary weapon?" Jin asked. He recalled Gloria mentioning that whips were notoriously difficult to handle on the battlefield.
The answer was straightforward. "Haha, I was simply following the Former King's orders. He believed that using an unconventional weapon would make the unit difficult for enemies to counter."
Jin felt a pang of regret, thinking that Former King Richard might have possessed a certain brilliance for tactical judgment. If only that talent had been directed toward more productive ends.
With those thoughts in the back of his mind, Jin worked silently to repair the golem. Reinhard and Yalmar conversed frequently; as the respective creators of the Adamas Warrior and the Schwarzritter, the two former rivals found plenty of common ground.
The work continued through the lunch hour. All three were the type to prioritize their craft over a meal, and they were similar in the way they resumed their repairs almost immediately after eating.
The general-purpose golems of the Klein Kingdom and the unit Lanzer were also repaired. Yalmar handled Lanzer, Reinhard took charge of Marteau, and Jin repaired the general-purpose units. Because of this division of labor, the fine details of Jin's internal skeletons and muscular systems remained hidden from Yalmar’s view.
"Well then, does that cover everything?"
"...It seems so."
"Phew, that was exhausting, but it was a very meaningful session!"
By a little after three in the afternoon, there were no more golems left to repair. Having finally finished their task, the three men sat down to relax with tea prepared by Reiko.
"I have much to learn from Jin-dono’s efficiency!" Yalmar said, looking at Jin with genuine respect.
Just as Jin was about to reply—
"Father, someone is coming."
Reiko pointed toward the Guest House.
"...Jin-dono! A crisis has occurred!"
Gloria Allstatt was sprinting toward them, shouting at the top of her lungs.
"I wonder what happened?" Jin said, standing up.
Since they had been preoccupied with repairs outside all day, they were out of the loop regarding the palace’s internal affairs. However, Jin braced himself, realizing that if even Reiko—who could exchange data with Laojun—hadn't anticipated this, it must be a sudden development.
Gasping for air, Gloria skidded to a halt beside them and took a ragged breath.
"Someone has stepped forward to object to Crown Prince Cesar’s coronation!" she announced.