When Jin returned to the Sand Rose Inn, he found everyone already awake. Spotting him as he came back from his walk, they all began to reproach him at once.
“Onii-chan, did you go for a walk by yourself? You should have told me!”
“Jin, that’s a bit cold. I would have gladly joined you if you’d just woken me up.”
“Jin-nii, how heartless.”
“My bad, my bad. You all seemed to be sleeping so soundly that I thought it would be a pity to wake you.”
“I was awake! The only one who overslept was Saki-oneechan.”
“Ugh... H-Hanna-chan, please don't say that.”
Indeed, compared to Hanna and Elsa, Saki’s hair was quite disheveled, with stray tufts of bedhead sticking out in several places.
“So, Jin, what is that Reiko-chan is carrying?”
Whether she was trying to change the subject or was driven by genuine curiosity, Saki’s sharp eyes had quickly spotted the mugwort.
“Ah, this? In the language I know, it’s called ‘mugwort.’ It’s used for flavoring.”
“Heh, interesting. And what are you flavoring with it?”
Jin didn't answer; he simply offered a cryptic smirk.
“That’s a surprise for later. Look forward to it around lunchtime.”
“Hmm, that’s a shame, but I suppose I can wait.”
With that, the conversation ended, and the group headed to the dining room for breakfast. The inn was thoughtful enough to vary the menu for guests staying multiple nights.
Today’s meal consisted of barley porridge, grilled smoked meat, and a cactus salad.
The edible cacti were harvested while young, despoiled of their thorns, sliced, boiled in salt water, and then finely chopped and tossed with other vegetables.
It had a delicate balance of sweetness, acidity, and a hint of bitterness. It was quite tasty and seemingly rich in vitamins and minerals.
“Hmm, I think I’m a bit bad with this texture.”
The salad had a slimy consistency that Saki didn't seem to enjoy, but it had the opposite effect on Jin.
“I bet if I topped this with some shaved katsuobushi and soy sauce, it would be amazing...”
Recalling okra, Jin found himself quite liking the dish.
Hanna, who was never a picky eater, ate in silence, while Elsa seemed to be eating it with a touch of polite endurance.
“So, what’s the plan? We saw the town yesterday, so shall we head out soon?” Jin suggested over their post-meal tea.
“Hmm, yeah. I think that’s a good idea,” Saki agreed.
“Me too.”
“I’m ready.”
Since no one had any objections to departing, Jin made his decision.
“All right. Let’s stop by Oliver’s shop to see if he has any more information, and then we’ll set off.”
Since Oliver had been officially permitted to handle goods from Mitsuho, they were likely to learn something useful from him.
“Mm, sounds good.”
“Then let’s all go together!”
Elsa nodded, and Saki gave an enthusiastic shout.
At 8:00 AM, the time when shops generally opened their doors, Jin and the others pulled up to Oliver’s shop in their automobile.
“I-is this a horseless carriage? I see, so you are the Magi Craft Meister... I have heard the rumors. I am the shopkeeper, Oliver.”
The moment they stopped the vehicle in front of the store, a young man came rushing out to greet them.
“I’m Jin Nidou. We’re planning to head toward Mitsuho now. Is there anything we should be aware of?”
“Ho, to Mitsuho?”
When Jin showed him his permit, Oliver nodded and offered some advice.
“I see; someone of your caliber would certainly receive a permit easily. The people of Mitsuho welcome those who excel in magi-craft, so it would be best to introduce yourself as a Magi Craft Meister from the beginning.”
“I see.”
Jin had suspected as much, even back when he was traveling as John Dini, but hearing it from a local merchant turned that hunch into a certainty.
“Also, large-scale trade is still prohibited.”
“Yes, I heard that from Her Majesty.”
“Then the only other thing is... if you head west along the highway, you’ll reach an uninhabited rest house. Normally, travelers spend the night there. From that point to the next settlement, Kari Village, it’s about twenty kilometers, so please don't push yourselves too hard.”
After learning more about the lifestyle of the people in Mitsuho, Jin took his leave. He left behind one gold coin as an information fee.
“All right, let’s go!”
When he had departed as John Dini, it had been a secretive affair, but now that diplomatic relations were soon to be established, he could set off openly and with pride.
Furthermore, many of Ismar's residents stood atop the western walls to catch a glimpse of the unusual automobile and see Jin’s group off.
“Jin, are we going to stay at that rest house we heard about?” Saki asked.
Jin caught the underlying tone of her question—she clearly wanted to reach their destination as quickly as possible—and he gave a wry smile.
“No. The distance from Ismar to Kari Village is a little over sixty kilometers. If we were on horseback, that would be one thing, but with the automobile, we can make it in one go.”
Due to the climate and the locations of watering holes, those on horseback were forced to stop at the rest house. However, the automobile could keep running without such breaks.
Leaving the driving to Edgar, Jin used the Warp Gate installed behind the rear seats to slip away to Hourai Island, taking Reiko with him.
“...Hehe, Jin really is a restless soul when it comes down to it,” Saki remarked.
“Mm. But that’s just like him,” Elsa replied.
“Grandmother said Onii-chan is very reliable,” Hanna added.
“True. Though the fact that he’s a bit dense regarding a woman’s heart is a major flaw.”
As she spoke, Saki shot a knowing glance at Elsa.
“...I can’t deny that. But that is also a part of who he is.”
“Ahaha, quite a feast for the ears, I must say!”
Unaware that such girl talk was taking place, Jin was busy preparing kusamochi on Hourai Island.
First, just to be safe, he used Analyze to check the mugwort's toxicity. Once he reconfirmed the scent and was certain it was either true mugwort or an equivalent substitute, he began the process.
Perido Leader served as his assistant. Once she learned the technique, she would be able to make delicious kusamochi for him whenever he wanted.
“Anko, kinako... ah, brown sugar syrup might be good too.”
Since he was making them with joshinko, the same flour used for dango, Jin thought they would pair well with the syrup.
“Very well, Master. I shall prepare those three varieties,” Perido Leader said.
“Father, will this be enough for the mugwort?”
Reiko was grinding the mugwort in a mortar for him.
“Yeah, that’s plenty. All right, put this shinko mochi in there and knead it together.”
“Yes.”
Making kusamochi for four people would have been a chore for Jin alone, but with the help of Reiko and Perido Leader, the work was finished in no time.
“Now we just roll them up, and... all right, this is perfect.”
He placed the kusamochi and the toppings—anko, kinako, and brown sugar syrup—into separate containers and finished up. The time was likely around 11:00 AM local time where the automobile was traveling.
“Well then, let’s head back.”
Jin and Reiko returned to the vehicle.
The women had just reached a lull in their conversation, so Jin was able to rejoin the group smoothly. The automobile appeared to have come to a stop.
“Perfect timing, Jin. We just arrived at the rest house.”
“Ah, I see.”
The distance from Ismar to the rest house was about twenty kilometers; traveling at a steady ten kilometers per hour, it had been a two-hour journey.
“It’s a bit early, but shall we have lunch?”
“Yeah!” Hanna replied enthusiastically.
Since the weather was pleasant, they decided to eat outside rather than inside the car. They parked the automobile in the shade of the rest house.
“This is impressive...”
He had heard about it, but the rest house made of solid rock was a fine piece of architecture.
“There’s water springing up in the back, right?”
Jin went to check. Indeed, water was bubbling up from an ancient water system.
“The flow is weak, though. There’s probably a crack somewhere in the piping causing a leak,” he noted.
He didn't have the time to go hunting for the damage and repair it right now, however.
There were stone tables and chairs provided, so they sat down and Jin spread out the kusamochi.
“Wow! Green mochi!”
“Jin, what is this?”
“...Such a beautiful color.”
“It’s called kusamochi. Back home, we eat them in the spring. I’ve prepared a few different toppings, so please try them with anko, kinako, or brown sugar syrup—whichever you prefer.”
“Okay, let’s eat!”
Hanna reached for the anko without a second thought. She placed a spoonful of the sweet bean paste in the center of a flattened piece of kusamochi and ate it like a wrap.
“It’s delicious!”
The sweetness of the anko and the refreshing, herbal scent of the mugwort were a perfect match.
“Yeah, this is great!”
Saki seemed to have taken a liking to the kinako, stuffing her cheeks until the corners of her mouth were dusted yellow.
“It’s wonderful.”
Elsa proved to be a fan of the brown sugar syrup.
As for Jin, he poured the syrup over his mochi before dusting it with kinako.
“Oh, that looks tasty!”
“I’ll try that too!”
“Mm, this is good too!”
Everyone was clearly enamored with the kusamochi, and the generous batch Jin had prepared vanished completely.