The next morning, Jin took Barrow and Belle with him on the Konron 3 and headed for Kaina Village.
"Whoa, it really is amazing!"
"The floor is a window! It's lovely!"
Since it had been a while since they had flown through the sky, the two were in high spirits.
The Konron 3 maintained a speed of 300 kilometers per hour, reaching Kaina Village in three hours. Accounting for the three-hour time difference, the local time was 2:00 PM. Since they had already finished lunch on board, the group headed straight into Jin Castle.
"Master, Hanna-sama has arrived," Butler B informed Jin.
Jin hurried out to meet her.
"Onii-chan! Welcome back!"
Finding Jin, Hanna jumped into his arms.
"Yeah, I'm back."
As Jin caught her, he felt a slight sense of incongruity.
"Wait... Hanna, did you get taller?"
Looking closely, Hanna, who used to be shorter than Reiko, had indeed grown. Since Reiko stood at 130 centimeters, Hanna was likely around 135 centimeters now. Thinking back, Hanna was ten years old—right in the middle of a growth spurt.
"Yeah, Grandma said so too. She said my clothes are getting too small, so I need new ones."
"I thought so..."
Back during Tanabata, she had been wearing a yukata with the hem tucked up, so Jin hadn't noticed. Or perhaps his intuition was just dull. Jin reflected on this and took another good look at her.
"...Onii-chan?" Hanna asked, looking puzzled.
"Oh, sorry. No, I was just wondering what kind of clothes would look good on you," Jin replied, making a quick excuse.
Just then, Elsa arrived as well.
"Ah, Big Sister Elsa, welcome back!"
"I'm home, Hanna-chan."
Soon after, Barrow and Belle came running in, out of breath.
"W-We are terribly sorry!"
"P-Please forgive us for being late!"
Belle almost slipped and fell in her haste, but Barrow narrowly managed to catch her.
"There's no need to rush," Jin said with a wry smile.
"S-Sorry..."
As Belle bowed repeatedly in apology, Jin gave her a reassuring pat on the head and smiled.
"You can take the day off today. Feel free to do whatever you like."
"Th-Thank you very much..."
Despite being given a holiday, Belle seemed a bit downcast. Jin watched with a mix of wry smiles as Barrow pulled her away somewhat forcefully.
"Onii-chan, I have a request today."
It was rare for Hanna to make a "request," so Jin was curious about the content.
"What is it? Tell me."
"Well, you see, I've already read all the books in the castle library, so I want you to add some new ones."
"What?"
Jin had been gradually increasing the collection, which now numbered over 300 volumes. Hanna claimed to have read every single one.
"Really? That's impressive, Hanna."
Some of those books surely contained knowledge equivalent to a modern Japanese junior high student. Hanna had devoured all of them.
Hanna, who was said to be the spitting image of the Predecessor Magi Craft Meister, Adriana, in her youth.
Could Hanna... become the second coming of Adriana?
Lately, Jin had begun to wonder about such things. However, the answer was always the same: No.
Hanna had no talent for magic.
But that's exactly why I want to help her talent grow.
Even if she couldn't become a Magi Craft Meister, perhaps she could become a magus. Having thought that far, Jin shook his head. Hanna's future belonged to her. It wasn't something for Jin to decide.
I just need to watch over her so she can walk straight toward her future.
Jin thought this while looking at Hanna's face as she smiled innocently.
＊ ＊ ＊
"Onii-chan, this is delicious!"
The snack for today was rusks. They were bread slices baked twice; the second time, they were coated with icing—a mixture of egg whites and powdered sugar—and baked again. Since they contained almost no moisture, they kept for a long time and were known for their crisp texture.
They had prepared both plain sugar and maple-flavored varieties. Naturally, these were the painstaking creations of Perido and the other Five-Colored Golem Maids.
"Jin-nii, I like this flavor," Elsa said, favoring the maple ones.
"Jin-sama, was it really okay for us to join you...?"
"W-We are most humbled..."
Barrow and Belle had been invited to eat with them as well.
"Everything tastes better when we eat together!"
Hanna, whose permanent teeth had finally grown in where her baby teeth had fallen out, was happily munching on a rusk. The drink was Kuhe. This beverage, very similar to cocoa, was the perfect match for the sweet rusks.
"That reminds me, since this is a good opportunity, I'd like to ask you two something."
Jin turned to face Barrow and Belle.
"Do you two still want to work at the mansion in Loizart?"
"Eh?"
"Well, I'm away so often that I feel bad about it. If you want to do something else... I was thinking you might be better off with a career more suited to your skills than being servants."
Jin felt guilty about tying the two of them, who weren't even twenty yet, down to roles as a butler and a maid. However, it seemed they didn't take it that way.
"A-Are we... b-being fired!?"
"W-Were we... n-not useful enough...?"
Noticing the two were on the verge of tears, Jin hurriedly shook his head.
"No, no, I'm not firing you. It's more like a... 'voluntary retirement'?"
"...'Voluntary retirement'?"
"That's right. If you two want to start a business or something, I'll support you. I'll even provide a severance of one million Toll for the two of you to share."
"...Are you just getting rid of us because we're a nuisance?"
Unfortunately, the depressed Belle took everything in the worst possible way.
"Oh, come on, I told you that's not it."
"...What about becoming teachers?" Elsa suggested from the side.
"Teachers?"
"Yes. They can already handle reading, writing, arithmetic, etiquette, cooking, and general housework."
"Ah, I see. That's a great idea."
"...We... could be teachers?"
It seemed the reality was finally starting to sink in for Barrow.
"It doesn't have to be that, though. You can do whatever you want."
Jin told the two of them with a soft, warm smile.