Returning to the beach with the golem F-002, Adriana prepared to start the modifications immediately. Just then, her stomach let out a soft, endearing growl.
"...I suppose I should have a light lunch first."
She took some dried bread from her supplies and soaked it in hot water she’d conjured with magic. It was a simple meal she often relied on when she was short on time.
"Phew. Not much to say for the flavor, but at least my stomach is full."
Without even pausing for a post-meal rest, Adriana set to work on the modifications.
"First, the reinforcement. Since it’s iron, I can’t use it on the exterior. It’ll have to go on the inside."
Muttering to herself, Adriana began forming the iron. She had the golems carry the pieces and install them at key points throughout the ship’s interior.
"Whew, I think that should do it... Toughening."
As a final touch, she applied physical reinforcement magic to finish the job.
"I’m worried about rust, but it should hold for a few days. I’ll want to apply gold plating or something similar eventually."
By the time she looked up, the sun had sunk quite low in the sky.
"I’ll be staying here tonight."
Adriana began preparing dinner a little early. Using Craft Magic, she built a hearth and began grilling fish—catch she had gathered during her voyage, having been taught the art of fishing by Shuuki.
She had used Freeze to flash-freeze them, ensuring their freshness was preserved. Freeze was a mid-level water-attribute magic, capable of dropping an object’s temperature to roughly minus seventy degrees Celsius.
First, she boiled some water, intending to make barley porridge. Once the water was rolling and she’d added the barley to the pot, she started grilling the fish. Bathed in the glow of the summer sunset, Adriana finished her evening preparations.
Once she had eaten, there was little else to do. Adriana posted M-002 as a lookout and lay down on the bunk inside the ship. It was a hammock-style bed, roughly one meter wide and two meters long, suspended from the ceiling to minimize the effects of the ship’s rocking.
Adriana pulled a blanket over herself and closed her eyes. However, sleep did not come immediately. She replayed the day's events in her head.
The villagers hadn't been particularly shocked by the sight of the golems. But the person who had left the strongest impression was the blacksmith—the master who had never heard of magi-craft, who had looked on in astonishment as she used her Craft Magic, and who had generously given her his scrap iron.
Magi-craft still isn't very well known, is it...
Despite that, Adriana had no intention of following in Shuuki’s footsteps and becoming a teacher of the craft herself.
I’m terrible at teaching, after all.
Indeed, she lacked the aptitude for instruction. Like many geniuses, she was an intuitive thinker and a poor communicator, prone to vague, sensory explanations. Because of this, she had left the responsibility of managing Shuuki’s legacy to his senior disciples before striking out on her own.
I’ll aim for the heights Father aspired to in my own way.
Even so, that master she’d met today had been genuinely amazed by the kitchen knife she had made.
"I wonder if it's worth making everyday tools like that, instead of just magic tools?" she wondered aloud. "I’ve always viewed making things like that as nothing more than practice, but..."
If she made everything herself, she would be stealing the livelihoods of local craftsmen. However, the task of preparing materials could be done much faster and with higher quality using Craft Magic. It was a new realization for her.
In that case...
As she pondered these possibilities, drowsiness finally overcame her, and Adriana drifted off to sleep.
The following morning brought a steady drizzle—a rare sight for the season.
"It's a bit chilly. There's a fog, too; it might be better not to head out to sea today."
Since she had traveled quite far north, cold sea fogs were common even in summer, much like the yamase winds of Japan.
"I haven't installed a heater yet... It really is a bit cold."
She was just about to modify the air intake to make it adjustable when she heard the voice of M-002.
"Master, you have a visitor."
"Oh? I wonder who it is."
Stopping her work, Adriana stepped outside. Standing there under an umbrella was the middle-aged man she’d met at the village entrance the day before. The umbrella he carried was a simple design—a pole with a fixed disc at the top that couldn't be folded, looking much like a thin-stemmed mushroom.
"Now, this is quite an incredible ship," he said by way of greeting. "I was wondering how you were faring with the fog rolling in, so I came to check on you... and what a sight this is."
A ship ten meters in length was a massive vessel. However, Adriana noticed that he seemed far less shocked than she expected. She felt that anyone seeing a ship of this scale for the first time ought to be more surprised.
Come to think of it, he wasn't that surprised by the golems, either. Is he more familiar with magi-engineering than I thought?
Adriana felt a prickle of caution.
"If you'd like, why don't you come to my house? I am the Village Chief of Shiiko Village, after all. My name is Meuto."
"Ah, I'm Ado. Thank you very much."
After a moment's thought, Adriana decided to accept. It was cold, and she wanted to relax for the first time in a while. A ship was no place for long-term living—especially not for a girl her age.
She packed a few things, including a change of clothes, and ordered F-002 to accompany her. Adriana then headed toward Shiiko Village through the rain. Lacking an umbrella, she maintained a barrier to ward off the water.
"Ho, I truly envy you magi," Meuto remarked, appearing genuinely impressed this time.
The Village Chief's house sat in the center of the village. He lived there with his wife and two daughters. His wife, Baise, was short and somewhat stout, possessing the unmistakable aura of a matriarch. However, her speech and mannerisms were calm and refined, like those of a noblewoman. The gap between her appearance and personality was so vast that Adriana had to suppress a chuckle.
"Wow, a guest?"
"So pretty! Look at that blonde hair!"
The daughters were Maruru, who was eighteen—the same age as Adriana—and Kururu, who was eleven. Both had brown hair like their mother, Baise, and gray eyes like their father, Meuto.
"Nice to meet you. Just call me Ado."
"Yeah, Ado, nice to meet you!"
"Ado!"
The three of them hit it off instantly. Maruru was gentle and soft-spoken, while Kururu was clearly a tomboy.
"Oh, Kururu, did you hurt your knee?"
Adriana noticed that Kururu had a cloth wrapped around her right knee. The girl nodded, looking a bit sheepish.
"Yeah, I tripped and banged it yesterday."
Upon closer inspection, Adriana saw scrapes on the girl’s right palm as well.
"Let me see," Adriana said. Noticing that the area around the bandage looked slightly swollen, she began to unwind the cloth from Kururu’s knee.