On August 16th, Jin and Elsa were taking it easy on Hourai Island.
"Ah, this is the life."
"Agreed."
"Back to the wedding tour tomorrow, though."
"The Kingdom of Egerea might be a bit easier to handle."
"Yeah, since Beena and Louis are acting as our hosts."
"Exactly."
As they spoke, Reiko arrived carrying glasses of chilled Persica juice.
"Father, Elsa-sama. Please drink this and regain your spirits."
"Oh, thank you, Reiko."
To any observer, the couple looked utterly exhausted.
"Mmm, this is great."
"Delicious."
The pair agreed that Hourai Island’s specially made Persica juice was the only thing that truly hit the spot.
"By the way, Father."
Seeing that Jin’s mood had improved slightly, Reiko decided to make a suggestion.
"Perhaps you should begin the maintenance and preparations for the ship you intend to use for your honeymoon after the tour? Specifically, you could start on the design concepts and logistics."
Jin’s eyes sparkled.
"Oh! You're right!"
He was, as always, an engineering nut at heart.
"First, I’ll need to prepare a massive amount of magi-crystals to act as mana tanks. Then I’ll need to install additional magi reactors so we can manage even in areas where the free ether is thin..."
Jin ruminated on the ideas he had discussed previously during Stearena’s birthday party.
"Jin-nii looks so much more alive now..."
Elsa watched him with a heartwarming smile. Incidentally, "Jin-nii" had become her fixed name for him, and she showed no signs of changing it anytime soon.
Once free ether is absorbed into a magi-crystal, it generally remains trapped unless excited by magical energy—mental waves—to be released.
"I shouldn't just use up my stock; maybe I should buy some more..."
Jin’s personal wealth had reached absurd proportions, and he felt that spending even a portion of it would be a service to the global economy. Apparently, because the current volume of currency in circulation had been maintained since a time when the population was triple its current size, the economy was in no danger of collapsing. Or so he had been told—Jin was, after all, quite out of his depth when it came to economics.
Regardless, Jin had been using his ever-growing piles of money to purchase various materials. He issued a new directive to Laojun to buy up even more magi-crystals. This would eventually cause the market price of magi-crystals to spike, triggering a boom for mining towns across the nations, but that is a story for another time.
"Next, I need to focus on the living quarters."
This was, after all, their honeymoon. Jin wanted to avoid the "unrefined" option of simply teleporting back to Hourai Island whenever they needed something, preferring to stay on the ship as much as possible.
"Jin-nii, speaking of which, who exactly is coming with us?"
"Ah... Laojun, what was the list again?"
"Yes, My Lord. Saki-san, Toa-san, Stearena-san, Marcia-san, Mine-san, and Vivienne-san—all of whom expressed their intent to join earlier—will be participating for the full duration."
"Right, that sounds about right."
"Furthermore, Reinhard-san, Berche-san, Rodrigo-san, Beena-san, and Earl Kuzuma will be participating as spot guests via Warp Gate."
"Got it. That just leaves Goose, Hanna, Lishia, and Milowina-san."
"That is correct."
Jin couldn't imagine any of those four refusing. Lishia might find it difficult given her duties, but there were ways around that, such as providing her with a Doppel.
"So, basically everyone. Alright, let's get into the specifics. As for the vessel, a cruiser should be fine. What's the current construction status?"
The plan was to build ten cruisers. So far, seven were complete: the Azusa, Katsura, Minato, Seki, Sai, Miya, and Kamo. All were named after rivers.
"Two more units are nearing completion at this time."
"Good. Let's modify those."
"Understood. What shall we name them?"
"Let me see..."
Cruisers were generally given single-kanji river names. Since these were to be special-purpose cruisers, Jin decided to break the mold.
"Let’s go with two-kanji river names. Hmm... Sumidagawa... Tonegawa... Kamanashigawa... Katashinagawa... Tamagawa... Kitakamigawa... Azumagawa... Kinugawa... Edogawa..."
Jin listed off river names as they came to mind.
"'Azuma' is good. And 'Edo' sounds interesting too."
"Understood. The Azuma and the Edo."
"Jin-nii, why is 'Azuma' so good?" Elsa asked.
"Well, the name comes from a legend. It's derived from the words for 'my wife'."
The legend said that Yamato Takeru no Mikoto, mourning his late wife Ototachibana-hime, cried out, "Azumahaya" (Alas, my wife), which was why the eastern part of Japan came to be called Azuma.
"I thought it would be fitting for a honeymoon."
"What about 'Edo'?"
"That was the name of the city that served as Japan’s capital—or rather, its political center—for a very long time."
"I see. That sounds good then."
With Elsa’s approval, the special cruisers Azuma and Edo were officially designated for commissioning.
Jin began setting the specifications, drawing on his memories of what luxury cruise ships were like—elegant guest rooms, high-end dining, and a Great Hall.
"Hmm... we don't need a pool... or a casino. What else..."
Showers and toilets were included by default.
"A large public bath is a must. And an observation room."
Even if any inconvenience could be solved by moving to Hourai Island, Jin was committed to the "honeymoon" experience. He was determined to spend his time on the water.
Time flew by as they discussed the plans. Before long, the sky turned a deep madder red as dusk approached.
"Ah... tomorrow is the Kingdom of Egerea."
"Do you feel a bit more refreshed now, Father?"
"Yeah. Thinking about things I enjoy was a good change of pace."
"I am glad to hear it."
"Tomorrow at 10:00 AM local time, you will head to Blue Land," Laojun confirmed the schedule. "After lunch at the estate of Earl Kuzuma, you will accompany the couple to Asunt, the capital of the Kingdom of Egerea."
"Got it. Well, I suppose it won't be so bad."
He wasn't entirely thrilled, but the presence of Earl Kuzuma and Beena—members of the Jin Family—made it better. Plus, Prince Ernest, Lyla, and Lotte were at the palace. Having so many acquaintances around made him feel much more at ease.
"The Kingdom of Egerea’s national budget is quite tight, so they likely won't put on anything excessively lavish."
"When you put it that way, I almost feel like we shouldn't go and impose on them..."
"But if we don't, the nation loses face. Sometimes, appearances are a necessity," Elsa said, offering a soothing perspective.
"I suppose so... but man, the world of politics is a pain," Jin grumbled.