At 9:00 AM on August 25th, Jin and Elsa headed for the Royal Palace aboard Konron 3. They had sent word ahead of time, ensuring their arrival was perfectly synchronized with the palace’s schedule.
"Lord of Kunlun, Madam, welcome!"
"Jin-kun, Elsa, you’ve finally arrived! Congratulations to you both!"
The Chancellor of the Shouro Empire, Jung Fowles von Kebsler, and the Empress herself were there to greet them. Royal ritters and female royal ritters stood in a flanking guard of honor, lining the path from the landing pad to the palace proper.
The Empress personally escorted Jin while the Chancellor escorted Elsa, leading them between the ranks of knights. Reiko followed directly behind Jin in her capacity as an Honorary Squire. While it was a pity for Edgar, he had been left behind to watch over Konron 3. Elsa felt a twinge of guilt over the arrangement, resolved to ask the Empress for a favor regarding Edgar’s future if the opportunity arose.
They were first guided to the VIP room, where the Empress and the Chancellor offered their formal congratulations once more. In truth, the Empress had jumped the gun by shouting her blessings earlier at the landing pad.
"Congratulations, Lord of Kunlun, Madam!"
After the Empress had properly blessed the couple, she introduced a young boy.
"I’d like to introduce you to someone. This is my nephew, the living legacy of the Predecessor Emperor. This is Ernst, the next in line for the throne."
"I am Ernst Shouro. Lord of Kunlun, Madam, it is an honor to make your acquaintance."
The boy was about the same height as Reiko, with dark hair and brown eyes. He had the sharp, clever look of an intelligent child.
"I called him the next Emperor, but to be precise, he is second in the order of succession."
Ernst was nine years old. Since he had not yet come of age, he was not yet officially titled the Crown Prince. Currently, the first in the order of succession was the Empress's younger sister, Charlotte Arena von Linal Shouro.
"Ernst has been staying at his mother’s family home until now, but I had him come here specifically for this. I wanted to introduce him to Jin-kun and Elsa," the Empress concluded, explaining that she wanted him to meet Jin at least once before he eventually took up the mantle of Emperor for the next generation.
"At 1:00 PM today, we have scheduled a parade that will circle Loizart," the Chancellor explained. "Prince Ernst will be accompanying Her Majesty for the event."
Jin saw no particular issue with the plan. However, he was curious about the specifics of the parade.
"We intend to use automobiles for the procession—some presented by the Lord of Kunlun and others built right here in our own country."
It seemed the Shouro Empire had reached the point where they could manufacture their own automobiles. The parade was to consist of three automobiles, several horses, and three hot air balloons in the sky. Additionally, a single Golias would be assigned to the procession. It promised to be a grand, flashy affair.
The Empress’s goal, however, was less about the spectacle and more about highlighting Jin’s presence to the citizenry. To that end, the seats Jin and Elsa were to occupy had been modified to sit a level higher than the rest. A sunshade was attached for the summer heat, but its light transmittance was kept high to ensure their faces remained clearly visible to the crowds.
"Hey, look! They say he’s the Magi Craft Meister!"
"Is that the man who arrives in the flying ship?"
"I heard he’s the one who taught them how to make the balloons, too."
"Yeah. I heard he’s like a consultant to the Imperial House."
"Look at that massive golem! Incredible!"
"More importantly, look at the beauty next to him. I heard she’s one of ours."
"I heard that too. From across Lake Tosmo... right, the young lady of House Randol."
"Wait, is that child with them Lord Ernst?"
"It is! It’s been so long! Look how much he’s grown."
The common citizens watched the parade with rapt attention, their chatter blossoming into a flurry of rumors. When the procession reached the noble district, the reactions shifted.
"I see... so it was the Randol girl who captured the Lord of Kunlun’s heart."
"They make a fine match. Let us offer our blessings."
"Miss Randol... no, the former Miss Randol was a Reichsarzt as well, was she not?"
"I heard the Lord of Kunlun was the one who mentored her."
"If that is true, the depth of his knowledge must be staggering."
"It is a good thing for our nation that our ties with him have deepened."
"The fact that Prince Ernst is with them suggests their relationship with the Imperial House is quite favorable."
"Indeed. A joyous occasion all around."
The nobility’s reactions were also generally positive. In this manner, the first day of the parade concluded without a hitch.
＊ ＊ ＊
"Well done today."
The Empress personally thanked Jin and Elsa for their efforts once they returned from the parade. Prince Ernst remained by her side.
"Lord of Kunlun, are you really that tired? I thought it was quite fun," the boy said, still possessing a touch of youthful innocence.
"I was originally just a commoner, you see. No matter how many times I do this, I don't think I'll ever get used to it."
"Is that so?" Ernst replied. Having been raised with the education of a monarch from birth, the public attention didn't seem to bother him at all.
"The reception will be held at the Royal Palace tomorrow," the Chancellor reminded them. "That said, as the guests of honor, it is enough if the two of you simply remain seated on the dais."
Jin thought that sounded like being put on display, which made him feel even more restless. In fact, he had already decided that if that was the case, he would simply swap places with a Doppel and be done with it.
"I feel bad for Her Majesty, but it’s not like anything is likely to change in one day..."
His assessment was, unfortunately, correct. In a feudal society, change was often viewed with suspicion or outright distaste. Therefore, for the following day’s reception, Jin and Elsa left the most tedious part—receiving greetings from the endless stream of guests—to their Doppels.
Incidentally, the one serving as Reiko's body double this time was Pensee. And as always, Laojun would use the opportunity to gather data on the attendees for his database.
＊ ＊ ＊
"I feel bad for the Empress, but I just couldn't handle another minute of that."
"...I agree."
Despite being raised as a noble’s daughter, Elsa had never made a formal social debut and, like Jin, had a profound distaste for crowded social functions. The two of them had successfully retreated to the peace of Hourai Island. Due to the time difference of approximately five hours and twenty minutes, it was already past noon on the island.
"Is the preparation for our trip finished?" Elsa asked.
The "preparation" she was referring to was their ship.
"Yeah. The outfitting is done. Marine and the others should be starting the trial runs soon."
On Hourai Island, the launching ceremony and the naming ceremony were held as one. For ships where the name had been decided in advance, the ceremony was conducted in the presence of Laojun—appearing in his mobile terminal form as Laozi. As an aside, the standard procedure on the island was construction, hull completion, the launching ceremony, outfitting, and finally the trial runs.
"The Edo and... what was the other one?"
"The Azuma."
"Ah, right. So, which one will we be taking?"
"The Azuma, of course."
Jin had named the ship Azuma—an archaic way of saying "my wife"—with every intention of taking Elsa on her honeymoon cruise aboard it.
"Shall we go take a look?"
"Mm, I'd like that."
"Father, I shall accompany you."
With that, Jin and the others headed out to inspect the newly completed vessels.