The next day was filled with experiment after experiment from early morning onward.
As a result, they discovered something quite interesting.
"Miniaturization... no, ultra-miniaturization is actually better suited for teleportation magic circles."
With a general Warp Gate, if it was made too small, the possible teleportation distance would decrease. Specifically, at a size that could be used by five-millimeter-tall Milli-Smiths—about one centimeter square—the limit was 500 meters at most.
On the other hand, even when a teleportation magic circle was reduced to a mere one millimeter in diameter, there was no noticeable decrease in its operational range.
"This might be due to their respective characteristics," Jin mused.
While a teleportation magic circle operated using impulse-like bursts of energy, a Warp Gate functioned with a flat, continuous output. That difference likely led to the disparity in their ether consumption.
"Saki, this helped a lot. Thanks."
Jin offered his thanks while summarizing the experimental results.
"Kufu, don't mention it. I had a lot of fun too."
"I learned a lot too!" Hanna added, her face beaming with a smile. Suddenly, she piped up with a question. "Hey, Onii-chan, do magic tools not give off heat?"
"Eh...?"
Jin surmised that her question was whether energy that couldn't be fully utilized was wasted as heat due to efficiency issues, similar to how machines worked on Earth.
"Hanna, you’ve been studying enough to come up with a question like that....It’s probably best to say that ordinary magic tools produce 'almost' no heat."
The energy used by magic tools was mana. Since unutilized mana was released back into the surrounding space rather than being resisted, no heat was generated. To a greater or lesser extent, all magic tools released this excess mana into their surroundings. Magi could sense it instinctively, and it could also be picked up by a magi-radar.
However, there were exceptions—specifically, when there were mechanical moving parts. In those cases, the generation of heat from friction or physical deformation was unavoidable. The same applied to Magi Machines. Therefore, strictly speaking, a slight amount of heat was indeed generated.
"Hmm, I see," Hanna said, appearing satisfied with the explanation. "I didn't know because the castle library doesn't have many books on magic."
"Ah, right."
Since there were no magi in Kaina Village, there were almost no books regarding magic or magi-craft kept there.
"But it’s not a bad thing to keep studying. I tell you what—I'll increase the collection next time I'm over there."
"Yay! Thank you!"
Seeing the joy on Hanna’s face made Jin happy as well. Right then, a report came in from Laojun.
"My Lord, I have received a communication from the Adriana. They have discovered a mithril deposit."
It was a welcome update.
"Jin, that’s great!" Saki exclaimed.
"Now our material shortage will be resolved."
However, Laojun’s report didn't end there.
"I have ordered them to begin mining immediately. Planet Modenu is a treasure trove of resources; light silver and adamantite are also abundant there. Therefore, I recommend that we mine as much as we possibly can."
"Alright, I understand. Send in all the Mole units... no, while we're at it, produce ten more and send them in as well."
"Understood. According to my calculations, that will be much more efficient."
With this development, the stockpile of metal and mineral resources on Hourai Island wouldn't just return to its previous levels; it would increase by more than a century's worth.
"Now I can build the guard ships without any worries."
Since it looked like their materials would be increasing rather than dwindling, Jin decided to commence construction on the planned 100-meter-class spaceships. The basic design would be the same as the Adriana, but he intended to scale back the human facilities, such as the living quarters. Regarding the auxiliary craft, instead of a ten-meter diameter reconnaissance spaceship, he was considering something even smaller.
"The outfitting can wait for now."
Since the diameter was a full 100 meters, constructing the hull alone would take considerable time—even more so given the multi-layered structure. That said, since the work was being done on Hourai Island, the definition of "considerable time" wasn't quite the same as it was for the rest of the world.
Jin and the others returned to their research into the tele-observation device and ether transfer.
"Still, this is proving to be quite difficult."
"It really is," Saki agreed.
"Even Jin can't figure it out so easily...?" Elsa noted.
"Yeah, it's a real challenge."
Perhaps because neither could be realized even with modern Earth science, Jin was struggling to find a breakthrough.
"I think I'll just take it one step at a time."
It was about time to take Hanna home, so Jin decided to call it a day.
"Onii-chan, I’ll try thinking about it too!"
"Yeah, I'm counting on you."
When Jin took Hanna back through the Warp Gate in the basement of the Kaina Village workshop, he nodded with a smile at her parting words. After a brief glance at the blue sky over Kaina Village, he returned to Hourai Island.
"Jin-nii, welcome back."
Elsa was there to meet him. "The first shipment of mithril just arrived via the Adriana."
"Oh!"
Since they were performing basic smelting on-site, they were receiving finished ingots rather than raw ore. The shipment consisted of approximately 200 kilograms of metal, the ingots literally gleaming with a silvery-white luster. Since the specific gravity was about 10.5, the volume was only roughly that of a cube slightly less than 30 centimeters on each side.
"My Lord, it appears that for the time being, one ingot of this size will be delivered every two hours."
"That’s impressive."
At that rate, their stockpile would exceed its original levels in less than half a day.
"According to the reports, re-confirmation has verified that the resources on Modenu are undoubtedly extremely plentiful."
"Excellent. Continue the mining operations as planned."
"Understood."
Milowina joined them as they were finishing.
"Jin-kun, it’s about time I returned to Uni."
"Ah, already?"
"Yes. I’ve been gradually acclimating to the environment here, but the gravity is still a bit taxing for me."
Because Milowina was physically frail due to her advanced age, Jack—the control brain of the lunar facility Uni—had adjusted the gravity to be slightly lower to reduce the strain on her body. Now that she had recovered her health thanks to Jin and Elsa, she was slowly training her body to handle a full 1G.
"I see. You mustn't push yourself too hard."
"I won't. I'll come to visit again soon."
With a wave, Milowina stepped through the Warp Gate and returned to her home on Uni.