“It appears those golems were early experimental prototypes once used by the Unifilar.”
“Ah, I see.”
Laojun’s explanation, delivered through Reiko, was perfectly clear.
In terms of design, the golems shared several traits with the models that had served as the basis for Gon and Gen, the guardian golems of Kaina Village.
“So that’s why I felt like I’d seen them somewhere before.”
Jin felt a sense of relief as the pieces finally clicked into place.
“In other words, at least one of those thieves was likely affiliated with the Unifilar,” Reiko continued. “Specifically, a low-level subordinate who was entrusted with the experiments.”
“That makes sense.”
“Laojun conjectures that when the Unifilar collapsed, this individual began using the golems left in their care for criminal activities.”
“I see. That’s a very plausible theory. Thank you, Reiko. Give my thanks to Laojun as well.”
“Yes, Father.”
Jin was impressed by Laojun’s deduction.
When the Unifilar had been reorganized into Nostalgia, efforts had been made to reassess the organization’s reach and stabilize it, but the reality was that they couldn't keep track of every person at the extreme fringes. In fact, many of those at the bottom likely didn't even realize they were being used by the Unifilar in the first place.
Most likely, they had simply grown tired of waiting for orders that never came and decided to strike out on their own.
“I bet there are still more ‘remnants’ like that out there,” Jin mused.
“...Mm.”
Elsa looked slightly uneasy, her brow furrowing with concern.
“I suppose we have no choice but to catch them one by one as they surface.”
Naturally, they would need to coordinate with Laojun and the Quinta to handle such threats before ordinary people suffered any harm.
“...Still, it seems that whenever you accomplish one major thing, there’s always a ripple effect,” Jin noted, feeling the truth of those words once again.
They stayed the night at the Randol estate, and the next morning, they said their goodbyes and departed on Konron 3.
＊ ＊ ＊
Their destination was Kaina Village.
They let Konron 3 fly on toward Hourai Island while Jin, Elsa, and Reiko used a Warp Gate to travel to the village via the island.
“Sorry about this, Edgar.”
“I’ll send someone to replace you soon.”
Since Edgar, the pilot, couldn't join them for the visit, Sky 87 was sent to take over the controls once they reached Hourai Island, allowing Edgar to return to the base.
“Alright, shall we go?”
“Yes.”
With that, the group set off for Kaina Village.
“Master, welcome back.”
Upon stepping out of the Warp Gate inside Jin Castle, they were greeted by the butler units on duty, Butler B and Butler C. Since this was an official visit, they were using the castle as their base of operations.
“So, what’s the situation?” Jin asked.
“Yes, sir. A carriage from the Raglann Company is scheduled to arrive in approximately half a day,” Butler B reported.
“The visitors are Roland-san, Beaute-san, and Raglann Eastwood-san,” Butler C added.
“Raglann Eastwood...?”
“Yes, the founder of the Raglann Company.”
“I thought it might be him.”
“Indeed. He is a formidable merchant who built the current Raglann Company in a single generation. He even discarded his status as a baronet to pursue commerce.”
Jin had met the man once before during a previous trip to Alban.
As Jin was being briefed on the background details, a communication came in from Koushin, the guardian brain of Kaina Village.
<Forgive the interruption. Oyakata-sama, the Raglann Company carriage has crossed Togo Pass. They should arrive in approximately two hours.>
They must have made good time, as they were slightly ahead of schedule.
“Understood. Keep a watch on them to make sure nothing goes wrong.”
<As you wish.>
“Come to think of it, why is the head of the Raglann Company coming all the way to this village?” Jin wondered aloud.
Butler C provided the answer.
“We received a letter regarding that in advance.”
“Ah, did it arrive while we were at Elsa’s family home?”
“Yes. It was not marked as confidential; on the contrary, as it was a letter from a merchant, I judged that a delay in responding would be inappropriate. Therefore, I took the liberty of confirming the contents...”
“They want to talk business?” Jin guessed, but Butler C shook his head.
“No. It stated that he ‘wanted to see the face of his grandson’s wife.’”
“...”
For a moment, Jin was speechless. However, when he considered that Raglann Eastwood was over sixty, he supposed it made sense that the man would want to see how his beloved grandson was settling into married life... or so he thought.
“Erik has been helping the village by selling us a lot of necessary supplies, so we should give them a proper welcome.”
“Jin-nii, don’t go overboard... all right?”
Elsa warned him, seeing the determined look in his eyes.
“Ah... right.”
Jin caught her meaning and let the tension drain from his shoulders.
“In that case, let’s go out to the Erme River to meet them.”
“Mm. That much should be fine.”
Since Koushin was managing security, Reiko raised no objections.
Alerted by Koushin that the carriage was drawing near, Jin and Reiko rode the golem horse Koma out to the banks of the Erme River. They arrived just as the carriage was crossing the bridge.
“Oh, Jin-san... I mean, Jin-sama!”
Roland called out casually before catching himself and correcting his tone.
“Roland-san, it’s been a long time. I haven't changed at all, so please, talk to me like you used to.”
Jin spoke with a relaxed air, showing he didn't care for formalities.
“I—is that so? Thank you very much.”
Then, Raglann Eastwood offered his greetings.
“Jin-sama, it has been quite some time. It is an honor to see you again.”
“Likewise.”
“Do you know Beaute? He is the one who took over my old route as the traveling sales representative.”
“I don’t believe we’ve met directly. A pleasure to meet you, Beaute-san.”
“T-the pleasure is mine, Jin-sama!”
Since the riverbank was no place for a proper conversation, Jin took the lead and guided the carriage toward Jin Castle.
“My, my, what a spectacular building.”
The head of the Raglann Company looked up at Jin Castle, his face filled with genuine admiration.
“Please, use these rooms for your stay.”
“We are most grateful.”
As Jin showed the group to the guest quarters, he felt a private surge of satisfaction at finally putting the rooms to use. He had built them in a burst of enthusiasm, but since guests were a rarity, he had begun to feel like he’d wasted his efforts.
Shortly after, they gathered in the drawing room to exchange formal greetings. As they sipped Peruhya tea brewed by the golem maids, they began to discuss the purpose of the visit.
“My primary goal was simply to see my grandson,” the elder Raglann said.
That hasn't changed, Jin thought, finding the old man’s affection for his grandson quite heartwarming.
“Furthermore, we were hoping we might be able to establish some new business relations,” Roland added. He was now serving as a mid-level executive for the company.
“Ah, also, I have one report to make,” Beaute added, speaking up at last.