Jin and Reiko were finally reunited, but...
"Father, some tactless fools have come to interrupt our reunion. I'll go clear them away."
No sooner had she spoken than Reiko snatched Touka from the container and leaped from the pit.
"Jin-sama, the remnants of those golems from earlier are gathering," Hope reported from above the pit the moment Reiko vanished.
"Understood. It looks like there's nothing else left in this container. 'Forming'."
Jin sealed the container and stepped out of the pit. Lordtoss followed him in silence.
"I can't see them yet."
Hope nodded. "No. They're still approximately two kilometers away."
"I see."
Jin and the others boarded Pegasus 2 and ascended to an altitude of about twenty meters. He then deployed a barrier; that should be enough to block most attacks.
Meanwhile, Reiko sprinted across the earth with the speed of a gale. Two golems were closing in.
"It's 'them' again."
She drew Touka and delivered a single, blinding flash. With one swing, the two were sliced into upper and lower halves, falling silent.
"...Still the same as before, then."
Pausing for a few seconds, Reiko used Analyze on the wreckage. Judging that she had obtained sufficient information, she took off running again.
"Deploying barrier. Activating Magi-Jammer."
Three more approached. They unleashed magic, but her barrier neutralized the spells effortlessly.
"You haven't improved at all!"
Reiko sidestepped as she passed them. A second later, two of the golems were sliced in half. The third had its left arm severed but narrowly avoided a fatal blow.
"This is the end."
With another swing of Touka, it was cleaved vertically. That made five of them out of commission.
"The rest are still far off. I suppose I'll go meet them halfway."
Reiko sheathed Touka, fixed it to her back, and kicked off the ground.
"Activating force generator."
Using her internal force generator, she took to the sky. Her speed reached Mach 2. Her wind-blocking barrier remained effective up to Mach 3; despite her supersonic speed, the barrier prevented any shockwaves from forming.
"There."
Quickly locating the enemy golems, Reiko drew Touka once more and slashed through them as she flew past. Without sparing a glance for the golems as they split in two, she flew on to find the next target.
In the end, every enemy golem was destroyed within ten minutes.
Having wiped out the opposition, Reiko returned to Pegasus 2, where Jin was waiting.
"Father, I have returned."
"Welcome back, Reiko."
Jin felt a wave of nostalgia. It had been so long since they last had this simple exchange.
"And who might this be?" Reiko asked, tilting her head as she looked at Lordtoss.
"He is Lordtoss of the Puppet Clan. He's Sion's great-great-grandson."
"Ah, so you are Lordtoss-san. Thank you for taking care of my Father."
Reiko bowed politely to him. She had heard about him from Jin four hundred years ago, but since this was her first time seeing his face, it was only natural she hadn't recognized him.
"U-Um, so you are Reiko-sama..."
Hanako spoke up, addressing Reiko.
"Yes, I am Reiko."
"I-I'm so honored! M-My name is Hanako! Marikka-sama created me, and, well... she said she wanted me to be like you, Reiko-sama, even if just a little..."
It was rare to see an automata get so flustered and embarrassed. Jin realized that Marikka had constructed a very high level of intelligence for her.
"I see. Marikka-san said that, did she?"
Reiko didn't seem to mind the praise. Of course, in her mind, any compliment directed at her was ultimately a tribute to Jin's mastery.
"And who is this?" Reiko asked, turning her attention to Hope. She had recognized the craftsmanship at a glance.
"This is Hope. I couldn't handle everything on my own, so I made him as an assistant. You could say he's your youngest brother."
"I see. Hope, I look forward to working with you."
"Yes, Reiko Ojou-sama."
Like the other Hourai Island golems, Hope addressed Reiko as "Ojou-sama." Jin explained to Reiko that he had Hope call him "Jin-sama" rather than Master.
"Understood."
"Now then."
With the introductions out of the way, Jin was ready to start questioning Reiko in earnest.
"Reiko, there are many things I want to ask, but first, let's leave this place. What should we do with the container you were in?"
"Let's see... since we can retrieve it once everything is over, let's leave it buried for now."
"Alright."
Adamantite was heavy, so it would be better to use a Warp Gate to retrieve it after Hourai Island was liberated rather than carrying it on Pegasus 2. Jin used the Force Rod equipped on Pegasus 2 to fill the hole back in with earth, returning the site to its original state.
Pegasus 2 headed toward the Nord Federation at a speed of about two thousand kilometers per hour. Reiko had suggested they establish a base in a country first, and Lordtoss had recommended his own territory.
Since they were simply retracing their route, Jin left the flight to the autopilot. While having Hope keep an eye on their surroundings, Jin finally sat down to talk with Reiko.
"Well then, first... Ah, I have so many questions I don't know where to start."
Jin hesitated for a moment, overwhelmed by the weight of the years, before settling on the most important topic.
"...Let's start with this. Reiko, what exactly happened to Hourai Island?"
"Um, Father, is it correct that the current year is 3899?"
"Yes, that's right."
"...In that case, 134 years have passed since I went to sleep. I only know what happened up until that point. Will that be sufficient?"
"Yeah, please, Reiko."
"Yes, Father. You are aware that Hourai Island has been sealed, correct?"
"Yeah, I heard it from Sion."
"And do you know of the one responsible?"
Jin nodded. "Yeah. Golbart Marukitasu of the Magic Federation, right?"
"Yes, that is correct. He loathes the spread of 'science' on this planet, Ars."
"Why go to such extremes?"
"I do not know. Laojun speculated that he might be a type of atavism."
"An atavism... meaning the Progenitors?"
"Yes."
Jin imagined that through some rare genetic fluke, a human closely resembling the Progenitors had been born. It was a very low probability, but not impossible.
"Golbart Marukitasu initially spent about three years at Avalon before departing. Then, about five years later, he split the Nostalgia group and established the Magic Federation."
"So he came from the Nostalgia faction."
If that were the case, his exceptional skill in magi-craft was understandable. Jin gestured for Reiko to continue her report.