"Sub-ether waves, huh..."
No. 700672 made a grimace.
"So you intend to attempt what even the Masters could not."
"Well, the Progenitors wanted to harvest resources from that second planet—Zipart, was it?—but they couldn't manage it either, right?"
At Jin's words, No. 700672 gave a thin smile.
"That is true. But I wonder... can I truly do it? Something even the Masters failed to achieve?"
"It might not be my place to say, but I think it's a good thing for you to surpass the Progenitors, No. 700672."
"Hm? And what do you mean by that?"
"They say that for a parent, nothing brings greater joy than seeing their child surpass them."
These were words the Orphanage Director had spoken at every opportunity during Jin's childhood at the facility.
"To put it another way... it is a child's duty to surpass their parent."
Adding his own interpretation, Jin gave No. 700672 a supportive push.
"...Heh. I see. You mean to say that if I accomplish what even my Masters could not, they would praise me? Is that what you are saying, Jin-dono?"
"Exactly."
No. 700672 closed his eyes for a moment in contemplation. Eventually, he opened them and stared directly at Jin.
"Jin-dono, you have my thanks. I shall give it a try. And, if I may voice a wish of my own... if the descendants of the Masters so desire it—should they wish for it—it would make me happy if they lived on Hale."
The Progenitors—the Haleans—had been forced to migrate to Ars due to various circumstances. After tens of thousands of years, reviving their home planet would be an achievement their descendants could truly take pride in.
"If traveling back and forth from Ars becomes easy, there might be people who want to migrate."
Jin suspected that such a move would bring its own share of political and social headaches, but he held his tongue, realizing they weren't at the stage to debate such distant possibilities yet.
After finishing their productive meeting, Jin returned to Hourai Island for the time being.
"...Phew. I've got a mountain of things to do."
Even so, he felt more invigorated than troubled by the workload.
"First, I need to gather information about this world."
That was the advice No. 700672 had given him.
Since Jin was essentially a man out of time, he decided his first order of business should be to familiarize himself with the common sense of this era. Having set his course, he turned in for the night.
The next day.
"Laojun, I want to find out what kind of position the Magic Federation holds in this world. At the same time, I want to get a feel for the current state of society."
"That sounds like an excellent plan, My Lord. I recommend starting with Kaina Village or Loizart, the capital of the Shouro Empire. In either case, it would be best to claim you have come from the Nord Federation if you visit Kaina Village, or from Mitsuho if you visit Loizart."
"I see."
They were neighboring countries, but far enough away and culturally distinct enough that acting like a newcomer to the region wouldn't seem too suspicious.
"...In that case, I think I'll head to Kaina Village first."
It was the place he was most concerned about.
He could have asked Laojun about its current state long ago, but for some reason, he had felt hesitant—almost afraid to know—and had let the matter rest until now.
"Your house, Father, is being preserved, though the Warp Gate has been removed."
"Well, that makes sense... Wait, preserved!?"
"Yes. It is designated as 'The Residence of the Lord of Kunlun in Kaina Village.'"
"You've got to be kidding me..."
Jin felt like burying his face in his hands.
"...What about Jin Castle?"
"Yes, My Lord. That too is being preserved as a historical site."
Laojun was the one to explain this time.
"Are you serious...?"
"To be specific, the original Butler B and C, along with the 102 series 5-Color Golem Maids, have continued to perform maintenance there. As for the house in the village, Butler A is managing it."
It seemed they were all faithfully fulfilling the roles they had been given four hundred years ago.
"Furthermore, the castle also serves as a lodging facility for visitors to Kaina Village."
"I see. Well, while I'm at it, what about Koushin?"
Koushin was the magi-brain dedicated to security and surveillance.
"Yes, he is still on active duty. However, since the region has been peaceful for so long, he hasn't had much to do."
Kaina Village was recognized worldwide as a Permanent Autonomous Region, so it seemed even the Magic Federation didn't dare to meddle with it lightly.
"That's a relief."
Jin was genuinely happy that Kaina Village, his second home, had remained peaceful.
"Alright, let's head to Kaina Village first."
Jin made his decision.
"Father, what will you use for transport?"
In response to Reiko's question, Jin blinked.
"Ah, right."
Pegasus 2 would stand out far too much.
"What's a common method of transport that wouldn't look strange for an individual to own these days?"
Laojun provided the answer.
"My Lord, that would be the Blow Floater, similar to the one Lordtoss used."
"Oh, those..."
In essence, they were the Ars version—the magical version—of a motorized paraglider.
Jin had seen several different models during his journey with Lordtoss.
One would send wind from wind-attribute magic into a shallow, dish-shaped gas bag to make the craft float, using Wind Thrusters for propulsion. That was all there was to it.
There was plenty of room for Jin to apply his own unique improvements.
"Just using GSS for the gas bag would significantly increase its durability and reliability."
On top of that, he would use 64 light silver for the frame and replace the standard Wind Thrusters with Magi Jet Engines.
Furthermore, if he used a wind-blocking barrier, he estimated he could achieve about five times the standard speed of a normal craft.
"Let's get to crafting."
Jin headed for the workshop to engage in some crafting for the sake of pleasure for the first time in a long while. His steps were light, reflecting his excitement.
"Let's make it a six-passenger craft."
That would account for Jin, Reiko, and Hope as the pilot, with room for three more people just in case.
"As for the size... hmm..."
Since this was his first time making one, he had no data. Even so, he was a Magi Craft Meister; he would find a way.
"I'll make it 1.5 times the size of Lordtoss's."
That one had been a four-seater, so normally he should have doubled the engine output and the gas bag's surface area for a prototype of this size, but this was Jin. He would compensate for the size by boosting the engine output and performing Air Leichtern on the hull.
Additionally, he would install a force generator as an emergency measure to prevent crashes.
And just to be safe, he would equip it with a Warp Gate for emergency escapes.
"Oh, and I might as well throw in a gravity control device."
At this point, its specifications were so high it was hard to even call it a Blow Floater anymore, but that was just how Jin did things.
Neither Laojun nor Reiko said a word in protest. In fact, Reiko was actively bringing him materials with a look of quiet satisfaction.
Incidentally, the amount of materials on Hourai Island had increased compared to four hundred years ago—or rather, since "the past" when Jin was last there.
Apparently, the island's assets had been used to purchase resources as they accumulated. Ars was a treasure trove of resources, after all.
"Did my descendants not use them much?"
Or perhaps the materials accumulated faster than they could ever be used.
"Stocks of Persica and citran just keep growing, too. I suppose selling those would be a good way to earn a living."
According to what he later heard from Laojun, fruit from Hourai Island used to be traded at extremely high prices.
He used the past tense because shipments had been halted since the rise of the Magic Federation.
"Well, no matter. First, let's finish this."
Jin gleefully set about assembling the high-spec Blow Floater.