"When I say retirement, it might sound like I'm planning to go into seclusion, but that's not it at all," Jin said, emphasizing his point. "I simply don't intend to align myself with any specific nation."
However, Lordtoss offered a counterargument. "Even if you say that, you'll still maintain your relationship with us in the Nord Federation, won't you?"
"...That's true."
Jin found himself unable to find a single word to refute that observation.
"...Father has always been soft on those he considers family, after all," Reiko added.
"Hey, Reiko."
"It's the truth. Isn't that right, Laojun?"
『Yes, that is quite correct, Reiko-san.』
"You two..."
Jin let out a grunt of mock dissatisfaction, but in truth, he was happy. Reiko and Laojun both possessed emotions no different from those of a human, and he cherished the way they could converse with him like this.
"Speaking of which, what do you plan to do about the West Continent?"
The sudden question from Lordtoss caught Jin off guard for a moment, but he quickly realized the man was referring to the Pandor Continent.
"That place... To be honest, I haven't had the bandwidth to deal with it."
In truth, Jin was a little concerned. He hadn't sent any Quinta to the nations there yet, so he had no idea what the actual situation was on the ground.
『In that case, My Lord, shall we take a look with the Peeping Telescope?』
"...Good idea."
『Please wait a moment.』
Laojun spent about five minutes using the Peeping Telescope to observe the western nations before reporting back to Jin.
『First, regarding the Mercana Principality. It appears they discovered an ore vein deep underground using the magi-device for ore vein prospecting that you left behind, and they are currently in the process of excavating it.』
"Oh, really?"
Jin felt that as long as the country had underground resources, it would eventually become much wealthier than it was now. Most importantly, it would likely put a stop to the drain of talented individuals fleeing the country.
『Next is the Jagus Principality. The laboratory you were briefly stationed in remains much the same as ever.』
"The same as ever? How so?"
『Yes, they spend their days analyzing old-model golems...』
"...Laojun-dono, I don't suppose you have any news on Groma Tray?" Lordtoss asked. Even if it had only been for a short time, he was clearly still concerned about his former student.
『He is still working in the Mercana Principality, just as before.』
"I see."
Jin remembered that he had once promised Groma Tray a match between their golems.
"I'll be able to go see him eventually."
"I hope so."
『As for the people who sent pursuers after you and Lordtoss-san, they appear to have suffered several dismissals—including the officer in charge—due to the loss of those precious golems....That is all for now.』
It seemed that even Laojun couldn't uncover more detailed information in such a short window of time.
"Ah, Laojun, what about Kachea and Eira?"
『I could not find them.』
"What?"
『My apologies. It appears the observation time was simply too short.』
"No, there's no need to apologize....Does that mean those two are no longer at the laboratory?"
『That would be the logical conclusion.』
"Jin-sama, perhaps they were scouted by the Jagus Principality?" Lordtoss suggested.
"Ah. There's a high possibility of that."
『I will continue the search.』
"Yeah, please do."
Since they had been on good terms, Jin was naturally worried about how the two were faring. A minute later, Laojun reported back.
『I have located them. As Lordtoss-san suggested, they are in the Jagus Principality. However, they are in a different laboratory from the one where you were stationed, My Lord.』
"In that case... would it be the Mass Production Technology Laboratory?"
『Yes, precisely.』
Lordtoss had been aware of such a facility.
"The laboratory you were assigned to, Jin-sama, handles the analysis of various magi-devices and Magi Machines, including golems. There is another department that designs things based on those findings, and then a separate one that develops the technology to mass-produce them."
"And that's the Mass Production Technology Laboratory."
"Yes, that's right."
Jin was somewhat impressed. He didn't care for their methods, but as an organization, it was perfectly logical.
Jin assigned Lordtoss one of the unused rooms within the research facility. The man was overjoyed, nearly jumping with excitement, and had hurried off to set up "his room." Perido 28, one of the Five-Colored Golem Maids, was currently assisting him.
With his immediate concerns settled for the moment, Jin decided to think about his future plans.
"In a little while, I think I'll go visit No. 700672."
He felt guilty about leaving the Hale Redevelopment Project entirely in the automaton's hands.
『My Lord, what do you intend to do about your descendants?』
"Ah... that..." Jin's face darkened with a troubled look. "I'm just wondering what kind of face I'm supposed to make when I meet them after all this time..."
『Pardon?』
"Well, I feel like I forced them to evacuate to Onogoro Island because of me."
『What do you mean by that?』
"Exactly what I said."
『My Lord, is it possible you have misunderstood the reasons behind your descendants' evacuation?』
Jin tilted his head at Laojun's words. "Wait... didn't they evacuate because they were afraid of being taken hostage or brainwashed and exploited when Golbart Marukitasu rose to power?"
『That is correct, but are you under the impression that they were forced to flee against their will?』
"Well, yeah. I mean, they were cut off from the environment they'd always known, weren't they? Wouldn't most people hate to leave their home behind?"
『...I understand now. My apologies, My Lord. It was a failure of explanation on our part.』
"No, don't worry about it."
『Your descendants stated that they wished to evacuate of their own accord.』
"They did?"
『Yes. At the time, quite apart from the threat of Golbart Marukitasu, they were burdened by all sorts of social constraints and obligations simply because they were your descendants.』
"...I think I can understand that, in a way."
Even if a Magi Craft Meister had never appeared among them, it wasn't hard to imagine that they were likely far superior to others when it came to magi-craft and scientific knowledge.
"They must have gone through a lot of hardships."
Laojun spoke as if to offer Jin comfort.
『No, My Lord. Not a single one of your descendants has ever spoken ill of you.』
"Is that true?"
『Yes....I suppose the education you gave your children was truly excellent. All of your grandchildren were very fond of you and Elsa-sama, and those grandchildren in turn gave a proper education and upbringing to their own children—your great-grandchildren—and shared stories of you with them.』
Jin wasn't sure if he wanted to know exactly what kind of stories they had been telling.
『Therefore, while every one of your descendants wished they could have met you just once, not a single one of them holds any resentment toward you.』
"...I hope that's the case."
With Laojun's assurance, Jin felt a weight lift from his heart.