"I'm counting on you, Elena."
"Yes, My Lord."
This was the new headquarters of Nostalgia.
The base was located on Electra Island, one of the isles in the Pleiades Archipelago—also known as the Pleiades Islands—drifting south of the Elias Peninsula. Beneath the island's surface, Nostalgia had constructed a state-of-the-art facility.
Most notably, it housed a Warp Gate, linking the site directly to their former headquarters at Kashimnole Base. Elena had traveled to the old base at the request of the party leader, Jules Rolant, to test the gate's functionality.
"Ah, Elena. The test was a success, I see."
The man who greeted her was Donald Callow, the organization's number two and the head of the Technology Department. He was formerly the top engineer of the Celuroa Kingdom.
"Donald, are the adjustments to the Warp Gate holding up?"
"Yes, they're perfect now."
"I see. That means we can finally begin transporting materials from Kashimnole Base."
"Precisely."
Nostalgia was steadily solidifying its foothold in the world.
"Now that we're no longer an underground organization, we can openly assert our presence," Donald remarked.
"Indeed," Elena agreed.
"However, that’s largely thanks to you, Elena. The 'Golden Princess' carries a lot of weight. Even if people in other nations haven't heard of Nostalgia, they all know of you. To be honest, I'm a little envious."
"Oh, thank you," Elena replied with a bright, tinkling laugh.
Elena’s public-facing diplomacy had borne fruit, significantly raising Nostalgia's international profile. Aside from the Magi Craft Meister, Jin, their magi-craft was a step or two ahead of any other nation's, drawing global attention. Furthermore, the fact that their representative was an automata had become common knowledge, serving as a testament to Nostalgia’s technological superiority.
"Well then, I shall return to headquarters."
"Right. Give my regards to Jules. I should be able to join you there in another two or three days."
"I understand."
From that day forward, the Electra Island headquarters became fully operational. Even so, it was only about seventy percent complete; they planned to finish the remaining thirty percent at a leisurely pace.
＊ ＊ ＊
"A request for golem development?"
The following day, May 22nd, a formal request arrived for Nostalgia from the Kingdom of Elias. They wanted a golem capable of countering the Death Sea Serpents.
"Yes. Apparently, there have been three incidents involving Death Sea Serpents so far this year. The Kingdom of Elias wants to form a specialized security force to deal with them," Jules explained.
"I see. So that is why they need the golems," Elena said, nodding in understanding.
"Exactly."
"And what are the required specifications?"
"Well, the primary requirements are that the unit be waterproof and capable of swimming. They mentioned that while high attack power would be ideal, it isn't strictly necessary since the pilots can use magi-devices."
"And what did Donald have to say about it?"
"He told me to leave it to him."
"That sounds like him. I'll pay him a visit later to offer some encouragement."
"Good....By the way, Elena, I was considering appointing Donald as the commander of Kashimnole Base. What do you think?"
Elena tilted her head thoughtfully. "I'm not so sure. He might not appreciate having his research time cut short by administrative duties."
"I suppose you're right. It's probably best to let Donald focus on his inventions."
"I agree, My Lord."
Unaware of the conversation regarding his promotion, Donald was already hard at work crafting a new golem prototype at Kashimnole Base.
"Hmm, as I expected, the waterproofing is the trickiest part. I suppose I'll have to use magi-resin."
Magi-resin was a general term for resins that reacted to magical power. It was commonly used in standard golems, with the most common variety being harvested from the magi-pine, a tree that possessed inherent mana. This was a technology originally put into practical use by Adriana Barbora Tsetse in her youth.
"If I fill the interior with magi-resin, the waterproofing will be absolute....But the power and speed will suffer. Right, then—I'll try a composite approach."
Donald was an extraordinary magi craftsman. He designed the internal structure as an endoskeleton-type golem and then encased the entire frame in a shell of magi-resin to ensure it was completely watertight.
"The problem now is the synchronization between the two systems."
It was essentially two different types of golems layered on top of one another. If the movements of the endoskeleton didn't perfectly align with the movements of the magi-resin shell, efficiency and precision would plummet. Donald ran countless simulations, slowly ironed out the discrepancies between the two systems.
"It's finally finished!"
After two weeks of tireless effort, Prototype No. 1 was complete.
"Congratulations, Donald."
"Thank you, Elena. Now, let's start the test."
Donald had an assistant golem transport the prototype to the testing grounds. The area was a massive space created by renovating an old underground mine; its width and height were comparable to the Tokyo Dome. Systematic Hardening of the walls and ceiling prevented any risk of a cave-in.
"I'm looking forward to this."
"Haha, keep your eyes peeled!" Donald said, energized by Elena's presence.
Since it was a prototype, the unit was a semi-autonomous type rather than a fully autonomous one, meaning it required specific instructions for every action.
"All right, Prototype No. 1. Walk."
There was no verbal reply, as Donald hadn't equipped the prototype with a vocal function, but the golem gave a small nod of acknowledgement and began to stride forward.
"Good, good. The movement is quite smooth."
Donald was in high spirits as he watched the golem move.
"All right, try running—lightly."
Despite the vague instruction, the semi-autonomous logic correctly interpreted the command and the golem began to jog at thirty percent of its maximum power. However, its gait looked somewhat jerky.
"Hmm... Run at full power!"
Obeying the command, Prototype No. 1 accelerated to a sprint—but its movements became visibly sluggish and strained.
"No good, eh? All right, return to base."
Looking a bit dejected, Donald called the unit back.
"What went wrong?" Elena asked as Donald deactivated the prototype and began making adjustments.
"It seems the output characteristics of the two systems don't quite match," Donald replied. "They're aligned during low-output actions like walking, but as the power level increases, the synchronization begins to drift."
In reality, the output of the magi-resin system increased linearly relative to the input. However, the magical muscle used in the endoskeleton system reached a plateau as it approached its limit.
"So the higher the output, the larger the discrepancy," Elena observed.
"Exactly, Elena."
"In that case, couldn't you simply install an auxiliary magi-calculator into one of the magi-nerve lines?"
Donald nodded. "That's exactly what I'm doing. I'm calibrating the calculator as we speak."
Elena smiled warmly. "As expected of you, Donald. Keep at it."
"Yeah, you bet."
Before the day was out, Donald Callow found the optimal solution. With the synchronization issue resolved, Nostalgia now had a clear path toward mass-producing their waterproof golems.