“Man, peace really is the best.”
Jin lounged in the meadows of Kaina Village with the twins, soaking in the quiet afternoon.
“Yes. This is your achievement as well,” Elsa added, sitting beside him.
“Oto-cha.”
“Oto-shan.”
The twins were frolicking on the soft summer grass while Reiko followed close behind them like a silent guardian.
“Ah, Jin-sama.”
Barrow, the village’s livestock manager, approached while herding a group of Kashimir.
He hailed from the countryside of the Shouro Empire and had once worked in the Celuroa Kingdom, only to be left destitute when his master fell from political grace. Jin had taken him in along with his childhood friend and now-wife, Belle. After a stint as a servant for the Nidou family, he had settled into his current role.
The Kashimir were herbivorous beasts native to the former Leonard Kingdom—essentially cashmere goats. They had only recently begun breeding them in Kaina Village. Since the village was close to the former Leonard Kingdom and shared a similar climate, the animals were thriving.
They were being raised to produce the fine wool known as cashmere in this world as well, but a single animal only yielded about 150 to 250 grams of wool. The venture’s profitability was still a matter of ongoing trial and error. To make a single sweater, they needed the wool of roughly four goats—and so far, they only had six.
“Hey there, Barrow. Where’s Belle?”
“She’s back at the house, sir, spinning the cashmere into yarn.”
They harvested the wool by combing the Kashimir’s coats to collect the shed hair. On modern Earth, cashmere goats with "defects" in their wool were often culled before they turned two, with only the most superior individuals kept for breeding—a process that eliminated fifty to eighty percent of young goats. However, the Kashimir here were different.
Whether it was the environment or the quality of the pasture, all six possessed long, pristine white coats. The hair used for cashmere wasn't the coarse outer layer, but the soft, downy undercoat growing at the roots. It was a distinction much like the difference between feathers and down.
With Jin’s magical support, the process was efficient and gentle on the animals... or at least it was on its way to becoming a sustainable industry. For now, the cashmere business was still in its infancy.
“Onii-chan!”
Hanna came running toward them. “Mr. Eckart from House Techles is here!”
“What? The president himself?”
Eckart Techles had once been a prominent merchant in the Celuroa Kingdom, but he had fled to the Shouro Empire to escape the tyranny of the previous king, Richard Valois de Celuroa. He had established his new company there and had risen to such prominence that he was occasionally summoned to the Royal Palace to advise on economic policy.
“Hello, Jin-san. It’s been quite a while.”
“You look well, Mr. Eckart.”
“Haha, thanks to you, my days are quite fulfilling.”
Since he and Jin had known each other for some time, they spoke with an easy familiarity.
“I have some business to conclude with the Erik Company today. I hoped I might run into you, Jin-san, and it seems my luck is holding out.”
Eckart seemed to be in high spirits. “By the way, His Highness Ernst recently visited the Ground Spider resin (GSP) factory.”
“So I’ve heard.”
“Haha, as expected, you have ears everywhere, Jin-san.”
Despite his modest words, Eckart Techles placed a high premium on information himself. He used the magi-communicators Tenkunhan had brought back from Mitsuho, operating them with Morse-code-like signals to create a rudimentary telegraph system. This allowed him to transmit information across vast distances.
Jin—or rather, Avalon—intended to have this technology researched further.
“Ah, Mr. Eckart, so this is where you were.”
Erik arrived, accompanied by his wife, Barbara.
“Mr. Erik, sorry to have made you come all this way. Jin-san, if you’ll excuse me.”
Eckart gave Jin a polite bow and departed with Erik. Barbara, however, lingered behind.
“Barbara, is something the matter?” Elsa asked.
Barbara blushed slightly and whispered into Elsa’s ear.
Elsa gave a small nod. “Diagnose.”
She cast the diagnostic magic on her friend. After a moment, she delivered the news. “You’re pregnant. Just shy of two months.”
“...! I knew it! Oh, thank you, Elsa!”
“Mm.”
With a radiant smile, Barbara hurried off to catch up with Erik.
“Kaina Village is going to get lively again,” Elsa murmured as she watched Barbara go.
“It sure is!” Hanna agreed. She was delighted that the number of young children in the village was growing.
“Oka-cha.”
“Okaa-shan.”
Yuu and Mio waddled over, followed by Reiko. Just then, the bell of Jin Castle rang to signal noon.
“Let’s head back and have some lunch.”
“Mm.”
Jin picked up Yuu, while Elsa gathered Mio into her arms.
“Onii-chan, Yuu-chan and Mio-chan started talking so early. And they’re already walking... it’s amazing. I guess that’s what happens when you’re Jin’s kids,” Hanna remarked.
Jin felt they were a bit precocious compared to the other children in the village, but he chalked it up to individual variation. A prodigy at ten, a talent at fifteen, and just a regular person past twenty. He decided not to overthink the pace of their development.
On the way home, they crossed paths with the Village Chief, Giebeck, and Sally. They were accompanied by their fourteen-year-old adoptive daughter, Luu-chan. It appeared they were making their rounds to discuss medical checkups and taxes.
“Hey, Jin, Elsa.”
“Hello, Sally-sensei. Hello, Village Chief.”
“Luu-chan, hello.”
“Hello!”
The two groups exchanged warm greetings. Elsa took a half-step toward them as if to say something, but then hesitated and stepped back.
“What was that for?” Jin asked, curious.
“I thought about telling them about Barbara,” Elsa whispered. “But I decided it would be better coming from her.”
“Ah, good point.” Jin smiled in agreement.
“Welcome back, Jin-san, Elsa, Hanna-chan. Lunch is ready.”
Mine greeted them the moment they stepped through the door. Today’s meal consisted of sandwiches—thinly sliced ham, fresh vegetables, and egg salad. A cold ramon squash provided a refreshing summer zing. For the twins, they prepared soft-boiled porridge mixed with apulul and Persica paste.
“It’s so peaceful.”
The words slipped out of his mouth involuntarily. When he thought of the world four hundred years in the future, his heart ached, but there was nothing he could do about that reality now. He had to focus on the present.
“Maybe I could develop some support Magi Machines that only activate after I return to this era...”
The idea suddenly took root in his mind. Just then, Yuu looked up from his lap.
“Oto-cha.”
“Oh, Yuu. Let’s get your face cleaned up.”
As Jin wiped the paste from around the boy’s mouth, Yuu giggled happily.
“Oka-shan.”
Mio, meanwhile, was clinging to Elsa, seemingly unwilling to be weaned just yet. I thought boys were usually the ones who clung longer, Jin mused, though he didn't have any actual data to back up the old saying.
“I’ll live every day to the fullest, and the rest will follow,” Jin muttered to himself.
Elsa nodded. “Yes. I want to live without regrets.”
“How philosophical,” Hanna teased with a laugh.
“Jin-san is always working his hardest,” Mine added with a smile.
“We are with you, Father. There is nothing to worry about,” Reiko said, puffing out her chest with pride.
“Thank you, everyone.”
Jin looked out the window at the clear sky. “Tomorrow, let’s go see Milowina.”
“Mm. Is she at Uni right now?”
Milowina had become quite healthy. She spent about half of each month at her home on the Moon (Uni) and the other half traveling around Ars as a tourist.
“It’s so peaceful.”
The phrase left Jin’s lips for the third time that day. White clouds drifted across the blue sky, and Kaina Village stood on the threshold of a vibrant summer.