"So, the goal here is to increase a golem's stability?"
Jin spoke up after finishing his analysis of the magi machine.
"Y-yes. You figured it out quite easily, didn't you?"
Groma Tray seemed a bit taken aback, appearing somewhat flustered by how to interact with Jin.
"There's a heavy rotating mass inside... You extract positional data to keep things stable, something like that?"
"T-that's right."
In essence, it was a gyroscope.
"There's still plenty of room for improvement, though."
While that may have been true, Jin felt that coming up with the concept itself was a significant achievement. It made him think once again that he would love to welcome these three into the Jin Family.
＊ ＊ ＊
Since they couldn't afford to linger too long, they decided that catching up properly with the three students would have to wait until dinner or later that evening. With that, the group departed the research wing.
It was striking how all three of them looked as though they had a mountain of questions left to ask.
"Sigh, Rasnat is as short-sighted as ever. Still, I'm a bit relieved to know those three have joined the lab," Marikka remarked.
Finally, they took a brief tour of the city area.
"It's quite well-developed."
Theaters, cafeterias, diners, and various shops were all housed within massive buildings. The layout was very similar to a modern shopping mall.
"I'd like to see the selection of goods in the shops, but..."
It was a bit too much to manage for one day.
"It's already getting late..."
They had spent an unexpected amount of time in the research wing.
"It will soon be time for dinner."
＊ ＊ ＊
In practice, the schedule called for a bath first, then dinner.
Naturally, the baths were filled with heated water rather than natural hot spring water. However, Jin was slightly surprised to find a bathtub with heated seawater, serving as a pseudo-saline spring.
Saline springs—sodium-chloride springs—provide a heat-retaining effect that makes it harder to catch a chill after bathing. That being said, because salt remains on the skin, it can feel a bit sticky, and Jin knew it was a matter of personal preference. Rinsing off with fresh water after getting out would negate the effect entirely.
Jin opted for the regular hot water bath.
Lordtoss and Maquina III joined him. Wattes, who disliked baths, took only a quick shower and left almost immediately.
"Lordtoss, why don't you come to Hourai Island for the New Year? You can bring Ludmila and Vita along, too."
Lordtoss jumped at the offer without a second thought.
"Is that all right? Absolutely! Vita will be delighted!"
"I'd like Sion and Marikka to come too, if they can."
"As for Great-grandmother and the others, if you're the one asking, Jin-san, I'm sure they'll agree."
＊ ＊ ＊
In the women's bath, Sion, Marikka, and Arietta were soaking.
"..."
Arietta felt a little intimidated by Sion and the other legendary figure. Sensing this, Sion spoke up.
"Arietta-san, was it?"
"Y-yes."
"Please, don't be so formal with us," Sion said, speaking as gently as she could.
Her efforts paid off, and Arietta relaxed enough that they were soon chatting comfortably while helping wash each other's backs.
"Sion-sama, Marikka-sama, your skin is so beautiful..."
"Is it?"
Sion was 512 years old and Marikka was 492, yet they appeared no older than women in their late and early sixties. It was theorized that this was due to their lifespans being dramatically extended by their improved living environment and the effects of high-concentration free ether, but the phenomenon hadn't been fully explained yet. Even Laojun's hypothesis went no further than suggesting that their DNA and telomeres were likely closer to those of the Progenitors.
"Ah, that was a good soak."
Unfortunately, there was no coffee milk or fruit milk available to drink afterward. After cooling off for a bit, it was time for the dinner party.
＊ ＊ ＊
Dinner was not a standard set meal but a menu prepared specifically for honored guests.
There was white rice, wakame miso soup, salt-grilled sea bream (or a fish exactly like it), tuna and flounder sashimi (or fish that could only be identified as such), shrimp and vegetable tempura, agedashi tofu, and oshinko. They were told the composition of the meal followed the Avalon style.
"Mmm, this is delicious."
Since Jin rarely had the chance to eat salt-grilled sea bream, he found it quite flavorful. Sion, Marikka, and Lordtoss seemed accustomed to eating fish, as they skillfully navigated around the bones—which are notoriously hard in sea bream.
"This 'agedashi tofu' is very tasty."
It seemed Arietta was trying many of these dishes for the first time. Wattes was eating in silence, but his chopsticks were moving at a speed that suggested he was enjoying himself immensely.
Everyone seemed capable of using chopsticks as well, and Jin was secretly impressed that such a culture had taken deep root over the last four centuries.
After the meal, they were served hojicha. This also seemed to be a first for Arietta, and she appeared to like the flavor, which was quite different from green tea.
＊ ＊ ＊
After dinner was free time to relax. However, the Guest House and the student residential district were quite a distance apart, making it difficult for Jin to head out to visit anyone.
...Or so he thought, until Kachea, Eira, and Groma showed up at his door. It seemed Tomax Bartman had been considerate enough to arrange a meeting.
"Ah, now we can have a proper talk."
Jin decided to host them in the Guest House lounge. Here, Golem Maids provided service, bringing refreshments to the guests.
These golems are also based on the Safi model, Jin noted as he ordered buckwheat tea. The other three ordered the same.
"Oh, what a lovely aroma. But it doesn't actually taste like soba," Kachea remarked after taking a sip.
"Well now, Jin. You're going to tell us everything that's been going on, right?" Eira said with a mischievous grin.
"Yeah, that's the plan."
Jin smiled back, took a sip of his buckwheat tea, and began his story.