"Phew, I'm stuffed."
After feasting on daifuku, senbei, and fruit, and washing it all down with green tea, Te-e, Kuhe, and juice, Hanna stretched out on the mat with a full stomach.
"...In the end, though, it all comes down to how we operate it, doesn't it?"
True to form, she immediately circled back to business.
"Hanna-chan, rest a little more," Elsa chided gently.
"Okay..."
Wispy clouds drifted across the sky, filtering the soft sunlight, and the gentle breeze was so pleasant that Jin felt he might drift off himself.
"...Zzz."
Before anyone realized it, Hanna was already fast asleep.
"So homunculi sleep after all, huh..."
"Naturally," Elsa replied from beside him. "All of us were calibrated to match our original physical states."
It seemed that "servants" like Elder No. 700672 had been specially tuned to endure heavy manual labor as well.
"Is that so? Well, makes sense."
"That is why we still get hungry and sleepy."
"It's only natural, after all."
Come to think of it, Jin recalled seeing everyone drinking and getting pleasantly tipsy earlier.
"...Wait a second. Huh?"
A sudden realization struck Jin.
"Are you not wearing... your Fellowship Bracelets?"
"...Mm. We stopped their functions and buried them in the earth along with our old bodies."
"Ah, I see."
He had no intention of faulting them for that.
"Well then, let's make new ones."
"Mm."
"...Reiko, check with Laojun and get the materials ready so they match the original colors."
"Right away!"
Reiko, who had been waiting quietly to avoid disturbing the others, sprang into action with evident joy the moment Jin gave the order.
Jin promptly followed after her.
Elsa and the others watched his retreating back with fond, knowing smiles.
"Let's see... light blue for Elsa, and gold for Reinhard. Berche gets scarlet, Mother-in-law Mine gets clear, and Stearena is copper. Blue for Toa-san, and light purple for Saki."
Jin processed the prepared magi-crystals in rapid succession.
"Marcia is dark blue, Rodrigo-san is dark green, and Vivienne is silver. Hanna is yellow, Louis is yellow-green, and Beena is crimson."
Working at full tilt with zero hesitation, his sheer speed left the onlookers wide-eyed as they wandered over to watch.
"...It feels like it's been ages since I've seen Jin go all out like this."
"Kufu, he really is something else."
"...I think he might even be faster than before."
Completely tuning out their chatter, Jin pressed on with his work.
"Milowina-san gets gold stripes on a silver base, and Goose gets reddish-brown. Lishia has a blue-and-white marble pattern, while Martha-san is yellow-and-white marble. Sion gets silver and light blue marble, and Marikka gets silver and yellow marble. That should do it."
Incidentally, Jin's was jet-black and Reiko's was milky-white.
"Jin-sama, Sion isn't here yet..." Marikka ventured timidly.
"Ah, I know. But it's already settled that Sion is joining us here, right?"
"The preparations have been completed," Laojun confirmed.
"Then having one ready won't go to waste. It's fine."
Only then did Jin notice that the entire group had gathered around him.
"Ah, perfect timing. I made new Fellowship Bracelets for everyone, so take yours. I kept the colors identical to the originals."
"Thank you, Onii-chan!"
"Thank you, Jin."
"Much obliged!"
Everyone accepted their bracelets with bright smiles.
"Ah, it feels just like old times."
"Well, of course it does—Jin made them, after all," Beena and Louis said, prompting Jin to chime in.
"Actually, the performance is entirely different."
"Huh?"
"The barrier strength is doubled, and it can deploy Aegis now."
The Aegis was a planar barrier that formed a shield-like ward. Because it fixed space itself in place, no physical attack could breach it short of a cosmic catastrophe.
"Haah... Trust Jin to go that far," Reinhard murmured with a faint sigh.
"...Though I doubt any of you will ever need to use it."
Jin had a wry smile on his face as he said it.
"It's just insurance so that 'what if' never happens."
Doing everything in his power to protect those he cared about—that was Jin's absolute creed.
"In any case, thank you, Jin."
"...Speaking of bracelets, everyone's watches are buried in those graves too, aren't they?"
"Ah, good point."
They were referring to the pocket watches Jin had personally crafted and gifted to each of them for their birthdays.
"Well, that couldn't be helped either. Guess I'll make a fresh batch."
With that, Jin dove right back into crafting.
"...Good grief, he really hasn't changed a bit."
"Yup, Onii-chan is always going to be Onii-chan."
"Mm. Jin-nii is just so happy to be reunited with everyone. That's why he's throwing himself into it like that..."
"Kufu, you're part of that 'everyone,' you know, Elsa?"
"..."
And so, by the time evening fell, every last person had a brand-new pocket watch in hand.
"Ah, feels great to craft to my heart's content after so long."
Jin looked thoroughly satisfied with his day's work.
Then came dinner.
Steaming white rice, miso soup with wakame and tofu, grilled fillets of salmon—or rather, a fish identical to it—grated daikon, sweet tamagoyaki, simmered natsuri, and oshinko.
It was a menu tailored entirely to Jin's personal tastes, but everyone else loved it just as much.
Incidentally, this daikon hailed from the northern reaches of the Pandor Continent, and Jin had actually been the one to name it in the early 3500s of the Continental Calendar.
Up until then, Jin had eaten smaller varieties from the Lauren Continent or Hourai Island, describing them as "just like daikon" or "very similar to daikon." But the ones from the Pandor Continent were large and robust—indisputably a selectively bred cultivar.
As for why a selectively bred daikon existed there in the first place, that was a story for another day.
"Mm, delicious."
Jin wore a blissful expression.
"Ah, I haven't tasted this seasoning in so long. This is Perido's handiwork, isn't it?"
Reinhard, ever discerning when it came to food, immediately identified the cook behind the dish.
"Rai-nii, as sharp as ever."
Elsa daintily picked up a piece of sweet tamagoyaki.
"Eatin' wif everyone makes it tashte so good!" Marikka chimed in, her cheeks stuffed full of rice.
"Hey now, don't talk with your mouth full. It's bad manners."
"Yeth, ma'am."
Duly scolded by Martha, Marikka swallowed sheepishly.
And so, the night on Hourai Island deepened, filled with warmth and lively chatter.