The day after touring the Shouro Empire with Elsa, Saki, Reinhard, and his wife, Jin was back on Hourai Island.
As Jin finished his breakfast, Laojun spoke up.
"My Lord, there is a matter I would like to consult you about."
"What is it, Laojun?"
"Yes. It concerns Jack and Hanako."
"I see."
Just hearing those two names was enough for Jin to realize what Laojun meant.
"As for Jack... let's see. Why don't we open a dedicated line and link it to Milowina's Fellowship Bracelet?"
"That would be excellent."
Indeed, with its former master, Milowina, now residing on Hourai Island, the magi-brain Jack on the Moon—Uni—was experiencing a slight sense of loss, even if it had not escalated to full Master Loss Syndrome. That was what Laojun wanted to address.
"What should we do about Hanako, though..."
As for Hanako, ever since her creator, Marikka, passed away, she had remained in a complete daze.
In this case, the best course of action would be to bring her to Hourai Island, introduce her to Marikka's homunculus, and let them stay together from then on.
"If My Lord offers to take custody of her, I doubt anyone, including Sion-san, would object, but..."
"Well, yeah..."
The problem would be answering if anyone ever asked, "How is Hanako doing?"
"Or perhaps we could spirit her away in secret?"
Jin had considered that as well. After all, Marikka would not be able to see Sion and the others for quite some time anyway. There would be no reason to hide her being together with Hanako.
"Still, if we do that, there are bound to be people saddened by Hanako's disappearance."
Jin figured Marikka's disciples would probably miss her at least a little.
"Then what if My Lord were to craft an identical automaton and swap them out?"
"That's also a bit..."
Jin hesitated; such a method would ultimately amount to deceiving them.
"In the end, me taking custody of her is probably the safest bet."
"Indeed it is."
"All right."
Jin immediately sprang into action.
First, he contacted Sion to check on Hanako's current state.
"Same as always. She just stares blankly into space all day long," came the reply.
"I see... I was thinking of taking custody of her. What do you think?"
"You, Jin?"
Sion sounded slightly surprised, followed by a brief, contemplative silence. Then,
"...Yes, that would put my mind at ease."
She gave an affirmative response.
Jin promised to come pick her up at noon the following day, local time.
He figured it had been scheduled for the next day because Sion had her own matters to attend to first.
"We have some time until tomorrow... Perfect. Laojun, where is Milowina-san?"
"Yes, My Lord. She is currently watering the flowers in the bed beside the laboratory."
"Got it. Let's head over."
Accompanied by Reiko, Jin left the laboratory's workshop and stepped outside through the eastern side entrance rather than the front doors, as it offered a shorter path to the flowerbed.
"Oh, Jin-kun, Reiko-chan."
"Working hard, I see."
"Yes. Being able to tend to flowers down here on the ground brings me so much joy."
Because Hourai Island enjoyed a subtropical climate, one could appreciate flowers all year round so long as the right varieties were chosen.
The ones currently in bloom bore a close resemblance to marigolds. Their gradient—shifting gracefully through deep orange, pale orange, and lemon yellow—was striking.
"I'd love to plant even more of them."
"Sounds wonderful. Please feel free to have Topaz lend a hand."
"I will."
As one of the Five-Color Golems serving as maids, Topaz oversaw agriculture, meaning she could easily assist with gardening as well.
"By the way, did you need something from me?"
Admiring the flowers, Jin was reminded of his original purpose by Milowina's inquiry.
"Ah, right. Well, it seems Jack on the Moon is feeling a bit lonely, so I was thinking of connecting a dedicated line to your bracelet, Milowina-san."
Milowina agreed to the proposal without a second thought.
"My! That would make me so happy. Please, go ahead!"
With that, she slipped off her bracelet.
"All right, I'll take it for a little while."
Taking the bracelet, Jin hurried back to the workshop.
"Let's see. Add a line here, along with a voice communication feature, and..."
The bracelet was crafted from high-grade magi-crystals and had plenty of surface area, giving him ample room to incorporate new functions with ease.
"Now for the other side..."
Since he wanted two-way communication, he needed to add a magi-circuit not only to the bracelet, but to Jack on the Moon as well.
"I'll be right back."
"I shall accompany you."
"Yeah."
With Reiko at his side, Jin used the Warp Gate to travel to the Moon.
"Welcome, Jin-sama."
"Hey there, Jack."
"Is Lady Milowina in good health and high spirits?"
"Yeah, she's doing great. Just a moment ago, she was watering the flowers in the garden."
"Is that so? That is wonderful to hear."
To Jack, Jin promptly stated his business.
"Jack, that's actually why I came today....I'm planning to add a dedicated line to Milowina's Fellowship Bracelet so the two of you can talk."
"Oh, that brings me immense joy."
With Jack readily granting its consent, Jin immediately set to work adding the circuit.
"Hook this up like this, and... there. How's that?"
Milowina's bracelet was still in Jin's hands.
"Yes, Jin-sama. I can sense a magical connection with the bracelet."
"Great, looks like it worked."
"Thank you very much."
"All right, we're heading back now. As soon as I get back, I'll return the bracelet to Milowina."
"Thank you very much."
"...And so, here is your bracelet."
"My, thank you, Jin-kun!"
Beaming with a bright smile, Milowina took the bracelet and immediately opened the line to Jack.
"Jack, can you hear me? It's me."
"Yes, Lady Milowina."
"It seems I left you feeling lonely. I'm sorry."
"Not at all. Lady Milowina's continued good health is all that matters."
For the next hour or so, Milowina and Jack happily chatted away about ordinary, everyday things.