Because they had not sent word in advance regarding this visit to Onogoro Island, no one came out to greet them.
Rather, they had deliberately chosen not to contact anyone.
At that moment, Jin and Marikka were walking down a secret passageway known only to her, heading toward a terminal to get in touch with Testa.
Along the way, Jin confirmed something with her.
"...Hey, Marikka. Your memories were kept completely intact, right?"
"Yes, that's right."
Marikka had remained unmarried throughout her entire life and had no children, so her memories up to the moment of her passing seemed to have been transcribed exactly as they were.
"...So, as I thought, an invisible Trans Info was performed using a method similar to the Peeper?"
"It would seem so."
Illusion magic was a technique that cast illusions at distant locations by using mana—specifically, free ether waves—as a carrier wave.
If one were to draw magic circles or magi-formulas instead of illusions, it became possible to exercise remote-type magic.
In other words, by using Trans Info remotely, Marikka's knowledge and memories had been transcribed.
Apparently, almost everyone, not just Marikka, had adopted this method.
"I thought that had to be it."
Jin had also believed that there was no other way.
After all, in Marikka's case, someone had been by her side around the clock.
"The problem is, Testa aside, how we should explain your situation to the people of Onogoro Island..."
As they walked down the passageway, Jin voiced his concern. He had been pondering it since they were on Hourai Island, but he simply could not reach a conclusion.
"There's no living person who knows what you looked like when you were young, Marikka, but the automata and golems do."
Edgar, Aaru, Arrow, Arco, Veil, Schwarzritter, Neon, Sara, Selene...
They had known her ever since the days when Jin first met Marikka.
"Everyone knows that I remained unwed, after all..."
"Yeah."
Should they claim that Marikka had been rejuvenated through a "special technique," or not?
His thoughts inevitably circled back to that dilemma.
A homunculus was ageless. So long as they came to no harm, they could live for over ten thousand years.
In exchange, however, they possessed no reproductive functions and could not bear children...
This seemed to be an inseparable drawback of immortal beings; countless tales told of individuals gaining eternal youth and immortality at the cost of losing the ability to leave behind descendants.
Digression aside.
"Still... not just anyone can receive this blessing, after all."
"The mental catalyst, you mean."
"Yeah."
The "mental catalyst" that could only be harvested in trace amounts from things like the brains of magical beasts.
It was indispensable for creating a homunculus.
However, the catalysts extracted from magical beasts native to Planet Ars were somehow different, rendering them practically useless.
The ones received from No. 700672 had originated from Planet Hehl. Those had functioned without issue.
(Could it be...)
Jin wondered. Perhaps the mental catalysts from Planet Hehl were not derived from magical beasts, but from humans?
(If that's the case, extracting it from a human would probably yield a high-performance mental catalyst on Planet Ars too.)
However, by Jin's ethical standards, that was completely out of the question.
If it were a method that used a mental catalyst extracted from the "individual's" own remains, it might barely be acceptable, but whether due to extraction efficiency or other factors, the amount from a single person was insufficient to create a homunculus.
(Perhaps... humans creating humans is, after all, going against the laws of nature.)
Just as his thoughts were turning philosophical—
"Jin-sama, it's just ahead."
Marikka's voice brought Jin back to reality.
The main unit of Testa, the management magi-brain of Onogoro Island, was located deep underground beneath the island, protected by multiple layers of defenses. Several of those had been added by Jin himself.
Therefore, meeting Testa's main body directly was a troublesome endeavor. First, they would communicate through a terminal.
Even among terminals, one with limited functions would not suffice, which was why they had made their way all the way to this high-clearance terminal.
"*-+@;&"
When Marikka uttered what sounded like a password, a section of the wall slid open to reveal something akin to a numeric keypad.
"7... 9... 7... 0..."
Indeed, it truly was a numeric keypad, and Marikka proceeded to enter a PIN.
"Password and PIN confirmed. Commencing final verification."
Testa's voice echoed.
"Magic pattern matching. Retinal pattern matching. Voiceprint matching... Confirmed. Marikka-sama."
Jin felt an internal sigh of relief. He had worried about what they would do if Testa failed to recognize the homunculus-transformed Marikka as its master.
However, that proved to be an unfounded fear.
In the first place, No. 700672 had also taken part in Marikka's homunculus transformation, and he had recognized the transformed Marikka as his unmistakable Master.
Incidentally, the homunculus technology passed down from the Origin Clan was capable of reproducing even elements that were not identical in identical twins—in other words, traits not determined by DNA, such as fingerprints and retinal patterns.
"Marikka-sama, it is the highest honor to meet you once again."
Testa's voice, usually composed, sounded slightly higher in pitch than usual, and Jin was certain it was not just his imagination.
"I see you have acquired a new body. What a joyous occasion. With this, I shall be able to serve only you, Marikka-sama, for all time to come."
Jin could clearly sense that the magi-brain's voice sounded happy.
Jin decided to ask Testa a question.
"Testa, what do you think Marikka should do moving forward?"
Testa grasped the intent behind the question precisely.
"Let us see. It would not be wise for her to show herself before the residents of Onogoro Island as she is."
That seemed to be Testa's opinion. However...
"Nevertheless, I believe Marikka-sama would find that terribly lonely."
Testa prioritized Marikka above all else.
"Therefore, I believe it would be best to tell 'a single,' 'small lie.'"
"...What kind of lie?"
Marikka joined into the conversation as well.
"Yes, Marikka-sama. The premise involves Jin-sama. Since there is already the precedent of rebirth through a Duplicate, we can simply say that Marikka-sama has likewise become a Duplicate through unknown principles."
"I see...!"
Jin was impressed by Testa's scheme. A Duplicate, with the underlying principles unknown. By doing so, they could make Marikka's return common knowledge without instilling pointless hope in others that they, too, might be rejuvenated.
"Yeah, let's go with that."
Jin agreed immediately.
"Please leave the timing of the announcement to me."
"Alright....In that case, I'd like to link a direct line to Testa through the bracelet Marikka is wearing."
"What do you think, Testa?"
"If it is for Marikka-sama's sake, I have no objections whatsoever."
"Great."
With that, Jin proceeded to modify the bracelet right then and there.
"Testa, I'm going to synchronize the mana wavelengths, so emit the mana waves for the Link."
"Understood."
The work was completed in roughly two minutes.
"Alright, with this, Marikka can speak directly with Testa through this bracelet."
"Thank you very much, Jin-sama."
"Jin-sama, you have my gratitude."
Thus, the homunculus-transformed Marikka became Testa's master once again.