After tea time came to an end, everyone dispersed in different directions to attend to their respective tasks or personal interests.
"Well then, what should I do?"
As Jin muttered to himself, he recalled his earlier conversation with Beena.
He decided to check in with Laojun.
"Things should have made some progress on Sion's end by now, right?"
"Yes, My Lord. The proposal to the Klein Kingdom has been finalized, and they are currently overhauling Toka Village's infrastructure."
"Oh, is that so? In that case..."
Wanting to see the progress for himself, Jin called out to Lishia.
"Lishia, you heard him. Want to head over to Toka Village for a bit?"
"Huh, really? Is that all right?"
"Yeah. The Doppels for the Jin Family just finished, so it's the perfect chance to use one."
"Oh, wonderful! I'll gladly take you up on that!"
Jin doubted anyone currently in Toka Village would recognize Lishia's face, but taking precautions never hurt.
"Do you want to come along, Elsa?" Jin asked.
"No, I'm good. Have fun with Lishia-san," came her generous reply.
"All right. We'll be heading out, then."
"Mm. Have a safe trip."
Since Jin's Doppel was currently using Hope and the Hurricane for a trip to Avalon, Jin had Sky 2 take the controls and fly Konron 3 to Toka Village instead.
Mini Reiko rode on Jin's shoulder, while Lishia piloted Female-Type Doppel No. 1.
The default appearance of this No. 1 unit was configured to look like an average-built person in their early twenties belonging to a "combat class"—such as a knight or swordsman. For this excursion, her role was framed as Jin's friend and guard.
She also introduced herself under the name Lichia rather than Lishia.
"Oh, look, they've built quite a lot already."
"Ah, you're right."
Looking down at Toka Village from the air, an airfield had been constructed on the western side of the settlement, with an inn-like building erected nearby.
"There are about thirty civil engineering and construction golems down there. Those are Nord Federation models, so Sion must have lent them out."
Jin doubted the present Klein Kingdom possessed that many golems, and above all, hallmarks of Marikka's craftwork were visible all over the site.
"The airfield... looks like it's already operational. Hope—no, Sky 2, bring us down over there."
"Understood."
Sky 2 set Konron 3 down at the edge of the airfield.
There was no storehouse yet, but since they had no intention of staying overnight, it hardly mattered.
"Sky 2, look after Konron 3 for us."
"Yes, leave it to me."
As Jin and the Lishia Doppel (Lishia D, aka Lichia) stepped off the craft, Toka Village Chief Yuzo Mayaka was already there to greet them.
His passion for aircraft clearly hadn't waned; Jin suspected he had sprinted over the moment he spotted Konron 3 making its descent.
"Well, well, well... if it isn't... the Magi Craft Meister... Jin-sama!"
Seeing the man speaking so breathlessly, Lichia recoiled slightly.
"I had business in the area today, so I decided to drop by....I've heard the news, you know. An air race is going to be held here?"
At the mention of this, Yuzo Mayaka broke into a wide smile.
"Yes, that's right! Volunteers from the Nord Federation expressed interest in using our land, and thanks to that, the crown provided financial aid... Or rather, I heard that you were the one who put in a good word for us, Jin-sama?"
"Ah, you already knew that much?...Well, yes, I suppose. But I only made a brief introduction. In the end, the people of the Nord Federation made the final call."
"Even so, you were the catalyst, Jin-sama. You have my deepest gratitude."
"Give me a break."
It seemed Yuzo Mayaka had fully deduced Jin's hand in orchestrating the development.
"With the kingdom's aid, they excavated a new water source for us and overhauled the sewer system," Village Chief Yuzo Mayaka explained as he gave Jin and his companion a walking tour.
"They also built an inn for us. The state will manage it for the next five years, but after that, ownership will be transferred over to the village."
"Oh, that sounds like a great arrangement."
"Yes. Though the village has to develop enough by then to sustain it."
"Developing local specialties and... improving transportation, perhaps?" Jin offered, voicing the thoughts that came to mind. "A location suited for holding an air race inherently means it's far from Central. Having something like scheduled flights would probably change the landscape entirely, though."
"That is true, but..."
"Since the Kutsudo Mine is out that way, another option might be establishing a solid transport route to carry both ore and passengers."
The Kutsudo Mine lay far to the west of Toka Village. It was reportedly a high-yield mine, so Jin figured paving a proper highway would hardly be a redundancy.
(A minecart railway would probably be a tough sell...)
Jin had once seen television footage of a scenic gorge trolley train back on Earth and thought laying something similar would be ideal, but the concept of railways barely existed on Planet Ars.
Considering that the monorail laid long ago in the Celuroa Kingdom had never truly caught on, the technology simply didn't seem to match the locals' preferences.
(Maybe population density has something to do with it, too.)
It was an educated guess drawn from having seen rural train lines back home get scrapped in favor of bus routes.
(Focusing on highways and post stations... might be the way to go.)
In the past, there had also been an idea to march a dozen or so large-class golems across the terrain to tamp down roads; Jin figured road maintenance would be a breeze using that method.
The problem, however, was that only the Celuroa Kingdom and the Shouro Empire maintained large-class golems of that scale.
(Should I have Avalon or Deus Ex Machina handle it...?)
While Jin turned these thoughts over in his head, Lishia—now going by Lichia—walked alongside him, gazing around the village with nostalgic eyes.
"Come to think of it, what became of the hot spring?" Jin asked as they passed by the desolate hot spring facility.
Lichia looked toward the dilapidated, tilting building with a wistful expression.
"I hear it stopped flowing several centuries ago. They had earth-attribute magi examine it multiple times after that, but nothing ever came of it."
"Hmm..."
As the very person who had originally dug it, Jin couldn't help but feel curious.
"Would you mind if I took a look?" he asked.
"Eh? Ah, o-of course! Please, right this way!"
Village Chief Yuzo Mayaka hurried to pull open the door to the leaning bathhouse.
Brushing away cobwebs and careful not to breathe in the dust, they made their way to the springhead facility.
"'Grand Search'... Hm? 'Grand Search'. 'Grand Search'."
After casting Grand Search three times, a look of realization dawned on Jin's face.
"I see what happened. The hot spring hasn't dried up at all. Something is clogging it deep underground, which is why the water stopped welling up."
In truth, Jin already knew that the "something" was an artificial plug, but seeing no point in complicating the explanation, he simply left it at "something."
"Now then, how should we clear it out...?"
As several methods crossed his mind—
"Father, allow me to go," Mini Reiko offered from atop his shoulder.
"Ah, right, Mini Reiko could easily fit..."
The borehole where the spring water once rose was roughly fifteen centimeters in diameter—more than wide enough for Mini Reiko to pass through.
"All right, I'm counting on you."
"Yes, leave it to me."
No sooner had the words left her mouth than Mini Reiko leaped from Jin's shoulder, plunging straight down into the borehole.
"J-Jin-sama, is that safe?!"
Unaware of Mini Reiko's true capabilities, the village chief began to panic, but Jin merely smiled.
"Just watch," he replied, waiting calmly for Mini Reiko's return.