September 7th.
The location was New El, Naminte.
The time was 1:30 AM, in the dead of night.
Hovering in the sky above was Jin's flagship, the Adriana, flanked by ten 10-meter-diameter small-class spaceships: the Hercules, Achilles, Perseus, Theseus, Castor, Pollux, Prometheus, Endymion, Daedalus, and Cepheus.
They had already confirmed that no residents lived within thirty kilometers, and all large animals had been relocated as well.
The star of tonight was the Adriana. Its mission was to relocate the former family estate of the legendary figure whose name it shared: Adriana Tierra.
To prepare for any contingency, the small-class spaceships cast soundproofing and Invisible barriers over the entire area.
"Please begin."
Directing the operation was Laojun, the magi-brain of Hourai Island.
"Acknowledged."
The short reply came from Taisei, the management magi-brain of the Adriana.
Using its force generator, the Adriana came to a dead stop above the former grounds of House Tierra and deployed a one-kilometer-diameter Space Isolation Barrier, Aegis.
Along the barrier's geometric spherical surface, space was cleanly severed. The solid earth below was no exception.
The severed section of ground reached a depth of approximately ten meters, cleanly encompassing the underground facilities. Thus, while technically hemispherical, it was not a true hemisphere, but rather a shallow, scooped bowl. The diameter at the surface was roughly two hundred meters.
The Aegis vanished after a scant 0.001 seconds, instantly replaced by a physical barrier of identical diameter.
While a physical barrier normally could not be deployed where solid matter was present, it expanded cleanly through the sub-micron gap left behind by the Aegis's cut.
"Barrier deployment complete. The Adriana will now ascend."
And as the Adriana rose into the air...
"Ohh!"
"It's a success!"
Along with the hemispherical mass of soil and bedrock, the former grounds of House Tierra were lifted into the sky. A few sections of neighboring houses came along for the ride.
Because the earth and rock were thinner along the edges, the force generator was also used in tandem to fix the mass spatially in place and prevent it from crumbling.
All that remained was to fly straight to Hourai Island.
As for the neighboring houses swept up in the process, they would take full responsibility and restore them to their original condition afterward.
The small-class spaceships escorted the Adriana, maintaining an Invisible barrier around it as they flew.
Exercising an abundance of caution, they cruised at a subsonic speed of 1,000 kilometers per hour.
With the distance to Hourai Island sitting around 1,800 kilometers, they would easily arrive before dawn.
Meanwhile, back at the excavated crater, five hundred Smith units sent in via transporter immediately set to work on restoration.
Three Daidara units had also been dispatched to handle the initial earthworks, ensuring the primary phase of construction—restoring the exterior appearance—would be completed before dawn.
The underground portions would be meticulously reconstructed later.
For now, since there was no telling who might see the site, their top priority was returning the surface to normal at breakneck speed.
Hauling soil and filling the crater took thirty minutes. Tamping it down and finishing the Hardening took another thirty minutes.
Restoring the stray buildings accidentally gouged out with the foundation took thirty minutes.
And erecting a dummy building that looked identical to House Tierra—on the outside, at least—took one hour.
In two and a half hours flat, the primary construction was finished.
It was 3:00 AM, still well before daybreak. Unseen and unknown by a single soul, the initial phase was complete.
Meanwhile, on Hourai Island.
A hemispherical hole of the exact same dimensions had already been carved out at the relocation site, meaning that setting the transported ground and building into place practically finished eighty percent of the job.
After carefully aligning the orientation, the installation was completed at 9:00 AM, Hourai Island Time. Naturally, the severed bedrock was bonded as seamlessly as possible using Joint and Fusion.
Furthermore, the surrounding buildings caught up in the transit had been disassembled en route, sent back, and reassembled on-site, leaving only House Tierra standing here now.
"Palma, does everything look all right?"
Since Palma, the automata entrusted with the facility's maintenance and management, had been briefed in advance, he had assisted with the operation from the very start.
"Yes, it is in order....To think you would look so far ahead and relocate the facility like this—you never cease to amaze me, My Lord."
"Thank you."
With the relocation of House Tierra to Hourai Island fully wrapped up before noon, Palma was asked to temporarily head over to the former grounds in Naminte.
There, a replica matching the exterior of House Tierra was being built, and the interior was slated to be finished to match it perfectly as well.
In essence, the plan was to create a "display replica," much like those made for national treasure-class works of art.
Palma's extensive knowledge from managing and maintaining the facility for so many years would prove invaluable for the task.
"Well then, I'm counting on you."
"Yes, My Lord."
Thus, the relocation of House Tierra concluded without a single hitch.
Enjoying lunch on Hourai Island, Jin felt yet another weight lift from his shoulders.
"Well, that's that."
Once the replica in Naminte was finished, the entire affair would truly be behind them.
"Good work, Jin."
Saki offered him a warm smile.
"Jin-nii, would you like some tea?"
"Yeah, cold barley tea today, please."
"Mm."
Elsa poured Jin a glass.
"By the way, Jin."
Saki, who was likewise sipping cold barley tea, spoke up.
"We visited Planet Hehl yesterday, and two things really caught my interest."
"Yeah?"
"First, that new ore from Alpha, or whatever you want to call it. The stuff with an abnormally high affinity for free ether."
"Ah, that."
Alpha was Planet Hehl's resource satellite—a colossal mass of metallic ore.
Jin remembered thinking when he first discovered the material, If Saki were here, she'd dive into researching it with absolute glee.
"If you're interested, feel free to research it as much as you like. In fact, please do."
"Yeah, you got it!"
Saki nodded, beaming with excitement.
"And the other thing is a question."
"What kind?"
"Hmm... How should I put this..."
Saki stared up at the ceiling and muttered under her breath as she sorted through her thoughts, then quickly turned back to Jin.
"Well, with magi-craft, if you use Forming, you can return something that's already been shaped back to raw material and use it for something else, right?"
"Of course."
"In short, magi-craft lets you recycle materials endlessly."
"That's right."
"Then why did resources ever run dry on Planet Hehl? Doesn't that seem strange?"
"I see what you're getting at."
After thinking it over for a brief moment, Jin began his explanation.
"You're completely right, Saki. Even the 'Elder,' No. 700672, mentioned he wasn't around back then."
Jin noted that it remained one of the great mysteries surrounding Planet Hehl.
"There are a few theories, though."
"Let's hear them."
"Sure."
And with that, Jin began to share his hypotheses.