Jin explained the situation regarding the hotel under construction in Toka Village to Sion.
"I see. So you're worried about the structural integrity of that hotel, are you?"
"That's right. I'd hate for a floor to give way or a ceiling to come crashing down."
"I understand. If it were ordinary humans, they'd be crushed flat, after all."
"Even for the Northern People who can use Gravity Magic, if they don't react in time, the result is the same."
"That's true. Very well. Under the pretext of inspecting the competition venue, I'll select a few people and take them along in the near future."
"Yeah, please do."
With that, a weight was lifted from Jin's shoulders.
"Setting that aside, would you mind going to see Ro for a moment?"
The one Sion referred to as "Ro" was her great-grandson, Lordtoss of the Puppet Clan.
"I don't mind, but what's the matter?"
"It seems he's hit a bit of a wall. Even if you can't openly show favoritism, please at least give him some advice."
"All right. I'll go take a look."
Taking Reiko along, Jin headed for the location Sion had indicated—the All-Creation Clan's airfield.
There, standing before a completed Blow Floater, was Lordtoss, lost in thought.
Beside him were his younger sister Vita, his fiancée Ludmila, and the automata Momoko.
"Ah, Jin-sama."
Vita was the first to notice him.
"Ah, when did you arrive?"
Following her lead, Lordtoss also noticed Jin.
"Just a little while ago. I went to Sion's place on business, and she mentioned you were stuck on something, Lordtoss, so I came by to check in on you."
"Is that so?"
"So, what's troubling you?"
The details of the event had not yet been announced, so he shouldn't have been able to tune his machine for a specific course yet.
"Yes, well, I was wondering how I might achieve both tight cornering and stability at the same time."
"I see..."
Since those two traits were inherently contradictory in some respects, Jin thought it was only natural for Lordtoss to struggle.
"Let's see... All I can really say is that 'achieving both at once is difficult,' and 'how about switching between them?'"
Since he couldn't show unfair favoritism to a specific participant, Jin limited himself to offering a hint.
"Switching... is it?"
Lordtoss, however, seemed to glean something from that remark.
"...I can't go any further than that, after all."
Showing favoritism to a particular participant would be improper for Jin in this situation. Just then, an idea struck him.
"Why not just hold a consultation session?"
With that, he returned to Sion's place and pitched the idea.
"A consultation session, you say?...Wouldn't that be wonderful? Everyone might be hitting a wall or struggling with something, after all."
By making both the questions and answers public, Jin realized he would be able to offer more detailed advice without being unfair.
And so, two hours later, all the participants gathered at the Sion Mansion.
As it was the home of the Clan Chief, the estate boasted a large conference room.
Around twenty people had assembled.
Ultimately, ten teams were participating, with two representatives sent from each.
The only exception was Lordtoss, who was accompanied by his younger sister Vita and his fiancée Ludmila, making three people from his group. Thus, the exact count was twenty-one.
"Thank you all for gathering here despite being busy preparing for the race. Please feel free to listen while you eat."
Since it was around lunchtime, light refreshments were provided. A towering pile of assorted sandwiches had been laid out, but the mountain shrank at an astonishing pace.
"One of the organizers of the upcoming 1st Marikka Cup Air Race, the Magi Craft Meister Jin, has come to visit. He wanted to offer an opportunity for anyone to consult him on whatever they might be struggling with before the race."
A ripple of murmurs ran through the room.
There were those who knew Jin personally and those who did not. Yet even among the unfamiliar, there was not a single soul in the Nord Federation who did not recognize the title of Magi Craft Meister.
As Jin watched, everyone stuffed their cheeks with sandwiches, chewing and swallowing at an incredible pace. Sion and Jin looked on with fond smiles.
Barely two minutes after Sion finished speaking, the mountain of sandwiches had completely vanished into the participants' stomachs.
Fresh juice was served immediately afterward.
"Now then, you may drink while we proceed. Let's begin the question session."
When Sion, acting as moderator, gave the word, every single hand shot into the air.
"Everyone, as expected. In that case, let's take questions in order of entry numbers."
The room hummed in agreement with Sion's suggestion.
"Then, Entry Number 1, Team Lordtoss, please go ahead."
"Yes....I've been agonizing over whether it's possible to achieve both tight cornering and stability."
The same question as before was raised.
Jin nodded, offering a slightly more detailed explanation this time.
"One of the key factors governing the stability of a Blow Floater is the position of its center of gravity. It might be wise to carefully consider the positional relationship between the wings and the center of gravity."
Consider a toy parachute: if the strings connecting the canopy and the weight are long, it drifts down slowly, whereas if they are short, it descends quickly.
Similarly, with a pendulum, a longer arm results in a slower swing.
"I think there's also the option of 'switching' according to need... though I want you to figure out what to switch and how."
"Ooh..." Admiration rippled among the other participants.
"Since it's your Blow Floater, I'd like you to find the answer for yourself."
"Thank you very much."
With that, Team Lordtoss's turn concluded.
"The team with Entry Number 2... Harnata of the Puppet Clan, correct?"
"Yes. My name is Harnata. Um, regarding the safety of the Blow Floater, I would like to hear your thoughts."
"By safety, do you mean structural strength? Or are you designing it under the assumption of a crash?"
Jin asked for clarification, as the question was rather vague.
"Ah, yes. Under the assumption of a crash."
"I see. I understand your concern. However, increasing structural strength adds weight, which reduces flight performance. It's a matter of finding the right compromise....Furthermore, as a general rule: whatever stands will eventually fall, whatever runs will stumble, ships sink, and vehicles crash. As much as we might wish to reduce these risks to zero, the reality is that they can never be completely eliminated."
"...Yes."
"Rather than worrying about what happens after you crash, focusing on making sure you don't crash in the first place is another valid approach, isn't it? After all, the Nord Federation has Gravity Magic at its disposal."
"I... see... Thank you very much."
Harnata looked as though a sudden flash of inspiration had struck.
Jin couldn't provide a hundred-percent definitive answer to every problem. He could only offer advice on how he would handle things in their position.
Even so, to the participants, much of his advice felt like a revelation, and each of them appeared to come away with fresh ideas.
"Entry Number 9, Kondak of the All-Creation Clan!"
(He's Marikka's grand-disciple, you know,) Sion whispered softly to Jin.
"U-Um, please tell me the secret to increasing top speed!"
Reflecting on how exceptionally motivated the emerging engineers of the Nord Federation were, Jin pondered his answer.