On October 5, the participating teams for the "Marikka Cup" from the "Nord Federation" arrived in the Klein Kingdom.
Entry Number 1: Lordtoss of the "Puppet Clan"; accompanied by his younger sister Vita, his fiancée Ludmila, and his assistant automata Momoko.
Entry Number 2: Harnata of the "Puppet Clan"; accompanied by the assistant automata H-12.
Entry Number 3: Archista of the "Gospel Clan"; accompanied by an assistant, Redtarf of the "Gospel Clan."
Entry Number 4: Sergela of the "Gospel Clan"; accompanied by an assistant, Oakroak of the "Gospel Clan."
Entry Number 5: Zedice of the "All-Creation Clan"; accompanied by his assistant and younger sister, Zelal of the "All-Creation Clan."
Entry Number 6: Imimir of the "All-Creation Clan" (Marikka's disciple); accompanied by co-developer Chemin of the "All-Creation Clan."
Entry Number 7: Byusack of the "All-Creation Clan" (Marikka's grand-disciple); accompanied by an assistant, Tora of the "All-Creation Clan."
Entry Number 8: Nikeris of the "Puppet Clan"; accompanied by an assistant, Narbis of the "Puppet Clan."
Entry Number 9: Kondak of the "All-Creation Clan" (Marikka's grand-disciple); accompanied by his companion Vezan of the "All-Creation Clan" and the assistant automata C-600.
Entry Number 10: Lurus Tona of the "Puppet Clan"; accompanied by an assistant, Workrus of the "Puppet Clan."
...Along with them were their assistants, families, and Sion.
In truth, they were staying at Jin Castle in Kaina Village.
This arrangement had come at the request of Sion, who was accompanying them as an escort.
"No matter how you look at it, staying there will be far more comfortable,"
was her real reasoning, but officially, it was framed under the pretense:
"Let's leave the rooms open for tourists visiting the Klein Kingdom."
After all, Toka Village—being somewhat closer to the kingdom's heartland—was much more convenient for general visitors.
Even with the "bus" that Jin and Maquina had leased out, shuttling passengers up the steep mountain pass between Toka Village and Kaina Village would be a grueling endeavor.
The primary issue was the narrow road.
Besides, even if tourists came all the way to Kaina Village, it wouldn't generate any revenue for the Klein Kingdom anyway.
"Ah, it's been so long since I was last here!"
Sion was lodged in a guest room on the fifth floor—the very same floor that housed Jin's private chambers.
"The observation deck is right above, after all."
She had stayed here several times before and had grown quite fond of the panoramic view.
The other guests were settled into rooms on the second and third floors. With eleven rooms in total, there was ample space for all ten groups.
The smallest room measured six tatami mats, while the others were seven or ten mats.
The three-person teams were given priority for the ten-mat rooms.
Counting automata as individual occupants, Lordtoss's group was treated as a party of four.
Fitting three people into a single room was slightly snug, but given how comfortable the accommodations were, no one raised any complaints.
"Aaaah, what wonderful water."
"Agreed, completely agreed."
The travelers from the "Nord Federation" were soaking in the hot spring of Kaina Village.
It was more spacious and comfortable than the baths in Jin Castle.
With a large tour group staying at Jin Castle, the people of Kaina Village were in high spirits as well.
Village Chief Gaizak had already been briefed in advance about the upcoming event in Toka Village, so word had surely made its way to the rest of the villagers.
As a result, some approached them eagerly, saying things like,
"You're the race contestants, right? We're rooting for you!"
or,
"U-Um, could I shake your hand, please?!"
to which the contestants responded with friendly smiles.
Now, as for the people from "Onogoro Island," the vast majority had reportedly chosen to "watch the broadcast from the island."
However, three of them—Rubina Garrett, her grandmother Amanda Garrett, and Greena Kuzuma—wished to see the event in person, so they were staying at the Village Chief's house, which served as a sort of guesthouse for Kaina Village.
"Hey there, long time no see."
"Jin-sama, it has been quite a while."
When Jin dropped by the Village Chief's residence, Amanda happened to be present and greeted him.
"Since I'm running the race this time, I'm sorry I won't be able to look after you much."
"No, not at all, please don't worry about us. We have the Golem Maids with us, after all."
Jin had brought the Five-Color Golem Maids Perido 100, Amez 100, and Topaz 100 over from Hourai Island, assigning Perido to Rubina, Amez to Amanda, and Topaz to Greena.
"Come to think of it, where are Rubina and Greena?"
"The two of them went out toward the mountains to play. Perido-san and Topaz-san are with them."
"Ah, then there's nothing to worry about."
Hearing Amanda's explanation put Jin's mind at ease.
"I'll come check in on you again later."
"Yes, thank you very much for taking the time to stop by."
"Well then, the day of the event is almost here."
Jin had temporarily returned to Hourai Island and was running through his final checks.
"People are starting to arrive in Toka Village too, right?"
All of that information was monitored by Laojun.
"Yes, My Lord. I have been informed that the hotel rooms are fully booked. Consequently, there are numerous inquiries regarding whether visitors might stay in private homes in Toka Village—a homestay arrangement, if you will."
"That's great news....Though how are they handling reservations?"
With neither telephones nor the internet available, Jin couldn't help but wonder about the logistics.
"Although it is limited to one round trip per day, it appears the Klein Kingdom's 'Blow Floaters' are ferrying passengers between Alban and Toka Village."
"I see."
It seemed the Klein Kingdom was putting real effort into making the event a success as well.
"...Still, setting the event date so soon might have been cutting it a bit close."
Jin reflected on how he had scheduled the deadline entirely around his own working pace.
Because the timeline was so tight, there hadn't been enough days to build the hotel at a normal pace, and they had only managed to finish construction by enlisting aid from the "Nord Federation."
"If only we had two more months..."
However, by then, winter would have set in and overlapped with the year-end and New Year holidays, making it far harder to draw a crowd.
"That's why we settled on October, but... yeah."
"Spending too much of the budget on permanent lodging might also create difficulties down the road."
Maintenance costs when facilities sat empty were certainly nothing to brush off.
"True enough... It'd be great if we had some temporary lodging, though..."
After muttering the thought aloud, Jin perked up.
"If we don't have any, why not just build them?"
He envisioned something like camper vans.
They could build separate carriages for sleeping, restrooms, bathing, and other functions, then simply arrange them across the open lots.
"We could keep the rates dirt cheap."
Jin also wanted to add dining carriages, though he felt it would be best if that revenue flowed directly into the Klein Kingdom's coffers.
"My Lord, what if you were to consult the Raglann Company?"
"That could work."
Jin sorted through the idea: he could provide the kitchens and ingredients, while the Raglann Company supplied the cooks.
"Nevertheless, no matter how resourceful the Raglann Company may be, it is unlikely they would be able to prepare in time on this occasion."
"Good point."
And so, Jin began considering having the golems of Hourai Island handle the task instead.