"It is over, then."
At the words of Magic Technology Minister Cowen Lacca Kido, King of Klein Kingdom Melikalans I, Queen Josephine Lumes Klein, and First Princess Lisabeth Ria Klein all let out quiet sighs of relief.
"Indeed. It concluded without any major mishaps."
"It was quite delightful."
"Yes, Father, Mother."
"You did splendidly, Lisabeth."
Melikalans I praised his beloved daughter as any proud father would.
"Now then, Your Majesty, the ritter commander says he has something to report."
One of the guarding royal ritters delivered the message.
"Understood....You two head back to our quarters ahead of me."
After dismissing the queen and princess, Melikalans I made his way toward the knights' duty station to hear the ritter commander's report.
Meanwhile, Village Chief Yuzo Mayaka had practically begged Jin to let him ride aboard Taube Kai.
Naturally, Jin was at the controls via his Doppel, Jin D.
"Ooooh! Soaring through the sky really is magnificent, isn't it?!"
Yuzo Mayaka was beside himself with excitement.
"Jin-dono, would owning one of these Blow Floaters be out of the question for an ordinary person?"
"Let's see. I wouldn't say it's impossible."
At that moment, a good idea struck Jin.
"How about leasing one instead?"
"A lease? You mean renting it?"
"Yes. Funded by the village budget."
Thanks to the event, Toka Village had likely brought in roughly triple its usual total revenue.
Of course, that income belonged to the village as a whole, so the chief couldn't simply pocket it for himself.
However...
"As for its purpose, it would be reserved for emergencies."
"Emergencies..."
"Toka Village is quite far from the royal capital, and even from the nearest town. If an unforeseen situation arose—like a sudden illness or an accident—handling it quickly would be extremely difficult."
In addition, Jin explained that the craft could be deployed for emergency rescues or searching for missing persons.
"I-I see... In that case, renting one with the village budget makes perfect sense!"
Yuzo Mayaka was entirely sold on the idea.
After another fifteen minutes or so in the air, Taube Kai touched down smoothly.
In the aftermath, Jin was exceedingly busy.
He was planning an after-party banquet at Jin Nidou Castle, inviting all the guests from the Northern People, beginning with Sion.
Because of this, Rubina and the others went to consult Laozi, who was acting as the day's steward.
"Hey, Laozi-san, would it be okay if we went to Jin Nidou Castle too?"
"I do not believe that would be an issue. Allow me to ask."
"Please do!"
Since they were already acquainted with Lordtoss, one of the guests, there shouldn't be any friction. With that thought, Laozi's primary system, Laojun, relayed the inquiry to Jin on Hourai Island.
"Ah, that sounds like a fine idea....Let's check with Sion and the others first, and if they have no objections, we can invite Freddie and Eris as well."
To skip straight to the end result, the answer was a resounding yes.
"Yay, wonderful!"
Rubina and her companions cheered.
"Wait, really?"
Freddie and Eris were taken aback for a second before answering eagerly.
"It would be an honor! Please, allow us to attend!"
"I am delighted, Jin-sama."
Both readily accepted the invitation with great joy.
Meanwhile, the officials of the Klein Kingdom were in no position to relax.
"Hmm. So first, they plotted to attack Toka Village and Kaina Village using golems. And the culprits who carried it out are these two, correct?"
"..."
Having had their spirits utterly broken by Reiko, the pair confessed to everything without hesitation, making the interrogation a breeze.
However...
"Your Majesty! Why are we being forced to sit on the bare earth like this?!"
"Is this how the Klein Kingdom treats its people?!"
"Do not mock us! We are innocent! We are the ones who truly care about the future of this nation!"
Garrison and the rest of the conspirators captured in the depths of Egeera Mine proved to be an absolute nuisance.
"We demand to be treated with the dignity befitting nobles!"
For starters, their ceaseless shouting made conducting an orderly inquiry impossible.
"Speaking to those who do not share our ideology is an exercise in redundancy! I invoke my right to silence!!"
Nothing they said made any sense.
"Do not treat us as criminals before a verdict is reached! We demand better conditions immediately!!"
Their insolence knew no bounds.
However, since one of them confessed truthfully...
"Traitor!"
"Faithless scoundrel!!"
"May you be cursed to hell!"
Brushing aside the barrage of vicious curses, the investigators wrapped up the questioning with swift efficiency.
Sometime later, a formal ruling was handed down in the Klein Kingdom.
"The Marquis Aux House shall pay an annual fine of ten million Toll (approximately one hundred million yen) each year for the next five years."
The current head of house, Marquis Yugen Sanaf Aux, served as the Minister of Food and held the reins of the nation's provisions. Moreover, his competence made replacing him an unwise move.
Furthermore, because he had formally disowned Garrison without hesitation, the house was spared from being stripped of its noble rank.
"A punishment too harsh breeds lingering resentment, while one too lenient invites contempt... They speak of strict impartiality in reward and punishment, but maintaining that balance is truly a difficult task."
Melikalans I, King of Klein Kingdom, was said to have grumbled as much to the queen later on.
And so.
Gathered in the Great Hall of Jin Nidou Castle were guests from the Nord Federation, including Sion and Lordtoss; the three visitors from Onogoro Island; and the current lords of Kaina Village, Eris and Freddie.
Naturally, that meant...
"...Ah, Greena."
"...Freddie."
An inevitable reunion occurred.
Even before the festivities officially began, the banquet already showed every sign of turning into a lively affair.