Meanwhile, Elsa, Yuu, and Mio, who had stayed behind at Jin Castle, were playing in the water at the Erme River with Hanna and the others.
Naturally, the twins merely splashed around in the shallows.
Elsa watched over them from a short distance away.
Among Hanna and the other village children, strong swimmers enjoyed the deep pools, while those who weren't as confident floated on swim rings or practiced their strokes in the shallows where they could touch the bottom.
Just then, Elsa received a transmission from Laojun via her Fellowship Bracelet.
"Pardon the intrusion while you are relaxing, Elsa-sama."
"...Did something happen?"
"Yes. Actually, it concerns your brother."
"...Brother? Do you mean Fritz-nii-sama?"
Elsa knitted her brows, wondering what could be wrong.
"No, it concerns Moritz-sama."
"Did something happen to Moritz-niisama?"
Her half-brother, Moritz Randol von Amber, was of frail health.
A wave of worry washed over Elsa, wondering if he had fallen gravely ill.
However...
"A child has been born to him."
"Huh?"
The completely unexpected news took a moment to register.
"U-Um, could you say that one more time?"
"Moritz-sama has had a child."
"...I see."
Hearing it a second time, she finally understood.
Still, it was less than a month ago that she had heard directly from Moritz's own mouth that he had no intention of remarrying, so she could hardly wrap her head around it.
"Um, who is the mother?"
"It is the current Chief Maid, Ingrid-dono."
"What?!"
Elsa was left speechless. She was instantly reminded of how her biological mother, Mine, had been treated by her father, Georg, back when she had been a maidservant.
Sensing Elsa's distress, Laojun quickly added:
"Please rest assured, the two are mutually in love."
Hearing that brought Elsa some relief.
Even so, the thought of Moritz of all people being with a maidservant was rather—or rather, quite—hard to believe.
Collecting herself for the moment, she asked:
"A boy? Or a girl?"
Laojun replied:
"A baby girl. She was born today, July 5th, at 6:00 AM local time."
"...How is his wife doing?"
"Both mother and child are in good health."
"I see... That's a relief."
Hearing that, Elsa breathed a sigh of relief.
With peace of mind restored, her thoughts immediately turned to congratulations.
"...Going today would be too unnatural, no matter how you look at it."
If anyone asked how she found out, she wouldn't be able to give a straight answer.
"Would the day after tomorrow be all right?"
"Yes, Elsa-sama. If you explain that you heard it from Butler in Loizart, it should not seem particularly out of place."
It was common knowledge that Jin possessed a personal communication device called a manaphone (though in reality, it was a manacam).
In that case, Elsa figured it wouldn't seem strange for the news to arrive after a day's delay, nor would it be unusual to visit her family home a day after that.
"What should I give as a gift...? Ah."
Elsa hesitated, realizing that going ahead without Jin might be improper, and that contacting him while his hands were full would only cause trouble. Her hand paused before she could place the call.
"Elsa-sama, I will inform My Lord when he is free."
Laojun thoughtfully offered, so she decided to leave the matter in its hands.
"Then I need to think about the celebration gifts..."
Since it was a girl, clothes... No, still too early.
Toys... Also premature.
A bouquet of flowers... That seemed lovely. Candidate number one.
Fruit... Good for the mother's recovery. Candidate number two.
Pondering what else might work...
"Fabric for clothes might be good."
Assuming a former maidservant would know how to sew, Elsa made magisilk fabric candidate number three.
"...Would giving all of those be all right?"
"I believe that would be quite splendid."
"And... how do you think I should get there?"
Jin was using Konron 3, and he was scheduled to stay overnight in the Nord Federation today.
"Once I reach Loizart, everything will work out, but..."
"In that case, let us have Deus Ex Machina escort you to Loizart."
"Eh?"
"We shall say that Maquina dropped by Jin Castle on an errand after speaking with My Lord regarding another matter."
"...Will that work?"
"There should be no issue."
The explanation had no plot holes. If anything, the timing was just a bit too convenient.
"All right, I'll leave it to you, then."
After that, all she needed to do was return to Hourai Island for a bit and prepare the gifts.
With her plan set, Elsa called the twins back from playing in the river, had them change clothes at Jin Castle, and then traveled to Hourai Island via the Warp Gate.
"Welcome home, Elsa-sama. Young Master, Young Mistress."
Laozi, Laojun's mobile terminal, greeted them.
"We're back. I'll be preparing a few things now, so I'll be counting on your help."
"Understood. Please leave it to me."
First, Elsa entrusted Yuu and Mio to Soleil and Luna for a short while, then headed to the laboratory with Laozi.
She settled down in the first-floor dining hall, which was convenient both for giving out instructions and accessing the storehouse.
First, the bouquet. This could be arranged without any trouble.
After all, colorful flowers of every variety bloomed on Hourai Island all year round.
"Ever-blooming roses, white lilies, and baby's breath."
"Understood."
Laozi relayed the instructions to Topaz Leader.
"Ah, and also, even if it's small, I'd like a potted katlar plant."
"Yes, right away."
A katlar was what modern Japan called a cattleya. It was a favorite flower of Elsa's stepmother, Marlene Randol von Nefra.
The fruit was prepared in short order as well.
A basket brimming with persica, apulul, and citran.
Elsa tied a ribbon around it herself.
Next was the magisilk fabric.
Heading into the storehouse, they found heaps of magisilk thread alongside whole bolts of rolled fabric.
"You have your pick of the lot."
Laozi noted.
"Then, these."
From the white magisilk, Elsa selected one roll of light fabric and one roll of heavy fabric.
"Will that alone be sufficient?"
Laozi asked, to which Elsa replied:
"...It's more than enough. Moritz-niisama is a sensible man; if I send something too lavish, it will only trouble him when choosing a return gift."
Such etiquette and customs were deeply ingrained in the Shouro Empire.
They were said to have originated as a policy to stimulate distribution and spur economic growth in the distant past, though whether that was true remained uncertain.
At any rate, the gift preparations were complete.
All that remained was to head to Loizart.