The issues the Go-lab members brought up were twofold:
- They were able to craft a small skeleton, but they were dissatisfied with the joints. Their movement was poor, and there was too much play in them.
If the unit were to perform precision work, loose joints would prevent it from functioning properly.
- They could not balance the output of the magical muscles.
They believed this was why the movements lacked smoothness.
It came down to those two points.
"I see."
Jin nodded.
"First, regarding the joints, it's likely a lack of precision."
Adriana-style joints were not simple ball joints, so they came with the disadvantage of being difficult to shape.
Normally, that drawback ceased to be an issue once one gained proficiency, but the Go-lab team had not yet reached that level.
The margin of error when processing with Forming remained constant regardless of the workpiece's size.
Therefore, a discrepancy that posed no problem when working on large objects became impossible to ignore on smaller scales.
Incidentally, Jin could keep errors down to tenths of a micron, but ordinary engineers worked in increments of a millimeter—or a tenth of a millimeter at best.
While one millimeter could be overlooked on a one-meter frame, a one-millimeter error on a ten-millimeter part was far too large to ignore.
"Furthermore, muscle output is proportional to cross-sectional area. Therefore, when the size is reduced to a quarter, the weight becomes one sixty-fourth, while the output becomes one-sixteenth. All you need to do is balance this ratio."
"I-I see..."
Jin's explanation seemed to bring a degree of clarity to the team.
"If it proves too difficult, I think it would be fine to use ball joints for the joint sections instead of the Adriana-style."
Jin added that this was because the unit's intended purpose was simply to serve as a test pilot.
"Given those preconditions, using Form Drive should be perfectly fine as well."
He also noted that since the aircraft was designed on the premise of being piloted by a human, its reaction speed did not need to be especially fast.
"Designing appropriately for the intended purpose is an essential part of the process."
At these words, Go-lab laboratory chief Rasnat Heilbronn looked as though he had been struck by a sudden realization.
"No, Jin-dono, you are quite right. This small golem is a commissioned request from the Aviation Research Lab, after all. We should have treated it separately from our own research subjects."
Rasnat scratched his head, admitting it had been a mistake not to prioritize a client's order as a general workshop would simply because they were a research laboratory.
"While we will continue researching small golem crafting as we have been, we must finish the golem requested for the test pilot on schedule."
Rasnat Heilbronn turned to address the Go-lab members.
"Everyone, I believe you all heard what Jin-dono had to say. Let's use Form Drive here and meet our deadline!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Understood!"
With that, the crafting of the small golem using Form Drive got underway.
(Form Drive is actually quite well-suited for small golems... What an unexpected discovery.)
As Jin pondered this, Reiko gently tugged on his sleeve.
"Father, it is almost time..."
"Ah, right."
It was nearly dinner time. Jin thought to himself that scheduling it for six-thirty had been the right call.
Needing to leave for dinner, Jin took his leave from the Go-lab, saying,
"I'll come by again tomorrow."
As he departed, Eira called out cheerfully,
"Jin, thanks for the advice. Look forward to tomorrow!"
To which Jin replied,
"Yeah, do your best."
"...And so, that's what happened."
"I see."
After finishing dinner in their private room, Jin told Elsa about what had occurred at the Go-lab.
"Indeed, I think Form Drive is well-suited for small golems."
Elsa agreed with his assessment.
"Perhaps the balance between weight and power is favorable. Plus, there is no play in the joints."
Sipping his tea, Jin considered the underlying reasons as well.
"Most likely, yes. The greatest drawback of Form Drive is its slow speed, but I believe the cause of that is inertia."
"True. That's why it's beneficial when used on a golem with small mass—meaning, a small size."
Jin reasoned that the smaller the golem was, the more effectively Form Drive would demonstrate its advantages.
"Truly, a shift in perspective."
"It doesn't put strain on the joints, either."
"Mm. And there's no need to make a separate exterior."
The more they thought about it, the more they realized just how well-suited it was for small golems.
"With this, we have a lot to look forward to tomorrow."
"Mm."
Jin and Elsa nodded to each other.
"By the way, are you all set for tomorrow's lecture?"
"Mm, I've already decided on the content."
According to Elsa, today had been a general overview of Human Body Structure, and tomorrow she planned to focus primarily on the internal organs.
"I'll probably be at the Go-lab in the morning and might head over to the Aviation Research Lab in the afternoon. Sorry if I can't make it to hear your lecture."
"Mm, I'll be fine."
Elsa smiled warmly at Jin.
"After all, both Jin-nii and I came here to show the way for those who will follow."
The two spent the rest of the evening relaxing.
Since they were on an artificial island, a hot spring was out of the question, but the bathtub in their guest room was rather spacious for a single person, allowing one to stretch out comfortably while soaking in the hot water.
Since Elsa had gone first the previous night, Jin took the bath first this evening.
As it was a single-person bath, Reiko remained outside, quietly discussing something with Laojun via her internal manacam.
Noticing this upon stepping out of the bath, Jin asked,
"Reiko, it seemed like you were talking with Laojun. Did something happen?"
"No, Father. Although I am aware it may be presumptuous of me, seeing that Form Drive is effective for small golems, we were discussing whether we should begin collecting data on it."
"I see. That's true enough. Thank you, Reiko."
Starting data collection early meant they could gather that much more information.
Reiko and Laojun had anticipated that upon returning to Hourai Island, Jin would want to craft one himself right away, so they had taken the initiative to make preliminary preparations.
Jin felt both touched and proud of their forethought.
"Yeah, this is looking great!"
"To think there was a method like this..."
Meanwhile, over at the Go-lab, work on the small golem powered by Form Drive was progressing with enough fervor to carry them straight through the night...