That evening, the leading villagers gathered in the front yard of the Village Chief's home.
In place of bonfires, several spheres of Light that Jin had conjured floated overhead, illuminating the grounds with ample brightness.
"Thank you all for gathering."
Judging the timing right, Village Chief Sergei addressed the crowd.
The quiet chatter died down as the villagers turned toward him, listening attentively.
"As I'm sure most of you have already heard, earlier today, Jin, the magi who used to live in our village, returned. Well, perhaps 'returned' isn't quite the right word. In any case, he has come back to visit us!"
A brief murmur rippled through the crowd, but quickly subsided.
"Jin—no, Jin-dono, turns out to be a prominent figure across the Eastern Countries, known throughout the lands of the World Security Guard and the World Conference!"
At that revelation, the commotion grew louder.
"Even so, out of gratitude for the care he received from our village, Jin-dono has made the journey back to see us. Now then, I'll hand things over to him."
Stepping forward, Jin addressed the assembly.
"It has been a long time, everyone. I have traveled through many countries since I left, but I have never forgotten the kindness you all showed me during my stay."
He bowed, prompting a warm round of applause.
"I have now fully confirmed who I am."
He deliberately avoided phrasing it as his memories returning.
"With that settled, and knowing that you have finished rebuilding after that incident—or rather, disaster—and that life here has stabilized, I came to express my heartfelt thanks."
Another round of applause broke out.
"I plan to stay for a few days. Just like before, if you need any tools repaired or anything else taken care of, please don't hesitate to ask. I'll be staying at the Village Chief's house."
A third round of cheers and applause arose.
"Man, it really is Jin."
"He looks healthy."
"He mentioned traveling all over, but he was probably shuttled from pillar to post."
"Still, that means he made it back where he belongs."
"It's mighty fine of him to remember us and come all this way."
Such comments drifted through the crowd.
"Um, as souvenirs, I also brought some alcohol, so please, help yourselves."
Jin pointed toward the wooden barrels of Shouro Empire wine he had brought.
While not an ultra-luxurious vintage like Olsen 3450, it was a white wine from the same Olsen region and a personal favorite of Reinhard's.
"And for anyone who can't drink alcohol, we have fruit juice as well."
These were carafes of citran juice and apulul juice produced on Hourai Island.
"Ooh!"
"Now that's a treat!"
The Village Chief raised his voice once more.
"You heard him, everyone! Tonight, we'll roll right into a banquet to celebrate our village's reconstruction! Jin brought smoked meat and dried fish, too, so eat to your hearts' content!"
A thunderous cheer erupted from the villagers.
Tables were swiftly arranged, and plates and cups were distributed.
Jin and Reiko set to work preparing the wine barrels, smoked meat, and dried fish.
Naturally, carrying the heavy wine barrels was handled effortlessly by Reiko.
The dried fish were set over wire racks resembling a barbecue grill.
While the smoked meat could be eaten as is, searing it over the heat made it far tastier.
Fresh vegetables and meats provided by the village were soon added to the spread, turning the gathering into a magnificent feast.
Ever since their village had been burned to the ground, they hadn't had a single reason to celebrate. The long-awaited chance to enjoy themselves filled everyone with pure delight.
Once every cup was filled with wine or juice, the preparations were complete. Village Chief Sergei kicked off the festivities with a rousing call.
"All right, everyone—cheers!"
"Cheers!"
"Cheeeers!"
Jin conjured a few more spheres of Light. Working the grills in the dark would be dangerous, so extra visibility was essential.
"Hey, Jin!"
Helga's childhood friend Isaac strolled up to him.
"Long time no see! Good to see you looking so well....Who's the young lady?"
Isaac tilted his head quizzically, eyeing Reiko as she stood primly beside Jin.
"This is Reiko. She's an automata I built."
"My name is Reiko."
"W-Whoa! She looks just like a real person!"
"Well, I'll be..."
Even though they had just seen her effortlessly haul massive wooden wine barrels, hearing that she was an automata left many of the villagers newly awestruck.
"Her name is Reiko-chan, huh?"
"Isn't she just adorable?"
The moment word spread that she was an automata crafted by Jin, several women flocked around her.
Reiko said nothing, recognizing that praise for her appearance reflected well on Jin's craftsmanship, but she remained firm against any unwanted contact. When someone reached out to pat her head, she promptly rebuffed them.
"The only one permitted to pat my head is Father."
Meanwhile, Helga, Kachea, and Isaac gathered around Jin, soon joined by Kachea's mother, Tanya, and her aunt, Sonya.
"Jin-kun... or should I be calling you Jin-sama now?"
"Please, don't. Nothing about me has changed, so I'd prefer if you treated me just like before."
"Is that so? Well then, Jin-san it is."
After that pleasant exchange, Kachea's mother, Tanya, bowed respectfully.
"Thank you so much for looking after Kachea in so many ways."
"Not at all. She helped me out tremendously as well, so the feeling is mutual," Jin replied.
Sonya, her aunt, shook her head with a smile. "Oh, don't be modest. This girl is shy to a fault. If she'd been dragged all the way to the royal capital on her own, she would have been paralyzed with anxiety."
"Isn't that right, Kachea?"
Put on the spot, Kachea nodded vigorously.
"When I was brought before Lord Paerova, and when they sent me off to the royal capital... Having Jin-san by my side gave me so much courage."
"I-Is that so? I'm glad I could be of help."
Back then, Jin had his hands completely full just trying to figure out if this was his original world and how he might get back home.
In truth, having Kachea with him—someone who understood the common sense of this world far better than he did—had been an absolute lifesaver.
"So, Jin-san... doesn't Kachea have someone special over there in... where was it... 'Avalon'?" Helga teased slyly.
"Pfft!...cough, cough!"
At Helga's remark, Kachea choked on the juice she was sipping and erupted into a fit of violent coughing.
"H-Helga-chan...!"
"Not 'Avalon,' actually. He's from the Shouro Empire," Jin let slip, swept up in the festive atmosphere.
"J-Jin-saaan...!"
"Aha, I knew it! Tell me everything!"
Kachea turned beet red while Helga leaned in eagerly.
It seemed Helga had been sipping wine rather than juice, as her cheeks were flushed with a rosy hue.
Figuring he had already spilled the secret and might as well finish it, Jin came clean.
"His name is Berlich Becker. He runs a workshop in the Shouro Empire and is quite the promising engineer. It seems the two of them really hit it off when he visited Avalon."
He laid out the details without holding back.
Naturally, the scoop spread like wildfire, and it wasn't long before the tipsy villagers gathered in droves to turn her love life into the main gossip of the night...