Paerova Sondvik.
In the former Mercana Principality, he had served as the regional administrator of the territory encompassing Taji Village. He was also, nominally, a blood relative of the former Mercana royal family.
Though ambitious, he cared for the nation and its people in his own way and had striven for independence from the Jagus Principality.
Now, as a councilor in the interim government, he worked day and night to stabilize domestic affairs.
"The future hasn't turned out quite as I envisioned, but this isn't bad in its own right."
Paerova spoke to his secretary, Jed Alamold.
"Yes, Your Excellency."
"...Jed, won't you stop calling me 'Your Excellency'? I am no longer an administrator."
During the days of the former Mercana Principality, Jed Alamold had addressed Paerova Sondvik as "Your Excellency" in his role as secretary.
Now, however, Paerova was a councilor of the interim government, and Jed Alamold was his privately hired secretary.
"Shall I address you as 'Master,' then?"
"Y-Yes... I am not used to it, but that would be far more appropriate."
"Understood."
"Now then. You are aware of the movement attempting to restore the Melkana family, correct?"
"Yes. Rumors to that effect began circulating toward the end of last year."
"Someone is backing them."
"Most likely. No matter how many of them gather, I doubt they could expand their influence in this country as it stands."
"Precisely. They are undoubtedly receiving some form of support from the Jagus Principality."
"By what means, do you suppose?"
"I do not know. However, rather than waiting until everything comes to light, it would be best to share this information with Avalon immediately."
"Understood, Master."
There was certainly self-interest at play, but what Jed Alamold privately admired about Paerova Sondvik was that, for him, personal ambition and the greater good of the nation were two sides of the same coin.
In other words, actions taken out of self-interest ultimately ended up serving society and its people.
Though he never voiced it, Jed Alamold considered Paerova Sondvik to possess the true caliber of a leader.
Meanwhile, at the interim government.
"What? A report from Paerova Sondvik?"
Dagart Harkes, a councilor dispatched from Avalon, pricked up his ears.
He was a sharp, capable councilor of forty-two years.
"Read it aloud," instructed Solitsky Gajan, another councilor dispatched from Avalon.
"Yes, sir. '...The bandits active in recent events aim to restore the Melkana family, and there is a strong possibility they are receiving aid from the Jagus Principality...'"
The communications officer managing the manaphone read the dispatch aloud.
"Hmm, I see. What do you make of this, Lord Dagart?"
"I consider it entirely plausible. To begin with, the four nations on that side are nowhere near qualifying for participation in the World Conference."
"Indeed..."
With foreign powers entangled, the problem appeared to run deep.
Meanwhile, Jin was finally breathing a sigh of relief as the weight lifted from his shoulders.
"Whew, it's finally over."
With the bandits captured in one fell swoop, the state of high alert across Taji Village and Fan Village was lifted, restoring peace to the region.
"It's all thanks to Jin-san and Lord Deus Ex Machina."
Helga's face was equally relaxed.
"I'll be stationing Enju 2 in Taji Village and Enju 3 in Fan Village for a while."
Under the official pretense of gathering clinical data and conducting operational tests, he took no payment for their services.
"Unless they're overwhelmed by sheer numbers, Enju 2 and Enju 3 should be more than capable of handling any situation."
Short of coordinated, simultaneous assaults across multiple locations, they could manage just about anything, Jin assured her.
(Well, even in that case, I could just deploy reinforcements via the transporter.)
Either way, Jin felt confident that Taji Village and Fan Village would remain safe and secure.
"Setting that aside, I suppose we'll head out tomorrow or so..."
"Huh? Jin-san, are you leaving?"
Helga grew visibly flustered upon overhearing his idle remark.
"It's not so much going home as wanting to visit Rofon next."
Hearing the destination seemed to put Helga at ease.
"Ah, that's where you stayed last time, right?"
"Yeah."
There was something else lingering on Jin's mind as well.
The fate of the "magi-devices utilizing magic circles" since he had last seen them.
Namely, the Air Jet boat built in Rihoto Village and the Golem Engine automobile.
(Well, I built those partly as a makeshift measure because magi-crystals were unobtainable, but I've developed a certain fondness for that technology.)
They were machines he had crafted together with Kachea and Eira.
He was genuinely curious about how they were currently being maintained and utilized.
With the resources now at his disposal, he could likely implement further improvements.
"I plan to stop by Rofon first, and then make my way over to Mahalig."
"Kachea is coming along too, right?"
"Yeah....I originally came back on vacation anyway."
"That's right, you did."
"Well, I'll take it easy for the rest of today."
So went their conversation, but...
When it came to relaxing, nothing beat a good bath.
"Come to think of it, the bathing facilities in Fan Village had fallen into disrepair, too."
Jin remembered passing through earlier, spotting the communal bathhouse, and wondering with excitement, Is that a hot spring?!
"And the cold storage room in their warehouse was ruined as well..."
Not just Taji Village, but every settlement in the area was still far from fully recovered, Jin thought with a pang of regret.
"'Grand Search'... Found it. All right, 'Dig.'"
"Jin-san, how does it look?"
"Yeah, it should break through any second... There it goes!"
"Wow!"
Jin was busy excavating a hot spring.
After pinpointing the underground thermal vein, he dug out and solidified a basin, then constructed a drainage channel leading wastewater toward a settling tank in the reservoir.
Then, after throwing up a simple shed, he tapped directly into the spring.
"Yeah, that's plenty hot."
Since he had drilled to a depth of around one hundred meters, the water came gushing out at a very respectable temperature—roughly 60 degrees Celsius to the touch.
He blended in fresh water to bring it down to an ideal soaking heat.
The water was classified as simple springs.
The tub itself measured roughly two meters by three meters. Given the confines of the shed, he had kept the footprint modest.
Even so, it was spacious enough to comfortably accommodate five or six bathers at once.
Once the villagers had more breathing room, they could replace the shed with a sturdier bathhouse and expand the tub as needed.
"This is wonderful!"
Village Chief Sergei was beaming with joy.
"Please, go ahead and try it out right away."
"No, no, Jin-dono! You built it, so you must be the first to soak."
And so the matter was settled.
"Aahh, that hits the spot."
Jin stretched his limbs out contentedly in the water.
Ever since arriving in Taji Village, he had been limited to cramped household baths, making it feel like ages since he had been able to stretch out and enjoy a proper soak.
With villagers around, Reiko couldn't join him, so she stood guard outside the entrance.
Even so, Jin was thoroughly relaxed and completely satisfied.