In about an hour and a half, the magic power source using the magic circle method was more or less complete.
"Well, for now, that's done."
"We did it!"
"It's finished!"
Jin stared at the prototype with a slightly wry expression. It had turned out larger than he had anticipated—roughly the size of two card cases put together. Fitting something this large into a small golem would likely prove difficult.
On the other hand, Kachea and Eira looked thrilled.
A magic power source based on the magic circle method had been thought virtually impossible, yet they had given it physical form, even if its performance was still lacking.
"There's still plenty of room for improvement, though."
At this rate, if it were installed in a standard-sized golem, it would probably only deliver the output of an ordinary human.
In response, Kachea offered a solution that was very much in character for her.
"The production cost is only about one-twentieth of normal, so we can just pack five of them in!"
"True enough. Even then, it would only cost a quarter of the usual amount. But still..."
Jin's expression remained unconvinced.
"I get it. As an engineer, relying on a method like that feels like admitting defeat, doesn't it?" Eira chimed in, speaking Jin's thoughts for him.
"Well, in any case, if we show them the magical lighting stand and... this... what should we call it?"
"Hmm... How about Magi Circle Reactor?"
"Yeah, that works....If we show them those two—the magical lighting stand and the Magi Circle Reactor—it'll be more than persuasive enough as a research theme!" Eira declared with eager confidence.
"Yeah. It'll give us something to work toward."
As Jin nodded, Kachea added her enthusiastic support.
"That's right! Opening up an entirely new field in such a short amount of time is something we could only have done because you're here, Jin-san!"
Just then, the other members of Go-lab returned.
"We're back—whoa!?"
"Wh-What is this!?"
"Ah, welcome back," Kachea said, greeting them.
"Kachea, th-this golem..."
"Ah, this is the clerical golem, Calc....Um..."
As Kachea hesitated, Eira filled in the rest.
"To ease Kachea's workload, we built it under Jin's lead....It was made from junk parts, you know."
"Whaaat?!"
The other members gaped in disbelief.
"...Damn it, if I'd known, I would've stayed behind...!" one of them muttered.
Then the laboratory chief, Rasnat Heilbronn, stepped forward and offered a formal bow.
"Jin-dono, thank you for your cooperation. I have long been concerned about the heavy burden placed on Kachea, yet I was unable to do anything about it. I cannot thank you enough for offering your assistance in such a wonderful way today."
"This is incredible... As expected of Jin-dono."
Meanwhile, Groma Tray was already pacing around Calc, inspecting her from top to bottom.
Since Jin was having dinner with Elsa rather than the Go-lab crew, he parted ways with Eira and Kachea for the evening.
Reiko and Hope coordinated via their built-in manacams, allowing the two groups to meet up at their rendezvous point without a hitch.
"Good work today, Elsa."
"Mm, you too, Jin-nii."
The two of them went on to have dinner at the dining hall Fione Fias had previously recommended.
Around the time they finished their meal, the secretary automaton Manon approached them.
"I have prepared your guest room."
"Thank you."
Efficient as always, Manon guided Jin and Elsa to the same room they had stayed in before.
Reiko and Hope followed behind with the luggage.
"What are your plans after this?"
"I finished my discussions for today. I just need another half-day tomorrow."
"I see. I've reached a good stopping point for the day as well, so let's just turn in for the night."
"Mm."
And so, Jin and Elsa decided to take it easy and get some rest.
While he barely felt any physical fatigue, the mental strain had clearly built up. Sinking into the bath provided in the room, Jin let out a long breath.
"Aaah... That hits the spot."
He could feel the lingering tension finally melting away.
"...I guess I was pretty wound up about finding a practical use for three-dimensional magic circles..."
Looking back, Jin realized he had been running on a mild buzz of excitement ever since discovering an entirely new branch of magical technology.
"Still, it's an exciting field."
With his mind now relaxed, Jin let his thoughts wander aimlessly.
Inspiration rarely strikes when you are actively waiting for it, however, and before he could overheat, Jin got out of the bath.
Elsa went in next, and she seemed to be turning something over in her mind as well, taking longer than usual to emerge.
"...I thought of something good."
Unlike Jin, an idea seemed to have struck Elsa.
"What is it, Elsa?"
"Jin-nii, I want to try making an anatomical model."
"Huh...? Ah, one of those."
The kind commonly found in school science classrooms to teach the layout of internal organs—the very thing famous in ghost stories and school legends for wandering the halls in the dead of night.
"Do they not have those here?"
"They don't....Apparently."
In a world where battles between human soldiers were an everyday reality, there was far less taboo surrounding human dissection than on ancient Earth.
Even so, the concept of human dignity still applied, so dissections were not carried out lightly.
Because of that, Elsa had realized that having an anatomical model would be immensely useful when explaining internal organ diseases and medical treatments.
"Understood....It doesn't need to move, right?"
"Move?"
Elsa started to reply that there was no need for articulated joints, but that was not what Jin had meant.
"No, I mean, we don't need to turn it into a golem, right?"
He had not meant a model that could walk around, but rather one that could explain its own parts.
"That might be an interesting idea, but it sounds creepy, so please don't."
"Yeah, you're probably right."
In his relaxed state, Jin seemed to be riding a bit of a natural high.
"Mm. If an anatomical model started moving or talking, it would make children cry. So, don't."
"Got it."
And with that, Jin agreed to work with Elsa on crafting an ordinary anatomical model.