Jin was curious about the connection between the treasure box found in the Darato Principality—which seemed to have been made by Jin himself—and why Quinta Regulus 48 (known at the time by the alias Galias) had created the Blau Ritter. That night, he asked Laojun about it through Reiko.
Since talking about past events often risked spoiling things, Laojun was set to provide explanations only if there was a possibility that Jin might suffer a major disadvantage, or if Jin explicitly requested it.
"Yes, My Lord. Allow me to explain."
Back before the Four Principalities were established as principalities...
The pioneer territories were under the Domination of the Pioneer Revolutionary Corps.
Even under their Domination, however, the land held little real appeal.
At most, the ruling class simply worked the labor class to the bone. Because economic activity was practically nonexistent, it was impossible to grow wealthy through accumulating assets.
Even so, that alone was enough to create a disparity between the rich and the poor.
The land was fertile, and the more it was cleared, the greater the harvest grew. Thus, the early to middle stages of pioneering were essentially an era of expanding farmland.
Originally, that farmland was meant to belong to those who had cleared it.
However...
"...Healing, is it? Very well. I shall take the job for one hundred kilograms of wheat."
"Oh? A severe injury, you say? Hmm, it's life-threatening. I shall require five hundred kilograms of barley. Is that acceptable?"
Bountiful harvests meant a surplus of agricultural produce, which caused its value to plummet.
It was a form of inflation.
"...Our warehouse is already bursting with wheat..."
"Please don't say that! My child has a terrible fever and is in critical condition!"
"Hmph..."
"I beg of you, I'll do whatever it takes! Please, save my child..."
"...Very well, I understand."
"Then..."
"Yes....Once the child recovers, send them to work at my estate."
"...What?"
"I am offering to employ them as a servant. It's a fair trade, is it not?"
Rather than paying with farm produce, they sent their sons and daughters into service.
Yet, that too eventually reached its limit...
Soon, people were forced to hand over portions of their cleared land, along with the labor force to tend to it...
Before long, distinct social classes—a nobility class and a working class—had formed.
As this progression shows, many within the nobility class were people who could use Healing to some extent.
In other words, members of the Pioneer Revolutionary Corps made up the vast majority.
A trend even emerged where membership in the Pioneer Revolutionary Corps was seen as a status symbol.
That lineage was passed down through generations, becoming Fixed in place.
"I see..."
"While the Pioneer Revolutionary Corps claimed to champion independence, it appears their true goal was Domination by their own hands."
"In short, they simply didn't want any outside interference."
"That is correct."
Originally, many of the pioneers hailed from Mitsuho, and many who arrived from the Conference Countries lacked talent in magic. Consequently, anyone capable of using Healing was a precious commodity.
"What happened to the healing magi-devices and medicines?"
"It seems the Pioneer Revolutionary Corps monopolized them."
"They really were up to no good... Did they truly crave Domination that badly?"
"There is no other way to view it."
Laojun then continued the story.
Then, in the year 3751 of the Lauren Continental Calendar...
The world had settled down considerably, and despite the class divide, society functioned reasonably well.
However, the core doctrine of the Pioneer Revolutionary Corps was "independence from the Conference Countries."
Since they made up the ruling class, interactions with the Conference Countries naturally dwindled.
Even so, Laojun had been gathering intelligence on the territory since the early days of pioneering.
One of the means it used was the Quinta.
Now that Jin was gone, it did not require information as detailed as before, but it faithfully strove to uphold the directive it had received from Jin: "Watch over my descendants."
"Sieg Minyon Lakon... He bears a striking resemblance to Elsa-sama and Fritz-sama."
Laojun observed the Darato Principality using the Peeper.
Watching over every single descendant of the Jin Family was practically impossible as time passed, since the bloodline grew thinner with each generation while the number of descendants multiplied. However, this young man named Sieg displayed the prominent traits of House Randol to a remarkable degree.
Namely, platinum-blond hair and light blue eyes.
Therefore, in accordance with Jin's will, Laojun designated Sieg as a target of protection.
"Sieg-sama, my son was injured..."
"Ah, of course, I'll heal him. 'Healing'."
Though he was actually a descendant of Fritz and Gloria rather than Elsa, Sieg was exceptionally skilled in Healing—likely a gift of his heritage.
Unlike the rest of the nobility, however, he never demanded exorbitant fees.
Because of this, Sieg Minyon Lakon enjoyed overwhelming support from the commoners.
Yet, there were those who were displeased by this. In fact, there were far too many.
He was envied and resented by his fellow nobles, to the point where he at times even felt his life was in danger.
Laojun could not simply overlook this.
"Even though he carries the blood of House Randol, it is through a collateral line, and above all, House Lakon was of commoner stock before joining the pioneering efforts."
"So they were able to rise to the noble class purely because they could use magic."
"Yes, My Lord. By the generation of Sieg-dono's great-grandfather, they were already nobles."
Then, in Sieg's generation, an extraordinary talent for magic manifested, earning him immense popularity among the common populace.
Thus, to ensure his protection, Laojun dispatched Quinta Regulus 48, known by the alias Galias, to serve beneath him.
Every year, a few individuals grew sick of the Conference Countries and drifted out to the pioneer lands. Posing as one of these wanderers, he arranged to be hired by House Lakon.
"I look forward to working with you."
"Ah, Galias, wasn't it? I'm counting on you."
Regulus 48, going by the name Galias, was hired by House Lakon as a magi engineer.
From there, Galias proved himself capable of handling any task thrown his way.
He repaired malfunctions throughout the mansion in the blink of an eye.
He restored aging, sluggish magi-devices to pristine, like-new condition.
He modified the rickety carriages, improving their vibration dampening and ride comfort.
He overhauled, modified, and upgraded the golems utilized within the estate.
He captured two thieves who had broken into the mansion, along with a suspicious person suspected of being an assassin.
Just in case, he constructed a secret shelter beneath the mansion.
For the key to that chamber, he retrieved from Laojun the secret box that Jin had once crafted on a whim—saying, "Maybe I'll give it to the descendants of the Jin Family someday"—and secured it inside.
Because Jin had meticulously applied Toughening and Stabilize to it, the box was sturdy enough to resist ordinary magi-craft.
Finally, spending an entire year on the project, he constructed House Lakon's guardian automata, the Blau Ritter.
"I see, so that box really was made by me after all."
"Yes, My Lord. The design was reviewed by Elsa-sama and Stearena-sama."
"Well, that explains it."
There was no way he could have come up with a design like that on his own.
"Then, three years later, Markitus targeted Hourai Island, prompting me to withdraw Regulus 48 as well. Following that, Hourai Island was sealed for an extended period."
"I see. That clears everything up."
During that time, House Lakon rose to become the ducal family of the Darato Principality, their former mansion was turned into the residential inner palace... and Jin understood the path history had taken.
As for what kind of deeds the Blau Ritter had performed, even Laojun did not know much since Hourai Island had been sealed during that era.
Still, Jin knew he could find out simply by checking the Blau Ritter's memories, and he made a mental note to look into it whenever the opportunity arose.