Jin learned from Laojun that the fake Elena—Spica 9 from Quinta, Lila—was winning over those around her through cooking.
"I see, looks like she's handling things well."
He had received brief updates before, but having the full details brought a whole new level of relief.
"...Still, though..."
There was just one thing that bothered him.
"The real Elena shouldn't be able to cook that well..."
Elena's current body had been built by Jin four hundred years ago and improved by his current self.
Consequently, he knew her exact specifications.
She could mimic the act of eating, and she did have taste sensors installed.
However, he had never granted her any culinary skills.
Her sense of taste was also kept to the bare minimum necessary, far from capable of managing delicate seasoning.
"...Let's see, if I remember correctly, her creator was... 'Sienna-san,' right? Since Elena took care of her daily needs back then, she could probably make traditional home-cooked meals from that era, but..."
Cooking like what the fake Elena was currently preparing in the Tower would be beyond her.
Furthermore, the recipes held by the 5-Color Maids were fundamentally tailored to the tastes of Jin and the Jin Family.
Jin surmised that they were likely far removed from Sienna's preferences.
"If she's ever asked to cook 'again' by chance, her cover might be blown."
As Jin muttered his concern, Laojun chimed in.
"My Lord, Elena-san seems to share that concern and has asked to request additional functions from you, My Lord."
"Oh, really? In that case, I'll find an opportunity and modify her."
Jin agreed immediately.
To which Laojun replied:
"If that is the case, just a moment ago, Elena-san requested to come here to deliver her progress report."
"Well then, if she comes over right now, I can modify her right away."
Judging by the time, it should be just before dawn at the Nostalgia headquarters, which Jin determined would be quite convenient.
"Understood. I shall relay that to Elena-san."
On June 27th, the real Elena was listening to Laojun's report on the fake Elena's status.
"I see, so she is winning people over with her cooking. A clever move."
In truth, Elena had never cooked in her life.
She possessed functions that allowed her to pretend to eat in order to appear "humanlike," but that was the extent of it.
"...If I do not have Jin-sama modify me a little, it might interfere with my future operations."
Reaching that conclusion, Elena decided to put in a request with Laojun.
Specifically: "to upgrade my sense of taste and culinary capabilities when an opportunity arises."
That wish was granted before long.
On June 28th, Jin returned from his negotiations with the three principalities and was back on Hourai Island.
The time difference between the Kingdom of Mimaka and the Kingdom of Elias was about eight hours.
When it was 8:00 p.m. at the garrison, the time was 4:00 a.m. at the Nostalgia headquarters and 6:40 a.m. on Hourai Island.
Upon learning this, Elena instructed the guards:
"I shall be engaging in deep thought now, so do not disturb me under any circumstances for the next three hours."
After giving the order, she locked her door securely and remained inside her room.
At this hour, she reasoned that her absence would go unnoticed ninety-nine percent of the time.
In fact, since Laojun was monitoring Elena's private quarters, her absence would not be discovered even by some remote chance.
Thus, Elena used her dedicated Warp Gate and traveled to Hourai Island via the relay base Shinkai.
"Welcome."
"It has been quite a while."
Waiting there were Jin and Reiko, who had received word from Laojun.
"I heard about your request from Laojun. You want the same skills as Spica 9, who's acting as your body double, right?"
Elena nodded.
"Yes, that is correct."
"Alright, everything is set up. Let's get right to work."
"Please do, Jin-sama."
When Jin set to work on modifying Elena in the workshop, Elsa arrived as well.
"Jin-nii, I'll help."
"Oh, thanks."
Although the date on Hourai Island was already June 29th, it was still the 28th in the Mimaka Principality where Jin was supposed to be. In other words, because the time difference was so large, Elsa was worried about Jin's health.
With Reiko and Elsa assisting, Jin proceeded with modifying Elena.
The main objective, of course, was upgrading the performance of her taste sensors.
In principle, it functioned by analyzing chemical substances, measuring their concentrations, and identifying tastes by cross-referencing a database.
"Write In."
Jin wrote the necessary data into Elena's control core. At the same time, he transferred the culinary recipes.
"Next is..."
Jin recalled hearing Elena mention previously, "I would like just a little more power."
"About 1.5 times her current strength should be plenty," he decided, reinforcing her skeletal frame by stacking Toughening spells and enhancing the molecular structure of her muscular tissue with Strengthen.
Both had a high efficacy on magi-type materials.
Through this, the roughly 1.5-fold power boost Jin intended was accomplished.
Elena's current power output was now, roughly speaking, about half that of Land, the Army Golem of Hourai Island.
He also carried out general maintenance, such as checking joint clearances and repairing minor skin wear, bringing the modifications to a close.
Incidentally, Reiko handled the exterior maintenance, while Elsa inspected the skeletal frame and musculature.
Thanks to their help, the entire procedure was completed in just five minutes.
"Jin-sama, Elsa-sama, Reiko-san, thank you very much."
Having restarted, Elena curtsied gracefully and offered her thanks.
"...Well then, I shall return."
"Yeah....The operation against the Jagus Principality will probably begin before long."
"As soon as the formal signing with the three principalities is concluded, correct?"
"That's right."
"Then until then, I shall dedicate myself to internal subversion as best as I can."
Nostalgia had been sending modified magi-crystals and golems as "tributes."
"Yeah, I'm counting on you....Over there, the fake Elena seems to be busy with various tasks as well."
"Fufu, but all of that will end up being credited to me, will it not?"
"...Well, yeah."
"...Please refrain from operations that are too dishonorable, alright?"
When Elena brought up the possibility of poison since the fake was winning people over with cooking, Jin answered:
"I dislike tampering with food too, so I don't think she'll do anything like that."
"I understand. Well then, I shall take my leave."
Leaving those parting words, Elena vanished into the Warp Gate.
"Jin-nii, you should head back over there and get some sleep too."
Elsa urged him, worried that he would suffer from sleep deprivation.
"Ah, yeah. I'll do just that."
Remarking that he would have plenty of time to sleep if he returned now, since it was around 10:30 p.m. in the Mimaka Principality,
"Well then, good night."
Jin placed a gentle kiss on Elsa's cheek and stepped through the Warp Gate.
Whether Jin writhed in embarrassment afterward at his uncharacteristic behavior remains an open question.