The "Progressers" answered directly to the Duke of the Jagus Principality.
In order to drive a wedge between them and their lord, Laojun began formulating a strategy.
"The core objective should be 'revealing the truth,' but..."
Just then, Jin and Elsa arrived.
"Laojun, did you discover something new about the Progressers?"
"Yes, My Lord. In truth..."
Laojun explained what had recently come to light.
"...I see. They were shown kindness, and have been kept in the dark about the true situation ever since."
"At present, it is unclear exactly when the deception began."
Whether it had started several generations ago, or only under the current Duke's reign.
There was also a non-zero possibility that they served the Duke of the Jagus Principality in full awareness of the circumstances.
"Indeed. How should we investigate that...?"
"I believed it might be best for someone affiliated with the Jin Family to make contact."
"Yeah, that's one option."
Jin nodded, but Elsa's expression clouded with doubt.
"But Jin-nii, Laojun... we need to be clear on what those Progressers think of us—or rather, our ancestors."
"Ah, good point."
Human psychology was complex and fickle.
Even if they revered their forebears from afar, they might harbor bitter resentment when brought face-to-face with their descendants.
Vocal complaints would be manageable, but it would be exceedingly dangerous if they resorted to violence.
"Hmm... I think it would be best if we could approach them gradually, without rubbing them the wrong way."
Elsa offered the thought, though carrying it out would be easier said than done.
"Establishing contact with the Progressers is inherently difficult to begin with."
"Mm, that's true... Would going to see them in secret be out of the question?"
"I wonder... Wouldn't they just refuse to believe us?"
"...True."
Jin felt that Elsa was not particularly suited to drafting these sorts of covert operations. Her personality was simply too earnest and straightforward.
"...If it were me, maybe—"
"You must not."
"No."
If it were Jin, the Jagus Principality would likely welcome him, and he would probably manage to meet the Progressers.
However, the risk of being detained by the Jagus Principality in the process was undeniably too high.
"I know it's dangerous, but..."
Jin knew that if they wanted to dismantle the Jagus Principality's schemes, they had to do something about the Progressers.
And Laojun shared that sentiment.
"My Lord, I have a proposal. For this, My Lord's cooperation is essential."
"Yeah, let's hear it."
"Very well... We will deliver the correct information to the Progressers. As for the method, we will deliberately send a seemingly broken golem into the Jagus Principality."
"Right... go on."
"Yes. We will arrange for a damaged, seemingly advanced golem to be discovered within the Jagus Principality. At first glance, this golem will appear completely nonfunctional."
"Okay."
"However, no ordinary artisan will be able to repair it. When that happens, it will almost certainly be brought before the Progressers."
"Yeah, that makes sense."
Jin agreed that Laojun's prediction was sound.
"At that point, while making it appear as though their repairs are gradually taking effect, the golem will provide information to the Progressers bit by bit."
"I see! That's a great idea."
Confident that the plan had a strong chance of success, Jin readily gave his approval.
"The crux of the matter lies in preparing this 'unrepairable golem.' This is a feat only My Lord can achieve."
"Hmm, an unrepairable golem, huh... Yeah, I can do that."
After pondering it for a moment, Jin consolidated the design concept.
"What about its appearance? We need to pique the Duke's interest."
Unless it was a piece of craftsmanship so remarkable that the Duke felt compelled to have it repaired at all costs, the plan would fall flat.
"...How about modeling it after that four-armed golem?"
Here, Elsa offered an idea.
"Headless, with four arms. If it's a deformed golem like that, the Duke of Jagus is bound to be intrigued."
"Good thinking. That might work well."
"Elsa-sama's suggestion seems very sound."
Laojun voiced his agreement as well.
"All right."
With the design settled, Jin was about to get straight to work when he paused.
"Ah, let me ask one more thing. How are we going to deliver that golem to the Jagus Principality?"
"Yes. That is still under consideration, and the optimal solution has not yet been determined. Option one is through Nostalgia. Option two is to transport it near the royal capital of the Jagus Principality via transporter and bury it."
"I see."
"Option three is to have Special Investigator No. 99, who visited the Norha Principality the other day, 'discover' it..."
Laojun laid out five potential approaches in total.
"Ultimately, I intend to make the final decision after having the Shinobi Squad gather a bit more intel."
"Got it."
Jin enlisted Elsa and Reiko to assist him.
"We'll build the entire body out of an adamantite base."
Adamantite was not only physically formidable, but it also possessed exceptional resistance to magic.
"It seems Mono, Ji, and Teto were made of adamantite as well."
"Keep the power output modest. For the joint mechanics, let's use standard ball joints instead of an Adriana-style golem framework."
This ensured that even if its internal structure was analyzed and copied, it wouldn't compromise any critical proprietary secrets. Still, because Jin was the one crafting it, the design remained impeccably refined.
"Let's make all the muscle tissues out of metal."
Metallic components made it far easier to bolster magical resistance compared to biological materials.
"Jin-nii, is raising its magical resistance meant to make it harder to repair?"
"Exactly. I'm going to finish it to a standard that no run-of-the-mill artisan could ever hope to tamper with."
To achieve this, he meticulously layered on Toughening, Strengthen, and Stabilize spells.
"...At this rate, even I would take a long time to fix it."
Elsa's eyes went wide.
She was currently a magi engineer ranked among the top ten in the entire world.
If even Elsa found it daunting, it would be utterly impossible for an ordinary magi craftman.
In fact, Elsa wondered if anyone outside of Hourai Island and Onogoro Island possessed the skill to repair it at all.
"Ah, don't worry about that. I configured it so that whenever the intended person attempts to repair it, the golem will self-repair to match their efforts."
"Huh?"
"...In short, the golem can fix itself. But it will only initiate those repairs when an appropriate technician works on it."
"...I see."
It was completely beyond the capabilities of anyone other than Jin or those directly trained by him.
Yet, when the designated target—specifically, the Progressers—attempted to work on it, the golem would read their intentions and carry out its own self-repairs.
"Only Jin-nii could come up with a golem like that."
Elsa shook her head, caught somewhere between exasperation and utter admiration.