Following Jin's instructions, the flag bearing the "two horizontal bars inside a circle" was raised on the masts of the four vessels: the battleship Hotaka Kai and the special cruisers Azusa, Yodo, and Katsura.
This design was unique across all of Planet Ars. Only Jin Castle used it.
Beside it fluttered a second banner: a black field bearing a silver hexagon with a circular hole in its center.
"Jin, what's that?" Reinhard asked.
"It's the emblem for Deus Ex Machina we settled on the other day. It would cause all sorts of inconveniences if we didn't have one."
The motif was that of a hexagonal nut.
"Ah, I see."
The fleet now sailed under the fluttering banners of the Magi Craft Meister and Deus Ex Machina.
However, none of the observers from the Jagus Principality present understood the meaning behind them.
And yet...
"Th-That flag... Is it Jin Nidou's?!"
"There's no mistake—that's the crest of the Magi Craft Meister!"
"Why would that be here?!"
The automata aboard the mysterious vessels—the Quinta copies—recognized Jin's banner immediately.
Even so, questions remained.
"What is... that other flag?"
"Speaking of a flag flown alongside Jin Nidou's... Could it be Deus Ex Machina?!"
"It's possible."
Though they lacked direct knowledge, their deductions were remarkably accurate.
"Shouldn't we make our own affiliation clear as well?"
"A fair point. Let's do it."
"Raise our colors!"
With that, the order was given.
Over at the fortress in the seaside town of Laralg, the Jagus Principality forces watched the scene unfold.
"...Both are intriguing flags. Wait a moment..."
"...I believe I have seen one of them before."
Minister of Military Affairs Buena Haiti and laboratory director Rokou B. Sihalo recalled that this crest had been noted in intelligence reports regarding the Eastern Country.
"If memory serves, was one of those two not the crest of that so-called Magi Craft Meister?"
"Yes, Excellency, I believe that is correct."
"What are they doing in these waters?...Surely they don't intend to attack our Principality...?"
"Excellency, shouldn't we inform His Majesty of this at once?"
Rokou B. Sihalo was the sort of man who looked for any excuse to pass the buck. But for that very reason, he judged that the situation needed to be escalated up the chain of command without delay.
"Y-Yes, quite right. Dispatch an emergency carrier pigeon."
A message was hastily penned, and the carrier pigeon took to the sky.
Shortly after, a second messenger set out aboard a hot air balloon.
The carrier pigeon reached the Ducal Palace in the royal capital of Jag in under five minutes. An attendant immediately untied the missive from its leg and delivered it straight to the Chancellor.
"Hmm... What?! Ships belonging to the Magi Craft Meister have appeared as well?! I must inform His Majesty at once!"
Chancellor Pringles Kubo hurried toward the Duke's office.
Five minutes behind the bird, the messenger aboard the hot air balloon arrived at the Ducal Palace as well.
Upon hearing the news, the Chancellor deemed the situation a bona fide emergency and took the unusual step of bringing the soldier directly into the Duke's office.
"...Explain the situation clearly, step by step."
Having already grasped the gist from the pigeon's letter, the Duke demanded the specifics.
"Y-Yes, Sire!"
Thrust abruptly before both the Chancellor and the Duke, the messenger soldier began speaking with evident nerves.
"Th-The three ships that appeared first did nothing, remaining anchored offshore. Following that, we deployed the Hot Air Balloon Squad to conduct aerial reconnaissance..."
"Mm. Continue."
"The three vessels fired upon the Hot Air Balloon Squad, in what appeared to be warning shots."
"I see. And then? Did our forces retaliate?!"
"N-No, Sire. His Excellency, Minister of Military Affairs Buena Haiti, reminded us to strictly obey Your Majesty's orders..."
The Duke let out a long breath.
"Good. That is well. It seems the Minister of Military Affairs is handling matters properly....Go on."
"Yes, Sire....We returned a warning shot of our own using Fire Bullet, and as we watched for their reaction, a new fleet was sighted approaching from the northeast."
"That is what I wish to hear about. Give me the details."
The Duke leaned forward in his chair.
"Y-Yes, Sire....Four ships in total. Three 100-meter-class vessels and one 250-meter-class. All are entirely made of metal."
"What?!"
"...I see."
While the Chancellor let out an exclamation of shock, the Duke merely frowned in contemplation.
Silence fell over the office once the report concluded.
"...We must never make an enemy of the Magi Craft Meister..."
"Pardon?"
The Chancellor caught the muttered words escaping the Duke's lips.
"Your Majesty, what did you say?"
"...It is nothing."
Straightening his posture, the Duke barked an order.
"Take me to the fortress! At once!! Prepare a hot air balloon immediately!!!"
"B-But Sire, the danger—"
The Chancellor began to protest, but the Duke cut him off with a roar.
"The very survival of our nation hangs in the balance!"
"Y-Yes, Sire!"
Overwhelmed by the uncharacteristic ferocity radiating from Duke Niestol Kirillo Jagus, the Chancellor rushed out to arrange the hot air balloon.
Meanwhile, off the coast of Laralg, the mysterious vessels had raised their colors.
"What is that?"
The banner was plainly visible from the fortress, its design coming into sharp focus through a telescope.
It was a magic circle traced in white against a field of solid black.
Just as the observers in the fortress brought it into view, a magically amplified voice boomed across the water.
"We are the Neo-Magias! We bring gospel unto this world of chaos!"
Hearing this declaration, the Jagus defenders could only tilt their heads in bewilderment.
"The Neo-Magias?"
"Gospel? What nonsense are they babbling about?"
They were already well aware of what the Magic Federation had done across the sea in the Melkana Autonomous Region.
"Dress it up in noble platitudes all you like—what you are doing is nothing more than naked invasion."
Minister of Military Affairs Buena Haiti muttered as though delivering a formal proclamation:
"We will never bow to such scum."
"The nations of this world must prostrate themselves as one before us!"
"Listen to this drivel."
"That alone is the sole path to rid the world of conflict and usher in true peace!!"
"What worth is there in a peace dictated and forced upon us by others?"
Though an exquisite boomerang of irony struck straight at the core of the Jagus Principality's ruling philosophy, the man himself seemed entirely blind to it.