Everyone remained silent after Jin finished his explanation about the demons.

  Shortly after, the Marquis was the one to first open his mouth.

  “Judging from what you just said, you don’t think the demons will attack right away…”


  The Marquis went on to make it clear that it was just his opinion.

  “The reason for that is that I believe it’s going to be hard for them to live in this area where we live. Even then, I think it’s nothing more than a game for them.”


  “A game?”


  “Yes, a game. Strategically speaking, what they are doing is the absolute lowest of the low. They’re probably gathering information as well, but more than that, they’re provoking our alertness too much.”


  Jin was certain. Taking this into account, Jin had intended to further enhance the military strength of Hourai Island and other areas.

  “I’ll have to be more secretive about it if I’m going to do that.”


  Saki and Karen felt relieved after hearing the explanation of the former lieutenant general, the Marquis.

  “I’m a little tired.”


  The Marquis was still far from being healthy. For that reason, their conversation ended there for the day.

  ＊　　　＊　　　＊


  After returning to their bedrooms, the Marquis summoned only Jin, saying he had a private matter to discuss with him.

  “You said ‘Yes’ in front of Saki and Karen, but you really think otherwise, don’t you?”


  After receiving Jin, the Marquis cut straight to the main topic. Jin replied.

  “Yes. I’m not sure about the exact date, but I’m sure they’re planning to attack soon.”


  “Hmm. This place may seem difficult for them to live in, but they don’t necessarily need to stay here after they invade us. We can’t deny the possibility that they will be after our resources and crops.”


  The Marquis’ guess was the same as Laojun’s.

  “Sir Jin… No, Lord Jin Nidou. Your Automata…”


  “You mean Reiko?”


  Jin replied as he took a glance at Reiko, who was standing behind him.

  “Yes, that Reiko. She’s cute. And still, she’s quite durable, right?”


  The Marquis had witnessed Reiko’s strength during the competition.

  “A Lord of your standing should be able to produce several golems like Reiko, am I correct?”


  “Yes, well, provided I didn’t have a problem with the materials.”


  “Hmm, I see. Are you using very special materials?”


  Jin asked about this straightforwardly, forgetting about his manners for a moment.

  “Yes. I have access to many rare materials.”


  “I see. So you can use as many materials as you can get. Is it possible to make powerful golems with them?”


  “Yes.”


  “That’s good to hear. Knowing that you can make a powerful golem army for any necessary countermeasures, that is.”


  Preparations in Hourai Island were already underway, but he couldn’t just disclose that to the Marquis.

  The Marquis closed his eyes, perhaps to think of a defensive strategy. Then, he told Jin:

  “I’ll think about it. I’d like you to think about the countermeasures as well, Lord Jin.”


  Then, he went on.

  “Finally, you were very subtle about it, but you spoke about the magic that allows one to read someone else’s memories, [Transinfo]. It’s better not to talk about its existence in front of others. It could cause a lot of trouble. I won’t speak a word about it.”


  The Marquis then said he was tired, and that he would lie down in bed. Lisa helped him into bed. It seemed that the Marquis hadn’t recovered completely.

  “Understood. Thank you very much. If you’ll excuse me.”


  Taking the Marquis’ condition into consideration, Jin decided to leave the room.

  ＊　　　＊　　　＊


  Everyone stayed at the Marquis’ residence that night.

  But Jin, using the carriage’s Warp Gate, teleported to Hourai Island joined only by Reiko.

  “Welcome back, my Lord.”


  “How’s that Gravity Magic coming along, Laojun?”


  Jin started by asking about what interested him most.

  “The analysis on Gravity Magic has taken yet another step, my Lord.”


  “Ah, those are great news.”


  Without delay, Jin prompted Laojun to continue.

  “The essence of Gravity Magic seems to be ‘to process space’.”


  “Hm? What do you mean?”


  “Right. There is a theory that states that gravity is, in fact, a slant or distortion in space.”


  “Ah, yes, I think I’ve seen something like that on TV.”


  Jin remembered having seen something like that when watching a documentary about Einstein’s general theory of relativity.

  “In other words, gravity and space are inseparable from one another.”


  “I get that.”


  “To make something heavier is nothing but to increase gravity, that is, to increase the distortion of space.”


  It had turned out to be quite a difficult subject, but Jin was able to understand somehow.

  “In other words, it would be possible to create spatial distortions with magic.”


  Jin knew something like that was entirely possible, since he himself had been meddling with space for a while now with the Warp Gate.

  “It is now possible to increase or decrease gravity. However, it requires an enormous amount of mana to do so.”


  “That’s right. Was it Lardus who was using Elradrite?”


  “Yes. For the time being, if one were to counter the demons’ Gravity Magic on an individual scale, that could be installed on all of the golems in Hourai Island.”


  Laojun explained that to influence gravity externally would require an immense amount of mana, but it wouldn’t be so costly on an individual scale.

  “Good, let’s start immediately then. Anything else?”


  Laojun’s answer seemed to have shown a whole new world of possibilities for Jin.

  “Yes. It seems that the direction of gravity can be changed as well. But we haven’t been able to implement it yet.”


  In other words, it could be used to propel oneself using gravity.

  Jin started to fantasize about even being able to go to space if he could do that.

  But there were other problems at hand that needed his attention at the moment.

  “Master, do you have a moment?”


  Just as Jin tried to move onto the next topic, Ann appeared.

  “Hmm? What’s wrong?”


  “Well, I’ve noticed something about the installation of the Warp Gates.”


  “What is it?”


  “Well, the problem is…”


  According to Ann, if they were to be installed inside each nation’s castle, getting out of Fusou Island would be fine, but a problem would surface when getting in.

  To sum it up, a malicious agent could invade the castle of any nation via Fusou Island.

  “Ah… I see.”


  This was particularly dangerous because Jin had no plans to give Fusou Island as much security as Hourai Island.

  “Each country would have their own passport, but it’s still no good.”


  If a passport were to be stolen, it wouldn’t solve that issue.

  “It seems it would be better to have a specific facility for each Warp Gate after all…”


  “Yes, I think that’s a good idea.”


  “I’ll ask the Marquis’ opinion on this tomorrow.”


  Thus Jin revised his original plan.

  He decided to leave the topic of the Warp Gate installation on Fusou Island for later, and moved on to a different subject.

  “Laojun, I feel like I can use the ‘Transfer Machine’ for my plan.”


  “What would your plan be, my Lord?”


  “Well, I’d be using it as something different than a weapon. Assuming there will be an anti-demon war, of course.”


  “Are you going to send something out with it?”


  Laojun immediately saw Jin’s intention.

  “That’s right. A Mana Bomb.”


  “A Mana Bomb?”


  Jin explained his idea of ??writing the Magi Formula of “Mana Explosion” on a Magi Crystal or Magi Stone to turn it into an explosive.

  Jin remembered how when they tried to bury Makina alive in an underground slope during the last stand against the Unifiers, Makina took out his mana tank and detonated it, clearing out all of the debris.

  “Understood. I’ll make a prototype.”


  “Thank you.”


  Jin believed they could use it for landmines, bombs, grenades, and even missiles. He wasn’t sure if it would be too difficult to apply them to a Magi Cannon, though.

  “And what about deploying Inch Smiths to each golem? We could use them to repair simple faults.”


  “That sounds good. I’ll proceed with the investigation at once.”


  “Ah, I was also thinking about a medical team of sorts. Something like a golem unit specialized in healing magic.”


  Elsa had awakened to her ability as a top-notch healer. Jin had no intention to let that pass.

  “In other words, I want to make ‘Nurse Golems’.”


  And so, after talking about his ideas with Laojun and asking him to keep doing his research, Jin returned to the Marquis’ residence.