Magi Craft Meister

Chapter 718

21-29: A Bright Future

“Jin, congratulations!”

“Congratulations, Jin-nii.”

“Congratulations, Father.”

Having finished their audience with Blitzhen Scala Elias XII, King of the Elias Kingdom, Jin and his companions gathered in the royal guest salon for a small, private celebration.

It was, of course, in honor of Jin’s accession as “Lord of Kunlun.”

“It’s thanks to Reinhardt. Without your advice, I never would’ve managed the flow leading up to this point.”

“Haha, hearing that makes me happy, but Jin, even without my help, you would’ve been acknowledged eventually. Whether sooner or later was the only difference.”

“No, speed is important here. Because of this, planning our future direction will be much easier.”

Reinhardt had selected a bottle of the Elias Kingdom’s specialty white wine, Kroetzel Bianco, a premium Zaus Province vintage.

All three of them happened to be wearing magical tools with Detox effects, so—even after polishing off eight bottles—they were pleasantly tipsy at best. Whether that was a blessing or a curse was debatable.

The wine bill, incidentally, was charged to the Elias Kingdom. The finance officer would surely grimace at the eight empty bottles come morning.

＊ ＊ ＊

The next day, the 8th, Jin’s group bid farewell to the Chancellor and Marquis Firenziano, then departed the Elias Kingdom aboard their airship.

Their goal: visit the Egelea Kingdom and Klein Kingdom to deliver the maps. The Shouro Empire had already approved this plan through the morning diplomatic broadcast.

The Chancellor had also given clear instructions:

“Cooperate with Lord Jin Nidou of Kunlun.”

Thanks to that, Reinhardt and Elsa could openly travel as Jin’s escorts without restraint.

From Borjia, capital of the Elias Kingdom, to Asunt, capital of the Egelea Kingdom, was roughly 150 kilometers—three hours by airship.

The weather was fair. A comfortable sky journey awaited.

“Jin, I really owe you this time.”

Reinhardt spoke with quiet emotion.

“That’s my line. Everything went smoothly thanks to your help. Right, Elsa?”

“Mm. Rai-nii is dependable in times like this.”

“Haha, thank you. …So, Jin, now that you’re officially Lord of Kunlun, you’ll be developing the island further, right?”

“Yeah, that’s the plan.”

Kunlun Island was about the size of Japan’s Izu Ōshima. It could easily support a population of ten thousand, yet the current number of residents was zero—unless one counted Jin and Elsa, bringing the total to two.

There was still much room for development.

“If someone trustworthy wished to live there, I wouldn’t refuse, but…”

Intercontinental travel remained difficult. Jin still had no desire to make the Warp Gate public.

“The more people use it, the sooner it’ll be exposed.”

“Mm. Almost certainly.”

The three of them were in full agreement on that point.

“And I want to talk properly with Marcia again.”

“Mm. We didn’t have time to relax this trip.”

Jin even considered inviting Marcia and Rodrigo into his family someday.

As their conversation drifted, the airship crossed the coastline.

Below them stretched a vast, calm blue sea—an inland gulf surrounded by the Elias Peninsula and southern islands. Currents were mild, and large sea-monsters had not been confirmed in this region.

“Eventually, sea routes will open.”

The success of the Bernstein had been tremendous. Its second ship was surely under construction already, and the other nations—Cellroa, Egelea, and Elias—would all begin expanding their shipbuilding.

Distributing the new maps had been intended to support that development.

The topic shifted naturally to the famine.

“Egelea seems untouched by famine.”

Reinhardt muttered thoughtfully.

“Yeah. The danger is inland areas,” Jin said.

Even Jin’s Fifth Unit couldn’t gather exhaustive information across the entire Small Country Region.

“Cellroa’s eastern region has many pastoral tribes.”

Reinhardt explained—the voice of a seasoned diplomat.

Eastern Cellroa was covered in harsh grasslands unsuited to crop farming. The people survived through pastoralism, raising domesticated Mutton—essentially tamed Sheepa.

Their main value was in their wool; the meat, supposedly, tasted inferior to that of wild Sheepa.

“Since they pay taxes in raw wool, famine doesn’t affect them much. And with more rain, the grass grows better—they’re probably thriving this year.”

Jin nodded.

“That means the famine victims are mainly in central Cellroa.”

Southern Cellroa’s climate resembled the Shouro Empire’s; rarely did one hear of famine from that region.

Thus the most damaged areas were Klein, Franz, and central Cellroa.

“If food transport improves…”

Jin believed the famine could be overcome.

Elias had topopo and dried fish.

Egelea had wheat and dried fish.

The Shouro Empire could also supply wheat.

Add wild mountain stag and sheared Sheepa meat, and the people could survive until the spring wheat harvest.

Jin’s aid would only be necessary in emergencies—if unexpected disasters arose or timelines slipped.

Knowing he wouldn’t need to intervene excessively, Jin breathed a small sigh of relief.

Before long, the Egelea Kingdom appeared on the horizon.

＊ ＊ ＊

Meanwhile, in the Elias Kingdom, the King, Chancellor, and Marquis Firenziano continued their discussion.

“This map is astonishingly accurate!”

Every military official—knights, generals—had the same reaction upon seeing it.

“…Lord Jin Nidou is terrifying in his own way. Imagine if such technology were used for war—it sends chills down my spine.”

The Chancellor spoke frankly.

“No, according to Reinhardt Landoll and Elsa Landoll, he has no such ambitions. They insist he simply wants a peaceful life.”

Marquis Firenziano defended Jin.

“Indeed. The Egelea King and Shouro Emperor say the same.”

Their regular communication confirmed that there was no need to fear Jin beyond reason.

“More importantly, we must examine the many issues raised.”

The King shifted the subject. After all, Marcia’s shipwreck and the growth of long-distance voyages exposed countless problems.

—The need for lighthouses along the coast

—Standardization of cargo containers

—A unified system of flags and naval signals

—Establishing sea routes and port facilities

—Creating a maritime search-and-rescue structure

And this was just the beginning. Once the nation began building large ships themselves, the workload would easily double.

“We must also consider producing hot air balloons domestically.”

If they succeeded, balloons could aid in maritime rescue. Aerial search was particularly effective at sea.

If even one balloon could be carried aboard large ships, it could serve as a scout or an emergency beacon.

“So much work piled up at the very start of the year…”

“But it is work for peace and prosperity, not war. Worthwhile, isn’t it?”

Marquis Firenziano soothed the Chancellor’s dramatic complaint.

“Mm. Well said.”

The King nodded deeply.

It was clear that the Elias Kingdom was destined for significant growth in the coming year.