Chapter 389
Terms of Independence
“On her own as a magic engineer?”
Reinhardt repeated, before grasping what Jin meant .
“I see… You want Elsa to be recognized by the Shouro Empire so she can return home?”
“Yeah . ”
Jin confirmed before Elsa could respond to what Reinhardt said .
“Yeah . If things stay as they are, Elsa won’t be able to return home . ”
“Brother Jin . ……I……”
Jin stopped the troubled Elsa before she could finish her sentence and explained .
“Don’t get me wrong, Elsa . I’m not trying to get rid of you or anything . However, it’s not good to be in hiding forever . ”
“Hmm, I see . So Jin’s thought about this too . ”
Saki sounded impressed .
“Yeah . I heard that Saki’s dad was permitted to marry even though he ran away from battle because he became an accomplished alchemist . ”
“Hmm, I see . Well, if she becomes a Magi engineer, she’ll be far more respected than she is as the Viscount’s daughter . ”
Belch chimed in .
“That’s right, if you become a leading Magi engineer, you can expect help from your country and the support you’d receive would be far more solid than you have as a noble without rank . ”
After hearing Saki and Belch’s remarks, Jin was sold on his idea .
“Jin…”
“Elsa, you’ve been running away until now . You should return home proudly and then come back here proudly . ”
Jin smiled at her . Elsa realized what Jin meant and the worried expression on her face softened .
“……Okay, I understand . ”
“Even so, Master Jin…”
Belch frowned a little, and scolded Jin .
“The way you brought this up wasn’t right . I can see from her reaction you decided to bring this up without first talking to Elsa about it, so she suddenly heard about it now, right? ”
“Uh, yeah . ”
“… That’s why Elsa misunderstood and worried . It isn’t hard to see why she might have felt like she was a bother you were trying to get rid of with the way you brought this up . ”
“……”
Jin had nothing to say in response .
“Hmmm, I want Master Jin to try to think about how us girls feel a little more . ”
“……Sorry”
He could only apologize .
“Please apologize to Elsa, not me . ”
Jin also apologized to Elsa .
“… I’m sorry, Elsa . I should’ve talk to you beforehand . ”
“No, Jin was just thinking about me . ”
Elsa was currently an exile . She had committed no crime but her leaving the country was viewed as her having abandoned it of her own will .
According to the laws of the Shouro Empire, returning to Shouro was not allowed without demonstrating that there was a strong reason for leaving .
If she returned, only permanent exile awaited her .
It was said to be a natural punishment for abandoning Shouro for selfish reasons .
However, Elsa had apprenticed as a Magi Engineer under Jin, an Honorary Magi Craftsman . The talent she had developed could contribute to the country, which might be reason enough to forgive her emigration . Elsa would be publicly recognized as a Magi Engineer . Furthermore, Elsa would no longer be forcibly married for the sake of her house because she would be fulfilling a more important role in society .
“Yeah, I’ll back you up too if needed . So please return home proudly and seek an audience with the Emperor . ”
“Uh, wha?”
Elsa was bewildered at the sudden mention of the Imperial Majesty . Yet, Reinhardt followed up Jin’s words .
“That’s right . If you can make an automata, you’re a first class Magi . As you are today Elsa, the Emperor will honor you with an audience . ”
“……”
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Elsa felt more bewildered as the conversation went on . She didn’t know what to say .
“Elsa, you’re still young, so don’t let the pain you experienced from running away from your home go on forever . Both Jin and Reinhardt say they’ll help . It’s your turn to take them up on that kindness . ”
“But … What about mother? She’s still”
“I’m fine … I’m from the Kingdom of Eguerea originally . I’ll get my health back here . the Shouro Empire isn’t my home to go back to anyway… ”
It was Jin who stepped in .
“Nah, Mine can go too . Mine was kidnapped together with Elsa by Unify . They threatened Reinhardt in order to capture you both . Mine was beaten because she tried to escape, and she was stabbed in the stomach and dumped in the Azur River to die . That’s when I found her and nursed her back to health . … Look, she’s all better now, right? ”
“Master Jin …”
“Yeah, I can testify about what happened too . ”
“Lord Reinhardt …”
Mine averted her eyes at the warm display of support from them both .
“Yeah, if you need more witnesses, you can ask Sally Millsehan, the healer who treated you . ”
Mine started to cry out of happiness .
There was silence . It was a young voice that broke it .
“Auntie, are you okay?”
It was Hannah . Worrying about Mine quietly shedding tears, she had spoken up . Knowing this, Mine smiled .
“I’m okay, Hannah . I’m not crying because I’m sad . It’s because I’m happy . I’m happy your brother is so kind . ”
Mine gently pet Hannah’s head .
If Elsa and Mine were to return home, it wasn’t about to happen today or tomorrow .
It would take various preparations, and if possible, they would need to arrange things in the Shouro Empire too .
Besides, it was Reinhardt and Belch’s honeymoon, so they decided to put off the rest of the discussion for another time .
The preparations would be carried out later by Reinhardt and Jin .
“Wow, this is such an unusual castle!”
The Reinhardt and his wife arrived at Nido Castle with Jin . Saki and Elsa were with them .
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After finishing a light meal in the dining room on the first floor, they were looking around the second floor .
“Master Jin, this is a really unique castle . Is it Klein Kingdom style?”
Belch enquired in fascination .
“No, this is a castle of my homeland . ”
“Where is Jin from originally?”
“It’s a place called Japan . ”
“Japan …”
Reinhard and Elsa knew, but Belch and Saki had never heard of the country .
“Jin, I’m not too knowledgeable . Where is this country? ”
Jin thought a little bit about how to answer, then joked lightly .
“Well, let’s see . It’s a country in a very distant place . It would take about 1000 years to travel to . ”
“Woah, that’s far away… Super, super far . ”
Saki said in tune, thinking Jin was joking based on his expression .
They went up to the 3rd floor office and then the library . Jin hadn’t shown it to Saki yet, so her and Reinhardt were both fascinated by the book collection .
There are books for children, but they were focused on the books about magical engineering and raw material explanations .
“Jin, what is this!? It’s amazing! The writing style is amateurish, but the content is really advanced?!”
“Jin, who wrote this book? More than half … No, most of it is stuff I don’t even know about!”
He couldn’t say Kou had written it,
“Um, that’s the manuscript of a book by my master . ”
Jin dodged the details of the matter and beckoned his guests to follow his lead .
“The fifth floor is private, since it’s just my bedroom . The sixth floor is an observation deck . ”
Jin explained while climbing the stairs . Slightly out of breath, Reinhardt asked .
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“What about the fourth floor?”
“Hmm, how should I put it? It’s there for emergencies… ”
Jin thought it would be hard to explain more if he said it was a trap floor, so he ended it with that .
Seeing Jin hesitate in his response, Reinhardt decided it best not to press further .
Passing by the 5th floor, they went up to the 6th .
“Wow, what an amazing view!”
With open windows and a view on all sides, Reinhardt and Belch were so awestruck they looked like children .
Elsa and Saki, who had been here several times, still marveled at the view, admiring how the landscape changed from window to window .
“That’s the Elme River and beyond it is Togo Ridge . To the west there’s a coniferous forest . To the east is a broadleaf forest, where flowers bloom and fruit grows . It’s an essential part of the village . ”
“Hmm, so the village gets food from places other than farmland . ”
Reinhardt nodded . He was thinking about the village he would eventually lead .
“To the north is Kaina Village . We find herbs in the low mountains beyond it . You can also find Earth Magi crystals there . ”
“Master Jin, is the light I can see beyond the mountains a glacier?”
Surprisingly, Belch knew about glaciers even though there were no glacier mountains in the Shouro Empire .
Responding yes, Jin wore a surprised look on his face .
“I saw one in a book once . I’m glad to get to see the real thing with my own eyes . ”
Belch smiled at Jin .
They all enjoyed the view from the observatory until dusk settled, their conversations blossoming .
They ate dinner in the dining room of Nido Castle .
While enjoying Klein-style cuisine, they sipped on Persica juice .
“Wow, this is delicious!”
“It’s delicious, Jin!”
Kaina Village peacefully wore on into the night .