Magi Craft Meister

January 24th, Shouro Empire.

“‘Wood-paper,’ you say?”

“Yes. Apparently, it is made using tree bark.”

“How intriguing. It’s thinner and lighter than parchment, isn’t it?”

“That is what is written here.”

In the Shouro Empire, the Empress and the Chancellor were reviewing the latest intelligence from the first advance party, delivered by carrier pigeon.

“Just as Jin-kun suggested, it seems this is a land from which we can gain much.”

“Indeed. It is something to look forward to.”

The Chancellor and the Empress exchanged smiles.

“There was also a report from Lieutenant Colonel Fritz Randoll. It seems they managed to arrive in the Egelea Kingdom, so that’s one hurdle cleared.”

“Quite so. Though it seems they had a difficult time at the ruins of the former Leonard Kingdom.”

The report also detailed their battle against the grotesque monsters.

“To think that someone once created monsters capable of dissolving ‘Goliaths’… it’s terrifying.”

“I agree. …Lastly, there are reports that the Kingdom of Celuroa is once again showing signs of restless activity.”

“I suppose they are thinking, ‘We won’t let you have the former Leonard Kingdom for yourselves,’ are they?”

“We must instruct the border guards to be particularly vigilant.”

—

Fritz Randoll, a Lieutenant Colonel of the Shouro Empire’s overseas expeditionary force who had arrived in the Egelea Kingdom, had requested that necessary reports be sent via Mana-phone.

“Phew, at least I can take two days of rest now.”

Even for a man as well-trained as him, the dozen or so days spent in the former Leonard Kingdom had been grueling. The members of the Klein Kingdom who accompanied them likely felt the same. They were all staying at the guesthouse located in the Outer Palace.

“…Oh, Fritz-sama.”

On his way back, he encountered Cynthia, a female knight. Seeing her face reminded him of something.

“Ah, Cynthia-dono. …Do you happen to know how Gloria-dono is doing… No, I suppose you do?”

Cynthia, when asked, replied with her usual slightly melancholy expression.

“…Yes. She is hospitalized in the healing wing here.”

“I see. Is it possible to visit her?”

“I believe that should be fine.”

“My apologies, but would you mind going with me? I feel it might be inappropriate for me to visit a woman’s sickroom alone.”

After a moment of hesitation, Cynthia nodded.

“…Yes, that is fine.”

“Thank you. …Could you wait for just a moment? I need to retrieve the sword to return to her.”

Fritz had picked up the sword that Gloria had dropped when she was doused with the corrosive liquid. Cynthia watched Fritz walk briskly toward his room without waiting for a reply and gave a small sigh.

—

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Not at all.”

After their brief exchange, the two headed to the healing wing. It was a facility for guests who fell ill or were injured, located at the edge of the Outer Palace. Gloria’s room was a private suite.

“Gloria-sama, it is Cynthia.”

After knocking and calling out, they were invited in. Cynthia opened the door, and Fritz, his concern making him impatient, followed her inside.

In truth, this was a major breach of etiquette. The proper procedure would have been for Cynthia to enter first, announce Fritz’s visit, and only lead him in after obtaining permission.

“F-Fritz-dono!? If you were coming, you should have at least let me know…”

Startled by Fritz entering right after Cynthia, Gloria jumped up in surprise and hastily pulled the blanket over herself. In that brief moment, however, Fritz had already seen them. The scars remaining on Gloria… the ugly marks burned by the corrosive liquid, stretching from the right side of her face down her neck, and from her right shoulder all the way down her right arm.

“…My apologies. I only intended to return your sword and check on your condition.”

“…”

Gloria, still hidden under the blanket, offered no reply.

“You shouldn’t let those scars bother you.”

The moment the words left his lips, even the thick-headed Fritz realized he had made a slip of the tongue, but it was too late. Men and women perceived these things differently.

“I’m sorry. …Have you been examined by a healer?”

It was Cynthia who answered that question.

“Yes, Fritz-sama. According to the healers here, the wounds have already set, so even if they apply healing magic now, it will not improve.”

Healing magic fundamentally works by accelerating the body’s natural regenerative powers by several times, or even dozens of times. It cannot heal scars that have already set as old wounds. Regardless of the definition of an “old wound,” Gloria had received emergency healing magic when her skin was burned. Because she had healed while still in a damaged state, the scars had remained.

Even as dull as Fritz was, he could imagine the shock a woman would feel upon learning those scars would never disappear.

“I’m sorry. I lacked consideration. …I will leave immediately, so please, don’t worry about it.”

Just as he was about to turn and leave, a small voice called out.

“…Fritz-dono.”

He turned to see Gloria peering out from the blanket, only her eyes visible.

“Thank you for coming all this way to visit me. …Will you… come again? After I… settle down a little more.”

Fritz stopped at the door, turned back, and simply said:

“…I will come again.”

With that, he left the room.

—

On January 18th, the Egelea Kingdom had dispatched troops to recover the more than 500 Golems found at the Soldrake ruins. The force consisted of 20 members of the 3rd Knight Order, 2 combat Golems, 20 universal Golems, and Philip Tifo, the Blue Land branch manager of the Magicraft Meister Guild, along with his Automaton, Dona. They arrived at the ruins on the 25th.

An unbelievable sight greeted them. More than 500 Golems were lined up outside the ruins.

“Wh…!”

“Oh my, who might you be?”

Welcoming the stunned captain, Paul Raid, with a mocking tone was a border patrol unit from the Kingdom of Celuroa. There were about 50 of them, and they even possessed Golems. Paul assumed they were likely a unit stationed at Fort Sonoma, near the border.

“You bastards! What do you think you’re doing here!”

Paul rode his horse toward the unit and shouted loudly. In response, a man on horseback stepped forward. Judging by his armor, he appeared to be the commander.

“Oh? Are you bandits? If so, it would be better for you to leave. We aren’t pushovers, you know.”

The man, seemingly the commander of the border patrol, shrugged off Paul’s angry shout and spoke calmly.

“Who are you calling a bandit! Can’t you see our flag! We are the 3rd Knight Order of the Egelea Kingdom!”

“Oh, my apologies. I am Trist Clarot, commander of the 2nd Border Patrol Unit of the Kingdom of Celuroa.”

“And what is that border unit doing here!”

Irritated by his patronizing tone, Paul’s voice grew louder and more aggressive.

“We are excavating an abandoned ruin and collecting the Golems and Magi-crystals inside.”

“Abandoned!? This is a ruin that our survey team discovered and excavated!”

“Do you have any proof of that?”

The only “proof” they had were the shields bearing the Egelea Kingdom’s crest left at the entrance of the ruins. But those had been disposed of, and the commander of the border unit insisted he knew nothing about them. It was clear that this would devolve into a pointless argument.

Then, the commander delivered a follow-up.

“Besides, these Golems were restarted through the hard work of our own Magicraft Meisters, weren’t they?”

“Ugh…”

The fact that they had analyzed and restarted the Golems—which Jade Nefroi, who had accompanied the initial team, could not even figure out—was proof of the superiority of Celuroa’s technology. Though the awkward movements revealed they were only temporarily activated, it was still an astonishing technical feat. If they could walk on their own, even if only for simple tasks, the logistical burden of transporting them was eliminated entirely.

However, Paul Raid could not simply back down.

“We have someone who can prove that we discovered this place first.”

“Oh? And where is such a person?”

“He is not here at this moment, but he is someone recognized by all nations: Lord Jin Nidou, the ‘Kunlun-kun’ and ‘Magicraft Meister’.”