Magicraft Meister Part 1

The door opened with a slight creak as Mr. John applied force.

It was pitch-dark inside, but when the door closed, a light came on automatically. It was the light of a magic lamp.

(It is a little flickering. (A little flickering. It seems to have not been maintained properly.)

And then, as we walked further and further into the room...

"What is this?

A magic circle appeared at his feet for a short time that a human being would not have been able to detect. It was something familiar to the old man.

A warp gate!

John's figure disappeared in an instant.

The "Mere Old Man" is now in the middle of the "Warp Gate".

This is ......

(This is near the center of the huge desert west of the Harihari Desert.)

The old lord of Horai Island had used the Magi Radar to locate in a short time where John, whom he controlled, had been sent.

"......Who came there......?"

A weak voice came from the darkness. John switched his vision to infrared.

There was a figure at the far end of the room. He was sitting in a large easy chair.

But as he got closer, it became clear why it was called a .

It was an automaton.

"My name is John Dinny. I was told to come here by the sheik, Hiro. He told me to ask him what to do.

"...... So, now you're going to ......."

May I turn on the light, please?

"...... yes, please."

Even though we can see in the infrared, it is still better to have a normal light to observe details. John produced a ball of light.

The room becomes bright at once.

"......It's been a long time since the light went out of order. ......"

mutters the automaton in a low voice.

"So, what am I supposed to do?"

I have a rough idea, but I still can't help but ask.

"...... fix me ......."

The answer was what John had expected.

"......I am an automaton,....... I have been in existence for so long that my body is damaged in many places......."

If you look at it under a bright light, you can see it clearly.

The former beautiful female form has lost most of her hair and one of her eyes is missing, leaving her with an empty eye socket.

The magical skin has lost its elasticity and is cracked here and there.

The clothes looked normal at first glance, but upon closer inspection, the fibers were so tattered that they could have turned to dust if they moved.

Perhaps they had been in a dark place to prevent light from deteriorating them.

"......The last time I had it ...... maintained was about ......70 years ago. ....... Even then, they could not fix the body and only repaired the ...... vocal function. ......"

The old man recalled Anne, whom Jin had once found and repaired.

She had been built more than 300 years ago and was malfunctioning as a result of neglect.

The automata sitting in front of her had been serviced several times, although there were intervals between servicing. Even so, it had not escaped deterioration.

"Excuse me, how long ago were you made?　And who are you?

"......About ......1100 years ago, I remember. ...... if this year is 3457. ......"

The old man was shocked. 1100 years ago.

An automata made in an age older than Jin's predecessor, Adriana Barbora Zetsi.

"......I am ......<>,Shuki Tsetsi's knowledge and pass it on to the people of ......Mitsuho. My ...... name is ...... Akitsu ......."

Shuki Tsetsi. His name is not in the knowledge from Jin. But the old man thought that he might be related to Adriana Barbora Tsezi.

"Shuki Tsezi the Wise. What kind of a person was he? Did he create you?

"...... No, he could not use engineering magic, so ...... one of his disciples made me. ......"

"I see. ...... excuse me, let me examine you first."

Deciding that fixing the automaton in front of him had a higher priority than talking right now, John refused and touched Akitsu.

Akitsu then uttered an unexpected word.

"...... Oh, you are ......?　Are you also ...... an automata ......?"

To my surprise, Akitsu, the automaton, instantly recognized that John was also an automaton.

The old man was impressed by the fact that he had inherited the knowledge.

So he decided to tell the truth. No matter how things turned out, the automaton in front of him was not considered to be a threat.

In fact, he thought that by being honest, he could get more information out of the automaton.

At this point, he is similar to Jin in that he does not choose to stop the automaton and forcibly extract knowledge from it.

"Yes. I am an automaton created by my maker.

Hearing this, Akitsu replied in an impressed tone of voice.

"......After all,...... there are excellent magic artisans (magi smiths) in this world,...... then, what is your purpose? ......?"

"Let's be honest. I am here to investigate the land of . It is a rumor, but there is also information that this country is trying to invade our homeland.

Akitsu shook his head slightly.

"That ...... is ...... not possible ...... because I have never once suggested such a thing. ......"

"But there is a record of an invasion about 300 years ago, right?"

Akitsu fell silent and seemed to be thinking about something, but then he opened his mouth and said something unexpected.

"At ...... that time,...... the free magical element (ether) filling the space has been drastically reduced,...... and because of that,...... I ...... had been malfunctioning for a time,...... and had been shut down for about 10 years... ..."

The old man decided that it was definitely an "ether stampede".

"...... and ...... since then ...... I have not been able to move ......."

Akitsu then said that the people of Mitsuho, who had learned of her stoppage, might have gone to the East - to the Shoro Empire and the Lesser Kommunities - in search of magicians (magi smiths) who could repair the damage.

This is consistent with the reason that I heard the other day, that the magic tools were no longer available .......

If that is true, then Akitsu must be repaired.

John examined Akitsu's body carefully.

"The damage to the control core is minimal due to the good state of preservation. The corrosion of the skeleton is also less advanced than expected. However, there is no other way to replace the pseudo-biological tissues, the magical skin and the magical muscles.

"......But you won't be able to get the materials. ......"

Akitsu is right. In Mitsuho, where magical engineering is still undeveloped, materials to repair such advanced automata are not in circulation.

"That's right. And one more thing. The ether converter also needs to be replaced, otherwise it will malfunction with the current concentration of free magic element (ether).

"......The ether converter also needs to be replaced. ...... I see. ......"

The Horai Islanders are now using <>, but not so long ago it was an elemental converter (ether converter).

Akitsu is equipped with a primitive device compared to them, and from that point of view, the old man was sure that Akitsu is an automata older than Adriana Barbora Tsezi.

"I guess that means that ...... I've already ...... done my job ......."

Akitsu closes his remaining eyes. His words showed his regret.

(......)

The old man was deep in thought.

The automaton in front of John is too precious. It is not something that should be left to decay.

On the other hand, there is no guarantee that the automaton, if repaired, will not be hostile to Horai Island. In some knowledge, they are even more powerful than the old lord.

It would be safest and most profitable to let it rot away, and after it stops working, to take out its control core and siphon off its information.

(But the master (my lord) is ......)

If Jin knew about this, he would be grieved and saddened. Because that is the kind of person Jin is.

In conclusion, we decided to report this to Jin and ask for his judgment.

* * * *

It was the day that the Bernstein, the flagship of the Navy, was to depart for the sea after completing a series of test cruises in Lake Wass.

Although there were some minor modifications and additions to the ship's equipment, it was a resounding success.

The crew has completed their training and are now looking presentable.

"The <> will now sail out to sea through the channel. After two days of final checks there, we will finally depart for the Kingdom of Elias. This is a first for our country, let alone for any other country in the Lesser Antilles!

The captain gives his words, and the ship finally sets sail. Jin, Reiko, Elsa, and Edgar watch from the airship. The Prime Minister and the Minister of Magical Technology are watching from the hot air balloon they came in. Reinhard and Christoph are watching from the shore as the new ship Bernstein is launched.

"Departure!"

The Bernstein slowly leaves the pier, blowing its whistle, a later addition to the ship's equipment.

All the people in the neighborhood rallied to see her off.

Jin and the others also saw him off from the sky.

At that time, the old man called to them.

"Father, the old man wants to talk to you urgently.

"Hmm?　What is it?　That's unusual.

Jin picked up the phone to talk with the manacam equipped in the airship, since he was in the sky.