Magicraft Meister Part 1

On the morning of the appointed day with Reinhardt, Jin and Reiko left <> and headed for the central square in front of the port.

Unlike the competition, the plaza was deserted and looked bleak.

"Ah, this smell of the tide mixed with the smell of fish, it's unique to this place.

Jin is feeling a little nostalgic. Even the same sea breeze is different between here and the seashore of Horai Island. Jin imagined that it was probably because of the people's lives here.

"Father, the carriage is coming.

Reiko's voice broke through his reverie. It seemed that a carriage had arrived to pick them up.

"Well, they have suspension, just in case..."

At a glance at the first carriage, Jin recognized that the arms supporting the wheels of the carriage functioned as suspension. The arms extend back and forth from under the passenger cabin.

But there are no dampers.

With only springs, the vibration lasts for a long time and makes you feel carsick. Modern cars are equipped with dampers (shock absorbers) to quickly control the vibrations, but this carriage has none.

"Are the wheels made of iron?

The wheels are covered with iron. They may be durable, but they seem to make a lot of noise. Well, it won't make much noise if there is soil under the wheels.

The carriage in the back was of the same type, but a little older and a little more plainly decorated.

"I guess we are in the back coach..."

As we were thinking such a thing, the carriage stopped in front of Jin and the others, and from the carriage behind, a man with an air of a butler got off and opened the door of the carriage in front.

A girl with near silver blonde hair, light blue eyes, and white skin appeared from inside. She is Elsa Randall, Reinhardt's cousin.

Without any help, she jumped from the carriage. She is indeed holding her skirt down to prevent it from billowing up.

She is not wearing a bathing suit today, but a young grass-colored dress like a noblewoman. The dress is simple, but the fabric is shiny and carefully sewn. The collar, cuffs, and hem are decorated with lace.

"Jin-kun, Reiko, it's been a long time.

"Ah, it's been a long time."

The butler was staring at him, but Jin did not notice.

At first, Jin offered a handkerchief he had put in his pocket. But Erza shook her head,

"No," she said. Jin can keep it."

With these words, Elsa motioned to a servant-like man who had gotten out of the carriage behind them to load Jin and the others' luggage into the carriage. There was not much luggage, so it would all be loaded in one go.

"Come on, get in!

Elsa invited Jin and the others into her carriage.

The carriage could accommodate about six people, with three chairs facing each other.

When asked if there was anyone else in the carriage, Elsa replied that it was just the three of them.

So Hitoshi and Reiko sat facing the direction of travel, that is, in the back seat, and Elsa sat backward in the front seat near the driver.

"Can we leave now?"

Erza nodded her head and pulled a string. The end of the cord seems to extend to the coachman's seat, which is supposed to give simple instructions such as "stop" or "go".

Now the servants' carriage starts to run ahead of the others. The wheels made a clunking sound as if they stepped on a stone. The cabin shook like a bump. It was going to make me sick if I didn't get used to it.

Elsa, perhaps anticipating this, said to me,

"Let me know if you get sick. I'll fix it."

She told me that there was some kind of relief. She seemed to have some kind of relief. She continued,

"My brother Rai couldn't come because of his work, so I'm here."

Elsa explained. She said that Reinhard was busy with various things in the capital.

"Yes, thank you."

Jin, who was not quite sure how to talk to Erza, was speaking in a strange way. Seeing Jin like that,

"Don't be shy and talk to me like you do to my brother Rai.

Jin relaxed his shoulders when he heard her say, "Don't be shy.

"Well then. Thank you for coming all the way to ...... to pick me up today. Is this okay?"

"Yes."

Elsa nodded.

"I wanted to have a long talk with you guys. That's why I'm here."

A pause,

"My brother Rai is one of the top magi engineers in the country. Lorelei, which he built, has been defeated. I would like to know about your technology."

This is a very direct question. From the way he speaks, it seems that conversation is not his forte.

"Well, I think it would be better to talk about such things in the presence of Reinhardt.

Jin dodges the question well. Erza agreed with him,

"Well then, is there anything you want to ask me?

Jin thought for a moment about where to start,

"Well, first of all, where is this carriage going?

He asked where the carriage was going.

"North. From the port town of Potrock to the region where the capital of the country is located. Where my brother Rai is.

"What is the name of the capital?"

Erza's eyes widened a little, as if she was surprised by the question. However, they quickly returned to normal,

"The capital of the Kingdom of Elias is Borgia. Don't you know it?"

"No, I don't know. I've been on an isolated island, so I'm not familiar with the situation on the continent.

Jin told him a little about his background,

"I remember you saying that. Then let me tell you a little about the Kingdom of Elias.

He began to explain.

"The Kingdom of Elias is located on the Elias Peninsula, which juts out to the south of the Laurentian continent."

"Oh, you know about that?"

"The Kingdom of Elias is divided into four provinces. You can think of them as east, west, south, north and south.

"I see. So Potlock is in the southern province?

Yes. And we're on our way to the northern province. It's called Nord.

Elsa broke off. Jin pictured in his mind the terrain Sky 1 had reported. It made a lot of sense.

"There are four main roads in the kingdom of Elias. They all run east-west, north-south, and south-south from the capital Borgia. Are we good so far?"

"Yes. The road to the north leads to the continent of Laurent, and the road to the south leads to Potrock, is that correct?"

"That's right. East and west are less important than north and south.

"...... wait a minute..."

What's going on?

What's wrong?

Erza looked at Hitoshi with a questioning look when he interrupted her in mid-sentence, but soon realized the reason why. Reiko didn't seem to understand why Jin was looking so blue.

"Leave it to me."

After saying that, she takes Jin's hand.

"What?"

"...... heal him."

Then warmth flowed from Elsa's hand and Jin, who had been feeling sick, felt refreshed.

"Well?"

Elsa asked as she let go of his hand,

"Oh, yeah, I feel better. Thank you. Was that magic?"

"Yes. The Shoro Imperial Chanting."

"I see. I knew it. But if it seems so familiar, does that mean there are many people who get drunk?

Jin asked,

"Yes. Most people who get on the boat for the first time get sick.

"I see."

"......"

Reiko was depressed. She had been unaware of Jin's condition, and had let the stranger in front of her fix him up.

"I hope you put a damper on it."

Jin is talking to Elsa, oblivious to Reiko's depression.

"Damper?　What's a damper?

"Oh, I don't know how to say it. A device that suppresses shaking.

"A damper. ......"

Elsa seemed to have a vague idea of what kind of damper Jin was talking about.

"This structure seems to be difficult, though."

Jin then began to think about installing the damper for his own sake.

"Jin-kun is a wonder after all. I hope you can teach me a lot during my trip."

Erza looked at Jin with a curious expression,

"Oh, sure.

Jin replies lightly. Reiko silently gazes at him.