“Brother Jin, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you.”
Elsa asked Jin as he pondered what to do with Reiko.
“Why haven’t you tried making another Automata similar to Reiko?”
Reiko shivered when she heard that question.
“Don’t get me wrong, Reiko. It’s just something I’ve been curious about, that’s all. I’m not denying you or anything like that.”
Jin called Reiko towards him and gently stroked her head.
“I can’t bring myself to do it. It’s that simple. There can be only one Reiko for me.”
Then Jin hugged Reiko and had her sit on his lap.
“It was Reiko who called me to this world. To be exact, it was Reiko’s predecessor. According to her predecessor’s will, Reiko has been searching for me for 1000 years. And it was Reiko who desperately searched for me when I went missing after a Warp Gate went haywire. I’m here because of and thanks to Reiko.”
While saying that, Jin kept on stroking Reiko’s head. Reiko had her eyes closed and seemed to be very happy about it.
“She’s more of a daughter than I’ll ever deserve. That’s why I can’t, I don’t want, to build more Automatas like her.”
“…I understand. Sorry Brother Jin. Sorry, Reiko.”
Elsa deeply bowed at them.
“I remember thinking how close you seemed to be even back when I was just starting my journey.”
“Ah, back then…”
That was back when Elsa had mistaken him for someone sexually attracted to dolls.
“A-Anyway, that’s why I’ve decided that Reiko is unique to me.”
“I understand. Sorry for asking such a silly question…”
Jin held his hand forward as if asking her to stop.
“…Elsa, please don’t worry about that anymore.”
Like Jin, Reiko also felt that it was water under the bridge.
“Well then, really, what should I do?”
Jin resumed his thinking.
“I don’t want to simply make something only to leave it dormant once I no longer need it…”
Unable to just watch Jin worry himself sick about it, Reiko voiced a suggestion.
“If you promise not to leave Hourai Island, Father, I’ll go with the Substitute Doll.”
“I-I see. It would be great if you could do that for me.”
More than anything, Reiko wanted to be useful to Jin.
“Okay, in that case, let’s upgrade you with the latest materials and technology we have.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Jin had Reiko lie on the work table. Elsa would be assisting Jin, while Edgar would be watching the process and learning.
“Let’s start with the skeleton.”
The Magi Adamantite was replaced with Hyper Adamantite. Its relative density was about 10 times higher, but it was also 20 times stronger, making it an ideal material. Jin presumed that the reason for this was that the distance between its atoms had been shortened due to its compression, increasing its bonding force. He also assumed that the reason why it hadn’t gone according to a simple calculation before was because of the influence of Ether.
Using this, Jin would be able to make her twice as sturdier without altering her weight.
“Will we be using the usual Magical Muscle?
“No, we’ll also replace that for muscle that has been impregnated with Ether.”
“Impregnated?”
“Yeah. I’ve been wondering if by curing something inside an Ether Box, its Ether contents could rapidly increase.”
It would be as easy to use as ever while also being able to draw more than double as much power as before.
“The downside to this is that it’s going to eat through her Ether reserves, but I still think it’s effective since the northern region seems to have a high concentration of Ether.”
“I agree.”
“Also, we’ll be adding an ‘Ethenol Tank’ so she has something to fall back on in case of an emergency.”
It would be more efficient than the “Mana Tank” she used to have installed. This was because the magical density of Ethenol, which contains Ether as a liquid, is higher than that of the gaseous Mana.
“I have to make it so that she can use Gravity Magic as part of her base kit.”
Various magic tools for activating spells were built in so that she could do so without the need for chanting.
“I also have to increase the capacity of both her Ether Converter and Mana Driver.”
With that, each of her auxiliary features had been completely rehashed.
(Brother Jin’s work is very diligent. I can really see how much he cherishes Reiko.)
Elsa, who had been an assistant in name only during this process and so didn’t actually get to participate much, was closely observing Jin’s work.
(I wonder if there’s anything I can do? …Ah!)
Having come up with an idea, Elsa quietly left the workshop while Jin was still working hard on Reiko’s upgrades.
After impregnating her Magical Skin with Ether, Reiko’s upgrade was completed. As a result of having adjusted her weight well, her finishing was just unchanged from before.
Then, he finally realized Elsa was nowhere to be seen.
“Elsa?”
At that moment, both Elsa and Edgar returned to the workshop.
“Ah, have you finished remodeling her, Brother Jin?”
“Yes, at least for now. …What’s that you got there?”
Edgar was holding something that looked like a folded cloth.
“These? These are new clothes for Reiko. I made them from Ether-impregnated Ground Spider thread.”
“T-Thanks. That’s so nice of you. Her old clothes were starting to get a little worn out.”
“Yeah.”
Elsa handed him the bloomers, chemise, dress, apron, and ribbon she had tailored for Reiko.
Their color and design were the same as those Reiko usually wore. This was because Elsa couldn’t just decide a style and color for Reiko other than her usual.
Just in case, Jin checked the size of the clothes. There were only a few, barely unnoticeable errors in measure, so he made a few adjustments and finished them up.
“You did a great job as usual. Did the Ether impregnation change anything about their manufacturing process?”
“Yeah. But I think I should be able to get used to it if I keep making more.”
“Haha, let’s make these one at a time, shall we? Alright, I’ll make some new shoes for her then.”
“Ah. I forgot about making her new shoes and socks!”
Elsa felt ashamed to have only concerned herself with making clothes, as evidenced by her reddened cheeks.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m just as careless, if not more, all the time.”
While laughing, Jin took out some Ether-impregnated Sea Dragon Leather.
“Can you do the socks, Elsa?”
“Yeah!”
Jin would make her shoes, and Elsa her socks. Their work was completed in no time.
They put them on Reiko before booting her up.
“Startup.”
Reiko opened her eyes in response to hearing that keyword.
“How are you feeling?”
Reiko jumped down from the workbench and started moving slowly as if checking her own response.
“I’m fine. Thank you very much.”
“That’s good to hear. Elsa made you a new set of clothes. I helped out a little too.”
“…Is that so? Thank you very much, Elsa.”
“You’re welcome.”
After explaining to her the new functions she had and making sure that she could use them without any problems, the preparations for Reiko had been completed.
“Alright, we’re doing this tomorrow, then.”
After a little late dinner, Jin and Elsa returned to their respective rooms.
Reiko and Edgar also followed their respective masters.
“Reiko, huh…?”
Lying on the futon bed, Elsa thought about Jin and Reiko.
“…She’s really important to him.”
Of course, that didn’t mean that she was the only one he cared about.
A closer look at Jin would reveal that when it came to meals, he would eat as little as possible, and when making various parts out of materials, he would try to avoid waste as much as possible.
He would take good care of things, and he would also take good care of Reiko. They were the same thing, but also very different.
That could be all part of Jin’s humble nature, a characteristic of most Japanese people, or a feeling of intrinsically holding things dear.
“I’m a bit jealous of Reiko…”
With that feeling in mind, Elsa looked out the window. Countless stars were twinkling in the dark night sky.
