Reinhardt, Erza, and Jin were invited to the dinner table.

The only other attendants were Reinhardt's maid and Erza's maid. After Meine gets out of the bath, she feels sick with anemia, so she is put to bed in her room.

All these members know that Reiko is an automata, so there is no need for her to pretend to eat.

"This is our private meal, so don't mind your manners and don't be shy.

Since Reiko said so, Jin can enjoy his dinner without any concern.

"Elsa told me. She said you did a great job!　I wish I could have been there!"

After the toast, Reinhardt started to ramble on. He was as excited as ever.

For some reason, Erza is sitting to the left of Jin. Reiko is on the other side. In other words, Erza is sitting in front of Reinhardt, and Jin and Reiko are sitting to his right.

The wine served this time was Reinhardt's favorite wine. Jin did not know what sake tasted like, but he thought that this wine was delicious.

The container in which the wine was poured was a clear glass.

"It is a clear glass, isn't it?　It is the painstaking work of the Magi craftsmen in the Marquis' household.

Indeed, it was clearer than any glass I have ever seen in this world.

With the atmosphere and the good-tasting wine, Jin is drinking a little too fast tonight.

(I'm not too drunk for that... ...... I'm not so good with alcohol, am I?)

) Jin is a little bit embarrassed inside.

The reason for this is also in Jin's body.

Jin, whose body is mostly supplemented with magical elements, is not susceptible, or practically not susceptible, to internal causes of anomalies.

In other words, he is resistant to sleeping pills and poisons and does not get sick.

On the other hand, they are not susceptible to mental anomalies caused by external factors such as carsickness, confusion, hypnosis, etc., and they also suffocate.

Let's take a break from the discussion.

Over dinner, we talked about our travels. Erza talked in halting tones, Reinhardt asked questions, and Jin answered them.

The meal proceeded peacefully, with Reinhardt's surprised voice echoing from time to time.

Then, when they talked about the golem, Reinhardt said in an unusually serious tone, "Yes, that's right,

"Well, tomorrow morning, the Marquis of Florenziano would like to talk to you, is that all right?"

"Yes, I don't mind."

When Jin answered, Reinhard said he would let him know and returned to the topic.

"Erza told me that you said it would be a good idea to put a damper or something like that on it.　And what is a damper?　Elsa's explanation was not clear enough for me."

"Well, I guess."

Jin wondered how to explain. But since he was talking to Reinhardt, he thought it would be all right to be a little technical,

"What happens when you put a weight on the end of an elastic rod, bend it, and then release your hand?

"Yes, well, the weight shakes.

Jin then explains that this is called <>. Then he explained that the device to stop the <> quickly is a damper.

Reinhardt looked pleased,

I see!　To use your analogy, if you press down on the weight with your hand, the <> stops faster, doesn't it?　We can make such a device!"

Reinhardt's grasp of the subject is astonishing.

The rest of the meal was spent talking about brakes.

After dinner, Koohe comes out. Pot-rock, or rather, a specialty of the southern part of the Kingdom of Elias.

It was indeed much better than what Jin drank at the Marquis' mansion, Potrock. It has more flavor and a clean aftertaste.

While drinking Cujat, Jin looked at Erza sitting next to him with a sideways glance.

She picked up the cup with graceful hands like a noblewoman, brought it to her mouth, and put it back on the plate (saucer) without making a sound. The sequence of her movements was so fluid that I couldn't help but admire it for a moment.

I wonder if he noticed Jin's gaze,

"Jin-kun,...... what?"

Erza asked him with a slight tilt of her head. Jin panicked,

"No, no, I was just thinking that you are indeed an aristocratic lady. Even the way she drinks her kuhe is very graceful.

When she said that she was honestly thinking so,

"...... is embarrassing."

She put her hand over her mouth and dyed her cheeks. At that moment,

"What?　What happened to the ring?"

The ring was missing from the ring finger of Elsa's left hand.

Elsa was shocked when she was told that,

"I'm sorry. Meine told me that the ring finger of my left hand is a ...... special finger."

Then Reinhardt interrupted.

"Haha, Erza, you've become really pretty. ...... Jin, the ring on the ring finger of the left hand is supposed to be an engagement ring or a wedding ring. Especially among the nobility.

It seems that the custom was the same as on modern earth.

Hitoshi was a little flustered when he was told this,

"Oh, I see. I didn't realize that. Elsa, I'm sorry."

He bowed his head. But Erza told him,

"It's not your fault, Jin. I'm the one who took it and put it on your ring finger."

"That may be so, but ......"

Jin asked Erza if she still had the ring and asked to borrow it for a moment. Elsa immediately pulled the ring, which was on a chain around her neck, out from under her collar and held it out.

"Well, let me see your hand."

Jin said, and Elsa held out her right hand.

"I'm sorry."

She said no, and Jin took her offered hand.

"Ah."

Without noticing Erza's cheeks turning red, Jin took the ring and placed it on Erza's middle finger. And then..,

"Forming."

engineering magic. The ring increases its inner diameter and becomes large enough to fit the middle finger of Elsa's right hand.

"That's good."

With these words, Jin placed the ring on Erza's middle finger and released her hand.

Staring at the ring, Elsa said,

"Thank you very much.

with a complicated expression of disappointment and happiness. Reinhardt looked at his cousin in such a curious way,

"After all, Erza, you have become lovely," he said.

He said, "You have become pretty, after all. Erza turned her head away,

"I don't know ......."

She said in a whisper.

"See, that's the thing. In the old days, you'd have hit me out of the blue."

"............ brother Rai, you're a jerk."

Erza's eyes started to water.

Reinhardt stopped playing with Erza and turned to Jin.

"By the way, Jin, I'm almost done with my work in this country. By the way, Jin, I'm almost done with my work in this country, and my departure date is approaching. If you want to take a look around here in Borgia, I'm sorry, but tomorrow and the day after tomorrow are the only two days left.

But tomorrow morning I have a meeting with the Marquis of Florenziano, which means I only have a day and a half.

Reinhard apologized for the inconvenience, but Jin told him that he would not ask for anything extravagant after having been invited to the meeting.

"Well, that makes me feel much better. As an apology, I'll show you around the Borgia tomorrow afternoon. Erza will go with you, won't she?"

Reinhard said.

Jin replied that he was looking forward to it. Of course it is better to have a good guide when you are new in a city.

Erza, who had been in a bit of a bad mood, seemed a bit happy to hear Reinhardt's words and frankly agreed.

After that, Reinhardt told us about the Kingdom of Elias.

Of the four provinces, the northern province of Nord, where the capital is located, is under the direct control of the royal family. The southern province of Saus was ruled by the Marquis of Florenziano, the western province of Tves was ruled by the Marquis of Godfar, and the eastern province of Isdo was ruled by the Marquis of Karlsruhe.

The province of Isdo in the east is ruled by the Marquis Carlos de Hudson.

The Marquis de Hudson is ......

Ah, the father of Valentino. He seems to be an ordinary man, for better or worse. He seems to rule his domain with little or no consequence."

How could such a son come from such a parent?

The Hudson family may be demoted to baron at best, or at worst, be demolished because of Valentino's recent incident.

There were many other things that he told me. As a diplomat, Reinhardt is well versed in the affairs of each country.

Jin remembered something that had been bothering him for a while and asked Reinhardt about it.

"Hey, what about religion?

"Religion, huh? There is no specific one. I mean, it seems that the number of church members and priests has been decreasing due to the Magic War. It seems that each country now worships different idols.

Hitoshi, who had heard Reinhardt use the word instead of , asked,

"Is Reinhardt an atheist, by any chance?"

Jin asked, "Is Reinhardt an atheist? He replied,

He replied, "Haha, it would be better to say that the Shoro Empire is an atheist rather than I am. I believe that there is a God in the sense of an existence beyond human knowledge, but I don't believe that there is such a convenient existence that hears our prayers and wishes without hesitation.

"Well, you are a realist, aren't you?"

In the meantime, it was getting late at night and we all went back to our rooms.