Magi Craft Meister

663

The meeting on the 24th began with Rodrigo’s question.

“Lord Jin, based on yesterday’s explanation, is it Wind Magic… ‘Strong Wind’ for the Wind Magic Propulsion Device Wind Thruster? What was it, um, water molecules? But can’t it be done like air?”

The question had some unclear parts, but the intention behind it was clear to Jin.

“In other words, can we make it so that it doesn’t change the propulsion force even if it gets water on it?”

“Yes, that’s it!”

When the Wind Magic Propulsion Device Wind Thruster is attached to the side of the hull, in rough waves, it inevitably sucks in water. Each time this happens, the propulsion force fluctuates, making it difficult to move straight, especially during slow forward movement, which can be problematic. That’s the reason.

“… It might be possible.”

If he answered immediately, it would sound too much like a lie. So, Jin, being careful not to make it seem like he had avoided doing it, responded.

“Oh, really! In that case, Lord Jin, could you consider improving that? We will proceed with the discussion on the hull with the remaining members.”

“Sure.”

So, Jin was alone, though accompanied by Reiko, working on the improvement of the Wind Magic Propulsion Device Wind Thruster in a separate room.

Elza looked a bit disappointed as she watched Jin go to the separate room.

“Father, is it really that difficult?”

Reiko had a curious expression. Jin reprimanded her.

“Shh, your voice is loud… Improving something like that can be done in two minutes. But doing too much would make it stand out, and that’s not good, you know?”

He seemed to be aware, at least a little. It might sound strange, but it’s likely that voices saying, ‘Isn’t it too late now?’ could be heard.

“I understand.”

So, Jin and Reiko worked together to partially dismantle the Wind Magic Propulsion Device Wind Thruster prototype created yesterday. Then, Jin contemplated in front of it.

However, what he was thinking about was a different matter.

“Even if it’s not a geostationary satellite, if markers are buried on top of mountains or something, it could serve as a landmark, but… there’s still the possibility of being dug up…”

“I think that’s a possibility.”

Since strong magical power makes it easier to be detected, it’s only natural. That’s why Jin is fixated on satellites.

“Um, it’s quite difficult to make it completely stationary… relative to the earth’s surface. Precise calculations and accurate measurements are required for that.”

Jin, thinking not only about the teleportation target but also about establishing landmarks for aircraft and ships, gradually shifted his thoughts towards considerations for the navigation technique he was currently developing.

“By the way, in ship navigation, it’s not just a compass, right? What was it… um… a quadrant or sextant?”

Roughly speaking, latitude and longitude can be determined based on the time and the sun’s position, and the latitude can be determined by the altitude of the North Star. With latitude and longitude, one can know their own location.

Slowly, his thoughts shifted towards considerations for the navigation technique he was currently developing.

“Reiko, does this world also have a North Star?”

Jin wasn’t particularly knowledgeable about stars. Reiko, using the built-in ‘ManaCom’ communication device, contacted the Old Man and answered Jin’s question.”

“Yes, there is. A star with almost no deviation.”

Earth’s North Star is actually slightly off from the celestial North Pole, appearing to move in a slight circle, accumulating errors over time.

“I see. Then, I can confirm my position with the North Star at night.”

“No, you can see it during the day too.”

“Huh?”

Reiko’s words were shocking to Jin.

Jin is well aware that Reiko has much better eyesight than humans. However, he never thought stars could be seen during the day.

With vision acuity of 6.0 or 7.0, it seems stars can be seen during the day. However, Jin’s vision is about 1.5, so it’s impossible.

However, in this world, where the air is clearer than on Earth, it’s not strange that stars can be seen during the day with Reiko’s eyesight.

“In that case, if I create a dedicated instrument, it should be possible to calculate the position from the time, the sun’s position, the moon’s position, and the North Star’s position…”

Setting the time at the laboratory on Hourai Island as Longitude 0 and using Hourai Mean Time (HMT), all that is left is measuring the angles and making calculations.

“…This will solve the fleet’s navigation.”

Jin notified the Old Man of the idea that just came to him and decided to have the details worked out.

“I understand. I’ll try making a prototype.”

“Now, the issue is over here.”

While it might be good for the Hourai Island fleet, Jin switched his thoughts back to the ongoing project.

“A compass is essential. In that case, we should avoid using iron components as much as possible on the ship.”

Modern ships use a lot of iron components, making the magnetic compass prone to deviation. Therefore, for the ship’s compass, Jin decided to use a magnetic compass instead of a gyro compass, which would be too advanced. Hence, he wants to avoid using iron components as much as possible.

As he was pondering this, Reinhardt and Elza arrived.

“Jin, what’s up? It’s already lunchtime.”

“Jin-nii, are you immersed in thoughts again?”

It seemed lunchtime had come without him realizing. Jin headed to the conversation room with the two. Lunch had already been delivered, and everyone except them had already started eating.

Feeling hungry, Jin sat down and immediately started eating.

The menu for the day included bread, sautéed freshwater shrimp and vegetables, sweetened sweet potatoes (ItoPo), and fruit juice.

“… Jin, how is it? …I guess it’s rude to ask?”

After finishing the meal and having a second serving of juice, Reinhardt asked. The others listened intently.

“Uh, yeah. I’ve got a rough idea. Now, I just need to try making it.”

“As expected, you’re amazing!”

Reinhardt’s praise was met with silent agreement from the others. It seems that everyone became convinced of Jin’s abilities during the previous day.

“I’ve made quite a bit of progress too. In the afternoon, I plan to start discussing the interior. Depending on the interior, there might be some minor changes to the hull as well.”

“Ah, that’s true… By the way, who is handling the model processing?”

Since Jin is working on the propulsion system alone in a separate room, someone must be responsible.

“Who do you think?”

Smirking, Reinhardt glanced briefly at Elza.

“…Is it Elza?”

Nodding slightly, Elza blushed, seemingly aware of Reinhardt’s playful smile.

“Well, she is Jin’s top disciple after all. Her processing speed and accuracy surpass mine. Everyone was impressed.”

“Really…”

As Jin stared, Elza blushed even more.

While this was going on, the break time came to an end. Jin informed Reinhardt and Elza that he wants to use a magnetic compass, so they should avoid using iron components as much as possible.

“I see, got it. I’ll keep that in mind.”

With that, Reinhardt and Elza headed to the afternoon discussion meeting. Jin returned to his task.

“Now, let’s finish up the propulsion system.”

For Jin, it was a straightforward task.

If wind magic affects air molecules and water magic affects water clusters, what about earth magic?

The answer is ‘particles.’ Earth magic works on everything from the molecular level to rocks—basically any ‘mass or lump.’

In other words, by utilizing magic like the ‘Stone Bullet’ series, which affects ‘lumps,’ propulsion can be generated regardless of air, water, dust, etc.

“But there are drawbacks.”

Muttering to himself, Jin modified the prototype.

“It has poor fuel efficiency…”

Working on ‘lumps’ means that there is a loss when trying to use it on air molecules. It’s like using a large dump truck to transport a tennis ball—one can imagine the inefficiency.

“But, Father, you can improve it, right?”

Inserting a comment into Jin’s soliloquy was Reiko. It was a phrase full of trust in Jin.

“Of course.”

Jin grinned.

“Just add three magic formulas to the Magiformula. A judgment formula to determine the size, a sorting formula to categorize into three stages, and a control formula to adjust the force based on size.”

In other words, an idea to apply suitable force to solid, liquid, and gas. With this, the efficiency would be improved to the point where it could be compared to the original Wind Thruster.

“After all, it’s my Father!”

Listening to Reiko’s praise, Jin rewrote the Magiformula and reassembled the Wind Thruster. No, it’s not the ‘Wind Thruster’ anymore.

“…Right, let’s call it ‘Jet Thruster.'”

Thus, the ship propulsion, the ‘Jet Thruster,’ was completed.

With the remaining time, Jin pondered various methods for confirming the current position.

“I see! If we bury markers in places so deep that they can’t be dug up, that could work!”

If the sky is not viable, he thought inversely—deep underground might be.

“As long as the magical pattern is unique, and it’s only detectable to the extent of faintness, no one would bother digging it up.”

In this way, Jin continued to implement new ideas in the intervals.