Well, let's dig in then.

　We stand at the search point and roll up our arms. Well, I dig with magic. I know from the search magic that there's a magic stone here, but I can't figure out how deep it is.

'Anyway, we'll just have to dig into the dirt.

　Start digging a hole using soil magic. I use "Fly" to levitate myself and "Levitation" to bring the dug earth to the ground. As he digs, he hits a hard bedrock. I crushed it with my soil magic and pushed forward.
　I think we have dug a lot, but we haven't found anything yet. It's getting much deeper. I hope we don't hit an underground water vein or something.
　The bedrock started to change gradually. There were some shiny things mixed in, so I stopped digging to check it out. I found red transparent crystals mixed in the stone. These are pieces of magical stones, though they are really grains of sand, about two or three millimeters long.
　Are they close to what I want? I'd better dig carefully from this area.
　Slowly digging through with earth magic, a large red crystal was revealed. Is this it?
　To avoid damaging it, I carefully scraped the soil and rock around it and pulled it off the bedrock. Little by little, the entirety of the buried magic stone was revealed, but isn't it bigger than I thought it was, this?
　It was specified as being over 30 cm, so I guess the big ones got stuck too. Well, it's not a problem because it's big enough to be a problem.
　I used Levitation to secretly remove the fire magic stone. This thing is huge, at least 50 centimeters over the limit. It's like a huge jewel.
　Hm? I mean, you could make a lot of money mining gems and stuff like that this way, right?
　Hmm, but this is completely up to me. As Mr. Kosaka says, one should not rely too much on one's own ability to run a country.
　I don't want to think about it, but if I die, it's the end of the world for the country. If possible, it would be better to stop making a profit from this kind of thing. The country's development and such is going well for now, so I'll only make money when I need it personally.
　It would be useful to find the steel used for frame gears in this way. I can't do everything from mining to extraction to refining all by myself.
　But if I sold it, I could sell it for a huge price.... That thought occurred to me briefly, but the power of the frame gear will definitely be needed later on. I told myself that I had to use this for that moment and backfilled the hole I had dug.



'Oh dear, it's pretty big, Su's.'

　Flora rolled her eyes when she saw the magic stone she brought into the 'Alchemy Building'. She said it didn't need to be this big for now, so she used 'modeling' and divided it into two parts. In the meantime, she said it's a backup in case she fails.
　He said it will take about a month to complete. Since there's nothing to help from here on out, I decided to leave the rest to Flora, and headed for the "hangar".
　When I got to the garage where the frame gear was stored, I found the shutters open. I knew it was still broken.
　When I entered, the gray knight was still standing upright and immobile as usual.

''Oyo? Are you a master, sir?
Hmm? Master?

　I heard a voice behind me and turned around to find Rosetta and Monica there. Rosetta is in her usual work clothes, but why is Monica in camouflage? And with that green beret, you'll think it's some country's special forces. I still don't understand the taste of these kids.

What's the matter with you two?
It's 5,000 years old, so we thought we'd give it a little tune-up. The hangar is enchanted to prevent corrosion and degradation, but it does allow dust to accumulate.
I told you there's no such thing as dust. I'm the one who took care of it.

　Monica's mouth twitched at Rosetta's words. I doubt she managed it properly, though, when she used a pipe wrench to open the shutters.
　Rosetta checked around the frame gear for a bit before addressing me.

'We can't activate it, sir, but do you want to sit in the cockpit?
'Yeah. Let's go for a ride.

　In response to my reply, Rosetta hiked up from her feet to her knees and hips to the frame gear as a foothold. Then, when she reached her chest, she held her hand over some kind of panel. There was a whooshing sound of air being let out, and the chest hatch opened up and down. Oh.
　Imitating Rosetta, I managed to climb up to the cockpit, and Monica climbed up to the same height with what looked like a crane attached to the wall. If there's such a thing, get it out from the beginning....
　Looking inside, I saw the leather seats, control sticks attached to the left and right sides of the cockpit, detailed instruments and video boards, and switches and levers that I didn't understand were all over the place. It's a retro cockpit.
　I sat down in the cockpit. Yes, it's not bad. There is something like a foot lever at my feet. I wonder if we can make it walk with this.

Once you know the basic movements, it's just a matter of getting used to it. The fuselage can read the passenger's thoughts and compensate for them, so even a child can move it once he or she gets used to it.
But it's very much dependent on the rider's thinking and experience, so if you're a veteran warrior, you're stronger, and if you're not, you can only move in a certain way.

　I see. The more you get used to it, the more you'll be able to make use of your raw abilities. That means that the pilot candidate to board the plane should be a knight or a warrior, right? When I asked Rosetta about it, she said it depends on the aircraft. It's a good idea to choose a pilot who makes use of the characteristics of each one, because there are some aircraft that are more suited to wizards.

I can't wait to try it out. It will probably take some time to get used to it.

　As I stepped out of the cockpit and got out of my frame gear, Rosetta chuckled and approached me with a chuckle.

'I didn't see this coming! In fact, I've been secretly making something for you!

　Exaggerated gestures. Rosetta pauses, "I'm sorry. What is it?
　Is that it? The one you've been making for a while now in the background?
　Rosetta took me towards the "workshop" and there were two objects that looked like eggs lined up next to each other. They were about the size of a light car. The color is white, so they really look like eggs, but I can see a faint seam, so they're definitely artificial.

"This is the Frame Unit, the simulation system for Frame Gear training!

　Bam! and Rosetta explains her work in a flashy action. A frame unit? A simulation system is like that, a simulated experience....
　When Rosetta touched the side of the egg, the slightly pointy front opened up and down, and what emerged from it was the cockpit of the frame gear she had just boarded.

''Does this thing work?''
It is powered by ordinary magic, not by aetheric liquid. There's no need to actually move it.

　Well, that's true. It's said that the magical power contained in the Aether Liquid is spread throughout the body and synchronized with the pilot's magical power. It is said that it allows the pilot to move in the same way as his own body. If the pilot is the brain, does that mean the Aether Liquid is a nerve?
　Not only that, they say it's also used as a catalyst for the explosive magic amplification that drives the power reactor. Rosetta and Flora explained it to me, but I honestly didn't understand the details. I'm not good at science.
　I heard that with my amount of magic, I can move the frame gear without ether liquid, but in order to do so, the structure has to be rebuilt from scratch. It seems that there were some frame gears that were designed that way, but the blueprints for them are said to be in the storehouse. If I can find them, I can build my own plane.
　Anyway, let's try this simulation.
　When I got in, I found out that it is indeed the same structure as the cockpit of the frame gear. When Rosetta closes the hatch, a faint green light appears in the cockpit.

"Can you hear me, Master?
Rosetta? I can hear you.
The first step is to start up the system. Please touch the center panel in the front.

　Front and center this is it? When I touched the small panel, which was about the size of a B5 notebook, various instruments started to move with a quiet start-up sound, and images were displayed on the large monitors on the front and left and right. The touch panel is very advanced. The construction is retro, though.
　The point of view is high. Is this the height of the actual frame gear? There is nothing around us but a plain. I can see what looks like a forest in the distance.

What's on the horizon?
"These are the images from this country. We're taking this footage and turning it into a training stage.

　Yeah, I thought, "Oh, no wonder I've seen this scenery before. It's like the real thing, even if it's just through a screen.

Let's let him walk first. Please press the foot pedal of your right foot slowly. Then step on the left foot. Then you will be able to walk.

　I did as I was told and the plane slowly began to walk. Oh, it's quite shaky.

When you turn, shift your center of gravity to the left and right. When you step down, move your toes. If you step on it quickly, it will run.

　Oh, oh? Oh. It's interesting. It just walks, turns, and drops, but it moves quite well. That, or it's reading my thoughts and assisting me, I think.
　With Rosetta's guidance, I continued to learn how to jump, crouch, and move sideways, and then I learned how to use the control stick to move my upper body, raising and lowering my hands, swinging my arms, and turning my shoulders.
　Conveniently, I could turn my head a bit, close and open my fingers, and twist my hips just as I thought I could. Surely this would allow me to trace my own body movements once I got used to it. Apparently it's not a lie that anyone can ride it.
　I'm getting used to it, and as I'm letting the plane skip, another piece of frame gear appears in front of me.

''Hmm? What is it?

　It looks like that grey mass-produced frame gear from the garage.

"I see you've gotten used to it, so let's move on to the next step, Master.
Hmm? Monica?

　The voice I heard was definitely Monica's. So that means it's on that one. Well, there were two eggs. You're getting on that one.
　And two unadorned dull swords fall in front of me and Monica's plane.

"Next time, you will learn the actual movements of the battle.

　I see, the reason there were two eggs was to play a communication match.
　I reach for the sword that's stuck in front of me and grip it tightly.
　Alright, let's have a go!