“Lady Philia, what’s this?” Lena pointed at a cylindrical object.
Grace laughed delicately. “Let me answer on Lady Philia’s behalf. This piece of equipment will keep the device cool.”
Ever since the magic ore arrived, we’d spent every second of every day working on the magic device. I felt a little guilty for relying on Grace’s assistance for so long, but she had been a great help. I had entrusted most of the construction of that cooling device to her.
“Whoa, really? Grace, you’re amazing.”
“I couldn’t have done it without Lady Philia’s guidance. I’m a complete and utter novice.”
“Enough of that, Grace. You have a natural gift for building magic tools. Your talent astounds me.”
“Oh, my! You’re far too kind, Lady Philia! That’s wonderful to hear, though!” Grace beamed at me, her smile brimming with joy.
Although she brushed off praise, Grace’s talent was undeniable. Not only did she absorb knowledge quickly, but with her inherent deftness, she could put my instructions into practice almost immediately. I was blown away.
“Why don’t we conduct a trial run of your cooling device?” I suggested.
“What?” said Grace. “Are you ready to turn it on?”
“Yes. As far as I can see, everything looks fine. I’d like to test it out before making the final adjustments.”
We could only test the mana-stabilizing magic tool when there was unstable mana in the air, so we had no choice but to wait until we deployed it. That was precisely why I needed to make sure the auxiliary systems were in perfect working order.
“All right, Lady Philia. I’ll turn it on now, okay?”
“Go ahead. Thank you.”
Nervously, Grace pressed the switch to start the device. With a dull drone, the cooling system started up. The air around us began to grow colder.
“It’s so ch-chilly. It’s like winter’s back again.”
It was early spring, and the weather was just starting to warm up, but the cooling device made it feel like midwinter. Lena was shivering, and you could see her breath.
“That’s enough, Grace. Please shut it off.”
“Understood.” Grace turned off the switch, and the air slowly warmed back up again.
I could see that device being useful in all sorts of situations.
“That seems to work well. All we have to do is install it in the mana stabilizer, and the device is complete.”
“It’s so big,” said Lena. “And perfectly round, too.”
Naturally, we hadn’t just been working on the cooling system. We’d finalized the mana stabilizer itself. As Lena said, the device was a gigantic sphere. After weighing all our options, we decided that this was the optimal shape.
“It’s magnificent. I’ve never seen a magic tool that large before,” remarked Grace.
“I know. If Haruya hadn’t provided the magic ore, we never could have built it.”
We’d used an enormous quantity of magic ore to build the device. Failure was not an option.
“All we need to do now is install it at the center of the Volcanic Miasma Zone.”
“So the last step is putting it in position,” said Lena. “Neat. Won’t that be super hard to do, though?”
Positioning our device at the midpoint of the Volcanic Miasma Zone, the site of incessant explosions, was certainly a daunting task—but we were hopeful that we could handle it.
“Lady Philia, your delivery has arrived.”
“Thank you, Himari. I appreciate the effort.”
“Think nothing of it. You surprised me, however. The Volcanic Miasma Zone was treacherous, even with Lady Mia by your side, but I never imagined this solution.”
Himari had come to deliver the item that would be key to transporting the device. It was the same magic tool that Haruya had once used to threaten us.
“On that occasion, we needed to find Moontear Flowers and bring them back. This time, all we need to do is put the device in position and switch it on. That’s what made me wonder whether there was a way to do that without traveling there ourselves.”
“Using my cannon to shoot the magic tool to the location of your choice—now that’s a stroke of genius. I certainly wouldn’t have thought of it.”
Haruya appeared with the massive cannon in tow—the same one that had been in front of Haruya’s mountain hideaway. Prince Reichardt had purchased it, and I understood that it could launch projectiles over a considerable distance.
This was why we’d made the device spherical. We wouldn’t have to venture to the center of the Volcanic Miasma Zone. Instead, we would fire the device out of the cannon. That way, we could transport it to where it needed to be without putting ourselves in danger. Building a timer into the device did take some extra work, but our plans had borne fruit.
“I get it now,” said Lena, looking reassured. “That will be so much safer.”
“I’d expect nothing less from our extraordinary archsaint. I was worried that His Highness would renege on his purchase, so I’m relieved to have secured a buyer for my cannon after all.” Haruya, standing beside her, snickered and gave me a cheerful smile.
The last step of the endeavor was making sure the device landed in the right place. The following morning, we put our plan into action. We set out for a low hill near the Volcanic Miasma Zone, where Sir Osvalt would oversee the operation.