“We’ve taken 120 of your soldiers prisoner. If you desire their safe return, withdraw your forces and depart Yugria within the hour! If you do not, we cannot guarantee their safety!”
Parley, our designated envoy, had just arrived at the northern stronghold, with his message (or more specifically, the loud voice it was shouted in) serving as both a perfect alarm clock and as a signal. I’d barely finished rubbing the sleep from my eyes by the time Godolphen marched out with a company in tow. By now, Leo would be the only one remaining at the southern stronghold, with the others on their way to regroup with Dan and attack our enemy at their weakest points. Dispatching Dan to track their movements had been something of a gamble, but among us, he was the one most likely to evade capture—and of breaking free if things went poorly. It was a shame to lose his combat skills during the initial stronghold defense stage, but intel was a crucial part of warfare. Dan had incredibly sharp eyesight and could traverse the mountainous terrain with ease, and most importantly, his recent participation in the Emissive Magic Club meant he could use wind-based Scouting Magic to some extent.
He could also make decisions on the fly, and could piece together a clear picture from only the vaguest of clues. When Vesta had declared what Dan’s mission would be, I’d been just as surprised as the others at first. However, after he’d explained his reasoning, it didn’t take an analytical mind like his or Dan’s to realize how indispensable such a role would be.
Well, guess it’s about time for me to start fulfilling my role too...
I began by chipping away at the dirt around the ventilation hole Dolph had left for me, before grabbing a vial from the pouch at my waist and carefully pushing it through, setting it gently on the ground overhead. Zetz and the other spies had been carrying some healing elixirs with them, and after using the elixirs to treat their leg wounds, I’d availed myself of the empty vials.
I’d figured out the perfect way to get our enemies (namely Tim) to ingest my concoctions. I could use wind magic to diffuse the vaporized compounds, but the problem was how to vaporize them in the first place. Obviously, building a fire was out of the question for various reasons. Instead, I’d landed upon the idea of creating a vacuum—a technique I’d already been dabbling in, given its potential to be used to cast awesomely deadly spells like Wind Cutter (which I was sadly yet to perfect). I couldn’t really remember what had specifically sparked the thought, but at some point during my experiments, I’d randomly remembered hearing that water had a lower boiling point—around ninety degrees Celcius—at the summit of Mount Fuji. (I also remembered something about how if you then used that boiling water to make instant ramen, the noodles would have a different texture, but that wasn’t as important.)
Basically, the higher the altitude, the lower the atmospheric pressure dropped, which in turn caused the boiling point to drop. Liquids would boil more easily in conditions with lower atmospheric pressure—conditions resembling a vacuum, in other words. It was the reason water boiled pretty much instantly in outer space, despite the temperature being several dozen degrees below freezing. It was also part of the reason it was nearly impossible for astronauts to survive even a tiny tear in their spacesuits, because their blood would boil and vaporize within seconds.
Unfortunately, I’d yet to master the vacuum-powered wind blade so commonly seen in light novels (aka Wind Cutter) but I was able to create a decently high-quality vacuum anywhere I wanted. I shifted my balance until my hand was hovering over the vial I’d placed on the outside of my lair. Through my many experiments the previous day, I knew exactly how powerful the vacuum needed to be to achieve vaporization. To my great pleasure, I’d also learned that vaporizing the compounds made them significantly more effective. I’d been able to send a monster into early hibernation with just a drop of the sleeping medicine, whereas I would have needed a lot more if I’d coated an arrowtip with it, or poured it into its mouth directly. I assumed that inhaling it meant it got absorbed into the bloodstream more quickly. The reduced quantity did shorten the overall duration of the effect, but that wasn’t much of an issue, considering that—if all went according to plan—my unsuspecting victims would also be paralyzed within minutes of falling asleep.
I activated my vacuum and slowly began to send the vaporized sleeping potion through the ruins using wind magic. Technically, the vapor actually turned back into liquid as soon as it was outside the range of my handheld (well, hand-cast) vacuum, but with its chemical bonds broken, it remained as a perfectly transportable mist.
An ominous haze began to fill the northern stronghold.
✦ ✦ ✦
Tim sighed wearily. Lately, he had begun to feel the weight of his years more keenly than ever. He’d never admit it to Godolphen, of course—not when the older man was still running around like a spring chicken after nearly a full week in the mountains—but for Tim, the work had taken a considerable toll. The children and their seemingly unlimited energy were a source of both wonder and envy to the man.
I’ve got to pull myself together... Tim thought, slapping his cheeks to keep himself awake. It didn’t work. Maybe just for a few seconds...
Tim’s eyes slowly drifted shut.
✦ ✦ ✦
“You’re dead, Tim,” I whispered, pressing my dagger against his neck.
Tim’s eyes snapped open as he yelped in surprise. In an instant, he’d grabbed my wrist and twisted hard, disarming me.