"The Church seemed to have sprung up out of nowhere." Roland's mind kept echoing that phrase even after he returned to the office.
Closing his eyes, he meticulously searched the Fourth Prince's memories but found no further relevant information. His knowledge of the Church was no different from that of an ordinary Noble—during his time in the palace, the Fourth Prince had paid little attention to learning, and his grasp of divine secrets was virtually nonexistent. Yet if Tilly's words were true, the Church's propaganda tactics would seem downright bizarre.
To draw an analogy from the religious legends of the original world, the notion that God emerged from the very beginning of creation is fundamentally naive. The conventional narrative that the world was created by God is the widely accepted framework. Examples include the seven-day creation and karmic reincarnation... A complete narrative depicting God's omnipotence is a standard feature in every religion.
In comparison, the Church in this world appears rather... immature.
Roland, however, found no further clues to pursue. He shook his head and decided to let these thoughts fade away.
Perhaps the answers will emerge once we've explored the ancient ruins of the Hidden Forest.
He approached the window and gazed at the massive coated surface spread across the garden floor—its emerald-green exterior stood out vividly against the pristine white snow.
Soroya is now assembling a larger airbag for the new hot air balloon, which will be more substantial and capable of carrying more passengers. This precautionary measure was taken in case the trapped woman couldn't be rescued during the relic exploration, allowing Anna to shatter the entire' Ice Coffin' and return her along with a portion of the transparent crystal to Border Town.
The departure date is set for two days later.
The team has finalized their lineup: Witch Island's roster includes Tilly, Sylvie, Saivi, Ash, and Andrea, while the Witch Alliance will field Anna, Wendy, Nightingale, Nana Wa, Lightning, and Maxie. This is an exceptionally powerful lineup, with attack, defense, and battlefield awareness all at peak levels. Unless the God's Stone is used, the Devil will find it nearly impossible to get close to them.
"Your Highness, the Chief Alchemist, Lord Kaimos Thuir, wishes to see you," the Imperial Guard announced from the doorway.
"Let him in." This time, Kemo wasn't alone—he had brought his colleague Chamis along. "Your Highness, the large-scale nitric acid production method you requested is beginning to take shape." "Really?" Roland was momentarily taken aback, then joy surged through him. This must be the best news he'd heard in days. He stood up excitedly and personally poured tea for the two chemists. "Tell us how it's done." "This is Chamis' achievement," he said with a smile, stroking his beard. "Let him explain to you." "Respected Your Highness," the young Chamis appeared somewhat reserved. After bowing, he spoke. "Your alchemical workshop... no, chemical laboratory... produces nitric acid by first distilling saltpeter to obtain dilute nitric acid, then purifying it with concentrated sulfuric acid. I tried combining both methods—directly heating saltpeter in concentrated sulfuric acid—and successfully obtained a highly pure nitric acid solution, even observing the fuming phenomenon recorded in Elementary Chemistry." "Coheating? But they're not the same thing," Roland asked curiously. "Distillation requires much higher temperatures than coheating, and the gas produced should be nitrogen oxides. They only form dilute nitric acid when mixed with water. Purifying with concentrated sulfuric acid simply uses its high boiling point and strong water-absorbing properties to reduce moisture content, without involving chemical reactions." "I don't quite understand either, but Mr.Stier conducted several experiments afterward and considered my discovery a coincidence." "Coincidence?" Roland turned to the Chief Alchemist.
"Exactly," Kaimo affirmed. "They're not identical, yet they produce the same effect. I worked through the chemical equation and deduced that some nitrate component in saltpeter reacted with sulfuric acid to form nitric acid, which then evaporated when heated. Reversing the equation, it seems to be... well, a nitrate." Roland suddenly recalled that chemistry textbooks had indeed mentioned this method—before synthetic ammonia was invented, people used sodium nitrate or potassium nitrate to react with concentrated sulfuric acid to produce nitric acid, the oldest industrial method. Since saltpeter's main components are two nitrates, they're readily available and easy to extract. By controlling the temperature, one could continuously collect the evaporated nitric acid.
Of course, this method was soon replaced by more advanced techniques due to its high sulfuric acid consumption and the high risk of equipment corrosion.
However, these two issues posed little challenge to Roland. The territory lacked a supporting fertilizer and pesticide industry, and the sulfuric acid produced was exclusively used for nitric acid purification. As for the corrosive nitric acid vapor, Soloya's coating technology could handle it.
"Brilliant work," Roland said with a cheerful pat on Chamis's shoulder. "You actually managed to develop this method by sheer luck." "You don't realize how extraordinary his fortune was while working at Chishui City's Alchemy Workshop," Kaimoschuir remarked with a raised eyebrow. "Before studying chemistry, alchemy itself was an art of trial and error. This young man figured out the double acid method in his early twenties, becoming the workshop's youngest alchemist—making even the most seasoned apprentices in their thirties and forties green with envy. After all, they might spend their entire lives as mere apprentices." "This is great news for the town," Roland praised. "Try producing a batch of equipment first. I'll have the Witch assist you. If successful, scale up production." "As you wish." "By the way, I've got another mission for you," he said with a serious tone, suppressing his excitement. "Now that we have a reliable source of nitric acid, you need to develop something extremely dangerous—nitroglycerin." "How dangerous?" Kaimoschuir asked.
"The reaction uses simple ingredients: concentrated nitric acid reacting with glycerol, catalyzed by concentrated sulfuric acid. Strict temperature control and ventilation are crucial during the process. Since nitrification generates significant heat, test the container in ice water. Remember—sudden temperature changes, vibrations, impacts, or friction could cause an explosion." Roland doubted the amateur knowledge's reliability, but the composition was undoubtedly correct. "Even if dangerous, it must be tried." "A small amount of acid suffices for testing. If an accident occurs, Miss Nana Wa can save you." "This..." Chamis opened his mouth but Kaimo agreed immediately. "I understand. How does it compare to snow powder?" "Far inferior." "A fascinating experiment," the Chief Alchemist chuckled.
Nine out of ten chemists are potential explosion art enthusiasts—that's true, Roland thought.
Nitroglycerin is highly unstable. Nobel's safety explosive achieved this by adding diatomaceous earth to deactivate the ester, which improved safety but reduced explosive power. Roland, however, would never choose this conventional method. Instead, he proposed adding nitrocellulose or nitrocellulose starch to nitroglycerin—both stabilizers that could further enhance explosive effects. The former serves as an excellent smokeless propellant, while the latter acts as a high-explosive explosive. As their names suggest, nitric acid was the key catalyst that transformed black powder into chemical gunpowder.
And he now has the key.