Thermos Battle

Translator: Cinder Translations

...

Looking at the heavily guarded gates of the lord's manor, the former alchemist Wells hesitated in the open space ahead, causing the guard on duty to cast a suspicious glance at him.

In the end, he straightened his clothes and walked toward the gate with a stern expression.

Wells now held two roles: a chemistry professor at Weis Academy (a title invented by Lord Grayman) and the head of the chemistry laboratory (the other head is Hoffman, who is slightly older and also an alchemist from Crystal Glare). According to Earl Grayman's past behavior, he belonged to the category of "senior talents" who received special treatment from the Earl and were treated with great respect. Wells was also the type to speak his mind, always straightforward in front of the lord.

However, this time, although he came with determination, he hesitated at the last moment, feeling uncertain and even afraid.

Wells wanted to discuss the matter Paul had mentioned, which was related to Alden's rebellion that had occurred not long ago. Undoubtedly, this was a very sensitive topic. While Paul Grayman usually joked and laughed with everyone, and a harmless joke with him wouldn't matter, he was, after all, a lord, a ruler. When it came to the core matters of power—especially those targeting his authority and even his life—he could quickly turn hostile.

Wells understood that his request might anger the lord.

He was pleased that Paul managed to quell the rebellion, as he had never encountered a lord who supported alchemy or chemistry as much as Paul did. When the rumors spread about the lord being harmed, he felt sorrowful; on one hand, he was worried for the Paul who appreciated him, and on the other hand, he wondered whether the next lord would be willing to fund the chemistry laboratory.

However, some matters still needed to be addressed, even if it meant offending the lord.

Wells handed his pass—new measures following the rebellion—to the guard who came to inspect him, and after a search, he entered the castle gate.

...

"Ah, my dear Wells, you're just in time."

As Wells pushed the door open, a familiar voice called out; it was Paul.

Wells did not meet Paul in the lord's office but was instead led to the lord's workshop, or laboratory. This did not surprise Wells, as everyone knew that Earl Paul Grayman was an inventor. In addition to fulfilling his daily duties as a lord, he often tinkered with all sorts of strange gadgets in his so-called workshop. Whenever someone visited at that time, Paul would call them to the workshop to show off his latest inventions.

Wells also unexpectedly saw another person in the workshop—Guy Burns, the supervisor of the machinery factory, a frequent visitor who often discussed mechanical issues with the lord.

Wells had complex feelings about this person. On one hand, they were both outstanding figures in their respective fields, earning mutual respect. On the other hand, the machinery factory and the chemistry laboratory were both huge financial drains, fierce competitors for funding.

After greeting Paul, Wells exchanged pleasantries with Burns.

"Lord Grayman, I have come to..." Wells nervously tried to express his request.

"Oh, please let me speak first... or rather, watch me," Paul interrupted him, excitement evident on his face.

Wells looked at the table in front of Lord Wells. On it sat a large glass bottle, distinct from ordinary glass bottles as its body seemed to consist of two layers of glass.

Wells asked, "What is this...?"

Paul replied, "Ha! This is my newly designed thermos."

Wells responded, "A thermos?"

"Yes, a thermos." Paul explained: "You see, after years of effort, our New Life Movement has popularized a new drinking method across various towns—drinking boiled water. However, not every household has the funds to purchase fuel during non-winter months. Therefore, we set up places in major towns where people can pay a few coppers to buy boiled water to take home. But unfortunately, the boiled water cools down quickly, and the current insulation technology—wrapping the container with cotton or fur—is quite limited in effectiveness. Thus, I designed this new insulation technology, which is this thermos."

Paul pointed to the double-walled glass bottle.

Wells stared at it for a moment and curiously asked, "What's the reason for making the bottle like this? What mechanism allows it to keep the heat?"

"From our daily experiences, we know that 'heat' can be transferred. For instance, if you stand near a flame, you can feel the heat. Furthermore, if you place a cup of ice water next to a cup of boiled water, after some time, the ice water will warm up, and the boiled water won't be as hot. What does this indicate? I deduce that 'heat' flows like water, moving from high places to low, while heat moves from hotter areas to cooler areas—of course, without any other interference."

Paul didn't elaborate much on "without any other interference" and continued: "So, where does the heat in the boiled water... let's rephrase it—thermal energy—transfer to?"

Wells replied, "To the container holding the boiled water?"

"Oh! That is inevitable," Paul said. "But eventually, the container cools down, so the heat didn't remain there in the end."

Wells looked at Burns, who merely smiled at him.

Wells thought again, "The air? Because the space near the boiled water becomes warmer."

"Haha! Exactly what I was thinking!" Paul exclaimed joyfully. "Yes, the air. The air near the boiled water receives heat and continues to transfer it to the farther, cooler air. Eventually, both the water and the surrounding air cool down; it all makes perfect sense."

"So, I think, if there is no medium near the boiled water—meaning no objects that can carry heat, including the air—would the boiled water not cool down?"

"That means..." Wells looked at the strange water bottle, which was constructed of two layers of glass, with a small hole in the outer layer leading to the gap between the two layers of glass. He began to understand what the lord intended to do.

"Yes, I plan to create a vacuum layer by extracting the air between these two layers of glass."

Wells asked, "A vacuum?"

Paul nodded, "A space where even the air is absent, a void... well, at least a space that contains none of the things we can currently see or perceive."

The lord always added some incomprehensible explanations when discussing certain topics, which Wells had grown accustomed to.

"Without a medium for heat transfer, the thermal energy should stay with the water inside the bottle and the inner glass wall—this is my conclusion. Of course, there will still be a bit of a medium; after all, we can't keep these two layers of glass completely separate, but I guess it would be like how water flows faster through a wide pipe than a narrow one. As long as the medium is less, heat loss will be slower, and cooling will also be slower. So..."

Paul pointed to another object on the workbench—a machine Wells had never seen before.

"I commissioned Guy to make a device—a vacuum pump."

Guy Burns proudly puffed out his chest beside him.

(End of the Chapter)

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