Chapter 25.1 – The Demons’ Dilemma

"You damn dragon, what the hell were you thinking!?" (Mizuki)

I'm standing in front of Nina, berating her for her thoughtless actions. She looks somewhat timid compared to normal, but not exactly apologetic.

"B-But Mizuki, I had to, don't you see how important this is!" (Nina)

She gestures to our surroundings – a huge natural hot spring. It's situated high on a mountain, deep in the western region of the Elven Kingdom, and is sparsely surrounded by trees on all sides. Through the trees on one side, you can see off the southern edge of the mountain to the expansive valley below.

The location is remote, and I can't see any evidence of villages or cities near the mountain. I won't deny that it's beautiful, but…

"That's not what I'd call this! At the very least, it wasn't urgent, and your message suggested that it was! I thought your life was in danger, Nina. Your message didn't need to scare me! Why not say, 'Mizuki, I made the most remarkable discovery, please come see me in the next few minutes', or something similarly less alarming!?" (Mizuki)

Probably also sensing my emotions through our connection, Nina starts to look a little guilty. She walks forward and kisses me quickly with an apologetic glance.

"Okay, you may have a point…I'm sorry. I was just excited. I haven't ever found a hot spring this nice and private! Baths are fun, but I miss this. Still, you're right that I worried you too much. How about I make it up to you…in this hot spring?" (Nina)

Nina gives me a suggestive smile and runs her finger around my chest. I sigh deeply…she's not exactly complicated, is she? I give her a smile that communicates my annoyance as well as my forgiveness.

"That sounds nice, but you don't have enough daylight to spare, and I promised Alto we'd spend the afternoon together with research. I know the location now, so how about I bring us both back here tonight? I have a lot to catch you up on, and afterwards I'll take you up on your offer. Sound fair?" (Mizuki)

Nina makes a pouting face, but it seems to be for show. After a moment, she nods with a sweet smile.

"Great, thanks. I'll leave you to it then, I'm heading back to Alto!" (Mizuki)

Without another word to Nina, I teleport back to the library with Alto. I've been gone probably five or ten minutes at this point. Seeing me, she looks up from a book with relief.

"Mizuki! What happened? You just disappeared on me!" (Alto)

"Yeah, sorry about that, you can blame Nina. She's on a reconnaissance mission to the demon continent. She sent me a message so urgent that I thought Veyron had confronted her and her life was in danger. Turns out that damn dragon just wanted to show me a hot spring she found on the way." (Mizuki)

Alto stares at me blankly for several moments, the hangs her head and sighs.

"Well, I guess we better get used to her whimsical nature, since we'll both be stuck with her as long as Azura exists. By the way, this is the first I'm hearing about her going to the demon continent. Why'd you send her there?" (Alto)

"Just so I could teleport and not have to fly there myself, but I worded it kindlier to her. She's to call me immediately when she arrives on the coast, so I can go retrieve her. Tomorrow, I want to survey the demon's forces and maybe find out why they're doing all this. Naturally, I'll turn us invisible, so we don't attract attention." (Mizuki)

"Hmm…do you mind if I come?" (Alto)

I shake my head at her apologetically.

"Sorry, but there is an Elder Dragon and an entire army waiting for us – as much of an asset as I think you'd be, there are too many unknowns and powerful beings at play. I think it's an excessive risk to your life for this first trip, but maybe on a later one you can come with us. How's that?" (Mizuki)

"Okay, that seems like a fair enough reason." (Alto)

"Thanks, then let's finally get started. Did you decide what you want to start with in our research?" (Mizuki)

Alto smiles and then nods at me, amused.

"Yes, I did. The other day, you told me about atoms, but said that there was a lot you left out and it was related to why heating up wood creates a self-sustaining fire but heating up water doesn't create self-sustaining steam. Could you explain all this now?" (Alto)

"Sure, but this will take a while. We have to cover several concepts. Let's get started!" (Mizuki)

I spend the next hour or two discussing the related science with Alto. We discuss the basic structure of an atom, protons, neutrons, and electrons, and how their arrangements in an atom determine the element and its interactions with other atoms.

I also explain how electron clouds can overlap like puzzle pieces between atoms to form covalent bonds, and when multiple atoms are covalently bonded it's called a molecule. Finally, I explain noncovalent bonds, and how they're less stable attractions between atoms and molecules.

"Okay, I think I understand the difference. So, what does that have to do with my question about heating wood versus water?" (Alto)

"Well, water turning into steam is what's called a physical change, where you are only disrupting noncovalent bonds. The types of molecules in steam are the same as in water, they're just heated so much that they aren't held as close together anymore. When you heat wood in a fire, the heat also makes it possible to break covalent bonds. This fundamentally changes the types of molecules in the wood, and that is called a chemical change." (Mizuki)

Alto seems to think that over.

"So, does that mean that breaking noncovalent bonds doesn't release heat, but breaking covalent bonds does?" (Alto)

"No, not exactly. Breaking bonds between atoms or molecules doesn't release energy, it uses it instead. Forming new bonds between atoms, however, can release energy that makes things heat up. In the case of wood fire, the initial heating breaks covalent bonds in the wood to produce new molecules, which then form new covalent bonds with the air molecules, and that releases energy that heats up other wood molecules to repeat the process." (Mizuki)

"Then, the reason heating up water doesn't release more heat is because only noncovalent bonds are broken, which means no new molecules, and no new types of covalent bonds being able to form to release the energy that heats up things?" (Alto)

She really is sharp. She would have done well as a STEM student on Earth. I nod at her approvingly, and she seems to beam with pride. However, then she turns kind of annoyed.

"Mizuki, all that does is raise more questions though!" (Alto)

I laugh out loud at her, and when I get myself under control eventually, I respond.

"That's exactly right, Alto, and that will always be the case. Eventually, though, I won't have answers to the questions that you ask. At that point, we'll become true research partners, and we'll have to start devising experiments to answer our own questions! It will be hard, and take lots of time, but we'll never get bored. So, do you see why Azazel has lived for so long but still feels curious about everything?" (Mizuki)

Alto gives me an expression that's somewhat difficult to interpret, but it feels like she's simultaneously frustrated by the scope of the unknown, and excited that she has so much to do with her long life.

"Yes, Mizuki, I do. There's so much! It took you hours just to explain the reasons for a basic observation about the natural world! That was even when you already knew everything from your home world. What if we had to figure out all those things ourselves!? Would it have taken days? Weeks? Years? That's absurd!" (Alto)

I direct a shit-eating grin at her and nod.

"Yes, Alto, what I just explained to you is knowledge acquired over centuries on my home planet, and it involved many people working together to understand it. Countless years of careful trial and error, experiments and observations, and setbacks and breakthroughs. All of that, just so I could answer your basic question. We truly have our work cut out for us! So, are you disappointed or excited?" (Mizuki)

Alto sighs at first, but then she smirks back at me.

"Do you even need me to answer that?" (Alto)

"Fufufu…no, no I don't." (Mizuki)