"Oh, it mostly by luck to be honest," Mina calmly reply.
As I travel to the Duchy, I find myself lost in a forest. In it, I find a cave with some scriptures and old books. I read it, and too my surprise, it is a treasure trove of alchemical knowledge.
As someone who dabble in alchemy, with intention to further my study in the capital, I decide to learn all I could. Unfortunately, the owner of the book came and immediately attacked me.
I would have die if not for him," Mina pointed at Alros, who merely nodded.
"Then, we struck a partnership," 'I leech of him, in return for my body,' "And the rest is history," the Duke nodded, seemingly fascinated by the story.
"I see," he said. "In that case, do you bring the books with you," Mina shook her head, "I thought this is a place to relax and talk about alchemy, not asking for secrets of others," she said bluntly, causing the Duke to wince.
"I apologize, but as a newcomer, you must never heard of witches before," the man said.
"Witches?" Mina exclaimed, the word seem foreign to her. "What is that?" she asked.
"Well, you must heard of my speech of how my family destroyed the witches,"
'Destroy, more like killing the strong one and capture the weaker one to use them as sex slaves,' she thought as she nodded.
"Well, the person you killed is a witch, and you manage to obtain something from her. If it is true, then I would like to buy the book for 100 000 gold coins," the massive amount almost cause Mina to chock on her throat, but she was able to control herself.
"If that is the case, then, I will accept," the Duke nodded before giving her a piece of paper, "This is the planned meeting place. Come see me by tomorrow," he told her, earning a nod from the alchemist, though inwardly she sneered.
'Not like I will be here by tomorrow,' she thought as the man soon gave his parting words, "Enjoy the Gala,"
"I sure will," 'especially the part where this place will burn,' she did not spoke of such plan, obviously.
-x-
As they walked towards the refreshment table, they could feel something buzzing in their pockets. Alros touch it and send his mana into it, connecting him to the other witches.
'So, is there any compilation on your part?' Alros could understand their worry. After all, they will be in the den of the enemies, disguising themselves as a duo of alchemist and guard.
'No, so far that is. The plan will proceed as usual,' wait until midnight, when the people start to get drunk, that is the plan that could change depending on how the Gala is.
'Understood,' the voice disconnected, as both Alros and Mina looked around, disguising it as searching for acquaintance. When they see no one jumped towards them yet, they let a hidden sigh of relief.
The usage of communication magic tools, or spells could be detected if there is no way to keep it secret. And considering them being inside the Palace, their worry is that there is a way to track down communication magic.
-x-
"Zero," Alros said, as his eyes turned towards the moon, before snapping his finger.
Instantly, he and Mina submerged into the darkness, while the area around them exploded, flames soon consuming the park they were in before.
-x-
All around the palace, explosion after explosion occur, causing what is once a happy and festive event to devolve into panic.
The laughter soon turned to screams as the people screamed and ran away, causing a stampede to occur. Some of them even find themselves falling to the ground before getting step on by the fearful crowd.
The Duke tried to rein in the crowd, attempting to stop them, but the constant explosion made it hard for even the ruler of the Duchy to control them.
"Go to the palace and remain there," he told his wives and daughters.
"I'll control the crowd and then I will find the one who cause this havoc," he said in a dark tone, one of his retainer already handed him his sword.
Seeing this, the women of the Noble Family nodded as they quickly left the chaotic hall, unaware of the bad decision they had just made.
-x-
The castle is not the only places that suffer the explosion, as all over the capital city, explosion after explosion tore through the buildings, sending the sleeping citizens into panic and fear.
As for the cause of the explosions, they watch everything with the glee of a child in a candy store.
"Let's get going," hearing the orders, the witches' smiles widened as they soon descend into the chaotic streets, their targets being the few large buildings belonging the slave traders.
-x-
Outside the capitals, the slave traders continue to relax, unaware of the danger that is coming their way in the form of angry witches.
"We have the signal, it's time to move,"
-x-
Furim City is calm. Despite being the closest settlement to the Hexun Cavern, the monsters inside rarely take the initiative to attack.
However, at the bowel of the earth, mass gathering of monsters began to emerge, ready to destroy the city under their might.