There was no adventure on the third day.
No forest, no wind atop the trees, no laughter.
Only a laboratory table, faint sunlight filtering in, and three bowed heads studying the same notes.
Olivia's father opened his thick leather-bound book.
On the center page lay a formula that looked terrifying—not because of its complexity, but because of the title above it:
"Perfect Combustion Formula – Variant H3"
I reread the line, a chill creeping down my spine.
"This is… some kind of bomb?"
Olivia's father didn't look up.
"Not just any bomb. It's a weapon designed to work within a certain radius—seeps into the ground, corrodes metal, shatters stone… and only ignites in the presence of living matter."
I fell silent.
Olivia whispered,
"Father said this bomb could stop the nobles who are evicting villagers from their homes."
Her mother sat nearby, arms folded.
"But only if it's used correctly."
We began with the ingredients.
Olivia's father unlocked a steel cabinet in the corner, releasing a wave of sharp spices and strange chemical scents that filled the room. Dozens of glass bottles, leather pouches of mysterious powders, and vibrantly colored liquids lined the shelves like a collection of sacred relics.
I stood there, frozen in awe.
"Woaahhh… Where did you get all these amazing materials, Uncle?" I asked, stepping closer, eyes fixed on a thick purple liquid that glowed faintly from within its flask.
Olivia's father glanced at me and gave a thin smile—the smile of a man carrying too many secrets.
Olivia giggled and answered,
"Ah, I never told you, did I? Father collected all these materials piece by piece from the nobles' laboratories. Isn't that right, Dad?"
"Indeed, my dear," he replied calmly.
"For years, I worked in secret there as head of herbal research, always knowing that one day, these ingredients would be of greater use in the right hands."
He gently tapped a glass bottle in front of him.
"Perhaps the two of you will become great doctors who use these ingredients to create the final formula…"
"Create the formula?" Olivia immediately reacted, rolling her eyes and looking at her father with mild dread.
"Ugh… I don't like writing formulas, Dad…"
I chuckled and offered,
"That's fine, Olivia. I'll be the one to write the formula. You'll be the one to mix it."
She turned to me, eyes sparkling.
"Really? That would be amazing. I can't wait to grow up…"
Before I could answer, her mother's voice floated in from the workbench.
"Grow up? Do you really think adulthood is that fun?" she said with a soft laugh.
"Olivia, my dear… not everything you want will go your way."
She stood and rolled up her sleeves.
"Come on, let's continue this adult experiment."
Olivia, her excitement returning, nodded eagerly.
"All right. Let's create this mixture."
Olivia's father rose and immediately began gathering the ingredients per the formula: northern dew extract, swamp sulfur, and fire-earth essence from the Eris mountains. The mixture turned a cloudy gray. A faint vibration ran through the bowl as it was stirred.
But once heated, the liquid solidified—like stone.
Failure.