Ask Victoria to teach me

"Victoria, what would you teach him?" Doreen asks. "You mentioned handling chemicals, but I don't see how that pertains to self-defence."

"Actually, there's more to it than you might think, Gray." Victoria says this with a confident, yet humble, smile.

After breakfast, Victoria and I head out into the forest near the mansion. "Fine, this is far enough."

"Victoria, did we really need to come all the way out here for a chemistry lesson?" I ask.

"Yes. The chemicals we'll be using have combat potential." She opens a case she brought with her from the mansion and takes out a small glass tube. "My need for being able to defend myself arose when I had to run from the law. That's when I made a few dangerous concoctions." Dangerous concoctions. I remember when I first met Victoria. She's probably talking about those tubes that explode, or create bursts of light and sound. "Some of them are non-lethal, but others are quite capable of ending someone's life. I thought I might give you some at some point."

"Which are you holding now?"

"This is just an example for today. I'll let you have the real thing when we get back to the mansion."

"All right. Which should I use?"

"Oh, hold on. They can all be dangerous in the wrong circumstances, so we have to exhibit proper safety precautions." Victoria holds me a single glass tube. "This is going to be a liquid explosive. There are two layers of glass, and each one holds a different solution. When the glass breaks, say by throwing it on the ground, the solutions mix, causing a rapid chemical reaction, like so..." Victoria suddenly throws it against a tree.

The moment the tube strikes the tree, a small explosion bursts forth.

"Oh!" I say.

"Just like that. Even the slightest impact causes it to explode." Victoria says.

"Amazing. Did you make this?"

"Haha, yes. I am an alchemist, after all. I wouldn't be any good at it if I didn't know basic reactions." Victoria says. "I really shouldn't be abusing my knowledge of alchemy for something like this but **** times call for **** measures."

"Am I going to do using the exploding ones?"

"No, that might be a little too dangerous. Maybe something a little more mild. Hm... Huh? It's not here." Victoria rifles through her case for a moment, then smirks in disappointment. "Ah. Heh, it seems I've forgotten it. It's all right, though, I can still do something. Sit tight. I can easily create more from a mixture of this solution with that from the other test tube. The composition's much the same." Victoria mutters something that is probably scientific, and begins working on something in her case.

I take a peek at her face.

Her usual kind expression takes a back seat to seriousness as she swirls the glass tube.

I'm a bit enraptured by her demeanour. I grow a little embarrassed and look away.

There is another large tube at her side, with a note attached to it. [Do not open! Danger! Not even to find out why! This is serious!]

I guess she doesn't want it opened.

Strangely, the repeated warnings about it somehow compel me to want to open it. It might even be some kind of trick to make people open it.