From Hogwarts to Strixhaven.

Chapter 503 The Devil and Fireworks

“…I suddenly realized why Gortash sold me to Zariel—it was because of the Infernal Engine, wasn’t it?” Karak glared at the Iron Guardian.

This time, however, the Steel Guardian did not answer her question. Instead, it repeated, "This is an outdated model. To ensure the safety of other citizens and their property, please go to the Steel Guardian foundry for dismantling immediately."

"This is infuriating." As she said this, a crackling sound, like the popping of burning bamboo, rang out beside Karak.

"Get it out of the way, Karak. It's unwise to start a conflict now." Ivy's voice rang in Karak's ears, but when she turned around, she didn't see anyone.

“It’s the Disillusionment Charm. A kind of magic… just think of it as an invisibility spell,” Ivy explained.

“OK…” Karak waved to the Iron Guardian, “I’ll report to that foundry, you can continue patrolling, soldier?”

Having received Karak's affirmative reply, the Steel Guardian said no more and strode towards the end of the street.

After the Iron Guardian's figure completely disappeared, the air around Karak seemed to have been splashed with paint, gradually revealing the figures of Ivy and the other adventurers.

The Disillusionary Charm is indeed very convenient, but that's only when you stay still. Even if Ivy's spellcasting skills are superb, it's still a bit difficult to instantly envelop all her teammates with the Disillusionary Charm.

"You said before that Gotash traded you to Zariel for the Purgatory Engine?" Ivy was somewhat skeptical of this claim. "Ten years is too long for a plan, isn't it? Just thinking about it makes me feel that there are many variables involved."

“I can’t think of a better reason.” Karak snorted, the thought of selling herself to the devil making the hellish engine in her chest run even faster. “Gotash is a villain, but he’s also a shrewd man. I don’t believe he didn’t get anything out of that deal.”

“I’m not denying that, I’m just guessing that the deal between Gotash and Zariel might not be as simple as just you and the Infernal Engine, but I’m also skeptical that they started planning for the Supreme God ten years ago.” Ivy continued along the road, pondering the details of the deal between Gotash and Zariel.

“But one thing is certain: Gotash has long been in cahoots with the devils of hell.” Ivy sighed. “They really are everywhere, visitors from hell.”

From arriving at Sword Coast to entering Baldur's Gate, Ivy found that the elements of hell around her were increasing, as if the devil was the troublemaker of this world, and could be used wherever there was darkness.

The Astral Prism, which imprisoned the Comet Prince, implicated Tiamat, the former Grand Duke of Avernus and Queen of the Five-Headed Dragons, and Mephisto, the Lord of Kania. Mephisto's treasury, in turn, revealed the plans of the Supreme God and his own eldest son, Raphael.

The Chosen of the Three Gods, who completed the Supreme God's plan, also had murky ties with the forces of the Nine Hells. Large quantities of Hell Iron were forged into weapons at Baldur's Gate and distributed to various regions through smuggling channels. Even the Iron Guardians patrolling the streets, giving citizens false hope, were assembled using technology from the current Grand Duchess Zariel of Avernus.

Meanwhile, Mephisto also prepared a plan to ascend to vampire status, which he entrusted to the vampire families within Baldur's Gate to raise, while his own eldest son implied that he hoped the plan would fail.

As for Raphael's plan to obtain the Crown of Calathes through contracts with adventurers, it nearly failed due to a lurking demon. The Hammer of Orpheus, the core of the deal, was even leaked to the Red Dragon Centurion of the Githyanki by someone unknown, leaving Raphael completely powerless against the adventurers.

Although he is a great devil hiding in the shadows, Ivy is at least certain that he is connected to that sorcerer's shop and the devil's tip.

Zariel herself also suffered a similar fate. Salamara Van Sampur, who carried out her important plans, died, and the family's prestige was greatly diminished. Will Ravengard, who held an equal position, was already halfway to freedom because the patriarch himself was in danger. As the Van Sampur family's successor, the plans for Will Ravengard were almost over before they even began.

"Baldur's Gate, what a sieve-like city..."

Normally, the correct solution to a chaotic situation would be to act swiftly or overturn the table, but in the world of Forgotten Realms, where powerful figures stand overhead, this option is effectively banned.

“Considering that the Iron Guardians are powered by Hellfire Engines, I understand why Gortash distributed Hellfire weapons to the underworld of Baldur's Gate and the surrounding towns.” Ivy’s voice was soft, but it clearly reached the ears of every teammate. “The souls killed by Hellfire weapons go to Hell; this characteristic is Gortash’s purpose. Unlike the prototypes that consumed Karak’s own power to maintain the Hellfire, the Hellfire Engines on these Iron Guardians should be directly powered by Soul Coins.”

Karak's Infernal Engine could also use Soul Coins as fuel, but using it that way would completely destroy the soul within the coin, making it an utterly evil act.

While it could provide Karak with a terrifying boost, it would also plunge this kind-hearted older sister into an inescapable abyss.

"I've put in a lot of effort to solve the power problem for the Shadow Slayers. Gotash doesn't have the technology for the Whisperflower anti-magic engine, and there aren't any super-large power supply devices in Baldur's Gate, so the only way to drive these Iron Guardians is to use souls as fuel."

"The process is roughly this: souls are sent to Hell using Hellfire weapons, processed into fuel there, and then fed back to the Iron Guardians," Ivy asked. "Does anyone know how Soul Coins are forged?"

“Mammon, the devil duke of Minaulos,” Gale replied. “He is the financier of Hell, and all the soul coins are forged in his furnace, making him the richest devil duke in the Nine Hells.”

“A financier? That identity perfectly matches my suspicions.” Ivy raised an eyebrow. “The one who supplied Hellfire Iron to Gortash was most likely this Demon Grand Duke. No wonder Gortash was so determined to become the Grand Duke of Baldur’s Gate. It turns out that for him, relying on the Iron Guardians to achieve tyranny was never a truly legitimate path. Having raw materials and power sources controlled by his allies was also something he couldn’t tolerate. So until he truly finds a solution, he can’t expand the Iron Guardians’ production capacity any further.”

"The chosen ones of the Three Gods of Death, the mastermind hidden underground—even if a great demon suddenly appears out of nowhere, I won't be surprised anymore," the evil thought grumbled.

"Holy crap! Fireworks!"

Judging from Karak's excited voice, it's easy to guess that the adventurers have arrived at the Frogel fireworks shop.

The fireworks shop near the Wizardry Square is a four-story building with an entrance on each of the two streets with different elevations. However, since the signboard is on the upper street, the lower part should be considered the basement.

Children's exclamations kept coming from inside. In addition to all kinds of tobacco products, there were fully armed guards standing in various parts of the store.

Since the interior space of the fireworks shop wasn't very large, the adventurers didn't squeeze in completely. Instead, they stood scattered around the perimeter of the shop. Apart from the harpist Jashira and the lock-picking expert Evil Thought, only Ivy, who had cast an invisibility spell on herself, entered the shop.

Karak stood expectantly in the doorway, behind her her vampire form squinting and basking in the last rays of sunlight: "Calm down, Karak. If you get excited, you'll blow the whole building to bits!" Karak nodded in agreement, then whispered, "(Oh my god! Fireworks!)"

"much better."

Karak sought empathy from her teammates, but only noticed Minsk's pouting expression: "Don't you like fireworks, Minsk?"

“Pah. Those things are too colorful. Although Little Bu says they remind him of home, Minsk has never liked these fancy fireworks.” Minsk dismissed these children’s tricks with disdain.

“Perhaps they have their own uses.” Halsin stood by the window, looking at the boxes of fireworks piled up on the first floor of the shop. “For example, they can let you throw a certain kind of fireball, and you don’t have to spend years studying magic books.”

Minsk froze in shock: "...High Druid, your muscles are as terrifying as your brain. We should collect those sparklers, Little B! With a sword in one hand and those things in the other, we won't have to follow mages around like idiots!"

“If learning magic is just about throwing fireballs, then you might as well not learn it at all.” Gale shook his head disapprovingly. “At least you should know how to extinguish fireballs thrown by your enemies, right?”

“That makes sense!” Minsk and Little Bush pressed their faces against the window, peering intently into the fireworks shop. “Which kind of sparkler can extinguish a fireball?”

"Oh, I admit you stumped me."

Evil Thoughts emerged from the fireworks shop and beckoned his teammates to follow him.

Away from the guards in the shop, Xie Nian shared what he had seen and heard: "It was full of smoke powder barrels, and all sorts of raw materials for making smoke powder! Ivy said that Gotash was planning to transport explosives to three places, in addition to the High Palace in the Upper City and the Steel Guardian Foundry, there was also a place called the Steel Throne."

As soon as Jasira entered the store, she recited the code she had received from the Livington toy merchant to the guard, and was thus invited to the second floor.

The first floor of the fireworks shop sells ordinary fireworks, while those who enter the second floor through a heavy metal door are allowed to purchase powerful and pure explosives. The third floor is a workshop used to manufacture smoke powder.

Evil disguised himself as an ordinary customer and chatted with the owner on the first floor, while Jasila was invited to the second floor, and the invisible Ivy went to the third floor without any hindrance.

He found the documents related to the delivery of tobacco powder on a workbench on the third floor.

"The Iron Throne? The old stronghold of Salofak a hundred years ago! Wasn't it sunk into the Grey Harbor?" Old Bodman Will had heard of this place.

"Clearly, it's been activated again because of Gotash's secret scheme," Karak said dismissively. "Should I set this place on fire? Or just give it a spark?"

"Karak!" Shadowheart stopped Karak from speaking recklessly. "There are children inside! We should take them out first!"

“You’re right!” Karak looked up and glanced around again. “When do we make our move? After Ivy comes out?”

“Besides the fireworks on the first floor, Ivy said there weren’t any large quantities of smoke and powder canisters on the second and third floors. Plus, I saw the basement door, so Gotash’s lackeys must have hidden all the smoke and powder underground.” Evil thought smiled slyly. “Remember how we collapsed the temple that was occupied by goblins?”

"Won't we be discovered?" Gale asked with some doubt.

“You’re the mage, Gale! It’s your job to keep us from being discovered!” Evil Thought retorted, glaring at her.

"Okay, okay, I'll think of something." Gale glanced at the bustling street and tried to recall the guards he had seen through the window. Their clothes were mostly gray and black, which made them relatively easy to disguise.

"I only need to disguise myself for a short while..." Gale quickly made a few hand gestures, along with the incantation he was muttering, and soon he transformed himself into the appearance of a guard.

“It’s too wasteful to burn that smoke powder here. We should find a better place to detonate it,” Minsara suggested. “How about Baal’s murder court? Or Qazador’s palace?”

“There’s a caravan over there; maybe we can borrow it,” Asderon said, pointing to an empty box at the end of the street.

With Baldur's Gate locked down, many caravan owners stranded in the city have gone bankrupt. Apart from a few criminal groups that still have channels to transport goods, most individual business owners and small merchants are struggling. Empty caravans like these are a common sight in the lower city of Baldur's Gate.

Gale continued to cast disguise spells on her companions, turning them one by one into the gray-clad guards.

"Open the basement door, remove the smoke and powder, and then we retreat. It's that simple." After confirming the plan one last time, the adventurers quickly got to work.

The caravan being pulled by the Archdruid in Wild Form was quickly spotted by the guards on the third floor, but they did not suspect anything because of the identical uniforms they wore.

"Do you need help opening the door?" the guard on the third floor waved and gestured.

“We have the key!” Gale waved, and at the same time, the evil thought that was near the exit of the basement opened the door to the smoke and powder storage room in just two seconds.

Now the guards standing on the third-floor pulley elevator had even less reason to suspect anything.

(End of this chapter)