Bruno pulled a bunch of lockpicks from his pocket and began working on the lock. The mechanism proved to be more complex than the majority of padlocks he had encountered. It rivaled some of the upper-shelf ones in intricacy, reigning as the most challenging mechanism he had ever attempted to crack.

He worked diligently, his hands growing sweaty with nervousness. Time was of the essence, as the unconscious maid behind him would soon awaken, and there was still much left to accomplish. Suddenly, one of his tools snapped.

"Shit," he hissed in frustration.

A portion of the broken metal piece remained lodged in the lock, requiring a brief struggle before he managed to remove it. With that obstacle overcome, he could start anew.

With a better understanding of the mechanism, his movements became smoother, and before long, he heard the satisfying click that signaled the door's unlocking. He pushed the handle and revealed a familiar interior. Glancing briefly at the room, he swiftly retraced his steps back to his alchemy laboratory.

His first task was to gather the necessary tools for starting a fire, along with a bottle of highly flammable liquid, which he carefully stowed in his pocket. Next, he quickly grabbed a few items from the table. With great care, he combined a few pre-prepared reagents, blending them with the final ingredients inside the largest flask at his disposal. The vessel brimmed with liquid, but he gingerly picked it up and carried it to the old man's office, placing it beneath the left wall.

The final step involved tearing a piece of his clothing. He generously doused it with the flammable liquid before inserting one end into the flask. With a steady hand, he ignited the other end. There remained only a fleeting moment before the flames would reach the mixture inside the flask. Bruno swiftly gathered his belongings and hurried out of the room, venturing deep into the corridor. Then, with a defining explosion, the entire estate trembled as dust rained down from the ceiling.

"The young miner Frank, swung his pickaxe, clang, clang, clang. The little boy, all he wanted was to destroy! The rock that was on his path, all that to avoid the father's wrath. Because you know, he actually was the one to block the path down below. He sealed the family mine by himself, oh that young rascal, naughty elf. When Papa found out, he got angry, no doubt. He scolded the young Frank, and the boy standing right there just shrunk. The father fixed the problem as the parents do, so kids remember to never try to hide the truth," he began reciting under his breath, attempting to distract his mind from the thoughts he shouldn’t indulge himself in.

There was no way the other residents of the estate and people living nearby in the city didn't hear the deafening explosion, so the young alchemist had to act swiftly.

He sprinted all the way back to the room, where a thick cloud of dust obscured his vision. With his shirt sleeve covering his mouth, he squinted to protect his eyes from the swirling particles. Amidst the chaos, he could make out the outlines of furniture forcefully pushed away from the epicenter of the blast. Some wooden pieces were engulfed in flames, casting an eerie orange glow.

Ignoring the chaos around him, he forged ahead toward the spot where he had planted the bomb. At first, it seemed indistinguishable from the rubble scattered on the floor, but upon closer inspection, he noticed a sizable chunk missing from the wall.

His heart skipped a beat as the fear of the explosion not reaching the laboratory crossed his mind. Yet, he spotted a darker area amidst the gray haze caused by the airborne dust. Determined, he took out unnecessary items from his pockets, then dropped to all fours and began crawling through the hole. It was a tight fit, but there was no room for a second attempt, and surrender was not an option.

Gritting his teeth and pushing with all his might, he managed to squeeze his upper body fully through the opening. From that point onward, it became easier to maneuver. The dimly lit laboratory had sustained some damage, but his limited perspective made it difficult to assess the extent. Swiftly getting back on his feet, he pushed his way through a wall of toppled blackboards.

The familiar crystals arranged on tall candelabras provided enough illumination for Bruno to confirm that the laboratory, for the most part, remained intact. A few items had been knocked off the tables, but overall, it was relatively undisturbed. His attention immediately turned to the five towering, pitch-black pillars reaching towards the ceiling, with a shimmering energy field spanning between them, encircling the metal stretcher at the center.

Without hesitation, he made his way toward the barrier and crossed through it. Instantly, he felt a shift in the atmosphere. Moving his hand around his collar, he confirmed that the link between the item and the massive crystal had been severed. Now, all he needed to do was remove it.

Taking out some of the lockpicks from his pocket, he began working on the surprisingly simple lock. The thought crossed his mind that the creator of the collar probably never anticipated anyone being able to remove it due to the cursed magic. Within moments, the collar fell to the ground.

Bruno hurriedly rushed back to the hole in the wall, but after a few steps, he froze as his gaze fell upon the massive stone pulsating with energy. Metal collars dangled from its sharp tips, and he couldn't fathom leaving it there without attempting to destroy it.

Seizing the nearest candelabrum, he charged at the crystal, swinging with all his might. The metal collided with the precious stone, leaving a visible crack, but it held its ground. The boy dropped the piece of metal, knowing there was no time for further efforts. However, before he returned to the hole in the wall, he noticed the pulsations of the crystal intensifying.

‘That won't end well,’ he thought, before dropping to all fours and crawling to the other side. Just like before, it was a struggle to squeeze through, enduring the pain with gritted teeth. Meanwhile, faint sounds of movement and distant voices from the underground corridors reached his ears.

Finally emerging on the other side, he stood back on his feet, certain that others had joined him in the basement of the estate. Retrieving the dropped items, he knew he would still need them. A moment of careful listening confirmed that they were the maids of Mamun.