"Don't interrupt him. Many times, the truth is hidden in the most unassuming of materials." Valerius looked at Anton. "You're thinking of using the wood's toughness?"
Greatly encouraged, Anton picked up the thin iron rod and gestured with it over the strip of oak.
"We need to solve two problems: how to hang it, and how to drop it."
He carved one end of the oak strip into the shape of a hook and fitted it over the edge of the table.
"We don't need gears, and we don't need springs. We can use the wood's own natural elasticity to make a mortise-and-tenon-style clasp." Anton's fingers moved nimbly. "We use the weight of this canister… er, bomb, to press down on this wooden clasp. The heavier it is, the tighter it locks."
"Then how do you drop it?" an apprentice couldn't help but ask.
"By disrupting the balance." Anton took a charcoal pencil from his pocket. He was about to draw on the table, but then thought better of it and pulled his hand back.
