Astra's Feat of Mental Arithmetic

"I'm fine, thank you. Why should I not be all right?"

"You started reciting from the book and seemed to fall into a sort of trance. The dragon claimed that you were effectively his servant, though an unwilling one. Oh, and he refused to extend this Test of the Twenty Questions to you. He said it was for knights of our Allarian king only."

Astra looked angry, but before she could reply the dragon said: "Astra is quite right. I had worked out the time from when the second carriage began its journey, and forgot to add back in the hour's difference in starting times." He turned to Astra. "Can you really work out quadratic equations in your head, my dear? It is very impressive."

1. "Yes, certainly I can work them out in my head. But I'm not your dear. You chained me up to a tunnel wall, remember?"
2. "I didn't do it that way. I used the 'triangle of velocities' method instead."
3. "What's a quadratic equation?"
4. "Not normally. I must have worked it out subconsciously whilst I was entranced."

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