Ezra rubbed his eyes, the sting of sleeplessness pressed behind them like tiny needles, but he forced them open anyway. His vision blurred for a moment before slowly clearing.
The alchemy circle was finally finished, but that didn't mean his preparation was done.
Not even close.
The wooden chair creaked softly as he leaned back, staring down at the pages scattered across the desk. Thin lines of alchemical symbols covered the paper. Circles within circles. Marks, measurements, and notes written in tight handwriting.
He had spent the entire night finishing it.
His fingers were still stained with ink.
Testing the circle would normally be the next step. That was how things were done. Test it, adjust it, correct mistakes, but he didn't have time for that. The fifth trial was approaching too quickly.
Ezra exhaled slowly.
"Well, I'm sure it will work…" he muttered.
His voice sounded dry from exhaustion.
