Kael exhaled sharply, wiping the sweat from his brow. The seal was complete, each rune meticulously etched into the floor, forming a complex, interwoven lattice of magic. It was a masterpiece of arcane reverse engineering, but it was useless without power.
The four mana crystals embedded at key junctions were barely holding together, their inner reserves flickering like dying embers. If he tried to force them to absorb more ambient mana, they would shatter instantly.
He had only one option left.
Bracing himself, Kael knelt and pressed his palm against the center of the circle. The cold stone pulsed beneath his touch, resonating with the remnants of power within the crystals.
Taking a deep breath, he pushed his mana into the enchantment, the intricate runes flaring to life as they hungrily drank in his energy.
A sudden tremor shook the ground beneath him.
