Chapter 47: Divining the Future
Things had taken a turn that even Ambrose hadn't foreseen. With little choice, he dragged Gareth back to his castle.
No longer able to drink, Gareth could only amuse himself with Allen Watson, claiming, "I'd like to see if the new generation of paladins has improved any."
Ambrose only had time to mutter, "Don't kill him," before turning to his own work.
Given how Alkhemia operated, once that unlucky administrator reported the news, it would take at least five hours for the message to reach the Alchemists' Council. Then, it'd take another hour or two for a series of pointless debates over who would speak to Ambrose.
That gave him roughly seven hours to prepare: seven hours to secure the best possible terms at the negotiating table.
He dragged out a mountain of magical materials and even pulled Harvey, the apprentice magician, out of his cell to serve as an assistant.
Utterly confused, Harvey began helping Ambrose set up a large ritual circle.
At first, he had no idea what it was for. But as the circle took shape, he began to recognize several of its runes.
"Sacrifice… foresight… mana conduit… manifestation…"