A simple change, a simple repurposing of magic. A simple act of adjustment, a word for a different word… That is the level of Magic Ludwig was currently capable of.
And that change…that 'word' allowed anything that walks into the circle to be used as a sacrifice.
The circle wasn't ruined. It was corrected, into something worse.
"But… you were inside the circle," she realized as her eyes widened.
For the first time, her voice climbed. The blindfold didn't hide the tension in her face, the sudden lift of her brows, the tightening at the corners of her mouth. She understood the implication, and her mind raced to the same conclusion every trained ritualist would reach.
Ludwig smiled but didn't answer.
He didn't give her the satisfaction of confirmation. He didn't give the knights a lecture they didn't need to hear. And he didn't give Sebas and Evan any additional clues they could cling to.
