"Haah… so this is it."
The early morning Time Chamber was cool and still, like a page waiting to be written on. Adrian stood at the center, his eyes quietly scanning the empty hall.
He had no classes today. Surprising, maybe, but true. From this morning onward, the academy had declared study leave for five days.
If students had questions, they could always visit the staff room after class hours, but that hardly needed Adrian's presence. So, he had taken a sick leave instead—an excuse, really—to come here.
Now he sat cross-legged on the wooden floor of the Time Chamber, a small pouch resting in his hand. His thumb rubbed along its edge as he took a slow, measured breath.
This moment had been building for hours now.
If the herb Eros had given him worked as promised, Adrian might finally push through the first two steps of the Fifth Thread—today itself, if luck stayed with him. After that, of course, he would need long, uninterrupted rest.
