#Chapter 128: Final Preparations

The next three days blurred together like watercolors in rain. I buried myself in Elsa's ancient notes until those cryptic symbols danced behind my eyelids. The crystal kept calling to me, a siren song that made my skin crawl and my soul ache. That damn key became my entire world. Bread and water kept me alive. Sleep came in twenty-minute chunks between study sessions that left my brain feeling like scrambled eggs. The magical knowledge seeping into my consciousness? Pure poison. The activation ritual was a nightmare wrapped in complexity. Precise timing. Specific incantations that made my tongue feel heavy just reading them. Personal sacrifice that turned my stomach when I understood what the ancient texts demanded. "Blood magic always demands payment," Elsa had warned during one of our sessions. "The question becomes whether you're willing to pay the price for power." Turns out forbidden magic isn't just illegal because some council decided to make rules. It's dangerous becau