Lucian finishes drawing the intricate runes, his fingers lifting from the glowing sand.
He stands up, fixes his intense gaze directly on me, and says with absolute authority, "No matter what happens, you will not interfere or come any closer."
Before I can even process his warning, he flicks his wrist. A brilliant golden magical bubble instantly forms around me, lifting my feet off the seabed and floating me backward a few meters away until I'm at a safe distance.
"Oii?!" I hiss, slapping the translucent golden wall of the bubble. "What is the meaning of this?!"
"I am going to use dark magic. Stay inside that bubble," he replies calmly, completely ignoring my protests as he sits down cross-legged right in the middle of the massive, glowing rune circle.
With a wave of his hand, he summons three ancient, thick tomes. They hover in the water before him, their pages flipping open in unison. Lucian closes his eyes and begins chanting a low, echoing incantation.
