The thicket pulsed like a heartbeat.
Kael watched the vines shift, cataloguing patterns. Ravenna was right. Every second they waited, her garden grew denser, more complex, more dangerous. But rushing in blind against a Peak Mana Heart Rank 3 with a home-field advantage was suicide. Especially when he was only Mana Heart Rank 1 and Cassian was early Rank 2.
The cultivation gap was the problem. Two full ranks below Ravenna individually. Even together, raw power wasn't enough to bridge that divide. They needed to be smarter.
"Cassian," Kael said quietly, eyes still fixed on the thicket. "How long can you freeze time?"
"Full freeze? One second. Maybe 1.2 on a good day on this scale of power."
"And how much does that cost you?"
A pause. "More than I'd like."
