Time passed...
Emma was already waiting when I arrived at our usual seat, her materials spread across the table in organized chaos. She looked up as I approached, and I could see the determination in her eyes.
"Last session before the exam," she said. "Let's make it count."
We'd been doing this for days now, her gradual withdrawal method, forcing my pathways to adapt. It had increased to sixty percent independence now, up from barely twenty percent when we'd started.
"Ready?" she asked.
I nodded, settling into the chair and closing my eyes.
The breathing exercises came naturally now. Center myself. Find the mana flowing through my pathways. Feel its rhythm, its movement.
"Now," Emma instructed softly.
I gathered the mana, pulling it toward my palms. The energy responded.
The sphere formed between my hands.
"Hold it," Emma said.
I held it, maintaining the concentration. Ten seconds. Twenty. Thirty.
The sphere wavered but didn't collapse.
Forty seconds. Fifty.
