Shawn’s scheme had an inherent flaw that was unavoidable.

If he had structured the magic circle to drain only from us without contributing any of his own mana, we would have immediately noticed something was wrong and refused. To maintain control over the familiar and regulate the amount of mana we spent, some linkage of mana expenditure between us was essential.

The fact that they specifically sought out novices like us was likely not just because we would be easier to overpower if necessary, but also to prevent any risk of us having more mana than him.

From what Burke …