Vitale sat in the corner of his workshop, his muscles trembling with exhaustion, despite his mind whirring and restless.
It had been a full twenty-four hours at this point, and though he had been able to keep Nikolai stable for the past three, he found himself neurotically checking the king's eyes. It was said that if an unconscious patient had movement in the eyes, they had activity in the head. They were not braindead.
Still, just because the king's eyes were still indicating mental activity, it did not indicate mental capacity. And since the alchemist did not know the exact constituents of the poison, he could not even attempt to pinpoint the area which it would attack - or would try. It could've been the case that it was, indeed, a cardiotoxin meant to weaken the heart to the point of failure, or that severe cardiac depression could've been a simple byproduct of a larger issue.
Vitale exhaled a huff. He needed sleep, but he didn't trust anyone else to monitor Nikolai.