"It's fading! The mark... It's starting to disappear!"
Claudia's voice echoed through the destroyed pier, and for a moment, nobody moved.
Even Nagisa stopped her usual sarcastic smile.
Though he had been their enemy a few moments ago, nothing could change the fact that Vladimir was important to each of them. If not for that oath, or their own negligence when he was suffering his greatest crisis... none of this might've happened.
Ivan's claws remained beside Vladimir's throat, but his eyes lowered to the exposed sigil carved across his old friend's chest.
'Is it that simple?'
The red lines that had burned like molten wire beneath Vlad's pale skin were dimming, one stroke at a time, sinking back into his flesh as if the oath itself had finally lost its grip.
To end things here was what Ivan wanted.
"Ugh..."
Vladimir stared down at his chest.
