I try to recall memories of the friend I’ve spent my life with.
No, I don’t recall them. Too many memories pierce my mind like awls. It felt as if I was seeing the life flashing before my fallen friend’s eyes in his stead.
Heu, haa.
I wanted to say something, but language wouldn’t form. I could only gaze at Leto’s complexion with a bewildered look, like a beast that lost its mother.
The complexion where the flame of life was fading.
My trembling hand groped Leto’s wrist. It was cold, and the pulse was faint. The throbbing was getting increasingly blurred. I was being punished right now.
“Ian.”
With eyes where even the focus had blurred, Leto let out such a calm tone.
“As I said, the contract is incomplete. I couldn’t bring myself to offer you as the price… If I did that, it would play right into their hands.”
Grit, I clenched my teeth. I must have put so much force…