The sun finished rising, projecting elongated shadows that crossed the office like cracks on the stone floor. Lloyd remained motionless before the window. The air, dense from the metallic trace of blood and residual magic's ozone, stagnated in the room. A few meters away, Katerina's corpse occupied the room's center. The skin, once elastic and vibrant, now showed marble rigidity under layers of dried blood that had lost their shine.
Lloyd showed neither relief nor exhaustion. He observed the body with the coldness of one evaluating exhausted raw material, but still usable. His eyes scanned the fallen woman's contour, stopping at the wounds that had ended her biological utility.
He raised his right hand. The movement was dry, devoid of ornament.
