"Snap!"
The crisp snap of fingers shattered the silence. A biting cold wind poured into the basement, making the unconscious little girl on the cross shudder and jolt awake, her head lifting in confused instinct.
In the dim room, the figure gradually approaching beneath the swaying light brought an overwhelming sense of pressure. Chloe immediately recalled the painful experience from before, trembling as the haze vanished from her mind.
This demon!
She had not forgotten that all the suffering she had just endured had been at this bastard's instigation.
Hiss...
Then, a faint itch and chill suddenly spread from her lower abdomen. Chloe drew in a slight breath and instinctively lowered her head to look.
The shadow stretched long by the flickering light held a crystal dish filled with golden-red liquid in one hand. With the index finger of the other dipped in some of the dye, he was drawing incomprehensible symbols across her exposed lower abdomen.
Having only just suffered through torture, Chloe naturally began to shake at the sight. Her voice was weak, and her face was full of vigilance and fear.
"W-What are you doing?"
"Relax. It's just insurance."
Samael looked up at the little girl, who had clearly come to fear him like a tiger after several rounds of "education," and calmly explained. Then, with a touch of his fingertip, he completed the final stroke, stepped back slightly, and regarded his work with satisfaction.
On her flat, smooth brown lower abdomen was a crimson mark composed of two opposing arcs and a vertical line in the center.
"This is...?"
The Twin Goddesses behind him had watched Samael's entire sequence of actions and could not help coming closer. Ereshkigal studied the mark on Chloe's abdomen for a moment before turning to ask, curiosity evident in her voice.