"...Of course."
Dumbledore hesitated for a moment, but under Grindelwald's silent gaze, he nodded.
"...Hah, you really have changed."
Seeing the old man whose face was openly filled with hesitation, Grindelwald suddenly laughed, a defiant laugh with only a few staggered teeth visible in his mouth. As if the person who was just shocked by Dumbledore's decision wasn't him, "You're deceiving me, Albus. It's definitely not as simple as you say, huh... Soul Artifact."
The old man's face bore a mocking smile, even with missing teeth, his demeanor made Dumbledore momentarily dazed, suddenly regretting his impulsiveness this time.
Even had the urge to turn away immediately.
Grindelwald's sharpness exceeded his expectations, the old man had thought that nearly fifty years of imprisonment would greatly defeat the other's morale and spirit, but he underestimated Grindelwald's willpower... No, he had long anticipated this and was merely deceiving himself.
He certainly knew very well Grindelwald's resolve, their blood had once mingled together, they were once inseparable, he... he was only trying to find for himself a crude excuse, a reason to let the other go, even at the cost of "deceiving" himself.
He told himself that over forty years of prison life must have changed the other, that the once arrogant Gellert Grindelwald was dead...
But, in the end, it was merely a fantasy used by the old man to "numb" himself.
In just a glance, Dumbledore completely understood, the man sitting on the stone bed hadn't changed at all. Even if he was completely depleted of magic, utterly exhausted and weak, in the magic realm merely a question, he remained the man who had once cast a shadow over the entire European continent.
The danger posed by this person was never his magic, but his spirit.
"...Ahem, do you mean what you said?"
Laughing as if he had run out of breath, Grindelwald thumped his emaciated chest, the hollow sound made Dumbledore furrow his brow uncontrollably.
"But you haven't changed at all."
Dumbledore paused for a moment, without answering, instead steering the topic back.
"Have you regretted it?"
Grindelwald chuckled, unsurprised, reclining comfortably at the bed's edge, skeletal legs dangling in the air.
"Yes, I shouldn't have come to find you today."
Dumbledore nodded calmly, removed his glasses, and rubbed his temples.
"Then, what are you planning now?"
Grindelwald nodded, with no obvious emotional movement, he continued to ask.
"...I can take you away, but there are conditions for this."
Setting his glasses back onto his nose, Dumbledore seemed to have made a certain resolve. Under Grindelwald's slightly bewildered gaze, he reached into his coat and pulled out an object wrapped in white cloth. As the fabric fell away, the sharp glint of a knife stung their eyes.
"Conditions?"
Eyeing the blade, Grindelwald seemed a bit surprised, but he quickly caught on, "You should know, that broken chain is useless to us, we've shattered one before, naturally, there'll be a second one... Of course, if this can bring you some comfort..."
"No, it's only because it wasn't properly utilized..."
Dumbledore shook his head and then pulled a parchment from his pocket, densely packed with characters.
"?"
Under his gaze, Grindelwald curiously took the parchment, "1. No magic use, 2. No revealing your identity, 3. No... 27. No promoting your thoughts to students, 28. No opening your own club... Albus, do I need to report to you when I go to the bathroom?"
"'No resistance,' this condition is somewhat too broad for restricting us mutually."
Dumbledore said seriously, drawing inspiration from William's direction in magic rune research. Modern studies often focus on ancient culture, analyzing the meaning behind words, contrasting significantly with William's approach that supports combat and life—which is another topic altogether.
The true inspiration for Dumbledore lay in William's way with various magic runes, "As long as the material can bear enough magic power, the more runes it holds naturally. Precision in the middle connecting runes means the circuits will naturally open themselves. Magic can't be restrained by such inconvenience."
A little more precision.
Yes, detailing the Blood Alliance's code into thirteen major points, subdivided into 256 minor points, each further subdivided... As long as there were numerous guidelines, it would indeed cover all aspects.
"If you agree, sign at the bottom right."
Watching Grindelwald's expression, Dumbledore couldn't help but smile as he handed over the fountain pen.
"I... suddenly don't feel like leaving."
Grindelwald looked like he had swallowed something unpleasant, wanting to ask where the other learned such insidious tricks, yet he didn't know where to start venting.
"If you refuse..."
"I agree."
Grindelwald interrupted Dumbledore's next words, taking the pen handed by the other—perhaps only he knew, he could freely escape if he wished. This place used to be his territory; those restricting powers against prisoners might be effective on him, but only temporarily, just leaving this place for a while would restore his former strength.
Yet he didn't do it; it wasn't some newfound conscience... rather, he simply had no cause to leave.
But now—
"...Life magic can't be used either?"
"You could imagine yourself as a Muggle."
"...Alright."
The old man nodded, watched Dumbledore slash his palm, then took the knife. Soon, their palms met, a deep crimson glow blossoming at the merging of blood, silver-white thread wrapped around their wrists—
"..."
After a considerable pause, gazing at the "Lantern" hanging on that slender thread, Grindelwald couldn't help but twitch his eyes—he discerned for a while, finally confirming that this was the Blood Alliance they formed.
"Looks like the quantity of those 'limitations' affects its size?"
Dumbledore's eyelids twitch similarly; after hesitating, he stuffed the "Lantern" into his pocket—a pocket enchanted with Capacious Extremis.
"Alright, now you can tell me, what exactly have you encountered?"
Taking the Dittany offered by Dumbledore, sprinkling it on the wound and watching it heal quickly, Grindelwald finally couldn't help but ask.
"Do you really want to know?"
"Of course."
"Then, a long, long time ago..."
"Albus, I don't want a bedtime story now."
"Shut up, and listen."
"...Oh."