That day, Raiden finally saw Lisa face clearly—a very cute little girl with a tender and well-behaved face... now lying outside the door, covered in blood. The distance between him and her had become a door, a door that could never be opened again.
Raiden could only lie on the ground, watching through the small food slot as the flower of Lisa life withered away bit by bit.
What a pity, I haven't even had the chance to show you my long beard...
Raiden suddenly felt a surge of hatred, hating himself for being so useless. Where was his strength? Where had all the power he once possessed gone?
And hatred?! Emotions! These things he had long lost suddenly returned to Raiden body.
Raiden lay on the ground, weeping softly. This feeling in his heart... was it sorrow? Was it grief? No! It was hatred! It was rage! Hatred for the bald man, anger at himself. Raiden heart ached terribly at this moment.
With trembling hands, Raiden fished out the candy Lisa had given him from his pocket... He had never dared to eat it, but now, he wanted to ease the pain in his heart. With tears in his eyes, Raiden ate the sweetest candy he had ever tasted.
But why did it taste so bitter now... so bitter that it felt like his heart was being torn apart.
Raiden bit down hard on the candy, shattering it with his teeth. Blood inadvertently flowed from his mouth.
But what was redder than the blood were his eyes, the hatred in his heart, and the emotions he had lost.
In Raiden heart, a beast named rage had returned. It tore through his void, pulling Raiden emotions out from the nothingness one by one.
It condensed some of those emotions into a ball, tossing them aside like garbage, and stuffed the rest into its own belly.
Finally, it forged a cage for itself and locked itself inside... It needed to wait, they all needed to wait.
From that day on, Raiden shut himself in a small corner every minute of every day. He forced himself to recall the pain, using it to push himself to trace the path of power.
He was like a hungry ghost, greedily absorbing the free-floating energy in the air at all times.
But Raiden was hollow. Without emotions, he would eventually forget everything as time passed. His scars would be buried by time.
But once the wound was reopened, the blood would flow uncontrollably once more.
And today!
Raiden saw the indelible mark in his soul... Lisa. They had finally met again in the world of the dead...
"Hey, Lisa..." Raiden looked at the petite figure, feeling at a loss. His heart was a whirlwind of emotions—guilt, sorrow, joy, fear... Raiden didn't know how to face this child.
"Hello, Uncle Stone." Lisa smiled and waved her little hand at Raiden.
Raiden quickly ran over, knelt on one knee, and hugged Lisa tightly. But her soft body felt icy cold to him... She was already dead... It was his incompetence that caused this. I should have saved her...
"Lisa... Lisa, Uncle Stone has avenged you. He's dead, that bad guy, he's dead! But maybe he died too easily..." Raiden sobbed, burying his head in Lisa embrace.
Lisa patted Raiden shoulder, comforting him as if he were her own child.
"Yes, Uncle Stone, that bad guy is dead... but why did you come here? Did you come specifically to tell Lisa this news?" Lisa released Raiden and looked into his eyes as she spoke.
"...I'm dead," Raiden hesitated before saying.
Lisa shook her head, her gaze fixed on Raiden eyes. In her eyes, Raiden saw a glimmer of light.
"No, Uncle Stone, you're not dead. How could you die? They can't kill you. You don't belong here," Lisa's youthful voice reminded Raiden.
"I don't belong here? Then where do I belong?" Raiden didn't understand. He didn't understand what meaning his life still held. He was just a passerby, a traveler in this world, always has been... Raiden needed to find a place to belong, even if it was death.
"No, Uncle Stone, you haven't taken Lisa to the most beautiful place in the world yet. You haven't tasted Lisa favorite food. You haven't felt happiness. How can you die? Uncle Stone... we still have a promise, don't we?" Lisa voice echoed in Raiden ears, and the world of darkness and death began to reject him.
Death was Raiden self-deception, because he had lost the meaning to live. But now, Lisa had found that meaning for him. He needed to return to the world of the living.
"No!" Raiden refused to go back. He craved death. Raiden looked at his hands, and through his body, he could see the emotions rapidly fading away within him... When Raiden revived, he would lose these precious things once again.
This was something Raiden didn't want to see... But in the end, he couldn't deceive himself. The living should stay in the world of the living.
"Uncle Stone, you should return to your world, and Lisa should go to where she belongs," Lisa pointed behind her. As she did, the darkness dissipated, and a door appeared—a place where the dead return to dust.
"No!" Raiden roared, tears of blood streaming from the corners of his eyes.
Lisa gently wiped away Raiden tears and smiled. "Uncle Stone, don't you still owe Lisa a piece of candy? Then go back and fulfill your promise to Lisa... Don't forget."
As her words faded, one by one, spirits appeared behind Lisa—spirits who had made contracts with Raiden. They reappeared now that Raiden had regained his humanity.
And this time, they would use their power to push Raiden out of the world of the dead.
The power of the spirits transformed into a long sword. The blade pierced through Raiden body, carrying him as it broke through the darkness and flew out.
Lisa smiled as she watched Raiden figure disappear, then stepped through the door behind her without hesitation. As she crossed the threshold, the empty doorway emitted a dazzling light..
.......
In the darkness, a woman gazed up at the sky... Someone left? Someone actually managed to leave this place? The dead? The living? A being who didn't turn to dust... Interesting.
The woman shook her head with a hint of amusement and then continued to enjoy her millennia-long vacation.
.......
In the cave, Raiden body, which had already lost all signs of life, suddenly began to stir once more.
The pure power of the soul flowed through Raiden body. The mark of the heroic spirit was once again imprinted upon him. The ancient Nord bloodline within Raiden began to awaken, and the primordial power surged through his veins once more.
But the moment Raiden opened his eyes, the emotions and humanity within his soul vanished once again. And as his humanity dissipated, the power within Raiden body fell silent.
Raiden lay on the ground, gasping for breath. The feeling of exhaustion from overexertion filled every corner of his body.
Listening to the gunfire still echoing outside the cave, Raiden knew that Tony and Yinsen were still fighting.
Despite the weakness and fatigue that weighed down his body, Raiden struggled to crawl toward the cave's entrance... I will die eventually, but it will not be today.