"Yes... If it were the school of the past, for , it was a place to display my self-worth, my identity, my status. Everyone, because of my identity, because of my status, admired , looked up to , adored ."
"Because of the admiration and reverence around , I beca arrogant. And because of others' adoration and respect, I started to beco conceited. I actually knew this was wrong, but I never truly cared about those classmates. I couldn't even rember many of their nas, even if they were in the sa class as ."
"And then, disaster suddenly struck my family. My father was frad and imprisoned, and my life plumted as a result."
"Those who once loved ca to hate . Those who once respected ca to despise . Those who once revered began to mock . Those who once admired began to belittle ."
"It was only at that mont that I understood. It turned out that everything I possessed was rely a reflection in a mirror, a fleeting bubble. When that bubble burst under the cruel sunlight, I lost all my splendid outer shell, all my brilliant colors, the high tower others had built for . All that remained was , stripped of everything but my family background, a nobody."
A voice, muttering to itself, drifted from a distance. Raiden i and Xin Yu looked over and saw a young woman in a Senba Academy uniform walking gracefully towards them from within the prison.
Xin Yu was sowhat surprised. He had thought this newly erged consciousness would either be trapped in the cage due to its past or beco the warden of this prison, seeking revenge on the classmates within this consciousness space whom she viewed as enemies.
Instead, the other party walked out like an ordinary student, completely out of place with this prison.
"Hello, Raiden i. Hello, Xin Yu."
The newly erged consciousness that walked out greeted the two of them very calmly, completely devoid of the previous Herrscher of Thunder's consciousness—so wild and arrogant.
"If the Herrscher consciousness hadn't been eroded by Xin Yu's special power, perhaps I would still be that , still as ferocious as thunder, still as proud as a queen."
"But that power has already shattered the Herrscher consciousness embedded within the core, or rather, so higher-level influence from the great beyond. I was born from Raiden i's past, born from the Stigmata's will."
Raiden i looked at her other self, who resembled a young lady of high standing, her expression incredibly complex. At this mont, she felt as if she were looking into a mirror—a mirror reflecting her past self.
"The reason I appeared is because you couldn't accept many things from your past. So those emotions you evaded, those mories you fled from, when they accumulated enough, accompanied by the power of the Stigmata, I erged."
"i, have you thought it through? How will you face the past?" The Stigmata's Will looked at Raiden i not far away.
"You cannot deceive yourself. If you can accept your past, then step forward and embrace . If you cannot accept it, please leave for now."
"You previously firmly believed that your past self was entirely due to your father, due to the status of being the daughter of Corp's president. Therefore, you refused to acknowledge that version of yourself as truly you."
"Do you think that the current you—timid, gentle, mindful of others' expressions, sowhat insecure, fond of taking care of others—is your true nature?"
Raiden i looked at the self before her, at this past self.
Xin Yu said nothing, rely standing aside, watching this scene. One's reconciliation with oneself was not sothing an outsider could influence. All he could do was stand here, proving his presence and companionship.
i, don't forget what I said before, and don't forget my existence.
If you are haunted by the mistakes of your past, if you feel remorse for past sins, then don't hesitate. Entrust them all to . I will bear your mistakes. I will bear your sins.
I will rewrite your past.
Raiden i looked at the Stigmata's Will in the distance, then glanced at Xin Yu, who stood silently to the side. She took a deep breath and looked towards her past self not far away, asking, "If I completely accept you, does that an I will gain more power?"
"Yes. Accepting ans you accept the power of your Stigmata, and also that part of the Herrscher of Thunder."
"Then I want that power."
"And why do you seek this power? Even without any power, you know that as long as you love the man beside you, he will give you everything you desire. Even your mother's death, even all the sins committed in Nagazora, you wouldn't need to care. You would only need to entrust everything to him, to continue evading. Wouldn't a happy ending arrive then?"
"...But that isn't the real . I never wanted to be a burden, never wanted to be a girl who only relies on others. That's why I couldn't accept that arrogant self from the past, propped up entirely by my father. That foolish appearance, it was truly unbearable for to accept."
"But this is indeed ."
"Raiden i's nature inherently possesses a streak of pride. We are unwilling to be subservient, which is why we studied hard and beca the top student in school."
"Naturally, I also don't want to be a burden protected only by others! I don't want to encounter a situation like when Father was imprisoned ever again."
"To only be able to helplessly accept the cruel reality, to only be able to lant my own powerlessness, to only be able to kneel on the ground shouting that I can do nothing, and then let the storms of reality engulf !"
"I am Raiden Ryoma's daughter, a successor of Hokushin Ittō-ryū, the Thunder Queen of Senba Academy, and also the Herrscher of Thunder..."
"I am Raiden i! Therefore! I command you, give your power!"
The Stigmata's Will watched Raiden i approach, step by step, her initially sowhat weak expression now revealing an unprecedented determination.
At this mont, the prison behind her began to crumble.
The prison symbolizing the heart's confinent began to shatter.
"Well then, take it."
The roar of thunder, pervading this entire space, echoed through heaven and earth. Since ancient tis, lightning, symbolizing power, utterly shattered the collapsing prison.
Countless tiny fragnts flew out from the prison, piercing into the body of the Stigmata's Will. Then, that body broke apart and continuously rged with those fragnts, ultimately becoming a purple longsword, floating before Raiden i.
Raiden i calmly grasped the hilt of the longsword, then lightly swung the blade in her hand, opening a fissure woven of lightning in the space before her.
Amidst the flashing lightning and rolling thunder, Raiden i slightly turned her head to look at Xin Yu, who stood behind her.
"Thank you, Xin Yu. Thank you for helping find my past self."
The consciousness space shattered, and Raiden i's consciousness returned to her own body.
And now, in the real world, Xin Yu stood by the window, gazing at the dark clouds gathering in the sky above, with streaks of lightning rolling within. He then shifted his gaze back to Raiden i, who was sitting on the sofa. He watched as lightning flashed violently around her body, yet it was constrained by the reality he had modified, causing no damage to the surroundings.
At this mont, the true Herrscher of Thunder was born.
Mm, the Honkai energy required for this Herrscher's growth was provided by Xin Yu.
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