Raijin lay on the ground.
Warm blood and dirt had filled the spaces beneath his fingernails. His fingers trembled faintly—like his body still wanted to fight, but his strength had already given up.
No matter how much he tried to push it away, one thought kept repeating in his mind—
Am I going to die?
Will I lose everything once again?
Will my promises… turn hollow again?
His breathing was broken.
Every breath felt like it was tearing his chest apart from the inside.
His gaze shifted to Kade, who lay a short distance away.
Kade was trying to move…
…but his body wasn't responding.
A faint smile appeared on Raijin's face—
tired… but genuine.
He muttered to himself—
"At least… I'm not alone…"
Voices echoed faintly in his ears—
sometimes Kade's…
sometimes Sofiya's and Ishan's…
as if life itself wasn't ready to let him go yet.
Slowly, Raijin shifted his gaze away from Kade—
and fixed it on the Grim Howler Wraith.
He tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword.
His grip was weak…
…but his resolve wasn't.
He prepared himself to respond to the Wraith's attack—
or at least, tried to convince himself that he was ready.
Suddenly—
he froze.
The Grim Howler Wraith…
which had just been about to take his life—
stopped.
Its cold… rough… fur-covered hand
slowly came down—
and rested on Raijin's head.
Raijin's heart pounded heavily for a moment.
"Why… isn't it attacking…?"
A strange fear rose within him—
like he was touching something… that wasn't easy to understand.
Time—
seemed to stop.
The sharpness in Raijin's eyes…
slowly began to fade.
His fingers…
unconsciously loosened their grip on the sword.
Raijin slowly opened his eyes.
And in that moment—
the world changed.
He was no longer in the cemetery.
There was no moon in the sky—
there was a sun.
But even its light wasn't clear.
Clouds were breaking it apart before it could fully reach the ground.
The cold, heavy air was gone—
replaced by a gentle, moving breeze.
There were no shrubs around—
instead, a dense forest.
And in the middle of it—
a narrow path.
On that path—
three horse carriages moved one after another.
Raijin…
was watching them from above.
Like a drifting cloud.
For a moment, a thought crossed his mind—
What is this…?
His heart instinctively pulled back.
What if this is a trap…?
But—
his body wouldn't move.
He could only watch.
Only feel.
And then—
everything shattered.
Raijin opened his eyes again.
He was back.
The cemetery.
Cold air.
Dense fog.
But—
something had changed.
The Grim Howler Wraith was no longer near him.
Not in front.
Not behind.
Only its screams—
still echoed in the air.
But—
they didn't feel the same anymore.
There was no anger in them.
Only…
emptiness.
The faint smile disappeared from Raijin's face.
Tears streamed down his eyes—
slowly… silently.
The pain was clear.
But—
this time, it wasn't his.
He removed his hand from his abdomen.
The bleeding had almost stopped—
but the pain was still alive.
He picked up his sword…
and forced himself to stand.
His body trembled—
but he stood.
Now he could hear everything again.
The screams.
The wind.
His heartbeat.
Slowly, he began walking.
Toward the broken grave.
The Grim Howler Wraith wasn't attacking anymore.
It was just… screaming.
But—
Raijin clenched his fist.
"Was that… its memory…?"
"Or just a way to mislead me…?"
His steps paused for a moment.
His body…
was breaking apart slowly.
The Wraith's form couldn't stay stable.
One moment—it looked solid.
The next—it scattered like smoke.
As if…
two forces were pulling it apart.
Raijin placed every step carefully.
As if he wasn't walking on the ground—
but on something fragile.
Behind him—
Kade saw him.
"Raijin… stop…"
his voice was broken.
"What are you trying to do…?
Why are you going forward…?"
But Raijin didn't stop.
Every step he took—
was toward that broken grave.
As he got closer—
the screams grew louder.
With every step—
his head felt heavier.
The world began to spin faintly.
One moment—
his foot slipped.
He almost fell—
but caught himself.
The screams grew deeper.
Piercing straight into his mind.
Raijin staggered for a moment.
His head jerked downward—
but he steadied himself.
Finally—
he stood before the grave.
Slowly, he placed his hand on it.
A cold wave ran through his hand—
spreading across his entire body.
A painful smile formed on his face.
He spoke softly—
"So…
this is what happened to you…"
"I can understand…"
His voice was heavy.
"I've lost everything too…"
A memory flickered in his eyes—
but didn't stay.
"The last thing I had in this world—
was taken from me as well…"
He stayed silent for a moment.
Then—
softly said—
"You went through something terrible.
You endured a lot…
I may not fully understand your pain…
but I can understand it… to some extent."
Raijin moved toward the tree behind the grave.
There—
a transparent figure stood.
The Grim Howler Wraith.
Raijin stopped in front of it.
Only a few steps separated them.
"I understand your pain,"
Raijin said calmly.
"You just wanted… to fix something… one last time…"
The Wraith's body trembled.
For a moment, its claw lifted—
as if it would attack.
Then—
it stopped.
"But…"
Raijin's voice hardened.
"That doesn't mean you keep killing others…"
He drew his sword.
His hand trembled.
"You're already dead…"
"You should rest now…"
He paused for a moment.
His grip tightened—
loosened—
then tightened again.
"Maybe I don't have the right to say this…"
"Because I too… am living for revenge…"
He raised his sword forward.
"But there's one difference between you and me."
The Grim Howler Wraith looked at him.
In its eyes—
pain…
despair…
and…
a quiet acceptance.
It didn't defend itself.
Raijin took a deep breath—
and—
struck.
The blade pierced straight into its chest—
toward the Nexus Seed.
At the final moment—
a sharp scream echoed.
As if something was trying to stop him.
But—
this time—
Raijin didn't stop.
Slash—!!
The Nexus Seed split into two.
For a moment—
nothing happened.
No sound.
No movement.
As if the world itself had paused.
Then—
the Wraith's body slowly began to scatter like smoke.
Its face—
was calm.
And then—
a very faint voice echoed—
"Thank you…"
Tears streamed down Raijin's face.
"Don't worry…"
he said softly.
"If I survive…"
"I'll deliver your words… to them…"
He folded his hands before the grave.
"May your soul find peace…
Alaric."
His gaze lingered on the grave for a moment—
where—
the broken seal…
and incomplete symbol were clearly visible.
Raijin turned.
He walked back through the fog.
He lifted Kade onto his shoulder.
And—
moved toward Sofiya and Ishan.
Behind him—
the cemetery had fallen silent once again.
But this time—
that silence wasn't comforting.
It was just…
another weight—
one that shook him to his very core.
.
.
.
Thank You For Reading This Chaptar.
Author: Mohammed Zaid Saifi