"Yes... If it were the school of the past, for me, it was a place to display my self-worth, my identity, my status. Everyone, because of my identity, because of my status, admired me, looked up to me, adored me."

"Because of the admiration and reverence around me, I became arrogant. And because of others' adoration and respect, I started to become conceited. I actually knew this was wrong, but I never truly cared about those classmates. I couldn't even remember many of their names, even if they were in the same class as me."

"And then, disaster suddenly struck my family. My father was framed and imprisoned, and my life plummeted as a result."

"Those who once loved me came to hate me. Those who once respected me came to despise me. Those who once revered me began to mock me. Those who once admired me began to belittle me."

"It was only at that moment that I understood. It turned out that everything I possessed was merely 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 me. All that remained was me, stripped of everything but my family background, a nobody."

A voice, muttering to itself, drifted from a distance. Raiden Mei 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 somewhat surprised. He had thought this newly emerged consciousness would either be trapped in the cage due to its past or become 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 Mei. Hello, Xin Yu."

The newly emerged 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 me, 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, some higher-level influence from the great beyond. I was born from Raiden Mei's past, born from the Stigmata's will."

Raiden Mei looked at her other self, who resembled a young lady of high standing, her expression incredibly complex. At this moment, 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 memories you fled from, when they accumulated enough, accompanied by the power of the Stigmata, I emerged."

"Mei, have you thought it through? How will you face the past?" The Stigmata's Will looked at Raiden Mei not far away.

"You cannot deceive yourself. If you can accept your past, then step forward and embrace me. 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 ME 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, somewhat insecure, fond of taking care of others—is your true nature?"

Raiden Mei looked at the self before her, at this past self.

Xin Yu said nothing, merely standing aside, watching this scene. One's reconciliation with oneself was not something an outsider could influence. All he could do was stand here, proving his presence and companionship.

Mei, 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 me. I will bear your mistakes. I will bear your sins.

I will rewrite your past.

Raiden Mei 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 mean I will gain more power?"

"Yes. Accepting me means 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 me. 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 me to accept."

"But this is indeed me."

"Raiden Mei's nature inherently possesses a streak of pride. We are unwilling to be subservient, which is why we studied hard and became 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 lament 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 me!"

"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 Mei! Therefore! I command you, give me your power!"

The Stigmata's Will watched Raiden Mei approach, step by step, her initially somewhat weak expression now revealing an unprecedented determination.

At this moment, the prison behind her began to crumble.

The prison symbolizing the heart's confinement began to shatter.

"Well then, take it."

The roar of thunder, pervading this entire space, echoed through heaven and earth. Since ancient times, lightning, symbolizing power, utterly shattered the collapsing prison.

Countless tiny fragments flew out from the prison, piercing into the body of the Stigmata's Will. Then, that body broke apart and continuously merged with those fragments, ultimately becoming a purple longsword, floating before Raiden Mei.

Raiden Mei 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 Mei slightly turned her head to look at Xin Yu, who stood behind her.

"Thank you, Xin Yu. Thank you for helping me find my past self."

The consciousness space shattered, and Raiden Mei'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 Mei, 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 moment, the true Herrscher of Thunder was born.

Mm, the Honkai energy required for this Herrscher's growth was provided by Xin Yu.