At the family dinner, Raiden Ryoma kept pulling Xin Yu into drink after drink. He knew he couldn't possibly get this being, who was far beyond the ken of mortals, drunk. But he just wanted to drink. He needed to. The wine was a vessel for the unspoken complexities in his heart, for the sorrow that was so hard to let go.
Xin Yu, for his part, simply listened with a smile as Raiden Ryoma, deep in his cups, began to talk.
Sometimes, he would speak of how deeply he and his wife had loved each other. Other times, he would lament how he shouldn't have been so strict in raising Mei; she had already lost her mother, and he, as her father, should have shouldered the mother's responsibilities as well. Then, his thoughts would turn again, recounting the helplessness and despair he felt after being framed by Cocolia.
The endless worries and sorrows of the human world were, in this moment, all poured out, given voice by the drunkenness brought on by the wine.
The man named Raiden Ryoma was, at this moment, recounting his failures.
As a husband, he had failed to care for his wife, allowing her to fall ill and pass away.
As a father, he had failed to protect his daughter, allowing her to be bullied and blamed by the world.
As a president, he had failed to properly handle his own mistakes, leaving an opening for his enemies to exploit, which ultimately led to his imprisonment.
As a man, he was a poor husband, a poor father, and had even failed in his own career. His life was one of failure, one of incompetence.
"What right do I have to stop my daughter from finding someone to love? As her father, I couldn't even protect her... I... I'm just a useless man who can do nothing but watch as tragedy unfolds, who can only stand by while his own daughter fights and bleeds on the front lines."
Raiden Ryoma let out a bitter laugh and drained another cup of sake. Beside him, Raiden Mei's mother, who had been watching with concern, was about to rise and comfort her husband. But she saw her son-in-law raise a hand, silently stopping her. He then rose from his seat, came to Raiden Ryoma's side, and helped him up.
"Father-in-law, you've had a bit too much. Let's go outside for some fresh air."
Xin Yu supported the five-parts-drunken Raiden Ryoma as they left. Raiden Mei's mother sighed, looked at her daughter, and said helplessly, "Your father has always been a strong-willed man, ever since we first met. You inherited that from him. These things weren't his fault, yet he always heaps the blame on his own incompetence. You two... you truly are father and daughter."
In the courtyard of the Raiden household, Raiden Ryoma sat on the floorboards, gazing up at the full moon that had risen in the sky. The drunkenness from before had completely vanished.
"Thank you," Raiden Ryoma said. He was thanking Xin Yu for not letting his wife and daughter see him at his most pathetic.
He truly had been drunk earlier, and that was why he had let all his grievances pour out. But he really didn't want his wife and daughter to see him so fragile. If his wife had actually tried to comfort him then, he was afraid he would have broken down completely, spilling even more of his inner turmoil. That would have been far too pathetic.
"I understand. You don't want to worry your family, so we often suppress our troubles and keep them locked in our hearts. Some people use alcohol to drown their sorrows, others use cigarettes, but in the end, we are all just digesting this pain by ourselves."
"A wife relies on her husband, and a daughter on her father. So, the father must be a pillar of strength, an indomitable mountain. He is, after all, the foundation of the home."
Raiden Ryoma listened in silence, his head still tilted towards the moon in the sky.
"But always holding it in is painful. That's why you need someone to listen, someone who can offer you real comfort."
Hearing this, Raiden Ryoma turned his head in surprise to look at his son-in-law. Was he suggesting that he was such a person? While he was indeed grateful for what felt like a second chance at life, he didn't yet feel that his son-in-law was someone he could confide in and be comforted by.
Xin Yu naturally noticed Raiden Ryoma's surprised gaze. He smiled and shook his head, indicating it wasn't him, before gesturing for him to turn around.
Raiden Ryoma turned his head, still puzzled. Then, the blank look in his eyes froze solid.
"Mo... Mother."
He stared in disbelief at the person before him—a person who existed only in his memory, who had succumbed to illness many years ago.
"It's been a long time, my son. You've grown so much, and you've suffered so much. The little rascal from back then is now the pillar of the family. How quickly time passes!"
"Mom..."
It was the simplest of sentences, carrying no mystical power, only a hint of melancholy. Yet it was enough to make the perpetually strong-willed Raiden Ryoma's eyes well up with tears.
"Looking at you now, you must have been through so many hardships. It's been tough on you."
Tears streamed from the corners of Raiden Ryoma's eyes. He let his mother embrace him, feeling a warmth that had grown so fuzzy in his memory he could barely recall it.
He felt as if he had returned to his childhood. After being scolded by his own father for his poor swordsmanship, he would run crying to his mother, and she would hold him, stroke his head, and comfort him.
In this one moment, he let down all his defenses. In this one moment, he was not the husband who had to support his family, not the father who had to be a role model, not the president who had to prop up his company. He was simply a child. A child who had been wronged out in the world, now crying to his mother.
Xin Yu sat on the edge of the roof, gazing at the same round moon. A ceramic bowl, filled with wine brewed from cherry blossoms, had appeared in his hand at some unknown time.
When a child loses their parents, they also lose their final harbor. They no longer have anyone to whine to, no one to confide their troubles in, and no one to stand behind them, urging them to keep moving forward.
They are forced to grow up, to become like their parents were.
But they themselves are still children. It's just that their parents are no longer there, so they can only become adults. Only when their parents are still around, only in front of them, can they sometimes act like a child again.
Recalling bits and pieces of his life with his own father, Xin Yu silently drained the wine in his bowl.
"Dad, just wait a little longer. I'll come back. I won't let you down."
He would mend the regrets and tragedies of others, and that, of course, included his own.
Down in the courtyard, Raiden Ryoma, having vented all his frustrations and sorrows, wiped the tears and snot from his face, trying to put on the brave front of a man who had grown up and matured.
"Ryoma, you've already worked so hard. Mom is so proud of you."
The mature, middle-aged man broke down all over again.