Raphael knew very well that, in the Beyonder world, invisible dangers were the most terrifying.
When faced with such a danger, you might die without ever understanding what had happened.
Now Raphael had encountered just such a danger.
At that moment, the figure in the stairwell walked out with a wet patter.
It was a humanoid mass of flesh and blood, thin in appearance. Viscous blood kept oozing out of its flesh, only to be sucked back in.
Its face looked like a thick mask. It kept twitching, as though trying to form an expression, yet it resembled someone with facial paralysis, struggling to make any expression at all.
Then the face opened its entirely white eyes, and its lips shifted slightly, baring some oddly shaped teeth.
Although being strangled was deeply uncomfortable for Raphael, as a Living Corpse, he felt no sense of suffocation. He still had the presence of mind to search for a way out.
Naturally, this "flesh-and-blood figure" was the main focus of his scrutiny. He noticed that its teeth were not teeth at all, but individual finger bones.
The "flesh-and-blood figure" finally managed to force out an expression of pain. With its bizarre eyes and teeth, however, it looked hideously terrifying-or rather, deeply unsettling.
It was like running into an acquaintance on the street. Normally, you would exchange greetings and ask how each other was doing. But then, one day, you met that acquaintance on the street, and they sliced open their chest with a dagger and pulled out their bleeding heart to show you.
It would catch you completely off guard and leave you horrified.
Likewise, if this "flesh-and-blood figure" had roared, or even cursed at them, it would have been nothing unusual. Instead, it had "forced out an unsettling expression of pain." At