As soon as Saruto and Void entered the palace, even before they met Saruto parents, a familiar voice pierced their minds simultaneously. It was Hades. "Saruto… I forgot to tell you."
They both stopped in their tracks. "You and Void… you are forbidden to merge again, until your training is complete, or until I tell you to."
"Okay," Saruto replied calmly.
"We never even considered merging," Void added confidently. "There's nothing to worry about."
Silence fell, and then Hades voice vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. Saruto continued walking hesitantly through the palace; the place hadn't changed, but he had. Before he could process his thoughts, a woman suddenly turned toward him. She froze. Then her eyes widened, and her voice caught in her throat before she ran toward him at full speed and embraced him tightly. "Saruto…! You're back! I never expected to see you again!"
Saruto wrapped his arms around her, feeling a warmth he had long missed. "Even I didn't expect this, Mother," he said, his voice trembling.
Void coughed, and Saruto, noticing, said with a smile, "Mother… I forgot to introduce you to…"
His mother interrupted him before he could finish. "You're Void, aren't you?"
Saruto and Void exchanged a surprised glance. "How did you know it was Void?" Saruto asked.
Carmelina smiled warmly. "Never underestimate a mother's intuition, Saruto."
She stepped forward and embraced Void without hesitation. "Thank you… for taking care of Saruto all this time."
Void was speechless. He found himself returning the embrace without even realizing it. "From today… you're my son too, Void," Carmelina said, smiling at him. "Call me your mother."
Void nodded slowly in agreement, his eyes shining with something he had never felt before. Saruto face broke into a bright smile. Carmelina led them to the dining room, where Saruto father, Morvan, was waiting for them. He rose immediately upon seeing them and greeted Saruto and Void warmly.
They sat together and ate in a cozy atmosphere. Then Morvan and Carmelina joined in a small celebration, declaring Void their son as well. Saruto laughed, and Void smiled genuinely for the first time in a long while.
As night fell, Saruto and Void went to one of the palace rooms to rest. They lay down on the bed, and when everything was quiet, Saruto remembered the crystal ball Hades had given him. He took it out of his pocket but hesitated. "Call," Void said quietly. "Check on your fiancées."
Saruto took a deep breath and activated the crystal. In the original world, Ethan and Director Ragnar were inside the Time Chamber, investigating the location where the portal through which Saruto and his friends had vanished nearly two months earlier had opened.
Emilia and Star, along with the fiancées of Saruto friends, were offering assistance. Exhaustion, lack of sleep, worry, and fear were etched on everyone's faces. "Director Ragnar," Ethan said wearily, "we haven't made any progress in two months. All we know is that he's been transported to another world."
Ragnar shook his head and said firmly, "Don't lose hope... we'll find him."
At that moment, Emilia and Star looked up, whispering to themselves, "Saruto... please send any sign..."
Suddenly, a voice echoed in their heads: "Is... anyone listening?"
"This thing doesn't seem to be working," Void said anxiously.
Then, two voices shouted together, "Saruto!"
Everyone froze. They looked at Emilia and Star in astonishment, thinking exhaustion had driven them mad. "So… he's working!" Saruto exclaimed, surprised and delighted. "How are you both, Emilia and Star?"
They burst into tears. "You idiot… where have you been all this time? How could you do this to us?!" Emilia cried.
Saruto reassured them that he was fine and told them not to worry. Ethan approached Star and asked anxiously, "Star… what's going on?"
"Saruto… he's talking to us," she said, her voice a mixture of tears and a smile.
Ethan was taken aback. "Are you two together now?" he asked Saruto.
"Yes," Star replied.
"We're in the Time Room… and Ethan with us, and your friends' fiancées: Arina, Felisa, Selena… and even Director Ragnar."
"That's better," Saruto said with a smile. "I won't have to call each of us individually."
Then his voice pierced everyone's minds, and he greeted them. Ethan said, "Saruto… I'm sorry I brought your fiancées into the Time Chamber. It's one of the Dark Family's secrets."
"There's no need for all that now," Saruto said.
"Is Lucian with you?" Selena asked anxiously.
"And what about Ryan?" Arena asked.
"And Kyle?" Felisa added.
"They're not with me," Saruto replied calmly.
A stunned silence fell. Then he quickly said, "I'll tell you everything that happened to me."
And he began to recount the whole story. When he finished, Ethan said in amazement, "So… that's what happened."
"Don't worry," Saruto said reassuringly. "My friends are strong, and they'll be fine."
"And how is my teacher, Hades?" Ethan asked.
"She's fine," Saruto said.
"Have you fixed the Time Chamber?" he asked.
"Not yet," Ethan replied. Saruto showed him how to fix it using the tattoo given by the original founder, which Ethan carried. After everyone was reassured, the princesses collapsed to the floor, exhausted. A short while later, Ethan repaired the Time Chamber, the system screen reappeared, and he activated autohealing. Their energy returned, and their exhaustion vanished.
"I'll leave now," Saruto said, bidding them farewell. "I'll call back. And don't forget to tell Emilia and Star that I'll call back. I know they haven't had enough of talking to me yet."
Ethan nodded in agreement. The connection was lost. Saruto placed the crystal ball on the table and lay down to sleep, his heart finally at peace.