Saroto looked around him, but his mind couldn't pinpoint his location. The emptiness around him was strangely silent, with no clear horizon. He lowered his gaze to his own body and froze when he saw that his clothes had changed.
He was no longer wearing what he had worn before, but a pristine white robe, and across his chest was a strange mark, an inscription he had never seen before. He slowly raised his head, then began to fly. He moved through the air, and with each step in the void, his unease grew.
Before his eyes, he saw vast lands floating in the void, enormous pieces of land floating. He murmured to himself in a low voice, "What is this place?... And why are the lands floating here?"
He drew closer and noticed that on each land were houses, and on some, entire cities, with buildings clustered together and towering walls. He flew toward one of these lands and landed gently. He found its inhabitants going about their lives as if nothing was wrong, laughing, talking, and moving about without fear.
But suddenly, he felt something dark. A faint, dark energy emanated from all of them. His body tensed, and he prepared to fight, but then he abandoned the idea. "It's no use," he thought to himself. "I don't know anything about this world yet."
He rose again into the sky, trying to see the bigger picture, and his eyes widened. He saw that some lands held small villages, others held huge cities with palaces at their center, but what truly caught his attention was in the center.
A colossal, towering palace, as if all the other lands revolved around it. He realized that this palace was the heart, the center of this world. "Perhaps I will find the answers there," he said firmly.
He hurried toward it, and as he approached its massive gate, soldiers in dark clothing, with impassive faces, blocked his path. "Entry is forbidden here," one of them said sternly. "Don't you know the rules?"
"I don't know anything about this place," Saruto replied, trying to control his emotions. "I only arrived in this world a few moments ago."
Before he could answer, the soldiers stopped abruptly. Their expressions fell silent, as if an unspoken voice echoed in their minds. One of them looked at Saruto and said, "...He is permitted to enter."
The gate opened, and Saruto was ushered into the palace. A soldier led him through long corridors, their black walls adorned with mysterious carvings, until they reached a spacious room. In the center stood a woman. The soldier said, "I greet the Ruler of the Underworld."
The woman gestured to him, and he left in silence. Saruto froze. "Ruler of...the Underworld?"
The woman rose slowly from her seat and said in a quiet voice that held a hidden power, "I have been waiting for you, Saruto."
He was taken aback. Not only by her words but also by her beauty. Her skin was alabaster, her hair as white as snow, and her eyes held immeasurable depth. She smiled faintly and said, "Please, have a seat... It seems your journey was arduous."
He sat down hesitantly, then said, "Forgive me, my lady, but… where am I? And why do they call you the Ruler of the Dead?"
She chuckled softly. "My name is Hades. Yes, I am the Ruler of the Dead. And you are now… in the realm of the dead."
Saruto looked around, then said calmly, "After all I've seen… I'm not surprised. Is there a way back to my world?"
"Yes, there is," she replied.
His face lit up. "Then take me back to it," he said quickly.
She shook her head. "No. My brother ordered me to train you."
Saruto froze. "Your brother?"
"Yes… he sent you here," she said confidently.
"You mean… Umbra?" he whispered in shock.
In an instant, Saruto lunged at her with his swords, but with a single flick of her hand, he fell to the ground, completely paralyzed. "I'll kill you!" he cried. "And then I'll kill your brother!"
Hades laughed and said, "And if you kill me… who will bring you back to your world?"
Her energy pressure intensified until Saruto felt his body shatter. But he released his own energy and began to move, trying to rise. Hades' eyes widened in surprise, then she smiled. She released him from her grip and said, "Why do you want to kill me? I haven't done anything to you."
He gasped, "It's enough that you're Umbra sister."
She said with deadly calm, "Fine… kill me. But remember, if you do, the entire world of the dead will collapse."
Saruto said, "I don't care."
Hades retorted, "Then… do you want your parents to perish along with this world?"
Time stopped, and Saruto said, "…my parents?"
Hades said, "Yes." "Your parents are here."
His feet froze. The truth dawned on him suddenly: since he was in the realm of the dead, they must be here. He rushed to find them, but Hades held him back with her power. "Don't rush," she said. "Even if you go, you won't find them. This world is vast."
"Then… what do you suggest?" he demanded angrily.
"I'll bring them to you… on one condition," Hades said, a smile spreading across her face.
"And what is that?" Saruto asked.
Hades said, "Allow me to train you."
There was a long silence, then he agreed. Hades opened a gate and said, "I summon Mr. Morvan and Lady Carmelina of the Dark House."
The gate turned purple, and two figures stepped out. The moment Saruto saw them, his heart leapt. Tears streaming down his face, he ran and hugged them tightly. His father, Morvan, with his black hair and purple eyes, and his mother, Carmelina, with her white hair and dark eyes. His mother smiled and said, "You've grown so much, Saruto."
His father said proudly, "How are you, my boy?"
He looked at them, tears still streaming down his face, and said in a broken voice, "Mother… Father… I've missed you both."