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"My child."
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The voice echoed gently.
Not like thunder.
Not like magic.
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Like a lullaby.
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A lullaby Rosy had never consciously remembered...
Yet somehow knew by heart.
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Her vision blurred.
Her knees weakened.
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"...Mother?"
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The word escaped before she could stop it.
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The instant it left her lips—
The entire universe fell silent.
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Even the Devourer froze.
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Even Sol stopped breathing.
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Even Orion closed his eyes.
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Because no one had spoken that title in countless eternities.
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Far beyond creation—
The midnight-blue eyes softened.
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"So... you still remember."
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Rosy clutched her chest.
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"No..."
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She shook her head desperately.
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"I don't."
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"I only remember..."
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"...your voice."
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The enormous eyes curved warmly.
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"That is enough."
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Another forgotten memory surfaced.
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Not a battlefield.
Not a kingdom.
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A tiny girl curled up beneath an endless sky of darkness.
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She couldn't have been older than five.
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She cried quietly.
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Not because she was hurt.
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Because she was lonely.
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Then—
A woman wrapped her in a cloak made of stars.
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Her face remained hidden.
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Only her hands could be seen.
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Warm.
Gentle.
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"It's alright, little star."
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"I'm here."
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The little girl immediately stopped crying.
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She buried herself against the woman's embrace.
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"...Mama."
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The memory shattered.
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Rosy gasped.
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Tears streamed freely down her cheeks.
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"...I remember..."
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Only fragments.
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Yet those fragments carried more warmth than all her memories of war combined.
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Sol quietly stepped closer.
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"...Mom..."
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Rosy instinctively reached for him.
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Without taking her eyes from the heavens.
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He immediately held her hand.
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Exactly as he had done when he was little.
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No hesitation.
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No embarrassment.
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Just trust.
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Orion smiled faintly.
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"Some bonds never disappear."
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The Devourer remained unusually quiet.
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Rosy noticed.
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"...You're silent."
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The crimson eyes looked upward.
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"...I don't like her."
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"...Why?"
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A long silence followed.
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Then the Devourer answered honestly.
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"...Because she always looked at me with pity."
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Nobody expected that answer.
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Rosy blinked.
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"Pity?"
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"I destroyed worlds."
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"I devoured stars."
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"I became everything she warned against."
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A pause.
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"...She never hated me."
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Another pause.
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"...I hated that."
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Rosy's heart tightened.
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For the first time—
She saw something beneath the Devourer's arrogance.
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Loneliness.
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Immense loneliness.
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The ancient monster continued quietly.
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"...She always believed I could choose differently."
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"...Could you?"
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The Devourer laughed bitterly.
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"...I don't know anymore."
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Before anyone could respond—
The heavens rippled.
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The midnight-blue eyes slowly closed.
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Then—
Reality split apart.
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Not violently.
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Gracefully.
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Like curtains being drawn aside.
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From beyond the opening—
A woman stepped forward.
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The capital forgot how to breathe.
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She wore a flowing black gown that shimmered with tiny stars.
Her hair was longer than the night itself.
Her eyes held the same endless midnight blue Rosy had seen moments ago.
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She looked neither young nor old.
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Simply eternal.
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Beautiful beyond words.
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Yet there was no arrogance in her expression.
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Only quiet kindness.
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She smiled.
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"My little star..."
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Rosy's breathing became uneven.
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Because the smile...
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It was the same smile she unknowingly wore whenever she comforted someone.
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The same smile Sol inherited.
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The same gentle warmth.
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Without thinking—
Rosy took one step forward.
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Then another.
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"...Mama..."
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The woman opened her arms.
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Rosy broke.
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Thousands of years of loneliness.
Thousands of years of battles.
Thousands of years of pretending to be strong.
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They all collapsed.
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She ran.
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Not as the Grand Duke.
Not as the Eternal Sun.
Not as Nyx.
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Simply as a daughter.
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The woman caught her effortlessly.
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Just as she had countless eternities ago.
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Rosy buried her face against her shoulder.
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"I'm sorry..."
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The words poured out uncontrollably.
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"I forgot..."
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"I forgot your face..."
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"I forgot your voice..."
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"I forgot everything..."
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The woman gently stroked her hair.
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"I know."
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"I'm sorry..."
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"You don't have to apologize."
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"I left you..."
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"No."
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The woman kissed her forehead softly.
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"You were protecting everyone."
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Rosy cried harder.
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The warmth of those hands...
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Nothing in existence compared to them.
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Not kingdoms.
Not power.
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Just home.
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Nearby—
Kael quietly wiped his eyes.
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Azrael noticed.
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"...You're crying."
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"...Dust."
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"There hasn't been dust for five chapters."
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"...Cosmic dust."
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Azrael smiled faintly.
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"I'll allow that excuse."
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Even Sol smiled through his own tears.
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The woman looked toward him.
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"So..."
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"You're Sol."
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The young man immediately bowed.
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"Yes, Grandmother."
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Silence.
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Rosy slowly looked up.
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"...Grandmother?"
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The woman laughed softly.
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"Of course."
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She walked toward Sol.
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Placed a gentle hand on his head.
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"Thank you."
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Sol blinked.
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"...For what?"
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"For waiting for my daughter."
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His golden eyes immediately filled with tears again.
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"...I promised her."
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"I know."
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"And you kept your promise."
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The woman smiled proudly.
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"You've grown into a fine young man."
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Sol looked away awkwardly.
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"...Thank you."
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The Devourer watched the scene from afar.
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Expression unreadable.
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The woman turned toward it.
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Their eyes met.
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For several long moments—
Neither spoke.
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Finally—
She smiled.
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"...You've grown too."
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The Devourer scoffed.
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"I became a monster."
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"No."
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"You became lonely."
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Silence.
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The ancient being looked away.
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Unable to answer.
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Because deep inside...
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It knew she was right.
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But before anyone could speak again—
The woman's gentle expression faded.
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She slowly looked toward the empty heavens.
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Her eyes hardened for the first time.
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"...It's here."
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Orion immediately stepped beside her.
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"So soon?"
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She nodded.
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"The one before me."
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Rosy frowned.
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"...Before you?"
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The woman looked at her daughter with quiet sadness.
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"There is one existence..."
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"...Older than Darkness."
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"...Older than Light."
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"...Older than Time."
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A long silence.
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Then she whispered the name every primordial being feared.
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"The Dreamer."
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The universe trembled.
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Not because the Dreamer was awakening.
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Because...
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It had never truly been asleep.
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End of Chapter 41