[: 3rd POV :]

The hall was silent.

Not even the flicker of the candles dared to whisper.

The world itself seemed to have stopped, holding its breath for the reunion of two souls bound by blood, time, and tragedy.

Caelira stood beside Daniel, her cheeks streaked with tears.

She looked between him and the Empress with her heart swelling with emotions too heavy to describe.

She chuckled softly through the tears, trying to lighten the atmosphere despite the trembling in her voice.

"Daniel..." she murmured, brushing the corner of her eyes.

"It feels strange saying this, but... the Empress... she’s your mother."

Daniel blinked, his eyes widening just slightly.

His lips parted but no words came out.

Caelira’s laughter was soft and broken, filled with a bittersweet ache.

"Heh... to think that the boy we raised, the boy who saved ys, turns out to be he son. It’s almost unbelievable, isn’t it?"

She looked back at Melira, the radiant yet trembling figure who stood frozen atop the dais.

At this moment, she was like a goddess rised from grief to disbelief.

"Go," Caelira whispered, placing a gentle hand on Daniel’s arm.

"Go to her..."

Daniel turned his gaze to her.

His breath hitched.

"Caelira..."

She smiled, though her lips quivered.

"You’ve waited for this moment for so long... even if you don’t know her, your heart does"

"Go, Daniel...my little star"

Rika stepped forward, wiping her tears with the back of her hand.

"We’ll be right here," she whispered.

"Go, and meet your mother, Daniel. You deserve this."

Kiel grinned faintly, though his voice cracked when he spoke.

"Yeah... don’t keep your mother waiting, idiot."

Manork’s deep voice rumbled softly behind them.

"It’s time, boy. She’s been waiting her whole life for you."

Their encouragement pushed Daniel’s legs forward.

One hesitant step... then another.

Every footfall echoed through the vast hall, slow, deliberate, heavy with meaning.

The nobles, the knights, the guests, all had gone quiet.

Their eyes followed him, each pair holding tears or awe, or both.

To them, this wasn’t just a reunion.

It was a miracle.

Even hardened knights who’d faced death countless times felt their throats tighten.

The name Daniel was one of reverence, a hero whose legend had spread across continents.

To see him walk toward the Empress like a son returning home... it was something out of the songs of the ancients.

Melira stood still.

Her eyes glistened like wet jewels.

Her breathing was uneven and shallow.

Her fingers trembled so hard that she had to clutch her chest to steady herself.

’He’s real... he’s here...’

The words repeated in her mind again and again, her heart unable to grasp the truth that her son, her Daniel, was standing before her, alive.

And yet, fear clawed at her.

What if he hated her?

What if he thought she abandoned him?

What if, after all these years of searching, the only thing awaiting her was rejection?

Her knees weakened at the thought.

She wanted to run to him, to hold him tight and never let go again, but her feet refused to move.

Every breath hurt.

Every heartbeat was louder than thunder.

When Daniel finally stopped a few meters away, the two of them just stared at each other, neither speaking and neither daring to move.

Then Daniel broke the silence.

His voice was quiet, almost fragile.

"Are... you... really my mother?"

Melira’s breath caught in her throat.

The way he said it, the uncertainty, the longing, the quiet pain hidden beneath each word, made her heart shatter.

Her lips trembled as she took a slow, trembling step forward.

"...Yes," she whispered.

"Yes, I am."

Tears began to fall freely down her cheeks.

"I am your mother, Daniel... I am..."

Daniel didn’t speak.

He stood frozen, trying to process the emotions flooding through him.

He knew that she was his mother, but knowing and meeting her now there was a huge difference.

Melira pressed a hand to her mouth as she choked back a sob.

"I... I thought I lost you forever..."

Her voice cracked.

"I searched, Daniel"

"I searched everywhere for you"

"Even when everyone told me you were gone, even when the world turned against me for obsessing over a lost child, I never stopped believing that you were alive somewhere."

Her hands trembled violently as she lifted them slightly, as if reaching for him but too afraid to touch.

"There wasn’t a single day, not one, that I didn’t think of you."

She took another step closer.

Her words came out in gasps, as though each carried the weight of years of suffering.

"When you were taken from me... I thought the gods were cruel. I cursed them. I cursed myself for not being strong enough to protect you."

Her eyes squeezed shut as tears streamed down her face.

"Every night, I dreamed of your laughter"

"Every morning, I woke up wishing it was real"

"I would wake and go to your empty room that should have been yours and sit there for hours, talking to the air as if you could hear me."

Her voice broke completely now.

"And every time I held another child in my arms, every orphan, every refugee, I wondered if someone out there was holding you, keeping you safe."

Daniel’s lips parted slightly.

He didn’t realize he was trembling until his hands clenched at his sides.

Melira smiled weakly through her tears.

"When you awakened your bloodline, I seek help from the Spirit Empress to find you"

"But fate didn’t allow us to meet"

"And when I heard stories of a young man who fought against the monsters, who destroyed the Zero Organization, who saved hundreds thousands of people alone... my heart knew"

"Even before anyone said your name, I knew."

"And...look at you now...you grow up so fine..." Melira said with tears streaming down.

Daniel lowered his gaze.

His throat felt tight.

Every word she spoke felt like a dagger made of love and regret.

"I..." His voice cracked.

"I didn’t think anyone was still looking for me."

Melira gasped softly, shaking her head.

"No. Never say that, my son. I never stopped. Not once."

Her knees gave in, and before anyone could react, she dropped to the floor, kneeling before him.

The Empress, the ruler of nations, was on her knees before her child, her tears staining the marble.

Daniel’s eyes widened in disbelief. "W-Wait, don’t—"

But she spoke before he could finish.

"Forgive me," she whispered, voice trembling.

"Forgive me for not being there when you needed me most"

"Forgive me for failing you as a mother."

Her words cut through the silence like lightning.

The nobles behind them were openly crying now.

Even Caelira covered her mouth, sobbing quietly.

Daniel stood frozen, his chest heaving.

Seeing her like this, the mighty Empress, broken and begging for forgiveness, made something deep within him ache.

He took a slow, shaky step forward.

"...Please don’t kneel, Mother."

Melira’s breath hitched at the word, Mother.

She looked up, her tears shimmering like morning dew.

"What... did you call me?"

Daniel’s lips curved into a trembling smile.

"Mother," he repeated softly.

"You don’t have to kneel to me. I should be the one kneeling to you... after everything you’ve done."

Melira covered her mouth as sobs wracked her body.

She rose shakily to her feet, and the moment she did, Daniel stepped closer, until they were only an arm’s length apart.

For a heartbeat, they simply stared into each other’s eyes.

Then, with a trembling exhale, Melira reached out, hesitantly, and touched his cheek.

Her fingers brushed against his skin, warm and real.

Her breath hitched.

"You’re... real..." she whispered.

"You’re truly here..."

Daniel closed his eyes and leaned into her touch, feeling the warmth of a love he never thought he’d feel again.

"I’ve always wanted to meet you," he said quietly.

"Even if I didn’t know who were my parents... I always felt like something was missing"

"Like... there was someone waiting for me."

Melira smiled through her tears, her voice trembling.

"And I waited, Daniel. I waited every day, praying to every god that you’d come back to me."

Her voice cracked again.

"I told myself that even if the heavens were destroyed and the stars fell from the sky, I would still wait for you."

Daniel’s vision blurred as tears filled his eyes.

He took the final step forward and wrapped his arms around her.

The sound of Melira’s sobs filled the hall as she clung to him, her fingers digging into his back, terrified he might vanish if she let go.

"My son... my precious boy..." she wept.

"You’re home... you’re finally home..."

Daniel’s shoulders trembled as he hugged her tighter, his tears falling freely now.

"I’m home... Mother."

The two of them stayed like that for a long, long moment, mother and son reunited after years of longing and pain.

The hall that had once been filled with music and chatter now resonated only with the soft sound of their sobs and the muffled crying of those who watched.

Even the nobles who barely knew the truth of their story couldn’t stop their tears.

Rika held Caelira close as she whispered, "She finally found him..."

Caelira nodded, her eyes glistening.

"After all those years... she finally got him back."

Kiel looked away, blinking rapidly.

"Damn it," he muttered, rubbing his eyes.

"Why does this hurt so much to watch?"

Manork’s deep voice rumbled softly beside him.

"Because it’s real," he said.

"Because it’s love."

Melira eventually pulled back slightly, her hands still resting on Daniel’s face.

She looked at him as if memorizing every feature, the sharpness of his jaw, the depth of his eyes, the faint scar near his neck.

"Seems like you resemble me a lot..." she murmured softly.

"Especially your eyes"

Daniel chuckled quietly between sniffles.

"Then I must’ve gotten your stubbornness too."

Melira laughed weakly through her tears.

"You did," she whispered, brushing her thumb across his cheek.

"Every bit of it after Caelira, Rika, Kiel and Manork told me about you"

Then, her smile faded slightly.

"I don’t expect you to forgive me right away. I know I’ve failed you in ways I can never undo. But... if you’ll allow me..."

Her voice trembled again.

"Let me stay by your side now. Let me make up for all the years we lost."

Daniel shook his head gently, smiling.

"There’s nothing to forgive, Mother. I never blamed you. If anything... I’m grateful."

Melira blinked in surprise. "Grateful?"

He nodded slowly.

"Because if you hadn’t believed in me... if you hadn’t searched for me even when the world said I was gone... I don’t think I would’ve made it back here."

Her eyes widened, then more tears fell, faster this time, until she couldn’t stop them.

"Thank you..." she whispered hoarsely, pressing her forehead to his.

"Thank you for coming back to me."

Daniel closed his eyes and whispered, "Thank you for never giving up."

They stood there, forehead to forehead, lost in a moment that no magic, no continent, no force in the world could ever break.

It was the reunion of two souls separated by fate, bound by love, and healed by time.

And in that silent hall, as the nobles wiped their tears and the music slowly began anew, soft, slow, and tender, the world seemed to breathe again.

The Empress had her son back.

The lost child had found his home.

And for the first time in years... both could finally rest.

Even at this moment, the will of the Universe tear up as it watches this reunion.