The woman, Lady Death herself smiled wider, resting her chin in her palm. "I'm Lady Death, the one who keeps the souls that even gods fear to touch. You can call me Mama, okay~?"

"..."

"..."

"…Excuse me… what?" Askara blinked, his voice trembling between disbelief and politeness. He shook his head quickly, trying to clear the confusion fogging his thoughts. His surroundings, this impossible hall of light and shadow, still felt too real to be a dream. "I mean… if I'm here, doesn't that mean I'm dead?"

Lady Death tilted her head, strands of her shadowlike hair spilling down the throne like liquid night. Her crimson eyes softened with what looked almost like pity.

"No, sweaty~," she purred, voice lilting like a song, "why are you so obsessed with being dead? Are you dissatisfied with your life? Or does your family not treat you well enough?"

Askara frowned slightly, caught off guard. "No, my life's good and my family treats me well," he said slowly, cautious but firm. "Then… if I'm not dead, are you saying I'm still alive?"

Lady Death's smile curled, playful and dangerous all at once.

"Well… you're not alive either," she said, tapping her finger against her chin. "You're not dead, but you're not alive. So..." her eyes gleamed, "... what are you?"

"I… I don't know," Askara admitted, his voice small against the vastness of the chamber.

Death's laughter echoed, soft and melodic, like bells ringing across an endless graveyard.

"Ahaha~ You don't need to worry, my dear. Like I said, I wouldn't let you die. For now, just stay here for a while. Your body outside is still recovering… until it heals, your soul will remain here, with me"

She leaned back, crossing one leg over the other, her posture lazy but her aura immense. The throne beneath her pulsed faintly with light, alive, like a heartbeat made of eternity.

"But do you know why you ended up in such a condition?"

Askara frowned, remembering the blinding battle, the heat, the voice of Nāgāntaka. "Is it because I used too much power?" he asked carefully.

"Well~ you're not wrong," Death replied, her tone lilting like a lullaby. "But the real reason is that you used a SwordMagic technique"

Her crimson gaze sharpened, the air chilling.

"You know? Not everyone can wield that art. To use even a single form safely is admirable, but you…" She leaned forward slightly, her voice dropping, "You went beyond. You tried to fuse two forms at once. That reckless brilliance nearly tore your body apart. That's why you're here, because your physical form is on the verge of collapsing"

Askara winced, guilt flickering in his chest. "So… that's bad?"

"Are you wondering why your father could use that same technique as easily as breathing?" Death interrupted smoothly.

Askara fell silent. He didn't answer, but his eyes gave him away.

Of course, he wanted to know. He'd seen glimpses, tales of his father's godlike strength, but never understood how or why.

Death's smile grew distant, almost wistful.

"Then... Do you know why your father was called The Defiant?"

Askara blinked, trying to recall the stories passed down to him. "Because he fought the gods and their kin?" he guessed.

"That's part of it," Death said softly, her voice echoing like wind through ancient crypts. "But that's not the whole truth"

She rose slowly from her throne. The floor rippled beneath her bare feet like liquid starlight, every step leaving faint trails of glowing petals that faded into darkness.

When she stopped before Askara, her towering presence made him feel both weightless and crushed under awe.

"Would you like to know the real reason he earned that name, my child?" she asked, her voice quiet now, intimate, like the whisper of the world before dawn.

Askara hesitated, then nodded. "If I can… yes, please"

Lady Death smiled again, but this time it wasn't teasing. It was proud, like a mother speaking of someone she once loved deeply.

"Then listen well, little Dafient. For what I tell you now is not written in mortal tales… and it is the reason your father defied even me"

Her smile softened, and her crimson eyes glowed like embers veiled in mist.

Askara blinked, uncertain whether to bow, sit straighter, or simply breathe. He settled for listening.

"Before your father was known as the Dafient, or any title he had now," she began, tracing an invisible sigil in the air with one pale finger, "he was human. Mortal, fragile, and bound by limits like any other. But unlike others, he was born with something… missing"

"Missing?" Askara frowned. "Like what?"

"A soul's anchor," Death replied simply. "The thread that ties a being to the laws of the world. He was born unanchored, neither truly alive, nor meant to die. The world rejected him, yet could not erase him. He was an anomaly"

Askara's eyes widened. "Then… how did he survive?"

"He shouldn't have, but something, just one thing, one thing change anything," Death said softly, the humor fading from her tone for the first time. "One day, he was just another mortal wandering between life and death, and then he began to play with it. He played with Fate... With Death, he walked in my domain as if it were his own… and that is how I found him"

Her gaze grew distant, almost nostalgic.

"He was dying when I first had contact with him. Yet he smiled at me, at Death herself. No fear. No prayer. Only defiance. One day, I brought him here by force and offered him a place by my side. Do you know what he said?"

Askara shook his head.

"He said, 'I belong to no one. Not to fate. Not even to you'," A soft, almost mournful chuckle escaped her. "That was your father"

Askara felt his chest tighten. "That... sounds exactly like him."

Death chuckled faintly, her crimson eyes flicking back to him. "Indeed. Your father challenged even me. He was called the Defiant not just because he fought gods or fate, but because he forged his own path. His fate was always in his own hands. That, my child, is why he was the Defiant"

She walked to her throne again, leaned back upon her throne, resting her chin against her palm once more. "But there's more to it. He could wield Sword Magic without limit, not merely because he created it, but because its very existence should have been impossible. Not even a god could create such a thing. It was born from his will and imagination. It was born from nothing"

Her gaze softened, distant. "That technique does not rely on mana, but on something far purer, the power of the soul, the essence of life itself, and just for your information, your father has almost unlimited life force. That makes him able to wield any power in this world, in this universe, because he could convert his life force into mana, or into anything he desired... That technique was born from that principle: a fusion of pure energy, creation, destruction, and imagination"

Askara felt his throat go dry. "Then… when I used it…"

"You touched the same boundary he did," Death said softly. "You called upon forces your body was never meant to contain. You reached for creation and destruction at once, and for a brief, glorious moment, you succeeded. That's why you're here now: between the two"

Askara lowered his gaze, letting the weight of her words sink in.

The image of his father, standing beneath an impossible sky, defying gods and fate, flickered in his mind.

"...If he could bear it," he whispered, "then someday I will too"

Death's expression gentled. "Ah, my sweet boy. Always so eager to follow in his footsteps"

Then her tone turned sly again, lips curling into a teasing grin. "But if you truly wish to wield that power, you'll need more than stubbornness. You'll need control, understanding… and perhaps, more importantly, a little help from your father"

Askara froze. "Then I can't… because he's not with us right now"

Death laughed, soft, melodic, like silver bells in a graveyard breeze. "Oh, but he is, dear. Your father, Taufik, is always with us. Even if he's not here physically, he's always here," She placed a pale hand over her chest. "He's always in your heart. You must remember that, dear one"

Askara sighed deeply. "Then, Lady-"

"Hmm?"

"Lady-"

"Hmmmm~?"

"M… Ma… Mama?"

Death grinned wider, resting her chin on both palms now, eyes gleaming mischievously. "Yes~ my child?"

"D-Do you know where my father is now? I mean… his exact location?"

"I do," she said, her tone turning calm once more. "Because he bears my mark, and through it, I am always connected to him. I've always known where he is"

Askara's eyes brightened. "Then-!"

"I know his location," she interrupted gently, "but that doesn't mean I can reach him. I know he's alive… yet he's not in this universe anymore. He's somewhere within the multiverse, somewhere even I cannot touch. Each universe has its own laws, its own barriers. But don't worry, my dear. Taufik is only lost… not gone. And I know he wishes to meet you all again"

Her voice softened, fading like mist. "So let's wait, shall we? Until then… dream, my son. Dream of the day you'll walk beside him, and fight beside him once more... I think it's time, Thank you for accompanying me for a while, it was short but fun...see you again someday, My Child~"

The light dimmed.

The world faded.

And Askara's consciousness slipped away like a falling ember into the dark.

....

...

..

.