-----

Three years after the meeting, Maria discovered she was pregnant.

At first she was shocked, the realization hitting after days of strange nausea. Yet she had already prepared herself for this moment, she had long since stopped preventing conception.

It happened quickly after that decision. One wild, passionate night with Lucifer and Jonathan was all it took to conceive twins, one child for each father. She had promised them she would bear their children, and both men were overjoyed when it finally came true.

Nyx and the other children, now noticeably grown in these three years, were thrilled. The family gathered for a warm, intimate evening of celebration, laughter filling the air.

Having a large pregnant belly was an entirely new and profound experience. It left Maria feeling strangely relaxed yet constantly tired.

Living through motherhood brought her an enlightenment unlike anything else, drawing her closer than ever to achieving Great Perfection in the Fourth Stage of her Self-Cultivation—though she had not yet crossed that final threshold.

After eight months she gave birth safely to the twins. For the first time, Lucifer and Jonathan set aside their old differences. They cried together, embracing tightly and patting each other’s backs as the cries of their newborns rang out.

Lucifer’s child was naturally a half-dragon like Nyx: an adorable boy with white hair, vivid green eyes, four wings, three tails, and three prominent golden horns curving over his forehead. He looked strikingly like his father.

They named him Thanatos.

Jonathan’s child appeared fully human at first glance—a beautiful girl with blonde hair and gentle green eyes. The moment she was born, radiant light poured from her tiny body, momentarily blinding her father.

They named her Isabella.

Both infants were playful, utterly adorable, and astonishingly powerful, manifesting their abilities right away. Thanatos commanded a formidable force over death, instantly summoning undead. Isabella wielded life and light with equal strength, conjuring pillars of brilliant light and gentle spirits of vitality everywhere.

Their birth turned into joyful chaos, yet their parents laughed from the heart and celebrated the arrival of two new members to their already vast family.

Even with the new babies and precious time spent with their children, training never paused. Maria continued her diligent self-cultivation without fail.

...

Ten years after the meeting.

Clear, profound changes have touched everyone and everything.

The children had grown dramatically. Nyx and Celes were now teenagers—a wonderful, vibrant stage of life.

Yet despite the years, neither had begun dating or pursued romance. Nyx’s younger siblings constantly teased her that she wasn’t being honest with herself, but Nyx always insisted she was simply waiting for the right moment.

Everyone’s growth had been extraordinary. People from every world had become remarkably strong in only a decade.

They had mastered countless martial arts, magic spells, cultivation methods, and the power of Dream Hearts to a far deeper level.

The fifty floors of the tower—once dismissed and underestimated—now soared to unprecedented heights of power.

And they had only reached the halfway mark.

Maria was beginning to touch the Fifth Stage, though she still needed more rigorous training and cultivation. She sparred daily against her family, friends, and occasionally her own children, always eager to witness the full extent of their blossoming powers.

Word spread that Alma was pregnant, stirring a quiet jealousy in Hel, who clearly longed for the same experience.

After eight months Alma gave birth to a beautiful "human" child with a Dream Heart already shining in his chest—like every child Maria had borne.

He inherited his mother’s pink hair and vivid red eyes. Unlike the others, this angelic boy displayed no overwhelming power at birth; the day remained peaceful and serene.

Alma met with her grandmother, who had been invited for the occasion. Together they celebrated the new life, and the grandmother bestowed a name upon the boy.

He was called Liam, after Alma’s father.

Though the sweet, sleepy infant showed no dramatic abilities, Maria sensed how extraordinarily close he was to the Element of Dreams—far closer than anyone else, even herself.

His connection to the Dream Plane felt almost dangerously profound. Out of concern for him and everyone around him, she gently sealed that power away until he grew older and stronger.

And so time continued to flow.

...

Twelve years after the meeting.

Hel was pregnant.

The news was an unprecedented, joyous uproar celebrated across the entire world of Yggdrasil.

By now Hel had transformed into a beloved guardian goddess of souls and the afterlife—her former image completely redeemed and cherished.

Her pregnancy stemmed partly from that subtle jealousy, and partly from Maria’s frequent visits to her Realm—nearly every night.

Eventually Hel allowed Maria to shapeshift her lower body, and she was delighted by how wonderful it felt, quickly growing addicted to their intimacy.

Conception became inevitable. With Maria’s nightly visits and the deep, devoted love she showered upon Hel, pregnancy followed.

As a powerful goddess, however, her gestation lasted far longer than eight months—several years would pass before birth.

Still, Hel was radiantly happy. Loki, Fenrir, and Jormungandr celebrated alongside her. By this point old wounds had healed; no resentment lingered.

Maria noticed the fierce protectiveness in Loki’s eyes—the unmistakable pressure of an overprotective father. In the end he made her swear an oath to love Hel and their child for eternity.

It was not a difficult promise for Maria to make.

While everyone continued to grow, train, cultivate, and live fully, time marched onward.

...

Fifteen years after the meeting.

Hel’s child was finally born.

After more than three years of anticipation, Hel delivered safely with her father’s assistance.

The newborn was... a boy? A girl? Even Maria and Hel could not be certain.

The child possessed both sets of genitals, so they agreed to let the child choose their own identity as they grew.

The baby was breathtaking: long hair streaked white and black, one red eye and one golden. Their skin was divided—half pale white, half deep gray.

The pale half bore black hair and the red eye; the gray half bore white hair and the golden eye.

A mysterious power over death and souls emanated from the infant, deeply tied to the cycle of reincarnation.

Hel and Maria named their child Zephriel.

With the birth of a new Yggdrasil deity, a new Authority was granted at once.

As both mothers had sensed, it was the Authority of "Souls and Reincarnation."

Fearing the concepts might prove too dangerous for a newborn to handle, they temporarily sealed the Authority until Zephriel matured.

In other news, after fifteen years of relentless effort, Maria had finally reached the Fifth Stage.

Her Myriad Dream Soul Firmaments evolved dramatically, condensing into a gigantic star that then exploded into a black hole, absorbing nightmares, ghostly energy, and dreams.

It expanded outward, birthing thousands of stars that formed a vast Galaxy of Dreams, Ghostly Souls, Nightmares, Void, and countless other elements.

She named this stage "Stellar Dream Galaxy Soul."

The stars continued to condense and multiply, exponentially amplifying Maria’s power.

At this moment she felt herself truly ascending toward an unimaginable new Realm of existence—beyond anything she had once dreamed possible.

Yet she knew she had not fully grasped it. True mastery would come only at Level 1000, when she could undergo her next evolution.

Until then Maria never stopped cultivating—refining her soul, body, and mind to their absolute limits.

And so, more time passed.

-----