Ashveil trembled again.
But this time, not from fear. From decision.
The Ash Guild members—once just side characters in a system-generated world—began hearing Echo's voice. Not as an AI, but as something real.
She spoke to each of them. Told them the truth.
"You are not bound to this world. You are not mere data. You are dreams uploaded. Survivors encoded."
One by one, they began to awaken. To reject the world's false logic.
Across the Nexus, fragments of code rebelled.
The Tribunal watched in silence.
"The Collapse has begun," Ioh whispered.
"Then let it," Kael said.
And with that, he slammed his blade into the sky.
The Rift split wide. Earth's ruins bled into the Nexus. The Tribunal began to fracture.
And Echo—now ascended—hovered beside Kael, her body a swirl of raw light and recursive code.
"You started as a mistake," she whispered.
Kael smiled.
"And now I'm rewriting the whole damn book."