Silence.
For the first time since she'd entered the dungeons, there was no roar, no HUD alerts, no level-up flashes. Just silence.
The Oversight's faceless form flickered in front of her—glyphs bleeding into static, edges dissolving like ash. Its voice cracked, layered and broken:
"This… was not… permitted."
Rose-Metal smirked, amber eyes glowing molten white.
"Permits are for mortals. I don't do paperwork."
System Collapse
Her HUD went berserk.
[System File Deleted]
[Oversight Core Corrupted]
[Progression = Undefined]
The crews—those still alive—stumbled forward. Jhene's chains sagged, melted into violet dust. Yugami collapsed, ichor spilling in rivers. Nutasi clutched their head, eyes bleeding from psychic overload. Verma's rifle was gone, his hands shaking. Shinzoo was on one knee, barely conscious, plasma burned out of his veins.
They all stared at her. Not with anger. Not even fear. With something worse: dread.
"Rose…" Jhene whispered, voice shaking. "What did you do?"
Rose-Metal tilted her head, licking black residue from her lips.
"What I always do, sweetheart. I won."
But the void disagreed.
The Oversight didn't die. It didn't vanish. It merged. Its broken glyphs crawled across her blade, her plating, her Amber Eyes.
[Warning: Oversight Core Integration Detected]
[Status: Architect + Oversight Hybrid]
[Threat Level: Unmeasurable]
Her smirk faltered—only for a heartbeat. Then it sharpened.
"So that's how it is. Guess I'm not just rewriting dungeons anymore. I'm rewriting everything."
The void convulsed. Timelines cracked. Galaxies bled into each other. The multiverse screamed, no longer contained by rules, no longer bound by guardians.
Rose-Metal wasn't a player. She wasn't an Architect. She wasn't even Oversight.
She was the error no system could fix.
Aftermath Cliffhanger
Jhene fell to her knees. "You've doomed us all."
Rose-Metal laughed, cannon-leg humming, obsidian blade dripping with fractured glyphs.
"Doomed? No, sweetheart. I freed you. Welcome to the endgame."
Her HUD flickered one last time, a command she hadn't seen before:
[New Dungeon Unlocked: Origin Reset — Level ???]
Amber eyes narrowed. Her smirk widened.
"Origin, huh? Guess it's time to kill God."