The cavern's air still trembled with the echo of the Root Bug's deletion.
But Arin wasn't thinking about the monster anymore…
His mind kept replaying the obelisk's message.
You are not a player anymore.
You are becoming the Error.
The Eradicator is coming.
Those words dug into his bones like cold needles.
Nova walked a step ahead, tails swaying alertly. "We shouldn't stay here. Something else is watching us."
Celeste nodded, her fingertips glowing with protective enchantments.
"It's not a matter of if… but when they arrive."
"Let them come," Arin said — though a flicker of unease pricked his chest.
⚠ SYSTEM ALERT
World Merge Stability: 96% → 92%
An unseen influence is accelerating collapse.
Celeste frowned. "The core rules… are deteriorating faster. Like someone wants this chaos."
Arin paused. "Or something."
Their path led up ancient stairs, carved into a colossal gateway. Beyond it — the open night sky of Eos, shimmering with auroras of corrupted code. Cities far away flickered as though phasing between realities.
This world wasn't just glitching…
It was updating.
As they crossed a broken bridge, Nova suddenly halted — fur puffed, eyes burning azure.
"Something is here," she growled.
Celeste's staff hummed with power. "Show yourself!"
The shadows rippled… and a hooded figure stepped out.
Tall. Armored in obsidian plates etched with glowing digital runes.
A crown of fractured circuits hovered above his head like a halo.
His voice had two tones — one human, one system-generated:
"Player ID: Arin.
System Status: Anomaly.
Judgment: Termination Required."
Arin's pulse spiked.
Nova bared her fangs. "An Eradicator…"
Celeste's breath shivered. "No. He's not ordinary."
The figure removed his hood — revealing a face partially masked by shifting code. One eye, crimson like a corrupted sun. The other, a dead blue screen.
He raised a hand — the entire area dimmed as though reality itself obeyed him.
ERADICATOR-01: VALEON
The System's First Executioner
⚔ Duel of Authority
Valeon moved without motion — simply appearing in front of Arin.
Their blades clashed.
Shockwaves burst, cracking the bridge into pieces.
Every strike Valeon made came with a System Command:
"Undo."
Arin's sword temporarily vanished.
"Lag."
Arin's body froze mid-air.
"Error."
Pain tore through his nerves — reality struggling to decide if he was allowed to exist.
Arin crashed against a shattered pillar, coughing blood that pixelated before hitting the ground.
Celeste attempted a spell — instantly cancelled:
"Permission denied."
Nova lunged — Valeon caught her throat mid-air, twisting code like strings.
He wasn't fighting them…
He was editing them.
Arin forced himself up — fury burning through fear.
"I won't let you control me."
Valeon's glowing eye narrowed.
"You were never meant to have control."
"You are a virus."
Arin clenched his fists — blue sparks surging through him.
"Then I'll be a virus that destroys you."
For a fraction of a second…
Valeon hesitated.
That's when Arin seized the opportunity — unleashing a blast of unstable power straight into Valeon's chest.
The explosion tore the sky apart.
When the smoke cleared—
Valeon stood motionless. His armor cracked.
But he wasn't defeated.
"You are evolving faster than predicted."
"This will require a full reset."
He extended his arm — a countdown appearing in the sky.
Reality Reset Protocol: 30 seconds
The horizon shook — cities glitching violently.
Celeste's voice trembled. "If the reset completes… everything we've done — everyone — will be erased."
Arin's heartbeat turned into thunder.
"No… no one resets my world!"
He charged, power flaring uncontrollably—
The air warped like melting glass—
The timer stopped at 1 second.
Valeon stared, shocked.
"Impossible… Player cannot override System Protocols."
Arin stood trembling — his aura flickering like a being stitched from two worlds.
"I'm not a player anymore."
Valeon's eye glitched — fear… or confusion?
"Then what are you?"
Arin stepped forward — his shadow shifting into glitch fragments.
"I'm the one who decides the update."
A void rift tore open behind Valeon.
A command echoed:
Eradicator-01: Retreat. Observe the anomaly.
Valeon vanished into the void.
Reset cancelled.
The world breathed again.
Arin collapsed to his knees — Celeste and Nova rushing to his side.
Nova nudged his cheek gently. "You scared us…"
Celeste touched his cheek — eyes soft, voice barely a whisper.
"You defied the system itself…"
Arin stared at his flickering hands — terrified of his own power.
"…What am I becoming?"
Nova pressed her head into his chest.
"A leader," she said.
"And maybe… a God."
Arin didn't feel like a God.
He felt like a mistake gaining consciousness.
And mistakes were dangerous.
As the night skies stabilized…
a distant screen of light flickered above the world.
Patch Incoming: Eradicator-02 Online
Target: Arin
Mission: End the Evolution Error