The world was breaking faster now.
Cracks spread across the sky like veins.
Streetlights flickered uncontrollably.
The ground beneath them trembled—
As if reality itself couldn't hold together anymore.
Aarav stood at the center of it all.
Still.
Calm.
For the first time—
Not afraid.
"…Then I choose," he said.
Meera's breath caught.
"…Aarav—"
The thing tilted its head.
Watching.
Waiting.
"…I refuse," Aarav continued slowly.
"…to become that."
Silence.
Heavy.
The thing's expression didn't change.
"…You're choosing suffering," it said.
"…I'm choosing real," Aarav replied.
A pause.
"…Pain, loss, fear…" the thing continued.
"…You'll keep breaking."
Aarav nodded slightly.
"…Maybe."
A step forward.
"…But at least it'll be me."
For the first time—
The thing's smile faded.
"…You've said that before."
Aarav stopped.
"…And I'll say it again."
The world shook violently.
A loud crack split the air.
One of the fractures in the sky—
Expanded.
And from it—
Darkness poured through.
The Midnight World was leaking in.
Shadows peeled off buildings.
Figures emerged from nothing.
Dozens.
Then hundreds.
Surrounding them.
Meera stepped back slightly.
"…It's reacting," she said.
"…To your choice."
Aarav looked around.
The figures weren't attacking.
They were watching.
Waiting.
"…They're not enemies," Aarav said quietly.
Meera looked at him sharply.
"…What?"
"They're not invading," he continued.
"…They're trying to complete something."
The thing behind him smiled faintly again.
"…Now you understand."
Aarav turned.
"…But that doesn't mean I accept it."
Silence.
The thing stepped closer.
"…Then what will you do?"
Aarav's eyes sharpened.
"…I'll break it."
The air froze.
Meera's eyes widened.
"…Break what?"
Aarav looked around.
At the cracks.
At the shadows.
At the world falling apart.
"…The loop."
The thing's expression shifted—
For the first time—
Genuine interest.
"…You already tried."
"…I know," Aarav said.
"…I failed."
A pause.
"…But I also learned."
The thing tilted its head.
"…What did you learn?"
Aarav took a step forward.
"…That the rules aren't theirs."
Silence.
"…They're mine."
The world trembled violently.
The shadows around them flickered—
Unstable.
"…And if I made them…"
Aarav raised his hand slowly.
"…I can change them."
Meera's breath hitched.
"…Aarav, wait—"
Too late.
The air distorted.
Like reality bending around him.
His voice echoed—
Not just in the world—
But through it.
"New rule."
Everything stopped.
The shadows froze.
The cracks paused.
Even the thing—
Didn't move.
Aarav's eyes glowed faintly now.
Not like before.
But enough.
"…Rule 9," he said.
A pause.
"…No one gets replaced."**
Silence.
Then—
The world reacted.
Violently.
The cracks expanded rapidly.
The shadows screamed—
A sound beyond sound.
Meera staggered back.
"…What did you do?!"
Aarav gritted his teeth.
"…I stopped them."
"…No," the thing said quietly.
Aarav froze.
"…You didn't stop anything."
The thing stepped forward.
Even with the world frozen.
It moved.
"…You created a contradiction."
Aarav's heart dropped.
"…What?"
"…If no one gets replaced…"
A pause.
"…then what happens to those who already were?"
The world shook violently again.
The shadows around them—
Started breaking apart.
Distorting.
Screaming.
Aarav's vision blurred.
"…No…"
Meera grabbed him.
"…You're tearing the system apart!"
"…Good," Aarav said through clenched teeth.
"…That's the point."
The thing watched him.
Not angry.
Not afraid.
Just… waiting.
"…You still don't understand," it said softly.
Aarav looked at it.
"…Then explain."
A pause.
"…If the system breaks…"
The thing's voice dropped—
"…so do you."
Everything stopped.
"…What?"
The thing smiled faintly.
"…You're part of it."
Aarav's breath caught.
"…You made the rules…"
"…You created the loop…"
A step closer.
"…You are the system."
Silence.
The world began collapsing faster now.
Reality tearing apart completely.
Meera's voice shook—
"…Aarav…"
"…If this breaks…"
A pause.
"…you won't exist anymore."
Aarav stood still.
The truth—
Clear now.
End the system…
And end himself.
Or—
Let it continue.
And lose himself anyway.
His hands trembled.
The world falling apart around him.
"…So this is it," he whispered.
The final choice.
🔥 END OF CHAPTER 13