The moment the decision was made, the world reacted.
Not violently.
Not immediately.
But deeply.
The space around the core pulsed with slow, heavy waves of energy, like the realm itself had become aware of what they intended to do.
And it did not approve.
Leila felt it first.
The connection anchoring her to the realm tightened sharply, sending a sudden ache through her chest. She inhaled slowly, forcing herself to remain steady as the energy around her intensified.
"It already knows," she whispered.
The Sovereign stood unmoving nearby, his gaze fixed on the shifting currents surrounding the core.
"Yes."
Marcus frowned immediately.
"…I really hate when you answer like that."
No one paid attention to him.
Because all focus had shifted to the center.
To what was about to happen.
The old man stepped forward carefully, his expression more serious than ever before.
"Once this starts, there is no interruption," he said. "If the transfer destabilizes midway and we stop—both anchors could collapse."
Marcus stared at him.
"…You really wait until the worst moments to explain things."
The old man ignored the comment.
"Dominic will have to fully connect to the core," he continued. "Not partially. Completely."
Leila's eyes darkened slightly.
"That's exactly the problem."
Dominic remained calm.
"What do I do?"
The old man hesitated briefly before answering.
"You let the realm take hold of you."
Marcus threw both hands up instantly.
"…That sounds TERRIBLE."
"It is," Leila said quietly.
Her gaze stayed fixed on Dominic.
"Because once it starts, the world won't care whether you survive the process as yourself."
Silence settled again.
Heavy.
But Dominic never stepped back.
Never reconsidered.
Because to him, the decision had already been made.
The Sovereign finally moved closer.
For the first time since Dominic reached the core, his presence felt fully directed at him.
"You understand what this means."
It wasn't a question.
Dominic answered anyway.
"Yes."
"You may succeed in replacing her."
A pause.
"But the version of you that leaves this process may not be the version that entered it."
Leila looked away briefly.
Because that was the part she feared most.
Not death.
Not failure.
Loss.
Slow.
Permanent.
Dominic's voice remained steady.
"As long as she goes home."
Leila's eyes snapped back toward him immediately.
"…Stop saying it like that."
He looked at her.
And for the first time since arriving, something softer crossed his expression.
"What?"
"Like you've already accepted losing yourself."
He didn't answer.
Because maybe he had.
The world pulsed harder.
Energy spread outward from the core in widening rings, distorting the space around them. The unstable sky above shifted violently, colors colliding against each other like the realm itself had grown restless.
Marcus glanced upward nervously.
"…Please tell me that's normal."
"No," the old man replied.
"…Great."
The Sovereign lifted one hand slowly.
The energy around the core responded instantly, rising upward in streams of light and shadow intertwined together.
"The transfer must begin now," he said.
A pause.
"Before the balance resists further."
Leila stepped forward instinctively again.
This time the world resisted harder.
Pain flashed across her expression before she forced herself still.
Dominic saw it immediately.
And something cold entered his gaze.
"Enough."
The word came out sharper than expected.
The pressure around Leila eased slightly.
Not because the world allowed it—
But because Dominic forced it to.
The Sovereign noticed.
The old man noticed.
Even Leila noticed.
The realm was responding to him differently now.
Not just accepting him.
Yielding.
The Sovereign's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Interesting."
Dominic ignored him.
His attention remained on Leila.
"You're leaving with them."
"No."
Her answer came instantly.
"If this fails, I'm not walking away while you stay trapped here alone."
Marcus sighed heavily.
"…You two really picked the worst possible place for emotional arguments."
No one responded.
The old man stepped between them slightly.
"Focus."
His voice cut through the tension.
"If your emotions destabilize the connection during the transfer, the realm will react violently."
Marcus blinked.
"…Wait, our FEELINGS can destroy reality now?!"
"In this place?" the old man replied quietly.
"Yes."
That shut him up.
Leila closed her eyes briefly before looking back at Dominic.
Fear still lingered there.
Not fear for herself.
For him.
"You don't know what this place will turn you into."
Dominic stepped closer again, stopping at the invisible limit where the balance tightened between them.
"Then I'll make sure I remember why I did it."
Her breath caught slightly.
Because that answer hurt more than if he had tried to sound fearless.
The Sovereign raised his hand higher.
The core reacted instantly.
The ground beneath Dominic lit with shifting patterns, ancient and unnatural, spreading outward beneath his feet.
The energy surged around him.
Not attacking.
Claiming.
Marcus took a nervous step back.
"…Okay, this definitely looks like the start of something catastrophic."
The old man's voice lowered.
"It is."
Dominic inhaled once.
Slowly.
Then stepped fully into the center of the core.
The world exploded with light.
Leila gasped as the connection between them surged violently open, stronger than ever before.
Pain hit Dominic instantly.
Not physical.
Something deeper.
Like countless forces pulling at every part of what made him who he was.
The realm entered him.
Through him.
Around him.
Trying to rewrite him into something that could hold the balance permanently.
His shadows erupted outward violently.
The sky above cracked.
The ground beneath the core trembled.
Marcus stumbled backward.
"…THIS FEELS LIKE A BAD SIGN!"
Leila tried to move toward him.
The world stopped her instantly.
Dominic's body remained upright.
But barely.
His eyes darkened as the energy consumed more and more of him.
And still—
He didn't step back.
Didn't scream.
Didn't resist.
Because the transfer had begun.
And now—
There was no turning back.