The glass chamber hissed open.
Steam rose as the clone slowly opened its eyes—red, just like Riku's.
Lucien stepped forward. "So… they made another."
The clone sat up, calm and silent. Then it spoke.
"I am Riku. I am… the perfected one."
---
Everyone froze.
Fio whispered, "Did it just say perfected?"
Riku stared at the clone. "What are you?"
"I am what you were meant to be," the clone said. "No emotion. No fear. Just evolution."
---
> [New Threat Detected – Code Name: Mirror Riku]
[Warning: Core resonance may cause instability]
Elinor looked at Riku. "If you fight him, your powers might—"
"I don't care," Riku interrupted. "He's not me."
The clone tilted its head. "Then prove it."
---
The walls shifted.
Metal arms closed the chamber behind them.
Lucien muttered, "This was a test. A final trial."
> [Boss Battle Initiated: Mirror Riku – Adaptive Core Combatant]
The clone leapt forward with blinding speed. Riku barely dodged.
Blades clashed—perfect copies of each other's moves.
But Riku smirked.
"I've felt pain. I've made friends. That's something you'll never copy."
Riku's body flew back, slamming into the wall.
The clone walked forward, expression blank. "Emotion weakens the code. Remove it."
Fio rushed in to help, but a barrier sealed her off.
Lucien growled, "It's forcing a one-on-one evolution match."
---
> [Warning: Core Sync Falling Below 60%]
[Teleportation Delay Detected – Interference Active]
Riku stood up, blood trailing down his cheek.
He whispered, "You're wrong. Emotion isn't weakness…"
He closed his eyes—and a memory surfaced.
---
A little girl crying in the dark.
A warm hand reaching out.
A voice saying, "Even slimes can shine."
That memory… from before he evolved.
Someone had saved him once. Someone who believed in him.
---
> [Memory Core Activated]
[New Skill Unlocked: Echo Heart – Boosts strength when protecting something important]
Riku's body glowed.
His aura pulsed with life.
Even the clone froze for a moment.
"You evolved… again?"
Riku dashed forward.
His blades were faster. Sharper.
Each strike carried feeling—rage, hope, love, and pain.
---
The final blow shattered the clone's sword.
Riku stood over it, panting.
"I'm not perfect…
But I'm alive."
The clone smiled faintly. Then its body turned to dust.
---
> [Boss Defeated – Mirror Riku]
[You have gained: Evolution Heart Fragment]
[New Trait: Soul Adaptation – Can evolve skills based on emotional triggers]
Lucien stepped in slowly. "You did it…"
Riku whispered, "Let's finish this."
They moved deeper into the facility.
The walls were older here—less metal, more crystal.
Ancient writing pulsed faintly on every surface.
Lucien translated slowly.
> "Core Project: Operation Rebirth"
"Objective: Create the perfect lifeform to protect all realms."
Fio asked, "Was that… you?"
Riku said nothing.
---
A large door opened into a glowing chamber.
At the center stood a throne made of crystal.
And on it—
A skeleton, still wearing a researcher's robe.
Behind it…
A huge glowing orb: the True Evolution Core.
---
> [Final System Memory Detected – Playback Starting]
A recording began.
A tired man's voice echoed.
> "To my creation…
You were not made to fight. You were made to feel.
If you're hearing this… I failed.
But maybe… you can still choose your own path."
---
Silence followed.
Riku stepped forward and touched the orb.
It pulsed softly—like a heartbeat.
> [Core Synchronization 99%… 100% Complete]
[Final Evolution Path Unlocked: Soulform Ascension]
His body glowed, shifting.
Not into a beast.
Not into a monster.
But a true human form—tall, radiant, with eyes of flowing light and hair of shimmering white.
---
Elinor gasped. "You… changed."
Lucien nodded slowly. "You've become what he dreamed of."
Riku turned.
"I've made my choice."
They moved deeper into the facility.
The walls were older here—less metal, more crystal.
Ancient writing pulsed faintly on every surface.
Lucien translated slowly.
> "Core Project: Operation Rebirth"
"Objective: Create the perfect lifeform to protect all realms."
Fio asked, "Was that… you?"
Riku said nothing.
---
A large door opened into a glowing chamber.
At the center stood a throne made of crystal.
And on it—
A skeleton, still wearing a researcher's robe.
Behind it…
A huge glowing orb: the True Evolution Core.
---
> [Final System Memory Detected – Playback Starting]
A recording began.
A tired man's voice echoed.
> "To my creation…
You were not made to fight. You were made to feel.
If you're hearing this… I failed.
But maybe… you can still choose your own path."
---
Silence followed.
Riku stepped forward and touched the orb.
It pulsed softly—like a heartbeat.
> [Core Synchronization 99%… 100% Complete]
[Final Evolution Path Unlocked: Soulform Ascension]
His body glowed, shifting.
Not into a beast.
Not into a monster.
But a true human form—tall, radiant, with eyes of flowing light and hair of shimmering white.
---
Elinor gasped. "You… changed."
Lucien nodded slowly. "You've become what he dreamed of."
Riku turned.
"I've made my choice."
Outside the Origin Facility, the sky cracked.
Storm clouds twisted into unnatural shapes.
Lightning struck in red arcs—unnatural and wrong.
From the shadows of the mountains, a giant figure emerged.
Black armor. Crimson eyes. A crown of bones.
> [Alert: Ancient Being Detected – Title: "The False King"]
[Threat Level: Cataclysmic]
---
Back inside, Riku stood still.
His new human form glowed faintly.
No longer just a slime. Not just a creation.
He was something more—a soul reborn.
Lucien stared. "Your presence… it changed. You feel alive now."
Riku turned toward the door. "He's coming. The one behind the wars. The one who made the world hate creatures like me."
---
The team prepared to move.
Fio armed her daggers. Elinor summoned her shield.
But Riku raised his hand. "I'll go first."
Lucien frowned. "Alone?"
Riku smiled softly. "I was born from nothing. Made to fight alone. But now…"
He looked at them.
"I'm not alone anymore."
---
> [Final Evolution Stage: Soulform – Complete]
[Ability Unlocked: Astral Step – Move through space as pure spirit]
[Title Gained: Guardian of the Core]
Riku stepped through the wall of the facility—vanishing like mist.
Outside, the False King turned his head.
Their eyes met.
The battle of origins had begun.