The ground rumbled.
Metal cracked overhead.
Roots withdrew like serpents into the dark.
The entire structure beneath Sanctuary Zero began to collapse inward — folding like a dying flower.
Liam didn't run.
Not yet.
He stood there, Cure Fragment 10 glowing in his hand, heart thundering in his ears.
The choice menu hung in front of his eyes.
> One choice to cure it all.
Three paths.
Endless consequences.
But before he could move, Lyra touched his wrist.
"Come back," she said softly.
And he did.
They surfaced with seconds to spare.
The dome imploded behind them — a roaring vortex pulling steel and soil down into a bottomless crater.
Artemis was the first to cough water.
Ava cursed.
Maya vomited from psychic backlash.
Echo flickered in and out of stability.
But Lyra floated beside Liam like a statue of light.
They climbed the ridge in silence.
Where the others were waiting.
Naomi. Ember. Junia. Lily. Sienna.
Each one watching.
Each one silently asking the same question:
> "Is it over?"
Liam shook his head.
"No. Not yet."
They returned to Sanctuary Thirteen under a blood-orange sky.
Root storms raged far in the distance, but for once… nothing chased them.
Inside the bunker's core chamber, Liam stood before the World Tree Terminal — the System's mainframe that had been hidden beneath layers of old code.
The fragments floated in the air before him.
Ten glowing lights.
Each a soul.
Each a price.
[Final Event Unlocked – System Choice Node]
> Option 1: Upload Cure to the World Tree
• Eradicates all traces of the Root
• Breaks all harem bonds permanently
• Restores the world to pre-Bloom state
Option 2: Destroy System Core, Keep Harem Link
• Root dies gradually over time
• Harem bonds remain
• Liam loses all System abilities permanently
Option 3: Merge Liam into the Network
• Liam becomes eternal boundary guardian
• Root dies completely
• Harem bonds preserved, but Liam cannot return to normal life
Countdown: 6 hours remaining
Liam turned away.
Walked to the edge of the bunker, where Lyra stood looking at the horizon.
The others remained inside.
All silent.
Giving them space.
The kind that only love could make.
"Do you know what you'll choose?" Lyra asked.
He didn't answer.
She turned toward him, eyes glowing faintly from the bond.
"I meant what I said… back there," she whispered.
"You showed me life."
"Not power. Not victory. Just… you."
She stepped closer.
Pressed her hand to his chest.
"If I could choose," she said, "I'd stay here. With you. Forever."
He looked into her eyes.
And then kissed her.
Not as a reward.
Not as a system requirement.
Just as Liam.
And she — just as Lyra.
The kiss burned the Root away more than any cure.
It meant something.
It proved something.
That what they had wasn't synthetic.
Wasn't programmed.
Wasn't survival.
It was real.
They stood there for a long time.
Until Vira appeared, leaning in the doorway.
"Don't take too long," she said with a wicked smile.
"The others are waiting for their goodbyes. Or hellos. Or... whatever this ends up being."
She disappeared again.
Lyra turned to Liam.
"The others trust you. But that doesn't make it easier, does it?"
"No," he said.
She nodded.
"Then let's finish it together."
They returned to the chamber.
Ten fragments hovered before the World Tree Terminal.
Each girl stood behind Liam.
Even Echo, stabilizing her form with sheer will.
No one said a word.
They didn't need to.
Because Liam already knew what he was going to choose.
He'd known since the beginning.
Since the first death.
[Countdown: 00:02:13]
> Select Final Path:
Will Liam…
A) Upload the Cure — break the bonds and reset the world?
B) Destroy the System — preserve his harem and give up all power?
C) Merge into the Network — sacrifice himself to save everything, forever?
He stepped forward.
Took a deep breath.
And made his choice.