The glowing core pulsed violently, light searing my eyes as my body trembled under the overload.
The girl gasped, clutching her chest. "It's… burning me alive!"
> [Fragment Overload: 98%. Warning: Critical failure imminent.]
I forced myself to focus. "Crystal AI! How do I stop this?!"
> [Option Detected: Core Absorption. Risk Level: Extreme. Success Probability: 47%.]
"Forty-seven percent?!" My voice cracked.
The girl looked at me, silver eyes brimming with panic. "Do it—before it kills us both!"
Without thinking, I pressed my hand against the crystal core. Agony tore through my veins, runes blazing like molten fire. The girl screamed as our link flared, energy funneling into both of us.
For a moment, I thought my body would rip apart. Then—
Silence.
The core dissolved into my chest, vanishing into the runes. My vision went black.
> [Core Absorbed. Mid-Boss Essence Claimed. New Skill Acquired: Crystal Domain (Lv.0).]
When I came to, I was lying in a crater, the girl slumped unconscious beside me. The beasts were gone. The timer had hit zero. We had survived.
But the AI's final words left a chill in my bones:
> [Fragment Count: 2/100. The Realm begins to notice you.]