"From today on, don't mention that Old System ever again. What's running on your phones is code I personally rewrote. Hunting, skills, armor—it's all in one system. You are no longer that 'System's' warriors, nor are you my private guard. You are the free 'Guardians of Armor' of this world!"
As the total system transfer and modification concluded, the golden light on Lawson's phone finally dimmed completely.
He had stripped away every application, armor, and skill, broadcasting them like seeds of fire to his comrades and the crystal core atop the central tower.
Looking at his empty phone screen, he felt no loss—only an unprecedented lightness.
He gave a weary, peaceful smile.
"Looks like… I've really lost my connection to the armor authority this time. Back to being a 'blank slate'." He whispered, his voice like a breeze. "But it's okay. Being everyone's guide in this world… isn't a bad trade…"
Lawson's eyelids grew heavy.
The tension of these past days, the madness of the last two weeks, and the supernatural strain of re-coding reality hit him all at once.
Like an old soldier who had completed his mission, he collapsed limply onto the dust-covered console.
As he fell into a deep sleep, the violent aura of authority around him faded into silence.
"LAWSON!!!"
Katie saw him collapse, and her heart felt like it had stopped.
She became a shadow of desperation, rushing toward the man she loved but had never been able to tell.
The mirror she had been hiding shattered against the floor, shards flying everywhere—just like her suffocating heart.
Her vision blurred, her legs felt like lead as she stumbled to the console and pulled Lawson's exhausted body into her arms.
"Lawson! Wake up! Don't you dare sleep! We haven't even started... it can't end like this..."
Katie buried her face in the crook of his neck, trying to combat the creeping cold with her own body heat.
Tears streamed down her face as she pulled him tighter, finally, at the edge of despair, screaming out the confession she had held back for years:
"...I've actually liked you for a long time! Wake up! Tell me how you feel! Please!!! Lawson!"
She clung to him, her tears falling like broken pearls onto Lawson's blank phone screen.
Beside them, Dodge gripped his best friend's shoulder, trying to summon his spirit back through sheer friendship.
But Lawson remained unresponsive, a faint layer of golden light flowing silently between the three of them—a gentle yet cruel barrier.
The surrounding warriors were heartbroken. George sank dejectedly into the rubble, Phyllis covered her mouth, sobbing uncontrollably, and Luther took off his glasses, desperately wiping away a torrent of tears with his sleeve.
Just as everyone thought this tragedy would end in eternal sleep, a smile of a "dream come true" suddenly flickered across Lawson's pale face.
Then... that "damn" hand somehow layered itself over the back of Katie's.
"Don't be sad, darling... I know how you feel now."
Lawson hadn't disappeared.
Instead, he gently wrapped his arm around Katie's back and pulled her forward.
To the stunned disbelief of everyone present—amidst the dust and debris of a construction site—the two shared a soul-stirring kiss that would make any unpaired soul die of envy.
"WHAT THE—?!"
Dodge, the world's ultimate "third wheel," felt like he was suffocating on their sweetness.
He pulled an emergency brake, stumbling back several steps and coughing loudly into his hand to give them some space.
Phyllis covered her eyes but left her fingers wide open, trapped in a conflict of "I shouldn't look, but I must."
Luther was so shocked his glasses slipped, clattering away into the distance, leaving him as a frozen background character.
The best reaction came from George.
Still kneeling on the rubble, he had completely solidified into a white-haired stone statue.
With a mouth wide enough to fit a fist and a look of total existential crisis, he looked like a limited-edition "Superstar Poster" of the apocalypse.
Meanwhile, Ester watched like an obsessed fan at the finale of an idol drama, her eyes wide, clapping her hands and blushing furiously.
The golden light of authority now served as free special effects, swirling around the couple like fireflies.
Lawson finally ended his twenty-six-year streak as a bachelor, holding the goddess he had crushed on since middle school and offering a sincere, no-regrets first kiss.
Katie shed all her defenses, holding Lawson's waist and feeling the direct, dominant passion of the man she had loved for years.
In this scarred world, they composed their own "Movement of Love."
At that moment, the giant energy crystal atop the Core Tower sensed its master's heart and erupted with a pillar of golden light that pierced the heavens!
The light wasn't just a romantic backdrop; it was a declaration to the world: The Old System was dead, and a New Era had officially arrived!
The brilliant golden ripples spread outward.
Lawson, still weak but eyes burning with the arrogance of a "Creator," stood up slowly while holding Katie.
He looked out over the Nova Star he had built with his own hands.
"Look. This is our new world. No more following orders to complete missions. We only need our own hands to carve out a new chapter of fate."
He turned to his stunned comrades and raised the {Sword of System Authority} pointing it toward the sky:
"My friends, the new system is online and I've finally got the girl! Now, all that's left is to scrub those masterminds off the face of the earth and save this fallen world!"
As if roaring in resonance with his ambition, the entire Nova Star let out a thunderous, metallic howl.
Across every warrior's device, a system announcement flashed in perfect, blinding unison:
[ALL SYSTEMS OPERATIONAL: ARMOR GOD OS v1.0 LAUNCH SUCCESSFUL]
[CURRENT OBJECTIVE: FORGE YOUR OWN LEGEND — NEW ARMOR LINK!!!]
Across the scorched apocalyptic wasteland, golden light descended like a benediction of rain.
These warriors, now forged with "Free Will," stood ready.
No longer shackled by any destiny, they were set to write a brand-new legend—unhindered, unbroken, and unstopped.