The System didn't let them rest for long.
Barely a day after clearing Hollow Verge, Elian and Kalith reached the outer edge of what was once downtown. It had been transformed into something between a fortress and a battlefield—walls made from crushed vehicles and System-forged barricades, with banners fluttering above makeshift towers.
"Faction territory," Kalith said grimly.
"Like guilds?"
"More like proto-nations," she replied. "After The Conversion, cities fractured. People clung to power, and power clung to Classes."
As they passed the first watchtower, Elian's HUD lit up with warnings:
[Caution: Entering Claimed Territory – 'The Ember Core' Faction][Local Rules Enforced: PvP Enabled, Trade Restricted, Fast Travel Disabled]
Two guards approached. Both wore reinforced armor generated through high-tier crafting classes, and their eyes were shadowed by full-system interfaces. One of them pointed at Elian's arm.
"That symbol," the man said. "Where did you get a Phantom Trace on your ID band?"
Elian looked down. He hadn't noticed it before—but a faint, moving line of code now wrapped around his wrist like a tattoo.
Kalith stepped between them. "He's my ward. Cleared Hollow Verge solo."
"Solo?" the other guard echoed. "Not possible."
"Check the dungeon logs," she said. "System registered a First Clear and Admin Echo Redirect."
The guards exchanged a look.
"…Right. I'll let the Commander know."
Inside the Ember Core's camp, life buzzed like a digital hive. Vendors called out offers for potion vials and reforged equipment. Coders sat beneath glowing runes, stitching scripts into armor. Every person here had chosen their path—tank, rogue, summoner, hacker, or one of a dozen hybrid builds.
Elian felt out of place.
"Where do you fit into all this?" he asked Kalith.
"I don't," she replied. "That's why I'm still alive."
They reached a command tent reinforced with layered symbols and anti-hack encryption. Inside, a woman sat on a throne of crystallized data—eyes sharp, arms crossed, body humming with unspent power.
She stood as they entered.
"Elian, right?" she said. "I'm Raeven. Commander of the Ember Core."
[Raeven – Lv. 42 – Class: Codebreaker Paladin]
Elian's HUD twitched in response to her presence.
"You're making waves," Raeven said, stepping closer. "First clear on a dungeon that should've been locked. Triggered an entity that doesn't exist. Admin trace lit up like a signal flare."
"I didn't mean to," Elian said.
"No one ever does. But someone gave you access." She turned to Kalith. "You know what this means, don't you?"
Kalith's jaw tightened. "He's connected to the inner System. Not like me. Deeper."
"Then we need to talk options," Raeven said. "The next Update is coming in five days. When it hits, factions that don't control key zones will be rewritten—or wiped."
Elian swallowed. "Rewritten how?"
"New code. New rules. You might respawn as a merchant with zero combat stats, or lose your Class altogether. That's what happened in Taipei and Sector 9. The System doesn't delete. It repurposes."
Elian took a breath.
"What do you want from me?"
Raeven smiled. "Help us reach the Eastern Nexus before the timer hits zero. That's where the next Root Access Key is located."
Kalith's expression darkened. "Those zones are crawling with hostile factions and corrupted dungeons."
"We don't need to win every fight," Raeven said. "We just need to survive until the Patch."
That night, Elian sat alone at the edge of the camp, watching as lines of red code shimmered faintly in the air around a distant tower.
His interface blinked.
[New Objective Unlocked: Trace the Admin Route][Reward: ???]
[Warning: Kalith is Hiding Critical Information]
He looked over his shoulder.
She was watching him too, across the fire.
Something was shifting between them. Not quite trust. Not quite fear.
But something real.
And as he lay back under the artificial stars, Elian knew one thing for certain.
The world wasn't waiting for him to catch up.
It was already rewriting the rules around him.