Nobody moved for several seconds.
The Followers remained near the edge of the valley with their heads lowered while the strange figure stood silently beside Feroz.
Watching them.
The pressure in the air had changed again.
Calmer.
But heavier.
Like something important had just been confirmed.
Haroon slowly looked toward Younus.
"...they know what it is."
Younus nodded slightly.
"And that worries me."
The leader of the Followers lifted his head carefully.
His eyes remained fixed on the figure.
"We searched for years."
Haroon's expression hardened.
"For what?"
The man smiled faintly.
"For the one who survives the crossing."
Feroz immediately felt the noise grow again.
Soft whispers filled the edges of his mind.
Not loud enough to understand.
But enough to feel.
Haya stepped closer to the boundary carefully.
"Stop talking to him."
The leader looked at her.
Recognition flashed across his face.
"...you."
Haya's expression changed slightly.
"You know me?"
"I knew your brother."
Silence.
Every emotion disappeared from Haya's face instantly.
"What?"
The leader tilted his head slowly.
"He crossed much farther than this one."
Feroz looked toward Haya immediately.
She stayed completely still.
But her hands had tightened.
Haroon noticed it too.
"What happened to him?"
The leader smiled again.
"The same thing that happens to everyone eventually."
That answer only made things worse.
Younus stepped forward slightly.
"Enough."
Golden energy spread lightly around him again.
This time—
the Followers actually stepped back.
Not afraid of him.
Careful.
The leader looked toward Feroz one last time.
"You don't belong here anymore."
Then his eyes moved toward Haroon and the others.
"And neither do they."
The figure beside Feroz shifted again.
The valley trembled lightly.
The Followers immediately began backing away farther into the fog.
Like they understood something dangerous was close.
Before disappearing completely, the leader spoke one final time.
"When the noise becomes unbearable..."
His eyes locked onto Feroz.
"...follow the broken places."
Then they vanished into the forest.
Silence returned again.
But the valley no longer felt safe.
Feroz looked down slowly.
His breathing had become uneven again.
The whispers were weaker now—
but still there.
Always there.
Haroon immediately looked toward him.
"Feroz."
"I'm fine."
But the answer came too quickly.
Even he knew it wasn't true.
Haya quietly stepped closer to him again.
The boundary reacted slightly—
but didn't stop her.
That alone continued to disturb everyone.
She lowered her voice.
"You need to leave this place."
Haroon looked toward her sharply.
"Leave where?"
"Anywhere away from stable ground."
The sentence confused him immediately.
But Younus understood.
His expression darkened slightly.
"...the valley is rejecting him now."
Feroz looked around slowly.
For the first time—
he realized it too.
The Circle markings were fading faster now.
The pressure around him kept growing.
And the longer he stayed—
the worse it became for everyone nearby.
Haroon clenched his fists.
"So what? We just send him away alone?"
"No."
Everyone looked toward Haya.
She looked directly at Feroz.
"He can't travel with normal people anymore."
Those words hurt more than anyone expected.
Even Feroz looked away after hearing them.
Because deep down—
he already knew.
The distance.
The delays.
The distortions.
Everything was getting worse.
Younus finally spoke quietly.
"She's right."
Haroon looked at him in disbelief.
"You too?"
Younus stayed calm.
"If he remains here, the separation will spread through the valley itself."
Silence.
Heavy silence.
Feroz slowly looked toward Haroon.
For the first time since childhood—
he saw helplessness in his eyes.
Not weakness.
Helplessness.
Haroon took a slow breath.
Then looked at Feroz directly.
"...do you want to leave?"
The question hit harder than expected.
Because Feroz didn't know the answer.
Part of him wanted to stay.
Stay near people who still knew him.
Still saw him as himself.
But another part—
the growing unfamiliar part inside him—
already felt the pull toward somewhere else.
Toward the broken spaces.
Toward the noise.
Toward the strange connection he still didn't understand.
Feroz looked down quietly.
"...I don't know."
Haya watched him carefully.
Then said softly:
"You don't have much time left to decide."
The figure beside Feroz slowly turned toward the dark forest beyond the valley.
The pressure shifted again.
Pulling outward.
Like something beyond the valley was calling them forward.
Feroz felt it immediately.
Strong.
Constant.
And terrifyingly familiar.
Haya noticed his expression.
"You feel it."
Feroz nodded slowly.
"...yeah."
Haroon stepped closer to the edge of the boundary again.
This time—
he didn't try to cross.
He just stood there.
Close enough to see Feroz clearly.
Far enough to survive the separation.
"...if you go," Haroon said quietly,
"...you're coming back."
Feroz looked at him silently.
Haroon forced a small smile.
"That's not a request."
For the first time in several chapters—
Feroz almost smiled back.
Almost.
Then the valley shook again.
A deep crack spread across the ground between them.
The boundary had started expanding once more.
Younus immediately looked toward the sky.
"...it's getting worse faster now."
Haya looked toward the forest.
Then back at Feroz.
"We have to move."
The words settled heavily across the valley.
Because everyone understood what they really meant.
The Isolation Arc had begun.