The valley continued shaking.
Small cracks spread through the ground while faded Circle symbols disappeared one after another.
The place was falling apart around Feroz.
Younus looked toward the fading markings with growing concern.
"...we waited too long."
Haroon looked at him sharply.
"So what do we do now?"
Younus stayed silent for a moment.
Then:
"We separate the boundary from the valley before it spreads further."
Feroz immediately understood what that meant.
If he stayed—
the damage would continue.
Haya stepped beside him quietly.
"We need to move before the next shift starts."
Feroz looked at her.
"...shift?"
"The broken spaces change suddenly sometimes," she explained softly. "If you're inside one when it happens..."
She didn't finish the sentence.
She didn't need to.
The fear in her eyes already explained enough.
The strange figure beside Feroz slowly turned toward the forest again.
Waiting.
Like it already knew where they needed to go.
Haroon noticed it immediately.
"...why does it keep guiding him?"
Nobody answered.
Because nobody trusted the answer.
Feroz looked toward Haroon again.
The distance between them had grown worse now.
Even seeing him clearly felt difficult sometimes.
Like the air itself blurred whenever he focused too long.
That hurt more than he expected.
Haroon had become one of the few people Feroz trusted completely.
And now—
they couldn't even stand beside each other anymore.
Haroon forced himself to stay calm.
"...how far are you going?"
Haya answered quietly before Feroz could.
"Far enough that the boundary stops spreading."
Haroon looked at her.
"And after that?"
Haya hesitated.
"...then we survive."
That answer settled heavily over everyone.
Feroz slowly looked toward the dark forest outside the valley.
The pull had become stronger now.
Not forcing him.
Calling him.
The deeper parts of the broken spaces were waiting.
And somehow—
he already knew resisting forever wasn't possible.
Younus walked closer to the boundary carefully.
This time—
the distortions only reacted lightly.
Not enough to stop him completely.
Maybe because Feroz had already decided to leave.
Younus looked directly at him.
"You remember what I taught you?"
Feroz nodded slowly.
"Control your thoughts before your power controls them."
Younus gave a faint nod.
"And?"
Feroz took a slow breath.
"...fear makes alignment easier."
"Good."
The words were simple.
But Feroz understood what Younus was really saying.
Stay yourself.
No matter what happens next.
Haroon suddenly reached into his coat and pulled something out.
A small knife.
Old.
Simple.
Feroz recognized it immediately.
Haroon tossed it carefully toward the edge of the boundary.
The knife landed near Feroz's feet.
"You left it behind at the cave."
Feroz stared at it quietly.
Memories hit him instantly.
Training.
Arguments.
Long nights in the mountains.
Before everything became like this.
Slowly—
he picked it up.
And strangely—
holding something familiar helped.
Even slightly.
Haroon noticed.
A small relief crossed his face.
"Keep it with you."
Feroz nodded quietly.
The valley shook again.
Harder this time.
A loud crack echoed through the air.
Everyone looked up instantly.
Part of the sky above the valley distorted unnaturally for a brief second—
then returned to normal.
Haya's expression changed immediately.
"...it's starting."
Younus looked toward her.
"The shift?"
She nodded quickly.
"If we stay here when it breaks fully, the paths will collapse."
Haroon looked toward Feroz one last time.
He clearly wanted to say more.
But nothing felt enough anymore.
So instead—
he simply said:
"Don't disappear."
The words hit harder than any speech could have.
Feroz looked at him silently for several seconds.
Then finally answered.
"I'll come back."
Haroon nodded once.
Like he had already decided to believe him.
Haya slowly started walking toward the forest.
The strange figure moved with her instantly.
Not beside Haya.
Beside Feroz.
Always beside Feroz.
Feroz looked back one final time.
At Haroon.
At Younus.
At Ibn Younus.
Even Zarqaan.
The people who still connected him to the life he understood.
Then he turned away.
And walked into the fog.
The moment he crossed the edge of the valley—
everything changed.
The air became colder instantly.
The sounds behind him faded unnaturally fast.
Even his footsteps sounded distant now.
Haya kept walking calmly ahead.
Like she already knew this feeling.
Feroz looked behind him once more.
The valley was still visible.
But far away already.
Too far away.
That shouldn't have been possible.
Fear quietly rose inside him again.
Haya noticed without turning around.
"Don't panic."
Feroz looked at her.
"This place feels wrong."
"It is wrong."
That answer honestly didn't help.
The strange figure continued walking silently beside him through the fog.
Not threatening.
Not human.
Just present.
Feroz tightened his grip around the knife Haroon gave him.
And for the first time since leaving—
he truly understood something terrifying.
There might not be a way back from this path.