The shadows of the buildings didn't just move; they peeled off the concrete like wet black paper. They didn't have faces or levels. They were just holes in the shape of people, and they were cold .
"Jin, they're spreading!" Mi-na shouted. Her electric blue eyes were flicking left and right, trying to track the dark shapes. "The red dots on the people nearby... they're turning into anchors for the shadows!"
Jin stepped in front of her, his Atlas Kummiya burning with a white light that pushed back the dark. "Rin, tell me there's a way to cut their connection without a System command."
"There is no 'connection' to cut, Jin!" Rin yelled over the sound of a nearby car being crushed by a shadow. "This isn't a hack. It's a physical erosion. You have to hit them with something that isn't made of data!"
Jin looked at his blade. The White Mana wasn't just code; it was the spirit of the desert. He took a deep breath, feeling the weight of the air. He didn't wait for a quest notification. He just moved.
He swung the Atlas Blade in a wide circle. The white light didn't just cut; it purified. Every shadow it touched hissed and evaporated into thin air. But for every one he destroyed, two more rose from the darkness of the alleys.
"They're too many!" Jin grunted, his muscles aching. He felt a sharp pain in his chest—the red dot on his palm was burning .
Suddenly, a hand touched his shoulder. It was cold, but it felt like home.
"Stop trying to do it alone, Jin," Mi-na whispered. She wasn't hiding behind him anymore. She stepped up, her silver veins glowing so brightly they illuminated the entire street. "You handle the light. I'll handle the glitches."
She slammed her palms onto the ground. A wave of silver energy rippled out, causing the shadows to flicker and lag, even though they weren't part of a machine. It was her "Living Glitch" power, forcing the Void to follow human rules for just a second.
"Now!" she screamed.
Jin lunged toward the Architect of Ruin, who was still floating calmly in the air . But as his blade was about to strike, the Architect didn't move. He just pointed his bone staff at Mi-na. "If you kill me, the bridge she built stays open forever. Do you want a world, Jin? Or do you want a sister?"