The evening sky blazed with gold as Riku and Kaela finally emerged from the dungeon into the open air.
For the first time since his exile, Riku's feet touched the soil of the outside world again—
and this time, he was no longer the hopeless "trash" they had thrown away.
But the world was no longer the same.
Small villages burned in the distance. Roads swarmed with soldiers.
And the great cities… were now marked by the symbol of the world's so-called heroes.
"That banner…" Kaela pointed toward a white standard, a winged sword emblazoned at its center.
Riku's brow furrowed. "That belongs to… the Holy Light Alliance."
"Led by Katsuro, right?" Kaela added.
Riku didn't answer. He didn't need to—he already knew.
◆◇◆
Two days of travel followed—keeping to the shadows, disguising themselves, avoiding patrols—until they reached the largest city in the western region: Velgrande, the Golden City.
Once a proud hub of free trade, famed for its neutrality and justice.
Now…
The streets were eerily quiet.
Civilians walked with their heads down.
Every home bore a sealed magic crest upon its door.
And in the central plaza, a towering statue of Katsuro loomed over the city.
"This feels more like a cult than an alliance," Riku muttered.
Near the city gate, they caught the voices of two guards in conversation.
"Tomorrow, Hero Katsuro will show his miracle again."
"They say he'll use Divine Judgement to punish those who refuse to submit."
"Anyone cursed by it… loses all ability to use magic forever."
Kaela's voice dropped to a whisper. "That's system magic. But if it's abused—"
"He can make the people completely dependent on him," Riku cut in.
"Erase their personal agency, replace it with fear."
◆◇◆
That night, they slipped into the underground library—one of the few places not yet fully under Alliance control.
There, they met a mysterious woman clad in a deep-blue cloak.
Noire—once an information mage for Velgrande's Council of Magic.
"I've been watching you since the moment you entered the city," she said, tossing a bundle of documents onto the table.
Riku's gaze hardened. "What do you know?"
A faint smile curved her lips. "I know you're no hero.
But you carry the Rewrite Protocol.
I could sense the unstable code from miles away."
Kaela stiffened. "You can read the system?"
"Not just read it," Noire replied. "I'm one of the few born with Data Eyes. I don't see the world in colors… I see it in command lines."
Riku stepped closer, intrigued. "Then you could help me access the Old World Kernel?"
Noire nodded. "Yes. But in exchange, you'll help me free this city. I have… a personal vendetta against Katsuro."
She tapped the documents spread out before them. Inside was a list—names of Velgrande's citizens whose magical abilities had been forcibly erased by Katsuro's hand for refusing to worship him.
"The world's magic system is being twisted into a religion," Noire said quietly.
"And I despise watching fools believe they need a savior like him."
◆◇◆
The plan was set.
Target: Infiltrate the central tower where Katsuro kept the Velgrande System Core—a local magic server granting him total control over the populace.
Riku's Goal: Plant a Rewrite fragment into the city's system, converting its programming from blind obedience to free choice.
But something unexpected awaited them.
When they breached the tower…
Katsuro was already there.
⚔️
"Riku…" he said from atop a crystalline altar, his hero's mantle gleaming with holy radiance.
"I thought you were dead."
"Unfortunately for you, I'm not," Riku replied.
"And from the looks of it… you've been enjoying your role as God?"
Katsuro smiled, though his eyes were cold. "I do what must be done. Without order, this world falls to chaos. I give them light."
Riku stepped forward. "No. You've taken their choices. You've turned this world into a machine."
And then, the fight began.
Kaela clashed with the tower guards.
Noire worked the control room, breaking into the system's layers.
Riku faced Katsuro directly—holy skills and blinding, system-infused sword strikes against copied abilities, data manipulation, and dungeon-born techniques.
At last, with a combined strike from Rewrite Protocol and the exploit Noire had uncovered, the Velgrande System Core was altered.
> [System Rewrite – SUCCESS]
[Velgrande Central Node is now in Free Mode]
[Citizens regain independent access to magic and system functions]
[Authority of the Holy Light Alliance – REMOVED]
◆◇◆
Katsuro was hurled from the tower, wounded and furious.
Before vanishing into the night, he shot Riku a glare of pure hatred.
"I'll return. And when I do, the world will choose me again."
Riku's gaze was calm, unshaken.
"The world didn't choose me.
I rewrote its choice."
◆◇◆
With Noire now officially joining them, the three formed a new core team:
Riku – Strategy, combat, and rewriting.
Kaela – Mobility and direct assault.
Noire – System manipulation, decoding, and intelligence.
With one more fragment of Rewrite secured, their journey toward a world free from the tyranny of the system pressed on.