I couldn't believe what I heard. I'm supposed to go back and die? But something inside me refused. The "system interface" started flashing red, as if warning me.
[Warning: The Fixer is an "out-of-script" entity.]
[Skill acquired: "Rebel Against the Script".]
I stared at the Fixer with defiant eyes. "If this world started unraveling because of me, it means it's real enough to be destroyed. I won't die for a cheap plot twist."
I used the "Lightning Dash" skill again, but this time to attack, not escape. I tried to punch the Fixer, but my hand passed through him like he was a smoke ghost.
"Bravery, but you're still a side character," he said coldly. He waved his hand, and the shelves around me shattered, books falling like meteors.
"I'll give you one last choice," the Fixer continued, backing toward his gate. "You have 24 hours 'in-world' to find the 'Heart of the Code'. Destroy it, and you'll become the true story hero. Fail, and I'll reset the world, killing everyone, including you."
I suddenly fell from the sky, landing in a dark, thick forest. This was the "Shadow Beasts" forest from chapter 5. I had to survive and figure out the "Heart of the Code" before the Dark Hero, sent by the Fixer, hunted me down.
I drew my dagger, still bleeding black. Sounds around me grew—roars of beasts not from this chapter, and approaching footsteps.
A new message appeared, but it wasn't from the "system" this time—a personal one: "Don't trust the system. It created the Fixer to control you. Go to the 'Inverted Tower'."