Chapter 155: The Garden of Legends and the Final Login
The desert sun was rising, painting the sand in shades of gold and violet—the exact colors of Von's legendary energy. As the group drove the battered van back toward Oakhaven, the world felt different. It wasn't just that the "Mirror-World" was gone; it was as if the air itself had been "Updated" to a higher resolution.
"Look," Rena whispered, pointing out the window.
As they entered the town, they didn't see chaos or glitches. They saw the "Seed"—the Digital Sequoia they had planted in the Old Sector. It hadn't disappeared when the moon-server died. Instead, it had transformed. The glowing circuits had turned into real, silver-barked wood, and the binary leaves were now soft, iridescent petals that shimmered like pearls.
"It's a Bridge," Aki said, his golden eyes reflecting the tree's light. "It's not a system-tool anymore. It's a part of nature now. A place where the data of our past and the soil of our future meet."
The Celebration of the Unseen
The town was celebrating. People were dancing in the streets, celebrating the end of the "Global Glitch." No one knew that a thief, a warrior, a healer, and a king had just saved them from a lunar-base populated by detergent ads.
"I'm going to open a restaurant," Sai announced suddenly, leaning against the van. "No more pink aprons. Just real fire and real meat. I'll call it 'The Tank's Tavern'."
"And I'm going to start a school," Rena added, watching children play near the silver tree. "I'll teach them that magic isn't just code. It's the way we care for each other."
Aki looked at Von. "And you? Are you going to reclaim your throne in the shadow world?"
Von looked at the horizon, his black coat swaying in the real wind. "The shadow world is gone, Aki. I think I'll just... be Von for a while. Maybe I'll learn how to fish. I heard it requires a lot of 'Patience'—a stat I never maxed out."
One Last Notification
That night, as Aki sat under the silver tree, his phone buzzed. It wasn't a "Shiny Skin Cream" ad. It was a single, private message from an encrypted source.
[SENDER: UNKNOWN (ID: ZERO)]
[MESSAGE: THE PATCH IS PERMANENT. THE PLAYERS ARE GONE, BUT THE HEROES REMAIN. DON'T FORGET TO SAVE YOUR PROGRESS, AKI.]
Aki laughed, a single tear running down his face. He looked up at the moon, which was now just a quiet, white circle in the sky.
"Hey, Leo," Aki whispered into his earpiece. "Are you recording this?"
"Every bit of it, kid," Leo's voice replied, sounding peaceful for the first time. "The story of the Ghost of Twilight is finally complete."
"No, Leo," Aki smiled, closing his eyes. "It's not complete. We just finished the Tutorial. Now, the real game begins."
The Final Word Count
Aki opened his laptop one last time and looked at the 'Global Population' counter. It didn't show numbers anymore. It just showed one word: FREE.