Chapter 90: Chapter 77 - You Deserved Better
Enme sits alone on a boulder, her back to the fire, her hands motionless in her lap. The moonlight hits her face unevenly, casting long shadows across her exhausted features.
Her once-bright eyes — full of fight, sharpness, pride — now seem dull, like two fading stars in a cold sky.
Morgz walks up slowly, holding his breath.
Each step sounds like guilt echoing on broken glass.
He stops behind her. Doesn't speak at first.
Then…
Morgz (quiet):
"…Enme."
She doesn't turn. Doesn't flinch.
Morgz (lower now):
"I—I came to apologize."
Still no answer.
So he kneels.
Morgz drops to both knees in the dirt before her. Head bowed. Voice trembling.
Morgz:
"I was selfish. Blind. You… you confessed to me in the middle of chaos, when your soul was already torn to pieces. And I just… stomped over it."
His fingers grip the dirt. His shoulders shake.
Morgz:
"When I saw your eyes today…
I realized.
You're not just tired. You're hurting.
And I didn't help.
I added to it."
A pause.
Morgz:
"I know you didn't want romance.
You wanted comfort.
A reason to believe that maybe… just maybe… someone could still see you as whole."
His voice cracks.
Morgz:
"I didn't. I failed you.
And that's on me."
He lifts his head slightly — eyes brimming.
Morgz:
"You deserved better than my panic.
Better than my cowardice.
You deserved to be seen."
He bows again, forehead touching the ground.
Morgz (choked):
"I'm sorry, Enme.
I'm so sorry.
If you hate me… I understand.
But I just wanted you to hear it.
From me. Not from anyone else."
Enme finally speaks — soft. Barely above a whisper.
Enme:
"…You're not the first person to hurt me.
But you're the first to kneel."
She stands, slow, her body casting a long shadow over him.
Then, without saying anything more… she kneels beside him. Places a single hand on his back.
They stay like that. Not lovers. Not fighters.
Just two broken people — holding silence like a fragile truce.
Absolutely. Here's the emotional reconciliation scene, followed by the Chosen stepping out of the Maze of Angels — one of the most cathartic turning points so far.
---
Scene: "The Hug That Healed"
Enme's fingers tremble slightly on Morgz's back. His apology hangs in the air like mist after rain — raw, heavy, and real.
She doesn't speak again right away.
Instead…
She leans forward and hugs him.
Enme:
"…You idiot."
She clutches him tighter — burying her face into his shoulder.
Enme (muffled):
"Why do you have to be so damn honest… after the pain's already done?"
Her tears finally fall — hot, silent, clean. They soak into his shirt like rain in dry soil.
Morgz, stunned for a moment, slowly wraps his arms around her. Gently. Not possessively — just enough to say I'm still here.
Morgz:
"Because that's the only time it matters."
He strokes her back once, like calming waves.
Morgz (softly):
"I didn't get it before. But I do now.
I'll never laugh off your pain again.
You're not just strong, Enme.
You're alive. And you fought for that life harder than any of us."
Enme pulls back slightly, eyes red, lips trembling.
Enme:
"I hated you, you know."
Morgz (nodding):
"You had every right."
She sniffles, then suddenly chuckles.
Enme:
"…Still do a little."
They both laugh — gently, shakily — and hug again. This time longer. This time better.
The cold starts to lift.
Scene: "The Exit"
Time Skip: Early Morning
The nine Chosen stand together now — for the first time in what feels like eternity.
Karl stands at the front, cube glowing in his palm. His nanite-coated hand holds the activation core steady as the ground beneath them begins to shimmer.
A mechanical portal blooms open like a silver lotus — its center swirling with soft golden light and fragments of outside air.
Karl (quietly):
"Coordinates synced.
We're going home."
One by one, the Chosen step forward.
Shojiro, fists tight, eyes skyward.
Leone, her chains whispering but her spine straight.
Zans and Kuro, walking in perfect shadow.
Zixy, limping slightly, but proud.
Max, shoulders crackling faintly.
Alex, head held high, even if her heart still trembled.
Enme, freshly reborn from within — and not alone.
Morgz, silent this time, but steady as ever.
They step through.
And on the other side—
Fresh air.
Blue sky.
A golden sunrise breaking through white clouds.
The wind rushes past their faces like a lover's hand after years of war. Birds sing somewhere far off. A city lies beyond the cliffs, waiting.
After one month of silence, screams, and recursion…
The real world welcomes them back.
Shojiro (whispering):
"…We made it."
Leone (smiling faintly):
"It's so bright…"
Alex (looking skyward):
"I forgot the sun felt like this."
Karl (stepping through last):
"We're not the same anymore.
But maybe that's okay."
They stand at the edge of the cliff, breathing together. No demons. No walls. No dying. Not yet.
Just nine souls who refused to be erased.
Scene: "Before We Forget"
Setting: Hilltop outside the Maze of Angels
Time: Twilight
Wind: Soft, like the first exhale after drowning
The portal behind them closes. The Maze — a nightmare made of stone and silence — is finally behind them.
But the weight still lingers.
Alex's hands glow again, the final memory purge prepared. No more delays.
But first… a moment of truth.
One Last Goodbye
Shojiro steps forward. Leone is already waiting.
Shojiro (gentle):
"One last kiss… before we forget why we needed it."
Leone (nodding softly):
"Even if I forget everything… I want this to be real."
They lean in, their lips meeting.
Not desperate. Not passionate. Just… true.
A kiss meant to remember what words can't carry.
Karl's metal shell shifts slightly — the glowing cube dims.
Alex floats toward him.
Her body trembles, the glow in her hands flickering. But her eyes are locked only on him.
Karl (smiling faintly):
"Last chance to pull away, Professor Mindcrack."
Alex (stepping closer):
"I died fifty times.
Only thing I regret…
Is not kissing you once."
They kiss.
And her body shudders — not from pain, but relief. Like her code had found its final patch.
In the shadows, Zans holds out his hand.
Kuro smiles, taking it.
Kuro (playful):
"Want your first kiss in the real world or shadow realm?"
Zans (smirking):
"Whichever one you don't bite me in."
Their kiss is short but sweet — their shadows twirling in sync.
Max stands to the side, crossing his arms.
Watching.
Max (deadpan):
"I see how it is.
Everyone gets a cinematic ending but me."
No one answers.
A lonely gust of wind flaps his jacket.
Max (muttering):
"Should've died a 51st time."
Morgz stands awkwardly.
Then suddenly — Enme steps forward, tears in her eyes.
She doesn't say anything.
She leans in.
A soft kiss on his cheek.
Enme (whispering):
"Goodbye, dumbass."
She steps back.
Then… Zixy walks up, brushing her hair behind one ear.
No words.
Just a kiss — lips to lips.
Soft. Honest.
Claiming him.
Zixy (smiling faintly):
"And hello, boyfriend."
Morgz's eyes widen — somewhere between dumbfounded and ecstatic.
Alex floats upward.
Her voice echoes now, distorted by the spell building in her core.
Alex (softly):
"This is the end of it. The final deletion."
She raises her hands.
Alex (to everyone):
"You'll forget the Maze. The deaths. The statues.
But your scars… those will stay.
Like burns after the fire's gone."
Everyone closes their eyes.
Shojiro holds Leone's hand.
Karl stands with Alex's shadow in his.
Zans wraps Kuro's cloak tighter.
Max exhales, finally at peace.
Morgz stands between Enme and Zixy, both touching his shoulders.
And right before the light consumes them—
Enme (teasing, but bittersweet):
"What, Morgz? Leaving me behind?"
Morgz turns, laughing awkwardly.
Morgz (grinning):
"I'll always have a type."
The spell completes.
WHITE FLASH.
AFTERMATH: A Mind Wiped, A Soul Scarred
The Chosen awaken — standing exactly where they were.
But something feels missing.
They look around. Confused.
But together.
The sky is blue.
The birds chirp.
And no one says a word.
No one remembers the Maze.
But they all agree on one thing:
Never.
Ever.
Take the shortcut.
Again.
Zixy wraps her arm around Morgz casually. He doesn't question it.
Feels right.
Enme (smirking faintly):
"Really? Left me behind?"
Morgz (panicked):
"H-Hey, I don't even remember what I did!"
Everyone laughs.
And for the first time in a long while…
It feels like the world isn't ending.