The sky twisted violently above Kurohane.
The massive spiral vortex spun faster, distorting reality itself.
And at its center—the door.
Renji had seen it before. In his visions. In the echoes of past loops.
It was the exit. The truth.
The only way out.
His heart pounded as he leapt into the air, spirals of energy propelling him upward.
The Watchers screeched, their featureless faces turning toward him as they swarmed.
But Renji didn't slow down.
He couldn't.
The town below him warped and crumbled. The illusion was failing.
The cycle was breaking.
And he had to reach that door before it reset again.
---
The Final Climb
Wind howled around Renji as he soared higher.
The spirals in his eye burned with overwhelming power, his entire body tingling with energy.
The Watchers closed in from all sides. Dozens. Hundreds.
Aoi's voice rang in his mind.
> "The only way to escape is to break the illusion completely!"
Renji gritted his teeth.
Then I'll destroy it all.
He threw out his hand.
The space around him collapsed inward, spirals expanding as his power ripped through the Watchers.
Some twisted into nothingness. Others froze mid-air, caught in the spiraling distortion.
But they kept coming.
The vortex pulled him closer to the door, but the Watchers were trying to stop him.
Renji knew this was his last chance.
He reached deep into his spiraling power, focusing everything he had left.
Then, with one final push—
He unleashed it.
A pulse of pure spiraling energy erupted outward, tearing through the Watchers like paper.
The sky shattered.
The town below collapsed.
And Renji—**finally—**reached the door.
---
The Final Choice
The moment his hand touched the door, everything stopped.
Silence.
The spiraling vortex vanished. The Watchers were gone.
Renji stood before the massive door, its surface covered in intricate, shifting spirals.
A presence lingered behind him.
He turned—
And there stood the Other Renji.
But this time, his expression was different.
No mocking smile. No cold detachment.
Just… tiredness.
> "This is it," the Other Renji said quietly.
Renji swallowed hard. "What happens if I open it?"
The Other Renji exhaled.
> "You leave. For real. No more resets. No more loops."
Renji's breath hitched.
He had been trapped for so long. Loop after loop.
But now—this was his way out.
"…And if I don't?"
The Other Renji's gaze darkened.
> "Then the cycle restarts."
He paused.
> "And this time, you might not remember."
Renji's hands curled into fists.
He had fought so hard. He had lost so much.
Aoi. His memories. His past selves.
He couldn't let it all be for nothing.
He had to escape.
Renji turned to the door, taking a deep breath.
Then—he pushed.
---
The End of the Spiral
The door creaked open.
Blinding light flooded through the crack.
Renji stepped forward—
And everything unraveled.
Memories rushed past him. The loops. The people. Aoi's face.
The spirals unwound, unraveling reality itself.
And then—
Nothing.
---
End of Chapter 12
---
To Be Continue