"What would you do if the sky fell in your head?"

Ben smiled and looked at the outward wasteland.

"Survive."

Ben giggled and looked at the inward wasteland.

The Ring stretched far out and went around the world.

It wasn't difficult for Ben to understand that both apocalyptic wastelands clashed into something livable.

Back then, while he took over one-third of the world, his weaker influence covered the whole world. So, when the sky fell, his weird corruption system gave people enough time for them to build a future.

The clash didn't provide a perfect solution, though. Instead, over many generations, the survivors built nodes around to stabilize the inhabitable land.

The people built this system that included some of their mastery. But also a list of provocations that would warrant some reaction from the Taint inside the inward wasteland.

And constantly walking this tightrope, they succeed.

The sky kept falling outside the Ring, but humans survived.

The Planet Spirit was no more, and in its place was this amalgamation.

"What happened in the upper world?"

Ben didn't want to believe such an extreme case, but that's the only guess he had. Both worlds had fused.

"It doesn't seem at first glance that they came back."

Ben ended up revisiting the places he was involved with to test his hypothesis.

He couldn't confirm his guesses, but he also didn't find evidence pointing toward the fall of people from the upper world.

The only thing he found was decrepit ruins and chaotic energy.

Once he noticed his search was getting nowhere, he stopped as he had gotten too tired. By then, his interest finally dwindled, so Ben decided to return to his hometown.

Fortunately, he at least confirmed the decrease of the malleable energies surrounding him. While magical ways were still present in this world, it was far from the miracles from his spotty memories.

So, despite still being alone in this big world, Ben felt somewhat safe for the first time since Ginn left.

Yet, once he arrived at the prepared place, Ben's nostalgia twisted into a new realization.

"It's such a small world." He whispered, looking at the packed street.

However, Ben could only give in so much to his thoughts now, so he walked forward. His destination was the central plaza.

This city was the last populated place outside the Ring, so it was well known.

However, due to the limited land, it was still small despite people's high interest in it.

Arriving close to the tree, Ben noticed the strain put on it. The constant bombardment suppressed the defensive mechanisms, but it still held on.

'This place might haven't survived if it was empty. Anyhow, they survived, so it doesn't matter.'

Ben sat against the tree trunk and began harmonizing with it again.

As his symbiosis with the tree strengthened, the populace noticed Ben's influence on the tree. And that was when the oldest clan in Hope City acted, not allowing others to interfere with Ben's efforts.

---

"Grandpa! Look! Look! Look!"

"We arrived at Hope City. Finally. It took a bit longer than expected, but Mom would be proud."

Paul Highpeaks' eyes teared.

Moving was a challenge he didn't understand. Their family foundation was heavy to move, so with all the work they did, they were barely able to arrive.

Paul was the last one alive that saw the empty altar. And he had nightmares every day that he wouldn't get to Hope City.

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And his fear was because his family needed him. Not only because they required someone that saw that sight to lead them, but mainly because without a magician aided by Higgs' Taint Array, the Highpeaks couldn't move their home anymore.

The moving demanded someone blessed, but no one could leave their foundation after they began the relocation due to the unstable heirloom.

If he failed, he feared they would suffer for too many generations. Their power had dwindled too much.

So, when he finally felt their heirloom reacting to the old city, he could finally relax for the first time in decades.

"It might take a while to adapt, but this will be our new home. Are you looking forward to it?"

"Pa, it's crowded, isn't it?"

"Not surprising. We also got a lot of visitors. People fear change."

---

"Just tell me. Come on," Ginn pleaded.

"I don't think I should."

"We've been working together for so long. What exactly is your bet?"

Ben sighed. But he didn't know what he still feared, yet his heart was heavy.

"Do you truly believe we shouldn't reincarnate?"

"If you know it, why do you ask?"

"I don't understand your resistance to telling me the details. You already entrusted your life to me. What do you fear?"

"Perhaps I'm still brainwashed."

"You hate Spirit just as much."

"But I don't think they're the same."

"Help me understand why. I promise that I won't follow blindly."

"I," Ben stopped again for a moment and looked around.

Looking at his laboratory, inside the most powerful city in Spirit nowadays, he still felt suffocated.

He looked at his friend, the most powerful creature on this planet right now, and he still didn't feel safe.

"It's not lack of trust. I don't think it's that black and white, either."

Ginn remained silent, staring at Ben. He found his friend strange, but he couldn't blindly ignore it because after helping Ben prepare for his breakthrough, he knew Ben was right to some extent.

Yet, Ben's lucky shot at the moon working somehow wasn't what bothered Ginn the most. It was instead this tendency inside his mind to want to ignore it. Similar to his experience with Spirit and fate currents inside this world.

If he didn't constantly work on remembering to be worried, he would end up disregarding it. Almost as if it didn't matter, despite it being such a crucial problem.

"Your puppy eyes don't look that incredible."

Ginn laughed and then said, "Your existence terrifies me."

"It's not my fault this shit is dreadful."

"I hope you can tell me before I leave."

Ben looked at the roof and took a deep breath.

"I think reincarnating is a trap."

"Should we instead just disappear?"

"The best analogy I can think of is that it feels like money."

"Like back on Earth?"

"It's a system that gives you convenience in exchange for control."

"But removing it without a replacement won't improve stuff by default?"

"And coming up with a replacement isn't deemed as plausible."

"Do you think we're a farm?" Ginn asked the most worrisome question.

"Do you think we're special?"

"We remember Earth, so yes?"

"Do you think we'll keep remembering Earth?"

Ginn became pensive as this nagging inside him became louder.

"Despite no proof, I've taken it as a fact that I won't be remembering my previous lives if I die again. A weirdly confident yet superficial guess with no basis." Ginn replied.

"Do you think you'll reincarnate?"

"As I grew stronger, that believe only strengthened."

"Which likely gives you a weird sense of peace. Even back on Earth, just the idea of it still gave people so much faith."

Ben stopped for a moment and added something only a minute later.

"I see no signs of farming."

However, the confident-sounding answer gave Ginn shills.

"Perhaps that's true. But I see no signs of farming." Ben repeated.

"Appeasing," Ginn whispered.

"We're quite biased, and I don't have an answer. And I even think I was too lucky to survive. But when I chopped my soul on an altar to myself like a maniac, something cracked. Or perhaps it was earlier when this world pushed me to insanity, but my memories of my past life grounded me too much. Anyway, do I look like someone that knows?"

"Sometimes, you do."

"Haha," Ben fake laughed.

"Do you think we're special?" Ginn asked the same question.

"I feel like just collateral damage. But you seem special enough. Yet, not enough to have answers, though."

"I feel lost."

"You feel manipulated. That's different."

"What do I need to do? Will I keep being put through this?"

"Your other memories are sealed. So perhaps, yes?"

"Are you proud that you don't seem to have anything to dig?"

"I'm full of myself."

Ginn jokingly signed with his finger as if he was going to vomit.

"And I won't reincarnate," Ben added while he smiled as if his insane claims were something to be proud of.

"And you didn't truly reincarnate. Is that what allowed you to do that?"

"Perhaps that, perhaps a few other reasons stacked with that too. It must be more than one thing since I don't think I'm the only insane person to have tried what I did."

"Perhaps, your nature is special?"

"Perhaps, my circumstances are special? How the fuck can I know?"

"We're merely frogs in a wheel."

"Chained frogs in a wheel. And the water is rising."

"And out of everything, you cut your lungs first."

"I'm not a fish, but must I jump out?"

"To be able to see the world outside? Yes."

"But why can't this world be it? Why must I look down on it?"

"You'll merely stay until everyone dies. What can happen then?"

"Them dying isn't the main thing. Why should I leave this place alone?"

"What can happen? I don't get from where this bet appeared."

"It's not that complicated. Every finger is pointing outside. Everything imprints in my bones that I'm just a frog. Weak. Pointless. And despite everything being so absolutely difficult, I still want to follow those fingers. As if the well doesn't exist. As if that wall holds no value. As if this water rising is poison. As if those fingers are hope itself. But I can't follow those tall orders. Instead, I can only die, trying and trying. I can merely partake in those losing battles. But what if this is some rigged bullshit?"

"Do you want to make this bubble yours?"

"Reality seems very intent on having us die and leave this planet. My choices are not that complicated. I'm being a rebel for the sake of it."

"And what do you hope to achieve?"

"I've thought way too much about this. But I think it all comes down to wanting to make someone, who might feel way superior to my shortsighted ass, bitter."

"Is spite all you have?"

"I wanted insight, but spite is all that crack gave me," Ben said in a bitter tone.

Then, after sighing, he mockingly yelled as he flapped his arms around, "Oh, does someone want to put me in another well? Try me, you fucking bastard!"