No one spoke for several seconds after the Collector finished talking.
The words hung in the air like a blade.
One must be removed.
Rylan finally broke the silence.
"Yeah… that's not happening."
Kael stepped forward slightly, positioning himself between Lyra and the Collector.
"We don't negotiate under threats."
The stranger said nothing.
But his body language had already shifted into silent combat readiness.
The Collector showed no reaction to their hostility.
Instead he simply lifted his hand.
The air distorted slightly.
Then returned to normal.
Nothing seemed to happen.
Until Kael suddenly dropped to one knee.
Blood ran from his nose.
Rylan grabbed his shoulder.
"What the hell—?"
Then Rylan staggered too.
Like gravity suddenly doubled.
Lyra felt it next.
Her balance power immediately resisted whatever force was being applied.
The stranger was the only one still standing fully upright.
The Collector lowered his hand.
The pressure vanished.
Kael stood slowly, wiping blood.
"What… was that?"
The Collector answered calmly:
"A demonstration."
Lyra's voice hardened.
"You attacked them."
The Collector shook his head slightly.
"No."
"I adjusted local laws."
That sentence made the stranger's eyes narrow.
"You modified reality constants?"
The Collector looked at him with mild interest.
"You understand more than expected."
Rylan exhaled slowly.
"Okay great. We're dealing with a reality programmer."
Lyra stepped forward again.
"Explain your condition."
The Collector nodded slightly.
"Your growth has exceeded predicted Balance Keeper thresholds."
"You are now considered a variable."
Lyra crossed her arms.
"So you test me."
"Yes."
"And I fail if I refuse to abandon them?"
"Yes."
Lyra didn't even hesitate.
"Then I fail."
Immediate answer.
No thought required.
The Collector studied her face carefully.
"Emotional attachment confirmed."
"Evaluation difficulty increased."
Kael stood beside her again.
"She already answered."
The Collector continued like Kael hadn't spoken.
"The test measures whether you can exist without destabilizing the system."
Lyra frowned.
"And they destabilize it?"
The answer came instantly.
"Your bond amplifies your growth beyond acceptable parameters."
That clicked.
Rylan said it first:
"So basically… we're making her too strong."
The Collector nodded once.
"Correct."
The stranger finally spoke.
"So you want her isolated."
"Yes."
Lyra laughed quietly.
Not amused.
"That's not happening."
The Collector didn't argue.
Instead he said something worse.
"Then probability of your termination increases to 87%."
Silence again.
Lyra didn't care about the threat to herself.
But Kael did.
Rylan did.
The stranger definitely did.
Kael spoke first.
"We can handle a fight."
The Collector answered:
"This is not combat."
"It is qualification."
Lyra asked:
"And what happens in 72 hours?"
The Collector answered:
"You will be placed in an evaluation environment."
"Your decision will be measured."
Lyra's eyes sharpened.
"My decision about what?"
The Collector looked directly into her eyes.
"For the first time…
His voice sounded almost human.
"You must choose between balance…"
He glanced briefly at the three men.
"…or attachment."
The stranger asked the real question:
"And if she refuses to choose?"
The Collector answered without hesitation:
"Then the system will choose for her."
That was the first truly frightening answer.
Because forced choices were worse than battles.
The Collector turned to leave.
"Prepare yourself."
Then he stopped.
Without turning back, he added:
"Your previous opponent Seraph failed this same evaluation."
Lyra's heart skipped.
"What?"
The Collector continued walking.
"He chose control over connection."
"And became disposable."
That changed everything.
Seraph wasn't just an enemy.
He was a failed candidate.
The Collector disappeared into the trees.
Presence gone instantly.
Like he was never there.
No energy trail.
No sound.
Nothing.
Rylan exhaled slowly.
"I officially want the old problems back."
Kael looked at Lyra.
"We don't let them separate us."
Lyra looked at her bond mark again.
The number had changed.
100
A countdown.
Her test had already begun.
That night Lyra realized something terrifying:
For the first time…
This was a battle she might not be able to win with power.