The moment hung in the air, Elizabeth finally free, Rebecca's scythe dissolved, Alex already calculating the quickest way home. But Merlin hadn't moved.
"I still have the Dark Lord to deal with," he said quietly. "I can't just leave. The people of this world have suffered under him for centuries. If I walk away now, nothing changes for them."
Morgana stepped forward, nodding firmly. "The prophecy spoke of his defeat. If you abandon that now, everything we've sacrificed—everything I've lost—means nothing."
Alex let out a long breath, the kind a parent makes when their child insists on one more story before bed. "Alright. Fair enough. You've got unfinished business." He raised his hand, and a portal swirled open behind him—glimpses of the Imperial Academy visible through its surface. "You know where to find us when you're done playing hero."
