The ROM recognized the authenticity. The adaptive coalition faltered, unable to consume sincerity. Vegeta forced himself to speak—two simple words to the echo: “Challenge accepted.” The ROM accepted his offering. The coalition collapsed inward, not destroyed but folded into the ROM as stabilized data—Vegeta’s pride tempered, his identity preserved. With the last echo absorbed, the ROM’s light steadied. Bulma, monitoring remotely, reported the data stabilized and the beacon quieted. The cartridge’s holographic map stitched itself back into a single continent, now marked with tiny glowing sigils representing restored memories.