Tower of Paradise

KATHYIN GRAMONT'S POV

Why do some memories seem to never leave us? How is it possible that a simple look, a tone of voice, or even a smell could transport us back to moments we would prefer to forget? What if what we experience in childhood isn't just a distant chapter, but a shadow that silently shapes every choice, every fear, every relationship?

Bad experiences weren't just unpleasant memories, they were invisible scars, engraved in the mind and body that shaped the way we perceive the world and ourselves.

Over time, I understood that the body keeps the score. This meant that our experiences not only affected the mind but also remained imprinted in our biology...

The zombies' corpses disappeared before my eyes like snow melting under the sun. The phenomenon surprised me, though I tried not to show it. Caria and even Arceus couldn't hide their amazement either, but we quickly accepted it as part of this strange floor. This was already the second attack we had faced together.

I lifted my head toward the sky. The weather was unusually pleasant. The clear firmament began to turn golden as the sun slowly descended on the horizon, like a shining coin sinking into a sea of stillness.

My mind, treacherous as always, dragged me toward memories I had tried to bury for so long. Like a movie projected against my will, the scenes of my childhood began to parade before my eyes with painful clarity.

—Big sister... Don't abandon me, okay? —My childish voice echoed in the confines of my memory, an innocent plea from the girl I once was.

Holding her hand, I walked behind my sister, my small fingers intertwined with hers, seeking the security that only she could provide me back then.

—I won't. —She had answered me. Her voice was as sweet as those honey candies I loved so much as a child.

—Never?

—How insistent. —She commented with a smile I had believed sincere.

—Do you promise?

—Yes, yes.

—Promise me... that you won't abandon me.

—Of course. We're sisters, right? —Her response sounded like an absolute, unbreakable truth.

The memory faded as abruptly as it had appeared, returning me to the cruel reality of the present. I lowered my gaze to the ground and bit my lip so hard I almost bled, holding back the tears that threatened to betray my strength.

—Liar... —I whispered bitterly.

Why didn't you stay with me at the bottom of the abyss? The question I never dared ask her aloud constantly tormented my mind.

I always had low self-esteem and was terrible at expressing my opinions. Words would get stuck in my throat, prisoners of my insecurity. Despite feeling cursed by my own blood, I motivated myself to become a powerful Ascendant, regardless of what my family thought. I desperately wanted to break the foundations of their way of life and reject it completely, building something new upon its ruins.

That's why, despite the strength I now possessed after training until my hands bled—a strength I always lacked and only gained by climbing the Tower of Paradise through countless tears and sacrifices—I remained shy in front of my clan, unable to raise my voice against them.

I was bone-tired, marked by the discrimination from the people of my clan for the simple fact of being different, of not having naturally Awakened through a stellar core as they expected. Those same people, hypocritical and despicable, were the ones who fervently supported my older sister.

—How can someone like you be in the same position as Lady Jasmine? —Their contemptuous words resonated in my ears, even now.

Jasmine always acted as if she feared nothing in this world. She forged her path toward her future with unshakable determination, without looking back even once. How much I detested her. Everything was her fault. Every humiliation, every tear shed in the darkness of my room, everything was due to the immense shadow she cast over me.

For being an illegitimate daughter of one of the main members of the family, born from a concubine considered little more than an object, I had been a coward from a very young age. Fear had taken root in my soul like a poisonous vine, slowly suffocating me.

They always compared me to my intelligent sister, harassed me, and cruelly mocked my failures. I was the "young lady" of the clan, but that title carried no real weight. It was a mockery disguised as honor. Since I was born, the people of my clan considered me no different from the trash they discarded without thinking twice.

If I had been born into another family, they probably would have considered me a child prodigy. I possessed excellent intellect, good reflexes, and great promise in learning martial arts. My swordsmanship surpassed anyone of my age. However, I could never Awaken, and that deficiency sealed my fate.

For the Awakened clans, this was the most important ability, the only one that truly mattered. It was irrelevant what else I was competent at; someone without talent for manipulating stellar energy was treated as completely incompetent, a disgrace to the lineage. That's why I was no longer part of my clan. My own father had banished me after I lost against my older sister during the succession ceremony, due to my fundamental inability. Jasmine was strong. Probably the strongest of all the swordsmen I knew.

The reason I lost hope of succeeding was also due to the difference in ability between us and the constant comparison.

Women in the Awakened clans had to stand out even more, which led me to be constantly mistreated and severely abused by my own people. The invisible scars that marked my soul were deeper than any physical wound.

I was aware that I was in the realm of "geniuses" thanks to my amazing talents in other fields. Of course, perhaps it was nothing compared to my older sister, the true genius of the family. Although she didn't feel passion for martial arts despite being from a renowned clan, her innate gifts were incomparable to mine.

But as my older sister had tried so hard, I was forced to do so as well. I was tired of making efforts. Of suffering and being constantly afraid.

What was wrong with being inferior at home? The thought tormented me in my darkest moments.

We could have had peaceful lives doing a few simple tasks, living on the periphery of the clan without great expectations. But Jasmine had chosen a different life, a path of glory and recognition that left me behind in the shadows.