> [Memory Fragment Playback – Silver Vow Initiated.]
[Subject: Winter Elshade | Timeframe: 47 years before Present Day]
[Location: Tower Floor 77 – Temple of Echoing Frost]
In the cold echoes of the past, she stood beside him—her hair glistening like moonlight, her hands drenched in blood.
"Promise me," she whispered, barely able to stand. "If I fall… you'll keep climbing."
Lohan, his armor cracked and blood flowing from a dozen wounds, had reached out and grabbed her wrist.
"No. We'll reach the top—together."
Then everything exploded in light.
And she was gone.
---
Present Day
Winter gasped as the vision ended. Her hand clenched over her chest, right where that scar should've been.
Across from her on the rooftop, Lohan stood silent.
"I… I saw it," she breathed. "That vow. You and me, in the tower. Fighting side by side."
"You were my right hand," Lohan said softly. "The only one I trusted completely… until Justine."
Winter flinched.
Justine—the goddess worshipped by the new world. The "Light of Rebirth." The one everyone adored.
Only Lohan knew what she truly was.
A traitor.
---
Later – Dorm Room
Lohan stared at his screen.
> [System Quest Unlocked: First Tower Trial – Hidden Gate Mode.]
[Location: South Ruins, 3km from Academy Grounds.]
[Requirement: Solo Entry.]
[Reward: Memory Core (Tier D), Skill Upgrade Token x1.]
[Danger: High.]
He smiled.
Time to start climbing.
---
Meanwhile – Celestial Hall
Justine stood before a gathering of minor gods and spirits. Her eyes gleamed with divine fire.
"He's moving faster than predicted," one said nervously.
"He's regaining his fragments," another muttered.
Justine raised a hand and silenced them.
"He can climb," she said coldly. "Let him. The higher he goes… the more it will hurt when I end him again."
Her voice, once sweet, now dripped with malice.
"He was my master… Now he's just a pawn."
---