Prologue – The Ones Who Climb
There wasn’t a warning, no fire from the sky, no voice telling humanity to run, just a glitch, a moment, a silence that stretched too long, then the Tower appeared.
Twelve Representatives followed, not gods, not saviors, not devils, just architects of something cruel, watching like they’d seen this all before.
People panicked, begged, fought, broke, millions vanished, millions changed, the rules weren’t explained, only installed.
And in the middle of it all, a boy no one remembered stood still.
Kayden Walker didn’t scream, didn’t kneel, didn’t ask why, because he already knew the system wasn’t fair, already knew survival was math, not mercy.
He wasn’t chosen, he wasn’t special, he was just built wrong in all the right ways, cold, quiet, calculating, born where the rain hits harder and nothing good stays long.
And when the Tower opened, when the world split into Trials and Systems and Errors and Lies, he didn’t hesitate.
He climbed.
Not to save anyone.
Not to fix anything.
But because this game, this world, this nightmare—was finally fair enough for him to win.