Helena bowed again, deeper this time—like she was offering her spine to be broken, should he will it. Her voice trembled, not from fear, but reverence… and guilt.
"Every family," she said, "was ordered to torment you. Not kill. Not cripple. But break you—piece by piece. Crush your pride. Shatter your confidence. Tear down the parts of you that believed you were just… human. Desperation. Rejection. Isolation. Emotional starvation. That was the only way." Her eyes flicked up, just once.
"Only then would you awaken. The Prince of Existence, cast into despair so dark even the gods wouldn't look. That pain—it was the key."
That felt like some stupid shit, right there.
Parker stood silent. Still. His jaw tightened.
