Chapter 219

The mountains did not rise sharply.

They unfolded.

Layer upon layer of stone and wind-carved ridges, each one revealing another beyond it. The path upward was narrow but steady, marked not by settlements but by remnants—abandoned campsites, worn prayer flags, collapsed waystations.

People came here seeking perspective.

Few stayed.

By the third day of ascent, Kaia began to feel something unfamiliar.

Resistance.

Not from the land.

From herself.

There was no visible ...