Tower of Paradise

NOAH'S POV

Something had to be going wrong.

The pressure suffocating me from all sides overwhelmed my senses. I thought my fat was melting, my muscles tearing, and my bones being crushed. The pain was indescribable, more intense than anything I had ever experienced.

My muscles seemed to rip apart, and my bones creaked under an invisible force. The flesh of my body twisted with every movement, unable to shield me from the agony that engulfed me. I thought this must be what hell felt like.

Instinctively, I wanted to scream to release some of my suffering. But something stopped me—a liquid threatened to flood my lungs.

I understood that screaming would not only endanger my own life. With great effort, I held back the scream that fought to escape my throat.

Suddenly, I felt an unbearable pressure in my skull. It was as if my head were being crushed, my brain extracted through my nose and eyes. The pain was so intense that, for a moment, I considered wrapping the umbilical cord around my neck to end it all.

Then I heard a soft cry—it sounded like a woman. Wait, cord? Crying? Only then did I realize my situation. I was being born. I was a baby.

Curiously, my first thought wasn’t panic or disbelief. Instead, I found myself reflecting: So the light at the end of the tunnel is actually the light coming through the vagina...

I couldn’t believe birth was this painful. Did all humans have to endure this hell just to be born?

It seemed incredible to me that humanity continued to reproduce this way. The only reason I didn’t give up was because of my mother.

I could feel the pain of childbirth not only in my own groans but also in the contractions of the uterine walls surrounding me.

I wasn’t alone in this struggle—my mother was with me. Through her tears, the woman gathered her strength, and the pressure threatening to crush me suddenly shifted.

At the decisive moment, I added my feeble efforts to hers, though they were the weak efforts of a baby. When my skull finally escaped the grip of the birth canal, I let out the scream I had been holding back.

A sea of stars passed before my eyes, transforming into a blurry symphony of colors, only to be abruptly replaced by a blinding light that forced me to close my eyes. For the first time, I could cry.

Gradually, though, the world around me began to clear.

When I opened my eyes again, the first thing I felt was a dazzling light. I squinted, uncomfortable, trying to focus my blurry vision.

I saw a small arm moving on its own in front of me. It took me a moment to realize that arm belonged to me, though I didn’t yet feel it as mine.

My body was beyond my control, making only reflexive movements in response to external stimuli. I recalled what modern science in my previous world said: this was due to the immature brain activity of a newborn. They were right—my brain hadn’t fully matured yet.

With effort, I directed my gaze toward the two figures watching me from above. My still-developing vision only captured blurry shadows of their faces. My hearing wasn’t much better either.

I decided to analyze my surroundings, as it seemed to be the only thing I could do.

Gradually, my eyes adjusted to the brightness.

It seemed I had been born from some satanic summoning ritual because this room was lit only by a pair of candles, and we were on the ground on a bed of straw.

Staring at me as she held me was an astonishingly beautiful woman. She had long, silky hair of reddish-gold and striking green eyes that shone like emeralds.

She radiated a warmth I wasn’t familiar with, something that simply drew you in without you realizing it. Her naturally colored lips glowed in the setting sun as luminous rays stretched across the small wooden room, making her look like an angel.

I could almost see the halo above her head.

I reached out my hands toward her, wanting to touch this divine being, and found another hand slowly wrapping around mine. Her pale face filled with love as her hand gently caressed my cheek.

Then my mother lowered her shirt, exposing her bare chest, before gently placing my face against it.

I couldn’t understand what she was saying, but I think I got the point.