The Most Divisive Character in Tower of God

Ask any Tower of God fan who they find most infuriating, and Rachel will come up almost immediately. She betrayed Bam — someone who literally entered a deadly, world-spanning tower just to find her — and she did it deliberately, with premeditation. The fandom has never fully forgiven her. But is that the whole story?

This theory article explores a reading of Rachel that goes beyond "she's just selfish" — because SIU doesn't write characters that flatly.

What We Know About Rachel's Motivations

Rachel has stated, in various ways, that she wants to reach the top of the Tower and see the stars. This is established early and repeated. But her actions suggest something more complicated than simple ambition:

  • She manipulated Bam from the very beginning, cultivating his dependence on her.
  • She made a deal with Headon (the Tower's gatekeeper) to enter the Tower without being "chosen."
  • She has consistently chosen self-advancement over the lives and feelings of others — but she does so with visible internal conflict, not sociopathic detachment.
  • She has expressed, in rare moments, what appears to be genuine guilt — particularly in scenes involving Bam after the betrayal.

The "Ordinary Person" Theory

One of the most popular fan readings of Rachel is that she represents something the Tower narrative rarely centers: an ordinary person who refuses to accept their ordinariness. In a world where the chosen are extraordinary — Irregulars, Princesses of Zahard, ancient warrior bloodlines — Rachel has no special power, no divine destiny, no remarkable talent. She's just a person who wants something desperately and has chosen to take it by any means necessary.

SIU has seemed to confirm elements of this reading in author notes and through visual storytelling — Rachel is often framed in ways that emphasize smallness, in contrast to the mythic scale around her. She is not a conqueror; she is someone clawing at a door that was never meant for her.

From this angle, her villainy is more tragic than malicious. She didn't choose to be unspecial. She chose not to accept it.

The Headon Deal: What Did Rachel Actually Promise?

This is where the theory gets interesting. Headon, the Tower's enigmatic Floor Gatekeeper, made a deal with Rachel that allowed her to enter the Tower — but what exactly was the agreement? The text implies Rachel had to do something for Headon, something that may explain why she has been systematically working against Bam ever since. The theory: Rachel was tasked with eliminating or neutralizing Bam as a condition of her entry.

If this is true, Rachel's betrayal of Bam on the 2nd floor wasn't purely selfish — it was the fulfillment of a contract she couldn't escape. That doesn't excuse it, but it reframes her as less of a free agent and more of a trapped one.

Does SIU Want Us to Hate Rachel?

Almost certainly not. When SIU writes a character who is purely contemptible, they don't get the narrative real estate Rachel receives. Her perspective is shown. Her pain is shown. The moments where she almost turns back are shown. SIU has said in blog posts that Rachel is a character who represents a specific emotional truth he wanted to explore — though he's been deliberately vague about what her full arc will look like.

The fan community largely hates Rachel because Bam's perspective is our anchor — and she hurt Bam. But SIU has consistently written her story in a way that demands a second look.

Conclusion: Villain, Victim, or Mirror?

The most compelling theory about Rachel is that she functions as a dark mirror to Bam. He grows by building connections; she destroys them. He gains power through openness; she seizes it through manipulation. They entered the Tower for opposite versions of the same reason — one to find a person, one to escape being invisible.

Is she a villain? By any ethical measure, yes. Is she the real villain? Almost certainly not — there are forces far more deliberately destructive in the Tower than Rachel. But she may be the most human antagonist in the story, and that's exactly why she cuts so deep.