Sommer

The mutation on Sommer's left hand has made her feel inferior, so much so that she often subconsciously wants to hide it. At the same time, she also tries to defend it, saying that it won't be used to hurt humans. She had gone through a series of physical examinations as a child when her left hand attracted the attention of a certain Citadel department's researchers. With the excuse that they wanted to revert her hand to how it used to be, she was made to undergo numerous procedures, including skin transplant, blood draws, and Ascension Ability interference, but they were all futile. The pain from the examinations and treatments caused Sommer to have a deep-seated aversion toward medical checkups, especially injections. Just the sight of a needle makes her tense up and makes her heart race, and she even blacked out from fear several times when she was younger.

Once, she learned from a makeup influencer's blog that "cosmetics are the magic of girls," and so she began giving makeup a try. Manicure has become her recent obsession, but people have kindly suggested that she try another color of nail polish, for dark red ones truly look quite frightening in dim places. This suggestion really bothered Sommer to the point that she purchased a horde of multicolored nail polishes to compare and experiment.

While in combat, as long as she utilizes her Ascension Ability, she will sense the effect it has on her mutated hand. Yet, when facing the mutated humans—Deep Sleepers—she can't help but glance at her left hand and wonder, "Am I a monster in human's skin or a human who possesses a monster's power?" It is a question that she's still searching for an answer to this day.

Sommer's adoptive father is Dustin, a well-known "hero" in the Citadel, while the woman who would've become her adoptive mother had already died before the adoption. While Sommer was a child, the town she resided in was destroyed by a Chaos Remain invasion, and she who was buried under debris was saved by the Citadel's rescue team. She made up her mind to repay her savior, but at that tender age, all she remembered through her hazy memory was a pair of large, ice-cold hands holding hers, which ultimately didn't help in locating that person.

Sometime later, the immature Sommer and other children chanced upon an out-of-the-ordinary, injured mechanical man on the airship. The mechanical man's utterly maimed body terrified many of the children, but Sommer sensed that this was the hero who saved her when she was younger, so she braced herself and reached out to verify that ice-cold touch. Afterward, she asked the teacher who looked after her about the "huge mechanical hero" and was informed that he was Dustin, a doctor who once saved countless lives and a loving husband whose family was torn apart by a Chaos Remain attack. As a result, he gave up on medicine and turned to combat, attaining remarkable feats on the battlefield as he helped the Citadel eliminate Chaos Remains, thus making him a hero.

Hearing that, the young Sommer resolved to do a little something for Dustin—help him manage the greenhouse garden left behind by his deceased wife. The greenhouse with tightly shut doors seemed to have been abandoned for ages. Starting from things that a child could do, she began recultivating the plants and even found some relevant books on the desk that belonged to the adoptive mother she never got the chance to meet. As time passed, Sommer fell in love with gardening, for being around plants made her feel more at peace than around people, and she started treating this place as her sanctuary.

Her favorite thing to do during noon breaks was to nap under the cherry tree. Having been surrounded by medical equipment and endless treatment plans since her rescue, it had been forever since she last experienced such warmth and serenity. Meanwhile, Dustin, who coincidentally passed by the greenhouse, noticed that the door was ajar and saw the girl who had just woken up from her nap.

"That was... mom... in my dream, right...?"

While on patrol approximately ten years after she was adopted by Dustin, Sommer encountered the severely injured Nayuta, who looked a little menacing. Her companions all advised her, "He's clearly not a good guy. Saving him will only bring you trouble." But Sommer didn't believe in judging a book by its cover and ultimately lent him a hand. Trusting his daughter's judgment, Dustin slowly got to know Nayuta and later vouched for the young man to join the Citadel. That was how their unique "family" formed.

After regaining a healthy body and important family members, Sommer started trying to move on with her new life and began nurturing her own cooking skills when she wasn't on a combat mission. Dustin, having already lost his sense of taste, would control the amount of ingredients used down to the grams, while Nayuta's cooking skills were as unpolished as his magic tricks. Both of them were clearly not the most suitable people she could seek help from, and not to mention, Sommer always felt unconfident about her cooking. Hence, she tended to finish her works of failure on her own even when they were far from palatable. Her wish was to make good food for others since she had always been on the receiving end.

However, ever since Sommer boarded the Eternal, she got lots of friendly concern and assistance. When she accidentally messed up while cooking in the train's kitchen, she instinctively shrank back in fear, only to not be reprimanded but kindly teased and guided by the other crew members.

At this rate, perhaps it won't be long before Sommer produces a much more satisfactory dessert and for her to hear the long-anticipated comments from whom she cares about. If possible, please praise her for her effort.