The Resurrected Immortal - Chapter 1: Appointment of the Apostle (1)
The voice echoed softly.
"Child. This is a tale of the goddess who desires kings greater than Hansu... but if you refuse to accept it, you need not. It changes nothing for you."
The goddess's voice brimmed with boundless compassion for the young man before her white jade throne. Yet she waited endlessly, fretting over his choice.
"But... there's no other way, is there?"
"Indeed. But this is no coercion. Should you choose to become our Apostle, there will be no turning back."
"Enough. How many times must you repeat yourself? The child has already accepted our decree."
"Precisely. Time is short. We must complete the rite and bestow the divine powers."
In the vast, empty expanse of pristine white nothingness stood several imposing white jade thrones, gleaming as if they were seats for kings who ruled the world itself.
Seated upon them were three goddesses radiating mature allure, lending the space an aura of profound sanctity.
It was the moment when the goddess at the center—standing before her throne—asked the man for the fourth time if he truly harbored no regrets about his choice.
"Child, how many times must I ask before your heart is eased?"
The goddess on the far left, with her dark skin and black hair, chided the one in the center.
With time running perilously short, the goddess on the right—pale-skinned with blue hair—urged them to hasten the rite.
"But..."
Even so, the central goddess hesitated to perform the rite on the man before her.
She had glimpsed his future through this very ceremony—the fate of an ordinary man chosen as Apostle.
It was a burden far too immense for any mortal soul to bear.
Was it truly right to saddle this one man with such weight?
The central goddess pondered deeply, wrestling with doubt.
"I've told you countless times. This is the path of least sacrifice."
"Goddesses. You've said there's no other choice."
"Yes."
"Then I accept. It feels like the role destined for me in this place."
"...We shall honor your choice."
With her resolve firm, the goddess rose from her throne and approached the young man—Eun-Hyeon.
The other two sighed in relief at her finally taking action and followed behind.
The three goddesses drew close, and Eun-Hyeon knelt on one knee, bowing his head.
The left goddess—Urd—gently caressed the head of the kneeling man.
As her touch met his silver hair, it erupted in radiant white light—a sign that the rite had begun.
"I, Urd, of the Norns' three—goddess of the past—bestow upon the Apostle-to-be, Eun-Hyeon, the authority of 'Past': the power of Replication, to summon relics of what once was."
⟨ Replication ⟩
Now it was the right goddess's turn—Skuld.
"I, Skuld, of the Norns' three—goddess of the future—bestow upon the Apostle-to-be, Eun-Hyeon, the authority of 'Future': the power of Fate Pioneering, to twist the threads of destined causality."
⟨ Fate Pioneering ⟩
The central goddess—Verdandi—lingered last, gazing at Eun-Hyeon with a heartrending expression.
Unlike the others, she performed no rite, simply staring. Eun-Hyeon looked up in confusion.
Verdandi met his eyes and finally moved—but not like the others.
"G-Goddess?"
She knelt before him, matching his gaze, then spread her arms wide and pulled him into a fierce embrace.
Stunned by the unexpected intimacy, Eun-Hyeon stammered, glancing awkwardly at the other two goddesses.
Urd and Skuld merely frowned in disapproval but did not intervene.
"I, Verdandi, of the Norns' three—goddess of the present—bestow upon the Apostle-to-be, Eun-Hyeon, the authority of 'Present': the power of Time Manipulation, to edit the flow of now."
⟨ Time Manipulation ⟩
Unlike the others, no brilliant white light flared. Instead, it faded softly, seeping into Eun-Hyeon's body to complete the rite.
Even after it ended, Verdandi refused to release her hold. Her arms tightened further, her shoulders trembling faintly.
"Forgive me... forgive me. Someday... you may come to hate me, and that is permitted."
"That's not true."
Clutched so tightly, he couldn't see her face—but her quivering shoulders and voice told him she wore an expression of profound sorrow.
Eun-Hyeon pondered how to comfort Verdandi, who refused to let go. Touching a goddess's body seemed irreverent for a mere human, yet they were already pressed close.
What's one more? With that thought, he patted her back soothingly.
"Enough. There's a limit to indulging personal feelings for one human. Are you ill?"
Even having read Eun-Hyun's fate, Verdandi's excessive attachment was unbecoming of a goddess.
"Sister, that's why I bestowed Fate Pioneering. Perhaps even that future can be altered."
At Urd's rebuke and Skuld's consolation, Verdandi finally released Eun-hyeon.
"Child, remember this well. These powers serve 'you,' but their ultimate purpose is the 'salvation of others.'"
"I understand."
Eun-Hyeon nodded gravely, committing her admonition to memory.
You must never be the ‘Lord’. Your role is to ensure that the fates of the heroes flow normally, and you are a device created by the three goddesses of our destiny. To put it in your own words… Yes, you are never the main character. It’s extra extra
“It’s true, but it’s pretty sad to hear it yourself.”
Eun-Hyun laughed bitterly and threw a joke at Verdandi.
Verdandi, who heard the joke, smiled sadly as if the gloomy mood had eased a little.
I will always watch and pray from above so that all the heroes of the underworld can grow properly and you can carry out our mission properly without collapsing.
“Thank you.”
If the person speaking is not a goddess, and the boss of the company where Eun-Hyun of Earth worked, not this place, would have said something like that.
Eun-hyeon smiled inwardly, thinking that it might have sounded like a nuance saying, ‘I’ll keep watching you every single time you do this fucking thing!’.
The moment she was about to get up after all the rituals, Verdandi grabbed Eun-Hyun by the shoulders and wouldn’t let go.
Eun-hyeon was stopped from getting up in a hesitant position and had to kneel down on his knees again without knowing why.
Thinking about what else was left, Eun-Hyeon tilted his head and looked at Verdandi.
“What else is left… Whoops!”
Suddenly, Verdandi’s face came closer, and Verdandi’s lips overlapped Eun-Hyeon’s.
Surprised, Eun-hyeon tried to tilt his head back, but Verdandi hands grabbed Eun-hyeon’s face and refused to let go.
Eun-Hyeon struggled, waving his arms, feeling Verdandi tongue coming into her mouth.
[What are you doing now!]
[Oh, sister!]
Of course, Urd and Skuld were also surprised by Verdandi’s sudden action.
After a moment of idly thinking about what she had done, she screamed in surprise that the two goddesses had come to their senses.
The two goddesses hurriedly grabbed Verdandi’s arms and dragged her away from Eun-hyeon.
[Are you crazy? How and with a human…]
Urdu was furious and scolded Verdandi.
But Verdandi didn’t even care about her sister, who was mad at her.
Her gaze, still unable to comprehend the situation, reached Eun-hyeon, who was sitting in a daze.
“Hey, Goddess? What the hell is this…”
The confusion was not only with the two goddesses, but also with Eun-Hyeon.
[This is the blessing.]
“A blessing?”
The one who answered Eun-Hyeon’s question was Skuld, not Verdandi, who had done her thing.
[Your sister just gave you the ‘Goddess Protection’.]
“Ah, is that so…”
But did she have to bequeath that protection so bewitchingly?
Eun-hyeon tried to calm her beating heart, but the aftertaste of Verdandi still lingered in her mouth.
Eun-hyeon realized what she was thinking, and she hurriedly shook her head, trying desperately to get rid of the thoughts that had popped into her head.
It’s a big deal.
That kiss from earlier keeps replaying in her mind.
“It was the first time…”
[It was my first time too.]
“Ah…”
It was information I was not interested in at all.
Could it be Eun-hyeon’s misunderstanding that Verdandi doesn’t show any shyness about her despite being so confident, and instead seems to be in a good mood?
Eun-hyeon was busy hiding her burning face with her hands.
[Since I also gave you a blessing that doubled as a farewell, it seems the time has come to let you go.]
Eun-hyeon couldn’t meet Verdandi’s gaze properly, but her voice showed a hint of regret somewhere in her, so she unconsciously looked up at her head and looked at her.
Verdandi doesn’t have the look she showed me earlier, she said with the same benevolent smile she had when she first saw her.
[Go. Regardless of your mission, keep in mind that I always wish for your happiness.]
“Yes.”
Eun-hyeon bowed her head and bid her farewell to the three goddesses.
“Thank you very much.”
So he closed his eyes and left the space of the three goddesses of fate.
“Ah.”
Come to think of it, it must have been because the memory of her kiss was too strong.
I belatedly realized that I hadn’t asked what kind of blessing Verdandi had bestowed on me because I was about to leave in a hurry out of embarrassment.
Among the three goddesses left in the pure white space after Eun-Hyeon left, Urd opened her eyes and scolded Verdandi.
[Why are you really like this?]
[…]
[I told you. Don’t have personal feelings for people. By the way, is it possible to bestow the ‘goddess protection’ on ordinary humans?]
[It’s our child now.]
[No matter how much you are an apostle, you are still human!]
Verdandi didn’t pay attention to Urd’s furious words and just stared at the spot where Eun-Hyeon had left.
[But that child is so pitiful. Sister, no matter how right he is, it may not be right from the point of view of the child. We are now leaving all the problems of our gods to one human.]
[That… Tsk.]
Urd couldn’t find words to refute Verdandi’s persuasion and clicked his tongue.
Certainly, from Eun-hyeon’s point of view, there is nothing to say even if she resents herself and the goddesses.
Starting from now on, a man named Eun-hyeon had to endure a long time different from other humans, and he could not interfere in the pain and trials he had to go through during that time.
At best, all they could do was to make him an apostle and endow them with some of their powers so that they could help him on his long journey.
[Perhaps my authority has already begun.]
[Your authority? Are you talking about ‘Creating Destiny’?]
Skuld nodded and replied.
[Because Verdandi unnie took an unexpected action after granting my authority. Maybe she was given a divine protection by her older sister…]
[Are you saying that this result is the result of the combination of that man’s ‘power to twist fate’ and ‘creation of destiny’?]
Is it possible?
That the fate of mere men compels the actions of the gods?
If so, they
[You made up something absurd.]
He thought he had foretold and predicted all fate.
From the beginning of the man named Eun-hyeon, he was moving in a different direction from the predicted fate.
The only exception was made for the three goddesses who could predict the fate of all life in the world.
It’s even more ironic that this is the person they just made their apostle.
While listening to the story of the two sisters, Verdandi quietly closed her eyes.
[Hey. It should never fail.]
He remembered the man who had left him.
He earnestly prayed to the fate he was walking so that his child, the only one who could not predict the future, would succeed.