Resurrection and the Goddess's Regret

I was resurrected. I had died. It was a miserable death. Being torn apart by dogs was the kind of end I thought only fit the underlings of failed villainous missions. Yet I had lost my limbs to something even more hideous, my body...

Still, at least I wouldn't have to feel pain anymore. At least the suffering would be over.

"Ah... Aaa..."

Before I knew it, a woman in white robes was kneeling before me, weeping. The woman I had only glimpsed in passing before coming to this world. Could it be... You...

"Such an ending... is not fitting for one who has overcome such trials—"

The opening of the prayer that once called her the benevolent and all-seeing great goddess... So it had been real after all.

The goddess, Armilla. Just looking at her told me how dearly she had cherished me, and how deeply she grieved my death. Her sobs did not cease for a long time. I could only gaze at her in silence.

"It must have hurt... so much."

"Yes, something I never want to experience ag—"

"No. I meant... your heart."

She pointed at my chest. Shockingly, there were three holes there, as if something had pierced straight through.

"To have received such unforgivable hatred from three people... Normally such marks judge the weight of one's sins, but you..."

Aah. Yes. That's what they did. I could understand—

"I cannot accept that. None of it. From the beginning, this was all my fault for failing to protect you better."

"Why..."

"I feel I must tell you a little about the Demon King. Kang Daeun, the hero I chose who came with you. Sirke Aidela, my one and only child who can reach me. And Erika, the eldest daughter of Sorell... yes, the elven archer. These three relied on you in many ways. They harbored feelings for you. Romantic feelings. Though they were beautiful emotions, it saddened me to see them never expressed. The Demon King twisted those feelings."

"The Demon King... no longer exists. I erased his existence with my own power the moment he arrived here. In truth, I should have imprisoned him in hell to burn for eternity... but he dared touch a realm that no created being should ever touch."

"I don't understand... them..."

"Though a created being himself, the Demon King interfered with the very essence of creation. With what I hold most precious—emotion itself."

"It is my fault. My selfish desire to see a little more of those emotions left me unprepared for what would happen to you. If only I had fulfilled my duties just a little better... surely!"

She cried out and began weeping once more. According to her words, the three of them had loved me. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠But the Demon King had inverted those emotions, turning them into horrific hatred directed at me...?

Even so, the wounds in my heart could not be healed. A fate that had already ended could not be changed. It shouldn't be changed, right? Something like that.

At this point, I wanted to let go of my powerless self and simply rest. Looking back, all my efforts had come to nothing. Wasn't that result born simply from my desire to be useful? Since I was already dead, I should just shake it all off and rest...

"No... I cannot let it all turn to nothing."

The goddess looked at me with dead eyes, then gently took both my hands.

"Go back. Return and please enjoy the happiness you could never have. Now that the Demon King is gone, you will surely be loved. Your efforts were not in vain... Please... when you return, I hope those wounds, that gloomy heart, and even your expression will all be bright once more."

She gave me a gentle push. A flash of light crossed my vision, and the next moment I was rising to my feet in the very place where I had died.

"Wh-what is this..."

I had come back to life. From the threshold of death, she had pushed me back. How... No. More than that—why?

I didn't want to face them. Death had been the one sure thing that could separate me from them. Right before entering the Demon King's territory, their attitudes had completely reversed, and my treatment had plummeted into the abyss along with them. Like the saying that when you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes back, in the cities at the forefront, exchanging hatred had become everyday life.

And in such a place, I was someone who deserved to be hated. Even the hero and his great companions looked down on and mocked that person—so how could others be any different! To ask me to find ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠happiness from them... Even if the Demon King was gone, there was no way I could do something like that. My chest already had holes in it.

I stood there ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠dazed for a moment before looking around. The area that had once been the Demon King's territory, filled with twisted trees, had long since become a lush forest glowing with green. The river that once flowed with red liquid was now a beautiful emerald stream. The occasional ferocious howls had been replaced by the pleasant chirping of birds.

I was in a space I could scarcely believe. This place, once saturated with death on all sides—where even those three invincible beings had begun to feel a trace of fear—now offered me an unbelievable tranquility.

Suddenly realizing how strangely good my body felt, I examined myself. Fortunately, my torn-off arms and legs had returned to their proper places. Only the armor I wore had long since become tattered rags. The result of that final battle right before my death.

For some reason, my body felt light. I stripped off the armor and searched for my sword, but soon gave up. It was embedded deep in a tree, already rusted through. The only proof that my final moments had been real were the dark stains still clinging to that rusted blade. And... it reminded me that everything had truly happened. That this was no dream.

How much time had passed for the sword to rust like this...? Perhaps this scenery had only taken shape after several decades, I secretly hoped. I wanted to be forgotten. Only then could I live in peace.

But for now, rest. My days had been stained with blood and flesh. I needed a little peace.

I swept my hand across a flat rock bathed in sunlight. It was pleasantly warm. Moreover, the cool breeze blowing from the river's direction invited me to take a nap, wrapping my whole body in sweet, refreshing sensation.

Yes. It would be against human nature not to yield to such temptation. I lay down my body, which felt lighter than usual, and decided to close my eyes for a while, basking in the sunlight. It had been so long since I felt such warmth.

The old man sitting on the stone throne, letting out a deep sigh while clutching his head—his beard, hair, every strand of fur turned pure white—was none other than Ordias III, ruler of the Kardia Kingdom.

"Your Majesty, forgive me, but..."

"No, continue."

"Yes. As you know, the Hero, the Saintess, and the distinguished guest returned one week ago..."

Yes. The problem had begun after their return. The Saintess had gone to receive a divine oracle only to slam her head against the floor repeatedly. The Hero kept muttering to himself, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and the elf screamed endlessly.

"...Your Highness?"

"I am listening. Continue."

He wasn't listening at all...

One from another world, one from the Soros Papacy, and the last from the Armilla Autonomous Region with which they had almost no exchange. At a time when they might have to send back such precious talents, a moment that could be a golden opportunity for the kingdom, the chancellor glanced at the king who was merely stroking his beard, then continued his report.

"...Thus, the question of how to treat them from now on remains."

"The Saintess and the distinguished guest clearly received messengers urging their return. But what should be done about the Hero?"

"Your Highness, that is not the issue!"

"Then what is?"

"The distinguished guest is from the Armilla Autonomous Region, with which we have little contact..."

Oh for the love of—here we go again.

"Then there is even less need for exchange! They have always looked down on us! Let them do as they please!"

"Now, now. Rejecting them without even trying to understand is the wrong attitude—"

Once again, this tiresome factional bickering had begun. Ordias III pressed a hand to his throbbing head.

The real problem isn't politics—it's the people.

These damned ministers were already busy calculating their own gains and losses, tearing at each other. Pathetic fools.

"Enough! I will summon the Hero here tomorrow to ask his wishes regarding his treatment. For the other two distinguished guests, we will convey our request for future exchanges. Know this and withdraw, all of you!"

"But Your Highness—"

"It is my command."

"...!"

For a moment, all sound ceased. Then the ministers bowed their heads deeply.

"We shall obey Your Majesty's command."

"Chancellor, you stay a moment..."

"Ah, yes, Your Majesty."

After the ministers filed out through the open doors one by one, the chancellor sat down beside the king, who was still clutching his head.

"Haa..."

"Dealing with those blockheads who don't even understand Your Majesty's heart must have been exhausting, Your Majesty."

"Good grief, Peter. How did you manage to hold back that itching tongue of yours?"

After exchanging light banter, the two fell into serious contemplation.

"In any case, they still don't accurately understand the state of the distinguished guests."

"Indeed. They're the sort who couldn't even notice there was one more person besides those three."

"Woo... Jin? Woojin Han? Han Woojin?"

"It's Han Woojin, I believe."

The chancellor still hadn't grown used to that otherworldly name, as unusual as the Hero's. Yet he had quite liked the man—his spirit, that uniquely upright posture that pressed forward despite having nothing. The fact that he had not returned from the journey, combined with the strange behavior of those three, had made both the chancellor and the king sense that something was wrong. The incident at the oracle chamber had confirmed his suspicions.

"When will you inform them of those three's disappearance—no, to be precise, their movement into the forest?"

"Even if we tell them, there's nothing we can do about those three."

"Any countermeasures?"

"Wasn't that something I should be asking you?"

"..."

"If even the chancellor has no sharp ideas, then we can only watch."

Besides the Hero party's problem, they had to deal with the immediate crises piling up one by one. And if the chancellor had noticed, then both the Autonomous Region and the Papacy had surely already found out as well.

Who could possibly stop the three who had slain the Demon King? All they could do was pray that peace would visit those four.

...And that they could safely process this mountain of documents.