Resurrection Chapter 1 - The Man Who Was Once a Paladin

When I opened my eyes, I stood in darkness.

It was a void without up or down, left or right. I reached out, but there was nothing to touch, and a creeping fear began to take hold.

Dizzy, as if plummeting into an abyss or being flung into the high void, I shut my eyes tightly. But closing them only deepened the darkness, so I had no choice but to open them again.

Then, a voice came from somewhere.

It was less a voice and more a meaning transmitted directly into my mind.

“My time has come!”

As the voice gained direction, a heavy current of air surged from behind. The chilling sensation crawling up my spine was all too familiar.

Monsters!

Realizing I was unarmed, I turned around in panic. And there, I froze at the sight of an overwhelming number of monsters.

Calling the things charging toward me mere “monsters” felt inadequate. Behemoths, abominations, fiends, demons—names like these suited them better. They surged like a tidal wave, and I turned to run.

Of course, running on two legs was futile.

Outrunning them was impossible. Soon, the ground trembled with their approach, and otherworldly creatures bore down on me.

“Aaagh!”

I screamed, clutching my head and crouching. But, to my surprise, the monsters paid me no heed, charging past me. Roaring, they rushed toward a faint light ahead.

From that direction, a blinding radiance erupted.

With the burst of light, the surroundings illuminated, revealing the landscape.

I saw mountains of monster corpses piled high. The ground was littered with bodies—so many that even the surface I stood on was a corpse. The monsters trampled over their own dead as they charged forward.

At the peak of it all, a man raised a greatsword and let out a primal roar.

His shout tore through the monsters’ flesh, shredding them apart. Blood sprayed as he swung his blade downward.

With terrifying force, the monsters were ripped apart like paper. Like a wolf ravaging a flock of sheep, the man effortlessly tore through the corrupted creatures, crushing, bursting, and grinding them underfoot.

Even the colossal, mountain-like behemoths were powerless before him. Their mass, dozens or even hundreds of times his own, meant nothing.

With overwhelming destructive power, the man carved a new peak atop the mountain of corpses. Standing on jagged rocks of bone and flesh, he roared:

“To the endless slaughter, I shall go! Those who would serve me, come at the dawn!”

“—!”

Bolting upright from my bedding, I stumbled out of the room and burst into the one across from mine.

Flipping on the light, I saw a cot in the corner. I lunged toward the lumpy pile of blankets.

“Hyung! Hyung! Heesoo hyung!”

Pounding on the blankets, I made a commotion until Heesoo hyung slowly pushed them aside and sat up.

One might expect him to be startled by the sudden uproar, but he showed no such signs. Even as he rose from his bed at my insistence, he remained calm.

Beneath his shaggy hair, his clear face stood out sharply. He didn’t look like someone who’d just woken up, which disappointed me greatly. Thinking he might not know what had happened because he was awake, I clung to him, practically climbing onto his lap, and asked, “Hyung, you weren’t sleeping?”

Instead of answering, Heesoo hyung gave a faint, troubled expression. I realized I’d barged into his bed in just my underwear, and he was similarly scantily clad, but that wasn’t important now. Gripping his arm, I said, “It’s two in the morning, and you still haven’t slept? I know you’re upset, but you should’ve slept! If you had, in your dream—”

“I saw it,” he said, gently pushing my arm away.

I flinched. “You saw it? You mean you received the revelation?”

Heesoo hyung nodded silently, and I was struck with disbelief.

How could he be so calm after receiving a revelation?

It had been nearly three years since the last one.

A revelation from a combat-oriented god, no less, was something I couldn’t even recall happening in recent memory.

Most gods had appeared thirty-five years ago, when Earth nearly perished in a nuclear war. The powerful who now ruled the world were mostly first-class apostles chosen by those gods back then.

Gaining the favor of a major god over them was no easy feat. But a newly arrived god was a different story. Becoming its first apostle could grant immense power.

We had to hurry.

The god had called all awakened ones through the revelation, so we needed to reach the newly formed sanctuary before dawn.

I couldn’t let someone else get there first. I turned, rushing to dress and gather my gear, but noticed Heesoo hyung still sitting on the bed. I urged him, “What are you doing? Hurry up and get dressed. We need to go now!”

Heesoo hyung didn’t budge. He sat there, lost in thought, looking not excited about the new god’s arrival but rather somber.

I stopped preparing and approached him, gently grasping his shoulder. He looked up at me with shadowed eyes.

“Hyung, there’s no need to worry.”

“…”

His eyes, once as clear as a dust-free, vibrant blue sky, full of innocent yet steadfast hope, now seemed weary and indifferent.

The exhaustion in his gaze pained my heart. It hurt more because I remembered who he used to be.

Forcing a smile, I said, “It’s okay. Everything will work out.”

Heesoo hyung stared at me steadily.

His piercing gaze made me inexplicably anxious. Whenever he looked at me like that, I felt confused, as if receiving silent reproach, blame, or warning.

But I firmly believed my plan was for him, for me, and for the entire world. He might doubt it now, but in the end, it would be the right thing.

Even if it wasn’t, it didn’t matter. People act for what they believe is right, and I couldn’t leave him like this.

I patted his shoulder and turned to go. But he grabbed my arm, pulling me back to face him.

Heesoo hyung leaned his forehead against my chest.

My shirt was unbuttoned, making the contact vivid.

His shaggy hair was softer than it looked, tickling my bare skin rather than pricking it.

His forehead, however, was hot. His skin, pale from lack of sunlight, was marble-like, yet it carried a volcanic heat.

He gripped both my wrists as I hesitated. His hold was firm, unyielding, leaving me unable to move.

Standing there, as if bound, I waited. After a moment, he murmured against me, “Yes, everything will work out.”

Repeating my words softly, he looked up. Life flickered in his once-dull eyes.

“Kim Itae, because you said so.”

His response, trusting and following my words, filled me with gratitude. My heart trembled with emotion, and I vowed to live up to his expectations.

I reached out, gently stroking his hair, and flashed a confident smile. “Of course. Just trust me.”

Heesoo hyung mirrored my faint, misty smile. Though tinged with a hint of regret, now wasn’t the time for sentimentality. To fulfill his expectations and my own desires, we needed the power of the god that had just descended.

I let go of his hand and said, “We need to hurry. Let’s go.”

With a short nod, Heesoo hyung rose from his seat.