[15th October 2025.]
[Cuba, Earth.]
Late one night at the end of last October, a teenage girl pointed a double-barrel shotgun at her face and pulled the trigger.
It's been one year since Eden lost Lunive, the girl who was his everything.
"Will I die if I jump?"
Eden questioned as he looked down from the terrace of a twentieth-floor building.
"You won't." A voice echoed from behind him. "But you will remain broke for the rest of your life."
His black eyes squinted before he pulled himself back.
He messed his black hair, partially because of a headache from excessive alcohol.
He turned to look at the young man, drinking.
"Can't you fuck off somewhere else, Ben?" Eden mumbled. "Why are you bothering me?"
"I got nothing better to do." Ben replied softly.
"Sigh…"
Sighing, Eden sat on the edge, his legs dangling down.
The moon shone slightly as he looked up at the dark sky.
Eden Greyun was the most extraordinary average guy.
From kindergarten to high school, he had always been in the middle.
Even in his college admission, he got an average score.
The only unordinary thing in his ordinary life was his childhood sweetheart.
Lunive Xanyn.
The girl who was top in her studies, mannerism, looks, and in everything else.
The girl whom he liked since he was a kid.
…The perfect girl who killed herself a year ago.
A cruel joke of fate that Eden found funny.
He chuckled, blinking at the moon.
"Still thinking about her?" Ben asked.
"…No." He lied. "I have already forgotten about her."
Truth be told, Eden has yet to recover from her sudden death.
But he wasn't going to tell his friend about it.
Ben didn't say anything as he kept on drinking.
Eden gruntedly stood up, stretching his arms.
"Ben." He said. "Wanna have some more drinks?"
The young man smiled. "Sure."
Eden turned to get down, glancing back at the moon one last time.
"Hm?"
He squinted his eyes at the moon once again as it twinkled gently.
It wasn't long before the moon was growing slowly bigger.
Soon he understood it wasn't the moon.
"No way…" Eden mumbled. "Is that a meteorite?"
He smiled. "Damn, first time seeing one…"
Eden's smile slowly faded as he noticed something. "…But why is it coming in my direction?"
It only hit him after a second, "W-wait, wait—!"
Eden's voice muffled as the meteorite actually hit him, killing him in an instant.
———
"…Is he going to wake up?"
"Wait, is he dead?"
"Of course, he is dead, why do you think he is here?"
"Oh, right sister."
Eden's eyes fluttered open as he heard murmurs close to his ears.
He suddenly felt lightweight as his eyes adjusted to the new place.
'…Huh?'
Eden looked around, baffled, as there was nothing but pure white space around him.
'Wait, where the hell am I?'
He tried to remember his last moment before a chill ran down his spine.
'…Am I dead?'
"Yes, you are, mortal."
A sudden cold voice made him flinch, making him look up.
Five different lights slowly descended from the sky before floating in front of him.
Eden immediately became cautious as he asked. "….Who might you be?"
"I am a Goddess." The voice that came out of the blue light replied. "And the one who brought your soul here."
Eden looked down at his translucent body, confirming her words.
'….What the hell?'
He too felt confusion like no other as he hadn't accepted the fact that he died.
"He looks dumb." The one with green light spoke. "Are we sure he is the right guy?"
"Right guy?" Eden picked her words. "Right guy for what exactly?"
"That is what I was about to tell you." The blue light spoke. "We the Goddesses have chosen you for a mission—."
"Pause." Eden raised his hand. "Wait, hold on a second."
The voice was too stunned to respond.
"Are you saying I am going to get reincarnated in another world?"
The white light spoke instead. "Taking out the extra steps, yes."
Eden mumbled, rubbing his temples. "Ah, fuck."
"Mind your language, child." The green one rebuked. "You don't curse in front of a goddess—."
Eden interrupted again. "Wait, what happened to my body?"
"Dead." The black light spoke this time. "You were obliterated."
'….Ah, I don't like hearing this.'
"Shall I speak now?" The blue one spoke after a while.
Eden shook his head. "No." He said. "I would kindly refuse your mission."
The blue light's voice echoed again. "Huh?"
"I don't want to be part of your shady deal." He said with a straight face. "Kindly send me into afterlife or something."
"…We can't do that." The black light replied. "You have been plucked out from your destined death, so no afterlife for at least sixty more years."
Eden blinked innocently like a child hearing something new.
But his face gradually turned horrified as reality dawned upon him.
"Wait, did you guys kill me?" He asked, his question more like a statement. "Was I supposed to die in my seventies?"
"Why are you accusing us now?" Green light spoke. "It is perfectly reasonable to die from a meteoroid—."
"Are you dumb?" He asked. "The probability of that happening is one in 6.9 billion!"
"That's a pretty accurate number." The black light spoke. "How did you guess?"
"I… I chose a random number." Eden replied awkwardly. "But that's beside the point!"
"Sorry dude, but you are still dead." Green light spoke mischievously. "Go cry about it."
"What the hell…." Eden looked at her in disbelief. "….Is there no law in afterlife?"
"Calm down, Ede—."
"No!" Eden snapped at the blue light. "Just send me back—."
"You can see Lunive again."
The red light, who was quiet all this time, finally spoke.
Eden froze in his place, his non-existent breathing caught in his lungs.
"Luni…." He spoke softly, his eyes wide. "…. You mean my Luni?"
"Yes, your Luni." Blue light spoke once again. "Are you ready to hear us out?"
Eden folded his trembling hands as he slowly gave a nod.
"We are the Goddesses of a world known as Zarath." She spoke, her voice calm. "A world that is governed by talents and mana."
Eden nodded as he had guessed this much already.
"In that world, we have our spiritual daughters." The green light spoke. "The ones that are connected with us."
"But because of many problems, their life is in danger now." The black one spoke in a cold voice.
"We want you to help them face those dangers and help them in every way possible." The red one spoke once again.
"That will be your mission."
Eden, who was listening to their words, finally spoke. "How can I meet Luni?"
"Lunive is there in Zara." The blue one replied. "In fact, she is one of our daughters."
"Who?" He asked. "Whose daughter—."
"We can't tell you that." Blue interrupted his words. "Not yet at least."
Eden clicked his tongue as he looked down at his arms.
They still trembled at the very thought of seeing her again.
'….What should I do now?'
To him, this all looked far more complex than they were explaining.
After all, why would a 'Goddess' need him to help their own daughters?
It doesn't make any sense at all.
'But I really want to see her.'
Eden bit his lips in frustration as he debated his choices.
Finally, he let out a sigh. "How am I supposed to help them." He asked the lights. "I have nothing to offer."
"Don't worry." The black light said. "We will help you with that."
Eden rubbed the back of his neck in a suspicious way. "Really, how?"
"We will provide you with divine talents." The red one replied. "They will help you in your mission."
Eden nodded as he looked down at his body. '…Hm?'
He suddenly found something amiss. "Wait, am I fading?"
"Yes." The blue replied as a matter of fact. "You got twenty seconds before you are sent to Zarath."
'Wait a damn second, was I supposed to be sent there no matter my answer!?'
"Last question then!" Eden said, looking at them. "Why me?"
The blue light stopped for a second, and for some reason, Eden felt like she was smiling.
"Because you are special." She spoke at last. "Now, we wish you all the best."
Eden blinked as his body fully faded away.
'Did she just call me a retar….'
His consciousness vanished from the place.
———
[1%...…3%....10%.....15%....]
[50%....75%.....94%....…100%]
[Synchronization Complete!]
[Congratulations Eden Greyun for obtaining Divine Talent Tree.]