"Become my Apostle, Alden Vaughn."
The words echoed in the still void. Asta, the boy-god with the blindfold and the unnervingly playful grin, stared directly at Alden—as if his gaze pierced through everything, despite the cloth across his eyes.
There was a brief pause after Asta made his proposal. Alden blinked, staring at the god. It was hard enough to make sense of the situation, having a read on a blindfolded deity was frustratingly impossible. He opened his mouth slowly.
"... Can you explain it a bit more?" Alden asked.
He was inclined to refuse someone who just previously showered him with divine insults. But the offer came with so little context that rejecting it outright felt inappropriate.
"I don't understand what the role and duty of an apostle is yet, I don't understand what it is that you want from me?"
Asta gave a single, satisfied nod. "I don't particularly dislike this cautious side of you."
"Being my Apostle," he continued, "means you serve me as your god and do what I say."
The confident conclusion sent a cold stab of dread into Alden's stomach.
"...That doesn't sound particularly attractive to me, god." Alden muttered. "So I just have to worship you when I reincarnate in my next life?"
"Tsk, as expected, I should smite you."
"What!?"
"Do you know how many would give up existence just to have a chance of being an Apostle? And it's an apostle position under me, Asta, the God of Adventure!"
Alden really didn't know how to approach the situation. He can't possibly teach a god how to pitch and negotiate.
"... I just don't see any benefit from such a high position in my current situation."
"You will receive divinity, Alden, my mighty divinity. You will retain your current memories, have authority, and be reincarnated in a world of my choosing. What part of this don't you understand? All I see here is a beneficial deal for you, why are you grumbling?"
"There are other worlds!?" Alden eyes widen. "You mean other than Earth!?"
"I will smite you if you make me repeat my words again."
Just like that, the existence of a multiverse was confirmed. No build-up. No grand reveals. But that was probably the least of Alden's concerns.
"Can I know my exact duty as an apostle?"
"Do my bidding when I order you to. Other than that, do whatever."
"Then, what bidding do you want me to do?"
"I don't have anything particular in mind for now. But it will be something within your limit. I wouldn't want to kill my Apostle now, would I?"
"What is the duration of this… apostle title?"
"At least one lifetime after bestowal, then continue forever or until I deem you to be no longer worthy."
"That is way, way too long…"
"This is non-negotiable. You could pray for contract termination after your next life, I might just let you go out of annoyance."
"Where exactly will I be reincarnated?"
"I haven't decided yet."
"What exactly is my power that you mentioned?"
"We won't know, you won't manifest it until you receive my divinity."
"Which of my memories will I retain?"
"All of this lifetime, you died young so it is hardly anything worth mentioning. Think of it as a bonus benefit of the bestowal."
"Does this position have any restrictions?"
"None. I'm the God of Adventure, not Hardship. Be thankful it's not Hardship, Osken has a nasty personality"
SHAMELESS!
From Asta's vague answers, this felt less like a holy title appointment and more like glorified servitude. Slavery, basically. An unattractive offer. Alden could just be a fern listening to Beethoven, why would he want to be a lackey?
One thing that made him hesitate from refusing it, though, was the ability to retain his current memory.
It was dumb. His memory now was not certain to be of any use moving forward, but he was sentimental. He wanted to remember his life, his identity, his core values. He wanted to remember his family, his mom and dad, even if he won't get to see them again.
"Couldn't you just reincarnate me on Earth?" Alden tried one last time.
Asta sighs at Alden's futile attempt. Alden is pretty sure it was a sigh from boredom, not empathy as the god started floating and shifting his posture again.
"That is impossible, Earth is not yet qualified for divinity. That is why it's trying to nurture 'Spark' in the first place. So I suggest getting rid of the idea of returning there as anything other than a rock or a plant."
It was pointless. Alden has to move on for now and focus on the immediate problems.
"... .So, I don't have to start a religion? No preaching of your name? You said I can do whatever, right?"
"Huh?" Asta tilted his head mid-daydream, "That? You can just ignore that stuff. I do not need it. Just go have adventures in my name if you are feeling reverence, I might bless you if you pray for me on an adventure."
"You might? Why don't you, aren't I your apostle?"
"What if I don't like your adventure? What if it is boring? Do you bless people going on grocery runs? Are you ordering me?" Asta grumbles. "Why would I even bless an Apostle that is this ungrateful anyways, tsk tsk."
A child. Alden was negotiating with a child. He is potentially serving a child as his god.
Alden reached for his head as he felt a massive imaginary headache coming. It was fortunate that ever since Asta arrived, Alden's mind was already immediately cleared up. If not, he would have long passed out both from the stillness effect of the space and the sheer absurdity of the situation.
"God Asta, why do you even want me as your apostle?" Alden finally asked the one thing that bothered him. With a contract like this, Alden felt like Asta could have taken anyone to do his bidding. Why him?
"What can 'I' do for you?"
The god momentarily stopped daydreaming, finally giving Alden his attention.
"I like you, Alden." Asta said simply.
Then, with a grin, he continues. Already resuming drifting off.
"You might not understand it, but in your previous life, you rebelled against 'Fate'. Pathetically, sure. But mortals don't usually manage that."
"It was very amusing. It could have been an adventure that caught my attention. So I wanted to see if you could really do it or not. This offer is my 'grace' to you, Alden."
"..."
So all of these benefits are simply a gift on the whim of a god? Alden doubts it. Asta seems a bit too calculative.
Still, he knew he had already made up his mind. He wanted to remember.
"God Asta, I wish to accept your proposal." Alden spoke after a moment of contemplation. With words that sounded weird. "Please accept me as your apostle."
At these words, Asta immediately perked up.
"Finally, I almost smite you out of boredom! Good for you!" Asta burst out a laugh.
Alden almost wanted to ask to be smitten once, just to relieve his curiosity with all the threats he received so far. Almost.
"Yes. I will serve you from now on, god Asta." It was strange saying these words, but it's the truth.
Once Alden makes a decision, Alden will commit to it. He will really do his best for Asta.
And seeing how excited Asta is, it might not be that bad.
"Alright, that is a good attitude." Asta clapped his hands with glee. "Now, get ready, little spark."
Before Alden even got the chance to ask, Asta moved.
He ascended, floating higher into the endless void, widening the distance between them.
Then, in the lightless void, Alden clearly watches as the god reaches up and for the first time, removes the blindfold.
Immediately, every instinct in Alden's body screamed. One part of him begged for survival, to look away. Another pleaded to bear witness. But he was already frozen in place, his body ensnared in a trance beyond his control.
Then, Alden saw.
Where irises should have been, galaxies clashed. Stars spiraled, imploded, were born and died. Each collision birthed a life. Each flicker told a past and a future. With every pulse, the space around them flared up. It wasn't light—it was every light. Shining so brightly that lights as a concept seem pale in comparison.
Color bled into the void, unnatural and infinite. Magenta that tasted like blood and copper. Yellow so loud it had a sound. Blue that made your bones feel like glass. Hues without logic and names, carrying sensation that bypassed sight.
Logic misbehaved, and the void convulsed. Space hiccuped like a drunk newly given consciousness. The air laughed, then cracked apart into pieces like confetti.
Asta's divinity didn't just descend—it exploded. Wild, absurd, chaotic.
Each time Asta's 'eyes' shone, a living epic was actualized. Not dreams. Not illusions. Realities.
A fortress of knights clashed against a sea made of eyes. A battlefield of skeletons wept and sang. A gambler knelt to a loaded die that exploded into thunderstorms. A god was born, fell in love, failed, died, and danced again—on repeat.
The previous stillness of the void was immediately erased as space turned into a battlefield of clashing legends and myths. Realities battles, and thousand adventures clawed their way into existence with every glance from the god.
Mesmerized in a trance, Alden didn't dare blink. What if he missed something? His mind compelled itself into overdrive to comprehend and remember every story. His throat closed. His lungs barely worked. And his heart threatened to tear his chest apart.
With each short breath Alden took, he breathed in a crazed, uncontrollable kind of power in the air that made him want to fight a dragon barefoot or leap off a cliff just to see what would happen.
For the first time since their meeting, Alden started to comprehend Asta's existence. It was practically forced on his mind.
Adventure personified.
Asta stood alone, aloof above it all. His small frame didn't grow, didn't morph. He was still the cute, smirking boy. But his presence dominates and expands into every inch of the cosmos.
Then, he spoke—not with a voice, but with a choir of divinity intent that overwhelms the sounds of raging realities. His gaze, filled with infinite stories, fixed on Alden.
"As mutually agreed upon—in the name of Asta, God of Adventure, The Eyes That See All Paths, The Chaos That Dares Forward—I name you, Alden, My first apostle.
By this pact, carved into the law of the universe—you are given possibility. To veer. To leap. To fall and rise again. To alter fate, by force, and by choice.
Each word of the pact forcefully etched itself in Alden's soul.
"This bond is life-bound. Death-bound. Beyond-bound.
This is the pact of Adventure."
With those final words, the space detonated.
Colors. Feelings. Sounds. Events.
Cries of warriors. Howls of beasts. Hymns of divinity. And things without names.
All parts of Asta's divinity. All burst outward like a second Big Bang.
And just as the chaos reached the edge of forever, it snapped back. Like time reversing itself. Everything condensed. Hurtled fervently back toward the singularity.
All of it crashed into Alden.
His knees immediately gave out as he fell.
The chaos circled, spiraled, and wrapped around him like a cloak made of comet trails, devouring Alden.
It was too much.
Pain beyond comprehension. His body shattered, reformed, and shattered again. His mind filled with familiar memories that weren't his—dreams forgotten, futures never lived.
Alden was born again. And again. And again. For each time he was born, he died twice.
His body froze up, unsure of whether to convulse or disappear. Tears streamed down his cheeks unconsciously, not from grief, but from sheer, impossible immensity.
There was no choice but to suffer.
And somewhere—somewhen—eventually—it faded.
But even when it finally began to fade, the world was still not quiet. The godhood etched in his bones whispers incoherent words meaning.
Alden's world had permanently changed, he had changed.
He was now Asta's apostle.
"Finally up?" He was greeted by his god. "Did you like it?"
Asta was standing above, tilting down at the sprawling Alden with a bright smile. The space around them had stopped writhing, returning to complete still darkness.
"It was more tiresome than I thought, but isn't my power spectacular? I surprised myself."
"Yeah. It's pretty cool." Alden replied curtly, quickly sitting up straight. "Except the fact that I almost lost my mind at the end. Thanks for the heads up, by the way."
"Tsk tsk, there is always something for you to complain about. How would you have even prepared for it?"
"I would have chosen to be a plant."
Despite just witnessing the scope of Asta's power and status, Alden was now being more casual in his approach to Asta. Whether it's because the apostle pact was currently in effect or simply because he had taken in Asta's divinity, Alden gained a subconscious understanding of Asta, and he was pretty sure the reverse was also true.
There was no point in being reverent or too respectful, the God of Adventure had no interest in worship as much as he did in entertainment, in stories, in movement. Moreover, they are now partners at least for the next life, so Alden cares more about getting answers and actual results rather than tip-toeing around Asta's feelings.
Alden thought to himself as he silently observe Asta next to him, legs swinging midair even though there was no edge to swing from. Thankfully once again with a blindfold on.
Refocusing, Alden quickly reached down to examine his body.
His body has already forced itself to forget the trauma it has just gone through, and Alden is instead currently feeling very refreshed. He was actually feeling stronger, livelier, and to his mild disgust, wanderlust and yearning for adventure. Alden wasn't sure if these changes were real and tangible, or if it was just his mind subconsciously comparing this current state to when he was being tortured. Other than that, the occasional fleeting whisper is annoying, but it's manageable.
After making sure everything was alright, Alden then finally turned his attention toward the familiar blue screens floating next to him. It was familiar not because he had experienced it, but because he had seen it too many times to not know what it was.
[ Installing the system: 17% ]
[ Collecting information: 0% ]
[ Please be on stand-by... ]
"Figures," Alden muttered, staring at the window. "Not even the divine skips loading bars."