Failed Possession Chapter-11

# Chapter 11

—

He had been forcibly relocated from the rural town of Aldor to the great city of Lutran.

If he spent orphan Yuri’s savings, he could probably afford at least a cheap inn room—but if he did that, Elena would definitely blow up.

‘She looked ridiculously happy.’

She tried to hide it, but Elena’s acting skills couldn’t be called good even as empty flattery. No matter how he thought about it, it seemed he’d have to freeload at Elena’s house for the time being.

It definitely wasn’t because of the clean bathroom and kitchen.

First, what he needed to confirm in this mansion was how much freedom he actually had.

Yuri quickly scanned the living room.

He was wary that there might be surveillance magic or something similar.

He could read the flow of mana. Just as Elena had said, the mansion had basic household magic, including security spells. Simply sensing the mana flow didn’t mean he could identify what kind of magic it was, but first he needed to confirm whether magic existed at all.

Naturally, there was nothing like CCTV in this world.

But that didn’t mean there weren’t spells that could replace it.

Magic here substituted for modern technology.

‘Wait.’

Yuri suddenly paused and turned his head.

The study on the first floor.

There was security magic on that door too, but he had been given permission to enter.

The study was fairly spacious, yet surprisingly there weren’t many books on the shelves—empty spaces were more common. That made sense. Elena hadn’t lived here very long, and truly important books would be at the Magic Tower.

‘She said there were common magic books.’

He pulled out fifteen thick grimoires from the shelf.

<Common Magic Manual, Easy and Fast to Learn 1, by Arsen Lucionel.>
…
<Common Magic Manual, Easy and Fast to Learn 15, by Arsen Lucionel.>

‘So it was that old man who wrote them.’

The Tower Master of the Lucionel Magic Tower.

Arsen Lucionel, known as the Extremity.

Unlike other towers that focused on a single magical lineage, this one specialized in taking “general” magic—the kind anyone could use—and pushing it to the absolute limit, refining and reconstructing it.

Because of that, he had actually been harder to fight in the game than the other tower masters.

If someone specialized in one lineage, you could prepare counters specifically for that.

But against Arsen Lucionel, that was impossible.

An old man who turned the lack of distinctive traits into his strength.

The pinnacle of ordinary magic.

The most versatile and least exploitable tower master of them all.

Thunderbolt Orca Dercia had been level 81.

Arsen Lucionel had been level 87.

‘Do you know how much I suffered trying to beat this old bastard…’

The fifteen volumes he had established.

‘They said a 3rd Circle mage should be able to use most common magic.’

You’re telling me mages memorize all fifteen of these monstrous books? Are they all memory prodigies?

Whether it was truly “easy and fast” was questionable, but Yuri opened one anyway.

<If you have reached the level where you may call yourself a mage, you should aim to perfectly understand and cast every spell compiled in this book.>
<You already know the difference between common magic and the spells of towers or schools. Common magic is literally magic that ‘all’ mages can use.>
<First memorize the formula perfectly, and guide mana as the formula demands…>

He skimmed past the preface.

Thankfully, the table of contents came next.

‘Security… detection… guard…’

He scanned for similar terms.

It wasn’t until volume three that he found it.

<This section deals with basic warding magic. You already understand how important preparation is for a mage. Therefore, you should—>

‘Man, you talk too damn much.’

Even in the game, this guy had endless dialogue.

‘There it is.’

Security spells installed in homes.

Alarm bells for intruders, detection, traps, interception…

‘Observation. Surveillance.’

<There are many kinds of spells that observe those who trespass into an area. While one may use familiars, this book does not cover such tricks and instead focuses purely on common magic—>

‘Get to the damn point.’

Maybe these books were fifteen volumes simply because Arsen never shut up.

‘…Huh…?’

As he stared at the formula, his head suddenly spun.

‘Brain overload? Something I never even felt during exam season?’

No—this was different.

The dizzying, incomprehensible formulas were being forcibly carved into his mind.

His eyes burned, his head throbbed.

‘Understanding.’

A soul from another world.

Specialness.

A blessing.

‘It’s not limited to mana?’

This was completely different from reading cookbooks.

His brain was absorbing the magical formulas on its own.

After staring at them for a long time, Yuri’s legs gave out and he slumped down onto the floor.

‘Not easy.’

The mental fatigue was no joke.

‘Still lives up to the title.’

Arsen had attached explanations to every complex formula.

Combined with a possessor’s blessing, the effect was absurd.

Yuri took a deep breath and stood back up.

‘Casting it right away is impossible.’

What he just did was closer to sensory memorization than true understanding.

To actually cast it, he’d have to study and practice more.

He returned the books to the shelf.

When he stepped back into the living room, the scenery looked different.

The vague formulas he couldn’t identify before now felt faintly comprehensible.

‘If someone enters the mansion without permission, the magic activates immediately.’

Then he didn’t need to worry about surveillance or observation spells.

Of course, that didn’t mean he planned to do anything suspicious in the middle of the living room.

He went upstairs.

The assigned room and the storage room had no magic on their doors.

He opened the storage room—there wasn’t much clutter. Just unused furniture and tools neatly arranged.

“Germaphobe or something?”

He remembered the pristine white dress Elena had worn when she came to Aldor.

Shaking his head, Yuri entered his room.

‘Observation… surveillance…’

Even with his still-aching eyes, he checked carefully.

No such magic.

‘Well, they wouldn’t put security magic on an unused room.’

Once he confirmed that, the tension drained away.

He stood alone in the empty room and let out a silly laugh.

‘At least this room’s safe.’

Just in case, he closed the curtains.

Then he collapsed to the floor.

His head throbbed, his eyes ached.

He wanted nothing more than to lie down and sleep.

But he couldn’t.

The Veil of Deception perfectly concealed the existence of his internal energy from the outside—even during breathing exercises.

Still, during the entire week in the carriage with Elena, he hadn’t practiced once.

After doing it every single day for a month in Aldor, skipping a whole week left his body feeling stifled.

‘Veil of Deception, okay.’

He rubbed his neck. No sense of discomfort.

It was still hidden there.

Elena and Haryeong hadn’t noticed his internal energy at all.

‘It was a rare item even in the game.’

Impossible to obtain before late game, and even then with a low drop rate.

The fact that Lorellia and the Order Church had gifted it to him clearly meant they treated him specially.

Yuri steadied his breathing and began circulating his energy.

As the **Evil-Quelling Heavenly Principle Technique** operated, the internal energy in his dantian stirred.

Thanks to practicing every day for a month, it had grown considerably.

At first it had been the size of a fingernail.

Now it felt roughly the size of a fist.

‘Be grateful, Lee Su-hyeok. I, Lorellia, have never taught this technique to anyone else. This martial art belongs to me alone.’

‘Like most mental cultivation methods, simply increasing internal energy won’t raise your realm. Don’t stupidly focus only on growing energy—meditate diligently and pursue enlightenment.’

What the hell is enlightenment?

‘If someone could perfectly explain enlightenment, they’d be a Martial God. I’m not one, so I can’t explain it!’

How am I supposed to pursue something I don’t even understand?

‘Breathing exercises aren’t just sitting and absorbing energy! It’s about filling ignorance, contemplating what you’ve filled, understanding it, and adding to it! If you do that, you naturally realize what you didn’t know—something new that completes you. That’s enlightenment!’

…Didn’t you just explain it?

‘I really didn’t want to do this, but since you keep being cheeky, I’ll start punching every time you talk nonsense.’

I was just asking…

‘Everyone’s enlightenment is different!’

Lorellia, the priestess of Order who taught him the technique.

He had learned many things from her besides martial arts.

Why he was transmigrated.
Precautions.
How to fight…

‘What Circle is Lorellia?’

Judging by how she talked, it definitely wasn’t low.

He had asked before, but never got an answer.

‘My Circle is secret. But if you diligently train the Evil-Quelling Heavenly Principle Technique and steadily accumulate enlightenment, you’ll reach a very high Circle.’

Circles weren’t assigned by others.

You determined them yourself.

For mages:

Being acknowledged as a proper mage — 2nd Circle.
Mastering all common magic — 3rd Circle.
Being able to combine multiple spells and compress formulas — 4th Circle…

For martial artists, accumulating internal energy in the dantian and surpassing the limits of the physical body through it meant the 2nd Circle.
Being able to emit internal energy outside the body rather than confining it within meant the 3rd Circle.
Being able to grant attributes to that emitted energy meant the 4th Circle.

‘So I’m barely 2nd Circle?’

He had accumulated internal energy in his dantian, and he could strengthen his body with it.

But it didn’t feel satisfying.

He still needed much more training…

Amid those tangled thoughts, his consciousness slowly sank.

The incantations of the **Evil-Quelling Heavenly Principle Technique** he had heard enough times to bleed from the ears, the various spells he had skimmed in the common magic manuals, and the warding magic he had actually read properly—all mixed together and drifted through his mind.

‘Halt!’

From far away, in the depths of his fading consciousness, he heard Lorellia’s shout.

Memories of being beaten under the guise of “training” by Lorellia in the waiting room before possession tangled together with his thoughts.

—He opened his eyes.

Startled, he pulled back the curtains.

The sun was still up.

Looking at the clock, two hours had passed.

His head no longer throbbed. His eyes didn’t ache anymore either.

He had only practiced breathing exercises and meditated for two hours, yet his body felt as refreshed as if he’d slept deeply all day.

“Tss…”

He wondered where the stench was coming from.

His body was drenched in sweat.

Not just normal sweat either—like the first time he practiced in Aldor, it was black and yellow.

The impurities clogged in his meridians had been expelled again.

“Shit.”

The problem was that this wasn’t Aldor.

Thankfully, the floor wasn’t dirty.

Yuri immediately jumped up, opened the window to air out the room, and grabbed the spare clothes he’d tossed in the corner.

At first he panicked, but it wasn’t really something to be flustered over.

Elena hadn’t come back yet.

Dirty clothes could be washed. He could wash himself. And he had plenty of excuses.

‘Something splashed on me while cooking.’

Elena would probably just scold him for washing clothes she told him to throw away.

That’d be the end of it.

“Wow…”

Ssshhh—

Hot water.

Actual hot water came out of the second-floor bathroom.

After a month of washing with freezing well water, the steaming hot water almost made his eyes mist up with emotion.

There weren’t just bars of soap either—there were proper bath products, and even fluffy towels.

“Thank you.”

He muttered his thanks to Elena, who was probably at the Magic Tower, and picked up the showerhead.

—Ding-dong.

After showering, washing his clothes, and hanging them on the garden line, the doorbell rang.

‘What?’

It wouldn’t be Elena—there was no reason for the homeowner to ring the bell.

Haryeong?

‘Didn’t she say tomorrow morning?’

That thought made him hesitate on the way to the gate.

—Ding-dong.

The bell rang again.

Yuri stood still, silently staring at the gate.

“Anyone there?”

A voice came from the other side.

“I can sense someone. Who are you, standing there without answering?”

A man’s voice.

Ding-dong.

The bell rang again.

“A thief? No, that can’t be. Haryeong, is that you?”

If he stayed silent, maybe the guy would leave.

Ding-dong.

Judging by the repeated ringing, he didn’t seem inclined to go away.

“Answer me. Are you Haryeong? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Ding-dong, ding-dong.

‘She said no one would come…’

“Pretending no one’s home is useless. I can sense your presence. What are you hiding? You don’t sound like Haryeong. I don’t know who you are, but if you keep this up, I won’t just stand by.”

“Who are you?”

He didn’t know what the guy meant by not standing by, but Yuri didn’t want to complicate things.

“A man?”

The voice sounded startled.

“Who are you? Why is a man inside?”

“I’m a guest of the homeowner.”

“A guest…? Call Lady Elena. I want to hear it from her directly.”

“Elena isn’t home right now.”

“She’s not? Then why are you inside?”

“She left me here when she went out.”

“Just… just open the door. We should at least see each other when exchanging names.”

The man stammered.

Ding-dong, ding-dong.

“Why aren’t you opening it?”

“I don’t know who you are, and this isn’t even my house. Why should I trust you and open the door?”

“I… am Jin of the Namgung Clan. I swear on my family’s honor that I’m not suspicious. And this is the residence of Elena, the favored child of the Dercia Magic Tower, the Golden Marigold. If I were suspicious, would I come here in broad daylight, give my name, and ask you to open the door?”

Yuri let out a long sigh.

“I understand what you’re saying, but Elena isn’t home. Please come back another time.”

“No! For all I know, you may have subdued Lady Elena and are lying. I must see for myself.”

“Do you really think the favored child of the Dercia Magic Tower could be subdued that easily?”

“The fact that you refuse to open the door makes me even more suspicious.”

It didn’t seem like he’d leave no matter what.

Yuri sighed and turned away.

“Elena told me not to open the door to anyone while she’s gone. So if you need something, please wait out there.”

“You’re going to turn away someone from the Namgung Clan at the door?”

“So if you’re from the Namgung Clan, does that mean you get to force your way into a house when the owner isn’t even here?”

“Y-you—”

“Even if you say that, I can’t help it. I’m just doing what I was told.”

Whether the man gave up or waited outside wasn’t Yuri’s concern.

Like he said, he was just following instructions.

“How dare you…!”

As Yuri started heading back toward the house—

“You bastard!”

The shout made him turn around.

A man was standing on top of the wall.

Wearing a dark blue long robe like something out of a Chinese wuxia movie, he glared down at Yuri.

“…!”

The man—Namgung Jin—noticed Yuri’s still-wet hair and his eyes widened.

“You son of a bitch!”

He suddenly leaped down and charged at Yuri.

His hand swung toward Yuri’s face.

‘What the hell—?’

He thought he wouldn’t be able to dodge—

But his body moved on its own.

Tak!

Landing on the ground, Namgung Jin stared at Yuri, dumbfounded.

“You dodged?”

“What, the hell, should I just stand there and get hit?”

After nearly getting punched out of nowhere, there was no way polite words were coming out of Yuri’s mouth.

Beep, beep, beep—

The security magic began blaring in response to an unauthorized intruder.