Failed Possession Chapter-46

## Chapter 46

—

Naturally, he couldn’t sleep.

Couldn’t they have parted in some other way?
That thought circled in his head and then faded.

Regardless of what Yuri thought, the one who declared the end of their relationship was Elena.

It was true that Yuri wasn’t Yuri.
It was true that everything had begun with a lie and continued with lies.

It was only natural that Elena would feel betrayed by that, and Yuri had no room for excuses.

So it simply ended like that.

Yuri wanted to cling to this relationship—twisted from its very foundation—and hold onto it, but he couldn’t bring himself to.

“…”

What should he do now?

He couldn’t return to Lutran.

Fortunately, there was nothing back there he absolutely had to retrieve.
Clothes and daily necessities had already been packed into his backpack for the journey, and he had taken all his martial manuals with him.

The only things left in the room where he’d lived for half a year were…

the letters he’d exchanged with Elena back in Aldor.
And the diary.

“Ah.”

The moment he thought of the diary, Yuri sprang up.

There wasn’t anything particularly important written in it.
It only contained the negative emotions the dead Yuri had felt.

Among them was even inferiority toward Elena.

Inferiority toward Elena, who had been acknowledged by Heavenly Thunder Orca and favored as a mage of the Magic Tower.

Whenever a letter from her arrived, the dead Yuri would pour the inferiority and other emotions he couldn’t include in his replies into that diary.

Honestly, it wasn’t something he wanted Elena to see.

But going back to ask her to burn it would be ridiculous, and Yuri had no right to ask that of her now.

Whatever its contents, it was something the real Yuri had left behind.
A keepsake of Elena’s true childhood friend.

“…Sigh.”

Letting out a deep sigh, Yuri lay back down.

If he could, he’d sneak into the estate and retrieve it himself…

but he had no confidence in infiltrating a place protected by countless spells.
And if he got caught, he felt like Elena would truly come to despise him.

‘She’ll handle it somehow.’

It bothered him, and he worried about Elena, but what mattered more right now was his own situation.

‘Heavenly Demon Divine Art…’

The murmur the Blood Fiend Ghost had left behind before dying.

He didn’t know whether Haryeong truly hadn’t heard it, but the name “Heavenly Demon Divine Art” confused him deeply.

First of all, that skill didn’t exist in the game.

Because once you killed the final boss, the Heavenly Demon, the game stopped progressing.
If you killed the Heavenly Demon, your character was deleted and you were sent back to the title screen.

Nor was there any other route to obtain something called Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

Even killing Demonic Cult–related NPCs, grinding fields, or clearing quests wouldn’t give it to you.

Maybe there had been some undiscovered event…

but honestly, the chances were extremely slim.

‘If it’s Heavenly Demon Divine Art, then it must be the Heavenly Demon’s martial art.’

But Yuri had never even met the Heavenly Demon.

The art he had learned was **Evil-Quelling Heavenly Principle Technique**, and the one who taught it to him was Lorellia, the Order’s priest known as the Calamity Star.

‘Could Lorellia be the Heavenly Demon…?’

No way.

The Heavenly Demon was one of the most famous of the Supreme Masters.
Everyone knew he was a man.

And among the Supreme Masters, the Heavenly Demon and the Calamity Star were clearly separate individuals.

‘Then Lorellia must be connected to the Heavenly Demon somehow… maybe from the Demonic Cult?’

He had already suspected Evil-Quelling Heavenly Principle Technique was a demonic art, but he had never imagined it might be Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

‘Still… it’s not like just anyone would recognize it.’

The Blood Fiend Ghost had been one of the Demonic Cult’s Seven Evils ten years ago.

Even that old monster only recognized Yuri’s energy at the very moment his chest exploded from Blazing Burst Fist.

Still, he couldn’t relax completely.

From now on, he should only use Blazing Burst Fist when absolutely necessary.

In the first place, it wasn’t something to use often.
It consumed too much internal energy, and if it failed, he’d be the one in danger.

No matter how he thought about it, the fight with the Blood Fiend Ghost…

he’d just been lucky.

“…”

Yuri stared blankly out the window.

What should he do now?

The thought came again.

Maybe he should go to the Demonic Cult instead.
Since he’d learned Heavenly Demon Divine Art, wouldn’t they treat him pretty well?

‘No way.’

He didn’t even know Lorellia’s exact relationship with the Heavenly Demon.
More likely, he’d just be kicked aside as an outsider.

Besides, in the Demonic Cult, strength was law.

Even if he had Heavenly Demon Divine Art, that didn’t mean he’d be treated well.

More likely, there would be plenty like the Blood Fiend Ghost trying to capture him alive and rip the martial art out of him.

‘Orthodox Heaven Alliance… Black Dragon Society…’

Joining the Orthodox Heaven Alliance after learning Heavenly Demon Divine Art would basically be suicide.

If he had to choose, the Black Dragon Society was more appealing—

but picking one sect out of hundreds of unorthodox factions was difficult in itself.

And he didn’t necessarily have to join a sect.

At the center of the Dark Lands stood the Black Dragon Society’s fortress.
If you were strong enough, you could enter anytime.

‘Fourth rank…’

Considering his age, that was extremely high.

If he went now, they’d probably treat him well as a rising talent.

But his heart wasn’t drawn to it.

No matter what, the Black Dragon Society was unknown territory to him.

And Yuri was still just a nobody.

Then a more fundamental question arose.

‘How strong am I, really?’

He had killed the Blood Fiend Ghost.

Strictly speaking, not alone—and the old man hadn’t been in perfect condition and had been careless. You could call it luck.

Even so, objectively speaking, Yuri was strong.

Though only Fourth Rank, he could use aura, and against fighters of the same rank, he’d easily gain the upper hand.

‘But is that really true?’

What Yuri lacked most was experience.

As dawn deepened, Yuri finally reached a conclusion.

He would become a wandering martial artist.

He didn’t know for how long, but he would become a drifter with no affiliations.

For someone not born in this world and with nowhere to return to, it felt fitting.

Like most wanderers, he would travel the world first.

Experience would accumulate naturally that way.

Like Fist Wolf, who never became his master, he could go around challenging others to duels.

Gain experience.
Grow stronger.

And then—

kill the Evil God, the root of everything.

Return this chaotic world to how it once was.

Awaken the Goddess of Order, who had fallen into a long slumber.

They said if you killed the Evil God, the Goddess of Order would grant one wish.

He had never thought concretely about a wish before, but after everything that happened, he could vaguely see its shape.

‘Something good for me… and good for everyone.’

He couldn’t just wish, “Bring the dead Yuri back to life.”

If he did, wouldn’t Lee Su-hyeok—living in this body now—disappear instead?

What about reincarnating Yuri?
Wouldn’t that make everyone happy?

‘But… the age…?’

If Yuri were reincarnated too late, Elena would already be an old woman.

Maybe there was another way besides reincarnation…

With those thoughts continuing, he forced himself to chase sleep that never came.

When he opened his eyes, it was morning.

He waited for a while, but no one came to the room.

He went down to the first floor and ate a simple breakfast.

When he paid and asked, he was told—

Elena and Haryeong had already left the inn last night.

“Guess that’s just like you.”

Once Elena makes up her mind, she moves quickly.

Murmuring with a bitter smile, Yuri finished preparing to leave.

There was no way his wrist would heal after just one night’s sleep.
He could stay in this village a few more days and wait for his injuries to recover—but he didn’t want to.

He was only pretending to ignore it.
Idly wasting time here was painful for him as well. He hadn’t even stayed long, yet being here brought up too many memories.

Elena acting as if she’d been here before, swaggering about despite it being her first time.
Haryeong speaking nonsense jokes in the most serious tone imaginable.

The people no longer by his side kept coming to mind, and he didn’t want to remain in this village.

The Adventurer’s Guild bracelet he hadn’t yet returned was still on his wrist.
He couldn’t take it with him, so after finishing his preparations, he visited the guild.

“There’s something your companion who left earlier asked us to give you.”

He was stopped by the receptionist just as he was about to leave after receiving his reward.

“…”

What he was handed was a small bag worn at the waist.
A magic bag smaller in size yet with more storage space than Yuri’s large backpack.

It was the bag Elena had worn beneath her robe.

After hesitating, Yuri accepted it.

He sat in an empty chair and opened the bag.

There was no letter, but various items were inside.
Bandages for wrapping wounds, different kinds of medicine.
Quite a large sum of money.
And a single book.

The first thing that caught his eye was ointment for burns.
Then—

the book.

It was the one Elena had always carried and written in during their journey to Lagos.

With trembling hands, Yuri opened it.

<Heinderga Spell Formulas.>

The moment he saw the title written on the first page, Yuri bit his lip and forced his emotions down.

Inside were the three original spell formulas Elena had submitted during the second quarterly evaluations at the Dercia Magic Tower.

1. Lightning Chain.
2. Explosive Thunder Sphere.
3. Flashing Lightning Pierce.

A few days ago, when they first entered Lagos and hunted monsters—

She had electrocuted every monster that appeared around them, then brushed her static-frazzled hair and boasted in that voice.

‘It’s called Lightning Chain. What do you think?’

Staring down at the book for a long while, Yuri murmured weakly,

“You could’ve at least resented me more.”

The kindness she had left behind until the very end made his chest feel unbearably heavy.

—

—

 

“You could’ve stayed a few more days.”

Seated on the coachman’s seat, Haryeong glanced back as she spoke.

As expected, no answer came.

It had been like that since yesterday.

Elena had declared in the middle of the night that they would leave the village, and forcibly dragged Haryeong into the driver’s seat.

Haryeong had grumbled several times that this was unfair treatment, but Elena had kept her mouth shut the entire time.

Before leaving, Elena had left her usual backpack at the Adventurer’s Guild.

Haryeong didn’t know exactly what was inside—but she didn’t need to look to know.

Yuri. Things meant for that possessor.

‘If you’re going to waver like this, why cut him off?’

Get angry.
Shout.
Push him away.

She thought it, but didn’t say it aloud.

Though she kept grumbling, Haryeong was worried about Elena.

Originally, once they returned to Lutran, she should terminate the escort contract immediately.

Not because she disliked having unexpectedly risked her life.

Haryeong had signed the contract as an escort.
That meant she had an obligation to protect Elena under any circumstances.

But this time, she hadn’t protected her.

The outcome had been good—but even that outcome wouldn’t have been reached without Yuri.

Termination of contract due to the escort’s lack of ability.
That would be proper.

But it didn’t feel right.

Leaving this dangerously unstable young lady alone right now—

she didn’t know what might happen.

‘If my escort target commits suicide, the reputation of the Salho Gate would suffer.’

Surely it wouldn’t go that far—but you never know.

Haryeong pulled out White fang at her waist and examined it idly.

‘We both just need time.’

There’s a saying: after rain, the ground hardens.

Whether it would truly harden or simply become a swamp—she didn’t know.

But Haryeong hoped it would harden.

When they met again someday—

she hoped that possessor would be stronger and more solid than he had been yesterday.

‘A possessor…’

Yuri.

Even Haryeong had never imagined he would be one.

She didn’t know the old Yuri, so her basis for judgment was lacking.

But at least the “Yuri” she had seen didn’t display the typical traits of a possessor.

‘Talent for mana. That’s not something you can hide even if you try…’

Yet Yuri had succeeded in hiding it.

Judging by the internal energy he displayed in yesterday’s fight, he had clearly been concealing it from the beginning.

That level of internal energy was not something you could build up simply by consuming the Azure Heaven Pill.

‘He didn’t just fool me. He fooled everyone. How?’

Even deceiving Fist Wolf of the Sixth Rank, and Heavenly Thunder and Full-Moon Play—who were surely Seventh Rank or above.

She didn’t know how he did it—but she found it impressive.

‘Heavenly Thunder…’

She thought of the Tower Master of Dercia.

It had been Heavenly Thunder who first grabbed Yuri’s wrist and confirmed he had no internal energy and no related aptitude.

Later, she had summoned Yuri separately for an interview.

Had Heavenly Thunder truly not known he was a possessor?

At least suspected?

Elena had become less blindly devoted to magic since Yuri came to the estate.

Perhaps Heavenly Thunder had sensed that and summoned him.

After that interview, Elena had focused on magic again.

With this incident, the greatest variable in the growth of the young mage “Elena Heinderga” had completely disappeared.

Because of that absence, Elena was now in turmoil.

Where would those tangled emotions turn?

Toward Yuri, the possessor?
Toward her own helplessness?
Toward the Evil God who brought possessors into this world?

Few catalysts are as powerful as emotion when it comes to obsession.

Heavenly Thunder, who had lived decades as a mage, would skillfully guide the direction of the young mage’s outpouring emotions.

‘Perhaps Heavenly Thunder is pleased with her current state.’

What Elena needed now was a goal that would prevent her from being swallowed by emotion.

‘But how in the world did he deceive Heavenly Thunder’s eyes? Is that the spiritual ability of Heavenly Demon Divine Art? Nothing is known about that martial art…’

Yesterday, Haryeong had lied to Yuri.

She had heard the Blood Fiend Ghost’s dying murmur.

She felt no guilt for lying.

After all, the one who had lied repeatedly first was Yuri—the possessor.

She had no intention of telling anyone about Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

In that sense, it was a very moral lie.

“…Hm.”

White fang trembled faintly in her hand.

So he was moving now.

A mischievous curve appeared on her otherwise expressionless face.

—