Failed Possession Chapter-24

## Chapter 24

—

What did she mean, how do I think of Elena?

Yuri didn’t answer immediately and blinked his eyes. He was trying to gauge Orca’s intentions.

It didn’t feel like a random question. Since entering this room, most of the conversation Yuri had with Orca had ultimately been about Elena, and the reason Orca summoned him must also be related to Elena.

‘I see.’

He recalled the conversation he once had with Haryeong around the campfire on the night he first left Aldor. Only the person he was talking to had changed; the subject of the conversation remained the same.

To Orca, Elena was a favored prospective disciple and an adopted daughter to whom she had even given her original surname.

‘I expect that girl will someday become my disciple. I even see her as material for the next Tower Master.’

Elena carried many expectations. Orca currently had three prospective disciples, yet she hadn’t even mentioned Arist. Arist merely clung on because she had reached the 4th Rank at a young age; Orca’s heart wasn’t with her.

And Lacy refused the position of Tower Master. Which meant the only true successor to the next Tower Master was Elena. Yuri’s childhood friend—the orphan—was a far greater figure than he had ever realized.

“I think she’s remarkable.”

Yuri spoke exactly what he felt.

“The reason Elena receives so much of your favor must be not only her innate talent, but also the effort she’s put into the Tower over the past ten years.”

“That’s true.”

Orca nodded with a faint smile.

“But regardless of whether it’s right or wrong, your answer is somewhat different from the answer I was curious about.”

“The question was rather vague.”

“Do you see Elena as a woman?”

“Yes.”

Yuri answered without even a moment of hesitation. Perhaps Orca hadn’t expected such an immediate admission, because her eyes widened.

“Elena isn’t a man, is she?”

“Huh…”

At the added remark, Orca let out an awkward laugh. She slowly shook her head and stepped down from the desk.

“Are you clever or shameless? You really know how to slip away from things.”

“I know what kind of rumors are going around Lutran. Just today there were plenty of mages in the Tower’s first-floor lounge who came out just to see my face.”

Yuri grabbed the teacup floating in midair and frowned.

“They’re nonsense. I’m not Elena’s man, and I’m not some freeloader. You know that better than anyone, Orca-nim.”

“Well…”

Was she serious? Yuri stared at her incredulously.

“Orca-nim. I was living like trash back in my hometown. Elena saved me. If she hadn’t come to find me, would I have been able to take the Azure Heaven Pill and learn proper martial arts like this?”

“That’s hard to say.”

Orca smiled faintly and sat down opposite him.

“Maybe in the past things were different, but the you I’ve seen now is quite a decent guy. You’ve got talent too.”

“I also have shame.”

Yuri replied and took a sip of water.

“I can’t think of Elena as just a simple childhood friend.”

“Then what do you think of her?”

“My benefactor.”

It wasn’t a lie. Yuri genuinely thought so.

“I owe Elena a great deal. How could someone like me see her as a woman?”

Elena was beautiful. That was undeniable. But Yuri owed her too much.

Was that really all?

‘I have some shame.’

Yuri was possessed. Elena cared for him because he was her childhood friend from the same orphanage, but that childhood friend Yuri had died dozens of days ago, stabbed to death.

The one here now was a monster—a possessed being wearing dead Yuri’s skin and imitating him. Every time Elena clung to “childhood friend Yuri” and devoted herself to him, a dark, twisting guilt pooled deep inside Yuri’s heart.

He could now clearly understand why so many possessed ones failed to adapt to reality and chose suicide.

“I understand that you treasure Elena, Orca-nim, but you don’t need to worry. I have no intention of becoming romantically involved with her.”

He reached that conclusion because he feared the ruin that might come someday. For now, Elena didn’t know he was possessed—but if one day she found out? If she thought a possessed creature had pretended to be Yuri and used her, toyed with her feelings?

‘Could I honestly say that would be an unfair misunderstanding?’

No. That’s why he didn’t want to be found out. He was afraid everything they had built would collapse. He didn’t want to face Elena screaming in disgust.

“So you’re not lying.”

After a moment of silence while watching him, Orca finally spoke. She rested both arms on the back of the sofa and stared straight at him.

“But does Elena feel the same way you do?”

“…”

“I understand you think of her as your benefactor and cherish her. But doesn’t Elena want something more than just childhood friends from you?”

“Maybe. But I don’t understand why you’re telling me that.”

Yuri set down the teacup he was still holding.

“Are you asking me to deliberately make her hate me?”

“I’m not that horrible of a person.”

Orca shook her head with a bitter smile.

“Emotions and catalysts change people. Even you said that nearly dying back in your hometown changed your values, didn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“I’ve had something similar. Didn’t Elena’s escort assassin ever tell you about me? Until fifteen years ago, I hated assassins. Especially the Salho Gate.”

“…”

“Like you, I almost died. Fifteen years ago I fell into a trap. The one who saved me was the current Salho Gate Master, the Faceless Killer.”

At that, Yuri couldn’t help looking surprised.

“Is it really okay to tell me that?”

Even Haryeong, an assassin of the Salho Gate, didn’t know this story. Why was Orca telling him?

“Is there any reason I shouldn’t?”

Orca tilted her head instead.

“It’s not some big secret.”

“Haryeong didn’t know about it.”

“Then first ask that assassin whether she ever demanded an answer about it from her Gate Master. It has never been asked.”

That’s the reason? It sounded absurd, but Orca didn’t seem to have any reason to lie.

“Who on earth tried to trap and kill you, Orca-nim?”

That was the real shocking part. The fact that Orca had nearly died fifteen years ago.

“That falls into the category of secrets.”

Orca smiled faintly.

“I’ve never forgotten it, but it’s unpleasant to bring up.”

She didn’t seem willing to tell him now, but Yuri inwardly suspected the one who trapped Orca might have been a possessed person.

Possessed people first began crossing into this world thirty years ago. Fifteen years after possession would’ve been enough time to grow strong, and if they used traps instead of facing her head-on, threatening Orca would’ve been possible.

‘Or maybe someone aligned with the evil god.’

The worst of the possessed—those who killed priests of order, abandoned any hope of returning home, and sided with the God of Chaos.

“Even someone like me, who’s lived several times longer than you or Elena, changed because of a single event. It sounds ridiculous coming from my own mouth, but nearly dying changed me in a rather positive direction. You too, right?”

“Yes.”

“But I’m not sure the changes Elena experiences from now on will all be positive.”

“You think reuniting with me might negatively affect her.”

“Not just Elena. You too.”

Her golden eyes narrowed.

“Elena wants to keep you within reach. But for someone like you, whose potential is just beginning to bloom, the greenhouse she’s built is too peaceful.”

“…”

“It’s the same for Elena. With you by her side, she no longer obsesses over magic like before. She used to lock herself in the Tower’s lab until late at night once she focused. But these days she returns at the same time every day.”

By now Yuri had lived in Elena’s mansion for over a month. Just as he spent similar days repeatedly, Elena did the same. She left at about the same time every day and came back at about the same time.

She ate breakfast with him. Dinner with him.

“I don’t intend to keep relying on Elena forever.”

Yuri let out a short sigh.

“After Bakered-nim’s guidance ends, I plan to leave the mansion.”

There was something he had painfully realized while training the Rantian Flowing Cloud Fist for a month.

He needed real combat. The sensation from when he first became possessed—when he killed the Oh brothers—kept resurfacing. He couldn’t feel that in sparring with Bakered. No matter how much he visualized it in meditation, it didn’t feel real.

It might be possible to achieve growth and advance ranks through training alone. But not in this environment. In Elena’s mansion, by Elena’s side, there were too many things to worry about. He had to hide his inner energy, hide his progress. He couldn’t even train freely.

“Elena might try to stop me, but I’ve already decided.”

He didn’t plan to cut ties completely. Sending letters occasionally to show he was alive would reassure her.

“If you leave, where will you go?”

“You once said you wanted to become an adventurer as a child. Are you planning to become one?”

“I haven’t decided that yet.”

“Then how about joining the Jeongcheon Alliance? I have connections there and with the Adventurer’s Guild. If you want, I’ll arrange it. Consider it a gift from me.”

Orca smiled lightly and rested her chin on her hand.

“You don’t need to feel burdened. Calling you here just to have what’s essentially an interrogation disguised as conversation isn’t something I’m proud of. It’s just meddlesome of me.”

“I’m glad you’re aware.”

“I admit I meddled, but you’ve got quite the nerve to openly criticize the Tower Master of Dercia. Considering your past and your temperament, maybe the Black Dragon Society suits you better than the Jeongcheon Alliance.”

“You have connections with the Black Dragon Society too?”

“Fifteen years ago the one who saved my life was the Faceless Killer of the Salho Gate. Of course I have connections.”

“I don’t want to become an assassin.”

“I don’t want to turn my prospective disciple’s prospective groom into an assassin either.”

“Cough—!”

Yuri spat out the water he was drinking. But the water stopped midair before reaching Orca.

“So you don’t just criticize—you attack too. Impressive initiative.”

“What do you mean prospective groom—!”

“Prospective, so what? It’s true I tried to distance you from Elena, but I have no intention of erasing Elena’s feelings. If you want to live as a human, you’ll need those emotions and bonds too.”

Orca chuckled and flicked her finger. At once, the droplets of water frozen in midair all evaporated and disappeared.

“The Black Dragon Society is an alliance of the underworld, but not everyone there is filthy trash. There are plenty who joined simply because they didn’t like the organization called the Jeongcheon Alliance, or because they found the righteousness, chivalry, and justice it preaches old-fashioned and bothersome.”

“You don’t happen to have ties with the Demonic Cult too, do you?”

“You’re talking real nonsense now.”

Orca let out a hollow laugh and shook her head.

“I wouldn’t say I have none, but I have no intention of sending you there.”

“Why not?”

“The Demonic Cult is a pack of lunatics who aim for the divine rank of the 10th tier and gather because they want to become gods, a religious group that worships the Heavenly Demon—the one closest to that rank—as their leader. To become one of them, you have to be insane enough to prioritize the cult over your own life unconditionally. Do you want to become a madman?”

“No.”

“Then don’t even set foot anywhere the Demonic Cult lurks.”

Orca clearly held a negative view of the Demonic Cult as well.

“If you want to become an adventurer, I can introduce you to a few clans. If you want to join the Jeongcheon Alliance or the Black Dragon Society, I can at least arrange a low-ranking warrior position for you.”

At that, Yuri took a moment to think. In a way, this could be called a job-change quest through Orca. Become a clan-affiliated adventurer, or a warrior of the Jeongcheon Alliance or Black Dragon Society.

Honestly, rather than becoming an adventurer, he felt more drawn to the Jeongcheon Alliance or the Black Dragon Society. Even if only at the bottom, it would be through Orca’s introduction. Depending on his ability, he could someday reach the core of those organizations.

‘And it’d probably be freer than being a sect disciple.’

But whichever he chose, he would remain within Orca’s sight. That was the biggest obstacle. He planned to leave Elena’s mansion to get out of her line of sight, yet if he instead ended up under Orca’s watch, there would only be more things to worry about.

“Thank you for the offer, but…”

“You don’t want it? Why?”

Since she hadn’t expected refusal, Orca looked surprised.

“I lived in Aldor my whole life and only just left it to come to this big city. I haven’t decided what to do after leaving Elena yet, but for now, I want to wander the world a bit.”

“So you don’t intend to settle into any group yet?”

“Yes. And if I joined through your introduction, I wouldn’t even be able to slack off and would have to work hard. If I mess up, it’d just smear mud on your reputation.”

“Hahaha. You’re refusing for my honor’s sake?”

“Yes.”

Yuri nodded with a faint smile.

“If you really want to give me something, please give me something else instead.”

“Something else?”

“Like an elixir or something… don’t you have anything like that?”

“Hahaha!”

Since the conversation began, this was Orca’s loudest laugh yet.

“You’re asking for compensation for me pestering you?”

“Wasn’t that your intention when you tried to arrange a position for me?”

“That’s true. But I didn’t expect you to demand something specific yourself.”

“Last time, when you were teaching Elena because of Namgung Jin, I was there too. Of course, I’m not the Mage of Dercia, so I’ll only covet something appropriate to my station.”

“Hahaha!”

Orca burst into laughter again.

“I like your shamelessness. I like your greed too. Right, if you’re in a position to demand something, you should. I was the one who said it’s a gift and that you shouldn’t feel burdened.”

“Thank you for not getting angry.”

“You’re putting it that way now? If I get angry, I’ll look narrow-minded. Fine, that won’t do. The Tower Master of Dercia is broad-minded.”

Still chuckling, Orca tapped the table with her finger.

“Let’s see. An elixir, an elixir… unfortunately, I don’t have one suitable for you.”

She muttered that and fell into thought for a moment. Yuri didn’t rush her and quietly waited for her lips to open.

“I don’t know whether you’ll ever enter the Dercia Magic Tower someday, but Elena said she wants to teach you magic later. Thinking of that future, it might be good for you to learn this.”

Orca’s contemplation ended. Her long finger sliced vertically through the air, and the space split open like a zipper. She reached inside and pulled out a book.

“This should suit your level. I won’t take no for an answer, so accept it.”

Yuri quickly reached out and received the book with both hands.

[**Purple Lightning Thunder Flash Art **]

“It’s a lightning-energy martial art that ranks among the pinnacle tier. It’ll be difficult to learn right away, but once you reach the 4th Rank and can imbue attributes into your inner energy, try integrating it.”

“Why do you even have a martial art like this?”

“The Dercia Magic Tower is the ivory tower of lightning magic. Martial arts and magic follow different paths, but when it comes to handling lightning energy, there’s plenty martial arts can offer as reference.”

Orca grinned and raised a finger.

—Crackle!

Purple electricity crackled around it.

“As the name suggests, that martial art manifests lightning energy as violet lightning. The Purple Lightning Thunder Flash Art was one of the materials I referenced when creating my unique magic. I no longer need it, so you take it.”

Yuri swallowed hard. He had already experienced at the Le-Seun auction house how expensive a pinnacle-tier martial art could be. And this one was so high-level that Orca had even used it as reference for her unique magic.

As Orca said, it would be hard to learn immediately. Martial arts that fix attributes to inner energy from low ranks require mana affinity and understanding more than martial talent.

In other words, it wasn’t much of a problem for Yuri.

A 4th Rank martial artist can naturally change the attribute of their inner energy—adding heat or cold deliberately, or maximizing cutting force into sword energy. That’s the qualification of the 4th Rank.

But merely altering attributes within an existing art and learning a completely different attribute-based martial art were different in power and depth. Even if Yuri mixed lightning into the Rantian Flowing Cloud Fist at the 4th Rank, he would certainly lose against a true lightning martial art.

“Thank you.”

Suppressing the urge to open it immediately, he tucked the manual into his chest. Seeing that, Orca giggled and withdrew the electricity.

“If you learn that in advance, it’ll help later when Elena teaches you lightning magic—”

Orca suddenly stopped speaking and blinked a few times. She tilted her head, then closed her eyes and focused on something.

“Orca-nim?”

Yuri called out, startled, but there was no reply. About a minute passed. Orca clicked her tongue and opened her eyes.

“That crazy bastard really came.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Chuk Shin-do Full Moon Play has arrived.”

Orca’s face twisted. With a sharp wave of her hand, space opened again—this time revealing a different scene.

Thud, thud, thud…

The scene showed outside the gates of Lutran, where Yuri had passed through by carriage a month ago.

A bronze-skinned man was kicking a metallic sphere around with both feet, juggling it as he walked through the sky. Not stopping there, he popped it up to his head and headed it. Then he bounced it several times in place and flicked it behind his head.

He tapped it once with his heel, brought it back with his instep, bounced it several times—

Boom!

With a powerful kick, the metal sphere shot forward. It hurtled fiercely toward the center of the wide-open gate.

“Gah…”

At that speed, if it hit a person, they’d explode; if it hit a building, it would collapse instantly. Yet the sphere abruptly stopped just past the gate and returned to the man.

The man looked extremely satisfied, raised both arms above his head, and forcefully brought them down.

[Hoo.]

A low voice echoed in the room.

The real madman had arrived.

“W-what is he doing…?”

Yuri stammered. Orca, her face twisted like she’d bitten something foul, stood up.

“I don’t know.”

“…”
“But after kicking Demon-Guiding Orb sometimes that lunatic does things like that.”

“Pardon?”

“That’s the name of that iron ball. Chuk Shin-do’s personal weapon. He’s smashed the heads of many Demonic Cult leaders with it. That’s why, even though he’s possessed, the Jeongcheon Alliance treats him like an honored guest.”

Putting on the vest she had taken off, Orca glared at the scene. Chuk Shin-do was still performing tricks with Demon-Guiding Orb as he slowly walked through the air over the city walls.

“Our conversation ends here. I have to go greet that lunatic.”

“Y-yes…”

Yuri awkwardly stood up as well.

‘How the hell has he survived this long?’

Watching that guy, Yuri even started wondering whether he himself was the strange one for desperately trying to hide the fact that he was possessed.

—