Chapter 351
Chapter 351: How About Living in My Body? (1)
“Looks like you’re back to your senses.”
Ghislaine smiled as she retracted her fist. Now that Edwin’s mind was completely restored, it was time to resolve this through conversation.
Indeed, Edwin’s face was different from before. The demonic aura had vanished, and his eyes had returned to their original color.
“Wha-what are you! You demon! Let me go now!”
Edwin trembled, his face filled with terror. The comfortable environment he had known was suddenly transformed into hell.
Since merging with the evil spirit, he hadn’t felt any pain. Even being chained for a year wouldn’t have bothered him.
But to feel such agony from just a few punches; his opponent was undoubtedly a demon.
Ghislaine clicked her tongue and approached Edwin.
“Are you going to keep living with that guy? Or would you rather hold off for a few more days?”
At that, Edwin shook his head violently, fear etched on his face.
No matter how loudly he screamed, no one came to his aid. He couldn’t continue living like this.
Feeling this kind of pain made him think it might be better to just listen to his father’s advice and study hard.
Ghislaine nodded, a satisfied smile on her face.
“Hey, are you listening? How about coming out of this body now? Or should we wait a few more days?”
Edwin’s pupils darkened again. It seemed like they were truly sharing control over the body.
Of course, both sides were equally frightened. The evil spirit spoke with trembling eyes.
“Grr… I-I can’t get out.”
“Why not?”
“If I leave this body, I will die. I’m living off this body’s life force as a parasite. If I can’t enter another body, I will slowly fade away over time.”
“Oh, so coming out means death?”
“Y-yes. Just let me stay in this body. Then, I promise to behave. The body’s owner has calmed down considerably.”
The evil spirit willingly admitted his situation and offered a compromise, appealing to feelings.
Ghislaine nodded thoughtfully.
“Hmm, I see.”
“Re-really?”
“That does exist. How about I make a proposal?”
“A p-proposal?”
“Yes. You can’t stay in that body forever. So instead, I’ll provide you with a place to stay.”
“What body?”
Ghislaine smiled widely, looking into the eyes of the evil spirit.
“How about living in my body?”
The evil spirit paused, and Arel, who was watching from the side, was also shocked.
He couldn’t understand why she would allow such a demon to reside within her. If Ghislaine were to get her mind consumed by the demon, their territory would be doomed.
Arel tried to persuade her, but Ghislaine waved her hand dismissively and continued.
“I’ll make a space for you in my body. Since you need mana and life force to live anyway, I can provide the mana.”
“How…?”
The evil spirit looked at Ghislaine with wide eyes.
His words were not wrong at all. He had no choice but to parasite in someone’s body to obtain mana.
Every human carries a bit of mana. Living, breathing, eating, and drinking since birth, a small amount builds up in the body.
Ordinary people cannot utilize mana, and even if they can, it hardly accumulates to a meaningful extent in daily life.
However, Edwin, as the heir to a count family, was learning the Mana Circulation Method. While his level was basic, it was far more comfortable than the bodies of the commoners he had previously resided in.
His abilities combined with Edwin’s mana allowed him to emit demonic energy.
‘That guy seems way stronger than Edwin. If I could just take over that body…’
Perhaps this was a new opportunity.
It wasn’t easy to enter someone else’s body. Only individuals with weak and drained willpower could barely manage it.
But if the body’s owner willingly gave up control, it could be done easily.
The entry was the real issue; once inside, manipulating emotions and memories to dominate was not difficult.
“I know well what tricks you’re trying to pull, and you think I’ll just comply.”
“Trust me. If anything feels off, we can switch back to Edwin’s body right away.”
“…….”
The evil spirit contemplated for a long time. It was uncertain, but if successful, it could truly obtain a proper body.
‘Is it really possible that this guy wants to save Edwin? Does he think he can annihilate me if I swap bodies?’
He didn’t know what the guy was thinking, but this was worth a gamble. Once accepted, he wouldn’t be able to control himself.
The stronger the opponent was, the more powerful abilities he could exert.
“Alright… I’ll switch to your body…”
The demonic energy stirred and began to seep out from Edwin’s body. That essence was soon aiming to penetrate Ghislaine’s body.
A strong will was directly conveyed to Ghislaine’s mind.
― Will you accept me?
“I accept.”
Ghislaine didn’t resist the power infiltrating her. She opened herself up, not just physically but also mentally, to the evil spirit.
Little by little, the evil spirit began to merge with Ghislaine. He was extremely cautious, worrying that she might have some clever tricks up her sleeve.
If she tried anything, he’d have to flee right back into Edwin’s body.
But there was no resistance. Once more than half of him entered, the evil spirit engulfed Ghislaine in a single go.
Bam!
All the energy was sucked into Ghislaine. In an instant, Ghislaine’s eyes turned black, and demonic energy began to gush from her body.
Arel, who had been anxiously watching from the side, suddenly stepped back.
“What the…”
The energy emanating from Edwin was on a completely different level. The surroundings were monopolized, making it hard to breathe.
Arel struggled to maintain the tiny amount of mana he had gathered until now. Edwin also started gasping for air.
Laughter echoed from within Ghislaine’s mind, the voice of the evil spirit.
― Hah! This is amazing! Such an incredible body! Such remarkable energy! It’s a body on a completely different level from those commoners!
The evil spirit had always lived by jumping between the minds of the lowest classes. He had never experienced such a body even once.
Of course, this was because the human psyche rarely permitted anyone to dominate it.
It was never easy to seize control of the mind, no matter how sad or despairing the person was. They had to be exceptionally weak or cornered to the point of taking their own life.
But how often do such people exist? Usually, it was only the lowest commoners. Knights wouldn’t even dare to try. Edwin was a splendid meal.
Yet now he was gaining such an extraordinary body! Although he had never parasitized a knight’s body, just looking at the amount of mana confirmed that this body was superior to that of a typical knight.
― Hehehe. Now I’ll evolve this body a step further. Combined with my powers, it will become even stronger.
The weaksauce body of Edwin could still handle emitting demonic energy. That was solely thanks to the evil spirit’s abilities.
He could amplify the powers of the body he occupied several times over. That was how Edwin could exert such tremendous strength even with such poor mana.
― Now, show me all the memories you’ve lived with and the emotions you’ve felt. That is the source of my strength. I will amplify it and turn it into my power. Even if you have forgotten, I’ll pull it back out for you.
The evil spirit’s ability was to transform emotions into strength. Even better, the target wasn’t limited to current emotions.
Everyone experiences intense emotions throughout their lives. Whether it’s anger, fear, sadness, joy, misfortune, or happiness, everyone feels something.
Even those who have become calm as they grew older and gained enlightenment do not lose the fact that they once felt certain emotions. They simply pile layers of time over those emotions, forgetting and laughing them away.
The evil spirit could retrieve those past emotions and turn them into power.
Of course, it wouldn’t fully transform. A vessel capable of receiving that power was necessary.
No matter how trivial or small, a person could feel very intense emotions depending on their personality.
Edwin’s heart was overflowing with despair, but he wasn’t a vessel capable of holding that power completely.
Therefore, he couldn’t exhibit more abilities than simply protecting himself by emitting demonic energy.
Ironically, the deeper and wider a person’s heart, the more they could withstand the tribulations of time and the stronger their abilities became.
― You must have had one or two painful memories in your life, right? Joyful memories too? Now, show me all of that. Your past.
The evil spirit entered Ghislaine’s deep inner world with glee. He began to sneak a peek at her memories, delving beyond consciousness to the subconscious stage.
And according to those memories, the environment of the world began to change.
― Let’s see how amusing your life has been… Huh?
Gwooo…
The evil spirit looked around in confusion.
It was red.
A very barren and red land where a single person stood.
A man whose body was covered in wounds from head to toe. His hair was blonde, but areas of it were stark white.
He was staring blankly at the sky with empty eyes.
Although only his back was visible, this was the realm of the mind. The evil spirit could capture everything in an instant.
― Who…?
The evil spirit murmured in surprise. This was the deep world. No one else could exist here.
He realized that the body’s owner had disguised himself with a beard the moment he entered this body. He immediately recognized the true appearance and name.
But the one standing alone, looking up at the sky in that desolate place, resembled the body’s owner but was not the same as the present self.
It was as if… this body’s owner would become that way if he were to be wounded and grow older.
― Wh-what is this…
While the evil spirit was bewildered, the world began to bleed red. The environment twisted and changed again.
First, it was a childhood memory sent by the body’s owner.
― Now the memory is coming back. What a pathetic guy.
The emotions he bore during his childhood were nothing but inferiority and childish anger.
He was no different from Edwin. No, perhaps a bit worse. Just a resentful and defeated brat soaked in self-pity.
The evil spirit happily absorbed those emotions, mumbling to himself.
― Hmm, but his younger brother died. Must’ve been quite shocking. Did he run away from home?
The memories that followed showed him working hard and living as a mercenary.
Faced with life-threatening situations multiple times and gaining various experiences, his emotions began to change again.
Though there was hardship and frustration, most were good feelings of expectation, positivity, hope, and nostalgia regarding his transformed self.
― It seems he became a decent person after some struggles.
Edwin also changed after getting beaten a few times. Indeed, it seems one needs to experience hardship to gain understanding.
The evil spirit absorbed those emotions as his own again.
And the environment twisted and changed once more. The evil spirit, peering into memories with the body’s owner, furrowed his brow.
― This…
Numerous severed heads hung on the gallows. The body’s owner was kneeling in front of them, wailing.
As soldiers approached, the body’s owner staggered and fled.
The emotions he felt were…
Regret, despair, gloom, sadness, fear.
And…
Rage.
― All his family and friends are dead. What intense emotions! Such feelings will surely empower me further.
The evil spirit absorbed those emotions once again. The more intense the emotions, the greater the fulfillment it provided.
The environment shifted again. The world began to distort.
Rage, regret, rage, regret, rage, regret…
The same emotions endlessly continued. Before those emotions, no other emotion could emerge.
At times, a strong sense of gloom and sadness coexisted. Occasionally, there were small joys, but they were quickly overshadowed and erased by surging rage.
What the evil spirit witnessed was a continuous cycle of pushing himself to his limits.
Creating a pseudonym and hiding his identity. Then he fought and fought again, whether it was monsters or humans.
He established a firm and clear goal and moved solely toward that. He slept not, but repeated battle after battle.
[Must get stronger. I will have my revenge.]
That became the only remaining objective in his life.
― Huh? Huh?
Something felt off. The evil spirit began feeling intense discomfort while stealing glimpses of his world.
Numerous wounds were engraved on the body owner’s face and body. His hair had started turning white in spots.
That was understandable. With such emotions and continually pushing himself to the limit, his body and mind couldn’t possibly remain intact.
While that was reasonable, it didn’t make sense.
― Am I… aging?
The evil spirit felt confused.
In the memories, he had clearly surpassed the age of the current body. Through countless near-death experiences and gaining enlightenment, he had begun to change as a person.
He was thus killing people, training, killing people, training, and step by step moving toward his goals.
Then suddenly, the world twisted, leaped through time, and changed again. The evil spirit tried to control the shifting memories but could not grasp hold of them and was swept away.
― W-what is this world?
At some point, he became stronger than anyone else. That was understandable. After all, he fought and trained so desperately that being weak would have been odd.
Yet the world changed. It was unknown to him. Unfamiliar monsters and beasts ran rampant, and everyone wailed in despair.
The evil spirit had never seen or even heard of such a world before.
What he was currently witnessing were the memories of the past. The fact that he was older than the current body’s owner or that the world had changed made absolutely no sense.
While the evil spirit was bewildered, he kept moving forward without stopping. He had never seen someone who fought so often in his life.
He continuously honed his skills through endless real battles. He built up his influence while capturing monsters and beasts. Many followed and praised him.
At some point, he gained a glorious title. The people of the world revered and worshipped him.
[Seven Strong of the Continent, King of Mercenaries]
That was when he was much older than he was now.
The evil spirit was certain something was wrong with the memories of this body.
