Hopeless Possession
Chapter 3 - Yuri (Revised)

Chapter 3: Yuri (Revised)

TL: Pai_

“The body trained to the extreme is superior to any weapon. Weapons are for cowards who lack the courage to throw their own bodies into the line of death.”

“But a sword is stronger than a fist, isn’t it?”

“That’s a prejudice. A trained fist can even break a sword!”

“But a sword can cut a fist without being trained, can’t it…?”

“Before you get cut by the sword, just hit the swordsman!”

Lorelia seemed adamant about her own theory. She stared at Lee Soo-hyuk with a stubborn expression.

“Of course, it might be a bit easier to enhance killing power by training weapons rather than training your body. But! Eventually, when one reaches a certain realm, a person who has only trained their body is physically superior to someone who has trained both their weapon and body. And since mana ultimately comes from one’s own body, regardless of reaching states like Becoming one with Sword or Becoming one with Weapon, directly harnessing it on one’s body is the most natural, correct, and strongest way!”

Her rapid-fire words carried an unyielding will that brooked no contradiction. Lee Soo-hyuk, who didn’t know much about mana or becoming one with the sword, could only nod his head.

“Therefore, I, Lorelia, will not give you any weapons or armor! However, in this ‘special’ training, Lee Soo-hyuk~nim will gain something far more valuable than those things!”

“Fist-fighting techniques?”

“That is also a valuable learning! But usually, in the guidance process, it’s forbidden to teach Possessors such education. There’s no guarantee that the Possessor in charge is always a good person. However, I, Lorelia, trust Lee Soo-hyuk~nim!”

Lorelia spoke with a smile, mixing pride in her voice.

“What Lee Soo-hyuk~nim will gain is my martial arts!”

Martial arts? Lee Soo-hyuk’s eyes widened in surprise.

“This is a privilege that only Lee Soo-hyuk~nim among all Possessors can enjoy. The reason is…”

“Ah.”

Something flashed in his mind.

“Is it because I’m the last Possessor?”

The trap of the Evil God that only brings the top ranker in the Hall of Fame. That meant, ‘in the future’, if the top rank is not updated, no more Possessors would come over.

“The Hall of Fame rank I updated, it will never be broken.”

He was certain. If he hadn’t been certain, he wouldn’t have updated the record in the Hall of Fame. In the high ranks, where the difference was mere fractions of seconds, the record set by the Immune to Insults stood out.

“All the ones who could hit number one have done so, and the Hall of Fame has been frozen for nearly half a year. In a game with no more influx, there’s no chance for the top rank to change.”

“That’s right.”

A bright smile spread across Lorelia’s face.

“Possessors. Some of them try to confront the Evil God to restore order, some adapt to the world and live comfortably, some join the Evil God and disrupt order, and some have died.”

“…”

“I think the Possessors are victims with unfortunate circumstances. But it’s also true that the existence and actions of these Possessors are destroying the order of our world. In that sense, I, Lorelia, on behalf of the slumbering Goddess of Order, want to grant this privilege to Lee Soo-hyuk~nim.”

Lorelia continued, raising two fingers.

“The two things I, Lorelia, will teach Lee Soo-hyuk~nim are internal cultivation techniques and the skill to use fists more ‘powerfully’.”

*

If the 27-year-old Korean, Lee Soo-hyuk, is guilty of anything, it’s only that he played a game diligently and well, a game that others did not play.

He couldn’t think of any other sins.

In a game where online functionality was just a ranking based on clear times, he never caused any disputes within the game.

Players never caused major problems in the community where they gathered. In Lee Soo-hyuk’s opinion, he was a clean and passionate user who could be considered a role model for other players.

How did I end up like this?

I never had any good things happen in my life.

My parents passed away in an accident when I was young, and I lived in the house of a distant relative.

I never properly made friends, let alone had a girlfriend. The only people Lee Soo-hyuk could call friends, with whom he had substantial conversations in his life, were online acquaintances he met in gaming communities. Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ ɴ𝘰vel(ꜰ)ɪre.nᴇt website on G𝘰𝘰gle to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Even if nothing more happens here, I’m already living a miserable and sorrowful life. If there really is a god in this world, they should have offered sympathy for my pitiful state, not heap more misfortune on me.

‘God?’

I never believed in the existence of a god in my life, but now I have no choice but to believe.

Because of that damned being called a god, I’ve been kidnapped to another world.

“Lee Soo-hyuk~nim! You must infuse your fist with sincerity!”

“Lee Soo-hyuk~nim! Just extending it doesn’t make it a punch! A punch is about hitting the opponent! Not just hitting, but hitting painfully! Especially my Lorelia’s Blazing Step Technique aims for a ‘One-Hit Kill’ punch!”

“Pa… Lee Soo-hyuk~nim! How many times do I have to tell you that just extending your fist isn’t a punch? Don’t just swing your fist! Your legs! Your waist! Your back! Your shoulders! Use your whole body!”

“Your feet! Step forward! Twist your body! Pull in the arm that you’re not extending! Be conscious of your shoulders and back!”

“If you only use your fist and body, are you going to keep your internal energy bottled up to make soup later? Blazing Step Technique involves embedding internal energy into the punch!”

“No! Ah… Soo-hyuk~nim! The manifestation and transformation of internal energy come later, if you can’t do it, just don’t! In the beginning, it’s okay to roughly combine the punch with it!”

“That’s right! Just like that!”

I can’t remember how many times I swung my fist. Lorelia, who first appeared gentle and sweet, turned out to be a strict instructor who didn’t overlook even the smallest mistake when it came to teaching violence.

Whenever the corrections weren’t properly made, Lorelia would frustratingly tap her chest, her choice of words becoming rougher, then she would demonstrate herself, and if still not corrected, she would grab Lee Soo-hyuk’s arms and waist to move him herself.

In this great hall, no matter how much you swing your fist, you don’t get tired. Even if Lorelia strikes me down, it doesn’t hurt. I didn’t feel grateful for that. Since it wasn’t tiring, I had to keep doing that nonsense without any break.

How much time has passed? How many times have I swung my fist?

‘Ah.’

The punches I repeated countless times felt completely ‘different’ than before. That punch seemed to be sucked towards Lorelia’s face.

If I hit, she dies. It’s killing a person. My own fist, swinging, somehow seemed slow, and that thought wandered through my mind.

But I didn’t stop the punch. I didn’t want to. This sensation was what I needed.

Thump.

However, that punch was easily blocked by Lorelia’s hand, almost disappointingly so.

“Hmm.”

Our eyes met. Lorelia blinked her red eyes a few times, then smiled broadly and nodded.

“Excellent, Lee Soo-hyuk~nim.”

“Huff…”

Lee Soo-hyuk swallowed his breath and trembled.

I don’t know how much time has passed in this great hall, but after swinging my fist thousands of times, receiving constant criticism and scolding…

Gradually, Lee Soo-hyuk felt an indescribable bond with Lorelia.

Despite being a Priestess with many odd and uncomfortable aspects, everything was ultimately to prevent Lee Soo-hyuk from meeting a miserable end after becoming a Possessor. Hearing the word ‘excellent’ from Lorelia’s mouth made his heart swell.

“Then now…”

—Kwoong.

Before Lorelia could finish speaking, the ground, no, the entire world, seemed to shake as if there was an earthquake. Lee Soo-hyuk was startled and staggered, but Lorelia didn’t move at all.

Her pleased smile vanished. Lorelia twisted her lips with a cold gaze directed at the stark white sky.

“Tsk.”

The short sound of her tongue clicking carried a deep annoyance. After glaring at the sky for a moment, Lorelia looked at Lee Soo-hyuk with a bright smile as if nothing had happened.

“What was that just now?”

“Lee Soo-hyuk~nim!”

Kwoong…! The world shook again, but Lorelia maintained her smile and spoke.

“Regrettably, it’s time to part ways!”

“What?”

Kwoong… The world shook again, more violently than before. Lee Soo-hyuk looked at Lorelia with a stiff face.

Her smile remained unchanged. A refreshing smile as if there was no problem, her eyes softly curved. But Lee Soo-hyuk could instinctively feel it.

Right now, Lorelia is angry. It’s more than just irritation. Is it my imagination? Her eyes seemed to turn even redder.

Kwoong! The world shook again. The frequency was increasing. At the same time, even the view before Lee Soo-hyuk, who was just standing, was shaking violently.

“Ugh…”

Lee Soo-hyuk let out a short groan and slumped to the ground. He tried to get up but couldn’t. His legs wouldn’t support him. Lorelia, unshaken, approached and crouched beside him.

Kwoong!

“Lee Soo-hyuk~nim, are you satisfied with my guidance?”

“…What is this?”

“Hmm, how should I put it…? You don’t need to worry too much. My training went on for too long, and I did something I shouldn’t have done on my own… They are trying to wake me up from outside.”

“Something you shouldn’t have done?”

“Didn’t I say in the beginning? That Lee Soo-hyuk~nim would receive special training! Normally, this kind of special training shouldn’t be given to Possessors.”

“Uh… So, are you alright?”

“Oh my, Lee Soo-hyuk~nim! Are you worried about me, Lorelia? To hear such concern from you, whom I’ve longed to meet, is truly touching!”

Kwoong!

Lorelia giggled, hugging her knees as she crouched down. She gazed at Lee Soo-hyuk with a mischievous smile.

“Don’t worry. It’s really nothing serious. I’ll receive a punishment, but I, Lorelia, am not a weak woman who fears something like a punishment.”

“…”

“Of course, if Lee Soo-hyuk~nim wasn’t my charge, I wouldn’t have prepared myself for a punishment! But let me repeat, it’s not your fault, Lee Soo-hyuk~nim.”

“It sure sounds like you’re blaming me.”

“It’s just a light jest.”

Lorelia playfully stuck out her tongue.

Kwoong!

“So, when will you give me your answer? Lee Soo-hyuk~nim. Were you satisfied with my guidance?”

“…Apart from a few mistakes. I’m not satisfied with the situation of being possessed in the first place, but yes, I’m fortunate that my Priestess is Lorelia.”

Kwoong!

“If you hadn’t included those unnecessary words in the beginning, I, Lorelia, would have been deeply moved.”

Lorelia’s expression changed again. She glanced at Lee Soo-hyuk as if she was in a foul mood.

Kwoong!

“Well, it’s unavoidable that there were mistakes. I was not originally in charge of Possessors. The training I received was insufficient, so the education I provided was also lacking.”

Kwoong!

“But considering it was my first time training, wasn’t it very excellent? I, Lorelia, might have a remarkable talent for training Possessors.”

Kwoong!

Amidst the shaking and crumbling spiritual world of the great hall, Lorelia whispered with a faint smile.

“I hope there’s no need to cultivate this talent.”

A Priestess of Order is responsible for only one Possessor. A Priestess takes on a new Possessor only when the previous one dies.

“Lorelia, you don’t have a talent for teaching, so it’s better not to worry about that.”

Lee Soo-hyuk responded with a wry smile. At that, Lorelia blinked her round eyes a few times and then laughed heartily.

“Naughty Lee Soo-hyuk~nim. You just crushed one of the infinite possibilities of me, Lorelia.”

Lorelia whispered with a lingering smile in her voice, pushing herself up from her knees. She helped Lee Soo-hyuk, who couldn’t stand on his own, to his feet.

I don’t know how long I’ve been here with Lorelia, but even after spending so much time together, I know nothing about her.

Just the letters of the name ‘Lorelia’. A Priestess serving the God of Order. In charge of ‘violence’ in her order.

She was the first person Lee Soo-hyuk met after becoming a Possessor. In this way or that, if Lee Soo-hyuk survives in the world he has possessed into, it’s thanks to meeting Lorelia.

“Can we meet again?”

There was a lingering attachment. He said there was no need to think that way, but Lee Soo-hyuk worried that Lorelia got into trouble because of him. Plus, he had received martial arts directly from her. Although Lorelia might think otherwise, strictly speaking, the relationship between Lorelia and Lee Soo-hyuk could be considered that of a teacher and student.

“Meet again? Hmm…”

Lorelia tilted her head, pondering for a moment. Lee Soo-hyuk felt anxious during this pause. The thumping sound was incessant, the world was crumbling uneasily, his vision was dizzy, and his body was weak. It wouldn’t be strange to wake up at any moment.

“Why are you hesitating? Technically, you are my teacher… or in martial arts terms, my master.”

“Master? Ahahaha!”

Lorelia, startled by the word ‘master’, burst into laughter.

“A master, you say? I dislike such burdensome relationships. I am a Priestess, and Lee Soo-hyuk~nim is just a Possessor. Besides, if Lee Soo-hyuk~nim claims to be my disciple, it would bring various complications. So, please, don’t think like that and just be comfortable around me.”

“Really now.”

“If fate allows, we may meet again someday.”

“Here in this place?”

“No. This space is for the souls of new Possessors, so Lee Soo-hyuk~nim can no longer come here. If we are to reunite…”

Lorelia nodded, her smile still not completely faded.

“In reality. I will reunite with you as ‘Yuri’. Well, if I become interested… I might visit ‘Yuri~nim’.”

“I might visit you too, if Lorelia’s name isn’t an alias.”

“How could the Priestesses serving Order use false names? We Priestesses don’t engage in such clever tricks. That’s why the fallen Possessors who joined the Evil God were able to relentlessly hunt down and kill our brethren.”

Lorelia’s eyes intensely met Lee Soo-hyuk’s for a moment.

“I hope we don’t meet again bearing murderous intentions. I don’t want to kill Lee Soo-hyuk~nim with my own hands.”

“How about visiting just to have a meal?”

“Huhu, it won’t be easy. I, Lorelia, am not an easy woman to meet just because someone wants to.”

Kwoong!

This tremor was the strongest yet. Startled by it, Lee Soo-hyuk, who was standing thanks to Lorelia’s help, flinched.

“Within a month, a gift from me, Lorelia, will arrive at Yuri~nim’s home.”

“What kind of gift?”

“A gift that will be of great help to Yuri~nim.”

Lorelia chuckled. Kurrurung! The stark white ground started to shatter and crumble apart. The moment Lee Soo-hyuk staggered, Lorelia let go of her hold on him without further support.

“I look forward to our reunion, but Yuri~nim, please do not seek out the Order of Order.”

Lorelia whispered to the falling Yuri.

“Then, I wish you a happy and enjoyable life as a Possessor.”

Was she teasing?

He wanted to retort, but he couldn’t. His mouth wouldn’t open, and Lorelia seemed too far away.

He smelled blood.

‘What’s this…?’

He wanted to look around, but his eyes wouldn’t open, and his body wouldn’t move. He felt heavy as if he had just woken up from a light sleep. The terrible smell of blood… Gradually, his senses started to awaken as he smelled it.

One side of his face felt hot. It wasn’t a fever. Something hot and sticky was touching his cheek…

“Hoo…”

His body still wouldn’t move, but breathing slowly started. Something seeped into his slightly parted lips.

‘Blood?’

Something was seeping in through his breath. The taste it left on his tongue. This was blood.

‘What’s going on?’

He forced his foggy mind to focus. The white room. The great hall. The Goddess of Order. Priestess. Lorelia. Seronis. Possession.

Yuri.

—Most Possessors annihilate the existing soul and possess a living body.

But Yuri was different. Possession was inevitable, but Yuri died before ‘Lee Soo-hyuk’ became the Possessor.

Yuri then realized something important.

He hadn’t heard ‘why’ Yuri died.

‘Damn it, Lorelia…!’

Sometimes life is just like that.

Someone unlucky can be struck by lightning on a clear day or die from tripping and cracking their head.

27-year-old orphan Lee Soo-hyuk, dragged to another world and possessed just for playing a crappy game well, was very unlucky. And 20-year-old orphan Yuri, who happened to die from a pierced abdomen on the day he was to be possessed, was also extremely unlucky.

Moreover, the assigned Priestess, originally in charge of ‘violence’, making several mistakes in the guiding process, was also incredibly unlucky.

In short, this was a synergy of three misfortunes. Possessed for playing a crappy game well, the body to be possessed was already dead, and not knowing why it died…!

The only consolation might be that wounds heal at the completion of the possession. Is the current immobility of the body a backlash from the revival of a dead body, or is all possession like this?

The more he focused his thoughts, the clearer his foggy mind became. Lee Soo-hyuk – Yuri continued to breathe, tasting the vivid blood in his mouth.

Thump, thump, thump… The sound of the once-dead heart beating again was incredibly clear.

His eyes opened.

“Fuck.”

The thought burst out of his mouth. Yuri hurriedly sprang up from his place.

Corpses, blood.

The furniture like sofas and tables also bore clear knife marks and bloodstains. As if someone had been eating, the blood-stained table was scattered with broken dishes and food.

It was a scene that would not be surprising to cause panic, but Yuri desperately clung to his sanity. This was not a dream, but reality. He forcefully clenched his trembling hands.

He looked at the face of a nearby corpse. A sallow face with a flat nose. – A sharp pain throbbed in Yuri’s head. He let out a low groan and clutched his head.

Fragmented memories clung together in his mind.

‘Jangsam.’

The name immediately came to mind. The senior who pulled the orphan Yuri from being a mere back-alley thug into an organized group. Memories unknown to Lee Soo-hyuk flooded in.

It was a nauseating feeling. Yuri bit his lip and glared at Jangsam’s face for a moment. The memories that had surfaced continued to unfold.

Where this place was, why he died. Yuri gasped for air and turned his head.

He saw a frame with a snake painted as if swirled with a brush. That was the symbol of the ‘Black Snake Faction’, which Yuri was part of, and this place was their office.

Below that frame, a large man with one arm severed lay collapsed. It was Dekan, the boss. Yuri, who had to grovel daily to bring him coffee and massage his shoulders, was dead with his eyes wide open.

“…”

Yuri continued deep breaths, caressing his abdomen.

The Black Snake Faction controlled a small area in the rural city of Aldor.

As with such organizations, their main business was extorting protection money from merchants. With the money collected, they engaged in loan sharking and gang fights with similar groups in other areas.

This commonplace criminal organization was raided and annihilated today.

“Ah, geez. Boss! I told you, they’re all dead. Why check again after killing them together?”

“Idiot, you never know what will happen in this world. Thought dead, but if some lucky bastard clings to life. Such a guy might later seek revenge, sneaking up in the night with a knife, you know?”

Voices came from outside the office. Startled, Yuri quickly looked around. There were no windows. If he tried to escape, he had to pass through the only door, but the culprits who annihilated the Black Snake Faction were about to enter through that door.

He grabbed a dagger lying nearby and lay flat on the spot where he had been.

Click.

The door opened.

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