My Possession Became a Ghost Story - Chapter 128
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Rico hoped I could remain loyal to Agera with tolerance even after hearing the whole story, but I couldn’t stay calm. Every time I listened to the past events Rico told me, only question marks swirled in my head. No, no, what is this!
When I only heard the fragmentary words that Agera had cast sorcery, I desperately tried to spin a happy circuit thinking that Bishop Marik was behind all this scheming.
Since Hosaquin Duke, who seemed like he’d live his whole life estranged from me, became my ally, I thought Bishop Marik was using tricks to bring down the Duke, but I didn’t know it was just a disaster brought upon himself!
“Lord Agera loved Lady Amaranth very much.”
I know that well too. Suddenly, I recalled the cheerful-faced old man who resembled me. He used to call me Amaranth. How much must he have loved her for an old man with dementia to forget even his own age yet still vividly remember his daughter.
Though we inevitably became estranged because of the Duke, I could tell he secretly cherished his daughter greatly, and underneath that was filled with guilt.
“That love was like an obsession, so Lord Agera crossed the line and became possessed. He tried to summon Lady Amaranth using sorcery.”
What?
He tried to summon a dead person? Isn’t that crazy? Well, to put it crudely, he wasn’t in his right mind… Since he had dementia, he probably couldn’t recognize the dangers of sorcery…
Since Rico said he summoned ‘something’ using sorcery, it seems more like human transmutation than necromancy. This is giving me a headache – Agera attempted human transmutation? No, sorcery is problematic, but human transmutation is truly forbidden!
Is this a story from another world? Anyway, of course, since sorcery itself was an evil act of summoning demons, to others it would all look the same.
“His Grace did not acknowledge what Lord Agera summoned as his daughter.”
He rejects even me, his real granddaughter, so would the Duke really accept something suddenly summoned through sorcery as his daughter? With that fastidious personality, it would be fortunate if he didn’t try to kill it.
“So he tried to kill what was summoned.”
What did I tell you. I knew it. At this point, shouldn’t they give me a degree in Duke analysis?
“But that thing did not die.”
Oh ho. The opponent was formidable. As it became full-blown ‘fantasy!’ with its assertive backstory, I momentarily forgot the seriousness of the situation and became interested. An immortal being – this is just like a novel! Though it is a novel. Rico continued with his explanation.
“That thing didn’t die and continued to survive by splitting. When cut in half, it lived while cut, and the same happened when divided into multiple parts. While pondering ways to eliminate it, the idea came up to grind it so finely that it couldn’t even exist and feed it to animals.”
Rico lifted his head that had been deeply bowed. It was as if asking whether I had some idea. As he said, when he mentioned animals, something immediately came to mind.
“Rats?”
The rats submerged in the aquarium, the rats that spoke human words while looking for Mabuka, the rats that the maid named Nigella supposedly ate. The only animals in the manor are those rats.
Rico quietly, almost imperceptibly, nodded his head. His gesture was filled with reluctance, as if he didn’t want to acknowledge the approaching reality.
“Yes, that’s right. They fed that thing to the rats.”
Goosebumps rose on my body. If until just now it was as interesting as listening to a story told by a bard, now even thinking about that scene gave me chills. I could overlook the killing part. Whether it’s human rights or whatever, it’s not like I haven’t seen people die since I possessed this body, and there’s such a thing as the spirit of the times, so I can understand.
But feeding is different. The fact that what Agera summoned as his ‘daughter’ was merely fed to rats made me nauseous. I held back from spitting out curses.
“But there was something we overlooked. Lord Agera used ‘sorcery,’ and ordinary people cannot resolve it. We thought everything would be settled after feeding it to the rats, but ‘sorcery’ exceeded the range that ordinary people like us could expect.”
Now I could understand how the events I experienced yesterday came about. I suspected it was related to sorcery. But I never imagined the identity of the ‘rats’ would be something like this.
“The rats that ate that thing likewise became that thing.”
So, to summarize, what Agera summoned was a planaria that reproduced by division, and it was also a parasite that devoured hosts like cordyceps fungus with cicada larvae? Judging by how it was looking for Mabuka yesterday and telling people to eat it, it seems to bewitch people into eating it.
Nigella wasn’t a sorcerer but a poor victim who fell for it. The culprit was Agera, whom I thought was the most innocent. I didn’t know the rule that the culprit is the least suspicious person would apply here too. Right, I had forgotten. This place is, after all, a work of fiction, isn’t it?
Sigh… I can’t even laugh, really.
Wasn’t this supposed to be a family regret story? Suddenly the genre changed from romance fantasy to apocalypse?
It’s not like you get infected by being bitten by zombies, but you get infected by eating rats – what kind of setting is this? But this was the reality that befell me.
If I had known the situation was this serious, I wouldn’t have made bold promises to the Duke that I would handle it. What is this – it’s a situation where we need to call an exorcist but Se*ko came instead. At the very least, I’m not even a pest exterminator, just a cat owner.
Rico ignored that my mind was half gone and continued with what he had to say.
“Normally we would have received help from the Temple, but… in the current situation, it’s impossible.”
Rico trailed off. It’s because now we can’t receive help from the Temple. Since the person who attempted sorcery is the Duke’s wife, informing the Temple would be tantamount to inviting the destruction of the entire family.
“If Count Gabriel hadn’t procured holy water for us, the manor would have become a den of those ‘rats’ by now.”
Now I understand why the Duke piled rats in the aquarium. It wasn’t just water but holy water… How much would that amount cost? If he received such payment, pardoning me would have been nothing.
No, that’s not what’s important. Then when I burned the rats to ashes, would those ashes also cause infection if consumed by people? Am I already infected?
After the campfire, while cleaning up the remaining ashes, a lot of ash powder scattered and I think I inhaled some… No wonder Rico kept his distance when we had the campfire yesterday! He was trying to save only himself!
I was about to grab his collar and shake him, but Rico struck first by bowing his head.
“This is the whole story.”
Rico finished his explanation. My life also reached 0.
“Lady Evangeline already showed your qualifications yesterday by disposing of the rats in the aquarium. I beg you like this. Please, Lady, save the Hosaquin Viscount’s family.”
Rico bowed his head very deeply. He looked ready to prostrate himself. I couldn’t bring myself to tell Rico to get up and just stared at the top of his head. Really infuriating. It was even more infuriating that he was going to tell this story in front of Mabuka.
Don’t tell heavy stories in front of children! I wanted to call him Rico the Infuriating instead of Rico from now on.
‘So you’re telling me to eliminate a planaria demon that spreads infection when eaten?’
I thought the Duke was my lifeline, but I was wrong. Family regret story? It’s my fault for forgetting that this genre is devastating. Where in devastation is there such a thing as family regret? No wait, it’s possible. Right, even I would go around saying “oh my dear child” if someone eliminated the troublesome ‘rats.’
Meanwhile, the Duke was still keeping me at arm’s length with his high nose. No wait, the Duke never had high expectations of me to begin with.
If I stay here, I’ll just get swept away with the Duke’s family. Let’s go back to the Rohanson Viscount’s Estate right now. The secret of my birth, whether there’s a traitor at Rohanson Estate – none of that matters. I’ll just die if I stay here.
If it approached Mabuka, it would have approached the Duke’s servants too. The Duke said there are no bribed people so it approached Mabuka, but that’s not what’s important.
The main issue is that Bishop Marik is watching the Duke’s family. He can make up excuses easily, and moreover, the aftermath of real sorcery is manifesting in the Duke’s mansion. It wouldn’t be a false accusation even if Bishop Marik attacked the Duke’s mansion.
After dealing with the Hosaquin Viscount’s family, there would be no room for excuses even if they preserved it as an example in textbooks of what happens when you use sorcery.
Alright, let’s run away. I opened the door, leaving Rico bowing his head behind me.
“My lady?”
“…Mabuka.”
If only it hadn’t been Mabuka standing right in front of the door, I would have run away immediately. Mabuka had already returned. Her hand raised high as if to open the door awkwardly hid behind her back, reading my expression.
“Why is Mother bowing? Are you leaving now, my lady?”
Mabuka tilted her head innocently. Pudding broke free from Mabuka’s arms and clung to me. He kneaded urgently, and I could feel the desperation in his cotton-like paws urging us to leave Hosaquin Estate and Mabuka’s side immediately.
And conversely, seeing Mabuka made my excitement completely subside. My mind snapped to attention as if cold water had been poured over me.
It was because of the voices that desperately searched for Mabuka yesterday.
‘If I leave now because I don’t want to get involved with the Hosaquin Viscount’s family, what will happen to Mabuka?’
Yesterday’s image of her crying as if the world was ending overlapped with Mabuka now smiling brightly. I alternately thought of precious Mary and Daisy’s siblings at home, and Mrs. Kinder’s son who died so pitifully. Sigh…
The ‘rats’ are targeting Mabuka, so if I run away, Mabuka will definitely face a dangerous situation, right? And the Temple side is also watching Mabuka. If I abandon Mabuka and return alone, how would I be different from that Rohanson Viscount bastard who abandoned his daughter and ran away to save himself?
“No, where would I go? I just opened the door because I thought you might be coming back, Mabuka.”
This is my fault for being weak to children.
I went back and sat down.
“Rico. Lift your head.”
Rico hesitantly raised his head. Does he feel guilty? Yesterday he kept his distance from me because he didn’t want to get infected by rats, but now I’m stuck with the Duke’s family and have to play exorcist, so he must feel sorry.
“I’ll help.”
“Lady Evangeline!”
Rico shouted with emotion.
“I can’t just let something that dares to call itself my ‘mother’ get away with it.”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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