075. Intersect (3)
“Whether you like it or not, you’ll have to go through the trouble of removing me from this body. So why should I accommodate you? There’s nothing in it for me.”
Owen logically presented his reasons.
It seemed to exacerbate Bella’s anger.
“You… Do you think only you can do that?”
In an angry tone, Owen simply expressed doubt.
In response, Bella spoke vaguely.
“I’ll do the same.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m going to absorb Bella’s soul.”
At this declaration, Owen narrowed his eyes in suspicion.
“You said the situation was different, didn’t you?”
“It is. ‘Bella’ doesn’t want me to take over this body as you think. It might be fitting for an ordinary person, but not for her.”
“But.”
“But what?”
Bella let out a mocking laugh.
While her smile seemed as gentle as usual, the atmosphere was different.
A clear sense of fierce anger and desire filled her silver eyes.
“Did you really think I would obediently follow her just because ‘Bella’ doesn’t want it?”
“You…”
“Do you think I would act like the real ‘Bella’ just because I look like her?”
With a hint of mockery, Bella declared,
“I’m staying here. No matter what means are employed.”
***
With those words, Bella left her seat.
Leaving only a farewell, “Today’s conversation ends here,” to Kyle and Owen, who were left alone, Owen quietly reconsidered his thoughts.
“To remain by any means…”
The meaning behind Bella’s words was clear.
Even if there was someone who wanted to kill ‘Bella’, she would remain.
While Owen had luckily received an opportunity from ‘Owen’, it seemed the same couldn’t be said for the other side.
Therefore, only one of them would remain in the end…
Bella seemed determined to somehow devour the original owner of the body, ‘Bella’.
Even if ‘Bella’ had no intention of doing so, she would do it by force.
Despite knowing this fact, Owen couldn’t say anything.
It wasn’t his place to simply tell Bella to get out of that body.
Not knowing the method and uncertain about what would happen to Bella once she got out, if the soul lost the body, it would likely perish.
“…I need to find a way.”
A way was needed.
A way to remove Bella from the body without killing her.
If ‘Bella’ had been willing to cooperate or sought peace, there would have been no need for this.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t the reality.
Bella wanted Owen, and Owen wanted Lucia to be happy.
These two desires couldn’t coexist.
So Owen had to ruin what Bella wanted.
To obtain what he desired.
“But how can I do that to Bella.”
He reached a conclusion, but there was still a lingering concern.
How did Bella find out about her situation?
Even if she had experienced possession, it wasn’t easy to assume the other person would do the same.
Owen knew that all too well.
He had undergone possession, but Bella was unaware that he was a vessel.
‘Should I ask him…’
At the end of his uncertainty, the solution that emerged was Owen.
And somehow, the thought crossed his mind that perhaps Owen might not even know the answer to this question.
“…Kyle.”
Just as he concluded his thoughts and was about to wake Kyle up,
Owen’s eyes met Kyle’s.
His blue eyes were strikingly clear, not at all like someone who had just woken up from sleep.
There was no sign of drowsiness lingering in his gaze.
“Hey.”
“…When did you wake up?”
Asking cautiously, he shrugged his shoulders.
“A little while ago. So, quite a while ago?”
“…”
Had he heard everything?
Owen looked at Kyle anxiously.
Upon which, Kyle added an explanation.
“I heard that the possession came from Celid Yungshik. Quite serious, it seems. Was it an illegal move?”
It seemed like he had heard the latter part of the story.
But even so, the situation had not improved.
Even if they were in the latter part of the story, all the strange details must have emerged.
“It seems like the saint made a pact with Celid Sohojak, right? For some reason, it seems to be you.”
“…Right.”
He couldn’t deny it.
Whatever fact came out of Kyle’s mouth, it was merely for confirmation.
He was just trying to be sure because he knew.
“What kind of nonsense did you talk about? You becoming one with him, and the saint absorbing souls.”
“…”
It must have sounded quite insane.
Owen thought to himself.
To ordinary people in this world, Bella and his conversation would sound extremely bizarre.
As long as they didn’t seem like lunatics, it was fortunate.
“Explain. What’s the situation?”
At Kyle’s demand, Owen let out a low sigh.
Where should he start explaining this from?
From the beginning?
Or filter it out and mention only the necessary parts?
“You believed you had the right to do that. You said it yourself. We are friends.”
As he pondered, Kyle said.
Owen nodded.
“That’s right.”
“So honestly tell me. Who are you?”
“…”
It hadn’t felt strange when Bella had asked, but hearing it from Kyle felt different.
It was a piercing feeling.
It felt like everything he didn’t want to reveal was being pried out.
“…I am.”
After a long silence, Owen chose his words.
“I am not the Viscount Verdine you knew.”
It was frustrating that after much contemplation, his words were merely this, but it couldn’t be helped.
His words weren’t particularly pleasant, so it was the best he could do in his own way.
“What does that mean?”
A sharp blue gaze met his.
The cold, piercing stare felt chilling and harsh.
Swallowing hard, Owen continued speaking.
“I took over the body of the original Viscount Verdine. I, a different soul, possessed him. It may be hard to believe.”
“It is hard to believe. But without that, you and the saint wouldn’t have had that conversation, right? Isn’t that so?”
Kyle quickly summarized the unbelievable story.
It seemed that the conversation between Bella and Owen alone lent credibility.
“So, when did this start?”
Kyle followed up with Owen.
“Tell me when you started to become a different person.”
“…In April this year.”
“Since before the hunting competition? Before we became friends.”
“That’s right.”
Nodding, Kyle exhaled slowly.
The once sunken blue eyes suddenly glowed with warmth.
“Alright then.”
“Huh…?”
“It’s not like you’re disrespecting your nature. Right?”
“True, but…”
Is this really happening?
With a face of incomprehension, Kyle chuckled.
“It would be troublesome if a friend suddenly became a different person, but it’s fine since it’s not the case. Somehow, things seem a bit different now.”
“Is that so…?”
“Yeah. Not very noble, but… you.”
“That’s…”
Was it that noticeable?
Owen furrowed his brow slightly.
It seemed like others weren’t aware of it.
“I didn’t mean to make it so obvious. It’s in a good way.”
“Seems like it.”
“Yeah. By the way, did the saint figure out you were different because she gave me the sleeping potion?”
“It seems likely.”
“She also mentioned she wasn’t originally a saint.”
In response to Kyle’s question, Owen nodded.
“She’s in a similar situation to me.”
“But why do you both have different opinions? If you’re in a similar situation, shouldn’t you normally join forces?”
“The saint says she needs to drive me out of this body. She wants to see the original owner.”
“And the original owner agreed?”
“The original owner agreed with me.”
At Owen’s words, Kyle expressed a look of expectation.
“He agreed? To you staying in the body.”
“He mentioned it earlier. That he would become one with me.”
“I heard that. But I don’t quite understand.”
“It means our souls will merge… Is it still difficult to grasp?”
From Noble mtl dot com
As Owen explained further, Kyle looked puzzled.
It still seemed hard to understand.
“I don’t get it, but if both parties agreed, then it’s settled.”
Though not fully comprehending, Kyle nodded, saying it was enough.
It felt questionable, but Owen nodded along with him.
Then Kyle spoke again.
“Anyway, the main point is that you and the original owner agreed to coexist with mutual consent, not involving the saint.”
“Well… that’s the case, but…”
Summarizing it this way.
As Owen blinked, Kyle continued.
“Is the other side opposing the original owner?”
“It seems so.”
“And they want to see the original owner?”
“Exactly…?”
“Then all they have to do is give up the saint?”
Is it really that simple?
No, well, it kind of is…
Owen stared blankly at Kyle, who had simplified the entire situation.
“In theory…, yes.”
“We need to find a way. If the soul can escape without issue, wouldn’t the other side also be able to leave?”
“That’s uncertain.”
It was an uncertain matter.
Bella’s ultimate desire is Owen.
If there was a certainty that she could survive outside Bella’s body, it might help a bit to convince her, but there was no guarantee that she could completely persuade Bella.
“Why? Why do you need to see your original body owner so badly?”
“Maybe.”
“Why on earth…?”
“Well, maybe because I like her a lot?”
“Hm… I can’t understand. Who was the original saint?”
Owen pondered Kyle’s question for a moment before answering.
“A fan of my body owner.”
“A fan…?”
“So… someone who admires and likes deeply.”
“What does that even mean?”
Kyle made a bewildered expression.
Yeah, that could happen.
The concept of a fan doesn’t exist in this world.
“That’s a thing. It existed in my original world.”
“What? Both you and the saint came from different dimensions?”
“Dimensions…?”
As the conversation meandered, the topic of dimensions came up.
Looking puzzled, Kyle responded as if questioning Owen’s lack of knowledge.
“Oh, dimensions. They’re called different worlds. Didn’t you know?”
“Is that so…”
It’s not something one would typically think of.
At least not on Earth.
“The universe is made up of multiple dimensions.”
“You know the concept of the universe…?”
“Don’t you? You should know that much to become a wizard.”
“…”
Indeed, the wizards here are peculiar.
They seemed to combine all the research and work done by scholars in various fields on Earth.
“Anyway. So, though rare, there are records in the past. Stories of crossing dimensions, or having crossed dimensions.”
This world was more intricate than expected.
Seeing Owen’s astonished expression, Kyle added further.
“So, what I mean is, by checking historical records, we might find out. Maybe we can cross back to the original world through dimensions.”