James woke with a violent pulse behind his eyes.
His throat felt dry. His body felt… borrowed.
"…ugh…"
He pushed himself up-
And froze.
Martis was standing beside the bed.
And a man James had never seen before was sitting on a chair nearby, elbows on his knees, watching him.
James recoiled instantly.
"Who the hell are you?!"
Martis answered calmly.
"That's Sampon."
James blinked.
"…What?"
The man raised a hand awkwardly.
"Hi, Master!"
James stared at him.
"You— what do you mean that's Sampon?"
Sampon scratched his head. "Temporary body. Long story."
James grabbed his temples. "My head hurts too much for this…"
He took a deep breath and looked around.
The classroom. The school. The same place.
"…What happened? Last thing I remember is you forcing yourself into my body."
Sampon nodded.
"Yes. After that, things… escalated."
Martis crossed his arms. "He behaved very enthusiastically."
"That is not the word I would use," James muttered.
Sampon leaned back.
"Let me tell you what happened."
---
Yesterday
After using Evil Possession on James, Sampon controlled his body with far more precision than normal possession.
Martis walked beside him as they approached the enemy camp.
They didn't rush.
They observed first.
The place was quiet. Too quiet.
Broken windows. Barricaded doors. Blood trails that hadn't been cleaned.
Sampon whispered in James' voice.
"This is it."
He activated Invisibility and grabbed Martis' wrist.
Both of them vanished.
They slipped inside through a broken side entrance.
The smell hit first.
Blood. Sweat. Something rotten.
They followed faint voices.
Inside one of the rooms, they saw three people.
A man.
A woman.
And someone tied to a chair.
The tied person's head hung low. Blood dripping to the floor in slow taps.
The man and woman were talking casually.
Laughing.
"…after this, I'm starving," the woman said.
"Same. Maybe we should try the canned goods from the school next," the man replied.
Their voices slowly shifted.
They started joking about what they planned to do later that night.
To the tied person.
Martis' voice echoed in Sampon's mind.
> "Why are we listening to this?"
> "I'm looking for the healer,"
Sampon replied.
> "I didn't see their face before. I need confirmation."
The tied person weakly spoke.
"Please… just kill me…"
The man sighed. "You talk too much."
He walked over.
And slit the prisoner's throat like it was a chore.
Martis' fingers twitched.
> "I will kill them."
> "Not yet,"
Sampon answered calmly.
> "Patience."
A few minutes later, footsteps approached.
Four more people entered.
All had the same clan symbol burned into the back of their palms.
Martis spoke again.
> "You said five."
> "I did,"
Sampon replied.
> "Something changed."
One of them said,
"The leader called a meeting at the official building."
Sampon immediately followed.
Martis followed silently.
---
They arrived at a larger building.
Inside was a meeting room.
Seven chairs.
One person already seated at the front.
The six entered and greeted him.
"Leader."
Sampon and Martis exchanged a glance.
There was an extra member.
The six sat.
One of the members stood up from his chair.
"Leader, before we begin, we have a new recruit."
The leader leaned back slightly. "Oh?"
The member gestured to the cloaked figure beside him.
"She proved herself useful earlier."
The figure stepped forward and slowly removed her cloak.
Long blonde hair fell over her shoulders. Her face was calm, beautiful, confident — too calm for someone in this situation.
She bowed slightly.
"My name is Venyl."
Her voice was soft, but steady.
"I possess an Ultra Rare class — Corrupt Saint."
Murmurs filled the room.
"Ultra rare?"
"No way…"
Venyl continued like she was presenting in class.
"This class allows me to use both holy and dark abilities. I also received a skill called Corrupt Blessing."
She raised her palm, and faint dark-gold light flickered.
"It can buff allies while weakening enemies."
One of the members whistled. "That's broken."
Venyl added calmly,
"The drawback is that it consumes my stat points to maintain the debuff and buff effect."
Instead of concern, the members looked impressed.
"That's perfect for raids."
The leader smiled.
"Very impressive."
Venyl looked at him respectfully.
"I wish to be useful to the clan."
The leader nodded.
"You will be."
Then he added with a faint smile that made Martis' eyes narrow while listening invisibly:
"Especially for what we plan to do to the other camps."
Venyl did not react.
She simply returned to her seat quietly.
Martis spoke in Sampon's mind.
"She is not shocked."
Sampon replied,
"She already knows what they do."
And that was when Sampon became certain.
This wasn't a desperate group of survivors.
This was an organized, willing group of predators.
Then-
The leader removed his cloak.
He spoke smoothly.
"Well done. You will be very useful for what's coming."
Sampon saw his face clearly.
Black hair, handsome, and looks alike a model or kpop idol.
And then he activated James Mind's Eye Skill.
The window appeared.
---
[Player Name: John Delgo]
[Level: 16]
[Stats:
Strength: 43
Health: 20
Defense: 18
Resistance: 23
Luck: 12
Agility: 9
Sense: 3]
[Class: Unique Class — Messenger of Shrep]
[Skills: Shrep's Healing, Forcefield]
---
Sampon's expression changed.
> "Found you."
Martis asked,
> "Is that the healer?"
> "Yes."
Martis looked at John quietly.
> "He does not look strong."
> "He doesn't need to be, he keeps others alive while they torture people."
At the front, John spoke again.
"We've gathered enough runes. Soon we won't need to hide anymore."
One member asked, "What about the other camps?"
John smiled.
"Let them grow. Stronger players drop better things."
Martis' eyes darkened.
> "I dislike him."
> "I know," Sampon said.
Another member asked, "What about the healer rotations?"
John replied calmly,
"Keep them alive longer. I want them conscious."
Martis slowly turned to Sampon.
> "…We are killing them."
Sampon nodded.
> "Yes."
James, listening to this in the present, felt his stomach twist.
"…They said that?"
Sampon looked at him quietly.
"Yes."
James clenched his fists.
"And then what did you do?"
Sampon smiled slightly.
"I waited for the meeting to end."
Martis added,
"He was very patient. It was unsettling."
Sampon shrugged.
"I wanted the healer's body."
James looked at him.
"…You planned to take him over?"
Sampon nodded.
"Yes. That is when things became interesting."