The Nature of Possession – Chapter 74

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Sunlight streamed in, finding its way through a gap in the curtains and poking at my eyes.

The brightness made my eyes ache, and even though I turned away, I was already awake.

“Ugh…”

A pounding headache, a dry mouth, and an unsettled stomach.

The trifecta of misery made it impossible to go back to sleep, even though I desperately wanted to.

My back ached from lying on the hard floor for too long.

I sat up and my body creaked in protest.

“Did I possess a corpse?”

My voice was rough and scratchy.

I scratched my itchy back and looked around.

I was sitting in a pigsty of an apartment.

Empty soju and beer bottles lay scattered on the floor, puddles of spilled alcohol staining the carpet.

Half-eaten squid legs, crumpled snack bags, and crumbs clung to my clothes.

A thick layer of fat around my stomach restricted my movement.

My body felt sluggish.

As I slowly surveyed the mess, trying to piece together what had happened, a familiar sound rang out.

Ding!

“She made it quick.”

Master had granted my request, crushing my skull without a moment’s hesitation.

My connection with her was now severed.

I felt a pang of regret.

I had grown fond of her.

But unlike my previous dimensional jumps, I had done something meaningful this time, and that brought a strange sense of satisfaction.

I had gotten back at that damn Namgung So-yeon.

I would savor that victory.

The epic memories of my previous life were now tucked away in the box labeled “nostalgia.”

It was time to adapt to this new world.

“Korea,” I muttered, a wave of relief washing over me as I saw the familiar Korean script printed on a snack bag.

Adapting wouldn’t take long.

The Murim world was all well and good, but it lacked certain conveniences, like the internet and modern plumbing.

It wasn’t easy for a modern man like myself to fully adjust.

“Ugh…”

I tried to stand, brushing the crumbs off my clothes, but my body screamed in protest.

Was getting up supposed to be this difficult?

I stumbled towards the bathroom, hoping to get a look at the body I now inhabited.

After opening a few wrong doors, I finally found it.

“Hmm…”

A middle-aged man stared back at me from the mirror.

I had been fortunate enough to possess relatively attractive bodies in my previous jumps.

This time, I was sorely disappointed.

Charitable description: Unremarkable.

Uncharitable description: Hideous.

A patchy beard, greasy, unkempt hair, a double chin, and a protruding belly…

“This is my body now, huh?”

I poked and prodded at the excess flesh, grabbing handfuls of it.

I left the bathroom and surveyed the rest of the apartment.

The mess wasn’t confined to the living room.

The kitchen was overflowing with takeout containers, attracting swarms of fruit flies.

The other rooms were covered in a thick layer of dust, suggesting I lived alone.

Despite the filth, the apartment was spacious and clearly expensive.

The kind of place a commoner like myself could only dream of.

“Must be loaded,” I muttered, kicking the trash into a pile.

Normally, I would prioritize figuring out who I was, but…

“This place is a pigsty…”

Cleaning took precedence.

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“Ah, that’s better!”

After thoroughly cleaning the apartment and taking a shower, I felt like a new man.

I had clearly been neglecting my hygiene for a while, because the difference was startling.

I shaved off the patchy beard and plucked the stray hairs on my chest.

I lathered myself with body wash, scrubbing every inch of my skin, especially the folds and crevices, until the unpleasant odor was gone.

I shampooed my hair and scalp vigorously, practically giving myself a head massage.

The unkempt hair still bothered me, but that was a problem for the hairdresser.

I’d deal with it later.

I dried my hair with a towel and headed to the study – this place even had a study! – to find out who I was.

Age: 40. Occupation: None.

Judging by the stacks of paperwork, he seemed to prefer analog methods.

“What’s this?”

I picked up a neatly organized file from the pile of papers on the desk.

It was a medical report from Kim’s General Hospital, complete with the hospital logo.

I flipped through the pages, and the information I gleaned painted a grim picture of my new body’s health.

“High blood pressure, high cholesterol… and he drinks and smokes every day…”

The doctor’s recommendation: Quit drinking and smoking.

“Did I possess this body because… he died from drinking?”

The thought was both absurd and strangely plausible.

I turned on the computer and then unlocked my phone.

Thankfully, it used fingerprint recognition, sparing me the trouble of figuring out the password.

While the computer booted up, I scrolled through the messages on my phone.

Then, I turned my attention to the desktop.

“No games… tons of porn… definitely lives alone… what’s this?”

I opened the internet browser and noticed a website in the favorites bar.

“OceaniaTV?”

I clicked on it.

It was a live streaming platform.

“Already logged in.”

I scanned the list of frequently watched channels.

All female streamers.

I clicked on the top one.

After a brief loading screen, a half-naked woman appeared on the screen.

It was 10 a.m.

A bit early for nudity, wasn’t it?

Was it a recorded stream? I checked the title.

[Jjuyuni][Live] Stripping Stream — Morning broadcast, highest level of spiciness

The woman on screen paused her suggestive poses and glanced to the side.

A moment later, she spoke.

-Oh, Chairman’s here? Hello, Supreme Oppa!

Her voice was cheerful and bright.

Wait, Supreme Oppa?

What kind of cheesy username was that?

Wait—what’s my username?

[SupremeLandlord]

“…What the fuck.”

I think I had a pretty good idea of this guy’s lifestyle.

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