LGHTNOVELBOOK 1 - I Was Possessed Into a Counter-Attack Character
…This is an unfamiliar place. Yes, I can say that with certainty.
This space is unfamiliar to me, someone who spent all day cooped up in a room playing games.
First… my eyes are drawn to the antique red ceiling and golden chandelier.
Unlike my small, chilly single room where I used to shiver involuntarily, warm air circulates naturally here.
Right in front of me is a teapot with steam rising from it, teacups that anyone would recognize as expensive, and beside them, sweet-looking cookies placed on a pristine white plate.
…..Where am I?
“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to pour the tea?”
Just then, I heard a voice.
A somewhat childish, delicate, high-pitched voice. When I came to my senses and slightly raised my head, someone’s figure entered my vision.
A cute girl with orange hair. Looking youthful, she’s wearing antique clothes that 21st century Earth people don’t typically wear.
Strangely enough, they suit her perfectly.
“I asked what you’re doing instead of pouring.”
This girl, who looks no older than 17 even if I’m being generous, frowns at me.
While staring blankly at her as she expresses displeasure with her whole body, I opened my mouth.
“Ahaha….. May I ask who you are?”
Something seems very wrong here.
After asking the unknown girl’s understanding, I slipped away to a secluded place.
Actually, she got upset and stormed out of the room with a huff, so it’s not quite right to say I asked for her understanding… but for me who needed time to think, it was a welcome development.
Well then, now that I have some time, let me slowly search through my memories and recall everything carefully.
I definitely finished my part-time job and was about to play Grand Fantasia as usual…
Wait a minute, Grand Fantasia?
After recalling this keyword, I thought about the impression of the girl who just left me.
Orange hair, bright eyes that are just cute enough. And above all, that teardrop mark on her pristine white face.
“Chloe….”
I can say with certainty.
She is “Chloe Frelia,” one of the heroines of Grand Fantasia and the daughter of Andres Frelia, the head of the Frelia family.
So this place is inside the game? Wondering if I might be dreaming, I pinched my cheek, but only felt a stinging pain.
Only then could I accept it. The fact that I had somehow entered Grand Fantasia.
“Wow….”
Simultaneously, an overwhelming sense of despair penetrated deep within my body… or rather, it didn’t. Instead, I felt refreshed.
I don’t really have any lingering attachments to my previous life where I repeated the same meaningless actions every day.
For someone like me who has lived an unhappy life after losing my mother and father early on, being able to start in this new environment is almost a blessing.
There’s no meaning in continuing to turn the same monotonous wheel. This is perfect for a fresh start in life.
Of course, it would be difficult to positively accept the fact that this world is a dangerous place with magic and swords unlike the modern world, but what can I do? Since things turned out this way, I’ll have to find a way to survive.
“Well, now I need to figure out who I am….”
After organizing my thoughts, I leaned against the wall… wait, something’s odd.
Ahem! I cleared my throat.
“Why is my speech like this?”
My usual way of speaking flowed out through my lips. But at the same time, an incredible sense of dissonance enveloped my entire body.
Well, what’s going on here?
This time, I tried speaking naturally, letting my body lead the way.
“Haha, this is quite troublesome, isn’t it?”
Surprisingly, I felt no discomfort at all.
“Oh my?”
Frivolous reactions that I would never normally say aloud now flowed naturally like water.
Hmm, I think I know who this is.
Oh, come to think of it, there was a mirror in the room where I was with Chloe earlier.
To confirm my face, I returned to the room I had fled from, and then I could finally be certain of who I was.
Black hair, a teardrop mark on the right cheek, eyes that are nearly closed, an impression of always snickering, and a light atmosphere that makes it seem as if he might be blown away by the wind just by looking at him.
“Ah.”
I have become Sion Frelia.
Sion Frelia. The son of Marquis Andres Frelia, a war hero of the Praon Kingdom… but in reality, he’s regarded as just an ordinary member of the family.
No, actually, he’s treated even worse than that.
The reason is closely related to his mother.
Most users are focused on clearing the main quest and don’t know anything about this, but I’m a hardcore gamer who has dedicated my life to Grand Fantasia. Of course, I’ve cleared all the Frelia family side quests and know most of the information.
“So definitely…”
Sion Frelia’s mother was a dark sorceress.
To accomplish her mission, she hid her identity, approached Marquis Andres Frelia, seduced him, and became his concubine.
In that process, Sion Frelia was born, and after time passed and she completed her mission, she disappeared without a word.
Later, when it was discovered that she was a dark sorceress, naturally, her son Sion Frelia, despite being Andres’s son, was treated worse than the attendants of his other siblings.
That’s how Sion Frelia became just a frivolous man who merely existed in the Frelia family.
Perhaps his weightless speech pattern was also formed because of his dark past, always having to support his siblings.
“Haha, my luck is terribly bad.”
In short, he had the misfortune of having the wrong parents.
“Hmm… but it’s not the worst!”
I let out a big sigh of relief.
Until just a moment ago, I was recalling Sion’s past, which was gloom itself, so some might wonder what this nonsense is about. But, let’s think about it once more.
While Sion is ignored, he is ‘on the surface’ a nobleman and a student at Luin Academy, the talent training academy established by the Praon Kingdom.
That means I don’t have to worry about starving to death right away.
Getting food without having to work? That’s sweet.
“Not having to go to part-time jobs, this might be fortunate?”
I was genuinely happy about not having to work.
The start isn’t bad. Now I need to make plans for the future.
“First, this place… doesn’t seem to be Luin Academy.”
Chloe’s clothes from earlier weren’t the Luin Academy uniform that I had observed countless times through my monitor.
So, it’s reasonable to assume that this place is a mansion owned by the Frelia family.
“Hmm… it’s a bit humid, so it must be summer.”
There’s only one reason for a student to return home during summer.
“Luin Academy must be on summer vacation right now.”
That’s a reasonable assumption.
“Ah, come to think of it, I remember seeing a cutscene of Sion during the summer vacation period. Hmm… can’t quite remember the details.”
Usually, during vacations in Grand Fantasia, users roam the world freely and develop their characters.
Then, when there are about 3 days left until school reopens, as the day transitions, users watch a video related to Sion.
The content was definitely… um…
I frowned and searched through my memories, and then spoke with a stiff expression.
“This… seems like a big problem?”
I remembered it all.
Tick, tock.
When the clock hand flows to exactly 12 o’clock, darkness engulfs Sion, who was, as usual, playing the role of Chloe’s emotional punching bag.
Sion falls into a dark space, where a beautiful demon welcomes him with a benevolent smile.
‘Welcome to my space.’
‘Haven’t you been intensely craving power in your heart? Don’t you want to tear apart and kill those brats who tormented you?’
‘Come to me. And don’t reject my power, accept it.’
A demon approaches Sion, who has been suffering from an inferiority complex in his heart, and tempts him.
After a little hesitation, Sion accepts the offer and becomes a fallen one, a Ma’in.
End of video.
“Hmm… this is troublesome.”
I couldn’t hide the concern from my expression as I recalled Sion’s future, which was now my future.
“So… I have a limited time!?”
If I become a Ma’in, I can’t even dream of a normal life. After all, Ma’in are the number one targets for eradication in all countries.
So, to enjoy a happy life from now on, I somehow need to prevent Sion’s transformation into a Ma’in…
“Is there a way?”
I thought about it for a moment, but nothing came to mind.
“For now, whatever happens, I need to do something… Status.”
On the off chance, I called out for the status. Originally, this is an element that only players can use, but I wonder if it’s allowed for me now.
Character: Sion Frelia
Achievement Points – 300
Special Qualities
[Counter Attack – Common]
Counterattack against an opponent’s attack. The effective counterattack time shortens as the gap with the opponent increases.
[Poker Face – Rare]
Able to effectively hide your emotions.
“Oh.”
I softly exclaimed at the familiar status window.
It seems the ability I currently possess is Counter Attack, commonly known as retaliation.
“Hmm… this is ambiguous.”
Even for me, who has experienced Grand Fantasia extensively, it’s not a familiar ability. After all, Counter Attack is an ability unique to Sion.
Players can purchase various traits through achievement points.
So I could have used Counter Attack if I wanted to, but I didn’t bother.
“Of all traits, it had to be this one.”
That’s because it was too difficult to use.
“Instead of using Counter Attack, it’s much better to use those points to buy other utility traits.”
There’s a saying that for the success of one counterattack, you could use other traits 20 times and still have points left.
There’s also the Poker Face trait, but it doesn’t seem particularly helpful for the encounter with the demon in a few days.
This is a big problem.
First of all, the demon expected to attack me in a few days is Letios, an executive of the Demon King’s Army. Specializing in flame magic and enchantment, her characteristic is having an enormous amount of magical power but a body as fragile as glass.
Of course, this is only considered fragile by the standards of a Demon King’s Army executive; she still has a body that’s incomparably stronger than a small fry like me.
Additionally, she has a setting of being very obsessed with beauty.
“If I provoke her by saying she’s ugly and induce a big attack, then use Counter Attack to finish her off in one go…”
It seems possible, but it’s too dangerous.
But in the current situation, there doesn’t seem to be any other viable option…
“Ah, come to think of it, I had achievement points, right?”
Achievement points are currency that can be used through the achievement shop.
If I use the achievement shop, which can buy almost anything, wouldn’t I be able to navigate this seemingly hopeless situation?
A glimmer of hope flickered across my increasingly gloomy face.
“Let’s see… oh?”
Opening the achievement shop, countless available traits filled my vision.
“Let’s go shopping~ Oh.”
Before happily starting my shopping, I checked my available achievement points, and my face stiffened again.
Achievement Points – 300
“My goodness. I didn’t know such a pauper existed!”
The fact that this pauper is me makes my head ache. There’s almost nothing I can do with these 300 points…
“Ugh, I’ll need to earn achievement points somehow before the demon comes.”
The one fortunate thing is that there’s still time left.
The demon turns Sion into a Ma’in 3 days before school reopens. I’m not sure how many days until school reopens, but until then, somehow…
Dong! Dong!
Just then, the large wall clock beside me, which had been silently moving its minute and second hands, rang to announce its presence.
Naturally, my gaze turned toward that clock.
12 o’clock
Swish swish.
The darkness flowing from my shadow expanded in size and then engulfed me.
“Wha…! Wha…! What the hell!”
I was so surprised that my original way of speaking slipped out.
Wait, really? Is today really 3 days before school reopens?
And, as I suspected, someone’s voice began to be heard.
“Sion Frelia. I’ve been watching you.”
In an utterly dark place, a beautiful demon spoke to me.
Ah, please save me.