"I can feel it! Today will be a good hunting day."
Leonis Sanguis was wearing an extravagant set of silver armor. It was magically enchanted to boost its defenses and assure his safety in case of a fatal attack. Nevertheless, he wasn't brave enough to wander the Greenbell Forest alone, nor did he want to go lure the beasts on his own. That job fell to his loyal maid, the woman by the name of Evelyn.
"Go fetch some targets."
He turned his head toward the expressionless maid and pointed at a random person directly, his voice stern and slightly mixed with annoyance, which, by now, was a natural thing every time he talked to her.
Instead of immediately obeying him, she bowed her head and, while staring right back at him, said,
"But master, I think it would be best for me to stay by your-"
"Stop whining and do it! I have enough guards."
Even Leonis' guards weren't happy with the maid's remark. Although they knew she had a vast arsenal of miscellaneous skills, which even include combat, they still didn't take her too seriously. In fact, she seemed rather arrogant and rudely blunt, to say the least.
Nonetheless, they didn't speak up, they just glared at her and inwardly snorted. Most were happy to see her depart into the eerily silent forest, some hoping she never comes back.
It was Thursday evening and the canopy was dyed with a breath-taking orange glow, transforming it into a spectacular painting frozen by time. It was definitely the perfect time for hunting as the nocturnal beasts would wake up soon and Leonis Sanguis wanted to hunt a rare beast today. He would always bring the head of the slain beast as a trophy and sometimes showcase it to his handful of noble friends.
Admittedly, each noble had one or two strange hobbies, however, Leonis was, by far, the strangest of them all. No sane aristocrat would risk his life to hunt down random beasts or monsters, especially if they don't have the strength to back it up.
As a close friend of Lexander Biax, not many nobles dared to openly provoke Leonis. Actually, the majority aimed to befriend him, but his antisocial behavior and eccentric hobbies made it quite difficult to approach him.
Soon enough, Evelyn left to bait an appropriate target whereas Leonis marched a bit ahead, searching for a good spot to wait. He was accompanied by four guards, all clad in a thick armor plate and wielding shiny spears or swords, which weren't magical but were still sharp enough to cut down shabby leather armors and tough beast furs.
"This seems to be a good stop."
Satisfied with a small open area in the middle of the forest, merely a couple of hundred meters away from Wilsden Town, Leonis nodded his head and motioned for one of the guards to bring him something to sit on.
Time crept by, the only thing that could be heard were the noble's constant sighs of exasperation and impatience along with the guards' barely audible muttering.
At some point, the group of five heard a loud rustling, followed right after by the sudden appearance of six men.
The adventurers, all muscular and scary-looking, resembled a band of thugs of bandits instead of adventurers. Their abrupt arrival alerted everyone, including Leonis, who jumped to his feet.
The four guards positioned themselves in front of their employee and unsheathed their arms, casting hostile looks toward the adventurers.
Unexpecting to find an actual noble in here, the six men halted their feet and lowered their hands closer to their hatchets and one-handed axes, looking as wary as the other party.
Thankfully, the leader of the adventurer group, Brendon, did recognize Leonis after a couple of breaths.
"L-lord Leonis?"
"Hm? Who are you?"
The middle-aged noble deeply frowned and glared at Brendon, feeling even more suspicious. From his perspective, such a meeting could not be coincidental. Either they were hired to kill him or they were thugs that were searching for a human prey so close to the town.
"We're just adve-"
Unfortunately for Brendon, he could not finish his sentence as something came flying from behind him, landing between the two groups and instantly exploding into a thick cloud of green smoke.
Three of the six adventurers jumped in fright, however, Leonis' guards immediately charged at the adventurers, swinging their weapons unhesitantly.
The show had finally started and the poison was proven to be much more lethal than anticipated. Before the fight could heat up anymore, thuds could be heard inside that small open area.
Both the guards and adventurers fell to the ground, spasming and coughing blood. One particular guard, however, stood next to Leonis and swiftly drank a potent anti-poison antidote, which weakened the effect of the green gas but did not completely negate it.
The guard urged the noble to flee while he was checking the vicinity, afraid they would get ambushed by more people. The two of them ran as fast as they could; Leonis discarded his heavy weapon and fled in a zigzaggy manner, trying to get as far away from the poison as possible.
Sadly, he had already inhaled a bit of it after less than thirty seconds, his limbs were getting stiff, and his guard was no different. It did not take them long to notice that there were more than one cloud of smoke, positioned at their right and left, leaving them with no choice but to go through the safest direction.
As they were panicking, they did not have time to think things through, such as the possibility that they were led into a trap. After barely running fifty meters, they were forced to stop as a motionless and hideous-looking undead blocked their path.
The guard roared and charged at the unresponsive zombie, but before he could reach his target, his leg got caught in a simple and primitive trap.
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His body was flung upside down by a rope and a net was cast down from above, enveloping the whole. To be more precise, three large nets covered the armored guard, completely trapping him and though he tried to struggle, he didn't manage to do it in time.
The undead seemed to have gotten into 'life', it slowly moved its legs and lunged at the immobilized guard, plunging a dagger right into his throat.
The sight of blood gushing out and the aggressive zombie had completely scared the inexperienced noble. After one last desperate look at his last guard, he was about to continue fleeing ahead only to be splashed by a wave of water, which somehow managed to make him fall head-first into the ground.
He did try to get up but the effects of the poison were getting stronger, so much that his limbs went completely stiff and his breathing became heavy. Within seconds, he started suffocating, his eyes glued onto a cloaked-figure standing right beside his corpse.
"My deepest condolences, my lord."
Arthur performed a neat noble toward the dying noble and patiently waited for the latter to take his last breath, which he eventually did.
When it was finally time to switch vessels, Arthur crouched down and exited Latif's body for the last time. Coincidentally, however, the moment he started the brief process of possession, a dagger came flying from behind, piercing the old man's body.
The hunchback vessel limply fell on the ground, lifeless. Meanwhile, Arthur was successfully able to enter Leonis' body and possess him. A series of notification sounds echoed in his head, but he ignored them and adjusted himself to the unfamiliar new body.
The effects of the poison were still present but they were weakened by a lot.
"Master."
The maid appeared from behind, a single bloody dagger in her hand. She was oddly calm despite the precarious condition of her master. Her expressionless face and cold eyes were fixated on Leonis' body.
Though, when she glanced at Latif' dead body, a frown surfaced on her face. She walked over and swiftly examined it before returning to her master's side.
Just when she was about to call out for him a second time, his body momentarily spasmed then his eyes slowly opened. He seemed dazed for a couple of seconds, then he sat up, clenched his fists a couple of times, then broke into a smile.
Seeing him act this strange, the maid was even more confused, but she didn't question anything.
"Thank you for your timely intervention. You saved my life."
He ended his sentence with a light chuckle, which made him look even more unnatural. He stood up as if nothing happened, checked the surroundings, then, still smiling, added,
"It's not safe here, we should go back to town."
"Yes, master…"
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As they were making their way to Wilsden, Evelyn kept looking at her master's back. He was walking at a moderate pace, which wasn't how a cowardly noble would act when his life was endangered. Furthermore, although he had taken an antidote, he clearly seemed to be suffocating earlier yet here he was, completely healthy and nonchalant.
The return to Wisden was uneventful and a happy occasion for Arthur, whose plan had worked wonderfully. He still had a plan B but the fact he did not need to resort to it made him pleased with his thorough planning.
Of course, it wasn't the best plan in the world as he had limited time to come up with how to trick Leonis and his guards. Nevertheless, the six adventures, albeit dead, unwittingly did what he wanted them to do.
Arthur did not at all feel bad for what he did. They died so he may live and that was it, neither sympathy nor guilt were warranted, not for him, at least. This world was also governed by laws, but they were not as strict as on Earth, he merely used the opportunities presented to him. Now, with a new and much better body, a sizable wealth and Latif's important documents, he could take his time planning his next step and familiarize himself with his new environment.
He had been lucky to exit Latif's body at the right time and he did notice that Evelyn seemed suspicious. But, overall, she won't be able to do anything because her master was alive and she had to obey him, though her behavior as a maid was questionable.
"Master, I will go report what happened to the Militant Security."
"Yes yes, you do that."
As they reached Leonis' manor, which was more welcoming than the shabby inn room, Arthur toured the place and soon found his new office.
While the nobles, mainly the Baron, were the rulers in Wilsden and most of the Militant Syndicate, there was also the Militant Security, which was some sort of department that handles crimes and security in human settlements.
Basically, the Militant Security were like police though they had limited power and had to do the lord's bidding. All the town guards and the ones patrolling Greenbell forests were from the Militant Security and most were ex-soldiers or freshly-trained youngsters.
Arthur did not see them as a threatening type of authority, or one which enforces laws like the Police on Earth. They were just guards that listen to crime reports and half-heartedly investigate based on the lord's wishes. He saw them more like a second and weaker army to a settlement's lord.
With Evelyn gone, Arthur had ample time to be alone and think things through for a while. He checked the books present in Leonis' office, enjoyed the comfortable leather chair sitting behind a luxurious black wooden desk, and fiddled with foreign objects which were nothing more than decorations.
As he had previously investigated Leonis Sanguis, Arthur wasn't surprised by the lack of guards in or outside the manor, nor by the handful of maids cleaning the rooms and halls. None of them bothered him, they would just lower their heads and avert their gazes, probably unwilling to be yelled at for doing something ridiculous that did not warrant such harsh treatment. Then again, Leonis was notorious for his bursts of anger and nasty attitude so Arthur expected such a reaction from his servants.
Two hours later, Evelyn came back and after knocking twice on the office door, she gracefully stepped inside and politely bowed.
"Master, a small squadron was dispatched to retrieve the corpses and investigate the unknown assailant."
Upon finishing, she frowned for the second time today as she did not expect to see her master sitting behind his desk and silently reading a book. It was not to say that Leonis did not read books, but just that his schedule was always the same and seeing him doing that he wouldn't usually do was strange. Still, she remained professional and did not comment.
"Good. I want them to bring me the undead and the corpse of the man who attacked me."
"Yes, master."
After a short bout of silence, in which Arthur scrutinized the cold-faced maid, she finally could not help herself and ended up commenting.
"Master, would you like some black tea to ease your worries."
"What worries?"
He brushed his long dark red hair to the back, softly smiled back at the maid, and continued,
"I'm feeling great, actually. You, on the other hand, seem more troubled."
"Not at all, master." She shook her hand once, still as expressionless as ever.
"I'm just worried about my master's well being."
"That sure doesn't look like it. Also, is that the way you talk to your master? I thought maids needed to be more respectful."
Every time the maid expresses her opinion, he would explode in anger and shout for a couple of minutes. It had always been like that, so she naturally bowed her head and 'sincerely' apologized.
"I'm sorry, master. It will never happen again."
"Yes yes, whatever."
He nonchalantly waved his hand at her as if he didn't care. The maid' body stiffened for a second, her uniquely violet eyes were locked on his face, wondering what happened for him to change so drastically.
Even someone like her, who was more knowledgeable than the general populace, didn't consider for a second that Leonis might have been possessed by a parasite, or even a demon. After all, demons that can control other people were extremely powerful and very rare, to begin with. Plus, they had to be insanely powerful, but if it were the case, why would such a strong demon come to a small region and possess an unknown noble? Baron Lernon would have been a much better target.