Chapter 1

What kind of situation is this right after possession?

I’d rather be possessed by a delinquent than this.

I could do better… but this situation is hopeless.

While I was sulking in the corner, I heard the sound of something scraping against the floor and looked outside the iron bars.

“Here’s your food. The experiment is almost over, so eat up.”

Thanks a lot.

I held back the sarcasm that almost slipped out and grabbed the bowl that came through the bars.

It looks like porridge, but it looks disgusting.

The smell is weird too.

I picked up the spoon stuck in the bowl and took a bite.

They say even Mount Geumgang is best seen after a meal, so I thought I should fill my stomach first.

But as soon as I put the spoon in my mouth, I had to spit out the garbage that entered my mouth.

What the hell is this taste?

Who the hell made porridge with energy drink?

I pushed the porridge, which seemed to insult the concept of cooking, to the corner.

I didn’t want to eat that crap anymore.

Then I sat on the bed and sank into thought.

I might as well organize my thoughts since I have nothing to do and plenty of time.

I’ve been possessed into a work presumed to be a hero project,

and the body I’m possessing seems to be the final boss and mastermind,

and the place I’m trapped in seems to be some kind of prison.

Not a single piece of good news.

But if there’s any hope, it’s that if I’m really possessing the mastermind, the probability of escaping from here is very high.

For the story of this work to progress, it’s inevitable that this body, as the final boss and mastermind, escapes from here.

So, I’ll probably get a chance to escape soon.

“It’s right to start with what I can do…”

Mastering the superpowers that humans in the hero project worldview have.

But how do I use the abilities?

I recalled the abilities of Quaker, the mastermind and final boss.

Gravity manipulation strong enough to cause localized earthquakes.

So strong that the protagonist couldn’t deal any meaningful damage to the final boss until the latter half.

He could block most ranged attacks by reversing gravity, and in close combat, he could increase gravity to restrict movement.

When dealing with those who resisted him, he could just crush them by pretending to clench his fist from a distance.

In short, he’s one of the most powerful ability users in the worldview.

If I’m possessing the final boss, maybe I can use that ability to escape from here.

So I tried to float my body, reached out towards the bowl, pretended to clench and release my hand, and even tried to push with the back of my hand, but there was no reaction.

Why can’t I use it?

I thought abilities in this novel were all innate?

Is it because I’m a possessor?

After pondering for a while and doing all sorts of nonsense, I gave up on figuring out how to use the ability right away and rolled around on the bed.

I know there’s no time to be lazy, but this situation itself is mentally exhausting.

“Status window.”

Ah, it’s not showing up.

No morals, no morals.

Don’t they even provide a status window these days?

Chewing on unspoken complaints, I decided to wait and see if something would happen while resting.

After all, to gather more information in this situation, I needed the appearance of someone else, whether a researcher or a guard.

About 30 minutes passed.

I got up at the sound of footsteps coming from afar.

“Number 21. Number 23. Number 26. Wake up. It’s experiment time.”

Experiment.

What kind of experiment?

I pretended to be stuck in the corner like the others and observed the outside situation.

A man in white and two guards.

Seeing they’re holding rifles, if I cause trouble in this state, I’ll be full of holes.

After calculating, I quietly crouched in front of the iron bars and listened.

“No…”

“Tsk, you should consider it an honor to participate in this great experiment for the evolution of humanity. Guards.”

At the cold voice of the researcher, the sound of the iron bars opening and footsteps followed. Then, the sound of someone screaming and being dragged away.

What kind of experiment could cause that?

Of course, no one would like being dragged away regardless of the experiment’s nature.

As the footsteps got closer, I pretended to be a shut-in again in the corner.

The sound of crying and footsteps faded away.

And the person dragged away didn’t return.

—

Second day of possession.

Probably morning.

I was nauseous from extreme hunger but forced down the tasteless porridge.

Every time the porridge touched my tongue, I wanted to shudder from the taste of wanting to die, but to survive, I had to endure this much pain. I finally succeeded in emptying the bowl.

If I get out of here, I’ll shove this porridge down the throat of whoever made it.

Anyway, since I’ve finished eating, it’s time for ability training.

After roughly placing the bowl on the table, I reached out my hand like yesterday to figure out the activation condition of the superpower.

The actions described whenever he used his ability.

Maybe doing something in this state is the activation condition.

Of course, since he was a character with many unknown aspects, even this could be a trick.

But it’s better than doing nothing.

I don’t intend to play the role of the mastermind, but to survive in this not-so-safe world, I need to know how to use my abilities…

I started trying various things.

I waved my hand towards the bowl, stretched out both hands and concentrated, and stared with my arms stretched out as if my eyes would pop out.

But the bowl didn’t move even 1mm.

Come on.

At this point, it should move a little.

Since I’ve come to a world full of superpowered people, at least make this easy.

Swallowing my complaints, I glared at the bowl for a moment.

Footsteps started to be heard from afar.

Are they here to pick up another test subject?

I did my usual shut-in cosplay and listened to the sounds outside the bars.

“Number 27. Number 31. Number 48.”

Just like yesterday, the researcher called out numbers in a monotonous voice.

Maybe some other information will slip from the researcher’s mouth?

Hoping for that, I crouched by the bars and observed the outside situation.

“They’re quiet this time.”

“They must have realized it’s pointless to resist.”

“It’s convenient for us. It’s easier to take a step closer to great research.”

The researcher and guards chatted as they walked.

Listening to them, something suddenly occurred to me.

Is there any way to ambush them?

Even if I could just steal one gun…

But a rebellion isn’t something I can do alone.

It would be great if the person across from me cooperated, but…

It’s too dark to see well, but can the person huddled under a blanket in the corner fulfill my request?

I ran a simulation in my head while looking at the CCTV in the corner of the hallway outside the bars.

Somehow, get the collaborator across from me to distract the guards.

While they’re distracted, steal the guard’s gun, aim at the researcher and guards, pull the trigger, and steal the keys to free everyone here.

Once freed, I could incite chaos and find a way to escape.

…The problem is that I need to gather as much information as possible about this place and that I have to kill people.

Setting aside the former, as a modern person living in 21st century Korea, can I kill someone?

Am I prepared to kill to survive in this world I’ve been possessed into?

If asked, I couldn’t confidently say yes.

But I had no desire to die while idly passing time.

It’s unfair to be dragged here while living well, and dying like a dog is crossing the line.

After the researcher left with today’s victims, I spoke to the person in the cell across from me.

“Hey, can you hear me?”

“…”

“Hey?”

“Don’t raise your voice. I can hear you.”

A nervous, thin voice.

From the youthful voice, it seems like a girl.

I felt relieved that she responded.

In a space where despair has swallowed everything, showing an emotional voice means not everything has been let go.

“…Kid. Don’t you want to get out of here?”

“…I’m not a kid. Stupid uncle.”

“Stupid?”

“A person who can’t even use their own ability and points at the air, what else would you call them but stupid?”

Huh, this sarcastic tone feels familiar.

I stared hard at the cell across from me.

There’s no light source in the cell, so I had to discern the person with the hallway light, but as my eyes adjusted to the dark, I could clearly see the face peeking out from the blanket.

And I inadvertently blurted out the identity of the girl in the cell across from me.

“…Seeker?”

A bit younger than I knew, but the villain from the hero project that appeared in a few illustrations.

Seeker.

A young Seeker was across from me.