I’m Trying to End This Possession Chapter 179

* * *

Boiling with rage. For the first time in his life, Rumie understood that phrase. Because that’s exactly what he was feeling now. Faced with such unbearable anger, Rumie simply laughed. It was all he could do.

 

What he had just witnessed made his blood boil. Rumie had been in hiding and saw it all. Every single thing.

 

“Ma-Madam Liz!”

 

Danaena Rolland. Certainly, the woman was his younger sister.

 

“Wait! Madam Liz!”

 

They were dragging her like a dog to be slaughtered.

 

“Kyaa!”

 

Then, she was thrown into the lake like trash.

 

The moment he saw that, Rumie jumped from the tree and ran toward the lake. But someone had dived in before him. It was Carl Windsor, his adoptive father.

 

Rumie watched Carl pull Danaena from the lake. And in that moment, a wave of relief washed over him. As expected, Carl couldn’t possibly be the kidnapper. His adoptive father had rescued Danaena. Maybe Carl had only pretended to side with those people to save her in this life-or-death moment.

 

“Cough, cough!”

 

Danaena collapsed, hacking and gasping. The sight of her suffering was heart-wrenching.

 

Maybe it’s true that blood is running thicker than water. Rumie’s rage hit its limit. A killing intent overtook him—he had to avenge her. So, he raised his rifle and cocked it.

 

The villagers, until then, had looks of disbelief, as if saying ‘He wouldn’t, right?’ or ‘Surely not’. Their faces show that they believed he wouldn’t just shoot right away without any warning, negotiation, or threat…

 

Bang! But Rumie did.

 

“Gah!”

 

First, the man. A bullet lodged cleanly into the forehead of the man who had thrown Danaena into the lake.

 

“Hans!”

 

“Kyaa! Sir Hans!”

 

Bang! Second, the woman is called Madam Liz. The one who had dragged Danaena like a dog. It was a shot to her head.

 

“Kyaaah!”

 

“S-Stop it!”

 

“How could you do this!”

 

“Stop, stop!”

 

“Cease fire!”

 

“S-Stop it! Surrender! We surrender!”

 

Who gave them permission to surrender? Without hesitation, Rumie kept firing. It was an emotionally charged killing spree, rare for him.

 

“Spare me. L-Let’s negotiate! I’ll apologize to the church leader!’

 

Rumie didn’t listen. He just kept shooting anyone he saw.

 

How many had he killed? Eventually, the bullets ran out. Rumie flung the rifle aside, drew his longsword from his hip, and began walking forward. He chased the screaming, fleeing villagers, cutting them down one by one.

 

“Aargh!”

 

Slash! Blood splattered.

 

After slicing down an old priest, Rumie lowered his sword. It was the first time he’d paused since the massacre began.

 

“P-Please spare me!”

 

It wasn’t the plea that made him stop. But because the priest had collapsed beside Danaena, she stared up at him with wide, startled eyes. That gave him a moment’s hesitation. However…

 

It’s too late to act kindly now. He raised his bloodstained blade once more. Stopping now wouldn’t change anything. But then—

 

“Wait!” Danaena stopped him. “Please don’t kill that one.”

 

Rumie tilted his head. Don’t kill him? Why?

 

“I want to ask him something. Please, leave at least one survivor.”

 

“…”

 

Fine. Instead of stabbing the priest, Rumie struck him with the back of his sword and knocked him unconscious. Only then did he take a breath. And only then did he realize—this was an absolutely terrible first meeting.

 

“Hello, Father.” Rumie awkwardly greeted Carl, who was silently staring at him, then smiled sheepishly.

 

What to do now?

 

“Hi, Danaena.”

 

Even so, Rumie greeted her without shame.

 

“A bit much for a first meeting, right?”

 

Haha, he laughed awkwardly and swept back his blood-soaked hair.

 

“I’m your brother, Rumie Rolland.”

 

Their eyes met. Her eyes were the exact same color as his. And looking at those eyes made him realize that she was really his younger sister, someone he must protect for the rest of his life.

 

Rumie smiled warmly as he said his words to her. “I’ve come to get you, Danaena.”

 

A long silence passed.

 

“…Nice to meet you.”

 

Finally, Danaena’s pale lips parted.

 

“Please call me Dana.”

 

At that moment, Rumie was struck with awe. Her voice is beautiful. It was like a soft whisper that tickled his ears.

 

* * *

A little later, the paladins arrived. Rumie spoke to them for a while, then they began collecting the corpses.

 

Dana sat in place, watching him. Rumie.

 

A man with pure silver hair and crimson eyes, just like hers.

 

Rumie Windsor… Rumie. Brother Rumie.

 

Thump thump, thump thump. Her heart pounded quickly.

 

Dana’s memories were slowly beginning to return, like water soaking into cloth. Her moments with Carl, people tied to Carl, and everything tied to Carl. Within those fragments, Dana searched for Rumie.

 

“Your sense of entitlement is suffocating.”

 

Rumie had once hurt her. He even made her cry, leaving her wounded.

 

“Let me go!”

 

“No.”

 

“Brother!”

 

“If I let go? What do you think will happen to you, Dana?”

 

He was also the one who protected her. Even when his body was torn to shreds, he protected her with his life. And…

 

“Say my name, Dana.”

 

Rumie had loved her.

 

Suddenly, a hot flush spread through Dana’s chest. Her ribs ached with the feeling.

 

But why? It seemed Rumie didn’t remember her. What had happened to him?

 

On the other hand, Dana now remembered Rumie. She remembered their time together. Because she remembered Carl Windsor, she could remember Rumie too. It was inevitable since Dana Windsor had always thought of Carl. Whether he was beside her or not, Carl was always on her mind. Even when she was with another man. Even when she was with Rumie or Raios. He was always in a corner of her thoughts. To be precise, it wasn’t Carl, but his ring.

 

Yes. I need the relic. Because she had to return to Yeon Dana.

 

As her memories came flooding back like a receding tide, Dana looked away.

 

“…”

 

Her eyes met Carl’s. She stared at his clear, shameless face—then her gaze lowered. Her gaze stopped on his left middle finger. The finger she, using Ignis, had once severed.

 

A chill tore down Dana’s spine. Not because his severed finger had grown back. But because the relic, the amber gemstone, was still on that finger.

 

“Dana.”

 

It was then.

 

“Do you really hate me that much?” Carl asked the same question as earlier. His voice trembled as if he were confessing his sins. “I’m sorry for being such a wretch…” Then, he covered his face with both hands. The amber gemstone, the relic, gleamed more clearly in front of her eyes. It sparkled as if to mock her.

 

Dana was speechless. What kind of person was Carl? He was the man who once plotted to kill her, but now he’s apologizing? What kind of act is this? Is he just pretending to be kind because Rumie appeared?

 

Well, at least he knows. That he’s a wretched man. But Dana didn’t say that aloud. She couldn’t. All she could do was tremble from the realization.

 

Carl Windsor still has the relic. And he wasn’t even trying to hide it. Even though he must know Dana wants that ring. Even knowing she once tried to cut off his finger for it. He knew—and still didn’t care? Did he think so little of her? Whatever his motive, one thing was clear.

 

B*stard…

 

Dana could not leave Carl’s side. Like the moon trapped by gravity, unable to escape its planet—she was bound to him.

 

“What do you mean? Wretch?”

 

Anger flared up at her, so hot it felt like her hair was burning.

 

“Don’t say things like that, Lord Carl. I’ve never thought of you that way.”

 

Dana had once returned to Yeon Dana but failed. She had returned to this world. And now she understood why. Because her true body, Yeon Dana’s body, was still in this world.

 

Beneath the Mirror Lake, beyond that strange barrier, she had seen it. It was Yeon Dana’s body. I have to get that body back. Only then could she end this possession. To retrieve her body and return again, she needed the relic, just like before.

 

“Ah, wait. My head hurts so much…”

 

After a moment, Carl asked softly, “Dana… do you not remember what just happened?”

 

“I’m not sure. My head hurts terribly, Lord Carl. I remember falling into the lake, but…”

 

Dana suppressed Danae Windsor’s memories, pushed them deep down. Then she brought out the face of Danaena Rolland, the naive woman who loved Carl. It was easy. Because that, too, had been real. That feeling had existed within her.

 

Carl’s eyes trembled. “So… you don’t hate me?”

 

“Me? How could I ever hate you, Lord Carl?” Dana pretended to be hurt by his words, then wrapped her arms around him. “I like you. More than anyone in the world.” And she meant it. She had loved him more than anyone. She even wanted to kiss his lips and fall asleep by his side every night.

 

Dana decided not to kill that feeling. She would nurture it, make it bloom beautifully, and show it to him. So that one day, she could blind him with that and cut off his finger again.