*Tick, tick, tick...*
The clock hands moved in sync, hitting twelve. It was dark out and Kane had finally finished closing up the fast-food restaurant he worked at. Moving to the backroom, he inserted his employee card into the machine and clocked off.
Leaving through the backdoor, Kane pulled out his phone, opened his WebNovel app and began walking. Preoccupied with scrolling through his list of novels, he failed to notice the hooded figure sneaking up to him. A hand clamped over his mouth and he felt cold metal against his back.
"Give me everything you-"
Instinctively fighting, Kane jerked his elbow backward and hit the figure away. Falling back, the robber reached for something to hold onto and-
*BANG!*
A blinding hot pain shot through Kane's chest, followed by the cold sensation of the night air. He fell to his knees, then fully collapsed. Turning around, Kane could see the robber running out the alley. He almost chuckled at the sight, but coughed out blood instead.
'Is this how I die? In a filthy alleyway, in my work uniform?'
He snickered at the thought, before breaking into a full on laugh. Sticky, warm blood pooled beneath him.
'I think the blood loss is making me delirious.'
His vision swam and he felt his hands cool.
'I don't wanna die yet, I'm still too young. I don't wanna die. I don't wanna die. I don't wanna...'
His vision faded, darkness overtaking him.
...
|Welcome, new user. Congratulations on joining the Ghost System!|
The sound of text-to-speech entered Kane's ears, shocking him awake. In front of him was a floating screen, the words the text-to-speech has said repeated on it.
"What..?" he muttered, "Where am I..? Wasn't I about to die?"
Looking around, he was met with stone bricks and iron bars, resembling a dungeon cell. Looking through the bars, Kane spotted three cells holding corpses, all wearing modern clothes.
He scrambled back, fear gripping his chest and blood pumping through his body.
*Clack, clack, clack...*
Footsteps echoed through the stone brick halls. Coming into view was a man in grand robes and a crown, a king. Trailing behind him was a man in long sleeved shirt and pants, carrying a sword. The man bore a wide, gleeful smile.
The king began speaking.
"Ah. You're finally awake. He's all yours, hero."
He walked away and the grinning man's smile grew wider. He grabbed the bars and bent them wide before stepping in. He dashed towards Kane, swiping his sword.
|Danger detected! Granting Skill: [Possession] early!|
'What?' Kane thought, throwing himself away from the sword, 'What's a Skill? Where am I?'
|[Possession] allows the user to take control of a victim's body after meeting its requirements.|
'That's not what I-' he ducked, narrowly dodging another slash, 'Not what I asked!'
The man's swings, while fast, had very obvious trajectories which allowed Kane to predict their movement. Backing himself into a corner, Kane slid between the man's legs, causing the sword to miss and embed itself between a gap in the bricks.
|[Possession] has two variants: body control and mind control. Body control can be activated by making skin contact for 10 seconds, while mind control can be activated by causing your target fear or reverence 3 times.|
'Wow, real helpful!'
The man abandoned his sword and began wildly swinging his fists, breaking brick with every missed punch.
Kane weaved through the flurry, slowly approaching the bent metal bars, careful to not allow the man to notice his goal.
'Wait,' he thought, 'Uh, System? Ghost System? Whatever you're called?'
|How could I be of assistance, user?|
'Does the skin contact have to be unbroken?'
|[Possession] requires total time spent making skin contact, not unbroken time.|
'Okay, sick!'
Changing his plans, Kane weaved towards the man and-
*THWACK!*
-slapped him.
10
The man froze at the slap before turning turning to Kane. Lifting his fist, he grabbed Kane and slammed him onto the ground. Then, he began speaking.
9
"You have the audacity to slap me!?" 8 "Me, who was chosen to kill the Demon King," 7 "ME, who was given permission to kill anyone to become stronger!?" 6 "ME, who- Why are you smiling." 5 "DO YOU THINK THIS IS FUNNY!?"
At that, Kane burst into laughter.
"You..! I'll kill you!"
4
The ma raised his fist, muscles bulging out.
"SAY YOUR LAST GOODBYES!"
3... 2... 1.
He fell limp mid swing, his hand landing beside Kane's head.
"Take your hands off me."
The man's body moved, releasing Kane from his grasp, but his eyes clearly showed an unfathomable rage.
"Now, bring me to the king."
The body moved, and Kane followed. Up a flight of stairs, through a few halls, then finally into a throne room. He could smell smoked turkey, sweet corn and a whole slew of other foods.
'Now, how do I sneak in?' Kane wondered, 'The king probably has a few guards, so I can't just waltz in there. I could hide behind this guy's back, but I doubt the king only has one-'
|You are able to enter the bodies of those under the effects of [Possession] by making skin contact.|
'Why wasn't I told this sooner!?'
|Considering the urgent nature of your previous interaction, you had been grabted [Possession] early and skipped the tutorial.|
'Ugh,' he groaned, 'Whatever.'
He placed his hand on the man's soldier, and was transported into a room seemingly made of flesh.
"Alright," he muttered, "How do I control this guy?"
|Direct control is only possible through [Possession]'s mind control variant. You are still able to give commands from within this room.|
"Oh. Walk into the room, man."
The body walked into the throne room and approached the king, who laughed out a greeting.
"Ah, hero! Since you're here, I assume you're done killing that weakling. Well done! Now, come sit down and enjoy the food. This celebration is for you, after all!"
A moment passed, the body didn't move.
'Oh, right! The body doesn't do anything unless I tell it to!'
"Uh, sit next to the-"
"Are you alright? You seem... off."
It was too late to give any commands, the king had already picked up on the body's inconsistencies.
"Kill the guards."
The body moved at the command. Kane leaned forward, pressing against the walls of the red room. They resisted, then relented, then-