“There! That should be good enough.”

“Are you fucking kidding me right now? That’s a squirrel.”

“And your point is?”

“My point? You really expect me to possess a squirrel? I wouldn’t even be able to talk. How am I supposed to be of any use?”

“I see. Then how about a corpse. Someone that died recently. Can’t you put your soul in an empty body?”

“No. It doesn’t work like that. I can’t take over something that’s dead. I need a functional, living breathing human body. And I will put emphasis on the word “human”. Although there are other races like elves, dwarves and demons, it has to be a human. Other races generally have a larger amount of mana. If I were to mix my own, the body might pop like a balloon. Human mana is the most compatible.”

She’s not having any of this it seems. I’ve been trying to avoid taking someone else’s life. Since basically that’s what’s going to happen. Possession is a form in which someone takes over a compatible body. The memories of the vessel are replaced by the one doing the possession. Nobody actually knows if the vessel will die, but if done correctly, the body can never be returned, as it will also suffer physical changes. It will try to match the new host.

I purposely went in the opposite direction of the village that was close to Olivia’s mountain. But I need to think of a solution here.

“Will any human body work?”

“Yes, although it would be preferable for it to be a female body. Gender disorder can be something hard to deal with.”

Tell me about it. That much, I’ll be compassionate. I don’t want anyone to go through something like what the Goddess did to me. I guess my best bet would be to find an evil woman or something. Honestly I don’t want a guilty conscience. Although at this point I feel like the world is my enemy. Would I even feel guilty? What do I owe this world to begin with? I have no strength to spare for a world that turns its back on me. 

We continued down a neglected highway. The path along the riverbed did not feel like an actual road to me. I could finally encounter the inhabitants of this world, but something about the atmosphere was off. Eventually, I could sense a smell in the air. Something… was cooking. After 6 months of eating raw meat with mother, I know the scent of cooked food far too well.

I started sneaking around and getting close to the smell. It's been so long since I smelled cooked food. Eventually, a bit deeper in the forest I saw a group of people. 10 shady people around a campfire with a big pot placed above it. 

"Aight men, this is almost done. If we're lucky, today is going to be our last day of camping outside. Once we deliver the goods, we're going to enjoy ourselves for a long time!"

The one that was cooking, spoke those words. Judging by his muscular physique, bald head and rugged beard, this guy is the leader of this bunch. It's time for my Perfect Vision.

Scenario analysis: leather equipment, 10 people that are in desperate need of a shower, wielding various weapons camping in the woods… taking into account the discussion from earlier. These guys are bandits. No doubt about it. The gear they have… are they children?

It sucks so bad. Those weapons look like beginner starter gear in an MMO. Complete garbage. Regardless, it's none of my business. I just came here because of the smell. No need to get myself involved with them.

"Yufi, wait. Look over there! Next to the tree 3 feet left from the group."

Lu-chan pointed out something. Tied to a tree there was a beautiful girl. She has a noble aura and a fighting spirit. I can't see a drop of fear in her eyes. Is that girl supposed to be the merchandise those guys were talking about?

"She's quite a beauty too. And her body proportions leave room for alterations. Her mana is decent also. Yufi, that would be a perfect candidate for my new body."

"You're asking me to save a girl from bandits just so you can take her body?"

"Will you cut it out with the moral lecture already? Listen, you don't owe anything to anyone. Cleaning up those bandits would do so much good to society. What's wrong with a little collateral damage? Besides, look at her shoulder."

I enhance my eye sight with magic. On her right shoulder she did have a mark. It wasn't something made recently. I saw that mark in Olivia's scrolls. It's a mark humans use for deserters. Was this woman part of some army? When the army captures a person that flees from battle or does not follow given orders, a mark with a broken sword is branded on their bodies.

"See? Someone who doesn't follow orders… someone who runs away all the time with no purpose… wouldn't it be an act of kindness to let them rest and put that body to a proper use?"

"Okay, okay. I get it. You win. Now just shut up until I figure out how to approach this one."

If I wanted to save a woman, I’d have to take care of the 10 bandits that could kill without hesitation. However, going out and simply yelling “Stop it, you guys” wasn’t going to cut it. Olivia told me to always be cautious. 

If this were the game, then my current powerful equipment would allow me to be alright if I challenged them. However in reality, the outcome could bend to the will of chance. These guys can't harm me, but they could always try using the girl as a meat shield.

There is only one strategy I can obtain certain victory with, I need to launch a surprise attack. It will all come down to how many I can remove within the initial action. However, the odds will be highly in my favor with this plan. After all, I can always use [Rift Walk] if the attack fails. First, I should take down the strongest looking one.

Battle plan established. Threat level: minimal. Taking everything into consideration, victory chance is: 98%

Yosh. I'm all set. I immediately dashed towards my target with great speed. 

My sword whipped out from its sheath, the mythical grade weapon Aetherius, was ready to release a little of the power capable of cutting down trees with one stroke. 

At once, I was behind the bandits.

──When asking the result, the surprise attack was a great success. Rather, it was an overwhelming victory.

Before they could even realize what happened to them, four people were already rendered incapable. One single swing of my sword was all it took to split their bodies in half. It felt like I was cutting pudding. Surprisingly, I felt no remorse when killing.

"What the hell just happened!"

"Boss!!"

"Did that thing take them out with one slash? This is bad."

The remaining six bandits were prepared to pick up their weapons. This can't even be called a pvp. These are just trash mobs. To take them all out… this should be enough.

"[Chilling Slash]!"

The beam of ice generated by my sword fully hit the remaining 6 bandits and turned them into dust. Honestly I could have handled this with just my bare fists.

"That's really all it took? The ability level of these people is so weak."

Well, with those out of the way, it's time to focus on the task at hand now.