Chapter 10
— I just wanted to protect my ordinary friends as an Awakened One. I was just working for a greater cause, nothing to be praised about. Haha!
“Great, we do all the work, and he gets all the compliments. What an annoying face! I should just turn it off!”
“Oh, come on, why are you turning it off? I was watching that!”
Christine’s annoying little brother Peter snatched the remote and turned the TV back on.
What an irritating eleven-year-old. Even though he’s someone else’s brother, every single word he says is somehow infuriating.
“Oh, you’re so adorable I just want to smack you upside the head repeatedly.”
“Sisters shouldn’t say such mean things to their brothers. And does becoming an Awakened One make people cheesy?”
“Why? You like the change?”
“Who said I liked it?”
Despite his grumbling, he doesn’t seem to mind.
It makes me feel sorry thinking about how Peter used to fear me during the early days of the possession.
Christine was pretty harsh. Why did she act that way even towards her own family?
From conversations with the family and memories left in this body, she seemed to have had a normal personality originally.
She wasn’t on drugs either.
Maybe Peter was right, and she just had an unusually severe case of teenage angst that hit her late.
Well, the family would probably be sad if they knew this daughter and sister could have disappeared from this world.
Watching the family wipe away tears of joy, thinking her troublesome teenage phase has finally ended—not knowing her soul has been switched – made me feel somewhat complicated.
I do feel somewhat guilty about taking over this girl’s body, but it’s not like I did it on purpose.
I should be good to the family from now on. Would they even believe me if I told them the truth? I’d be lucky if they didn’t just think I went crazy in the dungeon.
While I was lost in these thoughts about Christine, the doorbell rang.
Ding-dong~ Ding-dong~
Mom called out to me.
“Kids, looks like we have a guest! Someone go check who it is.”
“Okay!”
I ran lightly to the door and picked up the intercom receiver.
“Who is it? Oh?”
On the intercom screen stood a blonde man as handsome as Alex, wearing a friendly smile.
A casually handsome guy with pierced ears and tastefully distressed jeans.
He looked familiar, and as I wracked my brain, memories from this body started coming back piece by piece.
Jayden Brosnan from next door!
He had an extremely casual personality and an image of a free spirit who wandered around the neighborhood.
“Christine? Long time no see. I have an appointment with your parents.”
What’s that book at his side? This wasn’t his style as far as I knew.
“Mom, it’s Jayden from next door!”
“Oh, Jayden’s here? Let him in.”
When I opened the door, the smiling Jayden stood before my eyes in person.
“Hi, Christine.”
“Welcome.”
I returned his smile out of politeness, but he stared at me for a moment, almost as if puzzled.
Oh no, was I being too un-Christine-like?
“So, uh, have you heard? About the horror dungeon gate. I awakened too. After experiencing all sorts of things there…”
“Oh, I see! That explains it!”
Jayden smiled brightly again. It was the kind of smile you could fall for if you didn’t know what was inside.
“Come on in.”
In the living room, Christine’s mom was setting out some snacks.
“Jayden, welcome! Come sit here.”
I tried to slip away and hang out with Peter, but Mom caught me.
“Christine, you sit too.”
“What? Okay.”
“It’s not mealtime, but you might be hungry, so try some. I baked these cookies myself.”
“Thank you. I’ll enjoy them.”
Before I could even take a bite, Jayden’s eyes widened, and he launched into a reaction so exaggerated it felt like it was tailor-made for doting seniors.
“Oh my! Oh, wow! This is heavenly—like sugar borrowed straight from paradise. I’ve never tasted cookies this amazing in my life!”
“Oh, stop it, you! Why are you exaggerating so much?”
Despite her words, my mother, Julie, seemed pleased, her expression softening with a hint of melancholy.
If I recall correctly, Jayden Brosnan didn’t have a mother when he moved in next door.
Before my possession, he had lived alone with his father, much like I had. His father worked late hours, so they didn’t see each other often.
Apparently, before Christine started acting out, she used to deliver food to him on her mother’s behalf.
“I called Jayden over today because—”
“Mrs. Julie, let me explain!”
Jayden interrupted, grinning brightly.
“I’ve become a wizard!”
Watching him confidently proclaim this, as if he were announcing his candidacy for Pirate King, I paused for a moment, unsure how to react. Was this kid just blissfully clueless, or….?
I hesitated, then decided to test something: using the Sage’s Eye to check his status.
The window opened, confirming he was indeed an awakened one.
[Jayden Brosnan]
[Primary Trait: Ranged Dealer]
[- Light Attribute Wizard]
[Secondary Trait: Locked]
Scrolling through his skills, it was clear he wasn’t lying. He was a solid ranged dealer—practically a protagonist archetype.
Lucky him. A light attribute wizard, huh? Must be nice. Even if his identity gets exposed, he probably won’t have to deal with trolls or hate comments.
Oblivious to my envy, Jayden kept talking.
“I was at church when the gate opened there.”
“You went to church?”
“Ta-da!”
Proudly, Jayden pulled out the book he’d been carrying under his arm.
Bound in thick leather, it looked like the kind of Bible an old church deacon might carry.
Wait, was that his weapon? That didn’t fit his carefree vibe at all.
What’s next—chanting scripture to exorcise demons? If that’s real, it’d be hilarious.
“Mom thinks this, you both went through great danger, right? You might be able to empathize with each other. I happened to run into Jayden in front of the house, so I asked him.”
While thinking, ‘Was that really a coincidence?’, I added appropriate exclamations.
“Ah. What an incredibly, unbelievably perfect timing.”
“He was very worried about you when you were in bad shape. But you coldly drove him away.”
“I did?”
No matter how much I searched through the memories, I couldn’t recall this part.
My eyes rolled and met Jayden’s. He smiled broadly, his blue eyes brighter and deeper than mine.
“Looks like you’ve forgotten everything now. Sometimes in life, people can briefly stray down a dark path due to demonic whispers.”
“Right. Let’s get along well from now on, Jayden Brosnan.”
“I’m glad you’re accepting me. I’ll come by often.”
His earnest response to my hollow words left me feeling uneasy.
As Jayden turned his gaze from me to my mother, he suddenly donned a wounded expression, as if deeply hurt.
“The things I experienced during the Horror Dungeon Gate incident are still so difficult to cope with.”
“Oh my, Jayden. What are we going to do?”
“I’ll be fine. I’ll get better soon, I’m sure. Like you said, Mrs. Julie, I’ll rely on Christine to help me get through this.”
“Oh, Jayden, how kind of you. Please take care of our Christine. You know she only recently came back to her senses. Having you around puts my mind at ease.”
Unlike my mom, I could tell there was something faintly performative about Jayden’s tone as he expressed his emotions.
Why did the cookies suddenly feel so dry? I quickly moistened my throat with juice and jumped up from my seat.
“Yeah, let’s overcome it together~”
I threw Jayden a limp fist pump for effect and added,
“Mom, I have an essay to work on during the break, so I’ll head up to my room now. Jayden, have a great time with my mom. Byeee.”
After quickly delivering this soulless goodbye, I fled upstairs to my room.
But Jayden followed me.
“Christine, can I hang out in your room?”
“No! You can’t just enter a girl’s room as you please.”
Hearing our conversation, my mom chimed in.
“Christine, is your room messy again?”
“Yes, it’s an absolute pigsty!”
I crossed my arms in a firm X toward Jayden.
“So, no, Jayden.”
“Come on, I’ll show you some magic.”
“I’ll just watch magic on a game screen, thanks!”
“Other girls loved it when I showed them my magic. Why not you?”
“Then go show it to your girlfriends—”
Before I could even turn the doorknob, Jayden caught my wrist.
“I don’t have any girlfriends, Christine~”
He gently lifted my wrist and opened the Bible with his other hand.
The Bible began to glow and transformed into a grimoire as he used his skill. Well, that’s kind of cool.
I felt warm energy seeping into me along with the light.
Jayden looked down at me while firmly gripping my wrist, which I’d forgotten to pull away in my surprise at the magic skill.
“How does it feel?”
“Ugh…”
“It’s painful, isn’t it? Unbearable, exhausting?”
Jayden’s previously soft eyes narrowed, and his grip tightened around my hand.
“It’s hot! I’m already sensitive to heat. What is this, solar magic or something?”
When I hastily wiped the sweat from my forehead, Jayden tilted his head with round eyes.
“…That shouldn’t be possible.”
Thank you for reading! ♡
