Episode 01: I seem to have been possessed in a novel.
When news broke that Muriel Storm could be the Saint of the Oracle that had re-appeared after 12 years, the kingdom was turned upside down.
People cautiously speculated that the oracle might be false or that the temple’s credibility’s lifespan had come to an end, causing anger among the populace.
Who was Muriel?
She was the one who popularized the phrase “a typhoon is brewing” in the kingdom. This phrase was used when someone caused a malicious disturbance to gain attention at a ball or the academy.
Muriel’s name was synonymous with delusional, neurotic, absent-minded, and pathological lying from a young age.
She seemed willing to do anything for fame.
On some days, she would lie about freezing an entire lake where the spirits lived, and on other days, she would claim to have developed magic that could revive a dead person for one minute.
Naturally, no one believed her words. Everyone knew how inept Muriel was at magic. She couldn’t even conjure a small candle-sized flame. Whenever she attempted fire magic, thunder would suddenly strike, and when she tried water magic, sparks would inexplicably burst out 1km away. Every time Muriel attempted to use magic, disaster struck.
Muriel was skilled at lying nonchalantly. Yesterday, she would solemnly swore to give up her life, but the next day, she would shamelessly claim not to remember a thing about it.
She was so adept at lying without a hint of hesitation that even magic couldn’t determine whether she was lying or not. It meant that she genuinely believed her own lies, so people naturally became sick of her.
When it was suggested that such a person might become the Saint who would foretell the threats to the Imperial family, people were confused, frustrated, and dumbfounded.
Those who’d never met in person said that the lies Muriel told in her childhood might’ve been a sign of being a Saint, while some believed she might have actually made some prophecies. However, they were just saying that because they didn’t know anything.
A Saint was someone who saw threats to the kingdom, not their own future. The Saints foretold who would pose a threat to the kingdom, when and where it would happen, and what the consequences would be if the threat was not averted.
But what about Muriel?
She wasn’t predicting other people’s actions. She wasn’t the least bit interested in that. Muriel was only ever interested in making people aware of how special she was, the great power she had, and what strange things she’d done.
If Muriel was the saint, was the only threat to the kingdom herself? Muriel, who was terrible at magic?
People believed firmly that Muriel was not the Saint. No, they desperately hoped she wasn’t. When the second candidate for the Saint was revealed, people were ecstatic and relieved.
The second candidate was the beloved Rovelia Dachini. Not just any noble lady, but the noble lady of a Guardian family. Throughout history, there had never been a Saint from the Guardians House. So what a special saint she would be.
“The Saint is Rovelia anyway. There’s no point in me going.”
“But don’t you have to go to the high priest to figure that out? And even if you’re not the Saint, what an honor it is either way! You must sincerely congratulate her, Miss. If you’re greedy for what belongs to others, you’ll be punished.”
The maid thought Muriel was stubborn out of jealousy. Muriel and Rovelia were the same age, so they grew up being compared to each other from a young age. Perhaps it wasn’t just a coincidence that the two people born under the same star of fate ended up competing for the prestigious position of the Saint. But before they could even open the lid, everyone was talking like Rovelia was already a saint. She thought Muriel must be offended.
It was Muriel’s jealousy that the maid considered worse than her lies and inept noble etiquette and manners. Someone with no ability but a lot of greed was an ugly sight. If she could just get rid of her greed, Muriel could marry into a decent family and live a comfortable, loved life… But her desires were so overwhelming that she usually ended up resorting to saying obvious lies.
The servant had intended to gently persuade Murie by appeasing herl, but unknowingly ended up provoking her. Apart from Katrina, who had been Muriel’s governess, she was the one in the mansion who cared the most about Muriel.
Katrina was not only Muriel’s governess but also a therapist who managed her delusions, neurosis, pretenses, and absent-mindedness. After meeting Katrina, Muriel stopped telling obvious lies or indulging in extravagant delusions.
However, three days before the oracle was announced, Katrina left for a foreign country. She said she wouldn’t be able to return for at least three months, possibly up to a year at the longest. Until she returned, would the responsibility of cleaning up after her immature young lady fall on the maid? The servant already felt a throbbing headache coming on.
Muriel didn’t care what the servant thought. She truly believed the Saint in the Oracle was Rovelia.
“The problem is not who the saint is. The real problem is…”
“Is there a problem, young lady?”
When Muriel refused to go, Sharan’s knights came up to her door and asked.
Muriel bit her lip, her pale face stiffening. She was troubled. Even if she hung on a little longer, she would eventually have to obey Sharan’s command and go to the royal palace.
“I just want to be alone for a moment.”
Even if it was just for a short while, she wished she could gather her thoughts about this insane situation by herself…
“You have to leave right now. Do you intend to keep Sharan and Miss Rovelia waiting?”
If she had a little more time, she might have been able to handle this situation with more composure. But to be thrown into this situation so suddenly…!
“Isn’t this a novel-like situation?”
“What? Are you saying something crazy again? Stop being delusional and take off that dull dress. It’s not like you’re Ur’s follower, why would you choose such a dark dress…”
‘That doesn’t matter…! After all, I’m the villainess who will bring about the destruction of the world anyway.’
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
Muriel had valid reasons to conclude she was trapped inside a novel. In fact, there were too many reasons, to the point it was a problem. If she were to number them, it seemed like they would easily surpass 10.
No, should she try numbering them after all?
Number 1. Muriel woke up from a three-day long sleep right before the transmigration. It was a common cliché in transmigration novels for the main characters to either fall into a coma or be on the verge of death before the transmigration.
The difference was that Muriel was a loner, neglected young lady in a mansion, and no one knew the cause of her long sleep. The fact that she hadn’t left her bed was also only belatedly discovered after two days.
Number 2. Muriel had no recollection of the past three months. When she woke up, she thought it was April, but it was already July. The Star of Calamity that rose again after six years had already fallen.
Amnesia patterns were often seen in novels, particularly in villains or extras instead of the main characters. Muriel seemed to have transmigrated into a novel about a villainous main character that brought about the destruction of the world, but she still had partial memory loss anyway. This was evidence that overlapped with the third reason.
Number 3. Muriel had numerous gaps in her memories.
Her memories were so sporadic that it couldn’t be considered a natural degradation of memory over time.
This could only be attributed to the characteristics of a novel.
Since the novel only focused on significant events, the gaps between those events must’ve led to the gaps in Muriel’s memories.
Muriel was already convinced that she had been possessed by the novel with just these three things, but the evidence continued to pile up.
Number 4. Muriel understood what the saying ‘You can survive even if you step into a tiger’s den if you remain mentally alert’ meant. Even though there were no tigers in Bulrion!
Furthermore, Muriel was aware of the existence of smartphones, computers, various coins, SNS, Social media, the melancholic expressions of people walking in high-rise cities, the murky sky due to air pollution, and the discomfort of crowded subway trains.
Although it was a little strange that she was still Muriel even there, there was no law stating that there couldn’t be a woman named Muriel Storm with blue hair living in Seoul in the modern global world.
Number 5. It was the most decisive and least desirable reason: Muriel already knew in advance that the Oracle was coming down. It was something she’d already seen in the novel. Entering the palace after the Oracle was announced was the beginning of the story.
Upon entering the royal palace after being called for by the Oracle, Muriel would soon obtain a fragment piece of the Sculpture of Ur. It was a bait thrown by the Demon King Ur to eliminate her.
According to Ur’s plan, Muriel should have lost all of her Pacio and transformed into a demon, but she had a unique ability.
That ability was that her Pacio was infinite.
It was an invincible ability that made no sense.
With this, Muriel proved to be a character in a novel. In other words, she had the main character’s buff.
Muriel’s Pacio was small in size, but that small Pacio regenerated infinitely. Like a well that never dried up, it would replenish itself when used.
With the infinite regenerating Pacio and the piece of Ur that allowed her to wield powerful magic as long as she had Pacio, Muriel became a powerful wizard. She even ascended to the throne. Many people lost their lives in the process.
Just this alone was enough to make her a terribly wicked villain, but it seemed the author wanted an even stronger and more provocative villainess, so they ultimately made her into a Demon Queen.
After Muriel ascends the throne, Kaiton Ur, the real owner of the sculpture of Ur, comes to her. Muriel loses her life to him. However, Muriel doesn’t give up and on the day the star of calamity rises again, resurrects herself as a Demon Queen. Then, she brings about the destruction of the world.
What do you mean destruction of the world?
What do you mean ‘Demon Queen’?
Just the thought of it sent shivers down her spine.
If this weren’t a novel, what else could it be called?
Muriel, or rather the real Muriel who possessed the evil woman, didn’t hate the world. She had no intention of bringing about its destruction. She neither desired power nor sought authority.
‘It’s fortunate that I possessed her at the beginning of the novel.’
If she’d possessed Muriel after her first victim fell, it would have been troublesome. But since nothing had happened yet, it should be easy to withdraw.
“I just have to not touch the piece of Ur, right?”
Once the identity of the saint is revealed, no one will have any more interest in Muriel. At that time, she could quietly disappear.
“Alright, let’s go for now.”
Whenever a character says they just have not to do something, you know they’re absolutely going to do it, and I eat it up everytime.
