≈ Chapter 4 ≈
When the Possessor first woke up, he was confused.
A strange, luxurious ceiling was right in front of his eyes.
But he quickly realized the truth.
He had possessed someone else’s body.
He looked into a mirror.
A ridiculously beautiful girl was staring back at him.
The Possessor cheered to himself.
Then he carefully watched the people around him.
The Possessor’s first stroke of luck was that, even though he had no idea there had already been thirty-two Possessors before him, he instinctively acted with caution.
From all the novels, movies, and comics he had read for fun, he knew that the most important thing was to figure out what kind of world he had entered.
And the second stroke of luck for the Possessor—also known as Number Thirty-Three—came from Anais’s nanny, Anne.
Anne had scolded him,
“Oh my, Miss. You’re asking questions just like those Possessors. I’m busy right now. If you ask me one more question, I’ll report that there’s a thirty-third Possessor to the Dragon Lord!”
Report a Possessor.
Number Thirty-Three focused on those words.
It was obvious that getting caught as a Possessor was something he had to avoid.
So he secretly investigated.
The result was unbelievable.
There had already been thirty-two Possessors before him.
And every one of them had caused trouble famous enough to spread across the whole continent.
Some tried to seduce the Crown Prince.
Some tried to marry the Grand Duke of the North.
Others even went directly to the Dragon.
In the end…
They were all executed by the Dragon.
Every single one of the thirty-two.
“Just what kind of story is this?”
Number Thirty-Three was shocked, but he quickly calmed himself down.
There was no way to figure out exactly what novel this was.
If someone lined up every romance fantasy novel that had a Grand Duke of the North, a Dragon, and a Crown Prince, it would probably circle the Earth.
Still, he learned a few things for certain.
The owner of this body was Anais Fleur.
She had been bedridden with a spring cold around this time.
She was rich.
Beautiful.
Loved by everyone.
The princess of this little kingdom.
For Number Thirty-Three, who had spent his previous life tricking people before dying in a car accident while running away…
It was far more than he deserved.
He thought for a moment.
Did I save the Earth in my previous life?
No.
Did I save someone’s life?
No.
Instead of wondering what good deeds he might have done before, Number Thirty-Three started thinking about how to make the most of this new life.
It might seem like he changed his attitude quickly.
But swindlers survived by changing their attitude whenever necessary.
It was only natural.
Anyway, Number Thirty-Three had several choices.
- Since he had entered the body of a kind girl, turn over a new leaf and live honestly.
- Since she was basically a princess, find a good husband and enjoy life.
- Since she came from a rich family, simply enjoy the wealth.
- Just enjoy life somehow.
He could eat delicious food three times a day, lie around doing nothing, and nobody would complain.
Most people would choose to spend the rest of their lives enjoying such luxury.
But Number Thirty-Three made a different choice.
When ordinary people dreamed of working honestly, saving money, and building a warm family…
He chose fraud.
He looked through Anais’s life and thought,
“With a background like this, I could cheat a few people, and nobody would complain over a little money.”
After making up his mind, he threw away every other option.
Instead of living comfortably without working…
He made the surprising choice to cheat other people.
Sitting on the bed, he quietly observed Anais’s friends who had come to visit her while she was sick.
Like most friendships among nobles, everyone stayed close because they all had something to gain.
Of course…
The others benefited much more from Anais.
At least, that had been true before Number Thirty-Three arrived.
No one realized that Anais had become a completely different person.
Naturally.
Around that time, Number Thirty-Three had found the heart-shaped diary hidden under Anais’s bed.
He deliberately used it to imitate Anais.
It worked perfectly.
Besides…
Anais was admired by everyone around her.
In modern terms, she had the perfect reputation to earn money by promoting products on social media without breaking advertising laws.
Little by little…
Number Thirty-Three began taking advantage of the people around him.
He started with skincare lotion.
Then he promoted small products like soap and face cloths.
Soon he was persuading people to invest.
“Is the Fleur family struggling financially?”
Some young ladies laughed as they asked that.
Number Thirty-Three simply smiled brightly.
“If you’re not interested, then I’ll leave.”
He calmly walked away.
Instead…
The few young ladies who invested small amounts simply to maintain their friendship received enormous profits.
So much money that their eyes nearly popped out.
It was a classic scam.
Once the rumors spread…
Everything moved quickly.
People began saying,
“Miss Fleur has a real talent for business.”
Anais’s parents proudly held their heads high.
Normally, it was considered improper for an unmarried noble lady to do business with her family’s money.
But Number Thirty-Three had only started with the allowance Anais had carefully saved.
He had learned about it from her diary.
So from her parents’ point of view…
Although what she was doing looked somewhat unladylike…
It wasn’t serious enough to stop.
If anything, they believed she was increasing her future dowry.
Only Anais’s grandfather frowned when he visited after a long time.
“Stop doing such vulgar things.”
“Oh my, Grandfather.”
Anais placed a hand against her cheek and acted surprised.
“Don’t you trust me?”
By then, her grandfather was so old that he could no longer leave his bed.
But his mind was still perfectly clear.
The wrinkles on his forehead deepened.
He quietly dismissed everyone else from the room.
When they were finally alone…
He spoke in a threatening voice.
“Who are you? My granddaughter doesn’t speak like that.”
Number Thirty-Three clicked his tongue.
I got caught sooner than I expected.
Even so…
He shamelessly burst into tears.
“Grandfather, you’re so cruel. What have I done wrong?”
“My granddaughter always says, ‘Anais,’ when talking about herself.”
“Oh.”
The old man froze.
Number Thirty-Three smiled sweetly.
“Thank you. Anais didn’t know that.”
“You…!”
The old man had dismissed everyone because he loved his eldest granddaughter too much.
If this evil thing had possessed her…
He could simply call magicians to drive it out.
But…
What if that process damaged his granddaughter’s reputation?
That was what he feared.
Instead…
His kindness became his tragedy.
The old man tried to stand up.
But Number Thirty-Three ran out of the room while crying.
“Grandfather doesn’t even recognize the Anais he loves anymore!”
Her parents hurried to comfort their crying daughter.
The old man almost shouted that his granddaughter was a Possessor.
Then he stopped himself.
Because he also knew what had happened to the previous thirty-two Possessors.
Every single one of them had been taken by the Dragon…
And sent back across the Rainbow.
In other words…
They died.
But the original owners of those bodies never came back.
Not even one.
After every Possessor left…
Only a corpse remained.
Would exposing this creature really bring back his beloved granddaughter?
No.
So…
The old man chose to pretend he had become senile.
He acted as though his mind had failed him…
Even while facing the swindler pretending to be his precious granddaughter.
He wished for only one thing.
While he bought as much time as possible…
May his beloved granddaughter return.
The head of the Fleur family was moved to a distant resort to recover.
Naturally, Anais’s parents became busy handling the family’s affairs.
They had no time to watch Anais closely.
And so…
Only the stage remained…
For Number Thirty-Three, wearing the mask of Anais Fleur.
Number Thirty-Three skillfully filled people’s hearts with dreams of getting rich overnight.
Peaceful Belfast slowly fell into chaos.
The nobles of the small kingdom eagerly brought him their spare money…
Dreaming of striking it rich.
After all…
Most people received several times more money than they invested.
But “most” also meant…
Someone always lost.
Whenever that happened…
Miss Fleur would calmly place a document in front of the victim.
It was called an investment agreement.
“I’m sorry. But what can I do? You signed it yourself…”
Far more people earned money than lost it.
So those who lost believed they had simply been unlucky.
Then…
They invested again.
An enormous amount of money flowed into Anais Fleur’s hands.
But eventually…
One person became two.
Two became three.
Then four.
Then five.
Someone finally realized that something was wrong.
By the time six people had lost money…
Even the King of Belfast heard the rumors.
When the seventh victim appeared…
It was already too late.
Even her parents could no longer stop Anais.
The debt had already become greater than the entire fortune of the Fleur family.
But Number Thirty-Three simply hummed happily and stood in front of her parents.
“Debt is an asset too. Didn’t you know?”
Using the excuse that they needed to care for the family’s elder…
He sent Anais’s parents away.
To everyone else…
It simply looked as though their wonderful eldest daughter had arranged skilled guards to escort them safely to a peaceful resort.
Far away…
The old head of the Fleur family began praying that his real granddaughter would never return.
But wishes…
Always came true at the worst possible moment.
And besides…
This wasn’t the Possessor’s story.
So…
Anais returned.
At the worst possible moment…
In the worst possible condition.
