Chapter 245: Layla’s New Power

As a vampire enthusiast, there were many myths that Layla was aware of. There were vampires that could absorb blood through touch, or those that consumed the flesh of humans leaving only the skin, but despite becoming a lesser known vampire type, she was quite familiar with it.

The vetala was something that originated from her home country, and it was known to primarily exist by possessing corpses, hopping from dead body to dead body as it did.

Layla wasn’t actively possessing her own corpse to exist, so there was perhaps some creative liberties when people told stories of the vetala. Either that, or the histories of the undead creature warped over time. Whatever the matter may be, the power she now had would serve as a way for Luke’s body to pretend to be alive.

[Race: Vetala]

[The vetala is a potential evolution of a ghoul that is considered on the higher end of an undead subclass, but not quite the same level as a wight. Due to their immortal nature as an undead, they are seen as quite intelligent with years of wisdom.

Corpse Possession (1/5)

They have the ability to attach their consciousness to a corpse that they have eaten a part of, and possess it. A vetala can put a piece of its spirit to up to 5 corpses, but actively controlling said corpses is up to the skill of the vetala themself. Controlling multiple corpses is a difficult task that requires a ton of concentration, and may leave their original body at risk of being attacked. Lastly, the corpses that a vetala puts a piece of their soul into will rot, but at a reduced rate than normal.

Eating any part of a corpse forces the vetala to put a piece of their spirit into the corpse parts. A controlled corpse part will become unusable once there is no more muscle over the bones. Vetalas may often eat bones because they do not count as something that the vetala ability can control, and will not use up a slot of corpse possession.

Corpse possession has an infinite range.]

Erin thought that the skill was not exactly super combat heavy, but mostly served as utility. In a way, it fit Layla as she wasn’t meant to be an upfront combatant.

’If Layla can see through these possessed corpses, it could serve as a way to get into areas that are otherwise unrestricted,’ Erin thought, ’Or to scout ahead without any worries of danger to ourselves.’

Luke’s body still had a few visible injuries on him, but when Layla possessed him, the biggest ones closed up. Scars remained, but so long as they covered them up, then no one would notice a thing.

"Layla, can you use his ability?" Erin asked.

"No, I cannot," the Luke corpse replied.

It sounded exactly like him, or at least, the voice sounded like him. The tone and inflections were off, but otherwise was surprisingly convincing.

Erin turned to Layla, "Was that you?"

Layla nodded, "Indeed." Her voice flat, devoid of its usual warmth.

"I recommend you two leave the dorm room," Logan said, "I do not know when Luke’s roommates will drop by. Head by my room, and we can discuss this further."

Looking around, they saw that the cleaning robot had actually done a good job fixing the area. There were a few cracks here and there that the robot couldn’t completely conceal, but it would have to do.

The robot folded back into its closed form, and Layla placed it into her shadow space. Since there was nothing else to do, they did as Logan asked.

—

Once they reached Logan’s room, Erin wondered if Layla was still able to possess Luke’s body without line of sight. The skill stated an infinite range, but that didn’t necessarily mean there were no limitations.

"Are you still controlling him?" Erin asked.

"I am also seeing through his eyes" Layla responded, "I currently have him on his bed, ’resting’ as to preserve my concentration."

That was good news, at least.

What couldn’t be said as good news was the way Layla responded. It would have to take getting used to as the normally so expressive girl was acting so coldly.

’System, is there a way for Layla’s old personality to come back?’ Erin thought.

"Like I said before, this will take some time. With a new body comes a new way to process everything," the system responded, "But there’s a chance that as she will learn how to become the Layla she once was."

Despite the explanation, that didn’t make it any less saddening for Erin. Just when she figured out her feelings, a wedge was driven between them.

’I have to trust the system’s words that Layla will figure out how to get through this,’ Erin thought, ’Besides, Layla’s strength now matches my own. With the inter-base tournament tomorrow, we need to take every bit of power we can get.’

Erin then looked at Layla, determined, ’And I have to trust in her capabilities. She’s not fragile, not anymore.’

—

Inside of the dungeon, over a hundred feet underground, Quinn resided in his wooden cell.

This was a specifically crafted cell made specifically for him. Normally, for most earth users, they’d put them in metal holding cells, but Quinn wasn’t normal.

For a while, the military base had tried everything to convince him to work for them. He was a powerful asset with a unique aspect to his ability, it would be foolish not to get him on their side. Their methods ranged from propaganda and promises of freedom to threats of torture.

Of course, none of it worked. Especially not when they’d kidnapped him.

"Honestly, it’s a miracle that the military has even accomplished as much as they have," the system commented.

At least the system voice kept him company.

’How’s Erin doing?’ Quinn asked.

"Why not ask her yourself? You do have the chat function," the system said.

’I don’t want to worry her about my troubles,’ Quinn responded, ’She needs to focus on getting stronger in order to break me free.’

"Ever the selfless one," the system commented.

Quin rose from his bed, ’What’s that supposed to mean?’

The system voice refused to elaborate.

"I’m sure you’ve noticed Layla has evolved. She’s become quite the interesting subclass."

’I’ve read the same inspect skill Erin did,’ Quinn sighed, a little bored.

"Fine, if you want some interesting conversation, then how about breaking out?"

Quinn wasn’t sure why the system voice was asking him that. Surely it would’ve seen his attempts at trying to locate any earth close to his cell, as well as trying to turn the wooden walls into petrified wood.

’And they even took all of my beast gear,’ Quinn thought, angrily clenching his fists, ’They’ll threaten to get rid of my stuff next if they haven’t already...’

Just then, a man in uniform was teleported into the room. He wasn’t wearing any badges of honor, nor any metal clothing, much to Quinn’s dismay.

’With how cautious they are, they know I’m a threat.’ Quinn thought.

"Since you won’t comply to the demands of the military, we have no choice but to resort to drastic measures," the man said, "We are taking you to military base one."