novelraw Chapter 9 : Chapter 9
Chapter 9 : Chapter 9
Chapter 9. Brat
In the capital city of Nall of the Mosonrei Kingdom.
On this day, Stano Banson, the son of a kingdom general, did not know the date, nor what season it was, nor what the surroundings were like.
He only knew that the weather today was fine.
Ordinarily, this would have been a day that left no impression at all in the memories of this general’s son. But because of one experience, this day would be remembered by little Mr. Stano forever.
He had discovered that sometimes, he could not rely on his will to move his arms and legs normally, and before his eyes would often flash very strange scenes.
It seemed to be a rather backward village, with people living there under poor conditions.
Backwards, barren.
That was all the impression he had of that village.
After all, in the education this dark-skinned boy had received, he knew little about such environments.
“What’s happening to me?”
Because of his mischievous nature and childish curiosity, Stano had not told the maid who cared for him, nor his parents or brothers. He simply kept it as “his secret,” wanting to see what more he could find out.
That entire day, Stano Banson hid in the garden behind his family’s estate, or else stayed in his room.
This puzzled his parents, because Stano was not normally the kind of child content to sit quietly alone. He would usually clamor to ride horses or play with companions.
But his mother thought, staying calm once in a while was not a bad thing. So she had his father leave him space, so he could “reflect on life.”
Thus this dark-skinned brat gained time to play with a new “toy,” delighting in it.
Because he found, this time, the toy was a person.
......
This was also a day Leticia would never forget.
First, she had nearly embarrassed herself in the church. Though she had smoothed it over, it could lead to countless unpredictable consequences in the future. Then, she had been unable to control her own movements, nearly exposing herself before unwitting villagers, risking being accused of “possessed” or “devil-touched”......
Far too dangerous!
Finally, Leticia realized the truth: it was not that her body had some incurable disease, nor that she was possessed, but that within her body there truly was another’s will, competing with her for control......
From her observation and testing, the other seemed to be a boy, not very old, haughty in tone, likely from some noble household, and very disobedient.
She could not form an image of him in her mind. All communication was forced through her own mouth. Truly, Leticia had experienced what it meant to “have words you cannot speak.”
So it went, until after spending the whole afternoon, Leticia finally pieced the situation together.
Sometime today, without her knowing when, a fragment of consciousness of a foreign noble brat (very likely), not from this country—(obviously so, since people from the Intis Kingdom spoke with a certain official-like cadence, while this brat had no such accent)—suddenly invaded her body and seized part of the control.
The most tragic part: as the body’s current owner, she could not fight back!
What did that mean? It meant that if this nameless brat wanted to use her body to do something, she had no power to stop it!
What kind of wretched priority system was that?!
Complaints aside, Leticia still thought carefully. Perhaps it was connected to her identity—she was a transmigrator, not the body’s original soul, so naturally there would be some barrier. Or perhaps the body itself had not fully accepted her yet?
Regardless, having no control over her own body was utterly frustrating, yet she could do nothing.
Luckily, the brat was not completely unreasonable. After much persuasion, he grudgingly agreed to a temporary truce, letting her breathe for a while.
“Uncle, I’m home.”
When she returned, Leticia saw that Uncle John had already come back earlier and was putting away his farm tools.
“Oh, Leticia, welcome back. You were gone for quite some time.”
John turned and smiled kindly at the little girl. “You must be hungry. I’ll make dinner.”
“Alright, I’ll help too!”
Leticia nodded, flipping her hair, and followed her uncle into the kitchen.
Their dinner was two hard black loaves of bread and two bowls of porridge boiled from wheat.
To call it porridge was generous—it was more like slightly thickened water. It had no flavor. Leticia simply treated it as an aid to keep from choking on the bread.
“Thank goodness that brat can’t hear my thoughts, only what I see and hear. Otherwise, the trouble would be endless......”
She sipped the bland porridge and gnawed on the bread, silently brooding.
“And even that brat seemed just as confused as me about what was happening between us, like he didn’t cause it at all......”
“Leticia? Leti? What are you thinking?”
“Ah, ah! Cough, cough...... What? Sorry, Uncle, I was distracted......”
Almost choking, she coughed for a long while before calming down. Apologetically, she asked, “What is it, Uncle?”
“Nothing, I just wanted to ask, what did the Priest call you for?”
Seeing she was fine, John withdrew the hand patting her back.
“Oh, that......”
Leticia smiled. “Uncle, have you heard of the ‘Path of Sanctity’?”
She had intended only to ask whether her uncle knew of it. But once again, her mouth moved on its own: “The ‘Path of Sanctity’ is a reward occasionally enacted by the Church when news arises worthy of shaking its high council. Especially for the faithful, beyond the formal recruitment of Priests and clerics, additional candidates may be admitted. It is a blessing.”
“Mm......!”
Startled, Leticia quickly added to her dazed uncle: “I was only repeating what the Priest said. This time, the Priest told me I have potential to enter the Church! Mm!”
Hadn’t they agreed not to blurt things out randomly?!
Though she had learned some unknown details from the brat’s mouth, information she could not control was better left unsaid!
“Oh, that’s wonderful!”
John’s eyes lit up instantly. Excitedly gripping her shoulders, he said, “Child, you must seize this chance! If you can really enter the Church, it will be the greatest honor!”
“Uh, I’ll do my best......”
Leticia’s face looked odd, her voice weak.
How could she do her best......
Thanks to that brat’s interference today, she was stuck in a corner, forced to resign herself to fate......
What a joke—her greatest fear was being dragged into a place steeped in mysterious powers. If this world encouraged open cultivation of such forces, fine, she would not stand out. But the problem was......
This was a world under the Church’s iron rule, where all heresy was hunted down and burned at the stake!