Psychic Parasite

Chapter 161: Taking a Guess, Being an Empath
The process of corroding the white layer on the memory fragments consumed a lot of time, with the energy requirement putting a massive drain on him. There was a limit to his digestion speed, even though the rate of the breakdown of the food in his stomach had been accelerated a little.

’As long as I prevent the ego from forming again, I have more than enough time. Moreover, once my Brain Crystal fully recovers from the damage, the quality of psychic energy will begin to improve.’

It was somewhat shocking to discover the lacking efficiency of his corrosion, something he thought of as his trump card. Moreover, after his blue soul became Tier 2, his corrosion had also improved by a factor. Even then, the resistance offered by the white layer in the new memory fragments proved to be a tough foe.

’I still don’t know if there are any threats hidden underneath those memory fragments. Once I access them, using my brain to think about the memory and create a duplicate, I must destroy the original. It is better to be safe than sorry.’

Jyorta exited the view of his blue soul, bringing his line of sight back to reality. He continued to eat, soon shifting to the second plate. His stomach was like a vortex, having a boosted capacity. But, Jyorta knew that the feeling was naught but an illusion, derived from his nutrition deprived state.

Since he had ample time to spend, Jyorta ate at a slow pace, his energy expenditure conforming to only deal with the red mass that formed.

Time passed in such a manner, the cafeteria was soon filled with students.

11:50 AM, many students had occupied nearby tables, engaging in chatter with their friends. The cafeteria brimmed with a cacophony of voices, lacking any tune of coherence. Jyorta took in the view of his blue soul once again, watching his surroundings turn dark.

There was his blue soul in the middle, having expanded in size once again, emitting a blue hue, amplified in luminescence as compared to before. Hovering next to it was the subsoul, withstanding an internal battle.

The range of the blue soul’s vision was 3 metres now, allowing it to sense many souls that were in range. The souls were of similar size, for the most, except for some minor differences that resulted from their varied life experiences.

There were three souls to the back, two at the front and one on the left. Hovering next to each soul was a tiny wisp, lacking much development. The blue soul observed them, gazing at the murkiness covering each.

Intense stench wafted around the region, one emitted by the souls. There were all sorts of voices, filled with screams mixed with a variety of emotional outbursts. They lacked any sense of coherence, conforming to the screams of a lunatic, the effect grating to the senses.

Just the sound alone carried with it a feeling of desire, one formed through a being’s lifetime of wants. They sought to pollute the blue soul, one that was in range, thanks to its erection of a soul domain, one that formed its vision.

A Soul Cornea emerged out, exerting its influence, destroying any murkiness that approached the blue soul.

The blue soul tried to guess the state of mind of the surrounding students, inferring from the murkiness in their souls, deriving a conclusion based on the variations exhibited. A minute later, the blue soul could figure out some basic stuff.

’The one on my left is apprehensive about something but at the same time feels excited. There is some lust-like emotion mixed in it. Is he in love? Or is it something else?’

’The two on my front express wariness and disdain at one another, even though they behave as close friends. Strange…’ Unable to make heads and tails of the situation, the blue soul focused on the three souls at the back, giving up after a matter of seconds.

’It is difficult to make sense of their emotions and mental states. They are a cluster of everything, an accumulation of a lifetime, without having a dominant portion. It is not possible to accurately guess their current state based on their entire lives. I was able to better guess Haesha’s mental state that day. Maybe it is because her concerns are a few but ones that weigh heavily on her mind.’ The range of the blue soul’s vision shrunk, reverting to a metre in length.

Jyorta had retracted it, unwilling to suffer from the stench and sounds. Now that the range had been reduced, with the only souls present being the blue soul and the subsoul, the atmosphere turned silent, lacking any smell for the matter.

Concentrating within the blue soul, Jyorta focused on the memory fragments derived from the Floating Spiders. A moment later, he exited the view of his blue soul, heaving a sigh.

’Even though I possess their memories, I have yet to go through them. I should prepare myself and slowly absorb their experiences, making them my own. This will help me with many things in the future.’

”Jyorta…?” A voice broke his thoughts, the source originating from a girl situated beyond the open section. The wall in the open section spanned the same height as the table, allowing the passerby to look into the cafeteria. Since he sat right next to it, Jyorta was clearly visible.

”Yes?” Jyorta turned around, noticing an unfamiliar girl standing right next to him, separated by the wall that formed the open section. Upon seeing his response, the girl enclosed her mouth with her hands, exclaiming once.

”Where did you disappear for the past 4 days?”

”I had some medical issues to attend to,” Jyorta replied, making use of the official excuse prepared by Grapple Force. It was a simple excuse, one built upon the lie Psychic Ancestor Marble had concocted.

Jyovic Bone, in coordination with Rhachis Ancestor Light had sought to create a new Trait, one that was capable of imbuing an offensive ability in an Esper. After innumerous trials and errors, burning up resources that no Aristocratic Family could afford alone, they had finally created a Trait.

But, this Trait ended up being a failure, with its power capped at Tier 2. Irrespective of their subsequent efforts, they could never raise its effectiveness beyond that. Moreover, it had many risks in being implanted into a human, with the sole success being Jyorta Bone. Even then, due to the unstable nature of the Trait, Jyorta Bone suffered from numerous side-effects.

The side-effects cropped up once in a while, with its cycle figured out by Jyovic Bone, who had transferred this information to Grapple Force in hopes of a solution. This was why Grapple Force invited Jyorta Bone, appeasing the side-effects that had cropped, and restored him back to full health.

Also, they would summon him again when the side-effects would emerge next.

Grapple Force hadn’t specified the period between each cycle, allowing them to summon forth Jyorta whenever necessary. It gave them the perfect excuse, should they need one to use.

Following that were some attached data to make it seem more believable, the amount only generalising the situation, preventing any leak of data. This made it further believable.

Also, there was Madam Mila in the military academy, one who had been informed of the situation beforehand by Psychic Ancestor Marble. So, the credibility of his Trait was unquestionable, originating from two most trustable sources.

”What kind of…medical issues?” The girl tilted her head, scanning him from top to bottom, noticing his perfectly healthy complexion, save for the slight tiredness expressed in his face.

Even though he couldn’t recall the girl’s appearance, but based on her uniform, he was assured that she was from his batch. Jyorta resolved to never skip any classes to avoid being an embarrassment from being unable to remember the names and faces of his batch mates.

”It is something that has to do with a Trait I received,” Jyorta let out a wry laugh, scratching the back of his head. His expression informed the girl that this was all he was allowed to tell others. His acting gave her a clear impression, making him wonder if he had unearthed a hidden talent in him.

Though, using his blue soul to overlay some memories, expression, emotions, body language, etc, he could pull off any level of acting with ease. Moreover, if he incorporated a false persona, then he could become any character he wished to be.

”Everyone in the class has been talking about you,” The girl laughed, turning around to glance at the queue forming before the billing counter. She waved her hand, sprinting towards the counter, ”See you in a minute.”

”I couldn’t ask about the classes in the end,” Jyorta looked around, unable to find any other familiar face. He then continued to eat his food, trailing his gaze after the girl who had conversed with him just now. He watched her brush through the crowd, instigating conflicts between many individuals in the queue, and making use of the chance to cut in line.

After that, she acted as if her presence in the spot was natural, even helping to resolve the conflict. Due to the minor commotion, the students had forgotten the people in the queue; after all, they were mostly strangers with respect to one another. This ensured that no one could claim that the girl had cut in the line.

”She is cunning…” Jyorta looked with interest, chuckling at the scene. He finished the second plate and placed the third plate before him. He stood up, grabbed the two empty plates, and briskly walked towards the section where the used plates had to be dropped.

He returned and saw his table still vacant, heaving a sigh of relief as he occupied his spot. He then slowly nibbled on the food, waiting for the girl to approach his seat.