Zachary felt very tempted to possess Ria while she was in the meeting hall, but in the end, he held his ground and settled on only watching from her point of view.
Zachary broke down Reshanxra's psychic imprint and used it as a template to create his own version, which he used to mark Ria's soul. He did not alter Ria's Life Code at all, though he still wonders whether she's worth the trouble.
The soul mark on Ria would silently bind her will, making her unable to act against Zachary's interests without his conscious approval. Despite not altering her Life Code, the insidious tendrils of control were undeniable. Zachary, however, felt no compunction about wielding such a tool, especially against a double agent from the enemy's side.
The soul mark had also been somewhat revamped, as Reshanxra's version only served as a psychological barrier to avoid being harmed by a seed donor, while his version was a bit more versatile, as that became just one of its functions.
Exactly as mentioned, Zachary could take over Ria's autonomy like a poltergeist whenever he wants, leaving her as a passenger in her own body. Zachary could also influence Ria's reasoning if he wants to, but there is time for everything, he believes. And was not yet the time.
The meeting that he had watched from Ria's point of view had been the first time Zachary saw the true mastermind behind Cadia's entire operation. Yes, despite already knowing the real side of Cadia for some time already, even before he went on the world travel, he had not been interested enough to even dig, seeing as the conflict had very low stakes to incur his direct attention or interest.
Malrick Hunt strikes Zachary as a mortal with ambition and abilities to back it. Though his focus wasn't on the man much, he was utterly amused by the content of their discussion.
'No way. Looks like 'Dad' wasn't as harmless as he seems after all, Zachary chuckled to himself as the thoughts of Neil surfaced. Zachary couldn't help but feel a little curious about Neil, though.
Zachary had to admit that he really hadn't bothered knowing Neil, his father in this life, as deeply as he probably should. The same goes for his mother, Amanda Kent, as he barely even knew them.
As a matter of fact, he didn't even know them genuinely, though he could argue that he knew them enough from the Life Code inspections.
Since he refrains from prying too much into their memories, as he only bothers to scry their surface thoughts, he definitely wasn't aware of their history. Especially Neil, as he seems to be quite a badass guy in the past.
Anyway, Zachary doesn't retract his consciousness from Ria as he continues watching. After exiting the meeting hall as she was dismissed by Malrick, Ria walked through the hallway initially alone, but then she was approached by a man.
The man took his initiative to accompany Ria in walking, trying and succeeding in getting her to talk with him.
Ekram seems to have known Ria for quite some time, judging by her lessened guard against this person. Her emotions were also fluctuating a lot, and Zachary could sense that. Another perk of the technique he created using Reshanxra's psychic defense that Zachary had deciphered.
'I wonder what will happen if I kill this guy,' Zachary mused internally. While he has not yet gained complete control over his emotions and desires, he could at least understand that his thoughts weren't normal by any standard. Well, not like he wishes to have complete control over his emotions and desires in this life.
Doing so would only lead him to the path he had taken in his last life, with only a little insignificant twist.
'Hell nah,' Is what Zachary said to himself when his thought reached that point. He almost gagged in disgust as living such a dull, emotionless, albeit immortal, life is what he never wishes to experience again.
Despite her comfort, Zachary could feel that Ria was also feeling discomfort internally. Not because of Ekram, mind you, but because of the deeds she had done as a sleeper agent. It was insecurities.
They continued walking and chatting down the hallway, their topics light and warm, and smiles were plastered on both of their faces.
They went through twists and turns until they both finally stopped in front of a door. Behind it was the office of Doctor Lima, a genius reborn through science.
The man was as busy as a bee lately, as he's responsible for monitoring the enhancement of the selected candidates.
The front of the door was where Ekram bade farewell to Ria before he walked away, and Ria walked through the door.
Doctor Lima was already waiting inside his office, and he was flipping through papers at his table. He stopped when he saw the person entering was Ria, as he stood up, and reached for his formal white coat.
"Eh?" Zachary blinked rapidly the moment he saw doctor Lima inside his office, because there was another one who looked entirely the same currently in front of his cell.
Zachary smirked when he saw that an unexpected situation had arisen. There's an infiltrator, and Zachary is quite certain that the one with Ria is the fake.
Zachary continued lying down on his bunk bed again, with his hands behind his head, and one leg propped on the other. He continued watching from Ria's point of view, definitely curious to see what would happen next.
The fake doctor told Ria to take a seat opposite him across the table, and the latter complied without any suspicion. The fake doctor began with some pleasantries before he began talking about the DNA information gathered from Zachary's sperm.
Even though Zachary knew this one was fake, he couldn't deny that the man had done his part to the best of his abilities to appear believable and legit. Which also means that this fake doctor is probably an expert in various things. A polymath, even.
The fake doctor slowly stood up as he briefly mentioned that he needed to take samples from the drawers on the side wall. He went past Ria's chair, but he didn't actually go to the drawers. Instead, he goes to stand directly behind Ria.
A blade gleaming in his hand raised high above Ria's head. An assassin targeting Ria looks like a stupid move because her importance in this organization isn't even significant to the structure or chain of command.
In a more direct term, she's just a fodder. An expendable piece.
Ria suddenly sensed danger and quickly moved out of the way, just in time to completely avoid a blade meant for her skull.
"Who are you?!" Ria angrily shouts, demanding an answer as her heart pounds heavily against her chest. That was close. Way too close for her comfort.
Her angry demand was met with silence as doctor Lima lunged forward, wielding the blade to end her life.
Ria was entirely outclassed, but the adrenaline coursing through her blood vessels gave her a surge of strength to make a run for it. However, despite her effort, she was slashed several times before he could reach the door, which is just a few feet away.
Blood began dripping from the cuts as she was forced back away from the door. The fake doctor calmly locked it from the inside with a click! As he went for the kill. His eyes were devoid of emotion.
This time around, Ria could not muster any resistance as her life flashed in her eyes.
'Ah~ So this is it… I'm going to die… Ekram…' her eyes became glassy with tears. It was due to her feeling unresigned as she had yet to respond to the love of her life. Or it might just be the gleam of the blade reflected in her eyes.
And then, her vision went dark.
Zachary had chosen to take over at this critical time. The fake doctor suddenly felt a chill run down his back as he saw the complete shift in demeanor from the prey in front of him.
Still, he doesn't stop what he was doing, nor could he, as the momentum brought him forward. In a split second, the woman in front of his eyes suddenly vanished from his sight, despite the dagger being inches away from reaching its mark.
"Who sent you?" 'Ria' asked the man calmly. The fake doctor immediately pivoted his leg, turning his body around as swiftly as he could, the moment the voice reached his ears.
'Ria' didn't receive any answer, as the fake doctor merely grinned confidently. Seeing that the man refused to speak, 'Ria' moved once again, and this time, she easily wrestled away the dagger in the opponent's hand.
The fake doctor was stunned by the sheer display of speed. He was certain that the target was just a regular woman. Trained, yes, but no amount of training could allow a person to display such agility.
"Split personality? Quite detrimental for a double agent." The man finally began talking. Though his tone shows no sign of fear or intimidation.
"Why don't you try assassinate Malrick instead of this girl. She's just a double agent. You're an enemy of Cadia, right?" 'Ria' inquired.
The fake doctor frowned as he felt something wasn't right. This is not just a split identity. No, such cases would never influence a person's physical capabilities beyond a certain limit, and his target had currently surpassed the human limit entirely.
"You…. It seems Cadia aren't entirely useless. Heh, to even have someone capable of discovering Alter Ego… The Kingdom will surely take you seriously now." The man smirked. However gutsy he may appear, his death was already written, and if he were to die, he doesn't mind going out with a bang.
'Now that's something I haven't heard before. This is getting more and more interesting!' Zachary mused to himself. From the words uttered by this person alone, Zachary whose currently possessing Ria's body, instantly knew that the person is affiliated with the El Malais Kingdom.
As much as Zachary wants to inspect this person's Mind Edict, he couldn't do so as long as he's possessing Ria's body. Meaning he had no other choice but to converse with this person verbally, as he also couldn't utilize his psychic power.
These are the current limitations of the possession technique, and Zachary would be sure to patch things up in the future.
"Alter Ego?" Ria repeated.
"Nothing will escape my mouth." The man smirked in the face of death, seemingly fearless.
"Never mind that. But I still am curious about why the El Malais Kingdom would go as far as sending an elite just to off a spy." Ria waved his hand dismissively.
The man didn't answer, but he lunged forward to engage the possessed Ria in a fist fight. His attempts, though, were still easily thwarted by Ria. Things weren't looking good for the aggressor as the woman he's up against returns his every blow multiple times over, and that doesn't count the sheer strength of each punch and kick he suffered.
The man did not engage in a fist fight for no reason, as even if the chance of dying were high, his hope for survival remains high, as it seems like his opponent wasn't exactly keen on finishing him.
Whatever tricks he's playing, the man didn't lose hope and looked for the best chance to slip through the woman's defense to reach the door and escape.
The chance presented itself when the woman suddenly faltered in her track. Her bones began creaking from internal stress, and her mobility was impeded. The woman frowned, and internally, Zachary felt that he had broken Ria's physical limiter for way too long by possessing her, and it wasn't good news. Especially for Ria herself, if this continues, she could very well meet her end.
It was an outcome that Zachary wished to avoid, and that was the reason for possessing her, but it seems what he had done wasn't much worse than trying to kill her, like the current opponent was trying to do.
The man used this opportunity to successfully slip away from Zachary's focus as he quickly opened the door at the latter's rear and bolted as swiftly as the wind.
Now, Zachary was forced to deal with the aftermath of his own doing as Ria's physical structure and integrity began cracking.
Her skin burst from within as blood began leaking. Her blood vessels are popping and expanding, and her internal organs are rapidly failing to function anymore.
Despite all this, Zachary remained calm as he entirely retracted his possession technique and returned to himself. He flared his Soul Energy from within the cell, and it instantly reached Ria's position in Doctor Lima's office.
Despite her not being in his direct line of sight or reach, it was still doable for Zachary to fix the situation as he began a remote Life Code surgery.