Praise From The Master

Rey found it difficult to sleep that night.

And when he finally fell asleep, he had the worst of nightmares.

Needless to say, he didn't enjoy his night at all. Memories upon memories appeared to haunt him, tormenting his mind until he finally woke up.

By the time he did so… it was already morning.

"Yawwwwnn!" He rose up, stretching both arms as he welcomed the freshness of a new day.

Somehow, he felt at ease just knowing that it was morning. Something about the new day seemed to wash away the anxiety of the night.

"Ahh…"

Rey smacked his lips as he blinked several times. He wanted to make sure he was really seeing what was in front of him.

And sure enough… he was!

"Good morning, Master! I hope you had a pleasant night."

Ater was bowing his head first thing in the morning, with one hand on his chest and the other behind him. Of course, he was still dressed in his entire black attire, but something about him seemed slick this particular morning.

Perhaps it was the bright gleam in his eyes or the cheerful smile on his face.

Either way… Ater seemed pleased just seeing Rey wake up.

"How long have you been watching me?" Rey muttered as he groggily cleaned the little tears that spilled out thanks to his yawns.

"Not for too long, Master. Just a few hours…"

Rey smiled and shook his head a little. In all honesty, it felt nice having someone dote over him like this.

'When did he start acting like my parent?' He mused and shook his head.

"You should stop the stalker behavior, Ater."

The moment he said this, Ater's face fell slightly, which caused Rey to quickly rethink his words.

'Did I hurt his feelings? Does he even have feelings?' He sighed and shook his head once again.

Ater was a chaotic entity. He was the worst kind of evil, even the System confirmed that much. Having him around was incredibly advantageous, but Rey had to wonder if he could treat Ater like how he would treat a normal person.

'Well, he is my Familiar, after all. I don't think I should treat him poorly.'

Not after a job well done the previous night.

"You did well last night, Ater. Just as you promised, no denizen of the capital died."

"Your praises are too much, Master. I only did what was expected of me." Ater bowed his head even more deeply.

'What was expected of you, huh? Can't you just take the compliment?'

Rey cracked a slightly wide smile and decided not to bother himself with the details.

"Do you desire any reward?" He asked.

Ater seemed to bow even deeper for some reason, after hearing the question.

"I am not deserving of such."

'Really? Welp, I guess that's fi—'

"Although, if you insist, there is indeed something I would like very much."

Rey narrowed his gaze in suspicion the moment he heard those words from Ater.

Was he buttering him up?

'I swear, if you ask for anything like a bunch of children to eat, we're gonna have some problems…'

"Go on. Tell me." Rey smiled, hiding his true thoughts underneath.

Any evil requests would be reciprocated with a slap on the back for sure.

"Well…"

Rey waited for the request with a racing heart.

"… I would like you to praise me, Master."

It took a moment for that request to fully register in the mind of the confused Rey. He couldn't comprehend it at first, and his eyes became a wide blank sheet.

"E-eh?"

********

"Who's a good boy? Yes, you are! Yes, you are!"

Rey was currently rubbing the belly of the black cat that sat on his lap, and an unconscious smile was tugging at his lips.

'Ahh… this is so cringe!' His mind yelled as he gently stroked the feline.

It had very soft fur, and the skin underneath was equally pleasant to the touch.

In all honesty, despite feeling uncomfortable at first, Rey was beginning to enjoy the process. His cheeks were beet red as he massaged the cat.

He could see Ater purring and twisting his body in delight, an obvious sign that the chaotic evil being—the personification of chaos, as he called himself—was enjoying the belly rub.

Rey didn't know which was worse; the fact that he was literally petting a grown-ass man, or the fact that he didn't want to stop.

'It's so addicting! Now I know why Alicia is so passionate about cats.'

In a way, doing this for only a few minutes allowed Rey's body and mind to completely relax.

He soon forgot about his nightmares, and his slightly uneasy mind became purged of all negativity. In a way, this seemed more like a reward for him as well.

'Thank you, Ater. You're really…' Rey smiled at the black cat on his lap.

'… More considerate than you appear.'

Rey's smile widened as he took his eyes off Ater and stared straight ahead, only to notice a screen floating in front of him.

It was his Status Window.

[STATUS WINDOW]

- Name: Rey Skylar.

- Race: Human (Otherworlder)

- Class: Anomaly (A-Tier)

- Level: 115 (05.13% EXP)

- Life Force: 146 (+206) [+900]

- Mana Level: 240 (+206) [+950]

- Combat Ability: 207 (+206) [+990]

- Stat Points: 0

- Skills (Exclusive): [Doppel]

- Skills (Non-Exclusive): [Fusion/Fission]. [Merger]. [Dead Calm].

- Alignment: Neutral Good

[Additional Information]

You are an irregularity to the world. Achieving the unbelievable, shaking the balance of reality… you seek to overturn what is and isn't.

Will you succeed? Or will your failure be miserable?

[End Of Information]

'It looks like I was able to grow stronger…' Rey smiled wryly.

His Stats had increased quite a bit, and other than Leveling Up from the S-Tier Monster and the scum in the Dark Gathering, it was also a product of his [Carnage] Skill.

'How many… have I killed?'

The answer was presented to him in a perfect format.

[Skill Details]

[Carnage]

Tier: B

Ability: You grow stronger based on the amount of human lives you take. Additional Stats will be stacked based on this number.

~Current Additional Stats~

[Number Of People Killed: 1,109]

Life Force: 51

Mana Level: 51

Combat Ability: 51

[End Of Information]

'I see…' Rey's expression appeared a little downcast as he looked at the numbers.

He wasn't particularly bothered about the number of people he had killed, as his eyes were focused on something else entirely.

'So this is the value of a thousand lives. It's quite small.'