Chapter 4: Karma Alignment

Andrew's POV

"I see." I couldn't help but frown at this situation.

It seems I'm facing an important crossroads in my personal evolution and within the agency.

The "Warlock" option is the only one mentioned as rare, and it seems to have a huge affinity with me because of the passive skill "Five Points Star Mark." But I'm not really sure I want to associate with evil entities.

I've lost a lot because of someone's wickedness in my past life, and I don't even know yet who trapped me.

The other more viable option that's compatible with me seems to be "Killer." I don't know what kind of powers I could get from it, but it will probably compensate for my weak offensive capabilities, which represent my biggest problem.

Options like "Student" and "Alchemist" are out for me for several reasons, such as the research equipment that costs PK in the shop and that I can't afford right now.

There's also the fact that I don't really feel comfortable staying locked in a room to study anymore.

I literally have memories of several months of confinement.

"System, can you give me more information about the repercussions after obtaining my class?" I need more details.

[There's little information I'm authorized to disclose, but I can still say that...]

[You must understand that a class will affect prices in the shop, as you will be officially "aligned" either as an individual using positive karma or negative karma in your purchases.]

[Positive karma won't have much value for some entities, and negative karma won't be very useful for others. But don't forget that the karma collected also influences the one who collects it.]

"You said there wasn't much to say, but this is crucial information!"

It seems I shouldn't just speculate, but ask more questions on various topics.

Now, I'm really starting to wonder about the importance of this karma.

*sigh* I'm not qualified enough to dig deeper yet.

[Indeed, you are not yet qualified to understand the true nature of karma.]

[You risk damaging your soul by trying to unravel this concept that goes beyond mortals.]

It seems this thing can read my thoughts.

"Okay, I choose the Warlock class."

The only magical entities in this universe are demons, so it would be logical to strengthen my ties with these evil beings, which are already good thanks to my "Five Points Star Mark" skill. And the Killer class is too vague.

I really know nothing about it and I have no real clues, apart from accepting my lowest instincts.

[Congratulations, you have unlocked the Alignment sub-section.]

[Reward: 100 PK.]

[Congratulations, you have obtained the class: Warlock.]

[The passive skill: Five Points Star Mark seems to react to the Warlock class.]

[The skill is being restored...]

[The skill: Five Points Star Mark has been restored to its peak.]

[You have received the basic skills related to the Warlock class.]

Name: Andrew Graves

Age: 22 years old

Class: Warlock

Alignment: Pure evil

Status: Mental fatigue

Strength: C

Speed: D

Potential: B+

Intelligence: S+

Robustness: D

Mana: B-

Passive skills: Eyes of truth (Weakened) (rank D), Five Points Star Mark (restored) (rank C)

Active skills: Weapons basics (rank F): lvl 1, (new) Evil Sponsorship Contract(rank B): lvl 1, (new)Demonic summoning (rank C): lvl 1.

Talent: Jack of all trades (rank C)

Karmic points (negative): 150 PK

[Your old karma was neutral because of your neutrality in the agency, but that's no longer the case. Your old karma has been exchanged for free.]

For free? Does that mean I can still gain good karma?

[Indeed, but there are fees to pay to the agency during exchanges]

I was a bit worried about the side effects of karma harvesting, but now I've found a solution.

"Can you tell me about my new skills?" I was really intrigued by them.

[Affirmative]

[ Evil Sponsorship Contract (rank B): lvl 1]

[Description: You gain a skill from a demon or Evil entity if it accepts a permanent contract with you.

Small note: It must be aware of the contract details, and if the demon dies, you lose the acquired ability.]

[Contract space: 1]

[Demonic summoning (rank C): lvl 1]

[Description: You can summon a creature or entity with which you have made a contract.

Cost: mana and endurance]

[Summoning slot: 1]

I can see that the skills tied to a class are really powerful, and I haven't yet seen a rank A skill.

Now, I'm really curious about higher-ranked skills, especially if Evil Sponsorship Contract skill is just as powerful.

"I need to think about something else for now." I still had things to sort out here. So, anything related to the system will have to wait.

"Lucky I watched Juujika No Rokunin in my past life."

I went back to the room with cleaning products and quickly cleaned up the crime scene. I had to finish before dawn, because of the guard.

...

Narrator's POV

It didn't take long for Andrew to clean the room and erase all traces of his passage in the apartment.

He disposed of the body by buying sulfuric acid, which cost him 10 PK.

It seems that products deemed for evil use by the system are now more affordable, while those for curative or benevolent use are more expensive.

Andrew left the apartment at dawn, before the guard's round.

Although he feels a bit bad about killing a man for the first time, he reassures himself by saying that this idiot was going to lose his soul anyway without him.

"Where were you?" an annoyed voice echoed at the entrance of the room where Andrew was.

Andrew followed the source of the voice, and his gaze met Leyley's, who was waiting for him with a clearly angry expression. This expression changed slightly when their eyes met, before becoming angry again.

"I went to get you this," said Andrew, showing his bag containing various cooking ingredients.

The moment Leyley saw this, she forgot about Andrew for a moment and started eating apples and carrots avidly.

*Cough* She choked for a moment during her frantic tasting.

"Here, drink." She snatched the water bottle from Andrew and drank eagerly.

"Don't think you'll get away with just that. Where were you and how did you get all this?" Leyley narrowed her eyes, staring at Andrew.

"Promise me you'll keep it a secret."

Andrew looked at her with a serious air.

"Why so serious? You know I know A LOT about you, and it's reciprocal," she said, shrugging.

"So, one more secret or less..."

She settled more comfortably in the chair, leaned on the table, and put her hands on her cheeks.

The atmosphere was strange, but surprisingly pleasant.

"I killed the neighbor to get food..." Andrew's words created a heavy silence between the two.

It seems she wasn't expecting that, Andrew thought, observing Leyley's surprised face.

"You heard me right, I killed grr"

Andrew couldn't help but growl in annoyance at Leyley's silence.

Andrew didn't really like this side of Leyley. She played innocent, but she also had blood on her hands.

"Okay, okay, don't get mad. I was just surprised you could go that far," she said, a bit embarrassed by Andrew's reaction.

"It's just that... we were getting weaker and weaker... I had to do something otherwise..."

Surprisingly, Leyley interrupted him. She hugged him so suddenly that he was a bit surprised.

"I don't care that you killed that poor guy, the main thing is that you did it for US ~"

If Andrew had been able to see Leyley's face, he wouldn't have been relaxed by her hug, but alarmed by the happy and frightening expression she displays.