Stars twinkled along the edge of my vision as I fought through the pain and my body's internal signals screaming for me to stop moving. The agony brought on a sense of repentance for my actions. Despite my ever-increasing karma points for killing in cold blood, it hardly absolved my actions.

  “You fucking killed her!” Zayne yelled, his tone animalistic and stricken with grief.

  I reached underneath my cloak with swollen, broken fingers and pinched the healing potion from my breast pocket.

  Zayne towered over me, tears streaking down his cheeks. He dropped his sword at his side and snatched me up by my collar. With his freehand he pried the healing potion from my grasp and tossed it to the side.

  “You're going to start by telling me your name,” Zayne said.

  Dagger Step.

  Warning Ability on Cooldown

  “I'll make you watch as I kill everyone important to you. And then you'll beg for death.”

  I stared past Zayne's hate filled expression, noticing a cracked mirror in the bedroom's corner.

  “You're all the same,” I said, concentrating on the system's skill tree. “You use your abilities to oppress and destroy countless lives. Then you cry foul when someone does the same to you. It's a bit hypocritical. Though I can't blame you for that. I'm a hypocrite, too. If there was someone in this world that I cared about and someone took that away, then yeah... I'd maim, torture and kill that person, too.”

  While I monologued, I spent my ability point on Agility Burst, a skill that temporarily provided a buff to my agility and stamina stats.

  New Ability Learned

  Agility Burst: Temporarily amplifies agility and stamina stats.

  Then I dropped one mastery point into Karma’s Gaze. As the system digested the input, a block of text appeared.

  Karma's Gaze Mastery 1/5

  Active Bonus - Reveals additional information on selected targets.

  Passive Bonus - Further increases physical and magic damage against targets with negative karma.

  Our eyes met and Zayne stared into my soul.

  What do you see in the void?

  Zayne's lips curled in disgust. Whatever he saw, he didn't like. I stole one last glance at the mirror behind him and reluctantly spent my last mastery point.

  Karma's Gaze Mastery 2/5

  Active Bonus - Filter - Allows the user to filter data through custom parameters.

  Passive Bonus - Greatly increases physical and magic damage against targets with negative karma.

  “She must've loved you. Instead of trying to save herself, she used her last breath to dispel my invisibility.”

  That one out-of-pocket comment was all it took to send Zayne over the edge. He grabbed my throat with both hands and squeezed.

  Agility Burst

  The sudden increase in stats surged through me. I slipped free from his grasp and threw a straight that was too quick for Zayne to block. My swollen fist crashed into his chest, blasting him through the partially demolished wall. His body rolled across the pub's floor until he collided with a pillar. Making the most of my speed, I rushed to his point of impact.

  “Wait!”

  I drove the heel of my boot into his skull. The sickening crunch of bone grinding into the wooden floor confirmed his death.

  +735 XP

  +240 Karma

  Using the Karma’s Gaze I scanned the first floor, assuring myself that all the stragglers were dead. As the temporary stat boost disappeared, my injuries became apparent. I struggled through the wrecked pub, slowly making my way into the bedroom, retrieving the fallen health potion. I popped the tiny cork from the thin vial and consumed its ruby red liquid. The excruciating pain subsided in an instant, replaced by a dull ache that extended through my limbs.

  +HP Recovery

  Sparse rays of moonlight bled through the pub's damaged roof as I rummaged through the first floor until I found my curved daggers. After sheathing them and taking a few minutes to catch my breath, I found a door that led to the basement. Aged wood creaked underneath my weight as I descended the staircase.

  Glowing candlelight revealed a row of iron cages filled with people. Their vacant eyes turned to the ground. An overwhelming sense of despair and resentment hung in the air like a dense morning fog. The makeshift prison held mere level ones, women, children, and the elderly.

  What a mood killer.

  With Karma’s Gaze activated; I noticed a new filter option in the edge of my vision.

  “Filter,” I whispered.

  Dozens of parameters expanded across a transparent box. I could filter status data out by name, age, level, karma, sex, and even physical attributes. Most importantly, was the option to filter by raw level. This would certainly aid with the ongoing issue of my senses being overwhelmed by data in crowded places. Testing the newfound feature, I simply thought about filtering out anybody beneath level three and the system did the rest. The dozens of statuses vanished, and I smiled.

  The malnourished prisoners looked on awkwardly, unsure whether I was friend or foe. With a second thought, I disabled the filter and the staggering information returned. Along with that new nifty feature, I also noticed an "Additional Data" box had been added to each column of the prisoners' data.

  Target: Avelia

  Level: 1

  Karma: +65

  Additional Information: Age 42, born and raised in Ingcaster. Mother to four sons and one daughter…

  Interesting.

  I skimmed through the overlapping text, already feeling a headache emerging from the bombardment of data. Without saying a word, I turned away, headed back upstairs and walked outside into the street. Tristan bounded out of the alley I had left him in, waving his arms over his head.

  “You're alive!” he said, astounded.

  “If your brother's there, he's in the basement with the rest of the captives.”

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  “Thank you.” Tristan bowed. “I'm sure he's there. Thunder Fang has been kidnapping people and extorting their loved ones for payment and labor. Are you with the Royal Investigation Unit?”

  I shrugged, not wanting to answer the question or waste any more time chatting with this boy. I had already accomplished more than I intended to when I set out for my evening stroll.

  “I'll be taking my leave.”

  As I limped down the street, several onlookers peered out through their rundown shacks and dilapidated dwellings.

  Good, this is the exact message I want to send.

  Oarwin was the most destitute and dangerous district I'd seen since my arrival in Ingcaster, making it the perfect location to make my debut. People would surely talk, especially Tristan, about the anonymous visitor that wiped out one of the most feared gangs in the city in one night. Hopefully, the effect would ripple, instilling terror in those that trampled the innocent.

  I took a right turn down an alley, activated Invisibility and disappeared into the night.

  ***

  When I arrived back at my suite in the middle of the night, the room was empty. Did the elf leave of her own accord? I felt partially responsible for her but had to admit if she left, it would only be to my benefit.

  “Viessa?” I asked in a hushed tone.

  It was unlikely someone at the guild hall recognized she was an elf, though it was a distinct possibility. If that was the case and she was kidnapped... Was I still responsible for her? There was a disturbing lack of distress in my heart. Even worse, I felt relieved.

  “Rest in peace, Viessa,” I said and signed the cross as the door to the closet burst open.

  The elf appeared with heavy eyelids, perked up ears, and a blanket wrapped over her shoulders that she'd taken from the bed.

  “What's the point of me shelling out extra for a suite if you're not going to sleep in a bed?”

  "I woke up and heard voices in the hallway. It felt safer in here."

  I stared down at the elf, wondering what to do with her. Then she cast a suspicious glance, like I was some kind of pervert.

  “Don't flatter yourself. It's good to be cautious, but if I wanted to, I could've already washed my hands of you.”

  Her expression softened; eyebrows raised. “You're hurt... Again.”

  “I was worse off an hour ago. Listen, tomorrow I'm going into a dungeon with The Twilight Rangers. I could be gone for a day or two. Just stay put. I've already paid the innkeeper to bring you 3 meals per day. Keep your interactions with the staff to a minimum, understand?”

  “When will you take me to Onadell?”

  “Huh? I never agreed to that. You're already an inconvenience. I'm also a foreigner here and your presence has already complicated matters. Don't mistake my actions for kindness. I've simply abided by my code.”

  “You'd receive a substantial reward.”

  I sighed and shook my head. It was hard to blame her for trying. Of course she wanted to go home. Who knew what trauma lay behind those emerald eyes? Home was the best place for her to start healing. But as of now, it was infeasible, if not downright impossible.

  “No, I'm sorry.”

  Her pointed ears sank, and it looked like the waterworks were about to start.

  “But in the future, when I'm stronger, I'll take you. Just be patient until then,” I said.

  A fountain of tears streamed down her pale cheeks as she bowed.

  What the fuck? That was supposed to stop her from crying.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  “Ugh, it's fine.” I motioned for her to relax. “Just stop crying or I won't take you.”

  Viessa smiled for the first time, dabbing tears away with her blanket. It was like watching a scene from a movie that I'd seen before. Gripped by a vague sense of déjà vu, I turned away. A delicate hand touched my back.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Heaven's Touch,” she said. “It's not a very powerful spell, but it will increase your recovery rate.”

  A trace of warmth flashed down my spine as she finished channeling the spell. Afterwards, the elf climbed into the bed on the far side of the room and fell asleep within seconds. I took refuge in my bed, wondering if it was possible to stop history from repeating itself.

  ***

  Taking a hot shower in a private bathroom was a luxury I'd nearly forgotten about. Such a blissful experience could only be matched by changing into a fresh change of clothes and snagging a steaming sausage roll from the kitchen before I left the inn.

  I had ditched the bloodiest rags from yesterday, besides the black cloak which I washed and left to dry in the suite. Before heading out, I donned an inconspicuous gray cloak, and a set of leather armor with reinforced patches to protect vital points.

  I needed to distance myself as far away from the Oarwin incident as possible. Last night's work was that of a ghost, not David Cyprus nor Derrick Hauser. No, Cyprus would become a noble adventurer and pillar of the community.

  The moves I planned to make had to take place in the shadows while Cyprus stayed in the light. Thus, after careful consideration, I decided to leave my throwing knives and curved daggers behind, opting for a short sword instead. Moving forward, I'd refrain from using daggers as Cyprus and never reveal my Invisibility or Dagger Step spells. It was already a mistake letting The Iron Shield see Dagger Step in action.

  Rumors had already circulated about me killing Drayvoss and how I almost single-handedly eliminated the bandit camp. I'd been too careless and didn't realize how easy it would be to identify someone from their abilities and fighting style. If anyone confronted me about my ability to teleport in the future, I'd just have to gaslight them.

  It was still early in the morning when I arrived at The Gilded Boar, which was mostly empty—a stark contrast from the previous evening. The Twilight Rangers flagged me down the moment I entered, ushering me over to their table. I took a seat across from two unfamiliar faces.

  “Cyprus, this is Oakley and Tobias. Pearl Banner was kind enough to lend us two of their greenest,” Duskblade said.

  They both looked to be in their early teens but were still somehow level three. There was a familial resemblance between them. They shared the same short shaggy brown hairstyle and wore matching sets of steel-plated armor marked with their guild's logo. The uninspired piece of art depicted a rippling flag with a pearl in the center. Was it really OK to bring kids like this into a dungeon, even if they were level three?

  Oakley shifted in his chair. “An additional party member wasn't discussed beforehand.”

  Duskblade cracked a beaming smile. “That's what we're discussing now.”

  “What about the loot?” Tobias asked.

  Duskblade took a sip of beer. “He's agreed to relinquish his share.”

  Tobias cast a suspicious glance. “And why would he agree to that?”

  “Because if a chaos shard drops, we're going to give it to him.”

  Tobias and Oakley smirked. “Well, then we don’t have any objections.”

  “Now, before we head out, let's go over our abilities and what roles we'll be taking. My skill is Steady Guard. It reduces incoming damage and taunts the enemy. I'll be taking the front line. Joel will focus on ranged attacks with Grace, and Callum will guard the rear and disarm traps.”

  “We'll provide supportive spells and healing,” Tobias said.

  All eyes turned to me, awaiting my answer.

  “Uh, I'm good at close quarters combat,” I said.

  “That's good, but don't you have some sort of trick up your sleeve?” Duskblade asked.

  “Yeah, I can dodge most attacks.”

  “Oh, all right,” Duskblade said, unable to suppress the disappointment in his voice. He scratched his chin, probably wondering why he invited me in the first place. “Then just protect the healers if any stragglers get through.”

  “Sure thing,” I said.

  “Everyone, even if this is only a C rank dungeon, stay on your toes. I've seen a great raid go to shit in a mere instant because one person wasn't paying attention. As you all know, there's a low percentage that the dungeon will lock once we enter. If that happens, do not panic. We're well supplied with enough food and water for 12 days.”

  Wait, what?

  Callum The Fearless rolled his eyes. “Has that ever happened in a C rank dungeon?”

  “None that I'm aware of. The cheap ass instruments the guild uses to measure a dungeon's rank aren't always reliable. I've been in a C rank dungeon that was closer to a B rank. Spent two weeks in that shitty pit. Almost starved to death.”

  If it wasn't for the quest, I would've called it quits right then. “What do you mean by lock?”

  “If a dungeon locks, it means there are multiple floors and bosses. The only way out is by slaying the last boss. It's a rare occurrence. Most dungeons only contain a single floor and take a day or two to clear with the right party, so don't worry. These are just precautionary measures.”

  But all I could do was worry. The quest’s description implied a chaos shard would be present—an object none of them expected to see. If it was indeed that rare, I had the sinking feeling this sure as hell wasn’t going to be a normal dungeon.

  “It's best if we depart now. Traffic's a mess on account of Sawara's Royal Investigation Unit. They're already shutting down the main roads in anticipation of their arrival,” Duskblade said.

  Grace furrowed her brow. “That's strange. They don't move unless it's something important.”

  “There was a massacre in the Oarwin District last night.”

  “When did they start caring about what happens in Oarwin?”

  Duskblade chuckled. “They don't care about Oarwin. Otherwise, they would've done something years ago. I bet they're more interested in the person who wiped Thunder Fang off the map in a single evening.”

  “One person destroyed Thunder Fang?” Grace asked, nearly choking on her sip of water.

  “That’s just the baseless rumor I heard floating around this morning. It was probably nothing but a squabble between gangs. Anyway, let's head out before we're stuck here.”

  Everyone stood up, but I remained seated, the color drained from my face.

  An investigation? This is feeling too much like Earth.

  “Cyprus, it's not too late to back out,” Duskblade said, slapping my shoulder.

  “No, I'm fine. Let's go.”