Karma looks a paper describing the creation of a portal to the magic communities dimension ' Unlike heaven and hell one can enter a magic community quite easily some people may get lost into these worlds '
" Karma , don't you think you should have some food ? " " I thought you would wake up late Lilith " " How rude do you think because I am demon , doesn't mean that I am not punctual or responsible " " You are the mother of demons , not the caretaker "
"To get to our world you can pour this vial of liquid in a nearby spot where nature gathers" ' Considering reading it before I had planned to go to the mountain but with that residence , this place might be better , but I'm cut off from contacting any angels '
He looks at Lilith and thinks of Cain " Maybe it's better not to get close to anyone like that for now the schedule is a magic community visit in the morning and afternoon I go meet with the managers of Akasha , then in the evening I will be summoning Lebo to deliver the weapons to them I wonder if demons have different work hours do they need sleep man being a demon becomes more and more tempting "
" You want to become a demon " " Ah no , I just hate having to sleep but now I'm curious whether you know a way " Lilith smiles showing her teeth " I know I was the first human to become a demon "
" Oh is that so " " Using your sins is enough just like how a human becomes closer to being an angel by using their halo they can get closer to being a demon by using their sins " " What if your sins far outweigh your merits ? "
" You become a demon but this is only the case if your will to be an angel is weak if you somehow manage to be an angel despite having lesser merit you get black wings as a sign that you still have some work to do if it is the opposite you can just have your merits turned into cash "
" What if you keep it ? " " You become a rare figure that can commute between heaven and hell there are still some restrictions but it's for the best to have broader travelling options " Lilith looks at the empty fridge .
" I really should've gone to buy food " " Then go buy I planned to order a boxed lunch because I'll be out soon so have Cain watch over the house " Lilith smiles " You know it feels like we are a family "
" Weird family a 20-year-old human is the breadwinner while a thousand of years old human and demon are freeloaders " " Hey It's not my fault Adam wasn't my ideal man " ' Considering that I left Cain to investigate the lost pieces he might have to travel but to where exactly ? '
Cain was in his room thinking ' If the guardian lost their parts then isn't it much more believable for the parts to go somewhere far away , nobody in heaven and hell knows about this guy or the special realm they live in , they are also gone from this world or at least from mortal dreams and nobody has spotted them or at least heaven or hell didn't cause enough of a ruckus to prove they were found '
" So many dead ends " " Cain I want you to watch over this house " Karma said beside his bedroom door " What about investigating ? " " I'll figure a way for now I will be heading to the magic community I might find clues meanwhile as for you I am trying to figure out a way to send you to hell legally without killing you "
" So you are telling me to go to hell to investigate for the pieces ? " " Yep Hell seems pretty close to the special realm the Founder's friend went to although it isn't perfectly the same " Cain was confused as to why Karma seemed to know more .
' Maybe there are some parts he tore out then ? ' " Did you rip out some parts on your own to hide some secrets ? " " If there are other hidden abilities a Count can inherit by blood , But I wouldn't risk showing them to you , but trust me I'd rather play as a normal human than a special human "
Cain nodded " Fine I will go to hell when that happens " " Thanks " " Also is the hidden ability that you have something related to the mind " Karma nodded " You'll babysit the house for now I still have to learn how to travel to hell legally "
Cain felt relaxed that he could rest " Then I'll sleep more " " Yeah yeah I'll set up an auto lock " Karma and Lilith left the house as she took a car to go to the grocery and Karma went to the forest holding the vial and a backpack .
" You guys can come out now nobody should be watching me from here " the promise keepers appeared as Karma smiled " Are we going yet ? " Dream said excitedly being a much more curious child than Gale .
" Yeah we are just let me find the right tree " "Instructions : Pour the magic vial into anything that is natural such as trees and stones but not animal life or a cellphone or anything that isn't natural" Karma goes through the tree portal and is amazed to see .
" Wow " He was amazed to see himself in a room made from altering nature just enough " A literal tree house " Karma looked around and saw a small little fairy " Hello you must be Karma Count ? "
" Yeah " " Are those promise keepers I heard the last one died out but I guess you accepted their offer " " Yes I did " " Thank you very much we don't like to lose more of our kind " ' They seem to be in a tight position '
" But we can forget that first , we have to ensure you don't have any adverse effects so can you come let us test your affinity ? " Karma tilted his head " Affinity is it like those things in fantasy novels ? "
" Correct but this affinity is more complicated some elements can be related while some are vaguely related but we can find that out once we test you " ' No lies here I have to keep my guard up unlike heaven or hell the magic community might be more dangerous if I know little about them '
Karma followed the fairy wondering about the affinity ' Magical community is composed of several species that originate from god's creation rather than god it might be preferable to say any creation cause I don't believe god created the world '
" Here stand here and we will scan for your earth affinity if possible we might see other connected affinities like life " ' That's right promise keepers are also magical beings which means magical beings are broader in different types of strength '
The promise keepers watched as Karma stepped onto a platform it glows " Wow high affinity to all aspects of earth , that means you have affinity to metal too and maybe sand or even life "
' Now I see maybe it's good to properly ally with the magic community ' " Then shall we end the test here ? " " Ehh you are not going to learn about the other elements ? " " No need after all I'm sure I can't learn that fast " ' I really should accelerate the Akasha project '
" Then I should be able to create your ID card but if you have greate affinity with Earth then let's take you to the caves " " Karma I don't want to be trapped in caves " Gale said " It's fine you are free to go "
" Thank you " " I'll also , fire isn't good underground " ' Then that leaves Truth and Dream ' " Then please come back soon " the fairy said as Karma stepped into the teleporter and appeared inside a big cave .
' Would I see dwarves but then again ' he looks down to see something diferent ' No dwarves but rather some kind of anthropomorphic beast ? No there are some humans but from this point of view their reactions kept trying to scratch them like some pet , must be some furries who came here I expected this much but they don't react the same way a cat would , none seem to react from scratches '
" Hey are you a new residence " Karma turned to see a black and white Hare " And what should I call you ? " " Lulu , I hope you don't touch me so casually ? " " It's okay , unlike those creeps who don't respect personal space ... I have a pet rock to vouch for me "
Lulu was confused with the choice of words " How can a rock vouch for you ? " " The point was I am fine with a pet rock I bring it with me at all times too " Karma reaches his pocket holding a small triangle base pyramid .
" That's not a rock ? " " It is a naturally formed mineral that I shaped into a pyramid " " Pyramid ? " Lulu's head starts connecting the dots ' Wait a pet rock that looks like a pyramid and with that kind of mineral ? '
" You must be ... THE COUNT ? " Lulu backed away after yelling ' I am famous enough for Mihr to see me despite being so far , he must mean that those who aren't well known are hard to see unlike those who are famous ' " I guess I can skip introduction "
' But if you yelled that much then wouldn't that mean everyone in his cave heard it but then again I don't know much about them they might treat this as the boy who cried wolf story ' " If you are the Count do you want to learn about my business ? "
Karma looks at the pickax that Lulu held " Is it about mining ? " " Ahh no it's making jewelry using magic ores nobody likes them at all but I found how to make them " " Now I am interested "
" haha bet you are the jewelry is like magic items in fantasy novels " " Ehh don't you have any runes or anything ? " " Huh who uses that ? " ' The image of magic use is crumbling does it mean it depends highly on affinity then ? '
" Can't blame you though humans have weird fantasies about magic and even elves and dwarves but we don't even look close to that , but at least they got a few right " Lulu said " Here look at this sample "
Lulu showed a necklace " This one makes you physically much stronger " She struggled to push a boulder and put the necklace on and manage to move it slightly ' She isn't lying at all ' " See ? wanna try it ? " " No need I've seen enough although I'm not exactly here for that "
" Makes sense I didn't send a mail to talk business cause it feels kinda flooded so here " Lulu showed a business card " At least hold on to this you know , it might be useful for later ? " " I will " ' hehe I got a chance to get a deal from the Count himself '
'' Even if she hides it I still feel like she is trying to secure a deal ' " Then I'll see you when I learn enough " Karma said and Lulu smiled as she turned ' A weirdly long tail maybe a hybrid of a hare and wolf ' he looks at the town and walked around avoiding the furry community hoping to not get associated with them .
Karma walks through ignoring some adults as he finishes summarizing his thoughts ' Seems like they also use merit as currency and considering their origin I bet they have a lot with these prices '
Karma himself also couldn't believe the exorbitant prices in the stores ' but why are they dying out could it be something to do with the world or is it something separate ? '
" Mister are you going to eat that ? " Karma turned to look at some brown fox " This rock ? " Karma pointed at his pet rock receiving a nod ' I was just fiddling with this '
" Here " ' It's expensive but who cares it's just a rock ' the fox ate it like it was some rock candy crunching it as Karma wondered why even a child like them had overflowing merits .
" How are your teeth still okay ? " " Mmhh ? Crunch " the crunching sound that goes through the fox mode made Karma wonder if they have some weird teeth looking at them ' It's not sharp to teeth meat but it is something one should have to eat rocks '
" Mister that tastes really good do you have more ? " " No that was the only one I carried around " " Awww " the fox said with disappointment ' I feel compelled to comfort them is it because they are small like a child '
" Uhm then can you come back when you have more ? " Karma looks at the fox wondering where they practiced puppy eyes ' Must be the internet ' " No I have a lot of work to do "
" Then why are you here so many humans come here but they keep touching our faces and scratching our stomachs it feels like my fur would come out "
" I'm not here to admire your looks or do whatever disgusting thing humans who call themselves furries would do " " You're not ? " " No I came here for some business "
' I also have to confirm if Rochester has some form of magic ability I want to keep that guy from using it again I should look into that first and what it can do '
" What kind of business ? " " Learning about magic " " But Mister " " I know magic isn't about runes or trying to communicate but centers around affinity " " Then what are you going to learn about ? "
Karma thinks about what his target is " I want to know anything and everything that I can learn " " Oh I know you can go to the library " " Thanks " Karma leaves as the fox is confused about his lack of expression .
' I hate that guy ... but he gave me a good rock so it's fine ' Karma looks at the library ' There is a huge story section ' he goes to the section he was interested in amazed at how many thin books there are and starts reading them .
' Wait now that I think of it where did Dream go ' Karma takes Truth's phone to see them playing some game " Truth are you okay ? " "Yeah why ?" "I thought you would be mad at me for ignoring you"
"It's fine I know you are busy I don't want to bother you either" ' How sad but ' "I don't mind you acting like a child , you were just born two days ago I don't mind if you say your thoughts out" he looks at the teary emoji .
"Thank you" "Thanks too" Karma continues reading as he looks at affinities ' There is one about lifespan ' "Vitality can be extracted from the trees , waters , earth and possibly the air" ' So even magic follows the law of conservation '
"Transfering vitality to another person is possible but the direction it goes is difficult one would need a great understanding of life and body and great affinity" ' In other words Rochester might have studied magic '
Karma looks at the book for forbidden acts "This book is based on parent's hatred some of us don't like to do things yet taking a life isn't one of them" ' Quite like my idea ' "We are a life killing others to preserve our life is nothing more than obtaining food"
Even if the words sound harsh it didn't bother Karma but felt like someone was agreeing with his own idea "Because our ideas of forbidden are completely different than the god referred to as he , we had little support compared to the angels but we don't ally with demons"
' Now who have died from here ' "While death is possible for magical beings it is usually a long slumber depending on who would be able to wake us up , but even that is difficult and we don't want to find any cruel person to do that"
Karma recalled what the paper among the contracts had said ' Help us again huh the promise keepers had the same are the magical community really in a tight spot ? ' he grabs the other books he found reading them .
"The birth rate of magical beings is slowing down the rate is going much and much lower every day with minor times of sprouting out we need to find our parent quickly and at least confirm whether they are dead or not if not we can ask for help"
' Finding their parent seems futile even I couldn't find the lost pieces ... they both might be in hell or heaven . But I can praise them for hiding this although I guess it all changed when I went through this or rather ... Did they believe I wouldn't help them if they only asked for something that solely benefits me ? '
Karma recalls how many interviews , press conference and exposure of his self that nearly everyone knows about the magic community's ability to probe and even the likelihood that they took a suitable spot to watch him .
' I see now Maybe they instructed the promise keepers or took advantage of their dying to send a simple message perhaps ' He looks around confused to see a small fluffy and cute little earth spirit .
" May I help any of you ? " " Uhh who are you ? " " I'm a very big and powerful person in the human world " " Then can I get closer ? "
' what does that mean ? ' the earth child moved closer to Karma as they took a seat closer ' This is awkward why would they physically get closer ? And why do they have more tails are they supposed to be a fox or a cat ? ' all the animals Karma tried to make a comparison of failed to match the child's figure .
" How old are you ? " " I'm very young actually I was just born yesterday " ' Exactly what kind of ... no wait they don't even know who their parent is or where ' the child keeps staring at Karma .
' There are no mentions on how to send a child to get an identity in fact is there a name I can call ' " My name is Karma Count what is yours ? " " I don't have a name "
" Hello Lulu ... What you want me to do that ? ... Seems fair enough I'll do it ... You want some equipment too ? ... Fine I'll do it just get the kid I can't believe they were born yesterday what kind of insane vitality those your parent have ? " " I don't know I usually don't care where I came from but where I end up " Lulu said .
" Alright then you'll have to wait though I don't get any reception in here " " That's strange don't you have a much better phone for that ? " " Not really I only use the phone I have now for research maybe I should go shopping for a laptop "
He hangs up Lulu and wonders where he could actually find a shop ' Maybe in hell , actually who was the inventor of technology ? ' he grabs a book waiting for Lulu to understand the biology of a magical being .
"Despite our differences , we have plenty of similiarities , our inability to reproduce and having no other families other than siblings , or any organs necessary for expanding our population" ' so this is what Lilith said about this trait '
"We also do not excrete anything out but our digestive system can breakdown matter depending on our affinity , an earth child can eat rocks and grow stronger depending on the quality of the rocks" ' That fox did eat my pet rock without difficulties but they don't have an excretory system ? '
"In exchange for an excretory system , we turn all the digested material into magic which we can store in the form of more cells , it is much preferable to have them stored as fur , feather as the loss of them doesn't affect our bodies as much as turning them into muscle cells"
Recalling the tail that Lulu had ' But then again she didn't have an extra tail so is that long tail actually her's in the first place but wait why call Lulu a her if she isn't exactly a girl or a boy rather than none of the magic community have genders , I don't think they have anyone going into a bathroom at all it was only humans and there are faucets outside and drinking fountain '
There were so many surprises when learning about the magic community he had to toss away all the previous assumptions about their community that he based on any fantasy novel he read .
"Also our tails don't react to our emotions or our ears it moves by our will and our entire body is in our control so when we wag it , it is not because we are happy but because it is our reactions to the temperature" ' Here is a part about best ways of storing magic '
"While our magic can be stored as cells it is best to have ones that can easily be removed without any pain most preferable method is fur or hair as this can be easily cut without pain" " I understand that is that but even this book can't cover all magical beings "
He looks at Truth wondering where Dream has gone to and sighs ' For now I have to eat some lunch there is a bench I'll take this guy with me ' Karma updated Lulu of his location and went to the park to eat .
' There are still so many uncertaintities I have to be careful about two big gods that much is obvious ' he thinks while eating his lunch ' One is in the light while the other is hidden so deep into the shadows so mysterious I can't pinpoint what they are but maybe '
...
Cain wolfed down all the food as Lilith watched him " Oi you should eat them slowly are you trying to choke yourself ? " " I just didn't think you would be good at cooking of all things " " Exactly what do you mean by that " Lilith felt incredibly insulted as she looked at Solomon's ring .
" Are you going to use that again you know what happens when you do " " Yes yes I know I felt like something was crushing me when I did " Lilith eats some food she cooked wondering about the pile of original text that Karma bought which remained hidden .
" I don't get how the Count family avoided disasters with that much at all did they hire some priest or witch to hide them ? " " There are records about it but it seems like they were all frauds trying to get their hands on the original text "
Lilith looked at the ring again " Maybe I should do something about this " she said with a teasing tone " You are not thinking " " Selling it obviously if I can get it out of a human's hand and exchange it for something I can use "
' If he does then Lilith might just get something crazy but seeing how she hasn't done anything despite having the ring I can trust that she won't do something crazy ' " By the way I already sold a fake copy "
Cain coughed with the food as he looked at the ring " And look I got the scales of famine " " Wait a minute how and when ? " " Oh dear Cain I can go to hell anytime I want , But I don't want to hurt Lucifer even if it is tempting to send him something he can't use but if he isn't going to use the ring either way if I give him a fake and phrase my words right then I can keep the ring and get the scales of famine "
Cain was too tired now to care as he finished eating .