Just when I was about to sigh in relief, thinking I could finally take my rest, the screen flickered on again, showing Instructor A's face. "Oh, wait, I forgot something! Silly me. Let me further explain your status windows!" She laughed at herself for making such a mistake. "This status window acts as a guide to your status. You can see how strong you are, make yourself stronger, and view your abilities and so on."
Wait, abilities? Am I missing something? Also, how strong am I?
"Try saying 'status window'!" she said with excitement.
Curiosity got the better of me, and I said, "Status window." Immediately, a translucent screen appeared again, but this time it was bigger. I could see my personal information and—what the hell?—my face.
[Name: Hoon Ravi]
[Age: 16]
[Height: 5'9" (175 cm)]
[Weight: 130 lbs (59 kg)]
[An evil person who does mischievous deeds. A mysterious past, and there's a rumor he extorts money from students.]
[Tall, slim feature, dark circles under his eyes, black hair with a red part of hair in the middle]
Why is all of this private info here? How much do they know? My heart raced, panic rising in my chest as I stared at the description of myself as "an evil person." How did they know about my past? Did they know everything?
Beneath the description, I saw my stats, like something out of a video game.
[Status]
[Strength: 54 D]
[Speed: 59 D]
[Wisdom: 90 C]
[Tenacity: 39 -D]
Wait—how weak am I? And why is my Tenacity stat negative? This isn't looking good.
Then Instructor A spoke up again. "Have you seen your stats now? The order from weakest to strongest goes like this: D < C < B < A < S, and so on. If you have B and above, you're considered strong, but if you have lower than that, you can still upgrade your stats with Karma points. Try pressing the '+' button."
It seemed like my stats were pretty weak, so upgrading them seemed like the right choice. With that, I clicked the '+' button.
[Insufficient Karma points]
Huh? I was shocked. Oh, right—I'd lost -25 karma earlier, so I didn't have any Karma left. But it still hit me like a slap in the face. With negative Karma, I couldn't buy anything or upgrade my stats. Karma seemed to act as currency too. I sighed, regretting the way I had used Sakura as a shield. I needed to be more kind from now on if I wanted to earn Karma points back.
Instructor A spoke again, her voice filled with excitement. "Fascinating, isn't it? For those who've upgraded their stats, can you feel yourself becoming stronger now?" Then, her voice grew more eager. "Here's the fun part. Do you want to know your Karma? Hehe, this is the Karma you've accumulated throughout your whole life—bad deeds like shoplifting, cheating, and other sins deduct Karma points. The more evil you are, the lower your Karma points will be! And it can even go into the negatives. Don't worry, though, you can still earn Karma by doing good deeds."
As she spoke, a wave of nervousness washed over me. Bad deeds… I knew I had done my fair share of sins. But still, I could earn it back, right? I sighed in relief, knowing I could redeem myself as long as my Karma wasn't too low.
Instructor A spoke again. "If you're a saint, don't be surprised if your Karma is high! Just be careful when spending it, though. There's a shop button on your status window, where you can spend it!"
I tried clicking the shop button, but when I did, it was just a reminder that I couldn't shop since my Karma was negative.
[Shop]
[Food: 25 Karma points]
[Dragon tail: 100 Karma points]
[Sword: 500 Karma points]
[Evolution stone: 1000 Karma points]
I looked at the list. It was full of things I didn't understand, but the most expensive item was the Evolution Stone. It seemed useful, so I figured I'd save up Karma points for it. For now, though, I was just dreaming about it since I couldn't even afford the food.
Instructor A's voice snapped me back to reality. "Do you get it now? Hehe, no time to extend it further. If you want to know your current Karma, try saying 'show Karma'!"
My heart began to pound. I knew I had done many bad things, and now I had to face it. I wiped my sweat and mustered up all my courage, finally saying, "Show Karma."
A chilling wave of dread hit me as my Karma appeared on the screen.
[Karma: -4938]
It was horrendous! I couldn't believe it. My Karma was way worse than I had imagined. All the bad things I'd tried to bury in my past came rushing back. Faces I wanted to forget. I felt like I was hallucinating, remembering it all—the blood on my hands, the twisted deeds I had done. I felt sick to my stomach.
How could I recover my Karma? I thought. But no, there had to be a way. I couldn't let this be my fate.
But then, I heard a chuckle from the baldy. He asked, "Hey, your face looks horrible. How much Karma do you have?"
Of course, I couldn't tell him about my negative Karma. I was an actor, after all, so I lied. I forced a relaxed smile, calming my breathing, and looked him straight in the eyes. "I got 500 Karma. How about you?"
I delivered it perfectly, hiding my panic. He didn't suspect a thing.
"Oh, shoot, your Karma is higher than mine," he said, his voice dripping with mockery. "But I won't tell you mine. I'm not dumb like you."
I smirked, inwardly mocking him. If only you knew, I thought. You have no idea how low my Karma is.
At that moment, a figure in a cloak and hoodie appeared on the screen—one of the little kid's bodyguards, as the baldy recognized. The figure removed their cloak and hood, revealing a beautiful woman with brown hair. She wore a fantasy-style dress, a witch's hat, and held a staff—straight out of a fantasy novel.
"Wow, what a beauty," the baldy said, mesmerized by her appearance.
The beautiful figure spoke calmly, "Hello, everyone. I'm Cyanide." Her voice was soothing, with a low, calming tone. "Now, I'm going to explain the 'Gifts.' This gift is your ability. It grants powerful skills to the bearer, and it also reflects your personality, your past, and your traumas. My Gift is 'Summon Beasts.' I can summon monsters like the goblin from earlier. So I'm sorry about that."
The baldy, still lost in her beauty, responded, "Oh, don't worry, milady. It's fine, since you're so gorgeous after all."
I felt disgusted. Ugh, I hated this guy. He was what you would call a simp.
Cyanide continued, "Now, I'll present a video of Instructor A showcasing her Gift, 'Solaris Command.' She can gather energy from the sun and use it to control light."
As Cyanide's soothing voice calmed my nerves, the screen switched to a video. Instructor A was floating in the air, a small figure barely visible except for her golden hair that radiated in the sunlight. She stood in front of a massive dragon and, unfazed, she said, "Celestial Swordfall." Behind her, multiple giant swords made of light appeared. With a flick of her hand, the swords pierced the dragon in an instant, slaying it.
Instructor A appeared on the screen again, brimming with pride. "Hmph! Can you see now? You're really lucky to have me as your instructor. After all, I'm this strong!"
Cyanide appeared once more. "Now, each of you will be granted a Gift Orb. This orb will grant you your unique ability based on your personality and accumulated past experiences."
A mysterious orb appeared before me.
[Gift Orb]
[Grants the user their 'Gift' based on their personality and accumulated past experiences. Warning: Can only be used once.]
I opened the orb. A flash of shimmering light blinded me.
[Congratulations, You got your Gift]
[Gift: The Art of Trickery]
[Description: You are able to control emotions, see people's perspectives, and trick others. Warning: Can unlock skills using the stat 'Misery.']
[New Stat unlocked! Misery]
[Description: You earn misery for every mischievous thing you do. But there's a cost: You will be granted negative Karma.]
And just like that, my new path was set.