The rain finally stopped.
Ren Akuro stood in the narrow alley, staring at the system interface floating in front of him.
The body on the ground was already turning cold now.
He forced himself not to look at it.
Instead, he focused on the glowing notifications in front of him.
HARVEST COMPLETE
TARGET: DAISUKE MORITA
SIN LEVEL: 64%
REWARDS
+100 EXP
LEVEL UP → 2
+5 STR / +5 AGI / +5 INT
+1 SKILL POINT
+2,500 SIN CREDITS
Ren blinked.
"Sin Credits?"
Kuroshin's voice answered calmly inside his mind.
"The currency of your contract."
Another notification appeared almost immediately.
CONVERTING SIN CREDITS → LEGAL CURRENCY.
Ren frowned.
Then his phone vibrated in his pocket.
He slowly pulled it out.
A banking notification appeared on the screen.
Deposit Received: ¥2,500,000
Ren froze.
For several seconds he didn't move.
"What the fuck…That's impossible."
Two and a half million yen.
He had never even seen close to that much money in his entire life.
His entire monthly allowance from the university survival program barely covered instant noodles and rent for the crumbling dorm building he lived in.
And now—just one kill had made him rich.
Ren looked back at the system.
"So every harvest gives money too?" He asked
"Wicked souls carry value," Kuroshin replied.
"Their corruption becomes power… and reward."
Ren laughed quietly.
The sound echoed strangely in the empty alley.
"Power and money." His eyes gleamed.
"No wonder people would sell their souls for something like this."
The demon king chuckled.
"You already did."
Ren ignored the comment.
Instead, he focused on the rest of the system interface.
A new panel opened.
SIN HUNTER SYSTEM
LEVEL: 2
EXP: 0 / 200
STATS
Strength: 10
Agility: 10
Intelligence: 10
HP: 120
Stamina: 120
SKILL POINTS: 1
Ren clenched his fists.
The strength in his muscles felt different.
Before tonight, he had always been weak.
Now his body felt… balanced.
Sharper.
Like every movement carried more force.
And he craved more.
He remembered the unlocked ability.
Another panel appeared.
SKILL: SHADOW STEP
Description:
Allows the user to instantly dash up to 5 meters.
Cooldown: 10 seconds
Stamina Cost: Moderate
Ren looked down the alley.
Then he focused.
Activate.
His body suddenly moved and the world blurred.
In the next instant he appeared several meters ahead.
Ren's eyes widened.
"What the—"
He looked back at where he had been standing.
The distance was real.
His heart began pounding with excitement.
"This… this is insane."
A grin slowly spread across his face.
For the first time in his life—He wasn't powerless and it felt right, so right.
A faint sound made him look up.
Far above the alley, on a nearby rooftop, a silhouette stood against the night sky.
Dark hair moved with the wind.
Her sharp eyes observed everything below.
She had watched the entire scene.
Her gaze narrowed slightly as she observed him use his skill set.
"Interesting." she murmured.
She had been following Daisuke Morita for weeks.
He was suspected of running several illegal financial schemes.
But before she could expose him—
This unknown boy appeared and eliminated him.
No weapon. No struggle.
Just a strange burst of crimson energy.
That wasn't normal.
Not even in Shinkai City.
Reina leaned slightly forward, studying Ren carefully.
"Who are you…?" she thought
Below, Ren suddenly felt something.
A faint sensation.
Like someone watching him.
He glanced around the alley.
But he saw nothing.
The rooftops were dark and Silent.
He shrugged.
Probably just paranoia.
Ren stepped over the body and walked toward the street.
Neon lights reflected across wet pavement as he exited the alley.
Shinkai City was still alive.
Cars moved through glowing streets.
Advertisements for Kizuna Rankings played across giant screens.
One of them displayed the current city leaderboard.
TOP KIZUNA RANKS — SHINKAI CITY
1. Saito Kurogane — Rank S
2. Ayame Tachibana — Rank S
3. Daisuke Morita — Rank A
Ren stopped walking.
His eyes widened slightly.
The third name flickered.
Then it disappeared.
Replaced by another.
Morita had been removed from the rankings.
Like he had never existed.
Ren exhaled slowly.
"So the system even erases them from the hierarchy…" he said to himself.
Kuroshin's voice whispered.
"Dead men hold no rank."
Ren continued walking.
His mind raced with possibilities.
Leveling.
Money.
Skills.
Everything he had dreamed about suddenly felt within reach.
And the best part?
No one knew how he was doing it.
A slow smile spread across his face.
By the time he reached his dorm building, the neon lights of the city had faded into quiet darkness.
The structure looked miserable.
Cracked concrete walls.
Flickering hallway lights.
The lowest tier student housing.
Ren climbed the stairs to the third floor.
Room 307.
His tiny dorm.
Note to himself to get a better lodging soon.
He unlocked the door and stepped inside.
The room barely fit a bed, desk, and small bathroom.
But tonight it felt different.
Ren sat down on the bed.
Then he opened the system again.
NEW FEATURE UNLOCKED
SIN QUESTS
His eyes lit up.
A list appeared.
QUEST AVAILABLE
Target: Unknown
Location: Shinkai Financial District
SIN LEVEL: 71%
REWARD
+300 EXP
+10,000 SIN CREDITS
RANDOM SKILL CHANCE
Ren's breathing slowed.
Ten thousand credits.
That was ten million yen.
For a single target.
The hunger returned instantly.
The same dark excitement from the alley.
Level up.
Kill.
Get stronger.
Get richer.
Climb the Kizuna Hierarchy.
Ren leaned back against the wall, staring at the glowing system screen.
"So this is how I rise…"
Far away, on a rooftop across the street, Reina Kurotsuki watched the dorm building quietly.
Her investigation had just begun.
And she had a feeling—
Ren Akuro was about to become the most dangerous anomaly in Shinkai City.