I Woke Up as the Villain

After finishing his shower, Yu-Seong's first task was to check on the Dragon Egg that he had carefully placed in a corner of his room.

‘I never thought I would meet Loki in the Tower of Heaven.’

If the egg hadn't been right in front of him, Yu-Seong might have thought it had all been a dream. However, when he looked at the mysterious purple Dragon Egg, he could feel that this dream-like event had been very real.

"It's so quiet even though Do-Jin said it’s about to hatch,” Yu-Seong mumbled to himself as he stroked the somewhat feisty Dragon Egg. "I heard that Kim Do-Jin is going to do some sort of joint training with the Dragon... He's probably going to make something great."

Yu-Seong couldn't help but feel a little envious of Do-Jin. However, he did not express his jealousy when they exchanged messages.

‘Anyway, I also have a Dragon Egg, so…’

However, not seeing the egg hatch quickly made him anxious.

"Could it be that Loki, that damn god, cursed it with some sort of strange magic? It's certainly plausible, given that she is notorious for having a terrible temper."

As Yu-Seong's suspicion turned to anger, the Dragon Egg suddenly began to vibrate loudly.

"Huh...?"

Surprised, Yu-Seong leaned closer to the egg and tried to focus his mind. However, he was only greeted by a deafening silence.

"It definitely responded just now. What was that? Could it be about to hatch?"

If possible, Yu-Seong hoped that the Dragon Egg would hatch before he entered the Rank 7 dungeon.

"And of course, I hope it’s born healthy," Yu-Seong said as he stroked the Dragon Egg with affection and longing one last time.

After that, he checked his schedule on his phone before leaving for work and saw a message he had written the night before. He clapped his hands in excitement.

"Right, I can't forget about this!"

He ran to the living room and grabbed a bag of candy before returning to his room. There was still plenty of time before he had to leave for work.

“Summon Dimensional Merchant.”

When Yu-Seong would call, a pink door that brightens up the room would appear and Ping Pong of the Lion Bear Clan would walk out of it with his usual dignified appearance. At least, that was the usual process.

“Huh?”

However, even though the pink door was opened, Ping Pong did not come out immediately. This had never happened before, which confused Yu-Seong.

Then, Ping Pong suddenly appeared. He was dressed in what seemed like a battle suit with a wig on top of his head, walking with the same swagger as usual. He was also holding a book, which could have been a novel or a comic, in his hand.

'Mr. Ping Pong...?'

Feeling thoroughly confused, Yu-Seong called out to Ping Pong and questioned him.

Ping Pong simply handed Yu-Seong the book in his hand.

‘War Deity Who Levels Up?’

With a slight smile, Ping Pong looked at Yu-Seong, who had received the book with a somewhat familiar title, and said, "I'm sorry. I attempted to aggro when showing you this. The fighting skills between the ministers are so cool! I can’t believe that the main character, who was like a loser, has changed so much. [War Deity Who Levels Up] is a real legend…"

"Oh my, Mr. Ping Pong, what did you see this time?"

Ping Pong, standing in the same spot, glanced at Yu-Seong who held the book he had just received. He said, "This is the trend among the Dimensional Merchants these days. By the way, how does this battle suit look? I made it to look like the one on that book cover."

"It's very cute."

"Isn't it cool?"

"It's so cute."

"Hmm... Yu-Seong, it seems you're lacking in aesthetic sense."

Regardless of how shiny and stylish his attire was, the Lion Bear Clan member with short arms and legs had limitations in how he could come across in appearance. Above all, not many people could say that Ping Pong was cool while he was swinging his short, fluffy tail left and right very proudly. His tail looked just like cotton candy, after all.

"Anyway, it's been a while. What brings you... Ohhh!"

Before he could finish his sentence, Ping Pong received a lollipop from Yu-Seong. He quickly took off his uncomfortable cosplay costume and returned to his original form. He also began quickly licking the lollipop with his pink tongue.

‘I can't help but think he’s cute.’

Yu-Seong watched Ping Pong's adorable expression with a content look before saying, "Listen as you eat. You may know this, but the Tower of Heaven has appeared on Earth.”

"I've heard the news. Thanks to its appearance, the supply of karma points from the gods is not as smooth as it used to be," said Ping Pong.

"However, karma points are not only accumulated by receiving the gods’ support, right?"

When Yu-Seong asked his question, Ping Pong stiffened. Even his tongue, which had been flicking across the candy before, froze.

"I know that karma originally means the consequence of one's behavior, and undoubtedly, the value I've accumulated exists. There would be karma points accumulating even without the gods’ sponsorship, right? Currently, I can't see them in the system messages, but as a Dimensional Merchant, you should be aware of that."

"You know quite a lot of detail. It has fascinated me since I first heard it. It should be information that isn't known on Earth yet..." said Ping Pong.

"Oh, that's a simple reason. This world is just like the novel I was reading. And I happened to possess the character from that world. There are a lot of difficult things about it, but this particular aspect is advantageous," said Yu-Seong.

"That's a pretty plausible plot. That kind of scenario should be common in genre novels. Hmm, I should read something like that for my next book."

Yu-Seong grinned at Ping Pong's calm reaction. As Ping Pong clearly accepted the explanation as truth, he then asked, "Anyway, can you convert my karma points?"

"In the first place, that information isn't a secret, so it's not difficult to do so. However, if you consume too many of your karma points at this point, it might not be good for your future growth. Are you sure about this? Keep in mind that it could have a negative impact instead."

The reason why the gods gave karma points and support was to raise their own godly status. In other words, they could gain more karma points through their sponsee’s achievements. Therefore, Yu-Seong was confident with his choice.

"Generally, it wouldn't be a good idea to recklessly consume your karma points at this point, right?" Yu-Seong asked confidently.

However, would it be the same for Yu-Seong?

"I've already done a lot of things that were difficult or impossible in this world," he added.

Assuming that this world was really just a novel, and that the character Yu-Seong had achieved impossible feats, Ping Pong's concerns about using up his karma points would be meaningless. After all, Yu-Seong's karma points would have accumulated to a level where using the points wouldn't be a problem.

"If that's your will, I'll grant it. But use it carefully," said Ping Pong.

Yu-Seong nodded.

Ping Pong finished his lollipop before spreading his hands wide open. Then, a pink energy wave in the shape of an ellipse spread out from his pink jelly soles and touched Yu-Seong. He then said, "I'm sure that you, Choi Yu-Seong, would have accumulated a decent amount of karma points. However..."

After confirming the numbers hovering over Yu-Seong's head, Ping Pong blinked his small, black, round eyes. He questioned, "Are my eyes playing tricks on me?"

"What's wrong?" asked Yu-Seong.

He couldn't see the karma points. In the first place, karma points were only visible to the Dimensional Merchants of their contracted partners.

"...eight hundred thousand."

"What?"

"Your current karma points are eight hundred thousand, Choi Yu-Seong. Amazing! You truly are my contracted partner! Wooo hooo!"

In the end, Ping Pong let out a cheer of joy.

***

According to the original novel, an ordinary person could accumulate an average of around one thousand karma points by the end of their life. However, individuals with notable achievements, exceptional skills, or those who were famous figures or notorious criminals, could accumulate an average of around ten thousand karma points.

‘Of course, there are people who far exceed these levels, but…’

For instance, legends like Einstein had accumulated more than several hundred thousand karma points during his lifetime. This was because he had such a significant impact on Earth through his discovery of atomic energy, and those were his accumulated karma points across the span of his entire life.

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Yu-Seong was only 21 years old.

‘I’ll soon be 22, but…’

He was just in his early twenties, but his karma points had already reached an astonishing eight hundred thousand. It was a level that did not make any sense in this world.

‘When the original novel’s protagonist, Kim Do-Jin, was an S-rank hunter, I think he had approximately one million karma points.’

However, despite being only a B-rank hunter, Yu-Seong had already accumulated nearly the same amount. This was likely due to the many changes he had made in this world.

‘So there are things that I’ve gained as much as I’ve lost due to the butterfly effect.’

Since he had been worried about the outcome, Yu-Seong found himself sighing in relief as the result was exactly as he had hoped.

He had been holding back from using his karma points as he needed to save them for his future growth. However, the fact that his karma points had accumulated to this level meant that he could afford to buy the necessary items without worrying about his karma points running out.

Regardless of Yu-Seong's change of mood, Ping Pong had an ecstatic expression on his face as he jumped up and down in place. Raising his voice, he exclaimed, "And most of your karma points are leaning toward the light rather than darkness! Evil karma will make you increasingly sick. I'm really proud of you, Choi Yu-Seong. I'm lucky that you're my first contracted partner. I'm really happy!"

"Are you really that excited about it?" asked Yu-Seong.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be excited? I don't want to accumulate any evil karma points, no matter how large the amount may be. That's how I sincerely feel. Evil karma can truly harm one's existence, and even Dimensional Merchants can't be free from that fate either. With this many karma points, you wouldn't need to worry too much about the future, even if you consume some at this point. In fact, you might even be able to increase the investment value."

"You seem to have the desire to become a good Dimensional Merchant, Mr. Ping Pong."

"Of course. As the one who will lead the Lion Bear clan, I will become a great... Well, I said something unnecessary," said Ping Pong sheepishly.

"Lion Bear clan leader? What? Are you a prince or something...?"

"Oh-huh, pretend you didn't hear that!"

As he stretched out his cute paw, Ping Pong interrupted Yu-Seong and asked with a shaky gaze, "Anyway, tell me what you want to do with your karma points. I will try my best to help you.”

Yu-Seong grinned as he watched Ping Pong try to avoid answering his question. He got down to business, saying, "First, I want to convert one hundred thousand karma points into system points so that I can use them directly."

"Do you really need that much?"

Indeed, Yu-Seong needed that many karma points as he planned to upgrade all of his special skills to B-rank.

‘Anyway, one hundred thousand karma points could be easily recovered just by clearing a 7th-rank raid dungeon.’ 

By accomplishing what was considered difficult as a B-rank hunter, one would have a great opportunity to accumulate karma points. And what if the person who accomplished that was Yu-Seong, who was originally the villain in the novel?

‘Maybe I can reap even more benefits.’

In other words, this entire process was an investment.

With Ping Pong's help, Yu-Seong used the one hundred thousand karma points, which had been exchanged through the system interface, to upgrade all of his skills. He could feel a significant increase in his power just by doing so.

‘I already thought I was close to the top tier of A-rank, but… ‘

Now, he might not have a problem going head-to-head with the topmost tier of A-rank or even the lower tier of S-rank.

‘Just defeating an S-rank would be enough to accumulate a considerable amount of karma points.’

As Yu-Seong became stronger, the ways to accumulate karma points naturally had become endless. Knowing this, he was quite satisfied with this situation.