Morning arrived with all the grace of a drunken ogre kicking down a door.
"UP! UP! UP! BREAKFAST IN TEN MINUTES!"
The voice belonged to Matron Griselda, the orphanage's administrator and apparently the human equivalent of a natural disaster. Her footsteps thundered down the hallway, accompanied by the sound of her stick banging against doors.
I'd already been awake for an hour, sitting by the window and watching the city come to life. Old habits. A Demon King didn't survive three centuries by sleeping through dawn.
[Good morning, Host! ♡]
[Daily Quest Available: "The Orphanage Breakfast Incident"]
[Attend breakfast without causing or participating in any conflicts.]
[Reward: 15 Virtue Points]
[Bonus Objective: Make at least one person smile genuinely.]
[Bonus Reward: +10 Virtue Points]
[Time Limit: 1 hour]
I stared at the notification. "Without causing OR participating in conflicts? You saw what happened last night. Marcus isn't going to just forget—"
[The System has faith in your ability to navigate social situations peacefully! ♡]
"Your faith is misplaced."
[That's the spirit! ♡]
I was beginning to suspect the System's cheerful messages were specifically designed to irritate me.
The orphanage dining hall was exactly what you'd expect—long wooden tables, mismatched chairs, and the lingering smell of porridge that had been watered down to the point of theoretical existence. About thirty children ranging from five to seventeen filled the space, creating a cacophony of noise that made my head throb.
My Detect Intentions skill activated automatically as I entered, and suddenly I was drowning in a sea of emotions. Hunger. Boredom. Resentment. Fear. A few sparks of hope scattered throughout like dying embers.
And from the far corner where Marcus sat with his two cronies—pure, undiluted hostility.
Fantastic.
"Kai!" The girl who gave me the clay hero waved from a table near the window, her face lighting up. "Sit with us!"
'Us' included two other children—a small boy of maybe seven with glasses held together by string, and a girl around ten with a bandage on her arm.
I made my way over, very aware of Marcus's eyes tracking my movement. My skill showed his anger intensifying with each step I took.
"Morning," I said, sliding onto the bench.
"This is Thomas," She indicated the boy with glasses. "And that's Penny." The girl with the bandage gave me a shy wave.
A woman who looked like she'd never smiled in her life dumped a bowl of gray slop in front of each of us.
"And you, what's your name?" I asked to the girl.
"Me?... I'm Lifan."
Allegedly porridge. It smelled like sadness and tasted—I took a reluctant spoonful—like liquid disappointment.
[Host's Sass Level: Critical ♡]
I ignored the System and focused on my tablemates.
Lifan was chattering about something, her emotions reading as genuine happiness. The other two were quieter, watching me with a mixture of curiosity and wariness.
"—and then you just walked away! Like it was nothing!" Lifan was saying. "Nobody stands up to Marcus like that."
"It wasn't that impressive," I muttered, taking another spoonful of the terrible porridge.
"Are you kidding?" Thomas piped up, his voice squeaky. "Marcus has been terrorizing this place for two years! Ever since he got big enough to push people around."
My Detect Intentions skill caught a spike of fear from the boy. Personal experience, then.
"He bothers you?" I asked.
Thomas's eyes darted away. "Sometimes. He takes my glasses. Says I look stupid with them, and even stupider without them."
Classic bully tactics. Unimaginative, but effective against someone with no power to resist.
"That's terrible!" Lifan said, though I noticed she didn't offer to help either.
I studied Thomas over my spoon. The boy was small for his age, malnourished like most of us, but his eyes had a sharpness that suggested intelligence. The glasses were crude, probably expensive for an orphan to acquire.
"You're smart," I said. It wasn't a question.
He blinked, surprised. "I... I like to read. When I can find books."
"Reading won't stop Marcus from stealing your glasses."
"I know," Thomas said miserably. "I just... I try to avoid him."
"Kai could help!" Lifan said brightly. "He's really good at talking to people."
[Opportunity Detected!]
[Optional Quest: "Protecting the Weak"]
[Help Thomas with his bully problem.]
[Reward: 30 Virtue Points]
[Warning: Quest may conflict with main breakfast quest objective.]
Of course it would. The System wanted me to thread multiple needles simultaneously.
Before I could respond, the sound of a chair scraping across the floor cut through the dining hall noise. Marcus stood, his cronies flanking him, and started walking toward our table.
Every conversation in the room died. Thirty pairs of eyes watched with the morbid fascination people reserve for impending disasters.
My Detect Intentions skill screamed warnings. Marcus's emotions were a toxic cocktail of wounded pride, anger, and the desperate need to reassert dominance.
He stopped at our table, looming over Thomas.
"Hey, four-eyes," Marcus said. "Nice glasses. Be a shame if something happened to them."
He reached down and plucked them off Thomas's face before the boy could react.
"Give those back!" Lifan said, but her voice wavered.
Marcus held them up, examining them in the morning light streaming through the windows. "What's the magic word?"
Thomas looked at me, his face a mixture of hope and resignation. Penny had gone very still. Lifan's emotions showed she wanted to help but was too afraid to act.
[Warning: Main quest objective at risk!]
[Engaging in conflict will result in quest failure!]
I set down my spoon carefully. "Marcus."
He turned to me, a nasty smile spreading across his face. "What, you want to make another speech? Tell me how you're going to ruin my life?"
"No," I said calmly. "I want to make you an offer."
That surprised him. His emotions shifted from aggressive to confused. "What?"
I stood up, ignoring how much shorter this body was compared to his. "You want respect. Recognition. The other kids fear you, but fear isn't the same as respect, is it?"
His eyes narrowed. "What are you getting at?"
"You're strong. Good at intimidation. But that only works inside these walls." I gestured around the dining hall. "Out there, in the real world, you're just another orphan nobody wants. No skills, no prospects, no future."
Marcus's face flushed red. "Shut up—"
"But," I continued, raising my voice enough to carry across the silent hall, "what if I told you I could change that?"
"You?" He laughed, but there was uncertainty in it. "You're scrawnier than half the kids here."
"I am," I agreed. "But I saved someone yesterday. And I know she's going to come back. People who get saved always want to repay the debt—it's human nature. When she returns, she might offer money, connections, even a job."
I paused, letting that sink in. "I could share that opportunity with you. With all three of you." I glanced at his cronies. "Or, you could keep stealing glasses and lunch portions from children who can't fight back. Your choice."
The dining hall was so quiet I could hear the morning birds outside.
Marcus's emotions were a storm—anger warring with greed, pride fighting against pragmatism. My skill showed the moment calculation won over impulse.
"Why would you help me?" he asked suspiciously. "After last night?"
"Because I'm practical," I said truthfully. "You're going to be a problem whether I like it or not. So I can either have you as an enemy who makes my life difficult, or as... not an enemy who occasionally proves useful. I prefer the second option."
[Warning: Morally gray reasoning detected!]
[The System reminds you that manipulation, while effective, is not true virtue!]
I ignored the notification and extended my hand to Marcus. "One week. Give me one week to prove I can deliver. No stealing, no intimidation, no problems. If I can't produce results, we go back to being enemies. Deal?"
Marcus stared at my hand like it might explode. Around the dining hall, I could feel the collective tension—everyone waiting to see what would happen.
Finally, he handed Thomas's glasses back.
"One week," Marcus said, not shaking my hand. "But if you're lying, Kai, you're going to regret it."
"I rarely lie," I said, which was technically true. I just omitted information strategically.
Marcus and his cronies returned to their table. The normal noise of breakfast gradually resumed, but quieter now, subdued.
[Main Quest Complete!]
[You navigated breakfast without conflict! Technically!]
[+15 Virtue Points earned!]
[Optional Quest "Protecting the Weak" Complete!]
[+30 Virtue Points earned!]
[Warning: You have created a debt that must be paid. Failure to deliver on promises will result in severe penalty.]
[Current Virtue Points: 92]
I sat back down to my cold porridge, trying to ignore the way everyone was staring at me.
"That was amazing!" Lifan whispered. "You just... you just made Marcus back down again!"
Thomas had his glasses back on and was looking at me with something uncomfortably close to hero worship. "Thank you, Kai. Really."
"Don't thank me yet," I muttered. "I just made a promise I'm not sure I can keep."
"The merchant's daughter will come back," Lifan said confidently. "People who get saved always do. You said so yourself."
I had said that. And it was true—usually. But I'd also lied about knowing she was a merchant's daughter. I had no idea who that woman was, what she did, or if she'd ever think about the orphan boy who'd saved her again.
[Congratulations! You've created a complex social situation that requires follow-through!]
[This is character growth! Probably! ♡]
"This is strategic nightmare," I corrected under my breath.
"What?" Penny spoke for the first time, her voice quiet.
"Nothing. Just... thinking out loud."
[Bonus Objective Check: Did you make someone smile genuinely?]
I looked around the table. Lifan was beaming. Thomas had a shy smile behind his glasses. Even Penny's lips had curved upward slightly.
[Bonus Objective Complete!]
[Multiple people smiled! Overachiever! ♡]
[+10 Virtue Points earned!]
[Current Virtue Points: 102]
[New Achievement Unlocked: "First Hundred"]
[Reward: Title - "Novice Do-Gooder"]
[Special Effect: NPCs are 5% more likely to trust you.]
A hundred points. Only ninety-nine million, nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand, eight hundred and ninety-eight to go.
At this rate, I'd be doing good deeds until the heat death of the universe.
The sound of the front door opening drew everyone's attention. Matron Griselda's voice echoed from the entrance hall. "I'm sorry, miss, but we don't accept visitors during breakfast—"
"I'll only be a moment." A familiar female voice. "I'm looking for a boy. Young, black hair, very brave?"
My blood ran cold.
The merchant's daughter had returned.
Of course she had. Because apparently, the universe had a sense of humor.
[New Quest Available: "Keeping Your Promise"]
[The woman you saved has returned! Make good on your claims to Marcus!]
[Reward: 50 Virtue Points]
[Failure Penalty: -100 Virtue Points, loss of all credibility, possible physical beating from Marcus.]
Lifan grabbed my arm, her eyes wide. "That's her! That's the woman! You were right!"
Everyone in the dining hall was looking between me and the entrance hall where the woman's voice had come from. Marcus especially was staring at me with an intensity that suggested he was memorizing every detail for later analysis.
I stood slowly, my mind racing through possibilities. I'd made a claim about her being a merchant's daughter with connections. That had been a complete fabrication. For all I knew, she was a laundress who'd saved up enough silver to look respectable.
But I'd survived three centuries by adapting to impossible situations.
"I should... probably go see what she wants," I said.
"We're coming with you!" Lifan started to stand.
"No." My voice came out sharper than intended. Softer, I added, "Let me talk to her first. Alone."
I walked toward the entrance hall, very aware that everyone in the dining room was watching. My Detect Intentions skill picked up curiosity, excitement, and from Marcus—suspicion mixed with grudging hope.
The woman from yesterday stood in the orphanage's shabby entrance, looking completely out of place. In the daylight, I could see details I'd missed in the alley—fine fabric on her dress, jewelry that was modest but real gold, hands that had never seen hard labor.
Actually wealthy, then. Small mercies.
"You!" Her face lit up when she saw me. "I was hoping to find you. I didn't properly thank you yesterday."
Matron Griselda stood nearby, her face showing the calculation of someone who smelled potential donations. "You know this boy?"
"He saved my life yesterday," the woman said firmly. "Three men cornered me in an alley, and this brave young man talked them down without a single blow being struck."
The matron's eyebrows rose as she reassessed me. I'd been invisible to her before—just another orphan in a building full of them.
"I'm Clara Ashworth," the woman continued. "My father owns the Ashworth Trading Company. I came to properly thank this boy and to offer a reward for his service."
My mind catalogued that information instantly. Ashworth Trading Company. I'd heard Marcus mention it last night when the matron had been discussing supply deliveries. Medium-sized operation, respectable, with connections throughout the city.
I'd accidentally stumbled into saving someone actually important.
The universe definitely had a sense of humor.
"A reward isn't necessary," I said, because I knew the System would punish me for accepting it.
[Virtue Acknowledged! +2 Points!]
"Nonsense," Clara said. "You helped me when you had no obligation to do so. The least I can do is return the favor." She pulled out a small purse. "This is fifty silver pieces—"
"No," I interrupted, seeing my opportunity. "Not money."
She blinked. "No?"
"There are other children here," I said carefully. "Friends of mine. They're strong, hard-working, loyal. If you really want to thank me, give them a chance."
I was gambling everything on a single assumption—that wealthy merchants were always looking for cheap, reliable labor.
Clara's expression shifted to something thoughtful. "You want me to offer them employment?"
"Trial positions," I clarified. "Just an opportunity to prove themselves. If they're not suitable, you lose nothing."
The matron was watching this exchange with naked avarice. Having children placed in positions meant potential connections, maybe even kickbacks.
"How many children?" Clara asked.
"Six," I said. "Plus myself."
[Bold move detected!]
[The System is intrigued! ♡]
Clara studied me for a long moment, and I felt my Detect Intentions skill pick up her emotions—surprise, curiosity, and something else. Respect?
"You don't want money for yourself, but you negotiate for positions for others," she said slowly. "That's... unusual for someone your age. Can I know your name?"
"I'm Kai and I prefer long-term investments over short-term gains," I said, which was true in both my lives.
She laughed, a genuine sound. "You remind me of my father. Very well, little boy. Have your six friends present themselves at the Ashworth Company warehouse tomorrow morning at dawn. We'll see what they're made of."
[Quest "Keeping Your Promise" Complete!]
[You delivered beyond expectations! The System is impressed! ♡]
[+50 Virtue Points earned!]
[+25 Bonus Points for exceeding quest parameters!]
[Current Virtue Points: 179]
Clara pressed something into my hand—a copper token with the Ashworth Company seal. "Show this tomorrow. And Kai? Thank you again. You may not want a reward, but you've earned one anyway."
She left, leaving behind the scent of expensive perfume and the shocked silence of everyone in the orphanage who'd been eavesdropping.
I turned back to the dining hall, where every single child was staring at me.
Marcus stood slowly, his emotions complex—shock, disbelief, and buried beneath layers of aggression, the tiniest spark of respect.
"You actually did it," he said.
"I told you I would." I held up the token. "Dawn tomorrow. Don't be late."
For the first time since I'd been reincarnated into this nightmare, I felt something almost like satisfaction.
I'd converted enemies into assets, protected the weak, gained reputation, and earned points—all without breaking my cover or violating the System's rules.
This was strategy. This was what I excelled at.
[Achievement Unlocked: "The Manipulator's Heart"]
[Wait, that title sounds bad. Updating...]
[Achievement Unlocked: "The Negotiator's Heart"]
[Effect: People are 10% more likely to accept your deals and compromises.]
[The System notes that while your methods are morally gray, the outcomes have been positive! Keep up the... good work? ♡]
I returned to my table, where Lifan immediately grabbed my arm.
"You did it! You actually got us jobs!"
"Trial positions," I corrected. "Don't mess them up."
Thomas was crying quietly behind his glasses. "I've never... nobody's ever..."
"Don't thank me yet," I said, though something uncomfortable twisted in this body's chest at his tears. "You still have to prove yourselves tomorrow."
But even as I said it, I knew the truth.
I hadn't done this purely for strategic reasons. Somewhere in the process, between Thomas's gratitude and Lifan's smile and even Marcus's grudging respect, I'd started to care about the outcomes.
Not much. Just a little.
But enough to be disturbing.
[Character Development Detected!]
[You're growing as a person! ♡]
"I'm really not," I muttered into my cold porridge.
[Denial is a natural part of the process! ♡]
End of Chapter 3
[Current Stats:]
[Virtue Points: 179/100,000,000]
[Days as Reformed Villain: 2]
[Allies Gained: 6 (Lifan, Thomas, Penny, Marcus, Cronies x2)]
[Reputation: Rising (Thornhaven Orphanage)]
[System's Satisfaction Level: Pleasantly Surprised]
[Malachar's Existential Crisis Level: Mild but Growing]
Next chapter: "The Warehouse Test"