When Matthew got home, he stripped down and went straight for the shower. He stayed under the water for a long time. 

When he got out, he went to the table and sat down. He tried to make sense of what happened earlier. 

Seconds after sitting, however, he got up and darted to the bathroom. There, he emptied his stomach into the toilet bowl. He sat down in front of the bowl for a while, retching when he had nothing left to vomit. 

He got up with no energy and went back to the table. It was already late. He had not had dinner, but was not hungry. 

After staring at the wall for a while, he got up and went to bed. 

He got up the next morning without a wink of sleep. He spent the night replaying what had happened after he left the portal, trying to process it. 

He was hungry. He prepared himself an omelet, sat down, and ate silently. 

“I should have asked what they wanted…” he murmured, his plate already empty for almost half an hour.

“I shouldn’t have killed the second one at least. Was he still a threat? I could have asked him…” he continued.

“I killed people…” he said.

‘I shouldn’t think like that. It was self defense, I had no choice. I know that. But still, I hate that I don’t know why they did that.’ he thought.

‘They attacked me and they wouldn’t stop. I had to.’ he rested his head on both hands, still sat at the table.

“I can’t stay like this. I have to move and do something.” he decided. 

As he said that, he got up and left. He walked slowly, staring at his feet, until he arrived at the level 1 perma portal.

‘I’ll be safe in there.’ he thought as he walked through the portal gate.

He appeared in the middle of the forest, just like the first time. He sat down directly after being transported and opened his status window.

[Status window]
Name: Matthew Carter
Level: 20
Achievements: 10

- Stats -
STR: 55
AGI: 50
END: 60
INT: 48
LCK: 2
KAR: 2
ATK: 215 [+2]
DEF: 175 [+28]
MGK: 150
RES: 156
(Available stat points: 18)

- Skills -
Mana pulse (Lv.1)
Mental strength (Lv.2)
Poison resistance (Lv.1)
Set traps (Lv.3)
Vampirism (Lv.1)
Weapon throw (Lv.2)

“Wow. There was a lot of change. 7 levels and 3 achievements? Is that right? Oh, and I got new Luck and Karma stats as well… And mental strength gained a level. The description’s still the same though. It must have been from the spell that froze me that time.” he summed up.

‘Let’s check the achievements.’

[Achievement: Unlucky fellow]
Something you find embarrassing was exposed and subsequently mocked. Enjoy the ridicule.

- Bonus stats -
LCK: -10

- Additional effect -
Stat Luck unlocked.

“...”

“Was that when the first guy called me Steve Irwin? -10???? I gained negative luck? That’s why weird things happened with the inventory and I kept missing when throwing!” he burst.

“That fucking system, I swear…!” he cursed, fuming.

He took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.

“Okay, what’s next.” he said after calming down.

[Achievement: Homicide]
You killed another human being for the first time. Another achievement will accompany this one depending on the circumstances.
Karma points may be given or taken depending on your actions.

- Additional effect -
Stat Karma unlocked.

“So that’s where the karma stat came from. And it’s only at two, even though I must have gained levels and the Overachiever must have taken effect. And I also can’t put points into it. Seems like the system decides on the value. And the last one, then?”

[Achievement: No mercy for the wicked]
You killed another human being while defending yourself.

- Additional effect -
When fighting against human beings, gain Vigilante status.

“I guess even the System is telling me that killing them was my only option.” he figured, still not entirely over the events that transpired.

“And what’s the Vigilante status, can I check it?”

As he thought that, a window appeared.

[Status: Vigilante]
Help for the righteous.

- Effect -
Your Karma stat is added as a percentage to your battle stats.

Duration: While in combat against other human beings

‘Battle stats? Must be the last 4? So I gain 2% to each of them when fighting against another human? Let’s hope it won’t come to it again.’

“First, let’s check if the luck stat has an effect on the so called battle stats, like the first 4. I’ll ignore the karma stat since it doesn’t look like I can do anything about it.”

Matthew pulled out his notepad, wrote down his current window for comparison as he did whenever he checked it, and then added a point to his luck stat.

“Oh! I gain 3 magic power from 1 point in luck it seems. Alright.” he said, writing down on his notepad.

“Let’s take a look at the items I picked up, too.” he said, opening his inventory.

‘Two swords and a shield? Those were next to the swordsman. And what’s this? They have a yellow background? Let’s inspect them.’ he thought. As he did, new windows from the system opened.

[Item: Adventurer's sword]
A sturdy shortsword. Balanced and perfect as a starter sword.

- Bonus when equipped -
ATK: 65

[Item: Shiny longsword]
A pretty but heavy longsword. There was more attention to its appearance than to its effectiveness in battle.

- Bonus when equipped -
ATK: 105

- Additional option -
Can never get stained. Anything that covers it will slide off.

[Item: Adventurer's shield]
A mid sized round shield. Not too heavy and reasonably durable.

- Bonus when equipped -
DEF: 60
RES: 26

‘The Shiny longsword is what the swordsman used to attack me. Where did the other two items come from? Did he drop them? And why are the icons in the inventory yellow? Is it because the items came from the player shop?’ he thought, closing the item windows and inspecting his inventory.

“Huh? What’s this? A Skillbook?”