Chapter 2: Comedy and Consequences

The night was dark, without a moon.

Kiryu crouched behind the bushes, the book <Rewrite> open in his hands, luminous ink moving in response to his thoughts.

He wrote a single short line.

Not even five seconds passed—

“Ugh—what’s wrong with my stomach?!”

A bandit suddenly doubled over, his face turning pale. His hands clutched his stomach in panic.

“Damn it… not now…”

He glanced around, then ran stiffly away.

“Oi! Don’t come this way!” another bandit shouted. “Go farther!”

Before they could even breathe in relief, the second bandit began to grimace as well.

He stopped abruptly, bending his knees.

“Wait… why me too?!”

Within seconds, several bandits scattered toward the bushes, all wearing the same panicked expression.

Kiryu covered his mouth, holding back laughter.

He wrote again, shorter this time.

The two remaining bandits stared at each other with uncomfortable expressions.

“Why are you staring at me like that?”

“I’m not—eh?”

Without warning, a fist flew.

“Hey!”

“I didn’t mean to punch you!”

The small commotion turned into a directionless brawl, curses echoing through the night.

Kiryu shifted his glowing pen.

He wrote one additional sentence.

One bandit suddenly froze, his eyes shining.

“E-eh… do you guys see that?”

Near the campfire, the faint figure of a beautiful woman stood, illuminated by the flames.

“Beautiful…” he murmured softly.

He stepped forward.

“Oi! That’s a woman!”

“Move! I saw her first!”

The two bandits shoved each other, stumbled, and crashed into a pile of firewood.

Kiryu let out a small breath.

He wrote one final line.

The campfire suddenly flared.

Sparks leapt onto the surrounding tents.

“Fire!”

“Our camp is burning!”

The bandits panicked and scattered, some still emerging from the bushes with pale faces.

“My pants aren’t—damn it!”

Amid the chaos, an angry voice rang out.

“This isn’t a coincidence.”

“This is cursed bad luck.”

A bandit slammed his fist into the ground.

“Tomorrow.”

“We take revenge.”

“That village is the unlucky one.”

Kiryu slowly closed the book <Rewrite>.

A small smile appeared—then vanished.

The comedy was over.

Now came the consequences.

Tomorrow, they would come.

And Kiryu finally understood—

rewriting the world always meant being ready for the world to strike back.

He was certain that his actions that night carried great consequences, and he returned to Avelyn Village, lying down in the old hut that had become his temporary home.

Morning greeted Avelyn Hollow quietly.

Kiryu woke up on the wooden bed, letting out a small yawn, his mind still half-asleep.

He was just about to sit up when—

“Notification.”

Kiryu froze in shock.

“Action detected.”

“What…?”

Kiryu turned quickly, staring at the empty room.

“Who’s there?” he asked, confused.

“Activity summary: cause-and-effect manipulation, mass physiological disturbance, low-level cognitive illusion, and indirect fire.”

Kiryu swallowed.

“Impact evaluation: comedy effective.”

He pushed himself halfway upright.

“Who are you?”

The air went silent for a second.

“I am the consequence evaluation module.”

“System name: Karma.”

Kiryu rubbed his face.

“Wait… a system?”

“Correct.”

“Each use of <Rewrite> will generate karma accumulation.”

The voice remained calm.

Too calm.

“Current karma status: light negative.”

Kiryu fell silent for a moment.

“Negative… light?”

“Classification: non-lethal actions, but increased conflict escalation.”

Images of fire and the bandits’ screams from last night flashed through his mind.

“So they’re going to retaliate,” Kiryu said quietly.

“Prediction confirmed,” Karma replied briefly.

Kiryu let his body fall back onto the bed.

“Great,” he muttered tiredly.

“So every time I write, the world keeps a record.”

“Correction,” Karma answered.
“The world writes back.”

Kiryu stared at the wooden ceiling for a long time, his expression mixed—confused, wary, and slightly intrigued.

“In that case…” he murmured softly.
“I’ll have to start writing more carefully.”

The room fell silent.

But the silence did not last long.

Panicked shouts echoed from outside the village.

“THERE’S A MONSTER!!”

The villagers looked terrified.

“Calm down—how many are there?”

“I don’t know! The bandits released them and lured them into the village!”

A woman dropped the basket in her hands.

“That’s impossible…” she murmured in fear.
“The wild forest is too far from the village…”

“Not for bandits!” another man shouted, his voice trembling.
“They deliberately brought the monsters here!”

The villagers scattered in panic as the village chief rushed toward Kiryu.

“Young man!” he shouted anxiously.
“Leave this place!”

He approached at a half-run.

“Our village will be attacked by monsters from the Wild Forest.”

Kiryu fell silent, staring at the large shadows moving beyond the trees.

“You don’t need to die with us!”

So this is the consequence, he muttered inwardly.

A cold voice echoed in his head.

“Notification,” Karma said calmly.
“Conflict escalation confirmed.”

Kiryu exhaled, then smiled faintly.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured softly.
“I can’t leave.”

The village chief froze when he heard Kiryu’s words.

From behind the trees, small green-skinned figures began to emerge.

“Goblins…” a villager murmured in a trembling voice.

Bandits’ voices rang out from the shadows.

“Advance and attack now!”

The goblins charged forward, laughing loudly, crude weapons raised high.

A heavy roar followed.

A Dire Wolf burst through the bushes, its eyes red, saliva dripping.

Behind it, a massive shadow shook the ground.

“Ogre!” someone screamed in panic.
“There’s an Ogre!”

The bandits at the edge of the forest laughed loudly.

“Look at that!”

“We don’t even need to touch your village!”

The village chief shouted desperately.

“Get inside the houses!”

“Protect the children!”

The goblins began smashing doors, the Dire Wolf clawed at wooden fences, and the Ogre slammed the ground with its massive fists.

From atop a house, Kiryu clenched his teeth.

This wasn’t an attack.

It was a demonstration of power.

The cold voice echoed again.

“Notification,” Karma said flatly.
“Indirect attack via controlled entities detected.”

Kiryu took a deep breath.

“So this is how they play,” he muttered.

His hand slowly rose—not gripping a weapon, but something invisible.

“If their monsters can be commanded…”

His eyes narrowed.

“…then the command can be rewritten.”

And for the first time, <Rewrite> was no longer used as a joke.

The goblins shrieked wildly, the Dire Wolf scraped the ground, and the young Ogre raised its fist high.

Avelyn Hollow stood on the brink of collapse.

Kiryu stood behind a wooden house, the book <Rewrite> open before him. The luminous ink trembled.

He wrote a single short sentence.

Very short.

The monsters suddenly stopped.

“Huh?” a bandit muttered in confusion from the forest’s edge.

The Dire Wolf turned—not toward the village, but toward the bandits’ voices.

The goblins looked at one another, then turned in unison.

“Oi—hey!” the bandit screamed in panic. “Not this way!”

Too late.

The goblins charged back, the Dire Wolf lunged, and the Ogre slammed the ground right in front of the bandits.

“Damn it!”

“We lost control!”

“Run!”

The bandits scattered into the forest, their screams drowned out by the roars of the monsters now chasing the opposite direction.

Kiryu slowly closed his book.

The village fell silent.

Too silent.

Some villagers peeked out from behind doors, their faces pale.

“The monsters… retreated?” someone asked hesitantly.

Kiryu did not answer.

From deep within the forest, angry voices faded into the distance.

“This isn’t over!”

“Tomorrow we’ll come in full force!”

“That village will be wiped out!”

Kiryu clenched his fist.

A small command.

A massive impact.

The cold voice echoed in his head.

“Notification,” Karma said flatly.
“Direct manipulation of living entities detected. Karma impact increased.”

The ground trembled with approaching footsteps.

Bandits emerged from the forest—dozens of them, wearing armor, weapons gleaming in their hands.

Their leader stepped forward, laughing coldly.

“Village chief!”

“Come out!”

“Remove the curse from us!”

The village chief tried to step forward, his face pale.

His steps stopped.

Kiryu stood in front of him.

“Young sir?” the village chief asked trembling.
“What are you going to do?”

Kiryu stared straight ahead, his eyes calm.

“Just watch.”

He raised his hand—not to pray.

The book <Rewrite> opened. The luminous ink moved rapidly.

The sky darkened suddenly.

The wind spiraled violently.

A roar shook the earth.

From behind black clouds, a Black Dragon descended—its dark scales absorbing light, its eyes glowing like the night itself.

The bandits froze.

“A-a dragon…?”

“A legendary dragon…!”

Black flames struck the ground before them—not to kill, but enough to shatter their courage.

“RUN!”

“THIS VILLAGE IS GUARDED BY THE BLACK DRAGON!”

The bandits fled in chaos, weapons dropped, armor clashing as they escaped into the forest.

The Black Dragon roared once—then vanished, as if it had never existed.

Silence enveloped the village.

The villagers stared at Kiryu with a mixture of fear and hope.

Karma’s voice sounded softly.

“Major consequences recorded.”

Kiryu exhaled, looking at the children now hiding behind the adults—alive.

“It’s fine.”
“For today… that’s enough.”

And from that day on, one thing took root in everyone’s mind—

Avelyn Hollow was not an ordinary village.

It was protected by a Black Dragon.

A lie.

But a lie that saved lives.

Avelyn Hollow slowly returned to calm. The villagers gathered in the middle of the road, their faces still holding traces of fear—now mixed with relief.

A man finally gathered the courage to step forward.

“Young man…” he said hesitantly. “What is your name?”

Kiryu paused, then turned with a faint smile.

“Asuka Kiryu.”

A brief silence followed.

The village chief bowed deeply.

“Thank you, Sir Kiryu.”

“That name will be remembered.”

“And whenever you return to Avelyn Hollow… this place will always be open to you.”

Kiryu nodded gently.

That same day, he prepared to leave for another city, driven by curiosity.

His worn work clothes were left behind—replaced by a simple red jacket, clean, with the look of someone finally stepping into the next story.

As he passed through the village gate, voices followed behind him.

“Thank you!”

“Take care on the road!”

Kiryu waved without turning around.

Meanwhile, elsewhere, a bar in the nearby city buzzed with noise.

A red-haired woman wearing a worn brown hood sat silently in a corner.

A wounded bandit spoke in a trembling voice.

“We were chased by a legendary dragon…”

“A Black Dragon guarding Hollow Village.”

Several adventurers exchanged glances, their faces paling.

“So the rumors are true…”

“Good thing we came with good intentions back then.”

The hooded woman raised her head.

“What kind of dragon?” she asked calmly.

The bandit swallowed.

“It… changed.”

“Into a human.”

“I saw it myself.”

The woman’s eyes narrowed with interest.

Outside the bar, someone walked away—the wind tugging at his red jacket.

The bandit was mistaken.

He did not know.

That what he saw was not a Black Dragon—

but someone who had begun to write the world from the shadows.