Renko found herself standing outside the driving school, the cool evening air doing little to alleviate her fatigue. The events of the day, from negotiating for the shrine property to the intensive driving lesson, had taken a toll on her both physically and mentally.
She decided to head home and get some much-needed rest before the next set of appointments and activities. As she walked back through the streets, the city lights flickered to life, casting a warm glow over the familiar surroundings.
[07:45 PM]
Renko arrived at her apartment, feeling a wave of exhaustion wash over her. The day had been somewhat eventful, exhausting, and irritating. She suddenly felt eager to unwind and recharge for what she would have to do tomorrow.
After a round to her kitchen, where she placed a kettle over the fire to boil some water, she turned to the shower.
'Nothing like a shower, huh?'
After a quick shower, she returned to the kitchen, naked save for a towel, and poured the boiling water into the noodle bucket. Almost instantly, a savory-sweet smell permeated into the kitchen.
After a quick shower and a large bucket of sweet and spicy noodles, she appeared to have only that flavor in her stock, Renko collapsed onto her wonderful bed, the soft mattress was so warm, so welcoming, and so comfy that she nearly melted into it.
As she closed her eyes, the events of the day replayed in her mind, and she couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment... or so she thought.
'Crap, I forgot all about the free stat points.'
With a sigh, she sat up on her bed, realizing that there were a few loose ends she needed to tie up before fully surrendering to sleep. She grabbed her head and opened the system panel.
[Name: Renko]
[Occupation: High School Student]
[Level: 5]
[Experience: 35/500]
[HP: 300/300]
[CP(CE): 100/100]
[Attributes:]
[Strength: 10]
[Vitality: 10]
[Dexterity: 11]
[Spirituality: 10]
[Wisdom: 10]
[Luck: 100]
[Stat Points: 10]
'Where should I put all these stat points?'
Strength would be good, and so would vitality and dexterity, but increasing spirituality and wisdom would also be nice.
'Hmm. Where should I put 'em in?'
She thought long and hard, for a full two minutes before she made a decision.
'Spirituality all the way!'
[Attributes:]
[Strength: 10]
[Vitality: 10]
[Dexterity: 11]
[Spirituality: 10(+10)]
[Wisdom: 10]
[Luck: 100]
[Stat Points: 0]
[Max CP +100]
[Congratulations!]
[You have just reached the minimum Curse Energy requirement to obtain the occupation, 'Jujutsu Sorcerer.']
[Occupation: Jujutsu Sorcerer(Grade 4)
Description: A Jujutsu Sorcerer is someone who can control the flow of cursed energy in their body, allowing them to use it as they please and also to reduce its release. This ability allows them to enhance their physical abilities, and manipulate their cursed energy to perform curse techniques.
+1 In physical attributes per level.
+2 In spiritual attributes per level.]
With the allocation of her stat points, Renko felt a surge of newfound energy coursing through her body. It appears that her choice had undoubtedly been the best for her circumstances.
*For one, it unlocked a whole new occupation for her, and the second was that spirituality actually strengthened her connection to the spiritual world, allowing her to perceive both the spiritual and physical aspects of the world at once.*
*Previously, she couldn't perceive the cursed spirits hovering around the shoulders of people or flying in the air or gigantic ones simply basking under the sun.*
*The cemetery was an exception since it was a spot with an extremely concentrated amount of spirituality that even an ordinary person would have been able to perceive their existence*
*And so was the shrine. It housed a rather powerful curse spirit and the miasma emitted by it was powerful enough to rival the cemetery's a hundred times over.*
Renko acknowledged the system's notification and the newfound title of 'Jujutsu Sorcerer.' The evening had taken a lot of toll on her mind and she simply couldn't express the appropriate amount of joy she needed to express. However, Renko was no stranger to adaptation and this one seems to be a relatively minor one too.
As she settled back into her comfortable bed, she once again contemplated the events of the day. She sure was contemplating things a lot lately, huh? Anyway, she still needed to make plans for Back Mountain Properties.
What?
You seriously thought someone like her, a total slob, actually had a plan before she went ahead and bought a potentially deadly property worth more than a third of her total fortune?
Hell nah!
And she wasn't really worried about money either, in fact, she was pretty sure she had a rather stable source of income now that she could repetitively hunt curse spirits in the cemetery.
Don't get it? Let's make it even more simple then.
Why don't we take it this way, one flyhead dropped $5. So then all 51 of them would drop about $255. This means that if she wanted to, she could have a rather stable income of $255 per day, and that was not all. Now that she had powered up, she could probably hunt an elite spirit or maybe even three per day which would add about $300 per day as well.
Which means she could earn about $555 per day!
Not to mention the fact that she could farm sub-bosses every day too once she was strong enough.
'Set for life I tell ya!"
With one last sigh, Renko closed her eyes, ready to embrace the gentle, restorative embrace of the realm called sleep. The voice of the city outside her window seemed to slowly die down and a serene atmosphere was draped over her room.
'Finally some sleep...'
*CRASH*
*BANG*
*CLATTER*
*SHATTER*
'Or not.'
The sudden cacophony shattered the tranquility of Renko's room, instantly dispelling any hopes of a peaceful night's sleep. Renko, now wide awake, tried to smudge her head between her pillows.
The noise was coming from the apartment next to hers, not the Yakuza one but on the other side. Apparently, a woman lived next door, a working adult woman. A system engineer or something of the sort.
She hadn't been back home for several days now, and when she was, she was usually drunk or extremely rowdy. But the world was harsh on corporate workers, that's why most of the residents turned a blind eye to her random tantrums.
Renko herself had woken up more than a dozen times to the noises she made, however, Tatsu had asked her not to do anything so she ignored the woman.
'Why now!?'
Indeed, why does that annoyance have to return so late TODAY?
Couldn't she have chosen tomorrow or maybe yesterday to be this rowdy?
The loud commotion from the neighboring apartment persisted, disrupting the calm Renko had hoped to find in her sleep. The clattering and banging continued, and it seemed like the woman next door was creating quite a spectacle.
Renko let out an annoyed sigh. While she usually tolerated her neighbor's antics, tonight was not the night she wanted to deal with such disturbances. With a hint of frustration, she decided to take matters into her own hands.
She got up from her bed, slipped on her indoor slippers, and walked to the door. As she opened it, she could hear the muffled sounds of the woman's voice, accompanied by the occasional crash of objects.
Renko knocked on the neighbor's door, hoping to address the situation.
"Hey, could you keep it down a bit? It's late, and some of us are trying to sleep,"
she called out through the door.
The noises on the other side seemed to pause briefly, and then a slurred voice responded,
"Who cares? Let me live my miserable life, okay?"
Renko rolled her eyes. It seemed reasoning with the inebriated neighbor might not yield much result. She took a deep breath and considered her options. Perhaps talking to Tatsu could be a more effective solution. But...
[11:00 PM]
It's too late to disturb her neighbors now.
Too tired to even complain anymore, she headed back into her apartment and straight up collapsed on her bed.
She was too tired!
Fortunately, the noise from the neighboring unit had significantly diminished after her shouting and banging. With a sense of relief, Renko settled back into her bed. The city outside had quietened down, and a semblance of tranquility returned to her room.
Finally, Renko could fully embrace the gentle embrace of sleep.
*BANG*
*SMASH*
*CRASH*
'Or maybe fucking NOT!'