Common animals such as birds, cats, and dogs roamed around the street openly. It wouldn't be a surprise to encounter one of them after each street.

Yet it was precisely because it was so common that Damien suspected something to be amiss here.

"When did the cat pass by?" Damien questioned, his eyes piercing cold. "Remember to be precise, especially how long ago and where they went. Or at least, where have you last seen the cat."

Astonished, the robber held a dumbfounded and dazed expression. To be suddenly asked about a cat on the spot, it would be a miracle if he recalled all the details.

Maybe if it was someone they had robbed before, then he might have recalled something. But a cat?

Wasn't that just toying with him?

However, based on Damien's serious and solemn expression. It was crystal clear that this wasn't a joke.

"Get out of here and stop hiding. Delaying a TI means death." Unable to recall any of the details, the robber gave up and shouted to his companions to come out.

They had long been discovered anyway, so continuous hiding wasn't a solution either. Not to mention, he would rather drag them all down with him than die alone.

Having been called out by their companion, the other robbers were naturally disgruntled. They dared not slight Damien though as they hurriedly tried to answer his question.

Thankfully, among them, one happened to be a curious folk and knew where the cat went.

"It was around 10 or 15 minutes ago. The cat came strolling down here and entered the sewer." They stated and continued, "I was staring at it because the cat seemed very cautious and alerted. It discovered that I was staring at it and meowed at me in a fury manner."

Nodding, this basically confirmed much of the suspicion in Damien's mind.

"Alright, you may all scram. You're lucky that you haven't gotten blood in your eyes. Otherwise, death shall be waiting." Damien waved his hand to dismiss them.

"Thank you, Sir!" Immediately, the robbers quickly thanked him and were about to flee the alley.

However, one of their companions suddenly had their head chopped off. A small "thud" sound was created, as the robber's body then plopped to the ground. Their head rolled around for a moment before coming to a halt.

The sudden death of their companion was so unexpected that some of the robbers nearly fainted.

"I did say those who had their hands clean are spared, but this person had their hands dyed in red. I'm sure none of you disagree with my judgment, right?" Damien didn't even turn around when he made his statement.

Sure enough, it was precisely such a demeanor that induced fear among them.

"W-We have no objection to the judgment made by Sir." One of them found the courage to respond.

"Good, then scram for me."

In the blink of an eye, the robbers all fled with their tails tucked behind. As for their dead companion, none of them dared to bat an eyelid or complain about it.

The alley was quickly cleared of the robbers, leaving only Karl and Damien.

Karl's eyes were focused on the decapitated corpse with a silent expression.

"Do you feel pity for him?" Damien suddenly asked. He didn't ask because he was concerned about Karl's emotions, but whether or not he was suitable for the upcoming task.

The robber he killed reeked of blood and the Shadow within him seemed eager to devour and absorb him.

As if that wasn't enough to convince him, Damien received some of the flashbacks scenes of the killing. Based on that phenomenon, Damien became positive that the shadow within him seemed capable of rewinding incidents.

Since he had witnessed the scene of the killing and how the victim was feeling at that moment. Damien felt no remorse for killing such a scum.

Maybe he wouldn't have killed so easily and hesitated if it were in his previous world. After all, in his original world, murder was a crime regardless of the justification.

That was just how pathetic the legal system was. No one would pay attention to the victim's suffering until the victim finally retaliated. Despite the justification for the retaliation, the so-called legal system would punish them instead. Talk about a very flawed system.

While Damien was somewhat frustrated by his old world's method, Karl finally responded.

"It's not that I felt pity for him, but I felt that he has gotten it off too lightly."

"Oh, too lightly?"

Nodding, Karl bit his lips and said, "The world is filled with those who committed crimes simply for pleasure. They did so many atrocities, and all they lost was their worthless life."

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"It appears that you have a sense of righteousness," Damien commented.

"Not righteousness." Karl corrected. "Righteous people refused to kill, but I believe killing and torturing is the only way for these people who don't even deserve to be called human."

From his eyes, Damien could sense bloodlust. Alas, that bloodlust had always been suppressed and concealed.

After all, Karl didn't have a speck of mana in his body, which meant he was unable to conjure any spells.

'The world isn't fair here I guessed.' Damien thought. To construct a mana core, talent was indeed nice, but it wasn't a requirement. What was the requirement was having the resources to construct one.

"If granted an opportunity to become a Transcendent, will you grab that chance and clench tightly?" He suddenly asked, offering him a chance to reshape his life.

Stunned, Karl's eyes widened in disbelief. He didn't even take a second before he went on his knees and kissed his forehead to the ground. Despite the dirtiness in the ground, Karl ignored it and slammed his palms.

"If granted the opportunity, I will do my best to clutch it tightly and never let go." He exclaimed.

Looking at his action, Damien's expression remained stoic. He was casually mentioning it, but he didn't expect such an overreaction.

Nevertheless, it proved that Karl could become a good pawn for him in the future if he does help him over this hurdle.

The only problem was loyalty.

How could he ensure Karl wouldn't backstab or change upon being granted power?

'Hey, Shadow, do you have any ideas or suggestions?' Damien tried to communicate with it telepathically, not knowing whether it would work or not.

While Karl remained in his posture of kneeling, Damien attempted to communicate with the Shadow.

He indeed wished to have a pawn and build up his forces.

After all, he had nothing but the empty status in his name. Without actual supporters or pawns to be used, if the status became nullified, Damien would have been in big trouble.

Despite his eagerness and intent to gather manpower, he was not desperate enough to recruit just anyone.

This was especially true when he nearly got ambushed by Lucas and Jasmine. The two people who had expressed their reverence toward him easily changed in an instant.

Given that lesson, Damien would deserve death if he chose to believe or trust anyone else without any guarantee. And when he thought that—it included the Shadow lurking in him.

Although the Shadow had yet to display any hostility, who was to say it wouldn't turn against him one day?

Nothing was ever guaranteed, and nobody could remain forever loyal. The only person that one could trust was none other than themselves.

However, Damien still inquired about the Shadow because one must learn to adapt to unforeseeable circumstances. Currently, the Shadow was his only safety charm. It might not last, but at the moment, it was protecting him.

'If the Shadow wishes to use me, then it would be foolish to not use it to my advantage.' Damien thought.

And it appeared that the Shadow was still somewhat submissive to him.

There was no communication, but Damien's mind received some information and methods to ensure absolute loyalty.

'Shadow Contract. So it's something akin to a Blood Contract but in another form and term.' Damien absorbed the knowledge and turned his attention to Karl.

"I'll give you a chance to reshape your life, but you must adhere to one thing." He calmly said.

Stunned, Karl's body trembled slightly. He had a feeling that he might have an opportunity, but when it became a reality, he was overwhelmed with emotion.

Slowly, he raised his chin up and glanced at Damien.

"What must I adhere to?" He asked, his eyes filled with determination. An opportunity to get rid of his low life status and become a Transcendent—even if it meant being an underling, it would be worth it.

At the very least, it was better than being a Coachman and constantly lowering his head to everyone as opposed to one person.

Meanwhile, Damien snapped his fingers, and a Shadow Contract emerged. Wisps of dark, blue, and purple hues seeped from the surface of the contract—intertwining like living shadows.

Karl's eyes widened in shock as he felt the intensity of the swirling colors that continued to pulse faintly. It gave him a feeling of eeriness.

'What kind of contract is this?' Karl wondered silently. The contract was suspended in the air, but it appeared distorted as well, almost as if the contract didn't belong in this world.

When Damien noticed his inaction, he thought Karl became frightened and had a change of heart. For people who get scared quite easily, Damien had no intention of offering a helping hand to them. After all, it would only become a nuisance and possible trouble in the future.

'Looks like I overestimated his desperation.' He was about to cancel the contract until Karl suddenly stood up.

"Sorry, Sir, but I'm ignorant and don't know how to sign the contract. Please guide me." Karl said, his expression firm and determined. There was no hesitation even though it was clear that he was wary of the contract.

Being wary and cautious was not the same as being afraid and nervous. Wary and cautious was what allowed one to survive, whereas the latter was just the cowardice trait.

"Before you sign, I must remind you that signing means becoming a pawn of mine. It's essentially a form of slavery, but also not quite." Damien calmly said.

The crux of the Shadow Contract was that the other party understood what they were signing up for and was willing. Otherwise, even if they attempted to lie and sign, the contract won't be in effect.

That was the power of the Shadow Contract. It was inherently making the other party a shadow of his, and what kind of shadow disobeyed the owner?

"I am willing, Sir," Karl responded and knelt with one knee. The action was the symbolization of agreeing to serve the other wholeheartedly.

"Very well." Damien nodded and proceeded to explain the method. The process was similar to the Blood Contract, in which Karl had to dip some of his blood in the contract.

However, the difference was that part of Karl's shadow would be absorbed into the contract. Once that occurred, then from there on, he would forever be Damien's pawn unless Damien freed him.

After the explanation, Karl bit his finger, only to end up failing to bite it hard enough to bleed.

"Eh, this is awkward." Karl smiled bitterly.

Rumors had it that such action was the common one to form a contract, but Karl wondered if it was true. After all, his brain would constantly stop him from intentionally hurting himself through his bite. The force won't be enough to cause his finger to bleed.

Nevertheless, Karl darted his eyes at the surroundings and quickly recalled the robber's corpse. He hastened his pace and rushed over to the corpse, searching for their weapon.

Soon, he found a rough dagger and made a small cut immediately.

'Not bad.' Watching Karl's determination to complete the signing of the contract, Damien approved it. The more eager and desperate Karl behaved, the more he felt relieved. Only desperate people would do whatever was necessary to earn the approval.

Karl's expression and demeanor underwent a drastic change upon the completion of the contract. There was a small shadow-like card imprinted on his forehead, but it was only visible for a few seconds before it faded away.

Karl looked down and stared at his hands. For some reason, he felt a surge of power, and the inside of his body seemed to be heating up.

Meanwhile, Damien watched the process unfold with a stoic expression. 'Karl could now construct a mana core just like that. How powerful is this Shadow Contract?'