Killing robbers before they aggro and karma

[Podesta]

Does killing robbers before they become aggressive towards you lowers your karma? Are they counted as 'innocent' while they are sleeping or after you gave up to their demands, etc, or are they always free game as far as the spirits are concerned?

[PALU]

I'm not aware of the spirits caring about humans at all. Humans do, so murdering villagers will have consequences, but I haven't heard anything about people who go on murdering rampages getting trouble with the spirits.

As far as I'm concerned, robbers and Njerps are always free game, and I find it satisfying to sneak up on a sleeping Njerp and kill him with a single spear thrust through the neck.

[Podesta]

Thanks. I might have been misremembering things, or maybe it was just widespread folklore, but I taught the old spirits used to care if you went on rampaging villages.

[Andre]

I think they do, I have afterall gotten the message that the forest looks extremely hostile after killing a wandering adventurer. But maybe that was coincidence.

But I don't recall the spirits getting angered for me killing robbers before they make demands.