This world is a muddied one. There exists an interface in this world with several categories such as titles, stats, skills and so on.
There are [Active Skills] that can be used by using mana.
To balance it also exist [Passive Skills] that are active in the background without the use of any mana.
However, the main source of hierarchy and the most important function for the worth of a person was the [Main Skill].
All these skills and stats are ranked by grades.
If a child is not born with a good skill, they are dumped in a place called the junkyard by their own parents.
They were either sold off or kept there to do the junkyard management's dirty work.
Amongst all these children was a boy with black hair and amber eyes. He was currently moving sacks of rice and potatoes that were supposed to be for the children from the donations. However, the management never gave them any of the food that the donators meant for the children.
All these children ever got was stale bread and sometimes if they were lucky soup.
This boy was quite strong in junkyard standards for a boy of his age.
[Name:Ha-Jin] [Age:13] [Title:Slave]
[Main Skill: Bodily Mana Manipulation]
[Main Skill Rank:D] [Potential:???]
[Stats:]
[Strength]:C+
[Speed]:C
[Durability]:C+
[Endurance]:B
[Mana]:F
[Intelligence]:B+
[Overall Evaluation:C+]
As Ha-Jin carried the sack of food to the management's office, it tore and all the food fell onto the ground.
Fear struck him as a whip lashed onto his back and he fell, grovelling on the ground with a pain-struck face.
"Shit! That hurt! Stop it, please! It wasn't my fault! The sack had too much food!" He cried out.
The guard however, did not pay attention to any of his cries and the whip kept lashing at Ha-Jin.
A minute or two had passed when the guard stopped and kicked him in the stomach. "I swear I'll get stronger and kill these bastards one day!" He thought as he got up and walked away to the next sack of potatoes, this time carefully and steadily walking in order to not tear the sack.
After he put the sack onto the heap of food near the management office, the manager announced that it was time for the market to open.
The market of the junkyard was to sell off the children of the junkyard to save and make money.
Ha-Jin stood in the crowd of the children with useless or low ranking main skills as a noble family came into the junkyard looking for a slave to look after their house and son.
The Junkyard manager and his team bowed down to them as they spoke. "Welcome to the junkyard, Mr and Mrs. Choi. Oh yes! How could I forget your son!" He said looking at the little boy who was about 9 years old.
The child scowled at the manager as he tried to shake his hand and slapped his hand away.
"We suppose you know what we are here for? We sent you a messenger in advance after all." Mr. Choi said to the manager with a hint of arrogance in his voice.
"Of course, how could I, a humble man forget the request of one of the prestigeous families? Come right on in! We have assorted the strongest and best slaves for you right here!" The manager said pointing to the group of children Ha-Jin was standing in.
"Quite the dirty fellows they are, are they not, Tae-Hyun?" Mrs. Choi said looking at her husband. "Very well then, however dirty they are, they must be strong. We'll just have them cleaned up later. We shall pick that one."
Mrs. Choi pointed at Ha-Jin and the Manager's smile vanished. "Are you sure, Madam? There might be stronger ones in the batch if you want."
"You dare doubt us? One of the greater families? You talk like we exist in the same realm of this world. Since you like to play death so much, shall we have you executed?" Mrs. Choi spoke , mana radiating in the air.
The Manager swiftly put on a smile again , turning to the Choi family again. "Certainly not Madam, I did not mean it in a rude way , I was just telling you that there are more options in the batch!" The Manager spoke with clear fear in his eyes.
He turned around and started fumbling with the lock of Ha-Jin's cuffs. He looked up at the boy and scowled.
Ha-Jin was grinning at the manager, mocking him. The Manager managed to open his cuffs and presented him to the Choi family.
"This is Ha-Jin, he was left here at night during winter here when he was a baby. He's 13 and his overall stat evaluation is C+ and a D rank Main skill."
The Manager looked at him one last time as Mr. Choi grabbed Ha-Jin's hand roughly and the Choi family took Ha-Jin away.
About 2 hours later, Ha-Jin and the Choi family reached the Choi residence. It was a big castle decorated with water fountains and what not.
The smell of fresh sea water filled the air as the soft breeze hit Ha-Jin for the first time in his life as long as he remembered it.
"I suppose you do not know any thing of the outside world, slave? " Mrs. Choi asked him.
"No, ma'am I have no idea. I have spent my entire life in the junkyard, never have I once gotten to know about the outside world or seen it." Ha-Jin replied. He knew better Korean than the other children in the junkyard. Whenever he was in the market, he did not just waste his time there. He connected the pieces of what people were saying and slowly but surely learned how to speak Korean.
"This world has been covered with mystical creatures like orcs, cyclopes and most importantly, Dragons."
"This empire is called Drakrath as it used to be where the dragons and their supreme council resided. However, 9 great famllies fought against them for decades until we finally managed to free this enpire from their rule." Mr. Choi joined in.
"We, the Chois were one of those great families, thus, you are to pay respect to us. Or we will have to take more serious approaches.." Mrs. Choi said before dragging him into the castle.
"We will train you to keep our son, a descendant of one of the Nine Great Families safe from all dangers. We do not expect much from a child from the junkyard but you will have to do until a child with more potential appears into the world."
Ha-Jin liked that till the "We don't expect much from you" part.
"Do all these powerful people have to be pieces or shit or what? The dragons should've just destroyed this empire and killed these "Superior Families" along with it. I just can't stand these people!" Ha-Jin thought as he was lead into the training room.
Inside the room stood a big and muscular man with his arms crossed across his chest. He had a scar across his left eye, almost like he'd been clawed by..
"A dragon, I was slashed by a dragon when I was young and the Choi family took me under them and trained me." The man spoke as he noticed Ha-Jin staring at the scar across his left eye.
Mr and Mrs. Choi left the training room leaving Ha-Jin at the man's mercy.
"I am Hwang, one of the members of the royal army of the Nine Great Families and the guard of the Choi family, I will be training you from now on. Do not expect me to go easy on you just because of the fact that you are a child." The man spoke, his mana was strong. Ha-Jin had only felt mana from the Manager of the Junkyard but this was about 5 levels above that of the manager.
"We will now begin combat training." Hwang said coldly as a punch landed on Ha-Jin's face and blood splattered on the ground.
***
2 years have passed since Ha-Jin was brought to the Choi residence. It wasn't much different from the Junkyard except for the training he recieved
"Phew, i'm finally done with this batch." He said looking up at the Sun. "Oh! It's time for training."
He said before striking the last tree with his axe. He threw the axe on the ground and took off his gloves, putting them in his backpack.
Ha-Jin started walking towards the castle of the Choi family. The tree fell with a large boom, cracking the ground a bit. Behind it lay tens of humongous trees on the ground.
Ha-Jin had spent an hour chopping down all these Humongous trees.
"Interface, Stats window." Ha-Jin commanded to thin air as a blue notification popped up infront of him.
[Name:Ha-Jin] [Age:13] [Title:Slave]
[Main Skill: Bodily Mana Manipulation]
[Main Skill Rank:D] [Potential:???]
[Stats:]
[Strength]:A
[Speed]:B+
[Durability]:B
[Endurance]:A+
[Mana]:B
[Intelligence]:A+
[Overall Stat Evaluation]:B+
Ha-Jin's body was now toned. He didn't seem like the scrawny kid he was 2 years ago. He was much... happier.
He appeared at practice at the right time and Hwang stood there in the same position he did everyday.
"You are here on time once again, good job. Today we will have weapon training. Get in position." Hwang ordered as he threw Ha-Jin a spear.
"Yes, sir. I will beat you today for sure." Ha-Jin grinned as he got into position.
[Body Mana Manipulation Rank:D [lvl:3] has been activated]
The system notification popped up infront of Ha-Jin as he activated his Main skill. He supplied the Mana to his legs and launched as soon as Hwang made a move.
Ha-Jin parried Hwang's try at knocking him out and while supplying the mana to his arms, hit him right in the solar plexus with the blunt edge of his spear. The strike that should have knocked the air out of Hwang did next to no damage as Hwang blocked it using his kyokushin karate block.
Before Ha-Jin had time to supply the energy back to his legs and run, Hwang swiped at him and sent him flying towards the wall.
[User's hp has hit below 20%]
[All stats temporarily buffed]
[Emotion Seal has been undone]
[You are filled with Hatred]
Ha-Jin finally remembered how the choi family had put a seal onto his hatred for them. That was the reason he'd been so happy.
He got up and looked at Hwang and lunged at him with his spear. Hwang did not expect his speed to go up by that much and could not guard himself properly.
An arm went flying into the air and blood splattered.
"You devil! This is why we sealed your hate! My arm! My arm!" Hwang cried out. "Mr. Choi! Mrs. Choi! Help me! This devil is about to kill me!"
Hwang's cries were not heard through the sound proof walls as Ha-Jin walked up to Hwang and the rest of his 3 limbs were no longer a part of his body. Hwang was now grovelling. Ha-Jin kept him alive for minutes.
"How does it feel? With no arms or legs? Just here to be tortured? Is it as fun as inflicting such excruciating pain on me?" He asked Hwang before cutting off his head.
[You have killed a C rank monster, evaluating rewards]
[You have been granted passive skill:Weapon Mastery]
Ha-Jin was now covered in blood. He walked up to the door and broke it open. He saw the Choi family's sun practicing in the garden.
He turned around and saw Ha-Jin. "AH! Mom! Dad! The monster finally killed someone!" However, before he could try to run, his head was blasted to smithereens.
[Weapon Mastery]
[Passive Skill]
Weapon mastery allows the user to use any weapon with utmost efficiency
Ha-Jin grinned. He had no idea that a passive skill could be so powerful.
Mr. and Mrs. Choi came out. Ha-Jin couldn't hear what they were saying, his hearing had gone for sometime due to Hwang's strike.
Ha-Jin mindlessly killed everyone in the family and their guards, damaging his own body in the process.
When Ha-Jin came to his senses, he was standing in the middle of corpses that were torn to pieces. He was covered in blood, a broken spear on the ground and his knuckles' skin and muscle torn apart, his bone visible.
It was then that he realised he was in excruciating pain.
"AAAUUUUGGGHHHH!" he cried out in agony as the door to the choi residence opened and mysterious people captured Ha-Jin for killing one of the Nine great families.