The exit of the Abyssal Gate was swarming with news crews, medical drones, and guild recruiters. This was standard procedure for a "Golden Dawn" raid. Usually, the heroes would emerge, wave to the cameras, and Han Jue would slip out the back with the other scavengers, carrying bags of monster guts.
This time, the "heroes" didn't come out first.
Han Jue stepped through the shimmering blue veil of the portal alone.
His clothes were scorched rags. His skin was stained with the black, acidic ichor of the Basilisk and the grey ash of the Grave-Warden. But as he walked, the crowd went silent. It wasn't because he looked like a survivor—it was because of the aura.
[Passive Skill: Dread Sovereign's Pressure (Level 1) - Active] (Effect: Ordinary humans and low-level Awakeners feel an instinctive urge to lower their gaze.)
A reporter moved forward, her microphone shaking. "Excuse me! Are you part of the Golden Dawn support team? Where is Captain Kael? The sensors showed a massive mana spike inside—"
Han Jue didn't stop. He didn't even look at her. He simply walked past, and the reporter felt a sudden, icy chill in her bones, as if a literal shadow had just brushed against her soul.
"The Golden Dawn is... delayed," Han Jue said, his voice raspier than before. "They're learning a lesson in debt management."
The Central Medical District: Ward 402
Han Jue stood outside the glass partition of the intensive care unit. Inside, a young girl—no older than sixteen—lay hooked up to a rhythmic, wheezing mana-circulator. This was Han Ling, his sister. Her "Awakening" had gone wrong two years ago, her mana veins collapsing and leaving her in a magical coma.
"Mr. Han?"
A man in a sharp, grey suit stepped into the hallway. He was the hospital's financial director, a man named Mr. Choi. He held a tablet with a blinking red light.
"You're late, Han Jue. And frankly, you look like you've been dragged through a sewer," Choi said, his voice dripping with condescension. "The mana-circulator for your sister costs 50,000 credits a day. Your deposit is empty. We're scheduled to disconnect her at midnight."
Han Jue turned slowly. In the past, he would have bowed, begged, and promised to work triple shifts. Now, he looked at Choi and activated his new class ability.
[Skill: Debt Sense - Activated]
The world turned greyscale, except for a thick, oily black smoke rising from Mr. Choi's chest.
[Target: Choi Min-Ho] [Legal Debt: 4,000,000 Credits (Embezzled)] [Moral Debt: High (Corruption, Medical Fraud)] [Soul Value: 1,200 Points]
"Midnight, you said?" Han Jue's voice was dangerously low.
"Yes. Unless you have the credits, which we both know you don—"
Han Jue reached into his tattered bag and pulled out the Mana-Core of the Obsidian-Scaled Basilisk. It glowed with a fierce, dark light. Even unrefined, a Tier-D Elite core was worth at least 200,000 credits on the black market.
Choi's eyes widened. "Where... how did a scavenger get that?"
"I didn't get it. I took it," Han Jue said. He stepped closer, leaning into Choi's personal space. The Dread Sovereign's Pressure intensified. Choi felt his knees buckle. "And I know about the 'Moral Debt' you're carrying, Choi. The 4 million you've been skimming from the charity ward."
Choi's face went white. "I... I don't know what you're talking about!"
"The System doesn't lie," Han Jue whispered. He placed a hand on Choi's shoulder.
[Skill: Tribute of the Fallen - Active] (Effect: Absorb the fear of a debtor to temporarily boost your own stats.)
[Strength +5 (Temporary)] [Mana +10 (Temporary)]
Choi felt as if his very life-force was being sucked through his shoulder. He fell to his hands and knees, gasping for air. "Please... I'll... I'll extend the stay! I'll give her a private suite! Just... stop!"
"Good choice," Han Jue said, pulling his hand away. He tossed the Basilisk core onto Choi's chest. "Pay the bill for the next month. If I hear that my sister's mana levels drop even by one percent, I won't just expose your debt. I'll collect it. Personally."
Han Jue walked away, leaving the director trembling on the floor.
He had the power now. But as he looked at his hand, he saw the blue holographic screen flickering.
[Warning: Time until Soul Erasure: 18:12:44] [Current Balance: -693,750 Soul Points.]
Scaring a corrupt bureaucrat felt good, but it didn't pay the System. The credits in the human world were useless for his debt. He needed Souls. He needed the blood of monsters and the "interest" of the strong.
His phone buzzed in his pocket. It was an alert from the Hunter Association App.
[URGENT: S-Rank 'Break' detected in District 7. All available Awakeners requested for containment. Reward: Unprecedented.]
District 7. That was the Golden Dawn's headquarters.
Han Jue's eyes glowed red. The "Heroes" who had left him to die were about to have their home invaded by the Abyss. And he was going to be there to make sure the debt was paid in full.
"Rest well, Ling-er," he whispered toward the glass. "Brother is going to work."