The storm began in the evening. By the night fall, slums of Veylor's become a river of mud. Old shoes, torn clothes are floating on dirty water. Houses are attached to each other.
In the end of slum, stood a old house, which can easily forget to mark on a map. This house is known as Graven household.
A young man is sitting in a room beside his mother's bed. His house roof is continuously leaking, wall's paints are totally washed away by rain water.
His mother Selene graven is sick from an unknown illness. He is sitting there holding her hand. His hands look like stone against her soft skin. Years of rough work—neighbours waste collecting, cleaning noble houses, and drain of streets, make his hands skin rough and many cracks have already appeared.
"Mother, don't strain yourself, just rest. You will be fine, I will buy medicine for you."
He knows that his promises are fake because Veylor's Arch priest demands more than that he can earn in his whole life. He tried to take debt but other than his body, he has nothing to offer. And the worth of his body is less than a penny.
His eyes are still holding his cry. Because he knows that if his mother knows about their situation, she will break down.
"I am sorry Arin. I didn't do anything for you. Because of me your childhood is ruined. I…I can't even show you my face." Tears start flowing down from her eyes, then turn her face in the opposite direction.
"You don't have to do anything. You…you all I need and that's enough for me." He wiped his face with his hand. "Because I am your son. I do things for you, it's my job."
She turned her face in his direction. "You are not understanding my son. I am leaving a big debt for you. Nothing else."
"What debt, Mother."
Suddenly the whole room went cold. A shadow appeared behind Arin. He turned and saw a giant figure standing there. He is wearing a big black coat covering his whole body, black hand gloves, and a golden mask with two eye holes. Only his blue eyes are visible from those holes. He was holding a golden pen in his right hand, dropping black ink on the ground. And a scroll in his left hand.
He started coming near Selene graven. She looked towards him with a single look. She instantly recognised him.
Her eyes widened in fear, she start crying and wanted to say 'Run Arin Run' but her tongue got stuck in her mouth and only one word came from her mouth.
"The Collector."
Arin is still confused and feared by his threatening appearance sitting on the ground beside his mother.
Then Arin gathers all his courage and stands up between Collector and his mother.
"D… don't come close to my mother. I may look weak but if you try to hurt my mother, you… you will die." Now his eyes have courage but his body is still shaking in fear.
The collector didn't respond to Arin, he unrolled his scroll and that scroll look like infinite and suddenly covered the whole Arin room floor. Then he finds 'Selene Graven' name on it, then he erases her name from that scroll.
Arin realised that so, he look behind and there he saw that his mother was already dead; her eyes now lost every essence of warmth and life.
Arin instantly runs towards her and takes her in his arms and starts crying.
"Nooooooooooooo mother, please no. You can't leave me. What will I do without you? You… You were the only hope that made me alive." Finally tears start coming out from his eyes. "I.. I will sell my body and everything, just… Please, say, my name, mother."
From his cry, the whole place went silent. Only his cry and the sound of storm are hearable.
The collector standing there with no emotions, that are easily visible from his eyes, that he only wants is his payment. Then he writes something on his scroll, then rolls it back. "Boy, now you own the debt."
His voice is chilling yet heavy but still Arin wasn't able to hear him because of grief of his mother's death and loss of his only hope of survival. Arin is just crying and his tears are falling down from his eyes. Poverty of these many years made his eyes dry but mother's love can make rain in the desert.
Then the Collector turns around and starts going away. "Your first installment will be 10,000 lives, boy. You have to pay at the end of this month."
Arin shouted. "We owe you nothing."
Collector suddenly stops, turns his head towards Arin, now his eyes are red. "First this creature and now you owe this debt boy."
After hearing that Arin run towards collector. Arin tried to punch him on the collector's head. When Arin was about to hit him. Collector vanishes and reappear from behind Arin. Arin look back in fear, then Collector punch Arin on his chest. But somehow Arin didn't feel anything. Collector punch was touching his chest or heart; he was touching something else.
Then the collector pulled back his hand. And start going into the shadows.
Arin saw something in front of him. It's like a floating screen.
[Blood Debt System Activated ]
[Welcome debtor]
[Debt inherited: 1,000,000,000 lives]
[First payment required : 10,000 lives]
[Traits: 0]
[Ability: None]
[Passive : Blood Ledger]
Arin got scared from Collector's power. Now his legs finally gave up. He can't even stand up. Then he saw the collector and got very scared because he saw something on the collector's head.
∞∞∞
Then Collector vanishes in the shadows. Arin punched on ground showing his helplessness in front of that entity then he start crawling towards his mother and hugged her.
***
This all started 1000 years ago. When suddenly monsters start appearing and attacking cities and kingdoms. Not a single king's army is able to harm them. So all kingdoms decide to make huge walls to protect their civilians.
But everything is changed when humans with powers start appearing. They are known as Awakens. Those Awakens starts killing those monsters and protecting civilians.
For all kingdoms everything is going smoothly, but after many years those awakened humans start dying one by one. The whole world's power balance shifts, Even every kingdom's most powerful heroes die.
Then the whole world knows the truth, that those awakened heroes are not the chosen ones. They made contract with hidden society known as debt society and gained those powers.
***
To be continued…