Harold tried his best to act normal at school, but that was far more difficult than it sounded.
He sat in the middle row of his history classroom while students around him talked loudly about their new abilities. Normally the room would be half-asleep this early in the morning, but today it sounded more like a crowded cafeteria.
"I'm telling you," a boy two seats ahead said excitedly, "my class lets me enhance my eyesight. I could probably see across the whole football field."
"That's nothing," another student replied immediately. "My cousin got the Lightning Mage class."
Someone near the back shouted, "No way!"
Laughter rippled through the classroom.
Harold rested his chin on his hand and stared toward the front of the room. Their teacher, Mr. Hanley, looked just as overwhelmed as everyone else. Every few minutes someone accidentally activated a skill, causing a flash of light or a strange sound somewhere in the room.
"Everyone settle down," Mr. Hanley said, rubbing his temples. "Yes, the System Event happened. Yes, most of you received classes. That does not mean we're abandoning basic education."
A few students chuckled.
Harold barely listened. He was exhausted.
Instead, his attention drifted toward the faint screen only he could see.
SHADOW DEBT SYSTEM
USER: HAROLD LEWISSTATUS: DEBT BEARERDEBT LEVEL: MINOR
OUTSTANDING BALANCE DETECTED
TIME UNTIL COLLECTION: 46 HOURS
The timer had already dropped.
Harold shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
Forty-six hours.
He still had no idea what collection meant, and that uncertainty gnawed at him more than anything else.
Where the hell did this system even come from? he wondered silently. And why me?
Across the room, Marcus Hill leaned back lazily in his chair, clearly enjoying the attention he was receiving. A small group of students surrounded him while he casually displayed his class interface.
WARRIOR CLASS – LEVEL 1
"Watch this," Marcus said confidently, flexing his arm.
For a moment nothing happened, which only increased the anticipation.
Then the muscles in his arm tightened noticeably, becoming more defined as a faint golden glow spread across his skin.
"Strength enhancement," he announced proudly.
Several students gasped in admiration.
"That's awesome."
Marcus glanced across the room.
His eyes landed on Harold.
Harold already knew what was coming.
"Show-off," he muttered under his breath.
The glow faded from Marcus's arm.
"Well… almost everyone got something useful," Marcus added loudly.
A few students laughed while glancing toward Harold.
Harold ignored them.
He had already made up his mind.
After school, he was going to properly test the system.
Right now he barely understood what he could do. But if the system allowed him to borrow abilities, then there was a good chance he could become incredibly strong.
The rest of the school day dragged by slowly.
Classes felt pointless when half the students were more interested in their abilities than their textbooks.
By the time the final bell rang, the halls were filled with excited chatter.
Harold grabbed his backpack and headed toward the exit.
"Hey, Harry."
He turned toward the voice.
Emily stood near the lockers, waving him over. Her healer interface flickered faintly beside her.
"How was your day?" she asked.
"Normal, I guess," Harold replied.
Emily raised an eyebrow.
"Marcus didn't bother you again?"
"Of course he did."
She sighed.
"He's an idiot. Don't worry, Harry. You're awesome no matter what."
Harold smiled slightly. He loved his sister. Even though she was younger, she always knew how to cheer him up.
"Don't worry about it, kiddo," he said, ruffling her hair.
"Hey!" she protested, swatting his hand away as her neatly styled hair became a mess.
"Sorry," he chuckled.
They walked out of the school together.
The afternoon air felt cool and calm, almost peaceful compared to the chaos of the previous nights.
But Harold's thoughts kept drifting back to the system timer.
Forty hours now.
Eventually Emily headed home first, leaving Harold walking alone through a small park a few blocks away from the school.
The park was nearly empty.
Perfect.
Harold set his backpack down near a metal bench and looked around carefully.
No one nearby.
Good.
He took a slow breath.
"Alright," he muttered quietly. "Let's see if this actually works… or if it was just adrenaline that night."
The system appeared instantly.
SHADOW DEBT SYSTEM
BORROWED ABILITY AVAILABLE
FERAL STRENGTH
ACTIVATE?
Harold hesitated for a moment.
Then he whispered, "Activate."
The effect was immediate.
Warmth surged through his arms and legs. His muscles tightened suddenly, forcing a low groan from him as he instinctively grabbed his forearm. For a brief moment the sensation was uncomfortable, but the tension quickly settled into something else.
Power.
His body suddenly felt lighter.
Stronger.
He walked over to the nearby metal bench.
"Okay," he said quietly. "Let's test this."
Harold gripped the edge of the bench with both hands.
It was heavy. Normally it wouldn't even budge.
He pulled.
The bench lifted slightly off the ground.
Harold's eyes widened.
"No way…"
He lifted harder.
The entire bench rose several inches before he quickly lowered it back down.
His heart pounded with excitement.
"That's… insane."
Another message appeared.
FERAL STRENGTH ACTIVE
TIME REMAINING: 4 MINUTES
Harold stared at his hands.
"So it's temporary."
Still…
Four minutes of that strength could be extremely useful.
He spent the next few minutes testing small movements.
Jumping.
Running.
Even lightly punching a nearby tree.
The trunk shook from the impact, yet Harold barely felt anything in his knuckles.
Every movement felt stronger than the last.
But just as the timer reached zero, the strength vanished.
Harold exhaled slowly.
"That's going to take some getting used to."
The system appeared again.
DEBT BALANCE UPDATED
ABILITY USAGE DETECTED
OUTSTANDING BALANCE INCREASED
TIME UNTIL COLLECTION: 40 HOURS
Harold frowned.
"So even testing it adds debt?" he muttered. "What if I want to train?"
The system really was merciless.
Suddenly a voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Well… that's interesting."
Harold spun around.
Marcus Hill stood a few steps away.
And judging by the look on his face…
He had definitely seen what Harold had done.
Great, Harold thought bitterly. I should've checked more carefully.
Marcus crossed his arms.
"You want to explain why you just lifted a metal bench like that?"
Harold forced himself to stay calm and shrugged.
"You're imagining things."
Marcus smirked.
"Am I?"
He stepped closer.
"I thought you didn't get a class."
Harold said nothing.
Marcus's eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"Unless… you're hiding something."
Before Harold could respond, a distant scream echoed through the park.
Both boys froze.
The scream came again, this time closer.
"What's going on?" Marcus asked, scanning the area cautiously.
It sounded like it was coming from the street beyond the trees.
Another scream followed.
This time several people were shouting.
Harold's instincts immediately sharpened.
"Something's wrong."
Marcus activated his interface instantly.
WARRIOR SKILL READY
"Yeah," Marcus said, lowering into a defensive stance.
A third scream cut through the air.
Then something crashed violently through the bushes at the edge of the park.
A creature stumbled into the open grass.
It looked similar to the monster Harold had fought before.
A feral hound.
But this one was smaller.
Faster.
Its glowing eyes locked onto them instantly.
Marcus whispered, "What the hell is that?"
Harold already knew.
The system confirmed it.
HOSTILE ENTITY DETECTED
FERAL HOUND
THREAT LEVEL: LOW
Marcus swallowed.
"You fought one of these before… didn't you? How did you even know what to call it?"
Harold didn't answer.
The monster growled before charging toward them.
Marcus stepped forward immediately, activating his strength skill.
At the same moment, Harold saw his system flicker again.
BORROW OPPORTUNITY DETECTED
ABILITY AVAILABLE
Harold clenched his fists.
If he used the ability again…
His debt would grow.
And the collection timer was already ticking down.
The monster lunged.
Marcus barely blocked the first swipe.
"Harold!" he shouted. "Help!"
Harold glanced at the system timer.
TIME UNTIL COLLECTION: 39 HOURS
He sighed.
"Guess the debt can wait a little longer."
Then he whispered quietly—
"Activate."
FERAL STRENGTH ACTIVATED.