After a little struggle, the thief fainted.
[Mission success. 20 Exp Points awarded. 5% Level Progression awarded. _Ding_ Your loan has been repaid! Thank you for banking with the system!]
Never in his wildest dreams did Surya think that he would become a slave to a system which exacted interest after interest.
From now on, he vowed to never take a loan.
What was the reason behind this anyway?
This system kept boasting that it would make him dominate the world but right now the only one being dominated was him, by the atrocious interest rate.
Surya thought a bit hard about this, half demanding an answer.
Thus, the system responded:
[System would like to inform the host that resources like Exp Points and Level Progressions can only be given by the system when the host has earned them. The system is only capable of extracting these from completed missions. This is due to the advanced principles of multiple frequency energy extraction implanted in the system. The loan system was implemented by the creator of the system to aid weak hosts. A small amount of remnant energy is present within the system for emergencies. But, parameters have been set regarding the usage of this energy. This is to dissuade hosts from earning too much for free and to encourage them to finish missions and achieve their rewards. Hence the interest rate.]
Surya had not expected the system to give a response at all.
"Son? Son! Did they hit you on your head? Why are you in a daze?"
He felt his father shaking his shoulders as he woke up from the trance he had gone into when listening to the system.
He had no time to analyze the system's answer, what with his father staring at him with a worried look on his face.
"No, Pitaji, I'm fine. I was just a bit shocked by the suddenness of this all. What do we do with these two?", he asked, motioning at the thieves.
"Go and call Uncle Benny over. These thieves must have bounties on their heads. If we go through anyone else, they would just eat up the reward instead of giving it to us due to our status.", he said, sighing.
There had been multiple instances when constables or city vendors had outright cheated them as there was no one to ask and obtain justice for them.
Such was the depravity of those branded with that mark.
They could only shut their mouth and try not to be cheated again.
Situations like these made the family treasure true friends more and more.
Uncle Benny was such a friend.
He was a constable charged to patrol the slums who sympathized with the Anivron family and helped them however he could because he knew the real reason Rajesh was driven away.
Surya had fond memories of this uncle Benny bringing tasty food or candy when he was starving.
"Besides, how did you manage to knock out the first thief and make the second thief bend over with pain?"
"Hehe, instincts. I just heard them snooping around and wanted to stop them. I'll go get Uncle Benny.", he said, giving another poor excuse and running from his father's hands.
Rajesh's eyes followed Surya from behind with a suspicious look on his face.
Something had changed in his son.
Deciding to get to the bottom of it later, he hurried to tie up the two thieves before they woke up.
Uncle Benny arrived in a few minutes and was shocked seeing the two tidily tied up thieves.
These were some of the most notorious thieves terrorizing the outer city.
They had recently made a high profile heist and were thought to have left the city.
To think that they would be caught in the slums, the Commander would surely be shocked.
There was a big reward on the thieves' heads which would really help out this family.
He promised to get all of the money and hand it over by telling his superiors that someone else had managed to catch them.
With everything taken care of, the two of them went back to sleep.
The next morning, Surya woke up to the sound of the rooster crowing.
It was still a bit dark outside, but he couldn't go back to sleep.
As he always did, he helped his mother and father with chores until the sun was completely up.
Then, his mother went to work and his father went to meet some friends in the slums.
Free, Surya left his house to look for the library.
The town library was one of the most prominent buildings in the city.
Built in a wide open area with high domes and rich mason work, it was truly a sight to behold.
It reminded him of the famous India Gate back in Delhi.
Only, the material was yellow instead of white.
Surya excitedly walked up the steps leading to the door before a signboard nearby completely punctured his excitement.
"Price of Admission: 10 Silver Rupiyas"
Rupiya was the official currency of Aryavarta.
100 copper Rupiyas made 1 silver Rupiya and 100 silver Rupiyas made 1 Gold Rupiya.
10 copper Rupiyas was the amount required for a typical person to eat the simplest food for a day.
And this damn library needed a hundred times that?
There was no way he could bring this much money what with the financial condition his family was in.
Surya could only pull his hair in frustration as he wondered what to do.
Just then, his father came back with a small pouch in his hand.
"Here, beta. Uncle Benny gave us a reward for catching those thieves. It's 2 Gold Rupiyas."
Surya's eyes widened as he took the pouch.
This was more than enough to get into the library.
"Thanks, Pitaji! I'll go to the library now."
Rajesh smiled and ruffled his son's hair.
"Go, beta. Learn as much as you can."
Surya grinned and ran towards the library, eager to start his journey of learning.
As he entered the library, he was amazed by the sheer number of books that surrounded him.
He had never seen so many books in his life.
Surya's eyes widened as he scanned the shelves, looking for a place to start.
He spotted a section on history and eagerly walked towards it.
As he began to read, Surya felt a sense of wonder and excitement.
He was finally learning about the world and its secrets.
And he knew that this was just the beginning of his journey.
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