The Passive Skill Collection System

*Ring* *Ring*

Lu Jae-sung woke up with an effort, trying to turn the alarm clock off while almost falling out of bed.

He was so focused on his system this week that he neglected the lack of furniture in his micro-apartment.

The clock rang for a while before eventually turning it off. He looked at the time displayed on his phone.

"It's 7:40! I need to arrive within twenty minutes!"

His shout was ear-piercing, without further he jumped off his bed, almost stumbling over upon landing.

Monday, the first day of his new High School. His time was minute, leading to a chaotic morning of sluggish routine.

For understanding, he had set his alarm for leave, which meant he overslept the first one at 7 o'clock.

Fortunately, he was confident he could make it in time. After being done with his routine, he grabbed his books and headed off to the suit elevator wearing a full white uniform with gilded-like stripes on the edges.

After exiting the elevator, he sprinted north toward the exit, school, and city center. He lived in the southern district, closer to the side of downtown.

"Eight minutes until the start of class!" he thought, panic slowly rising inside him, almost rupturing through his stomach.

He easily covered the four kilometers—his speed rivaled top athletes—but traffic lights hampered his progress.

*Huff* *Huff* *Breathe*

Beforehand, he took a second in front of the school to breathe, noticing the school grounds were empty. Undoubtedly, the school looked like a church from the outside. After all, it was decorated with gargoyles, a wax-like facade, and silver, and golden outlines. The enormous windows sourced the classes with bright sunlight. On the inside, they seemed to be equipped with void black curtains.

*CRASH!* *Thump* *Thump*

Lu Jae-sung almost fell on his knees as the other student rushed around the corner of the school gate. No wonder she crashed into him. He had stood right beside it.

"I'm so sorry. Let me help you pick up the books for you." She said with worry.

They both bent to pick up his books, almost clashing with heads. The girl's face was astonishing. The first things he noticed about her were her silky smooth skin, green eyes, and straightened black hair. She was one of the most beautiful girls in the school, which he didn't know.

"Thanks for the help. It was my fault. Being right behind the gates is just foolish, haha."

Lu Jae-sung wanted to ask her about her name, but when she looked at her wristwatch, she sprinted towards the entrance, waving back at him.

He stared at the tall figure that slowly diminished. He shook his head and entered after her without haste.

His classroom was on the third floor, the highest of the school, at the end of the eastern wing.

The building comprised two wings, each floor had eight classes, dividing the years by floors. Four teacher offices (two per teacher) occupied each floor; a principal's office on the top floor decreased available space for other rooms. In addition, the floor was tiled with marble, leaving an expensive impression. The side walls carried golden scones lighting up the space.

Multiple steps, including those of heels and heavy boots, could be heard inside the corridors. He then approached his class, where his teacher was patiently waiting for him to arrive.

"I see you are a bit late. Can you explain to me why?" He asked crossed arms, waiting for an answer.

"Well… I wasn't that late, but when I was beside the school, a girl student bumped into me, making me drop all of my study materials."

The homeroom teacher stared at him, wondering if he had blamed another student for being late when he could have arrived much sooner to meet him at his office.

"Whatever, I'll let it slide today. When you come inside, be polite and introduce yourself briefly. I'll allocate you a seat inside."

He entered the classroom before Lu Jae-sung—said a few sentences—and then a faint call resonated through the sliding door.

Lu Jae-sung slid the door, went inside, and positioned himself beside a whiteboard.

Thus, everyone's attention shifted to him, examining him from head to toe. A person in the back right corner appeared quite shocked. He recognized the girl; she'd previously collided with him. Beforehand, a classmate's transfer was announced; this felt odd, given the proximity to final exams.

"Hi, my name is Lu Jae-sung. I recently moved to Gongchun, to my stepfather's apartment with my mother. I know it will be for a short time, but I hope we can get on well with each other." He said, ignoring the fact he didn't want to interact with anyone.

"You can sit in the back of the room, right beside Baram Soo-kyung. She will help you with the basics of this school. Now everyone, open the maths book on page 217. We will revise for the final exam."

Lu Jae-sung took a seat in the 6th row, right beside the girl he had met.

"Why don't you have a backpack and writing tools btw?" she asked him a simple, yet pointing-out question.

"I invested a lot of time in something else and forgot to buy them. I will do so after school."

Therefore, he set aside his pack, and then got out his math materials. Suddenly, a hand appeared on the desk, giving out a simple pen to him.

"You can keep it until you get what you need."

Not only was she gorgeous, but she also had a kind soul. Although it might be the simplest act of kindness, no one treated him like this for years.

"Hey! Stop talking in class! If you can speak right after being transferred, then solve this problem!" Being pissed off, the teacher looked angry.

"sorry." Soo-kyung apologized to him with a low tone of voice.

However, what nobody knew was that he had read this book the day before, which meant he could solve it in a matter of seconds.

f(x)=x³−6x²+9x−5.

'Finding critical points and analyzing function behavior' is a calculus problem that would usually take a while before fully solving it. Yet, Lu Jae-sung skipped almost all the steps for solving this problem and wrote the solution for it upon arriving at the whiteboard.

Everyone was flabbergasted. Even the teacher looked at him with his mouth wide open.

"Can I get back to my seat?" He asked.

A simple nod, disbelief lingering, was the teacher's response. The class's atmosphere was quiet. Everyone felt a monster had appeared in their class.

However, this wouldn't be the only time Lu Jae-sung would shock everybody. After all, his intelligence was at 12 points. He was sure he could easily manage any unforeseen problem.

The first school day finished after the lectures. All the classmates tried to approach him, but he was ignorant, leaving an impression of an absolute jerk. He didn't care; he just wanted graduation trouble less.

When he left the school grounds, Lu Jae-sung sensed he was being followed. Steps behind him got closer and closer, ignoring it, until a slender palm reached his shoulder.

"Can't you at least walk slowly? It was quite hard to reach you. How come you walk as fast as a person would run? Is your ability related to speed?" Asking too many questions at once, Lu Jae-sung was left in a peculiar situation.

"You didn't seem to be so talkative in class. Before I answer you any of your questions, I'd like to know why you ignore everyone else but me?"

"Em… I just… I can't stand how every single person at school tries to get my attention, yet you seem to be different." She answered with doubt filling her mind.

"Of course I am different. I'm not a creep who would get under someone's skin for being pretty."

She blushed. That bold response would leave a girl speechless anytime.

"Since you answered my question, I will tell you something about myself then."

They stood on the sidewalk, getting to know each other. He told her most of the truth about his past. How his dad leave for an important mission, how he was being bullied for his biracial status, and the misfortunes with his awakening. His life summarized as torture. Besides, he was alone most of the time and it had taken a serious tall on his psychological state, not wanting to interact with any human being. Therefore, he almost shed a tear after expressing this sensitive topic.

However, he considered it safe to discuss this. This individual didn't bother him ever so slightly. He finally felt like he could confide in her even more. But, he, of course, hid which ability and skills he had. There was no way around it, revealing it was simply too dangerous.

Baram Soo-kyung also said something about her past. She is from a family of adventurers, leading to the deep admiration of her parents. The skill her family specialized in was fire and ice control. Special abilities were sometimes original, and other times they could be inherited or combined.

As she underwent the awakening process, her ability was a blend of those two elements. This led to combinatory attacks with her active skills, being able to create new ones amid the time.

Her capabilities were of high level and the potential to reach higher ranks was immense.

"Hey, it has been nice talking with you, but I still have some work left to do. We can continue discussing tomorrow." Lu Jae-sung said. A warm sensation welled inside him for confiding in her.

"Before you go, scan this."

She grabbed her phone and swiftly tapped on her phone, showing a QR code for her number after.

Lu Jae-sung nodded and scanned it with his screen-smashed phone. After that, they parted ways after saying goodbye.

"Shit, now I have to workout at this time after school?" He knew he hadn't done a single task on the daily list, and another run, through the streets of the night, waited for him.

-----------------------------------------

In the other direction Lu Jae-sung had traveled, Baram Soo-kyung was smoking a cigarette in one of the dark side streets.

She held a pixelated picture in her other hand, showing a picture of someone, which resembled Lu Jae-sung.

"What a dumbass. He slid into my hands with no effort. Why was he so slimy, willing to say so much about himself?" She thought back to their interactions, making her body shake.

In the shadow to the side, two slender guys, covered in blood, stood there in pain.

"This weakling had beaten both of you? No wonder the boss was in a bad mood. Never show your faces before our eyes again!" She signaled threateningly with her fist.

"What are you waiting for? Scram the fuck out!"

Both of them ran as fast as their feet could, gasping for air wildly. A trace of blood was left behind.