Taking a deep, steadying breath, Raymond focused his mind and called out. "System."
The blue interface flickered slightly in response, a subtle chime echoing in his ears to acknowledge his command.
Raymond smiled smoothly. "Can you explain your exact operational functions to me? I have a general overview, but I need to know the specific details of how these metrics interact."
Immediately, the system responded. The singular blue screen in front of his face suddenly split, expanding outward as multiple floating windows appeared all around his bed, surrounding him in a complete sphere of glowing data. The cold, mechanical voice returned, devoid of its previous sarcasm as it entered tutorial mode.
[ Ding! System Function Overviewinitiated. The Infinite Family Treasury System operates on three primary core pillars: Financial Synchronization, Territorial Dominance, and Bloodline Expansion. ]
The screen representing [ Family Core Metrics ] glowed brighter.
[ Function 1: Financial Synchronization. The system tracks the physical wealth of the Althoff Clan Treasury. Real-world currency placed within your recognized vaults is mirrored instantly as System Points (SP) at a 1:1 ratio. This process does not consume your physical gold; it merely generates digital currency for the System Shop based on your family’s net worth. ]
[ Function 2: Territorial Progression. Your Noble Rank and System Level are bound directly to your physical fief. To upgrade your Territory Grade from a Barony to a Viscountcy, County, or higher, you must meet the specific milestones for infrastructure, total population, and land mass. Upgrading your territory unlocks higher tiers of technology, magical defenses, and rare resources. ]
[ Function 3: Household Summoning. The system utilizes Summoning Tickets to recruit elite, 100% loyal subordinates into your household. These subordinates are permanently bound to your family line as sworn vassals, distant relatives, or adopted siblings. Their base martial power is determined entirely by the ticket rank used: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum,Diamond and higher. ]
Raymond listened carefully, absorbing every line of data. As a veteran webnovel reader, he immediately spotted a few critical details that the system hadn’t explicitlydetailed. He needed to clarify the operational rules before he accidentally walked into a trap.
"System, let me ask a few questions," Raymond said, tapping his finger against his knee. "First, you mentioned that physical wealth generates SP. If I spend the physical gold coins in my treasury to buy food or resources for the peasants, do my System Points decrease accordingly?"
[ Ding! Negative. Once physical gold enters the Clan Treasury, the corresponding SP is generated permanently. Spending the real gold on infrastructure or territory development will not reduce your current SP balance. However, if the gold is stolen from your vault by an enemy force before it is utilized, a penalty will be applied. ]
Raymond’s eyes lit up. That was amassive loophole. It meant he could double-dip his resources: receive the gold, get the system points, and then immediately spend the real gold to improve the fief, which would then increase his population and unlock more milestone rewards.
"Second question," Raymond continued, pointing toward his personal attributes. "My strength tier says ’None’ because of this Void Water poison, and your manual states my power is tied to the clan. Does that mean I can never cultivate or use magic myself? Am I stuck being a weakling while my knights do all the fighting?"
[ Ding! Clarification: The Host cannot increase personal attributes through traditional training, meditation, or manual cultivation. Your base stats are capped by your current Territory and Family Grade. However, you are the central processor for the family network. Any passive buffs, bloodline traits, or unique items, such as the Divine Grade Mana Heart in your inventory, can be equipped directly to your body to bypass physical limitations. When the Family Grade upgrades, your attributes will scale automatically based on your total loyal population multiplier. ]
"I see," Raymond murmured, a calculative gleam passing through his eyes. He didn’t need to swing a sword or spend decades sitting in a cave meditating to absorb mana.
He just needed to expand his borders, increase his citizens, and let the sheer math of the population multiplier elevate his physical body into a god-like state. It was the ultimate lazy man’s path to supreme power.
"Final question for now," Raymond said, leaning back. "What counts as a ’Loyal Subordinate’ on the panel? It currently says thirty-five. I assume that includes the three summoned knights and the thirty-two mercenaries I just gaslighted. Does the system measure absolute brainwashing, or just general compliance?
"[ Ding! The ’Loyal Subordinates’ metric tracks individuals who have formally sworn their allegiance to House Althoff and possess a loyalty index above 60%. These individuals are recognized as part of your system network, meaning their actions, military achievements, and economic contributions will actively generate territory experience points toward your next upgrade. If their loyalty falls below 50%, they will be removed from the metric and flagged as potential threats. ]
"Perfect," Raymond smiled. The system acted as a literal lie detector. He could easily monitor his inner circle to ensure no one was plotting a second mutiny behind his back.
Having thoroughly analyzed the operational functions, Raymond finally turned his attention toward the glowing inventory screen. The massive stack of rewards he had accumulated, including the massive bounty from his recent S-rank evaluation, was practically calling out to him.
His eyes burned with an intense heat and absolute excitement. He began rubbing his hands together greedily, his fingers hovering over the blue screen, ready to open his item descriptions and look at the sparkling, legendary gifts waiting to be deployed.
Let’s start with that Divine Grade Mana Heart or the Land Upgrade Card...
But just as his finger was about to press the digital interface, a soft, high-pitched, childlike cry suddenly echoed from the corridor, cutting through the silence of the bedroom and snapping him completely out of his golden reverie.
"Young Master! Oh goodness, Young Master!"
Raymond’s lips twitched violently. His hand froze in mid-air.
He turned his head toward the shattered entrance of his bedroom. The three towering, armored knights didn’t draw their swords, but they stood completely motionless, looking down at a tiny figure that was currently trying to squeeze past their massive steel legs.
It was a little girl, appearing to be no older than ten or eleven years old. Shepossessed incredibly large, round blue eyes filled with frantic concern, and a mop of messy, untamed brown hair.
But what caught Raymond’s attention, and nearly made him choke on his own saliva, was her outfit. She was wearing an official, traditional maid uniform, but the garment was completely monstrous in size.
The sleeves swallowed her arms entirely, the hem of the long black dress dragged heavily across the dusty stone floor, and the white apron was wrapped around her tiny torso multiple times like a bandage. Instead of looking like a castle servant, the baggy uniform made her look like a toddler who had accidentally put on a massive, oversized wedding gown.
She grabbed the excessive edges of her heavy skirt, tripping over the fabric every three steps as she trotted frantically into the room, her big blue eyes welling with tears as she looked toward the bed.
"Young Master! Are you okay? I heard shouting! I heard the guards breaking things! Did those mean mercenaries hurt you?!"
Raymond’s eyebrows shot up to the hairline. He had to forcibly press his hand against his mouth, suppressing a loud, hysterical burst of laughter that was threatening to explode from his chest.
The sight of this tiny child waddling across a literal war zone in an outfit that looked like a deflated parachute was simply too hilarious to handle.
Of course, the moment his brain processed her face, the foreign memories of the original owner quickly slotted into place. He recognized her instantly.
Her name was Lily. She was a young orphan maiden whom Raymond’s younger sister back in the capital had personally hired and sent to this frozen borderland months ago, hoping the girl would at least keep the deadbeat lord from entirely suffocating in his ownfilth.
Lily was fiercely loyal, entirely clumsy, and the only person in the entire barony who didn’t look at Raymond with absolute disgust.
Raymond relaxed his posture, opening his mouth to speak to the crying little maid. But before a single word could leave his lips, the ambient air grew cold once more.
A sharp, demanding crimson screen abruptly manifested right over Lily’s head, blocking his view and pulsing with an ominous light.
[ Ding! ]
[ A New Mandatory System Mission is now available! ]
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