Chapter 167: Clairement's Enthronement

Chapter 167: Clairement's Enthronement

The Battle of Willis City came and went swiftly.

At first glance, apart from the severe damage to farmland dozens of miles outside Willis City, the Empire seemed to have suffered no other losses.

Yet no one knew that this sudden outbreak of war had dealt an unprecedented blow to the Interconnected Bank.

When the undead legion gathered outside Willis City, the local branch of the Interconnected Bank was nearly overwhelmed by the crowds rushing to withdraw their funds.

Panic, amplified by the internet, even spread to other cities.

The fledgling Interconnected Bank faced an unprecedented trial.

Amid this crisis, Clairement paid no attention to the progress of the war—her mind was focused solely on one thing: saving the Interconnected Bank!

This was the platform for her ambitions, the proof of her worth.

Through the backend of the Interconnected Bank, she checked the cash reserves of each city, decisively requisitioned the Teleportation Mana Wells of the Magic Towers across the Empire to transport funds, ensuring that Willis City—the epicenter of the bank run—had sufficient cash flow.

At the same time, she secretly ordered all branches to slow down withdrawal processes, strictly adhering to procedures to buy time.

Under her unified command, not a single branch of the Interconnected Bank ran out of funds by the time the Battle of Willis concluded.

It was a narrow escape, but they pulled through!

"Mr. Ajef, you flatter me. This was merely my duty!" Clairement hurriedly replied with humility.

"No! You did exceptionally well. No need for modesty," Yu Sheng'an insisted, giving her full credit.

At first glance, Clairement's actions during the bank run crisis might not seem particularly remarkable.

But that was far from the truth.

Such a judgment would only come from hindsight bias.

Consider this: when Willis City was besieged by the God of Death, she neither panicked nor succumbed to greed and fled with the funds. These two points alone spoke volumes about her character.

Often, those in power have modest expectations of their subordinates—simply not failing at critical moments is already commendable.

Moreover, even the higher-ups of the Internet God's divine system had doubted Yu Sheng'an at the time. As a member of the royal family, Clairement couldn’t have been unaware of these judgments.

She must have known!

Yet, despite believing the Internet God's chances of victory were slim, she remained steadfast in her duties, coordinating the Magic Towers to transport funds and even resisting pressure from nobles demanding priority withdrawals. These seemingly minor acts of integrity were precisely why Yu Sheng'an admired her.

He even reflected that had he recruited a lowly maid instead, the situation would have been far worse.

When his authority was in question, a subordinate with no inherent influence would never have been able to requisition the city portals as smoothly as Clairement had.

And could a lowly maid have withstood the nobles' pressure?

Yu Sheng'an didn’t know.

But he did know that, by sheer luck, he had stumbled upon a gem.

Though young, Clairement's royal upbringing granted her exceptional insight, allowing her to grasp complex matters with minimal guidance—saving him considerable effort.

Moreover, her existing influence greatly benefited the Interconnected Bank.

Especially during this bank run crisis, she had been an invaluable asset.

"The reason I summoned you back is that we’re about to launch the Faction System!"

After briefly explaining the Faction System, Yu Sheng'an continued:

"This multiversal conflict is both a crisis and an opportunity. Directly interfering in the preaching zones of the gods would come at too great a cost, but if we gradually erode them through financial power, the price would undoubtedly be far smaller and much more covert."

"So I deliberately set Source Essence and mana as payment currencies. The gods will inevitably reject this at first, but if they want to use general equivalents as a means of payment, they’ll need an evaluation institution. This is the perfect opportunity for the Interconnected Bank to expand—and one of the reasons I summoned you back. Are you prepared?"

As his voice faded, Clairement’s bright eyes locked onto Yu Sheng'an, suddenly blazing with fervor.

She stood abruptly, pressing a hand to her chest in salute. "Clairement is ready to answer your call at any time!"

"Excellent!"

Yu Sheng'an nodded and waved his hand. A row of colorful paper slips suddenly flashed before Clairement.

"What is this?" Clairement asked, puzzled.

"Paper money!" Yu Sheng'an explained. "You can think of it as an IOU, a withdrawal voucher, or paper gold."

Clairement stared at the bills of varying denominations, and a spark of realization struck her. "Lord Ajef, are you planning to replace gold coins with paper money?"

"Clever!" Yu Sheng'an narrowed his eyes. "You’ve seen the bank run crisis—it puts immense pressure on cash reserves. If we gradually replace currency with paper money, we can print as much as we want. The concept of a bank run would cease to exist."

"This…" Clairement was stunned, her mind reeling. "Will the people accept it?"

"Did the people accept the Interconnected Bank at first?"

As Clairement gaped in astonishment, Yu Sheng'an spoke with effortless eloquence:

"Any new invention goes through a stage of doubt and distrust. But that’s no reason for us to hesitate."

"Starting today, every branch will offer clients two choices when withdrawing funds: metal currency or paper money. Don’t force them to choose paper money—let them decide freely."

"As long as the Interconnected Bank acknowledges paper money and guarantees its exchange for metal currency at any time, the benefits will prove themselves. Eventually, the people will accept it, and paper money will completely replace metal currency."

As Clairement listened to Lord Ajef’s impassioned speech, she felt as if struck by lightning—her spine chilled, her scalp tingling.

She realized that once paper money fully replaced metal currency…

The Interconnected Bank, wielding the right to mint currency at a fraction of the cost, would control the wealth of the multiverse!

No wonder Lord Ajef had summoned her back for this discussion.

This matter was far from simple.

But what Ajef revealed next left Clairement—who had seen countless treasures in her lifetime—utterly dumbfounded.

Lord Ajef suddenly opened his right hand, and an indescribable, blinding radiance unfurled in his palm.

Clang!

Clairement shot to her feet so violently that she knocked over her high-backed chair.

Yet she paid no mind to the breach of etiquette, her attention wholly fixed on Ajef’s palm, her beautiful face filled with shock.

Though she had never seen a godhood before, she recognized it instantly.

"Pledge your loyalty to me, and I shall grant you subordinate godhood."

"Loyalty?"

Clairement froze, suddenly locking eyes with Ajef's face as a flash of realization struck her mind. She wanted to scream, but her royal upbringing suppressed the impulse.

Her voice came out distorted: "You... You are the Internet God?"

Yu Sheng'an nodded.

At this, Clairement nearly bit off her tongue, her expression instantly filled with horror and shock.

A storm of disbelief raged in her heart!

Lord Ajef... was actually the Internet God?

Of course!

No wonder my brother warned me to stay away from him!

No wonder his magical prowess is so terrifying!

No wonder his knowledge and wisdom are so profound!

Who else but a god could achieve such things?

But... but this was too absurd, too shocking, too unbelievable!

Who could have imagined that Lord Ajef—who mingled in the Empire’s capital, approachable and even occasionally indulging in lowly offal noodles—was actually... a god walking among mortals?

"Lady Clairement, I must remind you—my patience is limited, you know?"

Yu Sheng'an watched the stunned Clairement and gave her a pointed reminder.

Clang!

As if snapping out of a dream, Clairement suddenly circled around the table and dropped to one knee, performing a pledge of fealty: "Great Internet God, Clairement vows to serve and remain loyal to you forever!"

Yu Sheng'an observed the highly ceremonial display and couldn’t help but click his tongue. Did I rush too much in offering this virtual divine spark?

Should I hold a coronation ceremony, maybe even a multiverse live stream?

Ah, forget it—too flashy.

Better to maintain an air of mystery.

With that thought, a contract materialized before Clairement. She hesitated for only a moment before channeling divine energy without hesitation and signing her name on the master-servant contract.

As the contract dissolved into three streaks of light, Yu Sheng'an handed over the virtual Light Authority godhood.

The Interconnected Bank would only grow more crucial in the future.

He had to ensure the survival rate of its top brass, preventing enemy decapitation tactics.

Granting godhood—bestowing near-divine power—was the most efficient method!

Though this move risked exposing the weaknesses of godhood, he had already exchanged divine sparks too many times. And yet, the authorities he controlled had only increased.

Clairement, abruptly receiving the virtual divine spark, was overwhelmed by the torrent of information and surging Source Essence that came with it. The sheer power flooding her soul intoxicated her!

It took her a long while to regain her senses.

"Remember—unless absolutely necessary, do not reveal your status as a subordinate god. If exposed, you’ll lose your normal life. Understood?"

Yu Sheng'an handed her a magic artifact to shield from divine observation and issued the warning.

The artifact could block Divine Perspective scrutiny.

Of course, the condition was that she must not wield divine power.

Additionally, she couldn’t approach Churches or get too close to other gods—otherwise, the risk of exposure remained high.

"Yes!" Clairement nodded, though her thoughts raced ahead. Unable to resist, she asked, "What if the God of Contracts exposes this secret?"