'Debt Collector System?'
Lucien blinked, unsure of the robotic sound in his mind that appeared out of nowhere.
And before he could collect his thoughts, a refreshing feeling suddenly washed over his body and mind, making him feel lighter than ever.
"Mother? Sir Lucien? What do you mean?"
While he was feeling the change, Alchemist Devan asked, a little surprised at his choice of words.
Was there any reason to bring his mother up?
'Why do I feel like he's trying to scold me?'
"Wait a minute. I'm thinking about how much I should spend on you."
Lucien waved his hand, stopping him with words, as he had more important things to do. But his casual words did manage to make Devan happy.
"Oh, haha. It's okay, it's okay, Lord Lucien. You can take your time. There's no rush."
Once he felt the money was coming, Devan immediately stopped urging.
He even forgot Lucian's slip of the tongue. As long as he could get money, he could say whatever he wanted; he didn't care.
Money talks, and the rest is just noise.
'System? What are you?'
Lucien didn't care and silently called the system, only to see a panel in front, followed by a neutral sound.
[Welcome to the Debt Collector System. As the name suggests, this system will help you collect debt you cannot collect normally.]
[Function: The system keeps track of the loans you give to others and will automatically help you collect the debt in equivalent compensation in the event of default.]
[Loans can be in the form of anything of value: gold, goods, gifts, etc.]
[Compensation collected will depend on the borrower's strength and talent. It can include stats, affinities, skills, memories, or even lifespan.]
[Note: Debt collection from individuals far beyond your strength is not possible. However, you can save and collect the debt later when you become strong enough.]
[Warning: It is entirely possible to be unable to collect debt from someone unworthy or someone who has already paid compensation to you multiple times.]
The information he got was short, but it explained everything clearly.
'Collecting debt in other forms? Stats, affinities, skills... or even lifespan?'
The more he read the information, the more his eyes began to shine with excitement, and his breath grew shorter.
Now he finally understood why he had received Minor Mana Sensitivity (Passive) and +1 Intelligence just now.
'Did I just... absorb his intelligence and skill?'
Lucien looked at Devan, who was silently waiting like a kid. From the glee on his face, he didn't seem to feel anything different.
'Or... maybe this guy didn't even realize.'
He thought that might be the case.
This guy was, at most, an apprentice — not even an Invoker.
He had no idea what his previous self had thought, investing in this guy.
From the memories he inherited, in this world, the power system was divided into—
Initiate, Apprentice, Invoker, Arcanist, Weaver, Lord, and Sage. Each stage was further divided into Early, Middle, and Peak stages.
There might be other rankings above those, which he wasn't aware of.
But the point was that you couldn't use mana or energy properly unless you were an Invoker.
This was true for a mage, a knight, or any other class in this world.
'But... does this mean I can now practice magic?'
Lucien suddenly thought with a little excitement. After all, the main reason he was a waste was because of his low talent.
In fact, he couldn't even sense mana. So, even calling it "low talent" was blasphemy. But with the reward he just got...
'System, show me my status!'
He ordered with hope, causing the panel in front to change, showing new information:
[Name: Lucien Goldveil]
[House: Goldveil Viscount Lineage]
• Intelligence: 6 (+1)
• Minor Mana Sensitivity (Passive)
↳ Allows faint perception of ambient mana.
• Funds: ~250,000 Gold
• Estate Holdings: Goldveil Manor, Minor Properties
• Mana Artifacts: 3 (Low-Grade)
• Glen – 1000 Gold (Loaned 1 Day Ago)
Lucien couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth.
After seeing his "luxurious" stats, he felt that mere Minor Mana Sensitivity might not even allow him to awaken his class.
'Why don't I even have any affinity?'
Devan saw him lost in thought for a long time and asked a little nervously.
"Oh... right, so... I decided to invest in you one last time."
Lucien suddenly came to his senses, thought for a while, and finally smiled at Devan.
Then with practiced ease, he grabbed one of the pouches hanging at his side and tossed it onto the table.
"This is the 1000 gold coins you asked for. It is my loan to you. This time, you have to enter the Alchemy Guild. Otherwise, you'll have to return it to me tenfold. What do you think?"
Lucien decided to test his Debt Collector System.
Since someone was already in front of him, he decided to make him his guinea pig.
"Haha... of course, of course. Don't worry, sir. This time, I will definitely fulfill my promise."
Devan quickly grabbed the pouch and caressed it with extreme care, his mouth stretched wide with a smile.
Although he expressed promise without batting an eye, he had no intention of completing it, nor was he going to return the gold that was already in his hands.
Lucien also smiled as he suddenly heard the familiar prompt in his mind as soon as Devan grabbed the pouch.
[You gave a loan of 1000 gold coins to Alchemist Devan.]
[He has bad motives and no intention to pay back.]
[Debt collection failed.]
[Analyzing transactions...]
[Extracting compensation of equivalent value...]
[Congratulations! You gained: +1 Intelligence, Alchemy Talent – Mediocre, a bit of talent in alchemy; you can probably make a few basic potions.]
[Warning: Alchemist Devan has been declared insolvent. You cannot collect debt from him anymore.]