### Chapter 4
"Where did you get all this money from, Uncle?"
The little girl giggled, circling around Solomon with a bright smile on her face. Solomon's expression, which had been frozen in a cold mask for a very long time, softened into a genuine smile—completely devoid of his usual icy detachedness.
```
[ You really wouldn't spare a chance to show off, even to a little kid, huh? ] the system chimed.
```
Solomon completely ignored its presence, focusing entirely on spending time with his niece.
"Uncle, I feel like you're a protagonist in a webnovel—the secretly rich hero who suddenly binds with a powerful system."
Solomon's eye twitched, his hand freezing mid-motion as he rubbed her hair.
The system reacted instantly. [ Is your niece a sorcerer? Can she perceive my framework? ]
"She's only seven. She just loves listening to Yuvia read webnovels aloud, and she picks up everything like a sponge," Solomon answered, communicating with the system in a settled, calm tone for the first time. He turned back to the little girl. "Do you want some cake?"
"Yay!" his niece nodded eagerly at the offer.
Solomon smiled, pulling out an extra package of pastries he had purchased for her.
"Thank you!" Laura jumped up in pure appreciation, happily taking all the packages for herself.
"Solomon!"
A sharp shout echoed from the front door.
Solomon flinched slightly for a fraction of a second before forcing himself to remain calm. A moment later, his grandmother walked into the room, flanked by his aunt and his elder sister.
"Brother, exactly when did you start running dirty businesses?" his sister, Yuvia, asked.
She possessed a fine, healthy figure and the same striking, long white hair as him, and she accompanied her question with a heavy, judgmental side-eye.
"What dirty business?" Solomon glanced at his elder sister, showing absolutely no reaction to her fierce irony.
"Grandson, yes, you had better tell us where you obtained all this money," his grandmother chimed in, her voice serious. "The cash you've been using to slowly solve our family's financial problems doesn't just appear out of nowhere."
Solomon looked at his grandmother, secretly wanting to tell her the absolute truth: I get more cashback from the interface the more money I spend on you.
Instead, he merely crossed his legs and shrugged. "I happened upon a fortune. It isn't dirty money." He shook his head, maintaining his absolute composure the entire time. "If I explain the exact mechanics of how I got it, I'll lose the fortune entirely."
Faced with his unyielding calm, his grandmother, sister, and aunt were forced to drop the subject and trust his word.
"Well, Solomon, I just hope you aren't mixed up in something shady."
"Of course I'm not," Solomon replied smoothly. As his aunt moved closer, he gently pushed her back, wrinkling his nose at the heavy scent clinging to her. "You reek of cheap perfume."
"How dare you push me away? Do you know who I am? Clara the Diva!"
"You're making me uncomfortable with that scent."
Clara crossed her arms, inspecting him. "Well... has Cassy made you completely afraid of women? Is that why you're acting so distant?"
"Maybe."
"That Cassy... I always sensed something entirely off about that girl," his grandmother sighed, taking a seat right beside him on the sofa.
Solomon, who had been relaxed, instantly went rigid. "Don't talk about Cassy, Grandmother. Do not speak her name in front of me ever again."
He closed his eyes, his voice dropping to a cold, final register that signaled he would not engage in any further conversation. His grandmother glanced at his tense posture, instantly realizing that bringing up his ex-girlfriend had triggered a wave of bitter memories and ruined his mood.
Solomon remained completely oblivious to his family's quiet observations. He sat in total silence for a long time until the system's mechanical alert vibrated inside his mind.
```
[ Host, you still have not reviewed the data manual I provided to you. The vast majority of entities would be ecstatic to parse through that restricted archive. Why have you neglected it? ]
```
The system's tone sounded unusually serene. Solomon kept his eyes closed, replying internally with a flat, calm voice.
I have already read through the entire manual.
The system went entirely silent, shocked by his words. When had he checked the data manual? When had he found the time to parse through the restricted archive? This host was proving to be incredibly elusive, moving through life like a hidden fish in the deep sea—exceptionally secretive. Even as an SSS-rank entity, the system found it impossible to completely track his mental algorithms or predict his movements.
Because of this structural opacity, it couldn't exert absolute control over him. Ordinarily, humans were entirely willing to surrender their autonomy, their souls, and their morals for the absolute power of infinite capital. Yet this active host was somehow controlling the dynamic, acting as though he were the benefactor granting the system a favor, rather than the recipient of its wealth.
With the system bringing up the subject of the manual, Solomon's thoughts naturally trailed back to the precise details he had uncovered within the text.
The global economy was completely dominated by a sovereign network known as the Bankers' Guild. These individuals comprised the highest tier of the global elite, existing structurally between the A-class authorities and the mythical SSS-class entities. They directly ruled over the survival and fate of the entire lower class—specifically the E-class and F-class citizens. They functioned like shadow leaders and hidden presidents, systematically controlling a vast, dirty economy.
They used the global flow of money to manipulate human lives, and almost none of their operations could be considered clean or legitimate business.
His mental focus locked onto one specific, highly unsettling detail listed within the historical credits. Every single day, low-class citizens were found dead under the guise of strange accidents or random tragedies. The alarming pattern was that the vast majority of these casualties occurred right when the individual was on the verge of acquiring a massive, life-altering fortune. For example, the logs detailed a past victim—a young girl who was officially registered to win a 10,000-credit lottery payout, only to suddenly drop dead right before the distribution.
The data trail ended abruptly there, preventing him from gathering deeper context on the phenomenon. Then, the manual detailed the concept of "Defaults."
Before his awakening, there had been other system users and newly rich individuals.
Today, those users no longer possessed their fortunes; some had been completely driven to insanity, while others had turned to even darker methods than the Bankers' Guild, actively serving as mercenary tools to execute the elite's wetwork. Beyond them existed the rare anomalies—the independent free agents, a category Solomon currently occupied.
```
[ Restricted Entry — Default Users: Former or failed system hosts whose internal cores have corrupted or been forcefully overwritten by outside entities. They no longer generate independent wealth; they survive by consuming it. They actively hunt active system users to extract their soul coins and accumulated luck. Consider them apex predators. Consider yourself prey until proven otherwise. ]
```
He had discovered that many individuals within the upper-tier classes possessed systems of their own, but their interfaces were fundamentally different—dark systems fueled by predatory mechanics. He, on the other hand, was an entirely different anomaly. He had obtained his interface purely through a freak statistical anomaly of luck, and he still didn't fully comprehend the underlying reason behind his selection.
Although the system insisted his binding was a product of pure fortune, he refused to believe that was the entire truth.
Because of those lingering suspicions, he had meticulously studied the system rules. The interface was programmed to generate random operational missions to grant him a baseline income, and the moment he circulated that capital into the economy, he would trigger an immediate cashback return. On the surface, it looked like a literal pie in the sky—an effortless cheat code to guarantee an elite lifestyle.
But life had beaten a permanent lesson into him: you can never truly obtain anything for free, no matter how effortless the mechanism appears, even if it presents itself as a flawless cheat or a perfect escape from poverty.
Suddenly, a loud internal alarm shattered his thoughts.
```
[ High-Priority Alert: Host has remained stagnant without executing a single financial transaction for an extended period. Warning! Warning! All accumulated capital will permanently liquefy and disappear from the active registry if you fail to spend money and trigger an instant cashback sequence. The system is explicitly programmed to make you wealthy! ]
```
The system was constantly defaulting to these high-stakes ultimatums, trying to force a psychological breakdown by threatening his progress. It behaved exactly like a classic devil—offering a massive gift with one hand while holding a blade over everything he valued with the other.
Solomon let out a quiet sigh, shifting his focus toward finding an immediate avenue to spend his capital. As he looked around the room, his eyes landed on his aunt, Clara, who was currently engrossed in sharing fresh gossip with his grandmother about her latest romantic interest. His elder sister, Yuvia, had already stepped out of the room to assist with a neighbor's newborn baby.
"Auntie Clara, can you step out to the hallway with me for a moment?" Solomon asked, turning to her and offering a subtle hand gesture to ensure his grandmother wouldn't pay attention.
Clara raised an eyebrow, looking at him with a questioning glance that clearly asked, What are you up to?
Solomon quietly walked out of the living room, and Clara smoothed her hair before stepping out right behind him.
"Auntie, I couldn't help but notice that your wardrobe is getting incredibly old," Solomon began, immediately layering on the flattery while ensuring he pointed out the exact physical flaws he noticed. "Look at this fabric—the dress actually has a noticeable hole right on the seam of the butt. You desperately need a completely new outfit.
And that perfume you're wearing is far too harsh and cheap. You deserve something refined. A beauty of your caliber should only be wearing the most premium luxury brands.
Clara's face instantly flushed a deep shade of pink from pure embarrassment. She let out a gasp, immediately reaching up to playfully yank Solomon's ear as she scolded him. "I am your auntie! How dare you speak to me so shamelessly, you little brat! But...
wait, is that actually true? Is there really a visible hole in the back of my dress?"
Solomon smirked, seeing that his aunt was completely swallowing the bait. "Yes, Auntie. The tear is right there, completely exposing your dress."
"Nephew, you're talking big about buying me luxury clothes and premium perfume," she said, narrowing one eye as she inspected him. Even though she knew her nephew had recently come into some mysterious money, she assumed it was just a modest amount of cash—nowhere near enough to fund a luxury lifestyle. "Can you actually afford a trip like that?"
Solomon let out a soft chuckle, turning toward the front door. "Let's head over to the commercial district, Auntie. You can see the reality for yourself once we arrive."
The system watched the entire manipulation play out from the sidelines, observing how effortlessly Solomon managed his aunt's vanity to clear his spending requirements.
```
[ Involuntary Exclamation: Damn, host! Your tactical application of human psychology is remarkably sharp. ]
```
The assistant had never managed a host with this level of calculating coldness throughout its operational years. It was an elite, SSS-class system, yet this human consistently made its automated threats feel entirely redundant—a reality the interface clearly resented.
Solomon walked with measured, steady steps into the luxury commercial mall, his Auntie Clara strutting right beside him. She was still looking around the marble arches in absolute awe, unable to fully believe that her nephew possessed the financial capacity to shop in a high-tier district.
She kept expecting the private security guards to spot their lower-class status and physically chase them out of the pavilion.
"Solomon? What on earth are you doing in a place like this?"
A sharp, incredibly familiar voice cut through the air from behind them. Solomon turned slowly, finding Cassy standing a few paces away. She was wearing a tight, vibrant pink designer dress that explicitly contoured her curves. The visual display meant absolutely nothing to Solomon; he had never entered a relationship with her because of her physical assets. He had genuinely fallen in love with her character, intending to build a real future together, only for her to turn around and casually betray his trust for an elite upgrade.
Solomon's expression remained perfectly neutral—neither icy nor angry, showing a complete lack of emotional variance. Clara, recognizing the girl instantly, narrowed her eyes and began analyzing Cassy from head to toe.
At the counter, the sales attendant took Solomon's black credit card, sliding it through the payment terminal to verify if the young man was merely pulling a pathetic stunt. When the machine let out a sharp, successful ping and the bright green approval notification flashed across the screen, the clerk's eyes widened in profound shock. She snapped her head up to look at Solomon with newfound deference.
"The transaction cleared instantly... You really possess this level of capital," she whispered, her voice trembling.
Clara stared at the terminal in absolute disbelief. Her nephew hadn't been exaggerating; he truly possessed immense, functional wealth.
"Pack every single garment from the front display row all the way to the back storage wall," Solomon commanded the frozen attendant, his voice completely flat. He pointed directly to the high-end collections Clara had been staring at since they had entered the boutique.
The sales attendant didn't hesitate for a single second, frantically gesturing for her colleagues to assist with the order. She was entirely certain that the liquidity available on that card could comfortably purchase the entire inventory of the store.
The command was executed with lightning efficiency. Clara stood amidst the flurry of shopping bags, her mind spinning as she experienced a rush of pure euphoria. This reality felt completely surreal. She turned to look at Solomon, her gaze shifting entirely away from how she typically viewed her casual romantic flings.
"Nephew... honestly, I suddenly want to be your girlfriend," she giggled, intentionally throwing her weight against his side and clinging tightly to his arm. "Will you take your beautiful auntie as your partner?"
Solomon reached down, firmly unclasping her fingers from his sleeve to stop her from hovering over him. "Thank God you still retain enough cognitive awareness to remember you're my aunt. I don't participate in taboo relationships," he replied, his tone thoroughly nonchalant.
Clara completely brushed off his rejection, her smile only growing wider as she leaned back in. "You know very well that I'm the absolute youngest child in the family, dear.
The age gap between us is practically nonexistent, and we can keep everything completely confidential. No one in the household ever has to find out. You can easily date me, Solomon."
"I'm sorry, Aunt Clara, but I don't offer my trust to people the way I used to. That is the only response you're going to get from me," Solomon cleared his throat, thoroughly shutting down her advances as they walked toward the exit.
Every single rejection Solomon offered simply entered one of Clara's ears and exited the other. She couldn't stop staring at her nephew, suddenly viewing him through an entirely new lens. He was remarkably handsome, unusually tall, and possessed an absurd amount of independent capital. Now that he was officially single after breaking up with his unfaithful ex, she couldn't help but wonder if she could somehow secure him entirely for herself.
"Uncle, I feel like you're a protagonist in a webnovel—the secretly rich hero who suddenly binds with a powerful system."
Solomon's eye twitched, his hand freezing mid-motion as he rubbed her hair.
The system reacted instantly. ```[ Is your niece a sorcerer? Can she perceive my framework? ]
```
"She's only seven. She just loves listening to Yuvia read webnovels aloud, and she picks up everything like a sponge," Solomon answered, communicating with the system in a settled, calm tone for the first time. He turned back to the little girl. "Do you want some cake?"
"Yay!" his niece nodded eagerly at the offer.
Solomon smiled, pulling out an extra package of pastries he had purchased for her.
"Thank you!" Laura jumped up in pure appreciation, happily taking all the packages for herself.
"Solomon!"
A sharp shout echoed from the front door. Solomon flinched slightly for a fraction of a second before forcing himself to remain calm. A moment later, his grandmother walked into the room, flanked by his aunt and his elder sister.
"Brother, exactly when did you start running dirty businesses?" his sister, Yuvia, asked. She possessed a fine, healthy figure and the same striking, long white hair as him, and she accompanied her question with a heavy, judgmental side-eye.
"What dirty business?" Solomon glanced at his elder sister, showing absolutely no reaction to her fierce irony.
"Grandson, yes, you had better tell us where you obtained all this money," his grandmother chimed in, her voice serious. "The cash you've been using to slowly solve our family's financial problems doesn't just appear out of nowhere."
Solomon looked at his grandmother, secretly wanting to tell her the absolute truth: *I get more cashback from the interface the more money I spend on you.*
Instead, he merely crossed his legs and shrugged. "I happened upon a fortune. It isn't dirty money." He shook his head, maintaining his absolute composure the entire time. "If I explain the exact mechanics of how I got it, I'll lose the fortune entirely."
Faced with his unyielding calm, his grandmother, sister, and aunt were forced to drop the subject and trust his word.
"Well, Solomon, I just hope you aren't mixed up in something shady."
"Of course I'm not," Solomon replied smoothly. As his aunt moved closer, he gently pushed her back, wrinkling his nose at the heavy scent clinging to her. "You reek of cheap perfume."
"How dare you push me away? Do you know who I am? Clara the Diva!"
"You're making me uncomfortable with that scent."
Clara crossed her arms, inspecting him. "Well... has Cassy made you completely afraid of women? Is that why you're acting so distant?"
"Maybe."
"That Cassy... I always sensed something entirely off about that girl," his grandmother sighed, taking a seat right beside him on the sofa.
Solomon, who had been relaxed, instantly went rigid. "Don't talk about Cassy, Grandmother. Do not speak her name in front of me ever again."
He closed his eyes, his voice dropping to a cold, final register that signaled he would not engage in any further conversation. His grandmother glanced at his tense posture, instantly realizing that bringing up his ex-girlfriend had triggered a wave of bitter memories and ruined his mood.
Solomon remained completely oblivious to his family's quiet observations. He sat in total silence for a long time until the system's mechanical alert vibrated inside his mind.
```
[ Host, you still have not reviewed the data manual I provided to you. The vast majority of entities would be ec