The Money Offensive

Rayne muttered inwardly, As expected. I guessed it.

He did not answer or refuse immediately. Instead, he asked, "Mr. Kainegi, why did you seek me out? We didn't know each other before this, did we?"

He had just taken the Soul Test at Violet House and had only been out for a short while when the other party came looking for him. The Steam and Machinery Guild's information network was almost too efficient.

Kainegi saw Rayne's confusion and laughed, speaking with a hint of pride. "Rayne, don't misunderstand. Our Mechanics Guild has indeed been recruiting talents all along, but the reason we were able to contact you so quickly today was actually a coincidence."

He explained, "A friend of mine happened to see you taking the Soul Test at Violet House. I happened to be nearby on business, so I hurried over as soon as I heard."

Rayne nodded, but inwardly he remained noncommittal. He had not believed everything.

However, Kainegi was the vice president of the Longshande branch of the Mechanics Guild. He was also a great tycoon and a nobleman, an enormously influential figure in the city.

Yet he was willing to lower himself and personally come recruit an ordinary person from a commoner background. He was polite in his conduct and had not looked down on Rayne because of the difference in their status. This showed just how sincere he was.

As if to demonstrate even greater sincerity, Kainegi immediately offered him terms.

"Rayne, as long as you're willing to join the Mechanics Guild and become a Mechanic, the guild will provide you with every convenience, including a Meditation Method, Demon Souls, potions to increase your Soul Power, and Alchemical Items. We'll cover everything until you advance to Legendary!"

"Besides everything you need for cultivation, the guild will also pay you a salary. As a level-one Mechanic, you'll earn ten Gold Shields a month."

"Your monthly salary will increase as your professional level rises."

"Even if your professional level stagnates, you'll still have two opportunities for a raise every year."

"Furthermore, the guild has prepared a large house for you in Silver Star District. We've already hired a butler, servants, and guards. The guild will cover all their expenses, and once you change class to Mechanic, the house will immediately be transferred to your name."

"I won't go into the other benefits. In short, as long as you become a Mechanic, you'll have strength, Gold Shields, beautiful women, and status. I guarantee you'll have everything. Overnight, you'll rise into Longshande's upper society."

After speaking, Kainegi took a pocket watch from inside his coat and glanced at it. He said seriously, "You have five minutes to consider it."

Rayne was so shaken by this string of benefits that Gold Shields seemed to flash before his eyes. Only one phrase remained in his mind: He's loaded!

To be honest, he was genuinely tempted, so he began to consider the matter seriously.

The Steam and Machinery Guild was often shortened to the Mechanics Guild. It was a top-tier power that had risen in the Empire and existed for several hundred years, with influence no weaker than that of the Triple God Church.

Rayne could not remember exactly how long the Mechanics Guild had existed. He vaguely recalled that it had been over four hundred years.

But there was one thing about the Mechanics Guild that had left a particularly deep impression on him. He had seen it in a history book: the founder of the Mechanics Guild, who was also its president, had been the same person from the guild's establishment until now. The position had never changed hands.

In other words, the president of the Mechanics Guild had lived for over four hundred years!

This legendary figure seemed to have appeared suddenly in some year and risen like a meteor.

Yet very few people knew the president's name or origins. At least, the history books did not say. Among the Empire's commoners, he was an enigmatic and mysterious figure.

Although the president was so mysterious, the astonishing changes the Mechanics Guild had brought to the Empire and the world were real.

Ever since the Mechanics Guild was established, all kinds of mechanical equipment had appeared, including the most important steam engine, as well as Public Buses, Steamships, Steam Trains, Airships, textile machines, elevators, and countless other small machines. They had entered every industry and changed people's way of life.

The Mechanics Guild was like winding the entire world with springs and gears. Everything began to move faster, developing at incredible speed.

A historian had once sighed that the changes Aerenus had undergone in these four hundred years were more drastic than those of the previous four thousand or even forty thousand years. They had practically turned the world upside down.

If a powerhouse above the Legendary tier had slept for four hundred years and awakened now, they might not even recognize this world.

It could be said that the appearance of the Mechanics Guild had completely changed the entire world.

Naturally, as the Mechanics Guild rose, it also acquired immense wealth. The world's mineral resources, mechanical companies, factories, and transportation industries were mostly connected to the Mechanics Guild by inseparable ties. They used money to buy everything, establishing one industry alliance after another and controlling power through capital.

The Mechanic, a Transcendent profession, rose and grew alongside the Mechanics Guild.

Mechanics were half-casters, so their talent requirements were not low. They were even comparable to Wizards.

However, a Mechanic's combat strength was far inferior to a Wizard's.

At least below the Legendary level, a Mechanic was almost impossible to defeat an opponent of the same tier who was a Wizard. The difference in strength between the two was enormous.

This was because Mechanics devoted most of their energy to researching mechanical technology rather than strengthening themselves.

In the early stages, Mechanics knew few spells, and most of those spells did not possess great power. Instead, they were used to assist in the manufacture of mechanical items.

Thus, low-level Mechanics relied on Soul Guns to make up for their lack of killing power, causing them to often be mistaken for Gunners.

Of course, Mechanics lacked strength in the early stages only in comparison with Wizards.

Compared with ordinary Transcendent professions, such as Iron Guards, Mechanics were still extremely formidable.

As their level increased, Mechanics could manufacture more and more mechanical equipment. Its functions would gradually improve, its power would grow, and their overall strength would explode.

It was rumored that after reaching the Legendary level, Mechanics became one of the most powerful Transcendent professions. There was even an exaggerated saying that "one person is an army." They were comparable to the strongest Myriad Spirits Wizards, and might even surpass them.

In the words of his previous life, Mechanic was a late-game profession.

Unfortunately, that late-game explosion came too late. How many people could advance to Legendary?

One had to know that half of all Transcendents could not break through to the Intermediate Tier in their entire lives. To them, Legendary was an unreachable dream.

Becoming a Mechanic did have other advantages.

For example, with mechanical technology at one's command, the opportunity to acquire vast wealth was far greater than with other professions. One generally did not need to risk one's life fighting magical beasts either. With enough money, one could buy anything one wanted.

But this was the Aurelian Empire, a nation ruled by Wizards. Among the young people who had the ability to become Wizards, how many would be willing to become a Mechanic whose strength was relatively weak in the early stages?

Without Mechanics, the Mechanics Guild would cease to exist. Sooner or later, this enormous organization would collapse.

This was probably the main reason the Mechanics Guild cared so much about talent.

Fortunately, the Mechanics Guild had its own advantage: money!

With money leading the charge, they could offer all kinds of benefits freely. Piles and piles of Gold Shields came crashing down until people grew dizzy. Faced with so many temptations, Rayne believed that many people would be willing to become Mechanics.

He would not be the first person the Mechanics Guild had stunned with money, and he certainly would not be the last.

But he had not completely let the money cloud his judgment.

There was no such thing as a free lunch.

The Mechanics Guild naturally was not offering such excellent terms without compensation. After joining the guild and becoming a Mechanic, one would inevitably have to serve the guild, earning back every Copper Liso invested in oneself. At the very least, one had to prove one's worth.

That said, Rayne was still very interested in becoming a Mechanic.

In his previous life, he had majored in mechanical engineering at university. It could be said to be directly related to the profession, making him very well suited to becoming a Mechanic.

If he joined the Mechanics Guild, his mechanical knowledge should allow him to establish himself quickly and gain the recognition of the people at the top.

He said "should" because Rayne was not very confident.

On a broad level, this world's mechanical technology was based on steam power. There were no internal combustion engines or electricity, but another powerful form of magical power had been developed.

At higher levels, much mechanical technology was combined with magic. It simply was not commonly seen in daily life. The most typical application was the Mechanical Puppet.

In Rayne's memories, there were two Mechanical Puppets at the entrance to the library of the Supernatural Academy.

They were shaped like colossal statues and powered by magic. They possessed complete mobility and the ability to distinguish friend from foe. Their movements were swift, like those of real living creatures. They were incomparably more advanced than the clumsy robots of his previous life.

Thinking about it now, Rayne had no idea how those two mechanical colossi worked.

He was very interested in researching Mechanical Puppet technology. If not for the even more powerful profession of Wizard being available to him, he would have gladly agreed right away.

For Rayne, the allure of becoming a Wizard was too great, even stronger than the allure of Gold Shields.

As an ordinary person who had lived on Earth for over thirty years without ever seeing supernatural power, Rayne's longing and anticipation for Transcendent power far exceeded that of the people in this world.

Since he had the chance to gain Transcendent power, of course he had to choose the strongest option!

There was no better choice than becoming a Wizard.

But becoming a Mechanic was also excellent. It might not be the strongest profession, but it was perhaps the one most suited to him. On top of that, the Mechanics Guild was offering generous terms, placing wealth and status within easy reach.

"This is really difficult." Rayne thought with a headache.

It was like having two beautiful women in front of him. One had impossibly beautiful looks, an incredible figure, and loved only him with all her heart. The other was beautiful, graceful, considerate, the only daughter of a wealthy family, and would inherit a fortune. Yet he could choose only one.

Which one would he choose?

Rayne wanted nothing more than to shout, I want both!

Unfortunately, this was not a simple multiple-choice question. There was no way to have the best of both worlds.

Rayne gazed at the street scene outside the car window. The car raced along the road, its ride perfectly smooth, but his mind was anything but calm. He was caught in hesitation and indecision, unable to make up his mind.

Beside him, Kainegi saw Rayne's conflicted expression. The corners of his mouth rose slightly, and he smiled smugly inwardly.

He did not try to persuade Rayne further, believing that victory was already his.

Few young people could withstand such an enormous temptation, especially young people from commoner backgrounds. Some of them might never even have ridden in a car before, and would surrender easily before the sight of Gold Shields.

He had seen many young people like this, talented but inexperienced. By now, all of them had become Mechanics.

Five minutes had not yet passed, but the car had already stopped by the roadside. A few steps ahead was Longshande's largest Magic Soul Market.

Kainegi did not urge him. He merely opened his pocket watch and glanced at it. Just as he was about to remind Rayne, he saw Rayne reach out and open the car door, seemingly preparing to get out.

"Rayne, have you made up your mind?" Kainegi found it unbelievable. This was completely beyond his expectations, and he suddenly grew anxious.

"Yes, Mr. Kainegi. I'm sorry." Rayne's expression was exceptionally calm.