Smoke hung faintly in the rafters of the D'Aramont estate, long after the fires were put out. Élaina sat alone in the manor's west-facing study — a room once grand, now dimmed by cracked windows and scorched walls. Golden candlelight flickered over warped wood and velvet curtains torn from their moorings.
She rubbed her arms through a borrowed cloak, one far too big for her. The chill in the air had nothing to do with the weather.
Her fingers brushed over a ledger Séraphine had handed her earlier — half-burned but salvageable. It detailed crop yields, supply lines, and a distressing lack of coin. Her mind, trained by a past life in boardrooms and war rooms, recognized the patterns.
"This isn't just mismanagement," she muttered. "It's sabotage."
She rose, pacing. Thoughts raced through her: tariffs far beyond fairness, merchant restrictions, revoked toll rights, and recently — rumors of audits requested by the Crown. It wasn't just a ruined house.
Someone wanted the d'Aramonts gone.
And Élaina wasn't having it.
Just as she reached for a blank parchment to draft her own notes, a deep and silent pressure spread across her chest — not pain, but resonance. The flickering candlelight slowed, sound dropped into a hush, and suddenly—
>[SYSTEM BOOT INITIALIZED...]
>Designation: Host recognized — Élaina Vaillancourt
>Welcome to the VASSAL SYSTEM.
>Status: Dormant.
>Would you like to receive your first Title?
She froze.
Then whispered, "...I must be dreaming."
>Awaiting consent...
In every world, there came a moment when reality cracked open — this was hers.
"Yes," she said aloud.
>Title Unlocked: Vassal of the Faded Laurel
>For pledging loyalty without being asked. For rebuilding where others saw ashes. For daring to rewrite a story.
>Perks Unlocked:
>- "Legacy Recognition – All noble lineages recognize your actions as tied to a noble cause, even if unspoken."
>- "Strategic Awareness – Gain instinctual insights during governance, planning and combat preparation."
>- "Blueprint Access – Ability to summon and manifest structures, vehicles, tools, weapons and technologies tied to national reconstruction."
—
>Main Questline Activated: Rebuild the Nation That Never Was.
>First Quest: The Blueprint for Treason
>- "Objective: Draw up a political, economic, and infrastructural plan to restore the d'Aramont family's standing."
>- "Timeframe: 21 days"
>- "Reward: Summoning Rights – Tier II Structure"
>- "Bonus: Completion with 100% public approval unlocks National Honors Pathway."
>Warning: The nobility will brand you as a traitor. The people will call you a visionary.
>Choose your blueprint.
She stared at the hovering interface, pulse quickening.
"Treason... for a broken family?" Her voice hardened. "Then I'll draw up a new world in ink and blood if I have to."
The System shimmered once more.
>Quest Accepted.
That night, Élaina didn't sleep.
She stayed in the study with maps, scrolls, and wax-sealed ledgers. She pored over everything the family let her see — and some they didn't. Her fingers moved like they remembered a thousand strategies.
In her past life, she'd been many things: a crisis manager, a conflict strategist, a reluctant hero.
In this one?
She would be their salvation.
The next morning, Séraphine peeked in — startled by Élaina surrounded by redrawn maps, lists of suggested alliances, cost-saving measures, and proposals for modified crop-rotations.
"Did you... sleep at all?"
"No," Élaina said, rolling her shoulders. "But I built a plan to buy us time, silence the auditors, and maybe — maybe — force the Crown to play their hand early."
Séraphine's brows rose. "You sound like a war minister."
Élaina's eyes, tired but sharp, locked on hers.
"Maybe I am."
Later that day, the family convened in the estate's less-damaged solarium. A table was cleared. Tea was served. Élaina stood, papers in hand.
"I need you to trust me. The nobles want you broken. The Crown wants you desperate. I can't fix everything — but I can start the shift."
Lucien crossed his arms. "And what would a foreign girl do against the royal court?"
"Outthink them," she answered simply. "I've mapped out what they're likely to do next. If we cut the right strings — economic ones, mostly — we'll force their puppets into the open. Then we go public. We show the people your side."
Mathieu looked long and hard at her.
And then nodded.
"You have three weeks, Mademoiselle Élaina."
Her heart beat faster.
>Quest Timer Initiated: 21 Days Remaining
That evening in Lucien's private chambers, Lucien sat alone, rereading her proposal. His eyes narrowed.
"She's dangerous," he murmured. "But if she's ours, perhaps that's what we need."
He closed the parchment with a snap.
"A blueprint for treason... or salvation."
Outside, snow began to fall — and deep underground, where the noble families whispered in parlors and plotted behind masks, word began to spread of a new girl drafting documents in the ashes of a fallen house.
And they did not like that not one bit.