The Sovereignty System

'It looks like I need to pay a visit to the palace again because I just qualified to become a Duke!'

"Status!"

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STATUS

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[Host]: Ben King

[System Level]: 16

[Health]: 860/860

[Mana]: 700/700

[Strength]: 95

[Agility]: 79

[Stamina]: 106

[Intelligence]: 70

[Wisdom]: 69

[Vitality]: 86

[Charisma]: 71

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SKILLS

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[Running: Level 9]

[Spriniting: Level 8]

[Enhanced Hearing: Level 19]

[Sword Mastery: Level 2]

[Hand to Hand Combat: Level 4]

[Pain Reflection: Level 3]

[Chameleon: Level 13]

[Silent Movement: Level 1]

[Bowman Sniper: Level 3]

[Victus Zoologist: Level 8]

[Poison Resistance: Level 5]

[Analyze: Level 7]

[Echolocation: Level 6]

[Mercantile Skill: Level 5]

[Iron Grasp: Level 7]

[Herbalist Aura Vision Level 6]

[Penmanship: Level 1]

[Grappling Level 2]

[Persuasion: Level 3]

[Night Sight: Level 2]

[Acrobatics: Level 1]

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SPELLS

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[Mana Manipulation: Apprentice Level: 6]

[Mana Ball: Apprentice Level: 1]

[Mana Shield: Apprentice Level: 1]

[Enhance Form: Apprentice Level: 8]

[Slave Command: Apprentice Level: 2]

[Mending Touch: Apprentice Level: 7]

[Mana Javelin: Apprentice Level: 5]

[Sleep: Apprentice: Level 1]

[Zoom Spell]

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CULTIVATION STAGE

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[Stage Five: Level: One]

[Current stage provides +5 to attributes per level]

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CULTIVATION TECHNIQUES

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[Immortal Strengthening Technique: Stage 5: Level 1]

[Whirlwind Maneuver: Level 10]

[Aura Assault: Level 2]

[Cultivation Reader: Level 1]

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PROFESSIONS

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[Sign Maker Level 1]

[Graphic Designer Level 1]

[Carpenter Level 6]

[Furniture Maker Level 5]

[Interior Designer: Level 1]

[Public Speaker: Level 1]

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'I am now receiving +5 to each attribute whenever I gain a level in cultivation. That gives me an extra +2 to attributes from the last stage. I now know why its called Immortal Strengthening Technique. Every stage I go up I earn even more points toward my attributes making me that much stronger.'

Once he was dressed Ben went and unlocked the front door. He sat down in a chair next to the front door and didn't have to wait long for his lead employees to show up.

Baynard and Cordelia showed up within a couple minutes of one another shortly after he had sat down. Ben placed the chair back into his inventory and greeted them as they walked over to him. He gave them both a key to the new locks and told them they could keep or dispose of the old one.

Ben asked them to follow him over to the security shutter fingerprint scanner and had each of their fingerprints scanned and added to the system. Ben had them both lower and raise the steel shutter to make sure the system recognized them and that they were capable of opening and closing the store if he were not around.

While they waited for the sales girls to show up Ben put the black dragon statues holding the shield which were made after his crest on each side of the front door. Baynard and Cordelia were instantly drawn to the life-like statues. They had never seen a dragon before and thought it must be some type of fierce profound beast.

Ben pointed to the crest on his noble tunic and explained the statues were designed after his nobility crest and that the dragon was a mythical creature from where he came from known for its intelligence and strength.

When the salesgirls arrived a few minutes later Ben led everyone inside to give them a tour of the store.

Just walking into the entrance was enough to stun them from the start. They saw the pure white shiny hardwood floors with Ben's colored noble crest in the center of the room and the rich sofas and chairs along the walls.

There were also the statues and framed painting hanging on the walls. These walls had a red-tinted cherry wood paneling on the lower half and dark red wallpaper on the upper half. This wallpaper half was where the fancy electric light fixtures and paintings were hung.

After a quick demonstration on how the light switches work and explaining his made up tale about how a magician enchanted the lights to glow with elemental light magic when the switch was used, they continued onward.

Ben took them from one department to the next showing them foods, cookware, furniture, woven carpets, various works of art, books, the new types of solid white paper, steel weapons, shiny steel armor, flower-scented perfumes, colognes, scented soaps, hand crank appliances, foot pedal tools, jewelry, clothing, and footwear.

There were so many new things that had never been seen before by people of this world. Even if people did not buy anything the store was so fascinating and richly decorated it was like they were in some type of museum for nobility and rich businessmen.

It was all such a new concept to them. Everyone was used to stores only dealing in one particular type of product and here was this place that sold just about anything you could need under one roof.

That was Ben's plan from the start to create the first department store and hopefully gain the same success as those who had come up with the idea on Earth.

Ben even took them upstairs and showed them the two carts that he had designed and explained the features they offer. He had to talk with Baynard about what to charge for them because he had no idea what a cart would go for and these two carts were like luxury cars compared to what everyone rode now.

While Baynard was thinking over the price and examining the carts Ben brought out the uniforms he had made for the Cordelia and the girls along with the men's uniforms.

They had a few different styles of dresses, blazers, tops, skirts, slacks, and footwear that they could now wear as a different uniform outfit every day.

The girls were just about squealing with excitement when they were handed the huge stacks of clothing. The smooth silk materials and vibrant colors made them seem so foreign but yet beautiful to them.

Ben gave the formal looking suits that he had made for Baynard in sizes that should fit his smaller sized frame and explained if they were too different for him he did not have to wear them when he wasn't out on the display floor.

Baynard wasn't an excitable guy but he even seemed to take a liking to what he was given so they all went down stairs to the clothing department. Ben showed them the changing rooms and had them try on whatever they wanted to wear for the day.

He was a little nervous at first that the girls might come up with some strange combinations with all the different styles and colors of the clothing. It seemed that he worried for nothing, because they all seemed to understand how everything was to be worn and to match their colors.

Even Baynard came out sporting a Victorian style suit with tails while wearing a pair of black and white two-toned leather shoes that accented his suit perfectly.

They all looked like they were ready to spend the night dancing at some swanky 1920s speakeasy. If they were to all step out onto the city streets they would have people stopping in their tracks to check out the fancy foreign outfits they all had on.

To help add to their appeal and boost sales Ben had them sniff the different perfumes he had for sale and to pick a bottle out that they liked. He explained that they only had to spray themselves with a couple squirts so that the scent wasn't too overpowering.

They all looked and smelled great now, all he needed to give them was some of his food later to take home. Once they started eating the food packed with Qi and Mana they would become healthy and beautiful.

Taking out a few leather bags, Ben figured he may as well go all out with his employees they were the face of his store and would be the ones who dealt with the customers all day. The better they looked the more other women would want to look like them and buy his products.

Ben put shampoo, conditioner, body soap, body powder, deodorant and hair brushes into the leather bags and gave them to Baynard, Cordelia, and the sales girls with an explanation of what every one of them was for. This would also help them to sell these products if they could describe with a first-hand experience what they did or how they smelt.

Next up was the bathrooms they went through and had to learn how the sinks, toilets, and showers all worked. Once again they were blown away by the new modern plumbing fixtures. The only houses in the city with indoor plumbing were the nobles and palace and they only had a water pipe leading to a hand pump that drew water from a well outside.

If you wanted a hot bath in this era you had to heat the water over a fire then haul it over to a wooden tub and dump it in and by the time you had warmed the second pot of water the first one you dumped would be cooling down the whole time.

Ben had them hold their excitement because he still had to show them the break room that had an electric refrigerator and a stovetop oven to heat up their lunches with along with another sink to wash the dishes, pot, pans, and utensils in.

By now their heads were all spinning with these new things that they were curious to try out. Ben had to pull them along and show them how to work the cash registers stationed in each department. He showed them how to push the levered numbers and add everything up. A sales total would appear on the spinning numbered dials on top that the customer would need to pay.

All depending on how much money the customer gave them they would punch the amount into the register to see how much change to give back. The register drawer then opened and allowed them to put in money and take out change.

At the end of the day after closing they would need to pull the money tray out of every register along with the receipts and take them to Baynard's office.Now that Baynard's office was located in a different spot he took everyone over there and they went inside.

Baynard's mouth dropped open when he saw the office furniture inside his office and the luxurious decor. This wasn't the type of furniture a manager/accountant would have this was the type of office furniture that the king himself would be pleased to have in his own study.

Ben showed the girls to a fancy wood table along the wall and told them they could place the money trays and receipts on the table at the end of the day so that Baynard could record what was sold and how much money came into the store that day.

They had now spent a couple hours going through the store and it was time they opened the doors. When they all walked out to the front doors they were shocked to see a small crowd of people already gathered around.

The girls had all been in poor spirits while working for Remi because there were never any customers to serve and they could only sit around the store and worry day after day.

When they saw the crowd outside it finally hit them that everything was going to be fine from now on. They no longer had to worry about taking those nightmare jobs they had lost countless nights of sleep worrying over.

They all had tears of joy in their eyes as they looked through the glass doors outside. Ben happened to notice the change as the girls had all stopped to look outside.

He turned to the girls laughing and said. "Hey now, this won't do! We have all these customers who are excited to come in and see the new store and meet all of you! What will they think if they are greeted by a group of crying saleswomen?"

They all began to laugh and wipe the tears away with big smiles.

"That much better. Alright, let's all welcome our first customers to the store!"

Ben turned and flipped the sign to open in the window. He swung open both the double doors and flipped the stoppers down to hold them open and looked out at the line of people with a smile.