"Right, is everyone ready?" Karl asked while adjusting the projector hanging from the ceiling of the manor's living room. A soft hum filled the room before the massive white screen flickered to life with the logo of the European Parliament. Around him the members of the Crimson Sun slowly settled into couches and wooden chairs while muttering complaints about the volume and fighting over blankets and snacks. The atmosphere was far more relaxed than it had been during the trial, yet an undercurrent of tension still lingered beneath every conversation. Too much depended on this announcement for anyone to truly stay calm.
The manor itself was still new by the standards of the family. After the system arrived, the Sonnebergs had finally abandoned the scattered ancestral homes hidden throughout the Crimson Forest and constructed a proper central residence where the clan could live, train, eat, and work together. Their old homes had charm, history, and enough hidden weapons to start a small war, but they were hopelessly outdated for the new world. Besides, the mana density inside the forest had become absurdly high after humanity returned to Earth. Even the air felt richer here than anywhere else, almost sweet and heavy with energy. Compared to the nearby cities, living in the forest was like breathing pure oxygen after years spent underwater.
Of course, the forest itself had changed as well. The trees stood taller than before, the rivers ran clearer, and faint traces of mana glimmered through the air whenever the morning mist settled between the branches. The older members of the family often claimed the forest felt more alive now, as though it had awakened from a long sleep. Arin honestly believed them. Sometimes while training alone deep in the woods, he could swear the forest itself watched him. Thankfully, tonight nobody was discussing mysterious sentient forests or mana beasts. No, tonight the entire family focused on something equally terrifying: economics.
The problem was simple. Humanity's old financial systems were collapsing. Paper money physically decayed under prolonged mana exposure as the ink and fibers slowly unraveled despite the protection of cultural energy. Digital money was somehow even worse. Computers survived longer because of their sturdier materials, but even those systems gradually destabilized under mana interference. Entire banking networks were already reporting strange malfunctions and data corruption. Humanity desperately needed a stable currency before society imploded into chaos. That was why the entire family sat gathered around the projector now, waiting for Europe's solution.
After a final round of arguing over the sound settings, the room finally quieted as the broadcast began. A professional-looking blonde woman appeared behind a polished podium while bright studio lights reflected against the massive flag behind her. "Good evening everyone," she began calmly. "I am Nadia Bergman, and tonight I will be speaking about the stability of our economy." Her smile looked practiced but exhausted, as though she had not slept properly in weeks. Honestly, Arin did not blame her. From what little they knew, governments across the world were drowning beneath mountains of debt, logistical nightmares, and economic panic.
Nadia continued speaking while maintaining her composed expression. "As most of you know, humanity currently faces a severe currency crisis as we transition from a wartime mobilized economy back toward a free market." Several people in the room snorted quietly at the phrase free market. During the trial the governments had practically seized entire industries overnight just to keep humanity alive. Now everyone wanted to return to normal, but nobody could even agree on what normal meant anymore.
"I am pleased to announce," Nadia continued, "that the European Union has discovered a temporary solution inside the system shop." The screen behind her shifted, revealing an image of a strange bronze-colored machine shaped like a furnace mixed with a printing press. "Using a Coin Mint purchased through our national faction interface, we are now capable of producing system-recognized currency."
The entire room immediately leaned forward with interest.
"However," Nadia added quickly, "there are limitations." Her expression became noticeably more strained. "The Coin Mint requires cultural energy gathered from the surrounding population in order to operate. Unfortunately, the current concentration and quality available throughout Europe is insufficient for large-scale bronze coin production." She stepped aside as assistants carried forward several small wooden coins for the cameras to zoom in on.
"These," Nadia announced, "will serve as our temporary standardized currency." The coins looked surprisingly plain. Smooth polished wood with simple numerical engravings burned into the surface. "One hundred wooden coins equal one bronze coin. Additionally, we have introduced larger denominations worth ten wooden coins each for convenience."
The reaction from the public was almost nonexistent. Most people did not care what the coins looked like so long as civilization stopped collapsing around them. Still, the room inside the manor quickly filled with muttering as everyone processed the implications.
Nadia continued calmly. "Due to the strain Coin Mints place on local cultural energy, we have decided to limit their installation to cities with populations exceeding one million people." She glanced briefly toward her notes before adding, "Current testing indicates such cities can consistently produce approximately one silver coin per day."
That revelation finally caused genuine reactions. Several members of the Crimson Sun exchanged alarmed looks while others immediately began calculating numbers in their heads. One silver coin per day from a city containing millions of people sounded absurdly low. Humanity's economy was going to remain painfully tight for quite some time.
Without taking questions, Nadia gave a final polite nod and left the stage. Nobody blamed her for escaping quickly. Ever since the Russian War, politicians had learned the hard way that speaking confidently without answers was political suicide. If they did not know something, people preferred they simply admitted it instead of hiding behind empty speeches. Ironically, the chaos of the trial had made humanity far less tolerant of nonsense.
The living room remained quiet for a moment while everyone thought over the announcement. Finally Dennis spoke first. "So," he asked while crossing his arms, "how exactly are they planning to spread all that money around?"
"Through the banks," Teun answered immediately while leaning back confidently in his chair. "This gives governments the perfect excuse to centralize their financial systems completely." Seeing Johny's confused expression, he sighed and elaborated. "Think about it. Right now the value of normal currencies fluctuates so wildly that nobody knows what anything is actually worth. The governments can't stabilize markets normally because the circulation of real system-backed currency barely exists yet."
Johny frowned thoughtfully. "So the banks are basically stuck?"
"Exactly," Teun replied while pointing toward the projector. "Private banks can't safely issue loans because collateral values change daily. Half the population owns items nobody can properly price yet." He shook his head helplessly. "Take magical seeds for example. Tons of people bought them during the trial expecting future harvests, but the trial ended before they matured. So now they're left with useless debt and no profits."
"That sounds horrifying," Tilly muttered quietly.
"It gets worse," Teun continued grimly. "The factions are draining points out of circulation even faster. Contracts, faction upgrades, training manuals, breathing techniques… all of it costs ridiculous amounts." Several people instinctively glanced toward Karl after that. The clan leader immediately pretended not to notice.
"In other words," Teun finished, "the governments don't really care about profits right now. They just want money circulating again so taxes work and markets stabilize before society tears itself apart."
Johny slowly nodded. "Makes sense. A strong central bank means stronger market control."
"Exactly." Teun scratched the back of his head awkwardly as everyone continued staring at him. "Though honestly, this whole system is way too complicated for any one person to fully understand yet. Humanity barely survived extinction a week ago. Now we're suddenly rebuilding the global economy using magical wooden coins powered by collective human culture." He laughed weakly. "Give us a few months."
The room erupted into tired laughter after that. As absurd as everything sounded, nobody could deny it was reality now. Humanity no longer lived in the old world of predictable economics and stable currencies. Mana, cultural energy, factions, and system-backed resources had transformed civilization itself. The future would belong to whoever adapted fastest.