Brand’s constant slacking prompted the long-disgruntled Yelsen to propose to Elder Master Holland that they restrict Brand’s living expenses. To Brand’s deep appreciation, Elder Master Holland rejected Yelsen’s proposal without a second thought.
In Elder Master Holland’s view, how could someone even be called a noble without a bit of extravagance? Given their family’s massive fortune, how could they possibly be unable to afford Brand’s meager expenses? To him, this was an outright insult to his wealth-accumulating abilities! However, under Yelsen’s tireless persuasion, Elder Master Holland gradually began to waver.
One day, after hearing Yelsen bring up a past incident where Brand knocked his head against a pillar and fell into a coma while playing with a Maid, Viscount Holland finally felt that Yelsen’s words made some sense. Beyond lacking the basic qualities of a Noble Descendant, Brand truly was far too ignorant and incompetent. How could playing with a Maid result in him bashing his head and bleeding? He was simply too weak!
It wasn’t about Brand wasting the family fortune; Viscount Holland didn’t care about Brand’s trivial spending. He was simply worried about his second son’s future. After all, Brand could not inherit his title and territory, meaning he would eventually have to strike out on his own. Even with his father looking out for him, a life of such ignorance and incompetence would not be easy.
Thus, after careful consideration, Viscount Holland planned out two paths for Brand. The first was an arranged marriage with Count Romine’s eldest daughter, which would strengthen the ties between the Holland family and the Romine family. The second was to enter the Empire Mage Academy, study diligently, and work hard to become an Official Mage. Although Mages were a noble and rare group, and Brand possessed the innate talent to become one, Viscount Holland actually leaned toward the first option, considering Brand’s chronically lazy personality.
Given the status of Count Romine’s eldest daughter, if Brand could marry her, barring any accidents, he would be guaranteed a life of luxury and comfort without ever having to worry about food or clothing. With the combined efforts of both families, securing the title of a Baron of the Fiefdom for Brand would be a breeze; at worst, his territory would just be a bit remote. Even though the Romine family was ranked toward the lower end among the Count Clans, strictly speaking, Brand’s status as the second son of a Viscount still made him slightly unworthy of a Count’s eldest daughter—especially since he had always been so inept.
However, who could blame Brand for being exceptionally handsome? More than once at noble banquets, Viscount Holland had heard various Viscounts and Counts subtly hint at their daughters’ fondness for Brand. At first, he had been a little confused, wondering what shining qualities his incompetent second son possessed that could possibly catch anyone’s eye. But after hearing it so many times, Viscount Holland gradually understood everything.
Viscount Holland was highly satisfied with Brand’s handsome appearance; after all, it was a testament to the excellent bloodline inherited from the Holland family. And regarding the overt and covert hints from his noble friends, Viscount Holland also showed great interest! Arranged marriages between nobles were commonplace. Such matters were typically spearheaded by both sets of parents, involving various alliances of interests where the individuals’ own desires held very little weight. After a round of screening, Count Romine—with whom he had quite a few business partnerships—entered his sights.
Because of their frequent business dealings, an arranged marriage with them would bring many benefits to the Holland family. It just so happened that the Count’s daughter also had her eyes on Brand. The only hiccup was that his eldest son seemed to have been actively courting that very same eldest daughter.
After hesitating for a single second, Viscount Holland made his decision. In the face of the family’s development, trivial matters of personal romance were unimportant! He believed that Yelsen, whose goal was to revitalize the family, would understand!
In short, as long as Brand nodded in agreement, the matter was practically settled. Even if Brand remained idle and incompetent, he could still secure a great future. However, to Holland’s deep regret, Brand ultimately chose to go to the Magic Academy to study hard and become a Mage. Despite this, Viscount Holland fully supported Brand’s decision in the end. Although he doubted whether his chronically lazy second son could actually become a Mage through his own efforts, it was Brand’s choice regardless. Seeing one of his younger son’s rare moments of ambition, his heart filled with only gratification and anticipation.
Of course, this absolutely had nothing to do with the fact that Brand was still quite young... AHEM! Well, perhaps it wasn’t entirely unrelated. After all, arranged marriages generally had to wait until the parties involved reached the adult age of eighteen. In Elder Master Holland’s view, given the Empire Mage Academy’s strict assessment system, if Brand slacked off there, he would undoubtedly be expelled in no time. By then, he would return at the perfect age for an arranged marriage. And if Brand actually did manage to become an Official Mage, that would be even better—they could upgrade his marriage prospects to a much higher tier!
Anyway, Brand entered the Empire Mage Academy just like that, and during a Meditation class, he awakened a special entity—the Simulation World. The so-called Simulation World was initially a boundless, completely empty realm. Brand held ultimate control over this world. He could enter it at any time through Meditation, achieving a "Quantum Superposition State" where his body existed simultaneously in both the Simulation World and the real world. Inside the Simulation World, Brand possessed a Creator’s authority. By drawing upon his existing "knowledge," he could expend a relatively small amount of Spiritual Power to conjure things out of thin air.
After spending a full twenty days creating a massive star undergoing constant nuclear fusion, Brand became obsessed with the grand enterprise of creation. He was creating a world! As an utterly ordinary Noble Descendant, Brand felt unparalleled excitement and pride in that moment. He was truly magnificent!
After a period of hard work, the Simulation World housed an eight-planet system similar to the Solar System, with one of the planets being named the Water Blue Star by Brand. Later, following another long, continuous stretch of effort, two-thirds of the Water Blue Star’s surface became deep blue Oceans, while the remaining one-third transformed into lush green land. Aside from the natural terrain, the most eye-catching feature on the land was a modern metropolis identical to C City, where Brand had lived in his past life. This was Brand’s proudest masterpiece. If learning Meditation hadn’t significantly enhanced his memory, he feared he never would have been able to recreate this city.
If there was any fundamental difference between the Simulation World and Earth from before his transmigration, it was the absence of animals. Through experimentation, he found that the Simulation World could not generate any living creatures with self-awareness, nor could Brand bring any physical objects—including living beings—inside. Therefore, the only living organisms in the Simulation World were plants. Brand had worried more than once whether a world with an incomplete biosphere would lead to disastrous consequences, but as time passed, he let it go. At worst, he would just have to tear it all down and start over.
As for the practical benefits the Simulation World could bring him, the cappuccino currently in Brand’s hand was one of them. In his current optimal state, as long as he exhausted his maximum limit of Spiritual Power, he could bring this roughly 300-milliliter cup of liquid cappuccino into the outside real world, right by his side. From the perspective of reality, this was a feat worthy of being called a miraculous Imaginary Manifestation!