"...Ugh."
Ren stared intently at the small crystal pinched between her thumb and forefinger. Resting her back against the chair's headrest, with only her lower back touching the seat, had become a habit since her wings grew larger. Otherwise, she would rest her arms on the table if she wasn't eating.
Because she had been acting this way often lately, her partner seemed concerned.
"Still worrying, Ren?"
"Yeah. When I think there are no retries."
"It's that thing, isn't it? You're the type who can't bring yourself to use rare items even in games."
"Guh."
She was caught red-handed.
In games, she would eventually have to restart, power-level, and then clear the game without difficulty. She certainly wouldn't be stingy with healing items in real life, though.
"The fact that there are so many options makes it worse."
"There are also many people who would say, 'I'll teach you if it's Ren,' right?"
The specifications of the Job Change Stone are slightly special: basically, when you attempt to use it, a list of suitable jobs for the user is displayed. You must choose one from this list, but at this time, with the consent of an acquaintance or friend, you can take the same class as that person. For example, Furi's Thief, Iris's Archer, or Mariabell's Kick Master. Takuma and his group's semi-forced job change was thanks to the cooperation of the courtesans.
In Ren's case, Iris's mother Anna's Spirit User class, and even some former female classmates, would likely cooperate if asked, so those were also options.
"The stone's recommendations are mostly magic-based, right?"
"Yeah. It lists Courtesan too, though."
"Ah. You're a succubus, after all."
"I'm a succubus."
She decided to exclude non-combat classes for now. The general plan was either direct combat, ranged combat, offensive magic, or support magic.
Ren's party is lacking a front-liner—or rather, Furi is forcibly playing the role, making the actual count zero—so if Ren could step forward, things would get much easier. However, if Mariabell fully joins the fight as they progress, the front-line shortage can be covered. Also, it's hard to use magic while slugging it out in close combat. Ranged weapons like bows would be better than melee combat, but projectiles usually require both hands.
"Personally, I'd be happy if you chose the same class as me."
"Iris will handle the trap countermeasures, won't she?"
Mariabell also gives advice based on her experience, so it would be a waste for Ren to become a Thief now.
"Then it has to be a magic class, right?"
"Exactly. The problem is which specific class to choose..."
This was extremely difficult. Even within magic classes, there are quite a few types, each with its own merits. Choosing the most orthodox Mage would increase versatility, while choosing a healing-focused class would make it easier to heal Furi and the others in case of emergency.
Furi then leaned forward from behind, poking the crystal.
"Why don't you just decide on a whim? You can always change jobs again if you have the stone."
The Job Change Stone is a rare and valuable item, with the main source of acquisition being a drop from the boss every ten floors, making it quite rare. Conversely, this means they will get another one after clearing the twentieth floor.
"I don't look like I'll be changing jobs anytime soon, and who knows when Iris-chan will formally get a class? It's fine for Ren to use one more."
"I'd prefer not to waste it if possible... but I guess that's true."
"That's right, that's right."
Furi smiled brightly.
Her cute expression was comforting, making Ren want to kiss her, but she held back as they were in the middle of a serious discussion. If she could decide without overthinking it, she would focus on the ability Ren felt she needed now.
What Ren wanted to do was protect Furi and her comrades. A succubus, who can use various types of magic, is ideal for support from all angles.
In that case...
"Alright, I've decided."
After thinking for a while, Ren finally settled on a single path.
--------------------
The job change process itself took only an instant.
She focused her mind on using the crystal, selected one from the displayed class list, and answered "Yes" to the final confirmation. The crystal then turned into specks of light and was absorbed into Ren's body.
The clothing that changed with the class was somewhat exotic, with less fabric and a subtly revealing atmosphere. Incidentally, her original clothes were only temporarily moved to storage and were not lost.
"Hmm. So this is the 'Mana Conductor.' I wonder if men wear this outfit too?" Furi was the first to speak, her question sounding slightly off-base. Ren replied, "I don't think men would wear this outfit, do they?"
For the record, Ren's gender is listed as "Female" on the status screen, corresponding to her succubus transformation.
"But still, the exposure is quite high for a magic-user class."
"Like the succubus's charm, the skin exposure might be a factor," Mariabell observed.
"I think it looks good on you, Ren-san, so it should be fine," Iris added.
Ren answered the reactions from Mariabell and Iris with a (slightly wry) smile.
She then displayed her status screen.
"Oh, my status really dropped quite a bit."
"The previous job must have given you some significant bonuses. You'll have to compensate for that by leveling up."
"Yeah. But there are a lot of useful skills. Look forward to it."
The Mana Conductor is a class specialized in handling Mana, as the name suggests. It has an abundance of auxiliary skills for efficiently utilizing magic rather than the magic skills themselves.
"It seems unassuming at first glance, but this is a good and useful class choice," Mariabell commented.
"Thank you. I thought this kind of role might suit me better."
"Ren-san, how exactly have you changed?"
Although Ren had given a brief explanation before the job change, she didn't have much information beyond hearsay. She opened the skill list and said, "Well..."
"The general direction hasn't changed much from before. But it's easier to increase MP efficiency and exploit enemy weaknesses."
Depending on how she spends her points, she could, for example, increase her maximum MP, reduce the MP consumption of magic, or increase her natural MP recovery rate. For the latter, she could convert non-elemental magic to other attributes.
"It costs extra MP, but I can change Mana Bolt into Fire Bolt."
"That's extremely useful!" Iris exclaimed.
Since Iris can already use Fire Bolt, if Ren were to convert it, she might choose Lightning Bolt instead. Lightning magic would be highly effective against goblins wearing metal armor. Of course, there are also skills to increase general magic attack power (though inferior to other pure magic classes), and the possibilities are numerous.
"Personally, the first skill I want to take is the one that increases my maximum MP."
"That one? It sounds kind of plain."
"It offers a pretty big increase, though. Besides, if my MP is high, we can proceed much more smoothly, right?"
Any MP recovered via Energy Drain that exceeds Ren's maximum value is, naturally, wasted. While draining for nutrition still occurs even when her MP is full, it's a shame to let it overflow.
"I thought it would be convenient if I could recover a lot while sleeping."
"...Hmm. Huh. I see."
"...Is that so? While sleeping," Iris repeated.
Ren didn't think she had said anything strange, but the reaction from Furi and Iris was strangely subdued. When she tilted her head in confusion at the two girls' delayed, non-committal responses, Mariabell spoke.
"In other words, Ren-san is looking forward to sleeping with us, then?"
"!!?"
Ren turned bright red and froze. It was true that she felt both happiness and gratitude for that time, making it difficult to give any kind of answer.
============
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