Inside the private booth of the internal café, Luo Shu sat properly in his seat, adopting a solemn expression: "Wouldn't this be a bit inappropriate?"
Hearing this, Lacus glanced at Luo Shu's serious expression, then looked at Meer under the table before answering irrelevantly:
"So, Shu-kun, what exactly are you saying is inappropriate?"
"No, nothing."
Luo Shu hissed, wanting to warn Meer not to act recklessly, but ultimately restrained himself. Turning to Lacus, he said:
"However, the matter Meer is concerned about is indeed quite important."
At this point, Luo Shu frowned slightly. "There are indeed several members in our Familia who aren't well-suited for the Death Flame Sorcerer Class."
Take Kisara, for instance - she clearly needed to develop towards a Class that could harness a demon's inherent power. This could easily be arranged using resources from the Underworld demons through Serafall's connections, so Luo Shu wasn't particularly worried about her.
The real challenges were members like Utaha Kasumigaoka with her psychic inclinations, Megumi Kato's Power of Existence orientation, Mira Tsubakihara's growing development as an Alchemist, and Natsuki Minamiya's spatial abilities - all requiring specialised Class derivations.
Calculating this, Luo Shu's current 1.37 million points were clearly insufficient.
Lacus understood Luo Shu's concerns, but what she needed now was concrete information he already possessed:
"What exactly are the costs for deriving Classes?"
"I've run several tests before. High Tier Classes generally start at 150,000 points, with no apparent upper limit I've found yet. Depending on added inclinations, I've seen costs ranging from 300,000 to 500,000."
For example, when Luo Shu attempted to incorporate spatial magic into the Sorcerer Class and requested derivation to Top Tier, the Divine Pantheon simply returned "insufficient baseline data". From his current understanding, at his Demigod stage, the Divine Pantheon Reconstruction System seemed unable to derive Top Tier Classes, lacking some critical condition.
High Tier Class derivations, however, had produced several results - the cheapest being the 300,000-point Spatial Magician, while the most expensive was the 650,000-point Void Boundary Practitioner.
While Luo Shu wanted to give Natsuki the best possible option, the cost was too substantial.
Faced with Luo Shu's dilemma, Lacus proposed a simple solution:
"Shall we follow the usual approach - have Familia members cover their own costs, with you providing interest-free loans?"
"I suppose that's the only way..."
After consideration, Luo Shu agreed this gradual approach was optimal - providing a platform for Familia members to develop themselves rather than playing nursemaid:
"If absolutely necessary, members could start with the basic Sorcerer Class before considering upgrades."
"Of course, if they can utilise the Death Flame Sorcerer Class, that would be ideal. Otherwise, it depends on their own efforts."
"For instance, they could save up their Divine Pantheon support points for a major Class derivation."
"But... wouldn't that be rather difficult for Familia members who were originally ordinary humans?" Lacus pondered, recognising the challenges this posed for weaker members.
After all, Common-rated Familia members received only 10 support points per month. Saving 150,000 points for a High Tier Class would take... well, quite some time.
"How about this," Lacus began, "Tabane Shinonono is still refining the Adjuster Drug. If successful, cost aside, we could potentially strengthen Familia members to Elite Rank without requiring a Class."
Hearing this, Luo Shu looked surprised. "So you're saying guaranteed promotion to Elite Rank, plus a 1000-point support safety net?"
Lacus nodded and explained further: "Exactly. Moreover, those points generated by the SDS's Abyss Artefacts could be lent to Familia members as capital, with interest."
Currently, the SDS's Abyss Artefacts produce around 400,000 points monthly. With reasonable interest rates, Elite Rank members should indeed be able to repay...
"What's the interest rate?" Luo Shu asked curiously.
"1%." Lacus seemed unaware of her capitalist tendencies. "At this rate, the minimum 150,000 points required for High Tier Class deduction could be repaid over 20 years in monthly instalments of 600 points. An Elite Rank's 1000-point monthly support should cover that."
After all, points weren't modern currency but the Divine Pantheon's internal system. Even if loans exceeded 60% of income, it wouldn't be catastrophic.
Once a Familia member received support and successfully advanced to Hero Rank, they'd receive 10,000 points monthly from the Divine Pantheon. Then 600 points would only be 6% of monthly income - a negligible proportion.
Though the SDS's earnings from this would be modest.
This was already the optimal balance Lacus could strike between supporting Familia development and not hindering Luo Shu or the SDS's progress.
"One person per month?"
"Roughly."
"Any targets this month?"
"Utaha takes priority. Mental-type Classes are crucial for confidentiality. Then Miss Mira - the Alchemist Class is essential for Familia development. Afterwards, perhaps the Kocho sisters, as their abilities lean towards healing. Then Miss Erina Nakiri, since dietary therapy is important in East Asian health systems."
"As for the rest, we'll draw lots. One person per month."
The SDS's expansion, research, and frontline personnel training all consumed points. Given organisational growth, the limit was one Familia support loan per month.
"That does seem the only feasible arrangement."
After some discussion, Luo Shu sighed. In truth, if he contributed the Spiritual Essence from his Divine Pantheon support, he could assist two or three more Familia members monthly.
But before he could suggest it, Meer bombarded the chat group with threats that if he dared mention it, she'd bite him under the table.
Prioritising safety, Luo Shu wisely abandoned the idea: "Let's move on to Desire Faction matters."
Lacus simply maintained her smile. Compared to Desire Faction issues, someone's personal desires seemed rather more pressing.
After all, Meer's mouth was already sore...
...
Tokyo, Minato Ward.
Inside one of the Shinomiya family's villa properties.
Oko Shinomiya, who had come here alone, gazed at the three cloaked figures before him, his tone gradually darkening:
"So, what is your purpose in seeking me out?"
"No need to be tense, Mr Shinomiya."
Beneath the black cloak, Echidna slightly raised her head, her pale hair and eyes brimming with curiosity, gleaming brightly:
"We merely wish to invite you to touch the truth of this world!"