"Did I say something that weird? I thought it was more normal than taking a bath."
"Haha. Well, the timing was maybe just a little off."
After finishing dinner and bathing, Ren found himself alone with Fuuri in the room. Although one person had misunderstood, he certainly didn't mean anything suggestive. He needed to record the length of his wings and tail at his current level for the report requested by the Sage.
Iris was in her own room. He certainly hadn't chased her out.
Taking off only his top was enough. Since Fuuri was the type to walk into his room without knocking, she was used to seeing him like this. He took off his shirt, turned around, and she immediately started measuring.
"...Hmm, the wings are ten centimeters. That must be about double the initial size, right?"
"Seriously?"
"In a little while, they'll probably peek out even from the front."
It looked like he would be even more reliant on his robe going forward.
"I wonder if we can calculate the growth rate from the level? It'll be clear if we measure it every time. ...Alright, I'm going to touch your tail now, okay?"
"Yeah, gently."
"Got it."
Fuuri replied and touched his tail with genuinely gentle hands. However, instead of measuring, she started stroking it. He let out a strange sound, "Heeup?" and she chuckled. She did it normally the second time, and the result was eight centimeters.
"Thanks, that helped."
Seeing the progression of his succubus transformation in numbers wasn't a pleasant feeling, but it was for money. He diligently wrote down the measurements so he wouldn't forget.
Then he quickly put his clothes back on and sat on the bed.
"Hey, Ren. Is this all you need to measure?"
"Huh? Is there anything else I should measure?"
"Yeah."
Her gaze drifted to two obvious places. Considering the areas that change as a man turns into a woman, the answer was clear.
"Wouldn't it be useful to know how long until the time limit?"
"Hold on. Even if it's necessary, I'll measure that myself."
"Really? I think it'll be incredibly difficult for you. I can't even measure my own bust, waist, and hips accurately."
"You don't just want to touch my body, do you?"
"Not just that. Maybe half and half?"
Although the answer made him extremely uneasy, he decided to ask her, since she was offering.
He took off the clothes he had just put on to measure his bust, waist, and hips. This time, he was inevitably down to just his underwear. His black boxer briefs were his last defense, but—
"Now. Shall we take these off, too?"
"You are just doing this for fun, aren't you!?"
"Then should I ask Iris to do just this part?"
He couldn't possibly ask his pure, younger companion to do that. In the end, Ren was thoroughly measured while being completely and unabashedly observed in the nude.
"...If I can't find anyone to marry me, it's your fault."
He said this jokingly as he finally put his clothes back on. He expected her to tease him with, "Ren, you'll be the one getting married, won't you?" Instead, she replied,
"Yeah, okay. If you'll have me."
Her clear, beautiful eyes, contrary to her mischievous nature, met his gaze.
He froze at the surprisingly serious reaction. Just then, a chirping Spirit language was heard from somewhere in the house. Iris seemed to be practicing her magic.
Taking that as her cue, Fuuri stood up and walked away, saying, "Well, I'm going to wash my hands and go to sleep."
He thought he could have called her back. However, the girl's ears seemed redder than usual, stopping the words forming in his mouth. Unlike Iris's ears, human ears weren't that prominent, and he figured it was probably just his imagination.
"...I'm never going to be able to sleep after this."
Fortunately, they had no plans for dungeon exploration the next day.
--------------------
"Hey, you two. Is there any magic that you think would be convenient? I'm having trouble deciding what to pick with my level-up points."
At breakfast, Fuuri was completely normal. Ren recognized this as a sign to keep last night's incident a secret and tried to act as normal as possible. Fortunately, Iris didn't seem to notice anything and greeted him with a cheerful "Good morning."
The matter he brought up during the meal was somewhat related to the measuring.
"You mean the level-up bonus, right? What kind of magic do you have available?"
Iris, who had been enjoying her bread and milk, swallowed her mouthful and asked.
"I have a full set of basic magic. They probably have different effects than Spirit Magic."
He set his status window to public so they could both see it easily. It displayed his current and available skills. The remaining skill points box showed "2."
"You were saving the points from before?"
"Yeah. I wasn't really having trouble, and the last time I leveled up, it wasn't a good time to ask for advice."
His former party included the three guys he broke up with. Aside from Fuuri, he got along worse with the others every day. The fact that the reason was "because he wouldn't let them have their way" made him still wonder if they were idiots—but never mind that.
Leveling up grants a stat increase and one skill point. One point can be used to learn a new skill or enhance an existing one.
Ren currently had his initial skills, "Charm" and "Energy Drain," in addition to the utility and offensive spells he had acquired: "Fire," "Water," and "Wind." These could be adjusted in power; small uses could light a fire, while larger uses could boil water or fill a tub. "Manabolt" was a versatile single-target attack, and "Heal" had been invaluable countless times. He also knew "Magic Arrow," a multi-target attack, though he hadn't used it since Iris joined.
The available spells included more powerful elemental attacks and other utility spells he hadn't acquired yet.
"The Sage told me that while my magic is versatile, it lacks the specialization of a true mage. So I think it's better to be able to do a lot of things."
"That's true. Having Ren around makes household chores much easier."
"Being able to respond immediately is very helpful."
He decided not to comment on the difference between Fuuri's and Iris's statements.
"Hmm... Let me see. Oh, I know! Hey Ren, I want a refrigerator."
"You mean I should take 'Freeze'? That just freezes water; it's not an enchantment spell..."
"A machine that makes ice is fine too, in this case. If we have ice, we can cool down drinks, right?"
"I see. That's important."
So, one point was allocated to the utility spell "Freeze." It could also radiate cold, so it might be useful on days when the heat was unbearable in the summer. Although this world's climate, perhaps because it was European-based or hadn't been affected by global warming, wasn't as hot as Japan, even though it was equivalent to July.
"It would be great if we could use it to keep food fresh longer..."
"A little ice will melt right away. ...Hmm? So, a lot of ice would work?"
"Ah! What was it called, an icehouse? How do we build one?"
"Don't you put a ton of ice in a room without windows? And spread some kind of sawdust, maybe...?"
Since their house happened to have a basement for food storage, they decided to try it. Ren filled a container with water using "Water" and then froze it with "Freeze," lining them up in the basement.
"It's melting quite a bit while we're making it."
"It should melt slower once the room temperature drops, right?"
"I'll ask the spirits to help preserve the ice once it's made!"
Ren's MP was nearly depleted filling half the basement with ice, but the room temperature dropped significantly. The chilled room slowed the melting process, creating a positive cycle. Fuuri, the cook, and Iris, who sometimes helped, cheered.
"We did it! Now I want to try to see if the sawdust makes a difference."
"I think we can get sawdust from my house!"
"Wait. Let me rest a bit first." Ren stopped the two girls who were eager to start immediately. Depleting his MP made him feel mentally exhausted. Yet, staying home and resting by himself made him restless.
Iris, seeing the exhausted Ren, calmed down and looked a little crestfallen.
"Please use the other point on something that will make things easier for Ren-san."
Ren's left hand was enveloped in her soft hands. Life force flowed from the contact point and was converted into MP. Although the downside was tiring Iris, it definitely had a healing effect.
"Thank you. Then I'll increase the efficiency of 'Energy Drain.'"
He could increase the amount of HP absorbed, but this time he chose to increase the conversion rate to MP.
After he finished the operation, Fuuri grasped his right hand in a comforting embrace. "We're aiming for an infinite loop!"
The combo was Heal -> Energy Drain -> Heal (and so on). By increasing the efficiency of the chain along with the amount recovered by Heal, they could expect a stable supply of MP. Although it was a very game-like tactic, he definitely wanted to achieve it in the future. Even at this stage, it was certainly beneficial when resting at home.
"After a break, we'll go ask Iris's family for help."
However, the basement was too cold to stay in, so they returned to the living room first.
--------------------
Iris's family—the Morino household—gladly granted Ren's request. They even corrected him, saying it was "sawdust," and instructed him on how to use it. Apparently, some houses used icehouses, and they gave him as much sawdust as he could carry from their stockpile. Of course, it was normally an item for sale.
They negotiated, as Ren felt bad taking it for free, and settled on exchanging it for the two World Fragments Iris had acquired. It wasn't a large amount, but it would allow them to expand the forest. They said it was perfect because the need for lumber had increased with the arrival of new transfer students.
While Ren, who tried to help, was surrounded by Iris's younger sisters and kept busy talking, Iris's father, who had the "Lumberjack" class, filled the bags with sawdust. They politely declined the offer of lunch, were again asked to "look after my daughter," and left the hut by the forest.
"They really are good people."
"Yes. They are my pride and joy."
Ren nodded, understanding why Iris answered with a smile.
Considering their goodwill, the weight of the bags was a small price to pay. Fuuri, a Thief, didn't have high muscle strength. Carrying the heaviest bag was Ren's duty as a man. He had regained more than the muscle mass he lost when he shrunk, but it was still quite heavy. He wondered if that guy could carry this easily, and he thought of the former party leader.
"Ren."
Had his careless thought summoned him? The same face he was thinking of stood before him. Takuma was 175 cm tall. He played handball in Japan. After gaining the "Axeman" class, his physique became more solid and imposing, making him seem larger than his height. Ren had to look up at him now, especially since he had shrunk.
"...Takuma."
It felt like ages since they last met, but it had only been about a week. Wishing he could go his whole life without seeing him, Ren said,
"I'm glad you're doing well. Did you find new members?"
He tried to walk past him.
"Wait."
A single step from his large body easily blocked their path. His gaze swept over Ren, Fuuri, and Iris in a condescending manner. Ren felt irritation flare up as he saw his precious junior tremble and hide behind Fuuri. He stood protectively in front of the two and stared back at Takuma.
"What do you want?"
"The conquest has stalled because you and Fuuri left. We're having trouble with the bad food and the increased chores."
"So?"
If he had begged them to come back, Ren might have considered it, if only for a second. But when he asked, the reply was:
"I'll forgive you if you come back. And bring that girl with you, of course. ...Three guys and three girls would be perfect, wouldn't it?"
"You...!?"
"Stop it, Fuuri."
Ren stopped his companion, who was about to retaliate, with a low voice. He felt their surprised gazes but kept his eyes fixed on Takuma. He was irritated to a degree that surprised even himself.
"How many times do I have to tell you? ...I'm a man, you muscle-brain."
"You...!"
Despite being the one who started the fight, Takuma had a short fuse. The enraged man reached out a hand to grab Ren's shoulder. He knew that a hard grip from those thick fingers would leave a bruise, but—
"Are you sure about that? We're in the middle of town."
"...Tch."
With a click of his tongue, the hand retracted. There were people in the town. And most of them were transfer students. In other words, they weren't powerless civilians; they had the strength to fight. Given the image of a man trying to assault a woman, it was obvious who the bystanders would side with.
"Just playing girls' club, huh? Must be nice to have fun."
It was a parting shot, thrown out of desperation. Ren retorted, not to be outdone by the retreating figure.
"If you're so jealous, why don't you become a succubus? It's a lot more fun than dating someone like you."
============
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