Persephone wasn't the only one struck by that thought. So was Leon.
He squirmed a little against Rose's lap, earning a pouty little protest and a light, blushing slap from her. At the same time, the image of that woman surfaced in his mind...
Gray, wavy hair, mismatched eyes, a haughty woman with an absolutely explosive figure...
Just imagining the sense of accomplishment he'd feel if he could conquer her sent a wave of heat blazing through Leon.
I have to take her down! And then whip her into shape, train her hard!
...
Ears cleaned, given two light pats by Rose, Leon reluctantly rose from her lap and drawled lazily:
"Well, no need to be envious. As long as we're willing to put in the work, sooner or later we'll reach that height too. Like right now... let's take the first step."
Watching Jeanne and Rose stand up as well, Persephone smiled and offered her congratulations:
"Congratulations, you two! Jeanne, Rose!"
"Thank you!"
Leon led Jeanne and Rose up to the second-floor bedroom, ready to level them up.
Meanwhile, Finn and Riveria had also returned to their base of operations, the Twilight Manor.
"Oh? Our Lord Braver and the 'house mama' are back?"
House mama?
Riveria's steps halted. Face darkening, she glared at Loki, who was sprawled across the couch with her legs kicked up and not a shred of dignity, her eyes full of ice:
"Who are you calling a house mama! Loki!"
"Aiya, well, it's because you, Riveria... stop! Don't, don't hit me!!!"
...
After all the chaos settled, Loki cowered behind Gareth, peeking out warily.
Finn rubbed his aching skull and said helplessly:
"All right, that's enough horsing around."
"Although... what I'm about to tell you will probably kill your mood for it anyway, Loki."
Catching the pitying look Riveria shot her way and the bitter smile on Finn's face, Loki felt a sense of dread well up inside her.
She let out a dry laugh:
"Cough, weren't you two over at that Demeter kid's place? Don't tell me..."
Finn looked apologetic:
"Sorry, Loki. From here on out, we're going to have to tighten our belts."
Loki looked blank:
"Huh?"
Riveria twisted the knife mercilessly:
"It means that aside from the usual day-to-day expenses, we cut whatever we can. For example... Soma Familia's 'Soma.'"
Before the words had even finished, Loki was pointing at herself, dumbfounded.
"You... you won't let me drink Soma?"
"That's right."
Getting the confirmation, Loki's eyes went wide, her scalp prickling, her whole body frozen in place as if her very soul had been ripped out of her.
The next second...
A blood-curdling scream blew the roof off the Twilight Manor!
"Nooooooooooo!"
...
Third floor, the women's dormitory, Ais's room.
The little Sword Princess was carefully maintaining her beloved sword, copying the technique Gareth had taught her.
Then Loki's earsplitting wail made her jolt, and she squeezed the entire bottle of maintenance oil out onto her thigh!
Ais's little face darkened, and she stormed out, slamming the door:
"Loki!"
The storeroom.
"Ugh, here we go again. Can't she settle down even at this hour of the night..."
Raul spread his hands at Aki:
"The captain probably told Loki something. Like banning her from buying 'Soma,' maybe?"
Aki flicked her cat tail, thinking it over:
"If it's the captain and Lady Riveria, that's actually possible..."
"I heard from one of the gatekeepers that the two of them went out earlier, and, um... it sounded like they were over at Mr. Hart's place, the Demeter one?"
Raul put on an "I knew it" expression:
"That senior is the type who never lets go of a profit. They say his obsession with gold coins is downright terrifying. The captain and Lady Riveria probably got fleeced badly, and that's why Loki's catching the fallout."
Aki gave him a slightly odd look.
"How do you even know that?"
Raul let out a dry laugh:
"Ha, haha, I... I just heard it from other people..."
...
Just as Loki Familia was thrown into an uproar over their new monthly fixed expense of nearly 20 million Valis, the instigator of this whole "tragedy" was beaming as he handed a parchment to the two women before him.
"Couldn't be happier!"
Leon swept Jeanne and Rose into his arms, sitting them each on one of his thighs, paying no mind to Jeanne's flushed, shy embarrassment. Caressing their soft waists, he boasted smugly:
"With this, our family has four Lv.4s!"
"Setting headcount aside for now and just looking at top-end combat power, even if you throw in those other two familias in the city, our strength right now is absolutely first-class across the whole city!"
"At the very least, Astraea Familia definitely isn't a match for us!"
...
[Name]: Jeanne d'Arc
[Title]: Holy Maiden
[Race]: Human
[Profession]: Priest, Adventurer
[Affiliation]: Demeter Familia (Hart Familia)
[Level]: Lv.3 → Lv.4
[Floor Reached]: Floor 27
[Basic Abilities]:
Strength: S999 → I0 | Endurance: SS1001 → I0 | Dexterity: S999 → I0 | Agility: S999 → I0 | Magic: S999 → I0
[Development Ability]:
| Arbitration G | Abnormal Resistance G | Saint I |
[Weapons]:
『Banner Lance』『One-Handed Sword』
[Equipment]:
『Casual Wear』『Uniform』『Formal Dress』『Training Wear』
『Armament: second-class adventurer equipment (top-tier)』
[Magic]: Omitted
[Skills]: Omitted
...
[Name]: Rose Marbleheart
[Title]: Pure White Shield
[Race]: Human
[Profession]: Knight, Adventurer
[Affiliation]: Demeter Familia (Hart Familia)
[Level]: Lv.3 → Lv.4
[Floor Reached]: Floor 27
[Basic Abilities]:
Strength: S999 → I0 | Endurance: SS1001 → I0 | Dexterity: S999 → I0 | Agility: S999 → I0 | Magic: S999 → I0
[Development Ability]:
| Guardian G | Abnormal Resistance G | Holy Shield I |
[Weapons]:
『Banner Lance』『One-Handed Sword』
[Equipment]:
『Casual Wear』『Uniform』『Formal Dress』『Training Wear』
『Armament: second-class adventurer equipment (top-tier)』
[Magic]: Omitted
[Skills]: Omitted
...
Judging from the imprinted Falna information:
As the two of them advanced from Lv.3 to Lv.4, their Development Abilities climbed a rung higher as well.
Jeanne's "Arbitration" and "Abnormal Resistance" rose from H to G; Rose's "Guardian" and "Abnormal Resistance" likewise went from H to G.
On top of that, the level-up added a new Development Ability for each of them.
Jeanne gained "Saint."
Leon figured there were two main reasons for this. First, she'd earned the title of Holy Maiden, which had massively boosted how widely she was talked about, and that fit her identity in itself. Second, her profession was Saint to begin with, so adding this kind of profession-oriented Development Ability was only to be expected.
Rose, meanwhile, gained "Holy Shield."
The same logic applied: it tied back to her earning the title Pure White Shield and the fame that came with it. As a rare female knight with striking looks and mastery of the great shield, on top of being one of the few vanguard shield-bearers, plus her magic that carried its own holy character, all those buffs stacked together, and naturally her popularity climbed fast throughout the city. So adding "Holy Shield" stood to reason as well.
After getting a faint sense of what her new Development Ability did, Rose leaned the upper half of her body against Leon's chest with a soft laugh, reached out a finger, and beaming, tapped "Saint" and "Holy Shield" on the parchment.
"They're both Development Abilities that strengthen defense and raise all resistances... which suits our roles pretty well."
Then her tone shifted, and she tilted her head, a faint trace of reproach in her eyes, her hands naturally winding around Leon's neck as she murmured in his ear:
"Shame this level-up didn't draw out any new Magic or Skills, though."
Watching Rose's bold little display, Jeanne's cheeks flushed crimson, she bit down on her lower lip, her body trembling faintly...
Feeling the shy, trembling body in his arms, the corner of Leon's mouth curled up:
"Don't worry. With your potential, plus the effect of the 『Beloved's Crest』, by the time you hit Lv.5 there'll definitely be new skills and new magic."
"You both know Lv.5 is a real hurdle."
"It's not something you can compare to advancing through the other levels."
As he spoke, his palm had already deftly slipped beneath the hem of Jeanne's slip. Jeanne's body stiffened in an instant, her moist eyes going wide, biting down hard on her lip to barely swallow back a soft whimper:
"Mngh..."
"...No... don't..."
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