The boys, Shou and Ken, who had come to Ren's house hoping to get closer to beautiful girls. They looked genuinely distressed, staring at their empty dishes. They were only two or three years younger than Ren's age when she was a man. Given that minds tend to become younger than one's biological age in the other world, they felt quite a bit younger. Compared to the self-assured Takuma and his group, Ren found them likable and wasn't entirely unwilling to help—however...
Ren cleared her throat and brought the conversation back on track, addressing the two boys.
"Sorry. We still can't let you join our party."
"Why not? If we don't cause any trouble, it should be fine, right!?" Shou protested.
"Even putting that aside, we're over the maximum capacity."
The optimal size for a party is considered to be between four and six people. This allows for two or three columns when moving through passages, and an even split between front- and rear-guard in rooms. Too many people, and it becomes cluttered, making coordination difficult.
"They'll be able to teach you properly, so go ahead and try your best. You can still get a girlfriend even if you're not in the same party."
"That's right. I think if you're not too pushy, people in town will talk to you if you approach them," Furi added, echoing Ren's advice.
At Ren's words, the quieter boy, Ken, nodded, "I see..."
Just when Ren thought they were convinced, Shou insisted.
"You're just saying that to drive us away!"
He was proving to be quite stubborn. When Shou persisted, Ken fell silent too. The fact that they were so insistent on joining Ren's party suggested...
"...Could it be that you like someone in our party?" Ren asked.
"W-what!? Wh-wh-why would you think that!?" Shou stammered, turning bright red.
"Wow, you are incredibly easy to read."
He was panicking and blushing furiously. Ren hadn't had much luck with girls until she came to this world, so in that regard, Shou could be considered more promising for the future... but Ren decided to ignore her past and see him as a cute younger brother.
This piqued Ren's curiosity about their true feelings. She leaned forward slightly, resting her elbows on the table, and looked at the boys.
"Just between us, tell me who you like."
"Who, you mean..."
Shou's eyes darted around, constantly glancing at Ren and the others. Ren tried to pinpoint who specifically he was looking at.
"I can't tell you that, you idiot! Whose side are you on, Ren-san!"
"...What? I thought I could understand a guy's feelings."
Ren felt excluded from the conversation. She leaned back in her chair and sulked, which made Furi chuckle.
"Now, now. They can't possibly say it in front of the person themselves."
"Wouldn't it be better to tell them sooner so you can't back out later?" Ren asked.
"Even Ren gets shy when she says 'I love you' to someone she likes."
"I can say that much now," Ren countered.
She leaned in close to Furi's ear and whispered, "I love you." Furi's cheeks flushed crimson.
"Don't say that out of the blue! ...I love you too, though."
Ren started to feel embarrassed herself. She quickly straightened her posture to prevent the atmosphere from getting awkward. Iris was watching them shyly, occasionally glancing over, and Mei was silently observing their interaction intently.
The two boys watched the entire exchange with blank faces.
"That's, that's wrong for girls to be together! It's a waste!" Shou finally sputtered.
"B-but Shou. If the girls are dating each other, maybe we have a chance with the others," Ken suggested.
"Huh, is that a possibility...?" Shou turned to Ren.
What should I say to that? Ren wondered.
"...I don't know? Is there more of a chance than with someone who already has a boyfriend?" Ren asked Furi.
"Don't ask me." Furi replied.
"A complex human relationship. I am interested," Mei commented.
Ren realized a conclusion wouldn't be reached easily.
"Look, Shou, Ken. Just being in the same party won't make you date. Ultimately, you just have to work hard to win her over." Ren advised.
"Is that from your personal experience, Ren-san?" Shou asked.
"Well, something like that. So, instead of being stubborn like this, wouldn't it be better to achieve results in the party you were assigned to?" Ren suggested.
In the end, Ren tried to persuade them with some advice. She wasn't lying, and if this motivated them, they would actually work hard in the dungeon. Shou and the others seemed interested in this and nodded.
"Will you respect us too, Ren-san, if we get stronger?" Shou asked.
"Hmm? Oh, I think anyone who listens to their seniors and continues to adventure while valuing their life is cool." Ren confirmed.
"...Understood. Then we'll try our best."
The boys agreed and left, as if their earlier stubbornness had never happened.
After they left, Mariabell (who had been awakened by the noise) appeared in the living room and looked at Ren.
"You've charmed two young boys, haven't you?" Mariabell noted.
"I didn't intend to mislead them, though." Ren protested.
She felt she had been unfairly labeled.
--------------------
"But Ren, what's the truth?" Furi asked.
After finishing breakfast chores and running some small errands, Ren was now just lounging in her room. Since they had been busy on holidays lately, today was almost entirely a full day off. Furi didn't seem to be planning to go shopping either. She came into Ren's room with a manga in hand and sat down on the bed as if she owned the place.
That was perfectly fine. The beds circulated here were intentionally made larger on the assumption that "standardizing the size saves effort." Two girls could sleep side-by-side without feeling cramped. Furi knew this well from frequent experience.
...Putting that aside.
"What do you mean, 'the truth'?" Ren asked.
"Boys. Do you think anything about them? Like if they look delicious." Furi elaborated.
"Don't talk about me like I'm a monster."
It was a troublesome fact that this wasn't entirely wrong, as she subsisted on human life force.
Ren rolled over onto her side and looked up at Furi, who was seated beside her.
"Well, I do feel like my sense of smell has gotten generally sharper."
"Huh, do I smell sweaty?" Furi worried.
"You smell nice, so don't worry. I mean that the difference between boys and girls has become easier to tell."
"Hmm," Furi hummed.
Her hand, turning the page, paused for a moment.
"Which do you prefer?"
"I feel more relaxed when I smell a girl. A guy's scent is... what is it? Objectively it's not a good smell, but you know how some scents are addictive?"
"Like how you can't help but sniff cats or dogs?"
"Ah. That's close."
Ren was afraid to test whether it would become "can't stop, won't stop," so she hadn't tried.
"So Ren is a scent fetishist, huh?" Furi teased.
"I don't like that term. ...But I guess it's not wrong."
Not having to get close to strongly sense a person's presence wasn't a bad thing.
"I like your scent too, Furi." Ren confessed.
"I told you, no saying things like that suddenly."
Furi closed her manga, turned, and leaned her face closer. Their lips met and stayed joined for several seconds.
--------------------
As they entered the boss room, a loud, pig-like squeal echoed. The eleventh-floor boss was the Orc Warrior. It was a warrior with an even larger body and a matching-sized hand-axe. In addition, there were two regular Orcs. Since they lacked long-range attack methods, they charged forward without thought, making them difficult to stop.
"Magic Arrow!"
"Firebolt!"
They used their signature combination of magic and arrows to inflict damage before engaging. Mei, the front-liner, then moved to block their advance. However, handling three enemies at once was too much, so—
"Hey, pay attention to me too!" Furi taunted them, using her speed.
It was hard to aim for the heart or neck due to the thick flesh, so she couldn't target vital points, but even shallowly slashing their arms or legs could draw attention. As one Orc was distracted and moved away, the party concentrated their attacks on the regular Orc facing Mei.
"Mana Bolt!" Ren chanted.
Her new skill, Magic Boost, allowed her to spend additional MP to enhance the spell's power, separate from the MP cost of the individual spell. A Mana Bolt powered up to its maximum could instantly harvest a goblin's HP. Naturally, it dealt significant damage to an Orc. Combined with Mei's fists, which she deployed while dodging the enemy's attacks, and the added effect of Iris's arrows and Firebolt, it didn't take long for the first Orc to go down.
"Alright! Mei, draw the boss for a moment!" Ren commanded.
"If provocation is the priority, I shall execute it flawlessly."
Next, they targeted the Orc attacking Furi. Once that was done, they finally ganged up on the Orc Warrior.
"...Phew. It's finally over. These guys are too resilient." Ren sighed.
When the boss vanished, it left behind dropped items and the descending staircase. They only needed to confirm the monument's content hadn't changed, as they had already transcribed it.
The World Fragments totaled twenty-two. The acquisition rate remained at one fragment per level (Iris and the others received two), which was not insignificant. The total fragments acquired on the eleventh floor exceeded the total acquired from the first to fourth floors. By the twenty-second floor, this would double again.
"I'm so glad I increased my maximum MP," Ren admitted.
"Yeah. Did you know? Ren's MP is apparently quite high compared to everyone else," Furi mentioned.
"MP is my strong suit."
When Ren puffed out her chest, they seriously replied with, "We're counting on you," and "Please continue to support us."
"Thank you too, Mei. It's much easier to defeat them one by one thanks to you drawing their attention." Ren added.
"I merely did what was expected. ...Though, I must continue to strengthen my body." Mei replied.
"One hit from them would seriously injure any of us, including Mei..." Furi worried.
If this had happened before Ren came to the other world, she would have instantly died. Even now, a bone or two would be easily broken, and if Ren were knocked unconscious, she wouldn't be able to cast Heal. Casting Magic Shell while firing offensive magic was also difficult to time correctly.
"We should be growing stronger, but things don't get much easier..." Iris noted.
"Regrettably, as long as we continue to descend to lower levels, hardship awaits. I have never heard anyone on the front lines say, 'It has gotten easier,'" Mariabell responded.
"Ugh, I wish they'd be a little more lenient." Ren complained.
However, some of Ren's contemporaries had already cleared up to the sixteenth or seventeenth floor. Ren's party had been among the fastest clearers when she was with Takuma and his group, but restarting from the first floor repeatedly had caused them to fall behind. The Wise Man said this was unavoidable.
As long as you bring many of the native generation with you, it is natural that you face more hardship than a Transferee-only party. The number of available skills is reduced accordingly.
Both Iris and Mei were exceptionally talented for the native generation (possessing unique strengths like spirit magic and body modification), but a Transferee could be even stronger with additional offensive skills. Ren's party, essentially a party of four where half were born in this world, was at a considerable handicap. Of course, this didn't mean Ren intended to exclude Iris and Mei or ask Mariabell to leave.
"They're also having to restart from the first floor with Shou and the others, right?" Furi asked.
"Yeah. They probably aren't in danger of dying, but it might be a bit tough."
Shou and Ken looked like a swordsman and a mage. It was doubtful whether they had the practical experience against beasts that Iris had or Mei's fearlessness. It would be difficult to ensure their safety while encouraging them to excel.
Chatting as they descended the stairs and returned to the temple.
"You're finally back. You must have been persistent. Good work."
They were greeted as they set foot on the stone floor of the temple. The two girls from the party in question were there. As former classmates, Ren and the others naturally knew them. Standing next to them were the boys they had just met. The boys, who had been so arrogant earlier, now looked dejected, with traces of tears visible on their faces. Scars and dirt on their clothing suggested they had just come from the dungeon.
"What happened?" Ren asked.
The girls from the other party looked at Ren.
"Long time no see. You look even cuter, Ren-chan."
"A little bit. It's not really a 'trouble,' but the boys are pretty down."
"Did the conquest not go well?" Ren asked.
Shou and Ken flinched at Ren's voice. They looked like scolded children—which was pretty much what they were.
"We cleared the first floor completely. Both of them were fine for a while, and they got two fragments each, so the God, or whoever, seemed satisfied."
"But they got scared during the boss fight..." one girl explained.
"I see," Ren understood the situation.
Ren approached the boys and placed a hand on each of their shoulders.
"Can I take care of them today? You were waiting for me for that, weren't you?" Ren asked the girls.
"Can you?"
"The boys seem to be attached to Ren-chan and the others, so that might be better."
"Yeah. I don't mind since they aren't strangers to me."
They decided to take the two boys home for the day.
============
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