The job-change process had no flashy effects at all.
Because Leon was already familiar with the "awakening" that came with class enlightenment—and with the panel assisting him—he succeeded instantly.
The entire process was as calm as drifting clouds and flowing water, even quieter than when he'd taken his second class as a Phantom Walker.
The changes in his body were unexpectedly faint, too.
For a moment, Leon even suspected he'd taken some kind of fake class.
Only after focusing and examining himself carefully did he notice the difference.
"My mana… seems to have gone up a bit."
He looked at the updated information on his panel.
[Primary Stats: Vitality 30 / Mana 27 / Stamina 30 / Strength 31 / Agility 39]
"Hm. So agility didn't change, mana went up by 2, and the other stats averaged +1? Not bad."
Leon was pleasantly surprised.
After all, this was a fresh class—any increase was an increase.
Especially mana. One point of mana could be worth several points of other attributes. With various buff spells, it could even temporarily boost other stats.
It was the universal stat.
And that was exactly why, across the entire Sword, Magic, and the Holy Land series, mana was the most important attribute.
Taking a new class would definitely raise your attribute caps—naturally—but you'd only see how much the cap increased after thorough training brought it out.
Also, the more classes you had, the higher your training efficiency became.
It was basically a cheat mechanism. Leon had noticed it back when he repeatedly played the earlier installments in his previous life. He didn't know whether the big shots in this world had grasped that secret.
His guess was that very few people knew, because the boost from a second class was relatively small. Without active, deliberate comparison and study, it was hard to notice.
You'd only really feel it once you stacked five or six extraordinary classes.
Then came the heavy hitter: the core skill.
[New Core Class Skill: Trust Aura]
[Effect: When activated, increases the target's (single person) trust in you. The amount varies with the target, environment, and conditions. The higher the base affection and the more carefully crafted your words, the greater the increase.]
Oh—nice.
Leon's eyes lit up.
When he met Iris in a bit, he could use this to improve the efficiency of his… persuasion.
And the Fallen Dark Elf quest also required preparations starting in the next couple of days.
Now the question was how much mana it consumed. In theory, core skills generally didn't cost too much—they were meant to be "hardcore" like that.
That was one major difference between the extraordinary and ordinary people who hadn't awakened a class.
All else equal, when an awakened person used skills within their class system, the mana cost was lower than someone unawakened.
For example, when Leon first learned magic, he needed 4 mana to cast a beginner spell.
Once he became proficient enough for chantless casting, it only took 2 mana.
After becoming a mage, it only took 1 mana.
If he reached an even deeper mastery, it might not be impossible to cast two beginner spells with 1 mana.
At least, in his previous-life playthroughs, Leon had achieved that.
"Whoa—midnight's been past for at least twenty minutes already, right?"
Bisce suddenly started shouting.
"Leon, Leon! That blue-haired elf still hasn't shown up. Doesn't that mean you already won the bet? What got her tied up? I didn't even see you arrange anyone to stall her!"
Blue-haired elf?
Leon blinked, then realized Bisce meant Iris.
Her hair was a brisk, sky-like pale blue, with a beautiful sheen. Calling her "blue-haired" wasn't exactly wrong.
"I didn't arrange anything. She probably just ran into her mother, who's been missing for a long time—and between the bet and tracking her down, she chose tracking."
As he spoke, a lonely figure appeared in the distance, walking slowly toward them under the dim moonlight.
A long-eared elf with pale-blue hair draped over her shoulders. A pure white formal gown wrapped around her slender frame. Her long white arms swung weakly, as if she had no strength left.
As she drew closer, her delicate features, gemstone-yellow eyes, and skin so pale it seemed to glow even in the night all came into view. The unique beauty of a wan, fragile woman beneath moonlight made both Leon and Bisce fall silent for a moment.
It was Iris.
At this moment, the pride she always wore on her face was gone without a trace—only loneliness remained.
Not until she was within ten meters of Leon did she seem to sense his presence.
She lifted her head slightly, examined him once, and her expression turned cold.
"So you came to take advantage of me when I'm vulnerable?"
"Miss Iris, you're wronging me," Leon said with a faint smile. "At first, I only wanted to be friends with you—and to let you know I wasn't lying. As for the hundred-gold wager… it's still in your hands, isn't it? Meaning, if you refuse to acknowledge the bet, you don't have to pay me at all."
Iris had assumed Leon was just using divination to win her money, but seeing how open and straightforward he looked now, she hesitated.
"Sorry. I shouldn't have accused you so casually. Judging from what happened, you really do possess divination—and you're quite upright about it. I assumed your intentions were impure, and that was my mistake."
Iris apologized sincerely. Even though she still had doubts deep down, her good upbringing made her choose to apologize for now.
Leon smiled lightly. Your suspicion is right, actually—I really can't divine.
"So," Leon said, "does this mean I've earned a certain amount of Miss Iris's trust?"
"Here's your cheque back. As for the hundred gold I lost—I ask you to give me a few days. I'll repay you, principal and interest. I, Iris C. Forlorn, will do what I say!"
Iris walked closer, took out the cheque, and handed it to Leon.
"I'm usually a very good judge of people. That's why I let you hold the cheque even without a binding wager contract. Since you're asking for time, I naturally won't object."
Leon knew that although Iris was still proud at this stage, she was someone who never broke her word.
Or rather—because of her innate pride, she treated every promise as sacred.
In her future storyline, there was even an episode where, because of a single promise, she traveled over ten thousand kilometers to guard the western border city of Axia for three full years.
"Then… thank you for trusting me."
As Iris spoke, she turned her head away.
[Iris Affection +10%. Current Affection: 30%]
Leon noticed the panel update, and his heart stirred. Looks like that "strong medicine" worked.
First provoke her into forming a bias—then flip her impression in one decisive move.
It still wasn't as absurdly high as Brellita's mysterious 40%, but in terms of execution, it had met Leon's expectations.
After all, he had follow-up steps. Once the bias continued to be overturned, Iris's affection for him would rise quickly.
Affection was the one thing you couldn't raise with lukewarm water.
You needed strong emotional swings—it made gains much easier.
Better to start with suspicion than start with mild fondness and then crash into disappointment.
As an aside: in Leon's previous-life experience, once a character's affection reached a certain level, it became easier to trigger side quests. And when organizing team actions, they'd become far easier to command and coordinate.
Most importantly, once affection passed 90%, he could obtain a character's talent—and the effect sounded insanely powerful. For someone like Iris, an S-tier heroine, her top talent let her enter a state of absolute focus: whatever she did, she could concentrate completely, and her magic-learning efficiency would multiply. And he seemed able to get an optimized version!
He wanted that talent badly.
Beside them, Bisce watched Iris—who'd been sold out by Leon—still looking grateful, and she nearly burst. She quietly poked Leon in the side with a translucent finger.
She still couldn't figure out why the previously proud Iris now had zero bite.
Right then, Leon spoke:
"By the way, Miss Iris—what happened just now? Why do you look so exhausted?"