Holding back a sigh, you suppress your eyes and take a deep breath so as not to distract yourself from reality.
Then you open your eyes and see your computer screen and the report you were looking at earlier.
What can you call it as an update?
It's not a report about the dungeon test, but a report with newly discovered information as a reminder of the many troubles that have occurred recently.
You will find that the dungeon tester Hikasumi Toru is missing and his companion Midori Kawasaki is seriously injured.
The former has yet to be found and there is not even a clue as to what happened to the former, and the theory of his death is strong.
As for the latter, he has regained consciousness and has been questioned, but other than being attacked by a large wolf, he has been unable to obtain any useful information.
And Lunaria, aka the King of Trees, reported that the attack on the dark elf village wasn't a natural phenomenon of a magical beast, but a clear intention.
I don't need to wonder what that means.
It means that someone was pulling the strings.
In your hand, the document printed as confidential is lined with information that can somehow be viewed by the section chief's level but is headache-inducing, and the clouds are passing through cloudy skies and a thunderous thunderstorm seems to be on the horizon.
You look like you've been accumulating a lot.
I wonder if this is the weight of a middle management position
I was massaging my eyes as if to relieve my depressed mind from the contents of the report that came in a follow-up report for a little refreshment, but from the outside, it looked like I was tired.
The coffee is gently offered to me, and I take it while thanking Keely for the offer.
How's the tester?
I'm not so sure about our section, the second section was a bit on the fence at first, but it's calmed down now that it's become the sole responsibility of Kiyosumi and Kawasaki-san. The problem is...
"......... three sections?
It's already been a week since Hiccup disappeared.
The atmosphere in the company during that time has not been flattering.
There are several reasons for this, but the main cause is that there are disturbances on the mainland of the magical continent, and the leaders are tense due to the machinations of political elements.
You can find people everywhere who are dragging their feet, and when I was silently hugged by Evvia, who has been forced to work overtime day after day, I felt inappropriately relied upon, and patted my head while hugging her enough, hoping it would be a healing experience.
I was eager to expose the unseen enemy, more like dealing with a problem than an afterthought, but I was impressed by the fact that the other party seemed frustrated and unable to find the tail, as if they were very good at hiding.
"Shit. I wouldn't even go near that place if it wasn't for work.
The third section, to which Kiyosumi and Kawasaki belonged, was affected by this.
Kaylie, who has been watching them, shrugged her shoulders in fear and trembled.
Was I that tense?
I did, and I was personally warned about it, so it's only natural. I feel sorry for the testers who work there, because of their attitude. I'm afraid you will quit if you're not good at it.
I know, I've had some very enthusiastic love calls.
Jurgen, the section chief of the third section, would have been a complete mess.
A subordinate who doesn't listen to you is unknowingly acting on his own accord, leaning on someone higher in rank than he is and causing problems under him.
If I were you, I'd be blue in the face, but from Jurgen's point of view, he was so enraged that he was red in the face.
"Huh? What?
From Jurgen's point of view, humans were like slaves.
He thought of us as expendable commodities to be used as he wished and replaced if they went out of business.
However, we dungeon testers are from another world, and we were reluctant to use them as instructed by the highest authority, but our attitude was that we were only servants.
"I'll give you my unwieldy Kawasaki and you'll give me all my party members instead.
If you do what I say, I'll use it.
If you don't listen to me, I won't use you.
If you treat your subordinates with such an attitude, there is no way you can communicate with them.
You will be able to find out the best way to get the best results.
"What is that?
"That's really it.
In order to reinforce his lacking strength, Jurgen forced me to do the impossible.
Aside from me, the strongest force and section chief, he also asked me to give him a tester as the next in line.
It seems that this was discussed with the second section as well, and the section chief was furious and shouted at me to stop fooling around and refused.
So what did you say back?
That's right, well, I said no to a blunt answer, right?
'Why the question mark? I doubt it.
And I'm sorry to the testers in Section 3, but I have no need or obligation to ask such a nonsense.
I can't even reach out to them.
I can't reach out to them without asking if they are no longer aware that the division was divided for the sake of competition.
"There is no need for us to help you, because it seems that you have no need to ask for the help of those who are the lower life forms you speak of.
Instead, I smiled and doubled down on what was said before.
Naturally, Jurgen didn't like that kind of answer, but since he said it himself in the past, he couldn't say it back, and in the end he let out a strange cry and walked away.
You will be able to find out the best way to get the most out of your new job.
I told her to stay in moderation and walked away.
Really, well, that's a problem.
Honestly, I wish I hadn't caused the problem at this time, personally.
I glanced at the small calendar on the side of my desk, with a red circle in three weeks' time and my handwriting underneath it that said the due date.
All this noise about the birth of my first child.
I try to act as little as possible to cause problems, but they say it doesn't matter if I don't cause problems.
It's really busy in this company.
There is not a day that goes by that nothing happens.
Everything you do, everything you do is insane.
I'm working in an industry that's a pipe dream to begin with.
If you're wrapped up in common sense, you can't do your job, you laugh to yourself and move your hands.
I'll leave it to Himik and Memoria, but I'd like to be there for the birth if I could.
Then you can't go on with your work if you don't talk about it.
Be moderate in your resentment towards fire-clearing.
Well, work, work.
You try to wrap up the fallout from this debacle.
I finish the paperwork I'm used to and look over the report that came up briefly.
The impact of the new testers, as Ms. Keely had said, was nothing to sneeze at.
There are parts of you that feel like a stranger's problem, and in the first place, there are two instructors who are on the verge of becoming a tenguy, and they're always on the verge of breaking their noses whenever they have time to do so, so there's no rookie in our department who would be reckless and reckless.
I'm sure you'll find that the content of the report is quite decent, and the goals of each group are very clear and enjoyable to read.
"Are the newcomers more solid than ......... or are the instructors getting exquisitely good at lashing out?
Is it the influence of a person named Hikasumi Tohru or a person named Kawasaki Midori?
If you have no connection with either of them, this is what you should do.
Even for the newcomers, it might be just a beware of fire.
The two instructors who glanced at me.
Perhaps because of my connection with them, they spend their free time looking after the newcomers.
Because of the noble sacrifice of me and Kaido, the force is so exquisitely adjusted that you can't complain about it anymore.
The newcomers who received that pressure looked at me in awe and asked if I continued to receive that, and I wanted to say sorry, it's more than that.
It's a good thing that Kitamiya's response was dry, but Nanase's is inevitable.
And if the newcomers were fine, the person with the most connections would be worried, but it was fine.
When Kitamiya found out that Hiccup was missing, she came to work the next day with a blank expression, not to mention a bothered look on her face.
However, normally he would come with Amelia or appear while arguing with Minami, but that day was different.
You're going to be able to find out what you're looking for, and you're going to be able to find it.
If I were to do this, I would say that the person to cry to would be the wrong person, but looking at that section chief, I can say that it was the right decision to come to me.
As expected, Nanase has been asking me for all the information I know about his safety and well-being.
You're going to be able to get the information you want without any intention of refusing, although I promised to pass on all the information I could find and the information that came in, but I'm not sure if I was able to give her the information she wanted.
Now, he is stoutly working hard to support his juniors and try to redeem his honor.
It looks like he's desperately trying to distract himself from reality, but I'll assume that he wants to distract himself for now.
.........
I was working with a cup of coffee when my eyes fell on the clock.
"It's time.
On days when there are no dungeon tests, there is usually a lot of behind-the-scenes work sitting in the office, reading reports, scheduling each team, or meeting with other departments.
I'll be out of my seat for a bit. Let me know if you need anything else.
"Here you go, have a good day.
Just tell Kaylee where you're going, then get up and walk at a leisurely pace, unlike usual.
No, I just want to walk slowly.
There are goblins running around inspecting equipment, dark elves chatting with papers in hand, harpies busily looking for someone, lizardmen in white talking to their colleagues, and demons loosening their ties and wiping sweat off their clothes, as if they'd just come back from outside.
The company has become a familiar place where humans are almost never present except for us dungeon testers.
Nowadays, it's not particularly unusual, and there's no need to feel down about it.
If anything, the outside world is more lacking at the moment.
It's not to say that there's nothing, but in terms of fun, the extraordinary that doesn't exist in reality always stimulates me.
So those days have become your everyday life.
Suddenly I stopped walking slowly and placed one hand on the railing and watched the scene below.
The buzzing noise.
When did the sound become pleasing to the ears?
When I was in my former company, even the slightest noise at the time of a nap would have been annoying.
It was just one flyer that changed my life.
You never know what's going to happen in life, do you?
A smile came to his lips in remembrance, and he was glad to have been honest with himself then.
If you ask me if I am satisfied with the present, I will say that I am not satisfied yet.
I miss thinking about the future for the first time since I was a student.
I never thought I'd have any career aspirations.
I used to lament that I didn't want to take on the responsibility, but now I'm a section chief with my subordinates.
I've never had a middle management position before, but I can't help but think that the reason I've been able to groping my way through is because my subordinates are excellent.
But you still feel a sense of satisfaction.
Not to spill to anyone.
There is no doubt that the present environment is full of life.
It's hard, it's a hassle, but I never wanted to quit, and I'm not satisfied with the results I've achieved, but I've never been so greedy.
I am struggling to get as far as I can go.
If possible, I continue on my halted foot, hoping that the ruckus from the other day won't get any bigger.
Your leather shoes tap the ground, echoing your footsteps in the corridor as you go.
If you pass an employee, you say a quick hello, and if you see someone you know, you exchange a few words of conversation.
Am I early?
And when you get to your destination, you realize that you left too early with only a few people here and there, but the piercing gaze is still the same.
After all, it seems to be unheard of for a human to enter this place.
Even though they are the last seat in the house, there are still those who show their disgust at humans entering.
Half of the current feeling is that disgust, the rest is curiosity and some sympathy.
You can't help but be concerned and sit down at your assigned seat and wait for your time to come.
.........
In the meantime, you look over the materials on the table, but they are not much different from the previously announced content, and are not new.
Gradually, people are gathering in the room and the buzz is growing.
However, the noise dies down when Evvia appears at the top table.
Her appearance means.
Hi, hi, sorry for the wait.
After that, the president, aka the Demon King, appears.
He appears with a smile and a wave of his hand, but no one pays any attention to him, and he quickly stands up and bows his head.
It's as if we're in agreement, and I follow suit, bowing my head.
All seated.
Each one takes a seat at the call of Evvia.
If you compare it to a company, what's about to start is like a management meeting.
Under the chairmanship of Evia, the person in charge of each department makes a report and presents a guideline for the future.
The president just watches and basically does not interfere.
Nevertheless, the people who are in this place where tensions abound are each responsible for their position.
It's hard to believe how far we've come in just one year.
I listen to reports from various departments, sometimes taking notes, and catching up on the recent developments in other departments.
And then.
"Next, let me see the tester section's report, first section one.
Time passes with a break in between, and finally it's your turn.
You reply in a brisk and cheerful voice, and you feel your gaze, which had been elsewhere gathered earlier, focus on yourself.
The old me would have had a nervous stomach ache.
We are the first section.
When was the last time you felt vulnerable about such a thing, narrating what you had prepared without so much as a hair's breadth of nervousness, and answering nasty questions.
I would make my presence known and make my requests known.
I stand here, not only as a person in the field, but also as a person in charge.
I feel like a stranger, thinking that I have become in an outlandish position, because I still have the feeling of my days as a fairly ordinary office worker.
I'm going to be able to say that I've done everything I could to capture the dungeons that are currently in operation, and I'm going to be able to get the best out of them.
I wonder what the past me would think if he saw me, unafraid to explain to him in an environment where the only people are rightfully outsiders.
What would my face be like if I were told that I was having a child with an otherworldly woman?
If you could, I would.
That your future is not so bleak, but quite exciting.
So...
See the appendix for more information about that.
Now I can be proud.
Although the future is uncertain, I am not afraid to stand here.
I have almost more family to protect.
I have subordinates and colleagues I can trust.
There is no time to be depressed over a few things.
If you have time for that, it is more constructive to find a way to silence some of the complaining upper management.
Because.
Section One concludes.
I can't just stand here and do nothing because there are still things I want to do.