“…Hmm.”
It’s definitely strange being the only man among a fleet full of women.
I can understand that.
I mean, I could… understand it.
Most of the agents were cute, pretty female characters.
Of course, there were some older characters—well, there might be younger ones too—but mostly, they were young women.
“So, did it really get to the point of rumors?”
The game didn’t depict it that strong.
It was just mild interest from what I saw on the boards…
“No matter what, how many posts are about the Commander?”
In the office, I shrugged it off, but seeing it directly like this, the level of excitement was something else.
Since it’s somewhat anonymous, I couldn’t tell who wrote it, but wow… the level of flattery was impressive.
Things like finding the Commander’s jawline sexy, wanting to nibble on his collarbone, or wanting to kidnap him and keep him locked in a room…
“…Ew.”
It’s not that I dislike the agents who like the Commander.
It just felt weird for a second to think about women liking men.
If it were before, I would never have thought such a thing. But for some reason, I’ve become a woman now.
Of course, I would never, ever like men!
But the thoughts popped up since I became a woman, and there’s nothing I could do about that.
“Haah…”
I seriously felt like crap.
Already, just the feeling of my chest bouncing with every move was driving me insane.
Now, I’m suddenly worrying about manly problems, which made me feel even crazier.
“Honestly, dating a woman would be better.”
Just because I’ve become a woman doesn’t mean I’m going to act like a fool, panting over men.
It might look a bit odd to others, but dating a woman would definitely be better.
Not that there are women who like other women, right?
Anyway, I’m just saying I’m definitely not the type to spread my legs for a guy!
“What am I going to do for work starting tomorrow….”
Working isn’t that tough, but it feels frustrating because I’m not used to it.
Fortunately, with enough agents around, work should get easier… but once the purification ops begin, aka, when the story truly kicks off, it’s bound to get more challenging.
Of course, it seemed like the agents followed the Commander well, so it probably wouldn’t be too tough.
Now that we’ve got a 5-star character in Agni and a variety of agents, if they listen well, we’ll easily manage.
“Ugh… I might as well just get some sleep.”
Even after finishing work, I still had extra tasks, and it was already past midnight.
I’m not usually one to sleep a lot, but I needed some decent sleep for tomorrow’s work, especially since I was tired today.
Plus… maybe seeing that forum praising the Commander like some cult gave me a headache.
“Tomorrow… I hope it’ll be a bit easier.”
Right, it should be.
I was almost done with agents’ placements, and at least the gacha was settled.
I went to bed wearing the warm pajamas I usually wore, not the sexy lingerie.
Even though I became a woman, wearing something like seductive lingerie was absolutely not happening.
It felt like it would break whatever manhood I still had left inside me.
*
“…”
“?”
“Hah.”
“Lindera. Are you alright? You look a bit down today.”
“…I’m fine.”
I wasn’t fine at all, but I decided to say I was.
Not that I wanted to show a good face to the Commander; it’s just that I truly felt off.
I never thought I’d experience something like this in my life.
Becoming a woman opened the door to such experiences.
“Is that so? In that case, I’m glad. I’d appreciate your help today too.”
“Yes.”
I woke the Commander up early, grabbed a quick breakfast, and headed to the office.
Actually, I might have woken him a bit late compared to when I got up, but since I woke up early, it wasn’t a problem.
The bigger issue was what was going on with my body.
“Commander, I’ll now go over today’s schedule. Midori hasn’t arrived yet, but… I can explain again once she’s here.”
“Understood.”
“We’re anticipating that the headquarters will issue a mission to our branch soon, and to prepare the agents, we need to conduct training….”
I casually explained the work to the Commander, who neatly organized himself since morning.
It wasn’t difficult for us to handle.
We simply had to place agents into training facilities to boost their stats and skills.
Plus, it wasn’t our job to scout near the contaminated zones.
We weren’t even agents, so we had nothing to do with fieldwork.
Our job was just to talk in the office and type on the keyboard.
So far.
“Hmm… selecting agents to dispatch to the purification zone.”
“I think we should first assemble a squad led by Agni, who is the most capable in combat.”
“Not a bad idea. I’ve read her profile too, and I believe she’s good.”
“Yes. I think we can decide on the rest of the squad members in the morning.”
“Hmm….”
The Commander was stroking his non-existent beard, deep in thought.
Well, he didn’t really know all the agents currently on the ship, so it was clear he was somewhat troubled by that.
Even if I wasn’t feeling well, I could figure that out.
Still, it was a problem that could be easily solved with just a little help.
“Me! Here I come!”
“Midori, you’re 5 minutes late.”
“Nya!? I came as fast as I could; how is that late!?”
“Yes.”
“D-Don’t tell me you’re gonna cut my pay or take away the candy in the office!?”
“….”
I purposely stayed silent at Midori’s late arrival.
She went wide-eyed in shock at my reaction, and I stood up from my seat.
“W-Wait! Lindera!? Lindera-san?! Please don’t take the candy! I’d prefer you cut my pay instead…!”
“I’m just joking. I stood up only to prepare the Commander’s coffee.”
“Aha!”
Seeing her finally relax, I began preparing coffee.
I hadn’t quite started working yet, but getting started was all about the caffeine.
By the way… the strange feeling in my lower abdomen was just awful.
Honestly.
If I could, I’d want to stick a sedative right in there and forget about it entirely.
“Phew….”
*
“Agni. No ice cream allowed in the training room.”
“…Really?”
“Yep.”
I slipped in to meet the agents just before entering the training room.
Though it was hastily assembled, this was truly our ship’s 1st Squad.
I figured we’d probably stick with this basic roster for future operations, so it was essential to chat with the Commander to an extent.
Since it was early in the story, it shouldn’t be too hard, but building rapport between the Commander and the agents was crucial.
Depending on the Commander’s favor, the agents’ combat effectiveness could increase.
“What should we do, Mary? Want to share some?”
“No thanks. Such sweet food… is profane, you know…?”
“…Got it.”
Failing to sneak the ice cream into the training room, Agni sought help from Mary, the 4-star healer behind her, but failed.
Honestly, it wasn’t that it was a profane food, but since she was a devoted character, she was likely just cautious about getting cavities from too many sweets.
Being a bit younger and petite probably added to her cute factor, too, easing my earlier stomach discomfort slightly.
“…Ah.”
Speaking of which, Mary was a healer.
I honestly didn’t know how it worked, but she was the type of character who could provide heal and buffs through prayers.
“Mary?”
“Oh, Lindera-san. How’s your day going? You look a bit down; are you okay?”
“Could you possibly cast a blessing on me?”
“Why suddenly a blessing… are you feeling unwell, maybe?”
“Yes.”
I wasn’t sure if it was possible, but I figured I might as well ask first.
A blessing wouldn’t be bad for the body; in fact, it should be good.
Plus, dealing with this unrelenting stomach ache since morning… I was getting tired of it.
I felt like it was even worse now than in the morning… I was really getting mad.
Of course, I didn’t show that frustration during work.
“Menstrual cramps….”
“Oh…! I’ll cast it quickly! If you were in a lot of pain, you should have gone to the infirmary…! There are plenty of other people there, too.”
“Haha.”
Right? I should have just gone to the infirmary if I knew it would hurt this badly.
But I felt a bit okay in the morning.
Of course, it was painful, but it wasn’t unbearable.
Just… a significant level of discomfort.
Now, though, it was getting hard to endure!
Because my stomach was hurting way too much!
“Well then… I’ll pray with all my heart….”
Mary placed her hands together and started to pray and cast a blessing.
Although it was called a blessing, it was essentially a heal.
Also a buff.
But that didn’t matter.
What mattered right now was prioritizing healing those cramps to continue with work, and the content of the prayer was irrelevant.
But one thing was for sure…
“Oh….”
My cramps had eased up a bit!
Just a little, but still!
“Thank you, Mary.”
“Don’t mention it. If it’s for you and the Commander, making such a small prayer isn’t difficult for me. And Lindera-san, when you’re feeling unwell like today, you can come to the infirmary or our chapel and lean on us anytime. We accept anyone and always believe in….”
Mary’s sermon began to sound like the lengthy talks of an old principal.
If it had been someone else, it might have felt boring, but Mary’s sermons were different.
Since she wasn’t just any nun, but a cute one with fox ears.
“Thanks.”
“Hehe….”
Having received Mary’s blessing, I turned back toward the Commander.
Agni was already chatting, and now it was just about time to enter the training room.
“Commander?”
“Oh, Lindera. Did you manage to solve the issue?”
“…Yes.”
“I’m glad to hear. Then the agents will….”
The Commander started speaking before allowing the agents into the training room, looking completely relaxed.
Since it was unrelated to me, I simply watched the Commander and didn’t pay attention to what he was saying.
After all…
“I wanted to eat some ice cream.”
Wasn’t Agni just eating the ice cream just a moment ago?
I genuinely didn’t understand the reason, but there it was.
“Haah.”
Could I really just take the ice cream she was eating like that?
No, even before that… I didn’t grasp why Agni would just let someone take her food so easily.
If it were me, I’d be swallowing it down way faster!
Was the Commander’s face just that handsome, to the point where others would willingly share their favorite ice cream?
“…Tsk.”
Something just didn’t sit right.
Just.
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