“Uwa…”
“Hah…”
“Commander, you must be really exhausted…”
“Isn’t it just a bit clueless?”
“Exactly…”
What on earth are those two talking about?
I just stepped out to grab a snack from Easter’s café, and they were whispering about something.
Since they were speaking quietly, I couldn’t hear what Commander and Midori were saying, but they were definitely huddled together talking about something.
Even Dolores beside them was nodding along without knowing what was going on.
What could they possibly be discussing?
“What are you talking about?”
“Hih?!”
“Oh.”
“Ahem.”
“…?”
As I approached and asked, they suddenly fell silent.
They were chatting so energetically and then stop as soon as I show up.
Are they trying to exclude me?
That… might actually be the case.
Well, they did suddenly stop their conversation.
“What were you all talking about that you all stopped when I came in? Are you trying to exclude me?”
“Haha.”
“Surely not…?”
Really, why is everyone so tight-lipped about this?
I thought about it, but I couldn’t think of any reason.
I hadn’t done anything weird enough to warrant being excluded, nor had I done anything wrong… right?
“What were you all so wrapped up in? Did you all decide to do this on purpose while I was getting cake?”
“It’s nothing much. How about you just sit down for now?”
“…Alright.”
I didn’t quite understand, but I sat down anyway.
It wasn’t far since it was next to the Commander, after all.
But seriously, what were they talking about that made them shut up the moment I came back?
It really started to worry me that maybe I was being excluded or something.
Of course… that couldn’t be it.
“We weren’t talking about anything strange, so stop asking.”
“……..”
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
I had a lot to say, but I kept my mouth shut.
To be honest, I was a bit annoyed.
They really had some conversation without me, but they wouldn’t even tell me what it was.
If it really wasn’t anything strange, then wouldn’t it be fine to share?
“…Looks like you had a fun conversation.”
“It wasn’t that fun, really.”
“Then why keep hiding it? Do you really need to have secret talks without me?”
“…Ahem.”
Look at that.
They were still evading the question.
What on earth could they have talked about that makes them act like this?
Did they discuss something embarrassing that they can’t tell anyone else about?
Something embarrassing between the three of them…
“Three…”
“?”
“…Never mind.”
I had some really messed-up thoughts.
Even if it’s just three coworkers together, that’s just… really not it.
Even if it was just a brief thought, it genuinely felt… quite disturbing.
It’s not like we’re in some animal kingdom, and three colleagues getting involved together… definitely not!
“Anyway, it wasn’t anything strange, so stop asking. More importantly, the cake…”
“…Yes, I’ll serve it now.”
Just thinking about the scenario with the Commander and two coworkers made me want to change the topic.
I really didn’t want to think about it.
Since we’re not strangers and know we work in the same place, maybe that’s why I felt that way.
It really put me in a bad mood.
“Here’s the strawberry cake you mentioned, Commander.”
“Thank you.”
“And this… is the mint chocolate cake Midori and Dolores talked about.”
I presented the cake.
There were some bits I wasn’t totally happy with, but at least I had to give it.
“Wow~”
“So this is… the mint chocolate cake, right, Midori?”
“Yep!”
“…That makes sense.”
“Yep?”
“………”
Yeah, that makes sense.
Flavor… is definitely a matter of personal taste.
While I can’t quite understand why someone would like mint chocolate, I also didn’t think it was worth completely dismissing or hating on.
“…Hmm.”
“Hmm.”
“Hmm…”
“Why is everyone looking at me like that? Is there a problem?”
“Hmm… it’s nothing.”
Yeah, it’s really nothing.
Mint chocolate isn’t poison or anything that sends you running to the bathroom in a panic.
“You have to respect tastes.”
“Exactly.”
“…Wait, are you looking at my mint chocolate cake right now!?”
“We’re not saying anything.”
“No way!?”
At least I was relieved that most of the people in our office had normal tastes.
Out of four of us, except for one, everyone else disliked something odd, so that was a relief.
One person can have a peculiar taste, I guess.
Right.
“Um… I respect that.”
“Definitely. Just don’t force it on us…”
“I don’t! And anyway, mint chocolate is delicious!”
“…That’s pushing it.”
Even saying it’s delicious just felt wrong.
No matter how I thought about it, it just tasted terrible.
I remember drinking mint chocolate milk once and rushing to the toilet to throw it all up.
It felt like I was about to puke.
It was worse than a hangover from drinking too much the previous night.
“Why? It’s super tasty!”
“It’s not.”
“Right.”
“Um… why…?”
Midori crumpled to the floor with an odd expression.
Since she was wearing stockings instead of pants, at least I didn’t have to worry about them getting dirty.
But the look on Midori’s face was one of utter despair.
It was probably the saddest expression I had ever seen from her.
“Anyway, thanks. I was really bored and thought I’d do this. I just felt like sitting still.”
“They weren’t even talking to me about anything, after all.”
Yet they wouldn’t tell me what it was, even while giving me compliments.
Just a bit disappointing.
“…But why is everyone looking at me so much?”
“Y-up?”
“N-no?”
“…You’ve been looking at me this whole time. Is something wrong?”
Midori and Dolores were staring at me constantly, and I was quite curious.
No, I was very curious.
What on earth could be the reason why they were looking at me?
I handed the cake over normally, and everything was fine, so why is it like this?
“Um… it’s nothing!”
“Haha…”
“Commander, what exactly did you say that’s making them act like this? Did you insult me or something?”
“Not exactly…”
If not that, then what on earth is going on?
I thought hard, but nothing came to mind, and it only added to my confusion.
“Dolores, Dolores…!”
“Yes?”
“Um… should we go outside?”
“…Shall we?”
The two suddenly suggested going outside.
They whispered softly, but it was loud enough that I could hear it.
But seriously, what’s with this awkward atmosphere?
Why is everyone looking at me, and why is the Commander acting all nervous around me?
“…Did something really happen?”
Midori and Dolores ran outside.
Ran?
It didn’t feel like they were afraid and escaping or something.
“Why is everyone looking at me? Did something happen? Please just answer.”
“It’s nothing much…”
“How many times are you going to say that?”
“……..”
If it isn’t to exclude me, isn’t it about time to answer?
It wasn’t anything strange, and it was just a normal conversation, after all.
“What do you think your usual behavior is like?”
“…What kind of strange question is that?”
“I just want an answer.”
“I think I behave normally while working.”
I really do.
I can confidently say I do my job well.
So why ask about this?
“Not that. I mean, how do you act when interacting with people or during conversations.”
“Um…”
What the heck is this nonsense?
I had no idea how to respond to the Commander’s sudden question.
Because really, it was such an unexpected question.
“Don’t I act normally?”
“…….”
“Why do you keep looking at me like that? Did I make a mistake?”
“Hah…”
The Commander let out a sigh suddenly.
It felt like we were stuck on the same thought today.
What the heck is going on?
I didn’t understand why the Commander sighed while looking at me, and I didn’t get why Midori and Dolores kept glancing at me.
I hadn’t done anything wrong… had I?
“Did I really do something wrong…?”
“…No, you didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Then why…”
“It’s just that… um… we were discussing in the office about how we should start recruiting more Agents soon…”
“Yes?”
“Considering you’re the one who knows the most about that and often handles things related to it. We thought we’d get your help…”
The Commander explained while rubbing his chin.
I didn’t know why the discussion about recruiting agents came up so suddenly, but I chose to listen further.
Well, they were finally revealing the reason I’d been wondering about for some time.
It made me quite relieved that they were putting it into words before I had to ask.
“We were only thinking about what kinds of agents would be good to recruit…”
“Oh…”
I didn’t quite understand why they would discuss it so secretly, but it really wasn’t a big deal.
It seemed to come from a good intention, wanting to help me out.
“If that was the case, you could have just told me directly. I wouldn’t have reacted badly.”
“I mean, you’ve been working hard since this morning, right? So… we just wanted to help out a little and reduce some of your workload.”
“Ho…”
So maybe I’ve raised a good Commander after all?
In the past, he had a tough time just handling his part, but now he was trying to think about me too.
That made me feel somewhat proud, and it cleared up the concerns I had been holding onto.
“There was really no need to keep it so secret. But… hearing you say so makes me feel good.”
“Ha… that’s a relief then.”
“Well, since we’ve been working on operations frequently lately, we have a bit of funds saved up, and I was thinking about hiring new agents, especially people who could contribute in various areas…”
Just as I was having this thought, the Commander was having the same one.
I was quite relieved to see he was doing better than before, and I was glad for him.
Maybe one day, I might actually end up receiving orders from him instead of the other way around… that would be really nice.
After all, it would seem a bit strange for a Vice Commander to handle tasks for everyone, including the Commander.
“Haha… ha…”
“Why are you sighing again? Was it really that hard to talk to me?”
“I was just a bit thirsty, that’s all.”
“I thought you might be secretly involved in some weird relationship without me knowing.”
I genuinely thought something was up.
But luckily, it turned out to be nothing.
“…Ha.”
But seriously, I couldn’t shake off my worry at how often the Commander was sighing today.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
