Tanaka Jiro, 28 years old, single
Her Suela Hendelberg　
　　　Memory Tris
Occupation Dungeon Tester (full-time)
Magical aptitude 8 (general class)
Post Warriors


Culture Festival is one of the school events that every Japanese person has experienced.
It is often heard that while the festival was fun, the preparation was more fun.
It may be because of the atmosphere of conviviality and solidarity among peers, and it may be because of the psychological atmosphere of the group, which I also experienced, so I do not deny it.
Now, why do I start talking about this all of a sudden?

"d*mn, there's nothing more boring than doing the prep work alone.

The ashtray was already a pile of cigarette handles that he had smoked up to this point.
I was aware that I was a heavy smoker, but since I had a girlfriend named Suela and Memoria and got a job as a physical dungeon tester, I should have smoked fewer cigarettes than before.
But after the reward for yesterday's hard work, a room date with Suela, the pile of work appeared in front of me again, as if to say "you know what you're doing".
I wanted to escape from reality when Document A appeared, Document B appeared, Document C appeared, and so on like some famous RPG that defeats the Demon King, blaring background music like some kind of Kômon-sama's song, saying that life is easy and life is hard.
And then, as if reminiscent of a demon king, the supervisor slowly appeared and said, "You're doing too much.

"That's too much.

He simply told me what happened yesterday with that one word, but without further warning, he handed me a document.
At first I got goosebumps thinking that the document was a termination notice, but then I realized that it was the opposite.
Notice of retraining
It seems that the number of testers other than myself who are questioning their abilities has increased due to this incident, and if we don't do something about it, there is a possibility that it will interfere with our work, and that we will reach our limit too soon.
In addition, the second batch of testers will be joining the company soon and it is said that the current situation is not good and they are going to make some changes.

You'll be able to get a better idea of what you can do. Well, this time there was a reason why we couldn't avoid it, but we can't keep going. We've seen the guys' inability to do things. I didn't think it would go that far.

I recognize Superintendent Evvia, who lets out a sigh.
That's the sense that I'm not happy about the extra work, even if I have to.
Isn't it strange that I'm the one in charge of this retraining program, though?
I'm sure the supervisor had a minimum number in mind, but I'm guessing he came in lower than expected.
Well, no matter how much he had been training, he didn't expect to wipe out all the dozen or so testers he had on his own.

"Give me a draft by next week. The rest is up to you, Suela and I.

After watching the back of the supervisor, who maintained a good and strong posture and did not lose her ability to work until the end, what was left was a systematic job of sitting at a desk and facing the computer without moving your body.
Well, you can't say "no" to instructions from a supervisor who has taken the initiative in completing a task like that.
That's why you have been working quietly.

While we were complaining, we had a framework, but now we have to decide how to go about it.

He stops his clattering fingers and grabs a cigarette from his mouth.
I checked the screen for spelling mistakes and style.
What I have in mind for retraining is to retrain them in a profession other than their current one, one that requires proximity and strength.
What they're missing is a fundamental improvement in their status and how they deal with their weaknesses at the range.
It's only in the game that specialization works; in reality, it's rarely enough to do the job.
Idols need to learn not only singing, but also dancing, talking, sales, maintaining body shape and many other things to become popular.
We know that, but

The question is, is this going to motivate them?

It's not a sudden change of department or position in the public eye.
I'm sure they thought they could get away with this one job.
It's impossible to imagine such a thing.
It's like using the first basic job to attack the last boss.
If you don't understand that, then there will definitely be complaints and if you're wrong, there will be retirements.
We know what we have to do.
The question is how much we can get them to do it without complaining.
When people are dissatisfied, their motivation will naturally diminish.
A supervisor would cut them down with a single word of pettiness and cut them off before they leave, but this does not nurture the talent.
Two common mistakes are not grasping the speed at which people underneath you grow up and always looking for an immediate response.
It is often seen in companies that disregard human resource development, that are stingy with labor costs and rush to replenish their staff when their heads are on the line, or that have a high turnover of people.
Supervisors seem to be very good at that kind of thing. They won't make a bad cut, but they will if they have to.
So I have to work hard to keep my boss from doing that.

"There's a limit to how much money you can spend on ...... and I don't have the authority to do that, and it's just going to be a scuffle. I don't get it, if you can do it, you won't be in any trouble.

Work is rarely done with conviction in the first place.
Once you understand and learn the ropes, all you have to do is do it.
There is no individual will of conviction involved.
No, there may be room for a certain amount of influx of people, but if you worry about that, your work will be slowed down.
So it's seen as redundant.

Ahhhhhh~

Strictly speaking, the number of people may decrease, and I don't know if making it slippery will help.
You think of solutions in the sense of a balance game, but you can't come up with anything good at all.
Your thoughts start spinning and scratching your head, but the itchiness just goes away and your worries never go away.
You've been working on your computer all day today, writing up reports and training plans, and now it's almost six o'clock in the evening.
After yesterday, I've told the other members that we're all on vacation, and since I'm the only one in the party room, there's no problem for me to make noise and scream like a madman.

Hmm?　Yes.

The chime there was a nice change of pace, so I straightened up and headed for the door.

"Suella?


How are you doing?

There was Suela.
No, it's a good thing that she was there

"The look
"Well, doesn't it look good?

She was not dressed in her usual suit, but in an indigo-colored yukata with several white streamlines drawn on it, as if she was inspired by a shooting star.
Her long hair was tied up and she had a hairpin ornament that looked good on her, even though she was brown.
Then I remembered.
As I recall, there was a festival today at a shrine near the place where I used to live.
That shrine is quite large and has fireworks.

No, it looks good.
Good.

You can see the frustration flowing out of you as Suela smiles at you with a sense of relief.
It has been proven that a beautiful woman has a healing effect.
I should have used more thoughtful words, but I envy myself for my clumsiness.

"I don't know if you're here to invite me to the festival ......, but there's no way Suela can go out there.

I thought it might be an invitation for a festival date that you came at this time in this outfit, but Suela and her friends can't act well in a space without magic power.
That was explained at the beginning.
Plus, it's Suela's appearance.
You won't find a long-eared dark elf anywhere on earth.
Maybe they just haven't been found, but I don't know, and they are not common.
She's a beautiful woman, and her being out in the open would only draw more attention, and I don't think this company, which strictly forbids the leakage of information, would give permission.
Keep a normal mind not to show your face over the cycle of self-satisfied and self-depressed.

We've got your permission.
"How is your body?

I kept it, but it doesn't seem to be a problem.
And then there's the magic deficit, which is the next concern.

"Yes, that ornate hairpin will accumulate magic power and disguise my appearance as a similar race on this earth using illusionary magic, so it's not a problem. However, the effect will wear off in about half a day so I have to leave before then.

That too has been resolved.
It seems that the magic and magic power are fixed in the emerald-like jewel attached to the accessory pierced in the hair and its body part.
To begin with, it seems that when they were distributing the flyers, they needed to send such people out, and although expensive, they have magic tools ready.
Of course, it is not something that can be used so easily, but the fact that they have it with them should not be a problem.

"Go inside and wait a bit, I'll get you some.
"Yes!

Then there's no reason for me to say no.
I was just choked up at the end of the day.
It wouldn't hurt to have a change of scenery here.
The gloom from earlier is gone, and I feel a little cheerful.
For now, I need to get ready too.
It's not good to keep them waiting in front of the room, and it's not like it's going to be a mess.
I'll invite Suela in and I'll head to the locker room.
It shouldn't take that long to get ready, unless it's too bad, but it's usually long enough or so.
Just a quick change of clothes and a quick wash is all it takes.

Here you go.
No, I just barged in.
"But still, let's go.
"Yes.

Still, it's not appropriate to keep a woman waiting.
I get ready quickly and call out to Suela, who was at the table looking over the work I was doing earlier, and she replies so calmly that I could tell she wasn't in a bad mood.
I walked out with her, car keys in hand.
I wouldn't have done it inside the company, but in the dormitory, I hold out my hand and he slowly takes it in his.
I feel its warmth, and we're connected, albeit only for a short time, to the parking lot.




"Wow, it's so bright in the evening.
"The company is also bright at night, right?
"The atmosphere is different,
"I see that too.

That's the land I was originally on.
I know it's crowded at night during the festival, and I have an idea of some nearby parking lots that would be free.
We arrived at our destination shrine in not much time.
The festival is in full swing in the evening, and many people are enjoying the festival by visiting the stalls along the approach to the shrine.
Since I moved to this area, I've seen this summer tradition many times, but it's been a long time since I've been able to visit a shrine like this since I entered the workforce.
As she climbed up the stairs of the shrine, she was delighted to see a scene that scattered the unusual air in her field of vision, and she pulled my hand and entered the flow of the scene.
The view is different just because you're with your girlfriend, Suela, instead of being alone.
I've always thought that all festivals have a similar style, but today is different.

I've read a lot about it in the literature, but the real thing is different.
"Is that too?
"Yes, I didn't realize it was so good.
"The old man in the stall was in quite a hurry, though.
I was already speaking Japanese very well.
"Ha ha!
Jiro-san laughed and didn't do anything.
I'm sorry.

Time is limited, so she walked out and the first thing she bought was a cotton candy that is familiar from the street stalls.
I was surprised and excited to see the process of making cotton candy and tried to buy it, but the owner of the store, who looked like a foreign woman from all angles, tried to use English in a hurry, while Suela was speaking in Japanese, so I couldn't carry on a conversation with her.
Seeing the difference in their language positions, I couldn't hold back my laughter and laughed, which made the owner calm down, but he was a little embarrassed and gave me a large handful of cotton candy to keep quiet, which was very impressive.
With that in hand, you slowly walked around the stalls and entered the store that Suela was interested in.

Oh, what's that?
"Is it a shot?
Is it called Shateki, or do you aim at the merchandise with that gun?　But I think that would shatter the product,


"It's not real, it's a toy, do you want to try?
"Yes!

The lineup is a lot more fancy than when I was a kid, but the gist is the same.
You set the cork in the barrel and launch it out with the air.
That's no different.
You pay the fee for two people to a young man who's probably a part-timer at a stall or something and he'll rush to pull out the cork.
But I'm not going to miss the fact that he's deliberately putting one more bullet in Suela's direction.
It doesn't seem right to be upset about it, so I'll distract myself by explaining to Suera how to do it, as well as test-firing one shot.

Do you need those instructions?
"Do you know Jiro-san?
"Yeah, I'll just put the cork in here and then I'll aim and shoot.

Feeling a sense of superiority in the young man's questioning of Suela, I dredge up memories of what I did in the past, take a stance and pull the trigger, and a light bang is heard, and the rummage cake in front of me falls down.

It goes something like this.
"I see.
Don't lean forward too far, the kimono will fall apart.
I understand.

I was relieved to see that the target was easily hit, perhaps due to the results of daily training or a heightened sense of perception, and I was able to stop the young man's evil plan to take a peek at me, and with my tongue clucking in my ear, I set my sights on my next prey with Suela.

''Hmmm... I'm sure the bow would be a hit.
"That would be the end of the store, but Suela never shot a gun before, so I guess that's that.
I'm sorry.

I can't help but laugh at Suela's raised eyebrows as she says she enjoyed it but was dissatisfied with the results.
I used my senses to gradually increase the level of the items, but Suela had a style of going for what she liked from the start.
I spent the first ramune pastry, followed by a slightly larger snack, and then two rounds, the last of which brought me a stuffed bear, which I thought would be a souvenir of the memoria.
In contrast, Suela consumed all six rounds of ammunition and ended up with the last flicked ramekins.

Shall we try again?
Well, let's go around and see if we have time.
Okay.

Naturally, Suela hugs my arm and walks away.
I've heard that the dark elf is single-minded, but to see her draw this much line of demarcation for other men, I can only say that she is a man's best friend.
The eyes of the men who have come to the festival have been on Suera since a while now, but she completely ignores their eyes.
The first man at the cotton candy shop was talking to her, but as the young man just now, he immediately distanced himself from her.
What man wouldn't be happy about that?
I'm a little embarrassed too, but I'm sure I want to stay like this forever.
I think what you just said means I want to have fun, but I don't have to go that far.
She had fun from there too.
Even now, she was puzzled at first by the paper thinness of the goldfish scoop, but the second time she used her natural dexterity to get a lot of them, surprising the store owner.

"Wow, you're amazing, have you been practicing somewhere?
No, I just kind of got the hang of it.
"Girlie awesome!　Hey, hey, how do I get better!
"Tell me about it!

The combination of her good-natured nature and the fact that her children are gathered around her and her appearance is not going to keep her from attracting attention.

You're irresistible.
"Are you jealous?
"Oh, I'm going to miss you with jealousy.
"Huh.

If you mix in a little bit of honesty with Suela, say sorry and ask the boy to give you some space.

"Brother, I can't show you how uncool you are if you do this much for me, ne'er-do-well.
"It's clumsy.

I don't have to tell you what she's going to do.
She's as bad at the details as she looks, but she can get at least one.
Slowly I crouch down, pay the money and take the poi.
I'll pay more at that point and get some for Suela and the kid, too.

You know what I'm talking about.
"Oh!　Big brother, big belly!
"Thanks!

Thanks to the presence of Suela, it's somewhat irritating to see a child honestly thank you in this way.
The girl observes the goldfish carefully as the boy tries to challenge her, and if she gives it to Suela, she begins to tell the girl how she feels about it.
Then I'll teach the boy.
I will gently scoop up one goldfish for the boy who breaks it early and give him a little damp poi.
Okay, I'll preface this with some tips and tricks.
The result of being able to do this is that the boy listens attentively.
If only the company was this obedient, we'll be able to observe the boy's behavior.
Now the boy takes his time and begins to observe.
Then, the boy thinks that this is the place, and he moves his hands and scoops up the goldfish he aimed for a little early, and as a result, the poi breaks.

The poi breaks.　Yay brother.

But there was one goldfish firmly in a small tub.

That's good.
"Oh!

Well, this one is done and I look at Suela, the girl on the other side apparently got it right too.
She turns to Suela and thanks her.

"Brothers, it's almost time for the fireworks, you okay?
Is it that time already?

I don't want to say that I failed, but the owner of the store told me that I should have looked at my watch, and it seems that more time has passed than I thought.
The fireworks are going to start in ten minutes.
I would have tried to move a little earlier to get a better spot, but at this hour, it's hard to do that.
I guess I was more excited than I thought, too.
Now what to do.
There's probably already a good spot occupied.


It's awkward to watch the fireworks in a crowd.
You're pondering whether you should watch them at a farther distance, but at a deserted place, when you feel the hem of your dress being pulled downward with a whimper.
As you do so, your gaze goes down.

Are you going to watch the fireworks, bro?
"Oh.
"Then there's a good place for you!

I think I've had a lucky break today.
Maybe it's out of loyalty, or maybe it's a thank you for that goldfish, or maybe it's to show me a hidden spot for the annual fireworks display.

Can we go there?
Okay, I'm starting to feel like there's a little too much eye contact here.

A foreigner is a rare but beautiful Suela.
It would be uncomfortable to watch the fireworks with all these men there, even more than before.
Then, please, I trusted the child's words and followed him to an old park.
It seems to be behind a shrine, so it's a little high up.
It's opposite the fireworks, and although there are some people in the park, it's definitely more empty than the festival site.
There are some benches and empty seats.

This is the place, bro!
Which way do I see the fireworks?
"Over there!

Look towards the point.
And at the same time, flowers bloom in the night sky.
d*mn good timing.

Beautiful.
"Yeah, it's been a while,

The frolicking air between the boy and the girl doesn't even bother them now.
Suela is mesmerized by the first fireworks she's ever seen and can't take her eyes off the night sky.
She doesn't remove her hand from my arm and continues to watch the fireworks for a while.
Then it occurred to me that I hadn't had a chance to make time for work, work, and this lately.
I guess I just haven't had the time to do it.
Maybe I was just nervously nervous about being selected for a new position.
I feel that the fireworks make me feel relaxed.

Thank you, Suela.
What do you mean?
No, that's just what I was trying to say.

My thanks to her for being so understanding, but I'm sure she heard me, even though her words were lost in the sound of fireworks.
Tomorrow I might have to work again, but I felt like I could handle it.

Tanaka Jiro, twenty-eight years old, single
Her Suela Hendelberg　
　　　Memory Tris
Occupation Dungeon Tester (full-time)
Magical aptitude 8 (general class)
Post Warriors

Word of the Day

Sometimes a change of pace is necessary?