New Recruit Training (2)
Inside the Bus Whale, I pulled out the snack Idun had given me.
"Banana~, banana~!"
I peeled it and started savoring the banana. Idun had said her hobby was farming, and the bananas she'd grown were genuinely excellent.
"Mmmnh♡ So good~."
There was only one, so I was sucking on it slowly like a piece of candy to make the flavor last — when someone spoke up beside me.
"Whoa. I've never seen a Fairy eat a banana like that. Wait — scratch that. I've never seen any Alf eat a banana like that!"
She was a woman with a tanned complexion, dressed in something that looked like a modified Japanese yukata. And she clearly wasn't wearing a bra — her chest was on full, unapologetic display.
"And you are?"
"Oh, I'm Luna. Race-wise, I'm an Imp."
An Imp. By my old-world knowledge that meant a little lesser demon, but according to Idun's explanation they were still a type of Alf — so she counted as a fairy either way.
"Do you always go around like that?"
I asked, eyes drifting toward her chest. Luna followed my gaze, then smiled.
"Bras are kinda stuffy. Plus it's cooler this way, and it's not like any of the Alfs care."
"Ah. Fair enough."
If she was comfortable, it wasn't my place to lecture her. And the view wasn't exactly a hardship, so I decided not to push it.
"I'm Oberia. Race: Fairy."
"Nice to meet you, Oberia."
Talking with Luna, I found we got along pretty well. She was the sociable type. Me, I don't mind people — no, Alfs — who are easy to get along with. If anything, I'm the kind of person who will get friendly if the chance is there.
"You used to be human?"
"Yeah."
"Weird. Usually when people die they become Reincarnators."
"What exactly is a Reincarnator, though? Section Chief Idun mentioned it, but I never got a clear picture."
"Ah, a Reincarnator is, well—"
Luna launched into an explanation. A Reincarnator was, literally, a human who had undergone reincarnation. Each one was reborn with some special talent, and the company I'd joined — the Support Fairy Company — was in the business of dispatching Alfs to support those Reincarnators.
"Then why is it called the Fairy Company? Fairies are just one race under Alf. Shouldn't it be the Alf Company?"
That had been bothering me. There were all kinds of Alf races here, not just Fairies.
"That's because the company's Representative Director is the Fairy King. And the Fairy King's race is Fairy."
"Ah. Got it."
So he'd stamped his own identity onto the company. Well — he was the boss. Not much you could say about that.
"I've got another question."
"Sure, ask away."
"Are there no male Alfs?"
That was the bigger mystery — bigger than the company name. I hadn't seen everything, but I'd wandered the office before leaving for training today, and every single employee I'd spotted had been female. Not a male staffer in sight. That was strange enough to ask about.
"I'd love to say it's because only female Alfs can do support work, but the truth is Alfs themselves are only ever born female."
"Really?"
That was genuinely surprising. The entire racial category of Alf didn't even include the concept of males.
Well. Not a problem for me, personally.
If I was going to be looking at people all day, cute or pretty women beat plain men any time.
"Then… this is going to sound weird, but how do you reproduce?"
"Yeah, 'reproduce' does sound a little weird when you put it like that. I'd have to explain how Alfs are born. We don't come from fertilization the way humans do. Alfs are born from the branches of the World Tree. In short, the World Tree is every Alf's mother."
"Ahh!"
That made sense. Even in novels, elves were sometimes said to be born from a World Tree.
"From each branch, you said?"
"Yep. Different races are born from different branches. And demon-type Alfs like me — Imps — are born from the roots instead of the branches."
Talking with Luna, I felt like I was picking up a lot of useful knowledge. We chatted so intently that before I knew it, the Bus Whale had arrived at our destination.
Oberia and Luna followed their escort, Sindri, into the grand auditorium. Once the new Alf recruits from every Bus Whale had filed in and taken their seats, the lights went out — and a spotlight bloomed across the stage.
"Hello, everyone!"
The curtains parted, and a woman with light blue hair revealed herself in a thoroughly bizarre pose.
"Whoa…"
Oberia couldn't help but stare in admiration.
Bold pose.
It was an extremely bold pose — and that wasn't all.
The outfit's bold, too.
She was wearing a micro bikini with even less fabric than a normal bikini.
I'd give her an 84.
That middling score came from a faint sense of regret — if only she'd gone a little further.
"My name is Pluton. Race: Elf. And I'm the Director of this new-recruit training center."
The woman introduced herself as the training center's director and gave her name as Pluton.
"Luna, are Elves always that… shameless?"
"Alfs in general are pretty open-minded, and Elves especially so. But Director Pluton is considered an eccentric even among Elves."
"Ohh."
An eccentric? Even better. In that moment, Oberia's internal score for Pluton jumped another six points.
"Starting with this training session, all new recruits will complete the program in the same outfit I'm wearing right now."
Pluton said this as she produced a sample micro bikini she'd brought along.
"I pushed hard for this policy myself. Well? Didn't I do great?"
She said it as if she were fishing for praise — and one Alf with a contrarian streak spoke up.
"If we wear that, won't we end up as shameless as you, Director?"
At those words, Pluton's face went rapturous. She twisted her body, writhing — and liquid began to trickle steadily from between her thighs.
Did she just… finish?
Looking at her, Oberia was certain: that was the aftermath of an orgasm.
"Hnnngh♥ Verbal abuse isn't bad either, but this is explanation time, so please restrain yourselves. Fufu♥"
"Luna, I get why they call her an eccentric now."
"I'd only heard the rumors, but seeing it in person… yeah. Same."
Oberia and Luna both understood, firsthand, why Pluton had that reputation.
"It's called new-recruit training, but really you just learn the basics and then play. Simple, right? It's Freeeedom~!"
Pluton declared that any further explanation would be pedantic and boring, wrapped the whole thing up in a genuine five minutes, ordered the escorts to assign dorm rooms, and vanished from the stage.
The training center was large enough that the dorms were assigned two to a room. And fate, it seemed, had made Luna my roommate.
"Whoa, I get to room with Oberia! I'm so happy!"
"I'm happy too. By the way — what's this Bubble Party on tonight's schedule?"
"Beats me? The venue's the pool, so maybe some kind of water play? We did get these outfits, after all."
"Probably."
Luna and I changed into the issued micro bikinis. The way the fabric brushed against my nipples felt… surprisingly good. Cool and open, at any rate. Not bad at all.
"Well?"
Luna struck a pose in her bikini and asked for my opinion. I scanned her from head to toe, then popped up a thumbs-up.
"Looks good."
"Heh. It suits you too, Oberia."
We traded compliments on each other's outfits. There was nothing scheduled until evening, so we decided to wander the grounds and stretch our legs.
"This place is seriously huge."
"I heard the Fairy King poured a ton of money into it. Something about locking down a new hire's heart from day one."
"He really is serious about the benefits, huh."
I figure benefits are one of the most important reasons people stick with a company. Granted, I'd never actually worked a corporate job before joining this one — but "good benefits mean longer tenure" is just common sense.
"Oh. A billiards hall."
While we were wandering, we found a proper billiards room — cushion tables for three-cushion and four-ball, plus pocket tables for pool.
"How about it? One game?"
"Sure. What are we playing?"
"Three-cushion. And let's make it a bet."
"A bet's fine. What are we putting up?"
"How about a wish ticket? Something you can hold onto and cash in later. Feels like the best kind of stake."
"Heh. Wish ticket. I like it."
Billiards. It really had been a long time. After learning from my master, I hadn't had anyone to play with, so it was fair to say I basically never played.
One more item off the wish list.
The wish list item "play billiards with a coworker" — achieved.
The result of our wagered game was, of course, my victory.
"Ugh… Oberia, you're actually really good."
"You weren't bad either, Luna."
"Ah, look at the time. We've got the evening schedule right after dinner — we should hurry."
"Yeah."
After dinner, every Alf gathered at the pool. Calling it a pool was underselling it — the place was practically a water park.
"Konbanwa, Pluton desu wa!"
Pluton made a dazzling entrance, flipping through the air under glittering lights. She glanced over the Alfs, and they reluctantly clapped for her. Basking in that (forced) applause, she addressed the crowd.
"Some of you were probably confused that tonight's schedule wasn't written out clearly on the itinerary. That was so I could explain it myself, so bear with me. Tonight's event is called the Frenzied Bubble Party. A free-for-all night pool party — hug each other, play in the water, bite and suck, whatever you want. So — everybody party time start!"
At Pluton's declaration, the first evening of new-recruit training began.