Our Newbie Listens Well, Works Hard, and Feels Soft When You Hug Him
"Jasmine unnie…"
"Hmm? Fruity. What is it?"
"I've… been thinking about it."
"Yes?"
"I, um, I still don't really understand what that cooking you mentioned before even is, but… I'll try to eat it. You're working so hard, so I should at least do something, right?"
"Uh…"
If she was going to say it with that teary, I-want-to-die expression plastered all over her face, she was just going to make herself look too pitiful.
If I actually made her eat it, I'd be the real piece of trash here.
Of course, the fact that she was willing to try even though she hated it so much was admirable in its own way.
"It's okay if you don't eat it, Fruity."
"But…"
I hadn't brought it up expecting her to eat it in the first place.
It had been closer to a complaint than anything else.
"I was planning to eat all of it myself anyway."
I said it with a bright little smile, and Fruity's expression twisted in a strange way. Then, all of a sudden, fat tears like chicken droppings started plopping down from her eyes.
Wow. I'd never seen Fruity make such a stupid face before.
"Th-that stuff… what did you say happens if you don't eat it?"
"Fruity, that would lead to an even more horrific ending."
There was so much I could extract from those people just by approaching them the right way.
Seriously speaking — if I failed to properly milk the resources out of this event, we'd get wrecked in the next Deadly Battle, which was basically a rehash of the previous one. And then our lives would go straight to a dogshit service termination.
"I-I'll somehow eat it with you…"
"Fruity. I said I'd do it. If it's going to be painful either way, then I'm the one who should handle it."
"…"
"Of course, if there were someone who could just casually eat it without a second thought, that would be different. But since there isn't, I was planning to eat it myself from the start."
"Unnie…"
I told her that if she had time to worry about that, she should focus harder on the work I'd asked her to do, and sent her on her way.
Honestly, I was so exhausted right now I felt like I was going to die.
That damned mint-chocolate monstrosity wasn't even on my radar.
"…Haa."
It felt like I'd gone back to working at a company.
To be honest, most of the work I'd done before the event had been so similar to the game that even when it was tiring, it still felt like there was a bit of rest mixed in — like I was just playing. That had made it bearable.
Sure, this world was reality, but after nearly two years of enjoying these actions as a game, this was still the period where it felt more fun than work.
But the work I was doing this time genuinely felt like corporate labor.
Set a budget, secure a venue, send notices to the nearby guilds. Then the guilds that didn't like the event would file protest complaints. And I'd have to respond to every single one of those complaints, patiently persuading them one by one. Endless, tedious work.
Fuck, no wonder nobody holds events.
The reason the Black Day event had been such a hit was that big events of this kind rarely got held here in the first place.
…Honestly, the desserts and dishes the organizers made and sold were all pretty horrific. Without that scarcity, people would have just gone looking for some other event.
"Good work."
"The fact that I didn't actually tear those bitches limb from limb counts as me putting in a lot of effort, right?"
"…When Jasmine says it that roughly, it somehow feels completely sincere."
Even so — when I said I was going to hold a Black Day event, there was one guild that started spouting nonsense about how it would interfere with building a world full of love that should be promoting Valentine's Day and White Day instead. That Black Day wasn't something to celebrate with an event, and that people who weren't in couples should spend the time reflecting and carefully reading books filled with love.
I'd looked at them like they were insane, and they'd said they felt sorry for me for not understanding the beauty of love, so I'd nearly actually started a fight.
Wow, seriously…
I'd let them off because they were a deputy-captain-level guild. If they'd been a captain-level guild and I'd had any dirt on them, I would have erased that guild from this world on the spot.
Since when was it something to brag about that Major Unit brats were off playing at romance instead of protecting this land?
I genuinely didn't get it.
And they themselves hold little events on Valentine's Day and White Day…
Sure, the scale was different. But the point was that they did hold events.
When I told them that if they were going to block the Black Day event, I'd erase those two events from the world, they finally shut up.
People who oppress others over the pettiest reasons always go quiet the moment they get oppressed in a similar way.
I was already dying of headaches over material rental issues and booth selection problems. Having weirdos like that constantly filing complaints was driving me up the wall.
"Wow, Jasmine, you really handled the work incredibly well."
"…What do you mean?"
"I mean, you carefully took care of all the little details I probably would have missed."
When I looked at something that seemed like it might become a problem, I just got a feeling for it.
Of course, most of that knowledge came from getting smacked around for those exact things before.
…Getting praised for that kind of thing made me feel like I was on my second round of corporate life.
"Haa… Looks like things have settled for now, right?"
"Yes. I'll review the notice one more time and post it. I don't think there will be any issues, though."
This event was fundamentally one where the Dessert Research Department would open booths themselves and sell desserts. But relative to the scale of the event we were aiming for, those booths were tiny.
So through a creative interpretation of the rules, I'd made it so that outside dessert booths could also apply.
Well, it was like that in the actual game too.
I deliberately hadn't told the Dessert Research Department about this fact.
Once all the work was finished, I'd show them the application forms and push it through by saying, "See, this interpretation is possible."
…Of course, those guys would probably just be happy about having more dessert varieties.
They love ordinary desserts just fine, after all.
I still didn't understand why every single dessert they made themselves turned into some kind of monstrosity.
To calm the rising irritation, I sipped hot chocolate and tried to drown my brain in as much sugar as possible.
That was when the protagonist, who had been watching something on the monitor, let out a peculiar little sound of admiration.
"Hmm…"
"Master? What are you watching so intently?"
"The footage from last time we fought."
"Footage?"
I had a habit of recording my combat sessions whenever possible so I could review my own play. I'd mentioned it to him briefly before, so he must have recorded the footage from the last Deadly Battle.
…Don't tell me he was studying so he could issue the commands himself?
"Yeah."
"…I might actually be moved."
A newbie who basically had everything spoon-fed to him and still couldn't learn — studying basic combat commands by watching replay footage without even being told to.
As a veteran, watching a newbie earnestly play the game was something that sent a thrilling sensation through you whether you liked it or not.
"Really? It's what I should be doing in the first place."
"That's true, but… honestly, you could just leave it to me and rest."
"…I don't want that."
Ah. Looking at the faintly angry expression on his face, I realized it belatedly.
The reason he'd suddenly started studying like this was because I'd tried to play a sacrificial run back then.
…He must have thought that if he got involved in the command process, he could stop that kind of thing at the order stage.
"I won't do that anymore."
"Really?"
"Yes."
Back then, my mental state had been shot in all kinds of ways, and I'd just been full of negative thoughts. That was all.
Honestly — what could possibly be more precious than my own life that I'd make a stupid choice like that?
"Anyway, I think it's a good thing. If Master helps out too, it can only be better."
"Yeah."
The process of asking me for the information I needed right then and conveying the judgment based on it wasn't ideal.
Right now I was covering for it by giving him the strategy guides in advance, but against a boss whose strategy changed wildly depending on the situation, the response would be far too slow.
From that point on, it could genuinely start having a negative effect on combat.
But if this guy got good at combat?
He'd brief me on the important information without me even having to ask. And for simple movements that I didn't need to judge myself, he'd make the call and issue the order immediately — so everything would get faster.
"If there's anything you don't understand, just ask. Even if I'm busy, it's better for me to teach you that kind of thing."
"Okay."
I couldn't exactly put off something this important just because I was busy.
But even though the work had gotten busier, this actually put me in a better mood.
Up until a moment ago, the problem hadn't been that the work was hard — it had been that I was doing shitty work, and that was what made it exhausting, hadn't it?
"You two are all lovey-dovey again today. Does Jasmine have some kind of power that seduces Master?"
"Powder, we're having a serious conversation. Don't talk nonsense."
That wasn't something the mama who charmed the player from the very start of the game had any right to say.
Tutorial Powder had such meme-level impact that putting a player's head on her lap and pressing her breasts against them had been a trend for a while.
"Ha, what should I do. Master, Jasmine is so cute — may I hug her?"
"No. She's mine."
"…Then please hug her so tightly it looks like you're going to smother her. I'll just enjoy it visually."
"What are you two even— mmph!?"
His solid body wrapped tightly around me — tight enough that I could feel just how soft my own body was.
Of course, since I was stronger, it was a fragile restraint that would shatter the moment I put even a little force into it.
But the thought of escaping didn't even surface in my brain.
"Haa…"
"Wow, she's incredibly cute."
"Don't look. You'll wear her out."
"Aww, that's so mean."
Haa. Being like this somehow felt healing.
Damn it, I really didn't want to work.
I just wanted to stay nestled in his arms, go back to the dorm, and sleep deeply.
"Are you that tired?"
"…You noticed?"
"Normally you'd only stay like that for a moment before starting to squirm."
"…"
When I got so tired that I could barely control myself, it felt like I was being pulled along by the instincts etched into this body.
Nestled in his arms like this, feeling as though I'd collapsed into a sweet flower field — I wanted to get drunk on this warm heat and fragrance and just melt away.
"I'm… really, truly sorry, but…"
"Yeah."
"Could I borrow Master's body for just a little while so I can sleep?"
"Of course. My body is Jasmine's."
…That was a pretty disgusting line.
That was my last thought before I completely lost to the curse of exhaustion and surrendered control of my body.