Our Office Is Open for Business (4)
Our Office Is Open for Business (4)
Gazes staring intently at my face.
Then, a quick glance upward.
Three pairs of eyes, seemingly comparing me to something above my head, moving at their own rhythms—it's like watching a wave at a stadium where nobody is in sync.
Just in case, I look up at my head too.... Hmm, there's nothing there.
Well, not exactly nothing. The old ceiling tiles, fitting for this old office, meet my gaze.
Looking at the patterns scribbled haphazardly, I feel like I might be able to read some kind of pattern, but they're so irregular and obscure that nothing special stands out.
Wait! That one is perfectly shaped like a seagull!
"I know it's a bit awkward to say this, but... is there a problem with my face?"
I asked the gazes that kept shifting between me and the space above my head.
I know this face, which isn't originally mine, is quite pretty, but it's not enough to cause everyone to react the same way in the middle of a conversation.
Besides, they're all pretty good-looking themselves.
Compared to that, the protagonist's face is, how should I put it, pretty but a bit plain? That kind of face.
Can't be helped.
In a gacha game, making people want to pull for a character is important, and therefore, the visible appearance is also important.
Of course, there are crazy stat-obsessed psychos who force themselves to pull ugly characters just for their stats, but one way or another, it has to be pretty to make people want to pull it.
If the protagonist is a peerless beauty in the midst of all that, wouldn't people just be satisfied with that?
It's not like I'll be looking at it often anyway, so whether it's plain or whatever, it's not that important.
Anyway, the gazes keep drifting to the top of my head, which is bothering me, so I ask indirectly, and Hwaran mumbles hesitantly.
"That is... um, sigh.... well."
"Above your head—."
"Something amazing appeared above Director-nim's head."
Beside Hwaran, Dolorence tries to answer energetically, but her turn is stolen by Seora's voice cutting in.
It's not like Dolorence has any special ability to explain it, and since all three of them are reacting similarly, it seems they were looking at the same thing.
In that case, it seems much more appropriate for Seora, the operator, to explain, so I nod.
"What do you mean by 'amazing'?"
"A bluish, semi-transparent window.... how should I put it, it feels like that 'Status Window' that's supposedly visible to special ability users."
Hearing Seora's explanation, it's definitely a Status Window.
But why can't I see it, and why can others see it?
"What does it say?"
"Hmm......, nothing special. Just some simple information about Director-nim. Like your name or age."
Ah. I was slightly excited for a second.
Even if it's a Status Window that others can see, couldn't it have added a few special abilities?
If it only has my name and age, it's just like carrying a giant ID card above my head.
A useless Status Window that just goes around exposing my personal information. I don't see the point of its existence.
"Come to think of it, Director. Why are there so many question marks on that Status Window?"
"Hmm?"
"Uh... isn't it just right next to the gender?"
I can't see my own status window, so that's that. But Seora and the other two have conflicting reactions.
"I can't even see the name."
"Me neither."
It seems like Seora doesn't see it because she already knows my name. I only introduced myself as Director to Hwaran and Dolorence.
The problem is, I don't know my own name either.
No, of course I know it.
My original name.
But isn't the name from before the possession different from the name here?
In the original work, there was never a proper name mentioned. The Director is just the Director, and the nickname I set is just for the purpose of distinguishing accounts, as is the case with other games.
Then what name should I give when I introduce myself?
My original name? The nickname I set?
If the nickname I set becomes my actual name, that would be quite troublesome.
For me, choosing a name is nothing more than a momentary prank, not something serious.
In a gacha game, a name is just an extra character added to the lines the characters recite; they don't actually read it out loud.
If that's the case, I'm the type who thinks it's better if it makes you chuckle every time you see it.
That's also why the office name is in this state.
Of course, there was the minor drawback that if the name I set appeared in a serious scene, it would break the immersion, but....
Anyway, since I couldn't be sure which one was my name here, I sent a look of help to Seora.
We don't even have a nameplate or business card to refer to right now.
Ah, is our office going to be okay like this?
Even if it's a shabby office, I'm still the Director, and a place like this needs something to boost its authority.
I'm not asking for a fancy mother-of-pearl carved nameplate, but isn't it a bit too much not to have a single common business card?
Noticing my gaze, Seora nods and opens her mouth on my behalf.
"The name of the Agabang Hunter Office Director is...."
Gulp.
The three people swallowed their saliva.
Hwaran and Dolorence. And me too.
The other two looked at me strangely, but I pretended it was nothing and focused on Seora's words.
"Agabang Guardian...!! It is."
"Aha. I see."
"Wow, the name on the Status Window above Director-nim's head just changed. It must update in real-time."
Aaaaah...!!
Unlike Hwaran, who looks at the top of my head with fascination, and Dolorence, who just nods as if it's just a name, I couldn't help but scream internally.
Past me!
I curse you!
To ruin a person's name for a moment's amusement!
Agabang Hunter Office Director Agabang Guardian.
What kind of.... what kind of bizarre and impure name is this, the likes of which the world has never seen!
Is a person's name a joke?
I was cursing the parent (me) who gave me the name to my heart's content, but the two people who actually heard my name didn't seem to care.
In games, you don't get special scripts just for having a weird name, so it might be a name that's understandable in the common sense of this world, but....
Goodness.
How can a person's name be 6 characters long? If you count 'A' as the surname, it's 5 characters.
Gabang-jikimi (Bag Guardian).
It sounds like a name that even the lamest of the lame monsters that swarm in groups would have.
My life is ruined.
I can let the possession into the game slide, but I can't let this slide.
I have to change my nickname or something.
Hmm... where do I get a nickname change ticket?
Should I just apply for a name change?
"Ah, Director-nim?"
"Just drop the 'A' and call me [Director]."
"I will."
It wasn't a big deal that my name was revealed.
At least they didn't look at me with contempt or have their favorability drop sharply, so maybe that's enough.
"Director-nim, what should we do now?"
"Actually, the main purpose of meeting today was to see the faces of the people I'll be working with on the operation. Don't feel too burdened, just go back and rest."
"Heh. To think you made this body come and go for such a trivial matter. The price for calling a busy person will be paid in full—."
"Dolorence-ssi, I think you should be thinking about the price of the door, not your own price."
Seora's cold words cut off Dolorence's bullshit at the source.
An A-class who came running immediately because they said they would call her even for a C-class operation, claiming to be busy. What nonsense.
"Alright, alright, let's meet next time. You may go back now."
"Hmph. See you next time."
Unlike Dolorence, who ran away in a flash, Hwaran was standing by the door, hesitating as if she had something left to say.
"Hwaran-ssi? Do you have something to say...?"
"I, if you have time, I was wondering if we could have dinner together......."
Hwaran's voice, which gets smaller in proportion to her confidence, is quite pitiful.
If you're a B-class ability user, you can have a little confidence.
Of course, in the game, she's a character who boasts a 0% usage rate except for the early story, but anyway, this is reality, isn't it?
Given our office's situation, we'd be at the level of bowing and serving a B-class.
According to the settings.
"Come to think of it, has it already gotten that late? Let's go get dinner. Seora-ssi, do you have time?"
"I still have work left. You two go ahead and eat."
"Don't be like that, come with us—."
"The previous operation result report, payment documents for temporarily hired ability users, drafting the estimated expenses for the next operation, the first-quarter office status report to be submitted to the Association... this is the list of reports that need to be submitted by tomorrow."
"Eek."
At the endless feast of report names, I hurriedly pushed Hwaran out the door and made my escape.
"Sorry! Please work hard!"
I can't stay behind for no reason and get buried in a pile of paperwork.
I don't even know exactly how this world works yet, and if I stay, I'll just be dead weight.
It's better to leave it to my capable and smart operator, Seora, and head home.
That's what a Director is supposed to do.
Check on the employees' condition, assign tasks to the right positions.
Hmm, hmm.
I'm definitely not worried about getting off work late.
"Hwaran-ssi, sorry to ask on our first meeting, but... do you know how to drink?"
"D, drink?"
"No, I don't mean getting wasted. Just having a drink with a meal."
I don't particularly like alcohol either, but there's nothing like it to break down the barriers between people.
Seeing that she's too nervous ahead of her first operation, I suggested it with the hope that it might help her relax and boost our intimacy, maybe even getting her to stick around our office permanently.
Wouldn't it be comfortable for a while if I could use her as a main force?