Producer ②
To regain my confidence, I pampered myself. If I needed to be pampered, there was a punching bag that came to mind. I wanted to recharge that guy with the missing amount.
“If it’s too much time for the guild master, then I’ll go back.”
“I’m fine with more time with Siha—”
But just as I was about to slip out behind Miho,
“Guild Master Miho!”
A girl burst through the door and entered the room.
Her arrival increased the population density inside.
“Hm?”
She was a girl with a stern expression.
Small in stature but tough.
Neatly cut bob haircut and impeccably dressed.
She had the image of a student council president strict on regulations.
“Guild Master Miho, there’s no time for this. I have to attend an internal meeting soon.”
“Oh my, the administrative adjutant showed up when I mentioned you.”
Miho chuckled at the girl who was fussing.
“···Administrative adjutant?”
A word that would make a conscripted girl react.
I tilted my head at the unusual title.
“It’s not administrative adjutant. It’s the administrative adjutant to Guild Master Miho.”
The girl opened her mouth with a smug face.
“Administrative adjutant sounds better than administrative adjutant.”
The girl who was teased by Miho got angry.
“It’s not! I am the secretary assisting the guild administration of Nine Tails! I am definitely not an administrative adjutant!”
“Even so, in Nine Tails, everyone is called administrative adjutant? Because she’s like the mother of the guild.”
“Guild Master Miho, please don’t say unnecessary words to outsiders!”
The girl growled aggressively.
Suddenly, the story Miho told me came to mind.
The adjutant who likes Guild Master’s chest so much is this person······.
A face far from being pampered. Unexpected.
Hard to manage expression. I imagined the situation unconsciously, and the corners of my mouth loosened.
Dangerous. I almost laughed.
“From what I see, you must be Seol Siha. Krrruuur!”
The administrative adjutant glared at me with a fierce face.
Like facing a sworn enemy on a single bridge.
“Have we met before?”
“Hmph. Officially, no. Probably this is the first time you see me. You and I are destined to clash. To be honest, I don’t think highly of you. Every time Guild Master Miho spills your stories······.”
“Ah, um······. Administrative Adjutant?”
I wanted to leave before the story got long.
Hesitating on the title, I followed Miho’s way.
“Gyaaaaaak-!!!”
Then the administrative adjutant exploded like being provoked.
She took a boxing stance like a squirrel raising front paws.
“Don’t call me that. And stop clinging to Guild Master Miho anymore, you scoundrel!”
The administrative adjutant was furious, spitting fire from her mouth.
But due to her small body, it didn’t feel violent.
Like a hamster delivering body punches.
Feeling the cute movements of a toy festival.
What to do. I want to get close to this person.
If I knew that the desire for friendship is triggered by similar height, I would be angry.
It would make sense why this girl is teased as administrative adjutant inside the guild.
The reaction is disproportionate.
“So, Siha, see you next time. Bye bye.”
“Release me, Guild Master Miho! Today, I will definitely express my opinion to this human!”
“Wait, don’t. It’s time for the meeting.”
While Miho was stopping the administrative adjutant, I slipped out of the room.
If I meet her again, I want to pat her head.
I discovered a small adult for the first time in a long time.
Like finding an oasis in the harsh desert.
It feels like my heart is being purified. Like healing my heart at an animal cafe. ······Oops.
This is not the time. I was too relaxed.
Aware of the main purpose, I moved to the auditorium.
A vast auditorium.
I took my seat on the 3rd floor designated as the observation seat.
A view overlooking the entire auditorium.
In the distance, examinees receiving basic physical strength measurement.
The qualification test seemed to start with physical strength test.
Then, I’ll take a mock raid test in a virtual dungeon.
Most cases, the outcome is determined at the mock raid stage.
Sometimes additional tests are given.
In that case, it's not to determine pass/fail.
It's just a bonus stage.
An additional test to quickly promote to hunter rank due to outstanding skill.
I heard it’s extremely rare.
I carefully observed the examinees from the observation seat.
A group of examinees showing off their skills.
···Hmm?
One girl caught my eye.
A face wandering pitifully and a body shrunk with tension.
A beanie hat was noticeable.
Inside the hat is bulging. Hmmmm······. What is it.
The hat popped out like hiding something.
And occasionally it moves like a living thing, twitching.
A beanie that asserts itself like a magic hat hiding a pigeon.
Annoying. I want to know what's inside, so it's itching.
The girl didn't stand out in skill.
Like a soft-eyed person mixed in the falcon group.
She was the role of always falling behind in group tests.
A girl out of everyone's attention.
But I watched that girl closely.
Although skill was lacking, she was doing her best.
She was desperately trying hard.
Her enthusiasm touched my heart.
Of course, passing is not overcome by enthusiasm alone.
Eventually, the girl finished the measurement and was eliminated from the group.
She was disqualified due to failing the physical strength standard.
The girl with drooping shoulders staggered out of the test site.
The pathetic exit of the disappointed girl.
My steps quickened.
I have to follow that kid.
After confirming the exit the girl took, I went down the stairs.
I want to talk to that kid.
I want to explain Affection's Touch and designate the girl as the target of the ability.
It could be dismissed as nonsense.
It was likely to be rejected.
But there was enough value to try.
Even if rejected, I want to ask at least one thing.
The reason the hat inside was twitching during the test.
I had to know that for sure. Very curious.
Where did she go······? Ugh, I can't see!
I breathed heavily and looked around.
But the girl's figure was not visible.
My physical strength was at limit, but my impatient heart whipped my body.
I accelerated my creaking steps to chase the girl.
“Ah!”
And finally found her.
The sight of a girl clinging to some man.
Instinctively, I got a premonition.
Another guild had approached the girl.
But it's strange.
A guild targeting an examinee who failed the physical test.
Coolly, the girl's skill was below expectation.
“Wait a minute!”
Although a latecomer, I had to have a chance too.
I hurriedly joined the conversation between the two.
“Huh, eh!?”
The girl's scream from the sudden intrusion.
A face like a rabbit encountering a predator.
The man on the opposite side, who seemed to be a guild relations person from the other guild,
···Ugh.
I knew the face.
Among the many guilds, it was Black Wolf.
I am a notorious figure of Black Wolf in a bad sense.
Since becoming a woman, there was no employee who didn't know me.
The man would know me well.
I also knew their pathetic tricks well.
“You received an offer to join as a probationary employee, right?”
I asked the girl.
Although I didn't hear the conversation, the intent was obvious.
“I probably heard that as a hunter, your skill is lacking. This man said that if you gain experience in the field as a probationary, your skill will improve quickly.”
The girl nodded with wide eyes.
Black Wolf's typical recruitment method.
They recruit trainees and hire them as probationary employees.
They exploit them with low pay and then fire them.
The work is trivial guild work unrelated to hunters.
They exploit the opponent's desperate heart and take the cream.
“Seol Siha, meddling in someone else's business here is problematic. This is business interference, right?”
The man shot me with a nasty face.
“It’s all lies. Black Wolf is deceiving hunter trainees with sweet talk.”
Whether or not. I told the girl the truth.
The girl backed away from the man as if guarding against him.
“Don’t laugh! This woman is spreading false information because she has a bad feeling about Black Wolf!”
“Black Wolf isn't bad in public opinion these days? It doesn't seem like you have the mind to self-regulate.”
The man's face distorted from the taunt.
The man glared at me as if he wanted to bite me.
“Siha, I'm giving this person a chance. Honestly, as a hunter, you're lacking in ability. If you step on the threshold as a hunter like this?”
“Possible. I’ll make it so.”
I declared with confident voice.
The girl looked at me with a surprised face.
“Hah. It’s funny. I’ve seen many trainees like you. People who won’t become hunters won’t become hunters for life. That’s what a hunter is.”
It felt like she was pressing on me.
You can't be a hunter.
If I thought I was cornering me, I was mistaken.
“Deciding whether you can or not is not up to you. It’s the one who wants to become a hunter.”
Don’t belittle the value of others lightly.
I glared fiercely at the man.
“···”
Eventually, the girl stood by my side.
Like supporting my opinion with distance.