Commander, Returned (Against Her Will)
Was dropping a game just to live my actual life really such a terrible crime? Or was the real mistake reinstalling it once that life had finally settled down?
It was a mobile game I'd been playing since my college days: Phirma. In it, you assumed the role of Commander of a vast military corporation, tasked with resolving the major incidents unfolding across the Continent.
The story was as generic as they came. But between Phirma's distinctive modern-fantasy setting and character designs that hit my tastes dead-on, I came to my senses one day to find myself among the handful of remaining players, absolutely devouring the endgame content.
I eventually reached that infamous rank of veteran stagnation, stale reek and all, and even wrote a few strategy guides in the hope of drawing in some new blood. Then the real-life gauntlet of certification exams, job hunting, and actual employment finally pried it from my hands.
I'd poured my life into it once. Of all the games that had passed through my hands, it was still the first I'd come back to — I had that much affection for it even now.
...Of course, that didn't mean I wanted to become the protagonist.
"Ah..."
A figure was reflected in the black screen of a powered-off monitor. Shoulder-length hair. Foxlike eyes. A sweet, high voice slipping out from a sigh she couldn't quite swallow. Below that, a uniform, and hanging at her chest an employee ID that confirmed her identity — a title stamped in small letters.
No matter how many times I looked, I couldn't get used to it. Was I having some bizarre dream?
When I opened my mouth, she opened hers at the same time. When I tilted my head, she tilted hers too. I raised a hand — she raised hers. I pinched my cheek — she pinched hers...
Ah— that hurts...
It wasn't a dream. I would have preferred that it was, but the dull ache spreading through my cheek made it painfully clear that this was reality.
...Anyway. Moving on.
So that pretty woman reflected in the pitch-black screen... was me?
Wait. Hold on. This game...
"The Commander... was a woman?"
It had never been officially confirmed, but I'd been certain the Commander was a man. You could dress it up however you liked — at the end of the day, every usable character was a woman. Anyone could tell it was a game aimed at a male audience.
On top of that, some of the characters had lines that were outright love confessions directed at the protagonist. Which is why, in fan art, the Commander was almost always drawn as a man. It just made more sense that way.
...I'd learned something new, and I wasn't happy about it at all. I'd wanted to encounter this in some official lore dump from the developers, not experience it firsthand. The method was just too vicious — especially since there was no way back to reality.
That last part... well, there was nothing I could do about it right now, so I'd set it aside.
"Was this place always like this...?"
I understood that I'd woken up in a familiar office I'd seen through the screen countless times. What I didn't understand was this: on the wide desk that filled the room, aside from a computer that had presumably belonged to the original Commander... there was nothing.
That's right. Nothing at all.
...Why isn't there anything?
Just yesterday I'd been snickering at the mountain of paperwork always piled up on that screen, thinking it wasn't my problem. Now that it was my problem, the work that should have been here was nowhere to be found, and the poor desk just sat there gleaming, showing off how clean it was.
Had the original owner of this body been that good at her job? Even so, you'd expect at least some office supplies. Calling this a blessing would be a stretch — there were too many things that felt off. I was already rattled enough from being dropped into someone else's body. Shouldn't someone at least fill me in on the situation? Was there no tutorial...?
Even in the midst of all that confusion, I was piecing together my own theories when a knock came at the door, followed by a voice I'd heard somewhere before.
"Commander, are you in?"
This was my chance. The natural formality in her speech meant that even if she wasn't a character I knew well, she was at least an employee here. Alright. I'd play it cool, feel out the situation, and casually ask her what was going on...
"Haa... of course she isn't here. I'm coming in."
Huh?
I'm in here, though?
But before I could even respond, the door swung open.
What came into view a moment later was rich brown hair, and a rather short-cut maid uniform that left her pale shoulders and long legs on full display. An outfit I knew well.
...And then.
"...Huh?"
The moment she confirmed it was me, her expression slowly froze. The cleaning supplies she'd been cradling so carefully dropped to the floor with a thud.
...Ah. Don't tell me.
"...Commander?"
"...Hey."
"Is it really you, Commander?"
I greeted her awkwardly, and her frozen expression began to crumple. Then moisture slowly gathered in her light-brown eyes... and she threw herself at me.
"Where on earth have you been... hic, you're finally back...!"
"W-wait... I can't... breathe..."
"You didn't even say a word... do you have any idea how worried I was...?!"
...It would seem the Commander of this place had been missing for quite some time.
...For about as long as I had dropped the game.