Commander, Work Begins
To cut to the chase, the amnesia-cosplay operation had been extremely effective. In less than a day, I'd managed to settle on at least an immediate course of action. Charting a course all the way to the distant future was still beyond me, of course.
The problem was... it might have worked a little too well.
"Uugghh..."
The moment I made it back to the room designated as the Commander's private quarters, I flung myself onto the bed. I hadn't even taken off my uniform yet — a rather irreverent thing to do — but I couldn't have cared less. Or rather... I simply didn't have it in me to care.
I'm going to die like this...
I was so exhausted that I couldn't have cared less if the neatly made sheets got dusty. And no wonder. Being dragged around by Rielly on a full-day tour of the company had been an ordeal beyond anything I'd imagined. Not that I could have told her to stop. The look on her face at the time had been so grimly determined that I hadn't had the heart to hold her back.
...If that had been all, it would have just been physically exhausting. But running into other operatives along the way had been inevitable, and their reactions were... well. Not all that different from the first time.
Which was exactly the problem.
This woman... just what the hell did she get up to around here...?
I hadn't even been in this body for a full day, and already I couldn't help but wonder. I mean, how was it that every single person I met had the exact same reaction? Had she been using some kind of hypnosis app? Because otherwise, why would everyone — from faces I knew well to complete extras — throw their arms around me and start crying? Two years or not, this was still a bit much.
Two years... was that it?
"...Two years, huh."
Since I'd come back to my account. Every operative I'd come face-to-face with had said the same thing — that my return marked exactly two years since the Commander had left. And coincidentally, the day I'd quit the game had been exactly two years ago as well.
If I simply couldn't remember the date, that would be one thing. But I'd cracked a joke to myself before launching the game — it being the two-year anniversary, maybe they'd give me something. So that couldn't be a coincidence.
...I never thought the welcome-back gift would be a kick in the teeth. What kind of welcome is that?
"Haaah."
The heavens really don't give a damn. If they were going to possess me into someone, they could've at least dropped me at the start of the story. Instead they dumped me into an account that had already steamrolled through every last side story. What am I even supposed to do with that?
In novels, people always know the future even if they don't have any powers. Me? I have to carve out everything myself, on my own two feet. They could've at least shown me the patch notes before stuffing me in here. I didn't even get a look at the title screen, and they just dragged me in. What's that about?
...That's enough self-pity. Still lying down, I turned my head and slowly took in the room.
It was spotless — not a speck of dust, so someone had clearly kept it up while I was gone — but the space had a strangely desolate air. The previous occupant hadn't been the decorating type, apparently. There wasn't a single ornament or personal touch to be found.
That said, this was a place that never even appeared in the game... so why did it feel so familiar? Had I already started assimilating with her, just from being in the Commander's body? Weird.
...Even though I, of all people, could never actually become her.
"...Haa."
A sigh escaped me as a deep, formless helplessness welled up from somewhere far below. Two years. By now, they should have been starting to get used to someone's absence. And I'd gone and given them hope out of nowhere.
I'd fudged it with a story about amnesia, but in the end, everyone in this company would project the Commander onto me, whether they meant to or not. Ordinarily, no matter how much they tried to get close, the right thing would be for me to draw a firm line. Never mind that she and I were clearly different people — more than that, I'd fallen into this place for reasons I didn't understand. I could snap back to reality at any moment, and it wouldn't even be strange. Better not to get close in the first place than to leave someone with lingering attachments.
Yeah. I knew that was the right call. But...
"...That would just be cruel."
I remembered the dying light in the operatives' eyes coming back to life as I walked through the company. I remembered the warmth of their arms around me. I remembered the tears they shed. Having felt the weight of that, I couldn't bring myself to push them away. To crush with my own hands the hope they'd barely managed to reclaim... that would be too harsh.
...So.
"Just a little... should be fine."
Going forward, rather than batting away every outstretched hand, I decided I'd accept them to a degree. I'd still have to rein things in if it got excessive, of course... but we were superior and subordinates. They wouldn't come on that strong, right?
And who knows? If I treated them as myself rather than as the Commander... maybe they'd come to accept that she and I were different people. If that happened... a happy little isekai life might not be such a pipe dream. I'd grumbled plenty, but at the end of the day, this was a game I'd loved. Even if I did leave, we'd be able to part with a smile.
...Alright. Shower, then sleep.
I needed rest if I was going to do anything tomorrow. Grunting, I heaved my thoroughly exhausted body upright, flicked the buttons of my uniform loose one by one, and made my way toward the bathroom. The dress shirt and trousers were so soaked with sweat they were hard to peel off... but with a bit of force, they came free. I was completely drained, but there was no helping it. Sleeping like this would only make things worse.
Ziiing—
...Learning that someone had been watching it all would be a matter for the distant future.
"Nnngh..."
...How long had I slept?
For the first time in ages, I'd gotten a proper night's rest. I sat up, fighting off the bed's siren song to stay just a little longer. Maybe it was the mattress — incomparably plush compared to anything in the real world. Not a single ache in my body, and the fatigue had vanished without a trace. So this is what it feels like to actually sleep well. Nice.
"Still plenty of time..."
I cracked my eyelids and checked the clock. Six-thirty in the morning. I'd been told I just needed to be in by eight, so I had more than enough time — time to spare, even. Being able to take my time getting ready without a shred of worry about being late... that was a luxury I could never have dreamed of in the real world. Climb the ladder and the body really does have it easier.
...The direction that promotion took is a little weird, but whatever. It'd all disappear once I went back to reality anyway. Might as well enjoy everything I could.
...I'd have to work for it, of course.
"...Work, even here."
Still. I should go.
I peeled back the fluffy blanket still covering me, revealing the pajamas underneath. I'd dug them out of the closet after showering last night, and they were actually pretty decent. The feel of the fabric against my skin wasn't bad, either. And they had long sleeves.
...That was the most important part.
I should have known from the complete lack of decorations in the room. Whoever the original owner was, thank you for living without any sense of style. ...It might sound like I'm making a fuss over pajamas, but from my perspective, this was a serious matter. In that regard, I was genuinely lucky. I wouldn't have to force myself to adapt to clothes with barely any fabric. How was I supposed to put on one of those negligees they pass off as women's sleepwear with a straight face? I'd rather sleep in a bathrobe.
"...What am I even thinking."
...Time to get ready for work.
After a quick shower and the rest of my morning routine, I stood in front of the full-length mirror in the corner of the room. What greeted me was... a beautiful woman with a dark black bob. And with the crisp uniform on top of that, she cut a rather impressive figure.
In a word...
Perfect.
I'd grunted and struggled a bit, but I'd managed to get everything on. And it looked fine, too. ...Not the "this is probably good enough" feeling you get right before turning in an assignment. I actually looked properly dressed. Putting on the underwear had been a bit of an ordeal... but even if I put it on weird, nobody would see it, so it didn't matter... right?
"Hoo."
Last of all, I gave both cheeks a sharp slap to steel myself.
Remember. I'd decided to allow the operatives' feelings to a certain extent... but that was just pulling the line I'd drawn a little closer. For the time being, I still needed to keep my distance from them. Until I was certain I was going to live here for the rest of my life, I absolutely could not cross that line. Because I was a foreign object that, by all rights, shouldn't exist in this place — an outsider who could be sent back at any moment. I was the Commander, for crying out loud. I wasn't about to drive a knife into my operatives' hearts a second time.
"Let's do this right."
If at all possible... without anyone getting hurt.
...That was the resolution I'd made this very morning.
"Um... Rielly?"
"Yes, Commander."
"Could you, uh, maybe let go now? I'm having trouble concentrating..."
"I cannot."
How... did it come to this...?
The start had been perfectly ordinary. My first day at work, a mountain of unfamiliar documents piled high... but somehow, I just knew what needed to be done and how to do it. Was this another effect of becoming the Commander? Between that and the déjà vu in my room, I kept getting the feeling that it wasn't purely me inhabiting this body.
That was a question for later, though. I hadn't even needed to adjust to the work. I'd been tearing through the backlog at a clip that would've had me clocking out before noon—
"Pardon the interruption."
"Hwah?! R-Rielly?"
...Until Rielly, who had been quietly watching the whole process, decided to occupy my seat.
Wait. Then where was I supposed to be working?
"Y-you don't have to do this... just let me down, okay...?"
"I'm perfectly fine, so please don't concern yourself."
"That's not the issue hereee...!"
...On Rielly's lap.