Mimata Chieri

"About acquiring that PMC. Have you decided which one you're taking over?"

"I've got a few places in mind, but I need to look into them more thoroughly. I'm still waiting for the secretary Grandpa promised to introduce me to. I don't have the qualifications to handle it on my own."

Taira Danjo exploded at my answer. "You idiot! You should be checking whether there are any PMCs worth buying even without a secretary!"

In truth, I'd claimed I had nothing specific in mind just to avoid feeding my grandfather any information about the PMC I actually planned to buy. The old man really did have a foul temper….

"You must have somewhere in mind, you fool! I am the chairman of the Taira Group! Do you honestly think Taira Danjo would stoop to stealing some hole-in-the-wall shop you've set your sights on?"

"It's not like that…."

Actually, he was right. Even if it was a tiny ten-man PMC, if seven of them were combat psychics with superpowers—excluding the three non-combatants—Taira Danjo would snatch it away without the slightest pang of conscience. Given how many psychic units became available for hire once TMC and the youngest son of Megacorp formed an alliance with the Taira Group, it only proved how hard they'd worked to gather them.

"Hmm, is that so? Very well. I'll introduce ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the secretary right now. Come out!"

When Taira Danjo clapped, the conference room door opened and Mimata Chieri walked in, her orange hair catching the light as she wore her usual office suit. Just as I'd expected.

"You probably saw this coming too, right? It's a Taira family tradition for the father to provide a secretary who can assist his son's work. Since Saburo is dead, I selected one myself. This girl already knows you well, and you know her to some extent, so you should both adapt quickly."

I hadn't known about any secretary-providing tradition. I gave Mimata Chieri a small nod of greeting. The moment she flashed a bright smile in return, I felt Fumimoto Takayuki's shock ripple through the room. Did she not smile often?

"Now that the secretary has been introduced, it's time we discussed the mission you'll be taking on."

"Yes, that was the agreement. Is it a difficult one?"

"You've accumulated around thirty-three days of vacation, correct? I'll add about ten more days for the PMC acquisition. Take a proper rest, then come back and I'll tell you."

Whoa, over forty days of vacation…! Strangely, that ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠only made me more anxious. And after saying he'd tell me about the mission, he was sending me on leave first. Was he serious? When I stared at him in disbelief, Taira Danjo barked at me.

"You brat! I'm not ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠saying anything yet because the preparations aren't perfect, so get rid of that insolent look!"

"Yes, sir."

"Idiot! Take this and get the hell out of my sight!"

What Taira Danjo threw at me was a thick bundle of documents. They all appeared to be PMC-related, so it looked like a list of recommended companies. Even though I'd already decided which one to acquire, having the list wouldn't hurt. After collecting the papers, I called out to Mimata Chieri.

"Senior, let's go. You're my secretary now, so you don't have to listen to those scary old men anymore."

"Yes, Junior!"

Mimata Chieri answered with a smile and trotted after me obediently. Taira Danjo wore an expression of utter disbelief while Fumimoto Takayuki looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"Grandfather, Mr. Fumimoto, we'll be leaving now."

"Hmph! Get lost already!"

"Have a safe trip, young master."

Leaving their strangely warm farewells behind, I got into the car with Mimata Chieri. A brief silence settled over the cabin, but since we weren't exactly awkward around each other, I started the conversation.

"How much salary should I pay you?"

"Right now both you and I still belong to the HR Development Center, so I don't need much. Once you've gone independent and built your own organization, please take good care of me then."

While we were still at the Center there wasn't much for a secretary to do. But once I acquired the PMC, the story would change completely. Mimata Chieri would have her hands full as its nominal president, and I'd need to compensate her properly. Skimping on her pay and risking betrayal would lead to an absolute catastrophe.

The fact that Mimata Chieri hadn't mentioned the PMC at all suggested the higher-ups hadn't told her about my acquisition plans.

"Then I'll have to give you a massive raise soon."

"Pardon?"

"I've decided to acquire a PMC. You have no idea how hard it was to get permission from Grandpa…."

"Could you explain the details? Now that I'm your secretary, I need to understand the full situation."

I told Mimata Chieri how I'd received a favor token from Taira Danjo and asked for a PMC recommendation, only to be given a secretary who would serve as the figurehead president instead.

"Ah, so that's why you asked about my qualifications that time?"

"Yes. I had a feeling he'd recommend you, Senior."

"In that case, you'll need to make me your complete subordinate. If I ever betrayed you, the PMC would simply pass to someone else."

Even though she was talking about herself, Mimata Chieri spoke with eerie objectivity. Normally people avoided even mentioning the possibility of their own betrayal, didn't they? As I always thought, her mindset was somehow fundamentally different from an ordinary person's.

"You wouldn't actually betray me, right?"

"Hehe, who knows? If you don't feed me delicious things, I might."

"I'll buy you all the delicious food you could ever want."

The moment I promised unlimited delicious food, Mimata Chieri let out a happy little "hehe." From my perspective, it was rather worrying how easily she could be swayed by meals….

"Also, please stop by my house for a moment."

"Right now?"

"Yes."

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I drove to the address Mimata Chieri provided. Surprisingly, she lived in a residential neighborhood close to the HR Development Center—close enough to walk to Sinoe Misano's house in five minutes. I parked inside her property and followed her into the house.

"This way."

Her home looked like any ordinary family residence, but when she pressed a section of blank wall, the panel slid aside to reveal a staircase leading underground. Whoa…! Yeah, this was exactly what a secret agent's house should look like! It was so cool I couldn't help but be impressed.

The basement was surprisingly spacious, apparently encompassing the yard above, and the abundant lighting kept it from feeling dark at all. Exposed concrete and various pieces of equipment on display gave the whole place the atmosphere of a military installation.

While I was looking around in fascination, Mimata Chieri suddenly stripped off her office suit. Fortunately she wasn't naked underneath; she wore something like a form-fitting bodysuit. Over it she began donning tech armor. When she even put on the tech mask, it became clear she was getting serious.

The tech armor resembled a full-body swimsuit with extremely short bottoms, paired with metallic boots that looked like knee-high socks starting from her thighs. Hmm… this tech armor was surprisingly arousing…? No, more importantly, I needed to ask why she was suddenly putting on combat gear.

"Senior?"

"If you want me to follow you with complete sincerity, you must defeat me first."

What was she, some kind of BlackWargreymon? Did she refuse to obey anyone weaker than herself? Well, if I wanted to win her over completely, I supposed I had to do something. I removed my suit jacket and shirt, leaving only my pants, and took up a combat stance.

"Don't you need any weapons, Junior? I have plenty, so if there's something you use well, I'll get it for you."

"I don't know how to handle guns."

Truthfully, having been a discharged soldier before my possession, I could handle firearms to some degree. But compared to a sniper like Mimata Chieri it wasn't worth mentioning, so I kept quiet.

"Then I'll use rubber training bullets as well."

"Real bullets are fine."

"Just to be safe."

Mimata Chieri and I faced each other across the open space in the basement. She aimed two pistols at me while I assumed the basic sparring posture of the Shinkaiyatsu style.

"Hup!"

I charged with a light shout. Mimata Chieri opened fire. I moved to avoid the muzzles as much as possible, and the rubber bullets whistled harmlessly past.

I felt bad about punching her, so I reached out to use a throwing technique instead. Mimata Chieri twisted like an eel and slipped free of my grasp. She was unbelievably fast! Then she holstered the guns at her waist, closed the distance, and pressed her palm against my abdomen.

Thud—!

The strike seemed to hit my internal organs rather than the surface of my stomach. This was definitely…?

Junior~! You're amazing. As expected of Fujigasaki Rinka's disciple! To take out an entire squad of Tateyari with your bare hands!! Is it like this? Like this?

The memory of Mimata Chieri chattering beside me after yesterday's fight against the Tateyari rose in my mind. Had she copied the technique just from watching? What insane talent! If she possessed any related traits, she likely had something like Martial Arts Mastery or higher. Of course, without the 'Abyss' she couldn't replicate the lethal power of a true Shintooban. Still, at this level an ordinary person would have coughed up blood and fainted.

However, coming in so close just to test a technique she'd only seen once was a mistake. I grabbed her, wrapped my arm around her neck, and choked her until she lost consciousness.

Considering how shocked I'd been by the technique she used, the victory had come surprisingly easily, but Mimata Chieri's talent was genuinely impressive. I almost wanted to introduce her to a proper master. Since Shinkaiyatsu was a one-successor martial art, I should find her other styles to learn.

"Did I lose?"

Mimata Chieri asked as she opened her eyes. I nodded.

"With this big a difference in weight class, you shouldn't charge straight in for close combat."

"But I still wanted to try it."

She stood up and pressed a button on her tech armor. The chest plate protecting her breasts detached and fell away, revealing her beautiful chest.