New Employee Training
Asako Ukie let out a long sigh. “What terrible luck…!”
Today wasn’t a group activity. Instead, it followed the schedule of the subsidiary she belonged to—a site visit. The other members were probably sticking to the Human Resources Development Center’s timetable. Today’s event was a teamwork exercise between mentors and their assigned trainees.
She sighed again. I wanted to do that teamwork training with the prince—no, with Taira Ryuta-sama! Though she had no idea who she was even complaining to, Asako Ukie shouted the words inside her head and tried to focus on the senior employee giving the explanation up front.
“This is TIS—Taira IT Solution. As you all know from your applications, it’s where Japan’s finest IT specialists gather.”
“Whoa!”
“The building is massive!”
Watching her fellow new hires who seemed completely carefree, Asako Ukie quickly smoothed out her expression. If I get a poor evaluation for no good reason, it’ll only cause trouble for my mentor, Taira Ryuta-sama.
“Over here is one of TIS’s core facilities…”
After the all-day tour finally ended and she returned to the dormitory, she ran into several group members outside the building. They looked like they had wrapped up their own tasks nicely and were just about to head inside. Their hair was still damp.
“Asako, you’re back?”
They all wore bright, satisfied expressions. Their damp hair suggested they had just showered. But every room had its own shower—where had they washed up?
“Where did you all shower?”
At her question they exchanged glances, then burst into giggles. Why won’t they just answer? Sensing that their laughter was souring her mood, one of them finally spoke up on behalf of the rest.
“Our group’s conference room has a shower. We just came from there.”
“Eh? But… isn’t the mentor still there?”
They had showered while the mentor was around? As she stammered, they looked at one another again, then nodded as though they had reached some silent agreement.
“The mentor had already left. We cleaned up before heading out and worked up a lot of sweat, so we showered. Right?”
“Yeah, exactly.”
“I was sweating buckets~.”
For some reason the word “sweat” sounded strangely obscene. Asako Ukie decided she must have a dirty mind and simply nodded along.
“I’d like to try showering in the conference room sometime too.”
“Your turn will come, Asako. Showering there feels incredibly good…”
Incredibly good? Did the conference room shower have some special feature? Asako Ukie hoped so as she returned to her own room. Exhausted from the full day of tours, she stripped and stepped into her private shower.
Warm water cascaded down, soaking her completely. A shower was a shower. It felt the same no matter where you took one. So why did they claim the conference room made it so much better? Still unable to understand, Asako Ukie lathered up and washed herself. The Human Resources Development Center was excellent in many ways, but while each room had a private shower, there were no private baths. There was a large communal bath everyone could use, yet she felt reluctant to go.
She didn’t want that many people seeing her body. And with so much traffic, hygiene might become an issue. That was Asako Ukie’s honest opinion.
“Still, I go home on weekends. I can soak in the tub then…”
Trainees stayed at the center from Monday to Friday, but weekends were free to return home. Those who lived too far away remained on site, but given how independent most Japanese people were, the majority of new hires left the center on weekends.
Since they could depart Friday evening, Asako Ukie decided she would enjoy three straight days of hot baths at home. She stepped out of the shower feeling refreshed.
“I’m not really comfortable with the large public bath… so I plan to go home on the weekend and soak properly.”
After the morning lecture ended and during the after-lunch break, the other group members gave Asako Ukie strange looks when they heard her plan. It was the expression of people watching someone who had arrived far too late to the party.
“We feel the same about the big bath, but we’ve all decided to stay at the center this weekend. The mentor said he’d let us use a medium-sized bath that only our group can reserve.”
“If it’s just us, we don’t have to worry about hygiene or anything else, right?”
So that conversation had happened while I was gone…! Asako Ukie felt a small pang of exclusion, but the conflict in schedules between the center and her TIS site visit meant she couldn’t blame anyone.
“Asako, why don’t you skip going home this weekend and stay with us? You can visit your family next week instead.”
Should she? From what they described, it sounded like she might get to see Taira Ryuta-sama over the weekend… After a moment’s thought, Asako Ukie nodded.
“All right. I’ll stay at the center with everyone this weekend.”
“Perfect choice!”
They welcomed her as enthusiastically as if she had just joined an exclusive club. Did they really want to bathe with me that badly? Asako Ukie forced an awkward smile.
“The next class is mock stock trading. The person whose mock investments perform best based on this Wednesday’s closing prices gets first place. The group with the highest total profit also wins a group prize. They’re giving out actual rewards!”
“We get several hours to gather information before choosing, so everyone should get decent results, right?”
The naive comment from a group member who clearly didn’t understand the brutality of the market made Asako Ukie shake her head unconsciously. In college she had invested tutoring money trying to get rich quick. The stock price had been cut in half; she still remembered crying tears of blood as she sold at a loss. What made it worse was that the price skyrocketed the moment she got out. After that she had sworn off stocks entirely. She never imagined she would be dealing with them again like this.
“Ah…! So that’s how it works!”
“It feels like I’ve learned something completely new.”
An hour later, when all the members of Group 74 emerged from the lecture room, most of them were exclaiming in awe. Aside from Asako Ukie and one or two others, they had been complete novices who didn’t even know the basics. The instructor’s lecture had opened up an entirely new world to them.
“Do you think the mentor knows a lot about stocks?”
“We’ll have to discuss which stocks to pick in the conference room anyway. Let’s head there and ask him if he’s around.”
Even Asako Ukie, who had been skeptical about the whole thing, found her heart racing as she walked toward the conference room, wondering what the mentor might teach them.
“Yes? Mock stock investments?”
From the chatter, each trainee would receive ten million yen in virtual capital. They would buy stocks at today’s prices and be ranked according to their value on the fourth week’s Wednesday. They really do cover everything.
“Please give us recommendations, mentor~!!”
“Since this is an assignment meant to help all of you, I want you to research investment targets first. Then compare them to my suggestions and make your final choices.”
This was clearly a test of their research skills and market insight. If I helped too much, they would never develop real ability, so I spoke with deliberate sternness.
These women from Group 74 were going to become my hands and feet inside each subsidiary—gathering information, carrying out covert operations. If I spoiled them the moment they asked for recommendations, they would miss the chance to grow. Still, they would need a variety of skills to establish themselves and ultimately benefit me.
“Hold your meeting here. Snacks and drinks are in the refrigerator and the cupboard beside it—you already know that, right? I’ll be working in my private office. If you have questions or suggestions, come in and ask.”
I stepped into my personal office and booted up my laptop. The Education Support Team’s workload had piled up considerably. Having three new trainees yesterday had kept me from getting much done. There was a mountain of tasks waiting, most of it sent by Assistant Team Leader Suzuki Chisami, who clearly disapproved of me working out of Group 74’s office.
“This is getting annoying. If I ever get the chance…”
I swallowed the rest of the sentence and started typing. The chairman had publicly confirmed I was his grandson, yet she still dared to harass me. The rumors were true—she was aligned with Jiro’s faction.
I reported everything to Sinoe Misano exactly as it was: that the assistant team leader had dumped all this work on me. She couldn’t complain directly to the team leader, so she would probably get scolded instead. After that, would she come looking for me?
She actually tried to push everything onto the team leader’s lover. I spent the next few minutes—now that my workload had been cut to a fifth—wondering how best to make Suzuki Chisami regret it. If nothing else worked, I would have to speak with Taira Yukiko. At the Human Resources Development Center, the director’s influence was absolute.
A polite knock sounded, and the door opened. A tall, boyish beauty entered hesitantly.
“Team Leader… I was hoping for a consultation…”
A different new recruit from yesterday had come in with a flushed face. Her name was Koikawa Sachiko. She had mentioned playing volleyball in school; that explained why she stood in the mid-170 cm range. I smiled and turned up the soft background music.
“Why don’t you sit here in front of me?”
In this manner, the one who visited yesterday, plus the two I had left notes for about organizing luggage, brought yesterday’s total to three conquests. Thanks to my cambion body, the golden pillar’s effect seemed even stronger, and the girls obeyed beautifully. With Ebie Miyuka from the first day and now Koikawa Sachiko, half of Group 74 had already fallen into my hands.
“Have you finished your mock investment?”
“Yes… My family works with Taira Securities, so this part was easy for me.”
She must have studied ahead of time. While the others were busy researching, she had slipped away to see me.
“So what would you like to consult about?”
“Well… I…”
She probably had nothing real to ask. One of the girls who had already visited must have told her that coming for “consultation” would take care of everything.
“It sounds like something the others shouldn’t overhear. Come a little closer, then.”
“Yes…”
The moment Koikawa Sachiko leaned in, I locked the office door with telekinesis. That would stop anyone from entering.
“I’m… like this. I’m tall and don’t look very feminine… I don’t know anything about men. I was hoping mentor could teach me.”
With her height and short haircut, she did have a certain androgynous appeal. But those large breasts that bounced with every volleyball spike? Any hint of androgyny vanished the instant you noticed her overwhelming femininity. It was a ridiculous worry.
“Sachiko.”
“Eh?”
Being called by her first name startled her. Before she could recover, I reached out without hesitation and cupped her breast, brushing my thumb across the nipple.
“Ahh~!”
“With breasts like these, claiming you aren’t feminine is a lie. Look.”
I guided her hand onto my throbbing length. Koikawa Sachiko flinched at first, then gripped it tightly, as though it were something precious.
“If you truly weren’t feminine, would I be this hard for you?”
“Please… show me everything. Mentor…!”
Once she sensed victory was near, she pressed forward aggressively—exactly what you’d expect from a former athlete.
The hanbok shots turned out great, so it felt like a waste to keep them to myself—I’m uploading them!
Yugyeong, I adore you!!