Epilogue | Whatever Comes Next | Remake our Life!
Part 1
"Yes, um... I am sorry about that. As I mentioned earlier, the problem can be solved by downloading the corrected data, also, you can check our website for more specific case studies and measures, if you would like to know more..."
The call finally ended. Five minutes today, and it had been a long time since I had fought a big one.
"Thank you for your hard work... It seemed like it was unusually difficult."
Sakurai-san, who was seated next to me, chuckled and called out to me.
"No matter how many times I explained it to them, they didn't understand ... but the FAQ we made the other day was really helpful."
"It was the right decision to create it~. I don't have to spend much time on this kind of support work anymore."
"Yeah"
Not long ago, we had an enormous amount of survey postcards on our desks.
But not now. We have switched to web/internet support for everything. We have been able to narrow down the number of users who do not have access to the Internet, which in turn has made it easier to respond to them over the phone.
“Hashiba-kun, if you're having a hard time answering the phone, how about working over here too?”
I heard Kojima-san's voice from the other side of the desk.
"But Kojima-san has to communicate with the translators and so on, so I'm fine."
"I see. Well, let me know if it's too much for you."
Saying that, she waved her hand.
"Thank you, everyone, we still have you to continue the support services, but we'll be saying goodbye to these soon, too."
The department head is going around thanking everyone, as usual, with only his head sticking up.
“Ah, come to think of it, Sark Wizard support, is it okay if I start phasing it in?”
"That reminds me, it's been almost a month since the release..."
"Somehow, it all went so peacefully that I forgot about it. If it had been before, everyone would be full of resentment by now."
Sark Wizard 3, which was said to be wrecked rough on the rough, well, the game itself was indeed not well received.
With a poorly explained scenario, a flawed system, and the mysterious behavior of the 3D model on top of it all, it could have been a huge disaster, but,
"It really was the right thing to do, having done a lot of work ahead of time..."
A team led by Sakurai-san was assembled to create a website that reinforced the flaws in the scenario and inconsistencies in the setting, so that everyone could read it when it was released.
So even those who played the game were able to supplement their knowledge of the game by looking at that site, which somewhat prevented the disaster to some extent.
We were also able to work with the debugger team to include documentation to follow up on patches to fix system problems and other issues, and the result is a much stronger support structure here. Well, it's ironic ... or so I feel like that.
"Good work, O~i, Sakurai, can you open the door for me?"
Chief Miyamoto's voice echoed from outside the room.
"Ah, yes, please wait a minute."
Sakurai-san hurriedly opened the door,
"Hey, guys, give your desk some space. I'm going to go put some stuff"
Carrying something in his hands, Miyamoto-san placed them one after another on our desks.
"Eh, this... what's this, sweets?"
"It's chocolate from a pretty good store, and a pricey one."
With a wry smile, Miyamoto-san said,
“The other day, we all went to help out at the signing for the publishing department, remember?”
"Ah, about the chief artist-san..."
Once, a manga artist that Miyamoto-san had brought with him was going to do an autograph signing, but he was short on staff, so we went to help him out on short notice.
“The artist was so grateful to us that he wanted to give us something in return.”
"He~e..."
I was very grateful.
"I didn't know who I was working for, but things change, really."
Miyamoto-san mumbles softly as he throws a piece of chocolate into his mouth.
I thought that was really true.
Since we have improved our operations, we have been able to spend our time in a very meaningful way.
We are now able to take on jobs that we would have been too busy to take on in the past, as a result, Succeed's support has even gained a reputation for being amazing
"Well, but we've got to get this place cleaned up soon."
And the success of the presentation the other day.
Although there was no official GO sign, the words that the executive director had given his stamp of approval spread quickly throughout the company, and we were now recognized as a proper "development" team working on a new project.
"Finally goodbye from this execution room..."
Miyamoto-san is looking around the room in a strange sentiment manner.
"It's not decided yet, chief."
Sakurai-san's voice is somewhat buoyant as she says this.
No wonder. We were able to change the situation so dramatically from a place where there was no hope.
"Hey, Hashiba."
"Yes?"
"I want to ask you something..."
With a curious look, Miyamoto-san asks.
"Did you set all this up knowing that this would happen in the end?"
"No way, it was a series of gambling all the time. In the end, it was a matter of chance"
It was my honest feeling.
No one knows what the future holds, and nothing is clearly visible even now.
But everyone had worked so hard, and we wanted to make it pay off. All I can say is that the presentation was the result of that effort.
"I see. No, I also think it's likely so."
"Did something catch your eye?"
"Hmm..."
Miyamoto-san scratched his head,
"Well, fate, you know? I felt something like that."
"Eh?"
I never thought I would hear such words from him.
"No, I think so too! I think so but"
In a panic, he waved his hand in embarrassment and denied it, but,
“But somehow... I feel like it all fell into place so nicely that I wonder if it was designed to be this way from the beginning. Like the presentation and what Hashiba has done here... All of it"
"Now that you mention it...It's true."
He was right that there were many strange coincidences. If it was a coincidence that I came to this company, then of course it was also a coincidence that I met everyone in this department.
(That's too much overlap ... to be a coincidence)
Even though I don't believe in the occult, I gradually began to think that there might be something to this.
"Well, I am worrying too much, I guess! That's how good things have been going on!"
Saying that, Miyamoto-san patted me on the back.
"That's... right, yes!"
Fate is like that. I didn't think it was another thing to think too deeply about that matter.
But I was beginning to feel rather uneasy about what was to come.
What will happen next?
I guess this peace we have now is just a pretense for what will happen next.
The fantasy was only going to go as far as it would go.
"Hashiba-san, there's a phone call for you. It's inner line number 1."
"Ah, yes"
I hurriedly answer the phone that Sakurai-san accepted.
"Hello, this is Hashiba."
The caller was someone I hadn't talked to in a while.
"Thanks for your time. Sorry, you were working."
"Kawasegawa..."
As usual, her tone was calm.
“I have a lot of things I need to say to you, but in the meantime, could you come over here for a moment?”
"Okay, I'll go."
Fortunately, all tasks had been completed.
When I told her I had a few plans for my lunch break, she said,
"Then, can you come to the third floor as soon as the lunch break is over in the afternoon?"
When I heard the floor number, I was surprised.
“Is there something ... from the executive director?”
There was a short pause on the other end of the phone.
"I'll tell you later. Okay, then."
The inner line was cut.
(I wonder if something happened)
For the time being, I took my wallet and phone and wrote down "meeting" on my calendar.
"Sorry, I'll be out a little longer."
The worse the feeling, the more likely it is to come true. I had a bad feeling about this jinx that has been handed down from generation to generation.
Part 2
Leaving the building, I walk in the opposite direction from the zone where everyone is eating.
"Surely here...was."
Walking through the back of the building, I found a café that was tucked away in a hidden corner. As soon as I entered the store, I immediately met the person I was looking for.
"Yo, good work"
It was Hayakawa.
"You too. Thanks for coming on such short notice, it's been a bit of a nuisance."
"It's fine. I've got a private room, for now, so we can talk there."
The interior of the restaurant, decorated with Japanese-style furnishings, was somewhat dimly lit, but the atmosphere was very pleasant. It was a place where one could not be afraid to make loud noises, and it was a place suited for private conversations.
"Well, that's the kind of place this is."
Entering a neatly partitioned private room, Hayakawa smiled wryly.
“I've already ordered, so let's get right to it.”
"Yeah... could you do that for me?"
It was not something I wanted to hear much, but it was something I needed to hear for the future.
That was the main purpose of meeting with Hayakawa here today.
(What I want to hear about the Executive Director, huh...)
It was only yesterday that I got the call.
Hayakawa's company, which conducts a wide range of sales activities for corporate clients, is in the advertising business, so it is easy for him to get information about the internal conditions of each company.
In the midst of all this, he was corresponding with a mid-sized game company, and by chance, the subject of Succeed's Executive Director, Matsuhira, came up.
“The other day, your project was presented at a meeting held by the executive director, wasn't it?”
"Yeah, just like we talked about yesterday."
As expected, I could not talk about the confidential information, but I was told that some proposals had been accepted by the executive director.
"I see... no."
Hayakawa wrinkled his brow, which was unusual for him.
“About Executive Director Matsuhira ... to be honest, he seems like a pretty dangerous person.”
"A dangerous person?"
"Yeah," Hayakawa replied, taking out his smartphone and opening a document file.
There was a record of submitting a project to the managing director two years ago.
"The guy who did the planning was the guy in charge of advertising for Succeed, and he was someone I also knew."
It contained a plan for a certain advertising campaign for a social game related to Executive Director Matsuhira.
"It was an interesting promotion. However, since we were going to use a YouTube video streamer for an unprecedented type of promotion, I heard there was a lot of opposition within the company."
It was said that the executive director who decided to do so almost on his own.
"At the time, the person in charge said, "The executive director was amazing", and he was talking to him about how he had risen to that position at such a young age."
However, there was no sign of that promotion taking place anytime soon. Hayakawa had completely forgotten about it, but,
"I ran into him just three days ago, so I asked him about it."
That advertisement sounded interesting, so why was it put on hold? I asked.
From Hayakawa's point of view, it should have ended with the usual "it didn't work out because the talent couldn't make it~" or "the budget was too tight~".
However,
"Suddenly, he turned pale and said, "Don't ever mention it again." and forcibly cut off the subject."
"Seriously..."
I felt a chill run down my spine.
“Besides that, there is something strange about the case that the executive director was involved in. But he is in a situation where no one can touch him, partly because he is certainly making a profit."
It seemed that the meal was ready, and a fancy Shokado bento was laid out in front of us.
...But to be honest, I had lost all my appetite.
"That's why."
Hayakawa, too, had not touched any of the food in front of him.
“This is all I can say at the moment, but ... be careful with Executive Director Matsuhira.”
"...Got it"
Even so, as he said, I didn't know what to be careful about in the first place.
During that presentation, he did suddenly make a remark that was disruptive, but even that is not something I could have tried to prevent.
So, I would say be careful from approaching him, but he is a powerful person.
(Executive Director Matsuhira, huh?)
I had a feeling that an even bigger problem was coming my way after the survival of the 13th Department.
Part 3
In the end, I didn't touch the lunch box, and decided to have it wrapped up and eat it later.
I was walking back to the office carrying my lunch box wrapped in a small wrapping cloth.
(I wonder if Kawasegawa has anything to do with that, by any chance.)
Thinking about it made me uneasy. But there is nothing more troublesome than worrying about something you haven't heard about. For now, I decided not to think about it.
Just as I reached the elevator hall of the building, a chime rang to signal the end of the lunch break. I did not return to the 13th department, but took the elevator directly to the 26th floor.
The building had 28 floors, with the president's office on the top floor. The rooms of the directors, including the executive director, were located on the fourth floor, 27 below, on the 26th floor.
(I didn't think I'd ever get to come here...)
Quietly, the door opened, revealing a carpeted hallway as luxurious as the conference room we had just been in. I wondered for a moment if I should enter with my feet on the floor.
"You were early."
Kawasegawa was already waiting for me, so we walked straight into it.
Kawasegawa walked first, and I followed her.
"I was meeting someone for lunch. After that, I didn't go back to the department."
"...So"
Kawasegawa seemed to be listening to what I was saying with somewhat of an air of superiority.
It seemed as if her mind was somewhere else, as if she had been mulling something over for a long time.
"Hey, Kawasegawa. Something about that..."
I was about to say something, but she interrupted me halfway,
"Hashiba"
Called my name first.
"I was impressed with your presentation. You did it well."
"Thank you. But that's thanks to you for setting it up"
Kawasegawa stopped suddenly.
"What's wrong, all of a sudden?"
When I asked her, she turned around and looked at me,
"You know, Hashiba..."
Her expression was a mixture of many things, and on top of that, she looked as if she was trying to convey something.
"There is something I want you to do. But I can't say anything about it just yet."
"Something you want me to do...?"
“Yes,” she replied.
"... So, the first promise you made, remember it if you can."
"Promise..."
Liking the game, huh?
The only thing I am confident about is that I will not forget that.
"I get it. I remember."
"Thank you"
For a moment, I felt that her expression brightened.
“The Executive Director wants to talk to you.”
Kawasegawa said, "Well then, I'll take my leave," and left.
I looked her back and then stood in front of the big door.
Her thoughtful expression, the conversation that followed.
All of these are probably not unrelated to the person behind this door.
(What will he be talking about)
After taking a deep breath, I knocked.
"Come in"
A reply came back immediately.
Slowly, I put my hand on the knob and opened the door.
"―Excuse me"
Inside, the air was filled with silence.
The interior of the room looked more modest than I expected. I had imagined more luxurious furnishings lined up everywhere, so I was a bit disappointed.
However, this small number of things was actually frightening in some ways.
"Yaa, you did a great job the other day. Sit down, sit down."
A fresh voice called to me from behind a desk in the back of the room.
"Yes, then..."
I sat down as I was told and was handed a plastic bottle of mineral water.
"It doesn't feel like it has to be properly brewed tea, does it?"
"Ah, that's already... I do not mind."
"That's good! I don't mind it at all either."
He's frank, or rather, he is easygoing...
The executive director, whom I met after making preparations, was surprisingly a life-size image.
Even the way he called himself is "Boku" instead of "Watashi".
(He is far different from that presentation.)
I thought he must be a person who can create a different atmosphere depending on the occasion.
"As Kawasegawa-kun told me, you are very talented."
"No, I'm like that..."
When I tried to deny it, his hand quickly prevented me from doing so.
"You should take people's compliments."
"...Yes"
I see, this is the kind of place to start putting pressure on.
He must be the type who mounts firmly with both the candy and the whip.
"Today, I called you because I wanted to tell you something."
While opening the lid of a plastic bottle, the executive director began talking in a tone of "Let's go out for a meal now."
“I also had a question I wanted to ask the executive director.”
"Heh, that was just right. Then, I will let Hashiba-kun go first."
He looked straight at me, hands lightly folded in front of him, as if that was his style of listening.
(The pressure really is great, this guy)
When he is so poised, it is difficult to talk to him.
I began to ask questions, gaining a little momentum with my breathing.
"Thank you very much for your consideration in various aspects of the presentation the other day."
"No, I didn't do anything."
"... No, you did something big at the end."
"What?"
Is he playing dumb, or does he not think anything of it?
I decided to ask him a straightforward question.
"At the end, things started to come together, but then chaos happened."
"Haa"
"... Executives got into a difficult situation, and they turned their anger toward us. Could you tell me the reason?"
Of all the actions taken by the executive director, this was the one I questioned the most.
"Hee"
A twisted smile appeared on the executive director's face.
"I see. That's what you want to hear."
"Yes. For a moment, I couldn't grasp your intention."
At the time, I thought I was being challenged to fight those lined-up executives.
"I thought you were testing our resolve to start something new... or so I thought"
"That's cool, why don't you just think so?"
"But I later realized that wasn't true."
"... Hou?"
The executive director was there to crush his opponents.
Using me to lower their status and define their position.
In order to weaken the opposing party as a faction.
I put it into words and told him.
"... In short, I thought you used that presentation as a tool. I wanted to make sure of that.."
If so, I have crossed an unnecessarily dangerous bridge.
As for being incorporated into the faction, I believe that there are aspects that I had no choice. It was my responsibility to take advantage of the rivalry based on the information I had heard from Hayakawa beforehand.
But that's different from this matter.
Because what he did was a rather dangerous act that could have put us in a tight spot, including the last stage.
I waited for the executive director's answer. I thought he would dodge the question, but,
"Aa, that's right"
He easily admitted the faction's issue.
"They didn't propose anything new, but just complained about this and that. I thought I'd crush them from the head down once. Well, that felt good! And your follow-up was very good too! I might try that dare next time."
I see, I knew that was the purpose.
“... Aren’t you acting a little harsh?”
"About what?"
“We came to present our project. Yet the executive director tried to use it as a dodge to humiliate your opponents. At a time when the project could almost be ruined."
The executive director looked somewhat displeased.
"Don't worry about the details, that kind of thing doesn't matter."
"It's not good! You don't know ... how much thought went into that project, which is why you can say such a thing."
Unintentionally, I had said in a strong tone of voice.
“Even though they worked with strong feelings, they were oppressed and disliked... That project was their grudge, you could say. Please be considerate."
The faces of Sakurai-san and the other members of the 13th Department come to mind.
Everyone had their own thoughts and feelings, and worked hard to put that project together.
And yet, it is natural to be ... outraged if it is treated as 'that kind of thing'.
"You're more concerned with appearance than I thought. Well, that's fine."
The executive director sipped the water with a thin smile on his face, as if he felt nothing.
"Besides, considering what I'm about to tell you, I'm sure you'll soon realize that that presentation could have been anything."
...Eh.
"Just now, what did you say...?"
What we are going to talk about?
What on earth is he trying to say, this guy?
"It's just like I said. Ah, it's time to move on to my talk."
The executive director stood up and took a sheet of paper and placed it in front of me.
"Here's your letter of resignation."
It was written there:
The 13th Development Department, Hashiba Kyoya,
The person to the right shall be appointed Vice Director of the 2nd Development Department.
"This is..."
“Congratulations on your promotion, Hashiba Kyoya.”
A creepy, fresh smile spread across the executive director's face.
"And one more topic."
The executive director, with a drawn-out smile on his face,
He said this,
“That project you were working on the other day—return to a blank slate.”
I was at a loss for words.
I was stunned, and the executive director said.
"Perhaps you were misunderstood? The project was approved."
Leaning forward, at close range of me, he further informed me.
"This is "custody" ― that's what I said at the time."
A dirty smile spread across the executive director's face.
I felt like I was hallucinating.
It's as if the footing that should have been there before is breaking and crumbling.
It's like the person in front of me is transforming into a Shura.
(Can a company... be this bad?)
The bargaining, the love-hate, the muddled relationship.
All of these things work in the wrong direction and have a negative impact on everything.
Of course, even in a production environment.
(Kawasegawa... What are you trying to fight?)
I remember the innocent, soft smile she showed me when we met on holiday.
I remember the thoughtful look she gave me when we parted just a few minutes ago.
To keep on liking it. That's the promise.
I was finally beginning to realize how difficult it was.
1 Comments
Just... Wow. What a load of shit this executive director is. Now I really want to read the next volume of the b version. Man... I already know that it woulda come to something like that, but it got me even so. Tnx for the vol.
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