Otherworld Company Chapter 185: A Wave Of Influence Reaches Every Corner.

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　Attack at the tournament.

　Several days have passed since then, and the commotion from the tournament attack has subsided.

　On the surface, there is a commentary.

　The attack that Carter caused back then had a considerable impact on the organization known as the Demon King Army.

　In addition, the bomb of rebellion that was detonated afterward undoubtedly had a huge impact on the current situation.

　The internal impact cannot be ignored, as well as the external one.

　Although he belonged to the frontier, he was originally a member of the Demon King Army, and his betrayal within the army made people wonder if he was okay. The betrayal within the military has given rise to mutual suspicion as to whether or not someone is safe, and now investigators are running around not only in the various territories but also within the company.

　In addition, rumor has it that outside the company, at the headquarters of the Demon King Army, things are quite hectic with preparations for war.

　However, in such busy surroundings

“Thanks to that, we are ordered to stand by indefinitely.” (Kaido)

“But we’ll make the most of the time we have.” (Jiro)

“I see.” (Kaido)

　We testers, who are from another world unrelated to factional conflicts, had too much free time to spare.

　Well, I did undergo an investigation, but it was a fairly light investigation compared to others.

“But I feel sorry that we’re the only ones taking it easy like this.” (Jiro)

“It can’t be helped, we can’t do anything right now.” (Kaido)

　The Demon King’s Army had been preparing to invade until now, but instead, they were caught off guard and were attacked.

　The dungeon was a passageway to invade Ithar and a base of operations during the invasion, but it cannot demonstrate its performance if the mainland is invaded in this way.

　In addition, dungeons require huge assets, both in terms of production and maintenance costs.

　Running an army naturally requires money, which means that some costs have to be saved.

　Only a very wealthy country would be able to do all of these things at the same time.

　However, even such a wealthy country will go bankrupt if it continues to do so.

　So, as a temporary cost-cutting measure, the dungeon, which also serves as a defense facility and passageway, has ceased its activities and is now dormant.

　As a result, we testers are unable to enter the dungeon and use the facilities that consume magic power.

　This is how we worked out in the Space-Time Dimension Special Training Room.

　We are trying to improve our abilities and relieve some of the dullness in our bodies after recovering from injuries, and this has been surprisingly effective and enjoyable.

“By the way, did you hear that, Kaido?” (Jiro)

“What…?” (Kaido)

　I’m standing on my head and doing push-ups while wearing weights around my legs, and Kaido is hanging from the bars with his feet and doing sit-ups while wearing weights on his shoulders.

“I heard someone quit their part-time job as a tester again.” (Jiro)

“Is this the fifth person? We are down one again, aren’t we?” (Kaido)

“If things continue as they are, most of the testers are expected to quit.” (Jiro)

“Ugh, doesn’t that mean our work will increase?” (Kaido)

“That’s how it is.” (Jiro)

　We testers are not supposed to be on the battlefield, per our contract with the company.

　No, should I rephrase that there is no need for us to be involved in the war?

　At the time of the first contract signing, it was clearly stated that we were only contracted as personnel to test the dungeon, and not as a fighting force.

　Therefore, we do not have to participate in the war unless we participate voluntarily, even in the midst of the flurry of warfare in the Demon King Army as a whole.

　Also, the Demon King Army would not request cooperation.

　So, the testers are able to relax and engage in muscle training.

　I wondered if I should participate, but Suela, Memoria, Himiku, and even the supervisor stopped me.

　It’s hard to keep my own counsel when I’ve been told to do so much.

　Unless something happens, I will train my body quietly for now.

　Although we were testers, that doesn’t mean we’re completely unaffected, and from the conversation with Kaido earlier, we were experiencing quite a bit of an impact.

“Are we okay? I don’t want to look for a job.” (Kaido)

“They’ve already decided that we’re going to lose. That doesn’t mean we’re going to lose.” (Jiro)

　That is why testers are leaving their jobs.

　Most of the testers are very anxious when they hear about the war.

　For the Japanese, especially the younger generation, war is just a word in a sentence of history.

　They may hear stories from elderly people who experienced wars in the past, or they may see visual materials from the past, but they rarely feel the immediacy of war.

　So, when we see information about the conflict on the news, we may only think that it is a terrible thing.

　However, this time is different.

　The organization to which we belong is directly involved in the war.

　This is a cause for fear that one day they might be caught in the crossfire.

　In fact, although indirectly, I have also experienced an incident where I received a request to participate in the war, but the supervisor stopped me from doing so.

　Similar stories were often heard by other employees, which gave the testers a sense of reality in the story of participating in the war.

　Although he is a part-time worker, he is a member of the company.

　Even if it is just wishful thinking that the war will be easier if they help out, they hear from personnel such as Suela and Kaylee and from people in the shopping district such as Memoria that one by one testers are quitting because they hear that they might be involved in the war.

　The rumors are highly credible.

　In fact, I have hardly met any testers other than party members, probably due to the fact that I have not been able to work for the past few days.

　Even though I can’t work, I still have things to do.

“That, too, I suppose.” (Kaido)

“Yes, that’s right.” (Jiro)

　As a tester whose body is his capital, I silently perform muscle training.

　In the training room with only me and Kaido, I was working out for over an hour without taking a break, trying to strengthen my body as much as possible, and gradually I consciously started to feel bored.

　So, gossip becomes a good topic of conversation.

　Even though we have entered a war, we are currently only fighting a defensive battle against Carter’s army led by angels, and our flag is by no means bad.

　Although we were behind in our initial response, it was easy to deal with the situation if we only paid attention to the movements of Carter, who was assumed to be a brave man.

　Although some towns were dropped by the blitzkrieg, I heard that the key points were defended.

　So, I hear that the standoff is continuing at the moment.

　It was only a matter of time before they would eventually turn to the offensive to capture the dungeon.

“Huh, but it’s surprisingly difficult to wait around comfortably, isn’t it?” (Jiro)

“That’s right, I never thought doing nothing would be this hard.” (Kaido)

　I heard that the instructors are also currently on the front lines.

　After a while, a skirmish begins, and from there, a full-scale battle begins.

　The Demon King Army is just about to start their work.

　However, it is not that I don’t have any thoughts about training my body in the hope that the testers’ work will be restored.

　Not a day goes by that I don’t wonder what I can do or if I made the right choice.

　In addition.

“Well, we’ve got our own problems over here.” (Jiro)

“Ah, if it’s us, then that’s the problem. Is it okay for us to speak one-sidedly?” (Kaido)

　A problem has emerged here as well.

　In a sense, the reality of war had given our party a fork in the road.

　Up until now, I had been able to keep going because it felt like a game, in a good way, where all I had to do was conquer the dungeons, but this time, if we took a wrong step, the organization known as the Demon King Army will be defeated and there is a possibility that they will disappear.

　Even if the possibility is low, it exists.

“Sometimes it’s better to say the hard things clearly and without covering it up.” (Jiro)

“That’s just like you, Senior.” (Kaido)

　As I wiped my dripping sweat with a towel, I remembered what happened when the competition was over, and an internal notice went around saying that war had started.

　I had a choice to make with the party.

“Do you quit, or do you continue? Think about it once and come up with an answer.” (Jiro)

　From this point on, it was no joke.

　I hope nothing happens, but if something were to happen, something outrageous would happen just because I belong to this company.

　That’s what war is all about.

　In my case, with Suela, Memoria, and Himiku, I would not choose to quit.

　But the others are different.

　They are part-timers.

　They are not hired as full-time employees, nor are they prepared to spend the rest of their lives in this profession.

　They became testers out of curiosity, in search of the unknown, and in search of stimulation.

　It’s the same for me.

　And it’s up to them to change that reason.

　I met Suella here, and we had a child.

　That change made me change my reasons for joining this company and made me determined to stay here.

　But that’s just my case.

　They have their own lives, and they can choose to do something other than this job.

　They need a reason to keep doing dangerous work.

　To continue, you need a reason to support yourself.

　I have passed the stage of being able to continue with a feeling of “just because”.

　And this choice is not just for this one time.

　If I continue, something like this may happen again.

　This is something that could happen again in the future.

　So.

　“Make a choice for yourself, one you won’t regret.’ All I can say is that I will respect your choices. I won’t tell you to quit or stay.”

　I showed them what was going on, and I dared to show them the fork in the road.

　I told them they didn’t have to come to work until they found an answer.

　Somehow, I knew that an opportunity like this would eventually come, ever since I had heard that they were building a dungeon to fight a war.

“…If it was true, you weren’t supposed to be here either.” (Jiro)

“Yes, yes, I guess that means I’ve been infected somehow, too. I feel comfortable in this place now.” (Kaido)

　It was a good opportunity, a bad event, but the timing could not have been worse.

　The reason was explained, and the survival of the company was at stake, and personal safety was at stake.

　How on earth did I look to them when I unilaterally told them that we were in such a situation and pressed them to make a choice?

　Minami, who is always so noisy, was quietly listening to my words at that moment, but her expression showed she was trying to make a decision.

　Although Kitamiya is harsh in her words, she is considerate of others and says that she has no choice but to balance her own life with this job, so she asks for some time off to think about it.

　Masaru, who is usually a firm man, was frightened and looked at Minami’s face and was not sure what to do, so I told him to make his own choice and not to follow others.

　Despite such a situation, this junior of mine gave me his usual mischievous smile and said he would stay with me after some hesitation.

　I felt somewhat comforted by his words.

　After all, parting is lonely.

“The problem is Amelia…” (Jiro)

“Oh, she said she wasn’t feeling well.” (Kaido)

　Amelia was the only one who did not participate in such a gathering.

　She had been ill since the day after the competition.

　She did not show up for work on the day of the competition, and when I tried to contact her, her mother replied that she was sick, I asked her to call me as soon as she was better, but I have yet to hear from her.

“…I hope it’s just a cold, but I have a bad feeling about it.” (Jiro)

“I wish you wouldn’t do that. Senior’s intuition has been right recently since I joined this company. I’m sure something is going to happen, isn’t it?” (Kaido)

　The light of the holy sword at the competition had some effect on Amelia. The company is also looking into the possibility that it could be just a cold, so I hope it’s a groundless fear.

　The intuition that has been so strangely clear lately has been warning me.

“Well, we just have to learn how to go with it… There’s not much we can do, but let’s do what we can.” (Jiro)

“That’s right.” (Kaido)

　What we can do now is either work out or compile a dungeon report based on our past experience.

　Even if that is all we can do, we should do what we can do.

Note for the Day

I can’t predict what will happen in the future, but I guess I’ll have to do something.

T/N: No flags for Amy, please! Mike, get your head in the game.