Chapter 21: The Hakase’s Scheme
188: Hakase (drinking in the evening)
I’m usually more of a beer guy, but canned Chūhai is pretty tasty too.
189: Anonymous Combatant
You’re drinking already?
190: Anonymous Combatant
Yeah, some flavors of canned Chūhai you can’t get at izakayas.
191: Hakase (drinking in the evening)
Yup, guzzling down some frozen pizza with the extreme lemon fruit Chūhai, it’s dope.
192: Anonymous Combatant
Reassuring to see you’re still the same old man.
193: Anonymous Combatant
I like adding extra melty cheese on top of frozen pizzas.
194: Hakase (drinking)
Extra cheese…is that even a thing? I’ll have to try that next time.
195: Anonymous Combatant
For Margheritas you can experiment with all kinds of toppings.
196: Anonymous Combatant
By the way, you’re later than usual today. Busy again?
197: Hakase
I’m always busy, but I don’t think the current situation can stay as is.
So I’ve taken some countermeasures.
198: Anonymous Combatant
What, did you decide to take over the organization?
299: Anonymous Combatant
Overthrow from below! Overthrowing the higher-ups!
200: Anonymous Combatant
Are you finally going to seize Delnkeim…?
201: Hakase
Of course not!? What do you take me for!?
202: Anonymous Combatant
We know you wouldn’t do that, that’s why we’re teasing you.
203: Anonymous Combatant
If you were really that kind of ambitious schemer, it wouldn’t be a joke.
204: Hakase
Can’t you guys give me a break…?
It’s not that, it’s an assistant.
I’m trying to train up an assistant I can delegate some of the minor tasks to, although the important stuff is still mine.
205: Anonymous Combatant
Oh, not bad.
206: Anonymous Combatant
The fact is, too much work piles up on just the Hakase.
207: Anonymous Combatant
It’s not so much a black company run by scummy executives, more just a labor shortage issue.
Setting up an environment where you can offload some work to an assistant is a good idea.
208: Hakase
Right? This way I’ll have more free time too.
I’m thinking of doing something boring next.
209: Anonymous Combatant
Huh? Boring?
210: Hakase
Huh? I was talking about doing some geological surveys to look for resources not yet tapped in this dimension, but sure.
211: Anonymous Combatant
You were actually talking about that boring!?
212: Anonymous Combatant
So your “free time” still involves work, huh.
213: Anonymous Combatant
You really are a corporate slave down to the bone marrow…
214: Hakase
Well research is part of my job but it’s also a hobby for me.
The process of applying what I’ve learned to advance is fun.
215: Anonymous Combatant
So it’s not the end result but the research itself that’s your entertainment?
216: Anonymous Combatant
Yep, you’ve got the soul of a true researcher alright.
217: Hakase
I’m doing this for the Leader, but I do plan to return to research eventually.
This assistant role is a step towards that. When I advertised internally, some soldiers were pretty keen on it.
Soldier C: “For real!? Being the Hakase’s assistant is practically third-in-command of the org, an automatic psy pass! Heh heh, time to munch some carpets!”
Needless to say, Soldier C was not selected.
218: Anonymous Combatant
That guy’s brain is pure horny.
219: Anonymous Combatant
At this point I can’t help but respect it.
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220: Hakase (pondering seriously)
But I’m a pure and chaste soul, what is this fool even talking about?
I weeded out those lacking decency and restraint,
and ended up with these candidates:
N-Taro: “Thank you for this opportunity, Hakase!”
L-ria: “I will strive to meet your expectations!”
Cat Ear: “Leave it to me, nya”
Those three. Um, what?
221: Anonymous Combatant
That last one lol
222: Anonymous Combatant
So Cat Ear wanted to be an assistant too, huh?
223: Hakase
Obviously that’s not right, I only called the first two.
Yet Cat Ear somehow snuck in using her damn cloaking skills.
N and L looked pretty confused too. There’s just this cat-eared girl in a girl’s uniform standing there.
And she’s got her paws clenched doing some kind of “Nya!” power pose.
Hakase: “N, L, just wait a moment. Cat Ear, come with me.”
Cat Ear: “Nya? I’m hired?”
Cat Ear toddles along into the other room. I crouch down to meet her eye level.
Hakase: “What are you doing, Cat Ear?”
Cat Ear: “Nya.”
Hakase: “Not ‘nya’.”
224: Anonymous Combatant
Cat Ear’s a bit of an airhead, isn’t she?
225: Anonymous Combatant
Well, she was trying to eat takoyaki while going “hof hof”, so the signs were there.
226: Anonymous Combatant
As I said before, she’s basically the Hakase’s little sister, so her being a ditz is to be expected.
227: Hakase
Always looking for any opportunity to make fun of me, huh.
Cat Ear: “As the one who knows you best, Hakase, I’m the most suitable to be your assistant. That is to say, me, nya.”
Hakase: “But in that case I’d be the only executive left, you know?”
Cat Ear: “……nya?”
Hakase: “I said not ‘nya’.”
228: Anonymous Combatant
Deputy Chief Executive (Combat – Strategy & Tactics – R&D)
NEW Additional Duties → Intelligence/Information Gathering & Analysis
229: Anonymous Combatant
This is beyond just being a black company, holy shit.
230: Anonymous Combatant
A deputy chief with no actual executives left to deputize for, what a trainwreck.
231: Hakase
If my workload increases any more I’m gonna lose it, time to nip this in the bud.
Just as I thought that, Cat Ear says something truly terrifying.
Cat Ear: “……I know about Hakase’s betrayal, nya.”
232: Anonymous Combatant
Betrayal?
233: Anonymous Combatant
Things just took a heavy turn.
234: Hakase
Hakase: “Wha…what?”
Cat Ear: “I’m already aware of the secrets you’ve been keeping from the Leader and me, nya.”
Oh crap, which one is it? The fact that I’ve been colluding with some Japanese companies behind everyone’s back?
Or that I lied about the reason I sealed the magitek armor?
No, is it the joint venture I set up two and a half years ago? The apparel company takeover?
That favor I asked the Gorimacho?
I’ve got several other irons in the fire, could it be one of those?
235: Anonymous Combatant
He’s got way too many skeletons in the closet lol
236: Anonymous Combatant
At that point isn’t he just an actual traitor?
237: Anonymous Combatant
This guy really did take over an apparel company just for Cat Ear’s sake…
238: Hakase
Well, can’t be helped. In this situation some dirty work is necessary.
We have to hide it, though, because our leader would look sad if it got found out.
239: Anonymous Combatant
Not mad or upset, but specifically a sad face?
240: Hakase
The Leader’s policy is “I want to rule through conquest but minimize casualties.”
To achieve that, the quickest way is to keep fighting Lost Fairies head-on while undermining from the shadows to gain de facto control.
the leader doesn’t like underhanded methods, but the leader’s very torn about it all the same.
241: Anonymous Combatant
Aww, the Leader’s such a sweet dummy…
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