General 109

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Chapter 109. Being A Middle Manager Is Tough

"Yusuke, another bowl of rice."

"Yeah, yeah. A big serving, right?"

"Yusuke, I want hot oolong tea, not barley tea."

"Yeah, yeah. I bought some tea leaves."

"Yusuke~"

"I can’t take this anymore!"

BANG! The sound of someone hitting the living room table made me jump.

"Hey, Hayami-san. Don’t shout so loud in the morning."

"Yuu-sama! I can't stand watching my beloved superior being treated like a servant by this second brat!"

Tears of frustration welled up in Hayami-san's eyes as she pointed at Misuzu, who was eating breakfast nonchalantly.

By the way, Mina, the first brat, has been with the music corps since yesterday and is absent.

"Well, I’m doing this voluntarily, you know."

"That’s exactly why I’m so jealous and voicing my complaint!"

"Hayami-san, your true feelings are slipping out."

"And calling her by her first name too!"

I could hear the sound of her teeth grinding.

"Misuzu left the military, so she’s a civilian now. There’s no problem calling her by her name."

"In both Japan and the Eastern Union, the culture is to respect elders. So, there’s no problem with me calling the younger Yusuke by his first name."

Misuzu slurped her miso soup with a loud sip.

"But, sheltering a deserter in a private home…"

"I kind of pushed it through with the staff office. You know, there's a bit of personal atonement involved."

"…That’s not something you should be worrying about, Yuu-sama."

Hayami-san lowered her voice slightly and spoke to me seriously, as if trying to console me. She must think I’m burdened by the battery incident and is concerned.

"Even with a clone, dying hurts a lot."

"See? When she says things like that, at least let her eat as much as she wants."

"You brat number two… With my advanced transfer technique, I could easily send you back to the Eastern Union’s military headquarters with a bow on top!"

"Hey, Hayami-san! If you do that to Misuzu, a diplomatic VIP, you'd be court-martialed and shot!"

I quickly stopped Hayami-san, who was glaring at Misuzu. Misuzu is now an important card for Japan in diplomacy.

Even if that weren’t the case, Misuzu is the Eastern Union’s most vital Soul Gear user. If a single soldier were to return such an important figure to the enemy country, it would be considered treason.

"If this brat number two is so important, she should be imprisoned at the Joint Staff Office in Ichigaya or the National Soul Gear Research Institute in Okinawa!"

"If that were the case, we couldn’t handle it if she used her powers. Right now, I'm the only one who can counter her homunculus creation technique."

Exactly. It’s not just for personal reasons that I let Misuzu stay at my house.

The upper limit of how many clones Misuzu can create with her homunculus creation technique is unknown. With my saturation abilities, at least I won’t lose to sheer numbers against an opponent who can produce near-infinite clones.

That’s why it’s a logical decision to keep her where I can monitor her.

"But with that reasoning, this brat would have to attend school, wouldn’t she?"

"I talked to Principal Takami, and she’s all set to transfer into Class 1-A. The paperwork was a pain."

Misuzu’s transfer was due to my own selfishness, and I couldn’t get cooperation from Marin, who opposed bringing Misuzu here, so finishing the documents was tough.

"Yuu-sama even went through the trouble of doing paperwork, which he hates, for this brat number two…"

"The hellish days of preparing for the school festival weren’t for nothing."

Those days of the school festival preparation death march really became a huge asset for me. Without that experience, it would've been impossible to handle the transfer paperwork on my own.

"I’m going to school?"

"Yeah. Even though you’re 18, you’re starting from the first year."

"I’ve never been to school before, so I’m looking forward to it."

Misuzu, who usually has a somewhat indifferent tone and almost no emotion in her speech, sounded a bit excited at the prospect of going to school.

She’s been treated as a trump card for the Eastern Union. She probably never had the chance to be in a normal environment like other teenagers.

"I see. I was in a similar situation, so I understand how you feel."

"What kind of school is the Special Soul Gear Academy?"

"Back when I was there... I got challenged to a duel by a senior right away, and as a result, that senior became a slave."

"…That sounds different from the school life I imagined."

"Well, it’s a school for Soul Gear users, so it’s a bit unique."

Misuzu's face darkened slightly, so I hurried to explain. I’m a terrible example to use.

And it’s all Suou-senpai’s fault. I’ll make sure to file a complaint next time.

"Alright, let’s go get your uniform tailored today. Hayami-san, I’ll need your help."

"You need me to go with you?"

Hayami-san responded with obvious reluctance.

"Please, Hayami-san. If it’s just me and Misuzu going to a store for a girl’s uniform, they’ll think we’re just messing around and kick us out."

I pressed my hands together and pleaded with Hayami-san.

"…Well, I can’t leave Yuu-sama alone with brat number two, so I guess I have no choice."

Reluctantly, Hayami-san agreed.

Still, accepting Misuzu, who was once an enemy soldier, has brought more resistance than I expected, even though I pushed through with my personal reasons.

Having to bow and scrape everywhere... Is this the pain of being a middle management non-commissioned officer? I’m only now realizing just how tough it is.

I was promoted too quickly, skipping over most of my time as a non-commissioned officer.

"Uniform… sounds good."

"That’s great. I hope they have a size that fits your height. Let’s head to the store right away."

At least seeing Misuzu happy was some consolation.