Entering a Company From Another World! – Chapter 292

I encountered the phrase “uninvited guest,” but in this case, I thought it was different. I met the person before me with a wry smile inwardly.

How should I explain the current situation where the head of the organization, our Demon Lord and President, is smiling and waving hello?

He’s holding up a plastic bag in one hand as if it were a college student’s cherry blossom viewing party.

His attire is also casual: black jeans, a white dress shirt, and a light blue jacket.

But he is actually the Demon Lord, and the President, the top of this company.

Perhaps, like a certain general, he’s dressed to blend in with the common folk, but he has too much dignity and could be mistaken for some prince.

I have no experience dealing with such a person arriving with a souvenir, so I don’t know how to respond.

I didn’t panic, but I was struggling to keep my lips from twitching.

Evia-san is holding her forehead as if to contain a headache, and Keiri-san, instead of nodding in understanding of my feelings, should be helping me.

“Hahaha! It’s a surprise. It’s quite fun. Should I do this regularly?”

“Please don’t.”

Seeing my stunned reaction, the President draws words in the air with magic, proclaiming “Dokkiri Daiseikō” (Prank Success!) and laughs merrily.

If he has a playful side, maybe he’s easygoing after all.

“Hey, Boss! Are you here for a drink too, Boss?”

“Kakaka, to think you’d invite even the Demon Lord, Jiro, you’ve really climbed the ranks.”

“Affirmative, as expected of Tadashi’s superior.”

Unlike me, who couldn’t interpret it that way, these gentlemen—who are in good spirits from drinking—seem to actually welcome the President’s appearance.

Instructor Kio, with a sake bottle in hand, puts his arm around my shoulder, exhales alcohol-scented breath, and laughs in high spirits while waving at the President. Standing next to him is Instructor Fushio, also in high spirits, laughing heartily.

And then, Amili-san, who visually looks like she shouldn’t be drinking, approaches the President with a faint blush on her cheeks and a bottle of Spirits she shouldn’t be holding.

It’s probably the same for any organization; one couldn’t just sit and wait for the top leader to appear.

However, I didn’t invite the President, and although groundless claims are about to be fabricated, I think I have no choice but to go with the flow of the moment.

“The instructors seem to welcome you as well, so please, enjoy yourselves.”

All I could do was force a smile and greet the President.

“Gahahahaha! Boss! Let’s drink over here! We have tons of alcohol from this world!”

“Indeed, the flavors are quite good too. Jiro arranged it all for us.”

“Recommendation, this Spirits is delicious.”

The instructors slap me on the back and try to lead me to their seats.

I was about to sigh in relief at their actions, but.

“Hmm, that might be good too, but how about it, Jiro? It’s a good opportunity, won’t you drink with me?”

The President gently refused their invitation and invited me to join him for a drink with a smile. Kaido and the others, watching from a distance, exclaimed “Oh” at the invitation, while Suella and the other women quietly watched my reaction. My parents-in-law, beaming with pride that their son-in-law was remembered by the President, wore wide smiles.

“Yes, if I’m good enough, I’d be happy to.”

Not only was it an invitation from the President directly in front of me, but with the gazes of those around me and the pressure I was under, I couldn’t say no. So, I decided to make the best of it, mobilizing all my facial muscles to construct a smile. Then, I guided the President to an empty spot, and after confirming he was seated, I sat down next to him with a slight gap.

“Ah, you all continue without minding me. This is a state of no honor today.”

Perhaps to ease the suddenly quiet atmosphere, the President said those words to those around him, but the space became quieter than the previous clamor. The instructors started drinking as if unbothered, so not much changed for them, but others did. Evia-san joined the instructors, and Tatte also seemed to have joined their group, but they kept glancing at me. I could tell Suella and the others were also frequently looking my way, but I couldn’t respond to their gazes right now.

“So, Jiro?”

“Yes!”

“Haha, don’t be so stiff. I didn’t call you here to reprimand you, you know.”

“Haa.”

Despite it being a banquet, I felt like I was being interviewed, so when I was called, I instinctively straightened my back and responded. Seeing my reaction, the President chuckled softly and told me to relax. However, now that my drunkenness had subsided, I couldn’t completely let go. I just relaxed my shoulders slightly and shifted my gaze to the array of prepared sake bottles.

“Um, Mr. President, what would you like to drink? As you can see, there’s a wide variety.”

“Hmm, with this many options, it’s hard to choose. How about your recommendation?”

“My recommendation?”

Among the alcohol from the otherworld, and the alcohol available in our world—beer, Japanese sake, shochu, whiskey, wine, tequila, Spirits, gin, and so on—I stood up and reached for the whiskey. Not a high-end one, but a brand I would order for highballs at my previous company’s drinking parties.

“Is this kind of sake acceptable?”

Honestly, I don’t know the other person’s preferences, and I don’t know the taste of high-end liquor. All I can do is recommend what I genuinely like. This sake is not cheap either; it’s a decent quality item. The taste is certainly not bad, but whether it would suit the Demon Lord is a gamble. I waited for his reaction.

“Yes, I’ll have that then.”

After staring at the amber liquid for a few seconds, the President nodded and requested the whiskey. I felt relieved to have won the gamble.

“Understood. How would you like to drink it? There are various ways to enjoy it.”

“Let’s see, since it’s my first time drinking this, I’d like to savor its flavor first.”

“This liquor is strong, but just with ice, is that okay?”

“Ah, I’ve drunk all night with Raidou before, so a little strong is fine.”

The President didn’t show any displeasure at my choice. I added ice and poured the liquor, and he accepted the glass. I’d heard stories about the President’s drinking, but I set them aside for now, replied “Yes,” prepared my own rock, and said.

“Then, a toast to the Moon God for granting us this opportunity here.”

“Cheers.”

I raised my glass to match the President’s, and we clinked glasses. As the President took a sip of whiskey, I also took a sip of my own, and gulped. The heat of the alcohol slightly eased the tension in my body.

“Hmm, I see. Is this an alcoholic beverage with a woody aroma? It has a good flavor.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

“Ah, if there are other varieties, I’d certainly like to try them.”

Seeing the President drink so happily, I felt it would be rude not to say anything, so I decided to ask a minor question.

“You don’t drink much alcohol?”

“My retainers are too overprotective. I’m confident in my physical resilience, but they’re all worriers. Even though ordinary poisons won’t kill me, at parties, they insist that all food be tasted by a designated taster. Because of that, this is the first time I’ve been able to drink without any worries in a setting like this since before I became the Demon Lord, so it feels quite long overdue.”

At his words, the warmth of the alcohol in me completely vanished. That’s right, the being before me is, first and foremost, a ruler of a nation before being a President. What was I thinking, casually recommending alcohol, treating it like a standard business reception? Rationally, I shouldn’t have done that. I turned pale at my blunder.

“Ah, it’s alright. Raidou and the other generals, and Evia are here. There’s no one who could poison me right under their noses, and I also know that you don’t intend to harm me.”

The President consoled me, telling me not to worry. His words didn’t help much, and I could only respond with another “Haa” with my face stiffening with tension.

“Besides, can a being like me, whom only a Hero can defeat, really die that easily? I’ve received blessings from the gods, you know. Rather, dying from poison would be an unprecedented event and would surely go down in history.”

The President, further trying to lighten the mood with jokes, made me finally relax the corners of my mouth. Seeing my reaction, the President took another sip of his glass and added.

“Oh, that looks delicious too.”

He then spotted some dumplings from afar, magically transferred them to his side, warmed the cold dish with magic, and then grabbed a steaming dumpling with his bare hands and ate it.

“Mmm, as expected, warm food is the best.”

I wondered if the being before me was truly the Demon Lord, given his unrestrained behavior. He must have felt incredibly constrained. He was, in a way, enjoying this moment the most. I could tell Evia-san sighed from a distance. She probably should be showing more dignity, but there wasn’t a hint of it. Yet, I found myself instinctively becoming formal. Was it his regal presence as a Demon Lord, or was it because I instinctively sensed his power?

However, he truly ate with gusto. A Demon Lord who suits dumplings is quite rare, I thought.

“Do you want some?”

“Yes, thank you.”

I certainly couldn’t refuse the dumplings made by Himik, which the President offered. I gently picked up a dumpling and popped the warmed food into my mouth. And when you eat something warm, people naturally calm down. Enjoying the deliciousness of the dumplings, I felt relieved.

“Um, you can listen while you eat, but Jiro, have you ever thought about fighting me?”

“Gofō!?”

Just as I was about to swallow the dumpling, the President made an incredible proposal.

“Ahahaha! It’s not that surprising, is it? Among the highest combat power in our country, Raidou, Nōraifu, and Evia—for a Tester trained by these three and possessing the potential of a Hero, it’s not strange for a Demon Lord to be curious about their true strength!”

Without minding that I was coughing and choking because the dumpling filling had gone down the wrong way, the President continued with a smile. I managed to calm my breathing and coughed a few times, then turned to face the President again. He was smiling and looking at me, waiting for an answer.

“Don’t worry. I’m better at holding back than Raidou, you know. I can guarantee your safety.”

I wanted to say that my concern wasn’t about that, but I didn’t have the time.

“……Mr. President, that’s not all, is it?”

“Oh, to see through the pretext. You’ve certainly been trained well by Evia and the others.”

I sensed a mischievous, childlike aura from him. While remaining cautious, I half-resignedly asked, and as expected.

“Rejoice, Jiro. You’ve been promoted.”

The President clapped his hands once, a fanfare echoed, a sound like a cracker went off as he yelled “Banzai!”, and colorful effects appeared around him. I thought his actions were very detailed.

“This is something I’ve decided, but the elders in the council are being troublesome.”

Evia-san glared at the President as he continued speaking. This meant she hadn’t heard about it either.

“Really, after settling the engagement with Evia, they became anxious. Those stubborn old men find reasons to obstruct your promotion. It’s fine to value tradition, but when it stiffens their thinking and hinders the organization’s progress, it’s counterproductive. Therefore, I need to quickly show their capabilities to silence them.”

He didn’t seem to notice her gaze and downed his whiskey, then nudged me to pour him another drink. I silently poured the alcohol and urged him to continue his story. While the promotion itself was a welcome prospect for me, it smelled troublesome.

“The fact that many Dungeon Testers joined in spring also doesn’t sit well with them. When I told them about this, they showed their displeasure. So, after you fight me and demonstrate your abilities, if you pledge your loyalty to me on the spot, I can promote you, regardless of what they think. And for our army, we can bring in the top Dungeon Tester. In this country’s language, it’s killing two birds with one stone.”

And, as expected, the topic turned to organizational matters, and the conversation became suspicious. The old me would have probably tried to politely refuse with a smile, but now.

“Mr. President, what do you think? Of my abilities?”

A desire for a better position in the company, something I didn’t have in the past, whispered within me, prompting me to choose those words. For Suella and the others who chose me, and for the child that will be born, I must not be pointed at. Therefore, I cannot miss this opportunity.

“Hahaha! I wouldn’t say these words to someone without ability.”

Upon hearing my words, the President looked intently into my eyes and then grinned. Just hearing those words from the President was enough to make up my mind.

“I will strive to live up to those words.”

“Yes, I look forward to your results.”

Then, the President finished his drink.

“Well then, let’s enjoy the remaining time. There’s still plenty of alcohol!”

He patted my shoulder, signaling that the business was concluded, and walked with a light step towards the array of drinks. I want to be able to meet the expectations on his back.

Today’s Word: Don’t miss your chance!

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*The first volume of the book is published by Hayakawa Bunko JA.
It was released on October 18, 2018.
An e-book version was also released on October 31 of the same year.
The second volume was released on December 19.
The third volume was released on February 20, 2019.
The content has been revised and expanded from the version posted on Shōsetsuka ni Narō, with the addition of previously unpublished interlude chapters.
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