New Hires (before battle)

We continued toward the corridor full of corpses and debris.

Here's hoping we come across someone else still conscious, like Miss Alyssa...

Oww! Y-you just stepped on my hand, Mister!

Oops, my bad...

... Wait, was that... a survivor speaking just now?

Everyone turned around, hearing the alarm in Gregor's voice.

A lone survivor, the only one who seemed conscious among the bodies crushed under the debris, was looking up at us with her face scrunched up in pain.

Are you... all right?

I... I'm not. It hurts so much. I've been waiting here so long, but nobody showed up...

I was chatting with this person next to me just to stay conscious... B-but then he suddenly stopped speaking - it's been 10 minutes already. We'd even exchanged names!

You must be referring to this man. He's pretending to be dead, but his pulse hasn't stopped.

W-whaaat?

The man in a suit stopped playing dead and slowly opened his eyes.

Ah, you got me.

Chitchatting about the food we'll eat once we get out while slowly being crushed by the debris on top of us....

I mean, you know what happens to characters who say "once we survive this"...

I... I want me some vanilla ice-cream with almond sprinkles once we survive this... And a sandwich too, with lots and lots of cheese! What about you, Ravi?

…….

... Need a hand?

Yes, please.

<... Let's just get them out.>

With the Sinners' help, the two employees who'd been trapped under the rubble managed to break themselves free.

Hn. Just my left leg. I'm good besides that.

Ouchie! I... I think I b-broke my right arm, um, but give it a few days with lots of almonds and fish, a-and it should be good as new.

Oh. Th-thank you for getting us out of there. I'm Sora.

We got to live another day thanks to you. You can call me Ravi.

By the way... May I ask which department you're from?

Uh... haven't you seen us before? We were here for a check-up last time.

Oh. We're new hires. This is our first day of work.

N-new hires...?

Yes. There were new job postings for LCE's Enkephalin Refining Department. Today's Day 1 for us new hires.

We were on our way to see the researcher who was supposed to handle our onboarding... and then this happened.

Th-this gear... It's my first time wearing it. The more I look at it, the more it intrigues me.

<... How did you get trapped under the debris?>

Pray tell, how did you get trapped under the debris?

W-well... I was just walking through the corridor and stopped for a bit...

I... I'm always a total klutz. Once I have s-something on my mind, I can't multitask... at all.

I can relate. Researchers oft sink into the fathoms of their mind when the spark of inspiration strikes.

I had this idea f-for an E.G.O gear experiment... a-and I couldn't move on without first getting it sorted out in my head.

E.G.O gear, you say... Might you be referring to that shackle around your wrists?

Th-that's right. It's not the wieldiest... but it's my one and only E.G.O.

…….

Cut the fluff and get to what happened next.

S-sorry. It happened... o-out of nowhere... We heard a loud noise coming from the other end of the corridor and people started running... That's when... th-the ceilings collapsed.

*sigh* I-if only I hadn't zoned out... I wouldn't have gotten caught under the rubble.

... I wouldn't go so far as to call you lucky, but getting trapped under the rubble might've been exactly what saved you from the intruders who are attacking the facility. They've already killed a lot of people.

What? W-while we were trapped...?

... My condolences. I regret I have no further words to give.

Were you able to find... any other survivors?

An approximation of 20 remains. As fortune should have it, the team leader and the rest managed to regroup.

That's a relief....

And you... Are you certain you are well? It is quite remarkable that a newcomer to a corporation remains so composed in the face of such crises.

We get trained for situations like this, so I wasn't entirely unprepared... Just never thought something like this would happen on Day 1...

... Still, that's pretty impressive for a new guy.

In any case, where were you headed?

Oh, right. We're looking for the elevator. I think it's somewhere in this direction... but I'm not sure.

Oh, th-the elevator...! I... I know where it is. Could I come with you?

... Lead the way.

*bzzt*... these components... *bzzt*...

I... I hear voices from the other end of the radio... Is it your team?

<The call's breaking up...>

Hmm, it seems we've gone past the transmission radius... I wonder how the others are faring.

I... I hope I can get an update about my colleagues as well...

I'm with you on that...

The two LCE researchers sighed anxiously as we hurried in the elevator's direction.