LCCB Assistant Manager: Ryōshū's Story
Dear new employees! Everyone, I know that everyone's gotta be tired of hearing this, but...
... please stay focused during these loyalty training classes! The purpose of this class is to enhance your psychological readiness for battle.
……
Click. Clack.
The table vibrated ever-so-slightly as the child shook her leg impatiently. Her trousers kept making that annoying, brushing noise.
What accompanied that was the sound of restless, irritated click-clacking of her ballpoint pen.
I understand it can be a bit tiring, a bit boring... but let's try reading it out loud.
Open page 3 of the new hire training guide.
... This is a reminder to all LCCB employees. We, the Before Team, are assigned the paramount task of clearing the path before anyone else does. Every bloodied step, every flesh given becomes...
W.O.T.
The child muttered with a sigh. She was clearly miffed about this waste of time.
It wasn't loud enough for the instructor to pick up, but it sure was loud enough for her colleagues to hear.
How much longer do I have to suffer this drivel? I went along with it once or twice... But it's really starting to get on my nerves.
... Excuse me. Can you pipe down a little?
Another child sat beside this one. The expression of boredom was evident on her face as well, but she still went along with the lesson for some reason. It was an odd juxtaposition of dissatisfaction and compliance.
Did I say anything wrong? Sacrifice ourselves for everyone else? Be proud of it? What a load of bull. What's so fun about suffering in others' stead?
Sure, I can agree with some of what you said, but... It's not like we work for fun. Better to just go along with it.
I don't agree with anything you said. I work for fun.
... Yeah, okay. Good for you.
The other child frowned and opened her mouth as though she wanted to add something... before sighing and turning away.
Hmph.
Oh, and... while ammunition is a part of your standard issue gear, please refrain from using them unless absolutely necessary. You know how expensive they are.
Remember: the more ammunition you save, the more extra pay you'll get.
The child scoffed, but she knew that the other child had a point.
She wouldn't be getting any 'interesting jobs' if she got fired.
Instead of continuing to sigh and complain, the child began chewing on her ballpoint pen. Hopefully, that would make this waste of time go just a little faster.
She kept waiting and waiting for a smoke break to arrive... She craved that thick, eye-watering puff of smoke.
So here she was.
Leaving a trail of voluminous, eye-watering smoke in her wake.
Smoke from the cigarette in her mouth? Sure.
……
But there also was a trail of smoke coming from the shotgun in the child's hands.
Hmph. So here we are.
W.O.W.W.I.E.
Waiting overlong was worth it eventually.
There was no other sound than the metallic ch-chak of the firearm, the light sound of plastic shell casing hitting the floor...
... and the sound of her military boots clacking against the ground.
There was nothing else here. No new recruits, no teammates... No one.
…!
And now, no enemies.
The child gleefully took a hit from her cigarette. What an entertaining predicament. Some things were taken from her, yet... she'd also taken from them.
Weaklings... All of them so-called superiors.
Was that all they could manage with such a weapon? This great communicator?
To be fair, it's running low on ammo... But it's decently useful as a blunt weapon.
So we had to find some coordinates, huh... Bet they'll greet me with open arms if I return with the mission objective and body bags of my former superiors.
Now they'll give me more interesting jobs in the future for sure... heh.
The child grinned. All's well that ends well. She spat out the butt of the cigarette and made her way deeper into the building.