Today is the release day of "The World of Otome Games is Harsh Towards the Subordinate Characters - Comic Version, Volume 1"!
And what's more!
It seems that Comic Walker and Nico Nico Seiga are offering episodes 6 to 9 for a limited time.
You can read the continuation of Volume 1, so I hope you will consider purchasing it.
The original novel is currently available in volumes 1 to 3, so I would appreciate your support for that as well.
My training post is in a logistics department located in the capital planet.
I graduated from the officer school with excellent grades and started as a second lieutenant—but to be honest, it's not a glamorous department.
It's not a department where elites receive training, but I was satisfied with it.
Why?
—Because if I do paperwork here, I'm guaranteed a promotion to first lieutenant after a year.
By the time my second year is over, I'll probably be promoted to captain.
I can advance in rank by doing safe desk work in the rear.
It's truly wonderful.
And once I'm officially assigned, I'll spend four years loafing around on the patrol fleet that Tia has prepared for me.
My training has passed a major milestone, and now all that's left is university life and miscellaneous tasks as a bureaucrat.
Nobles can advance without working hard on the elite track and enjoy watching others toil from a safe place.
It's a perfect example of a corrupt lord.
During the training period, living in the barracks is mandatory, and on weekends, I spend time at the hotel in the capital planet.
I finish work on time every day, return to the barracks, and enjoy my after-work time.
It's a wonderful position to mock the elites who work hard in busy departments.
While I was working, Wallace spoke to me.
"Hey Liam, it seems a customer has come to yell at us."
"Yell? Did someone make a mistake?"
Who made a mistake?
If we leave it to the AI, there should be almost no mistakes.
There are some parts that require human hands, so it must have been a mistake then.
"No, they have a complaint about the supplies you arranged, Liam."
"---What?"
â—‡
The logistics department, which doesn't go to the front lines, tends to be looked down upon.
The fact that there's less work due to the use of AI is also a reason for being looked down upon.
However, if we did everything by hand, the work efficiency would drop significantly.
Considering the maintenance of the empire's front lines, we have no choice but to rely on AI.
"You rejects who rely on AI have rejected my application! What is this!"
A colonel with a prominent belly stormed in around noon.
A brigadier general was dealing with him, but the colonel, being of noble birth, was being aggressive.
"I, I'm sorry. Colonel, we will prepare additional supplies immediately, so let's handle this peacefully—"
Because the logistics department relies heavily on AI, the military personnel involved in logistics management also feel inferior.
The empire considers over-reliance on AI to be bad, and this department is not considered a path to advancement.
"Bring me the fool who arranged the supplies for my ship! I will educate him personally!"
The colonel, holding a whip and grinning, was stopped by the brigadier general.
"Colonel, that's not acceptable. If you do that—"
"I'm offering to train a weakling who doesn't even go to the front lines. Wouldn't he be grateful and cry with joy?"
The colonel seemed to enjoy tormenting the weak.
The brigadier general's shoulders slumped.
"I warned you."
When the brigadier general said, "Call the second lieutenant," the colonel snapped his fingers with his whip.
"Hmph. That rank is either a rookie or a trainee. I need to teach him what it means to be an imperial soldier."
The brigadier general averted his eyes from the colonel, who was saying things like "young people these days—"
"---If you can teach him, I'd like to see it."
"Did you say something?"
"Nothing."
Then, a knock was heard on the door, and the colonel shouted.
"Come in!"
The one who entered the room was—Liam.
"Are you the one who handled the supplies for my ship? Do you know what you've done!"
Liam, with a bold attitude, sneered at the colonel.
"Who are you?"
"W, what? You don't even recognize my rank insignia!"
"Just a patrol fleet colonel, don't act superior to me. Sir Brigadier General, I'm busy. I don't want to be called for something like this."
When Liam said this, the brigadier general replied, "I wanted to, but the colonel insisted on educating you."
Liam's eyes changed color when he heard this.
"---Who are you going to educate?"
"You! Honestly, what did you learn at the officer school? Don't think you can go home today!"
As the colonel was thinking about how to torment Liam—suddenly, the colonel was blown away.
"Wha—!?"
He hit the wall, not knowing what had happened, and heard Liam's voice.
"Sir Brigadier General, can you call this man's superior?"
"I, I don't think—"
"The application he submitted included expensive alcohol and snacks. I want to hear about it. Who is this patrol fleet officer complaining to, anyway?"
The brigadier general, seeing Liam's smile, said, "I, I understand," and called the colonel's superior.
The superior was a major general in charge of the patrol fleet around the capital planet.
When he was called via communication, he looked displeased.
"What is this about?"
"Hey, major general. One of your subordinates has challenged me. I want you to take responsibility as his superior."
"---B, Baron!"
The major general was also of noble birth, but he was inferior to Liam, who was the current head of his family.
Moreover, Liam was a famous person who was in conflict with the Berkeley family.
The major general was flustered.
"M, my subordinate was extremely rude. Please tell him to return immediately."
"Tell him? You should come here and take him back. Do you intend to order me? You're quite arrogant. Do you think you can look down on me just because of your military rank?"
"I, I apologize. I will come to fetch him. Yes, I will come to fetch him."
"Hurry up. Also, the applications from your department are full of nonsense. Understand? I want to go home on time. Do you get it?"
"I, I don't—"
"---If you have a complaint, I'll listen. Go ahead, say it."
"N, no complaints."
If he wanted to do something special, it would take extra effort.
Liam disliked that.
"I love smart people. And hurry up and fetch your incompetent subordinate."
"---Understood."
When the major general cut the communication, the colonel, who had learned that Liam was a current baron with considerable power, was trembling.
"Well, you were going to educate me. I was getting soft from all the desk work. This might be good exercise."
The colonel hastily stood up and saluted.
"I, I'm extremely sorry!"
He acknowledged that the other party was of higher rank—but it was a bit too late.
Liam placed his hand on the colonel's shoulder.
"I don't mind a change of heart, but I'm not that forgiving. Do you understand?"
The colonel trembled as Liam grabbed his collar and led him out of the room.
The brigadier general, seeing this—
"Hmm—It was a good idea to bring him here."
He was pleased that the department's work had become smoother thanks to Liam.
Many military personnel looked down on the logistics department and made various demands.
That's why he wanted to bring in a powerful noble.
If it were a bad noble like the Berkeley family, they would refuse and cause trouble.
However, he thought that a serious noble like Liam would not tolerate corruption.
"I hope this will reduce some of the unreasonable demands."
The brigadier general was glad he had brought Liam and wondered why he had come to a department like this.
â—‡
The front lines.
The one who was assigned to receive training as an infantryman there was—Marie.
"You damn Minchi woman!"
Muttering curses at Tia, she jumped out of the transport in a powered suit.
There was no parachute, but a barrier was formed around her just before landing, absorbing the impact and shattering.
In the dense forest, Marie was on guard.
"Marie, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
"I see. Then, infiltrate the enemy facility and rescue the hostages quickly. It's a difficult mission, but I believe you can accomplish it."
Marie, who was ordered to infiltrate the enemy base alone and rescue the hostages, muttered to herself.
(I will definitely return and take that Minchi woman's head.)
She was assigned to a special unit because Tia had pulled some strings.
According to Tia, "There is no place for you by Lord Liam's side."
She quickly moved through the forest, and when she spotted a guard, she killed him with a knife.
Her superior, watching her work, said over the communication.
"Excellent skills. You remind me of a former subordinate."
"Was there someone as skilled as me? Who is it?"
She was interested in hearing about someone as strong as herself.
"He used to go by a different name. Unlike you, he worked as a spy. He was undoubtedly strong in combat, but he completed every mission."
"I'm interested."
"Due to military regulations, I can't tell you, but he was an excellent subordinate."
As the enemy base came into view, Marie cut the communication and infiltrated.
"Well, I want to finish this quickly and return to Lord Liam."
That day, a criminal organization was eliminated.
â—‡
Moderate exercise feels good.
"I managed to finish work on time."
Thinking I had accomplished it for the day, a tired-looking Wallace spoke to me.
"Liam, you're so strict about finishing on time. Is that okay? There are still people working."
There are seniors who can't leave on time.
But it's none of my business.
Because I have finished my work.
"Overtime has no value."
"Are you not going to help them?"
A fool suggested that I should help, but I told him to do it himself and dismissed him.
"What value does it have?"
In my previous life, I worked hard for the company, my subordinates, and my juniors, but it didn't benefit me.
Work should be finished on time, and it's best to go home quickly.
It's enough to do the work for the salary.
Society and companies will demand more, but they don't understand the value of goodwill, so it's meaningless.
They only say "thank you" with their mouths, but few reward your efforts.
That's why I only work for my salary.
When I left the building where my workplace was, a large limousine was waiting for us.
"Quite luxurious. Is someone important coming?"
It was an unusually luxurious limousine.
Since the logistics department is unpopular, I thought it was a guest, as there were few nobles.
As I was thinking this, Wallace noticed something.
"Hey? Is it coming to pick up Liam?"
"---What?"
As I approached, the door opened, and Rosetta in civilian clothes jumped out.
"Darling!"
"Rosetta!?"
I thought about running, but if I dodged, Rosetta might fall, so I caught her.
"Y, why are you here?"
"Isn't today the day we spend at the hotel? My training is over, so I'm staying at the hotel now. I came to pick you up because I wanted to go back together."
When Wallace heard this, he immediately got into the limousine.
"O, oh, that's considerate. Then I'll ride with you. ---Liam! It's amazing inside! There's alcohol and snacks! All top-notch!"
Seeing Wallace get in and start drinking, I decided to stop him.
"H, hey! We had a plan to go drinking today!"
"It's fine to do it at the hotel. Besides, I'm short on money before payday, so I prefer something that doesn't cost much."
This guy!
When Rosetta moved away from me, she looked up at me with puppy eyes.
"Darling, are you going out to play? Y, yeah, you have work relationships, don't you?"
Seeing Rosetta, who looked a bit sad, made me feel guilty.
Originally, it was just a plan to go drinking with Wallace, not a work relationship.
"N, no, I'm just going drinking with Wallace today."
"Is that so? Then let's go to the hotel. There are many types of restaurants, so you won't get bored. They seem to have prepared a lot of alcohol for you, darling."
I was hoping for a more resistant Rosetta, but this way, I can't have any fun.
"---What are you doing at the hotel, Rosetta?"
"I'm studying in the capital planet now. I'm learning the culture of the capital planet with the young ladies from the foster families. It's fun."
It sounds like a cooking class for young housewives.
It sounds like a lot of fun. ---But I have no interest in it at all.
Rosetta's expression became serious.
"And, darling. ---Actually, you have a visitor."
"Visitor?"
Another visitor? I hope it's not like the colonel at noon.
Bryan (´；ω；｀) "Even though no one complains, Lord Liam works hard until the end of the day—It's painful. Thinking about the Lord Liam who can be happy with this is painful."