Transmigrated as a Corporate Manager in a Game

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Chapter 24: Scarlet Devil Mansion (1)

His right arm was scorched red, and although the flames had died out, there was still an occasional burning pain, as if it were flaring up again.

It was a first-degree burn.

"...So, you're telling me not to doubt it?"

The description didn't mention this skill, but it had an extremely high combustion rate.

'Of course, it's fire-related...'

Given how quickly it spread, using it by applying it to a weapon was practically impossible.

You could force it, but...

'At most, it would be good for lighting a torch or brightening up the way.'

Still, the firepower was top-notch.

'Just from a brief contact, and I've already got a first-degree burn...'

Considering the speed of combustion, it could potentially incinerate an enemy in an instant.

If I aim properly, it could be a very usable skill.

The corners of my mouth lifted.

'...I like it.'

Dangerous and tricky to use, but it's just what I need right now...

That's my evaluation of it.

The strongest in long-range firepower combat.

'I happened to need a powerful skill, and here it is...'

I had gained a fatal-level skill at just the right time.

"...Looks like the test of my new skill is just about over."

I stood up and headed to the waiting room.

"I'm glad I experimented in the training grounds."

I could recover as soon as I returned to the waiting room.

I would have probably been flustered by now if I had trusted only the description without testing the skill and used it in a stage.

'And the stage would have ended in failure.'

So, this burn was no big deal.

'There are countless ways to use it.'

With those thoughts, I opened the door and stepped outside.

And just like that, the burn on my right arm disappeared, as if it had never been there.

"Administrator, are you already done with your workout?"

I turned my gaze towards the voice that suddenly called out to me.

It was Khan.

I asked Khan with a puzzled look.

"...You've already finished eating?"

Khan scratched the back of his head awkwardly and smiled.

"Haha, well, there were so many people... It seems like we didn’t prepare enough food. So, I decided to eat later."

In short, he thought waiting would be a waste of time, so he came to train instead.

‘What a diligent guy.’

Khan being diligent was admirable, but the question in my head didn’t go away.

'...Did that much food really disappear that quickly?'

Right after the dining hall was completed, Bilbo and I had prepared about 40 servings for breakfast.

Unless there were some serious gluttons in the mix, it shouldn't have run out that fast... but I shrugged it off, figuring the staff were working hard and eating a lot.

"So, there's still some time until you can eat?"

"Yes."

No matter how I thought about it, preparing another meal would take a bit of time.

[Cream Bun EA1]

I immediately bought a bun and handed it to Khan.

"Eat this for now. I have something to do right away."

I was planning to go a little later, but since my schedule was thrown off, I figured entering the stage now wouldn’t be a bad idea.

I had stayed up through the night, but thanks to [Foundation’s Star], I didn’t feel tired at all.

'And Khan can keep moving once he's had a quick snack.'

Although we looked like a hastily assembled party, just the two of us were already stronger than most [Gold] parties.

As long as it wasn't a "phenomenon-type" stage, anything from [Silver] would be manageable.

"Thank you."

After confirming Khan had taken the bun, I moved toward the monument.

Then, I placed my hand on it and used my administrator authority.

[Please select your staff.]

'Since it's just reconnaissance, I'll take it easy.'

Of course, going into an unknown stage with just two people was normally considered a crazy move.

'...But we'll be fine.'

Khan's sixth sense performed better than most detection-type abilities.

And if the situation called for Mari's 'focus', I could just bring her in via [Synchronization].

On top of that...

'...If things get bad, we can always use [Recall].'

[Selecting a world...]

I closed my eyes, and a blue vortex appeared when I opened them again.

Above the vortex, the number 0/4 was displayed.

"Oh."

The theory was perfect.

That is, until the number appeared above the blue vortex.

'Come to think of it, this is my first time entering this stage.'

With all the stages related to kobolds completed, a new stage was opening.

If you didn’t enter with the correct number of people, random employees from the company would be summoned to fill in.

As soon as I recalled that fact, a low mechanical sound echoed.

[If you do not enter in time, random personnel will be automatically summoned to meet the minimum number of participants required for the mission.]

Even with me and Khan entering, we were still short by two people.

The system would probably abduct two employees shortly after we entered.

Likely from those who had just started their meal.

"...Poor things."

I wished good luck to the two who would soon be abducted, and stepped through the portal.

After a blue flash engulfed my vision, a huge mansion soon came into view.

Right then, a quest window appeared.

[Scarlet Devil Mansion - Identify and isolate the cause of the strange phenomena!]

The large mansion visible beyond the grand archway exuded a spooky atmosphere, in stark contrast to its clean exterior.

[Sixth Sense (LV. 2), Basic Swordsmanship (LV. 3) applied to ‘Administrator’.]

As my Sixth Sense activated, the eerie air surrounding the place seemed to intensify, almost as if it was just a trick of my mind.

"...Hah."

I scanned the area and let out a low sigh.

‘It's a phenomenon-type.’

Having a phenomenon-type show up at the very first stage of this series meant I was either incredibly unlucky or just plain unfortunate.

‘Well, let’s look on the bright side.’

The phenomenon-type stage would lock in the themes for the next two stages, so as long as I endured this one, the rest would be manageable.

Even so, a phenomenon-type was always troublesome, so I sighed again.

"Sigh, this place feels overwhelmingly ominous."

Naturally, Khan would have sensed the same atmosphere I did.

"Administrator, it seems more dangerous than we thought,"

Khan said, gripping his weapon tightly and scanning the surroundings.

And then, at that moment...

[Basic Shieldmanship (LV. 4), Intermediate Archery (LV. 1), Concentration (LV. 1) applied to ‘Administrator’.]

"Huh!"

"Argh!"

At the sound of familiar voices, Khan and I turned our heads simultaneously.

"What, what is this?!"

"Ah! My fruit!"

There, we saw Beryl and Mari, who looked utterly despondent.

"Ahhh! My precious break time!"

"My fruit!"

The two were sitting on the ground, as if in shock.

"...This isn't right. People should get to rest after working, shouldn’t they?"

"Ugh... It was finally time to eat watermelon."

In front of the mansion, which was now enveloped in the night, the only thing breaking the silence was the despairing cries of Beryl and Mari.

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I approached the two, who seemed oblivious to the situation.

"…Come on, get up."

Mari widened her eyes.

"Huh? Administrator?"

Her expression was as if she was wondering why I was there.

Meanwhile, Beryl looked around in a panic before quickly straightening up.

"…."

Realizing that the area was temporarily safe, Beryl grabbed my pant leg, almost tearfully, despite his large frame.

"Oh, Administrator, what did I do wrong this time...?"

Looking at the dark circles under Beryl's eyes, I realized he seemed to be severely lacking rest.

'Oh… right.'

Come to think of it, Beryl and Mari had stayed up with me during the training and containment of the [Kobold Warlord].

They didn’t have skills like [Foundation Star], which helped with mental fatigue, so they were undoubtedly exhausted.

So, while it would usually be the right call to send them back through reverse summoning...

[Basic Shieldmanship (LV. 4), Intermediate Archery (LV. 1), Concentration (LV. 1) applied to ‘Administrator’.]

‘I can’t just pass up free skills.’

Even if I left them in a safe zone, I could use their skills—Concentration, Intermediate Archery, and Basic Shieldmanship—without needing to activate [Resonance].

Having more skills was always advantageous for exploration.

‘And Beryl has the [Mercenary] trait.’

On top of that, Beryl’s [Mercenary] status would yield bonuses upon stage clearance, making it even harder to send him back.

I patted their shoulders and smiled.

"Once we find a safe zone, you can rest there. How about sticking with us until then?"

I thought this was a very reasonable offer.

"Oh, does that mean we don’t have to work?"

Beryl took the bait.

"Yes, you can rest once we find the safe zone."

"Wow, Administrator, you really do have a human heart."

Beryl’s eyes sparkled as he praised me.

However, Mari didn’t seem to share the same sentiment.

Maybe it was because she knew I could use [Recall], but her expression looked anything but pleased.

"Send us back."

"No."

"S. E. N. D. U. S. B. A. C. K."

She expressed hostility like a dog growling at its owner.

I had never seen Mari this angry before.

‘... Well, considering she had to pull an all-nighter only to go straight back to work the next day, it’s understandable she'd be upset.’

What was needed at a time like this was a proper reward.

"...You're right, I made a mistake. I'll make sure Bilbo cooks you something delicious after we finish this."

Something tasty.

From what I had seen of Mari, she seemed to be a sucker for good food.

And as expected.

Mari relaxed her expression and her eyes gleamed.

"Oh! Then, how about those chicken skewers we had last time?"

"Sure. I'll let Bilbo know, but you need to cooperate for now."

"Okay~"

I felt like I was training an animal or something, but that had to be just my imagination.

After managing to appease them both, I returned to Khan.

"Alright, let's get going."

Khan glanced at me briefly, then looked awkwardly behind me and chuckled.

"...Are those two going to be okay?"

Following his gaze, I saw Beryl and Mari forming an alliance.

"Rest! Rest! We will absolutely rest! As soon as we find a safe zone, we're resting!"

"Heehee, chicken skewers! I need to get back quickly so I can ask for chicken skewers!"

...Hmm.

They did look a bit broken, but then again, every overworked employee is bound to have something a little broken, so it’s no big deal.

I waved it off like it was nothing.

"At least they're not completely drained and devoid of motivation."

"That's true, but..."

Khan agreed but kept glancing nervously behind him, swallowing hard.

I left those employees behind and reached for the arch-shaped door.

[Warning!]

I squinted at the warning message.

It was a warning that appears when there's a significant gap in power between the staff and the creature.

Normally, I would’ve shrugged it off.

‘…Mari, Khan, and Beryl together are stronger than most elite teams from a [Gold]-ranked company, right?’

There shouldn’t be any stage in a [Silver] rank that warrants a [Warning].

Even if it was a ‘Phenomenon Stage.’

"......"

I grabbed the handle again.

[Warning!]

[This is the Witch's Lair! Turn back immediately!]

I felt a heavy sensation as I tried to pull the door open.

It was as if an overwhelming pressure was crushing my entire body.

[Grade 7 employee ‘Khan’ is resisting fear.]

[Grade 7 employee ‘Mari’ is resisting fear.]

[Grade 7 employee ‘Beryl’ is resisting fear.]

Collective panic.

The other staff members must have felt the same pressure I had, as they all stepped back from the archway.

They gasped for breath and braced themselves.

"Administrator, this is—!"

"...!"

"Haaah..."

But I didn’t do the same.

Instead, it felt like all the lingering questions I had were answered as I lightly pushed open the archway.

Creak—

"Hah, I knew something felt off. This entire stage is just a rest area, isn’t it?"

I muttered to myself, leaving the startled employees behind.

I walked along the long, gray path.

‘I didn’t expect to come across a hidden stage so soon.’

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[Proofreader - Gun]

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