[Side Story: Yabasawa Kaori]

My name is Kaori Yabasawa. I'm 28 years old and work as an office clerk at Black Commerce, a so-called "black" company notorious for its harsh working conditions. Despite the sudden overtime and weekend work, along with frequent customer complaints due to tight deadlines, I find my job rewarding, even though the pay is below average for an office lady.

Yet, for someone like me who struggles with social interactions, it's a comfortable environment. Busy with work, I hardly need to engage in conversations, which is a relief. My previous job at a bank was plagued with factional disputes and demanding customer service tasks, which eventually overwhelmed me.

I've had my fair share of romantic experiences, including a marriage proposal. However, I missed that opportunity, and it seems the right moment never came again. To avoid further interpersonal relations, I even changed my appearance to a more exaggerated makeup style, distancing myself from others.

The nature of my job at Black Commerce suits me well. I handle clerical tasks and phone calls without needing face-to-face interactions, making it manageable despite the low salary. I appreciate the simplicity of this job, where I can avoid complex conversations with colleagues.

I'm not fond of social interactions and prefer to keep a distance from my colleagues, including a man about ten years my senior and a woman about twenty years older. However, recently, something about that middle-aged man, Abe Hideo, has caught my attention.

Abe-san, recently turned 40, is our office chief. He always looked tired, with bags under his eyes and a slouched posture, giving off an air of a lifeless middle-aged man. Despite his appearance, he's highly capable in office work, especially in handling accounting tasks.

But about a month ago, Abe-san started behaving oddly. One moment he'd be lost in thought, and the next, he'd burst into laughter. His erratic behavior was hard to ignore and even affected my concentration at work.

The most shocking change was when he suddenly showed up to work with a completely shaved head.

Although he always had a receding hairline, his new bald look was totally unexpected and made me worry if something serious was happening in his life.

During lunch, unable to contain my curiosity, I invited him to eat together.

"Um, Abe-san, would you like to have lunch together?"

"Huh?"

"Oh, I just thought... you've been quite active lately..."

I couldn't hold back my questions any longer.

"Anything happened recently, Abe-san?"

Abe-san sighed as if resigning to his fate.

"Just a little something."

"Is it about the good thing you mentioned before? A girlfriend, perhaps?"

I probed further, unable to stop myself.

"No, it's not about a girlfriend. I've started keeping a pet."

"A pet?"

"Yes, actually... it's a slime."

Abe-san had adopted a slime, a well-known type of monster since the emergence of dungeons around the world. I'd heard about adventurers on NewTube battling such creatures, which had become quite popular among young people.

Listening to Abe-san talk passionately about his slime, Mizumochi, I couldn't help but smile at his newfound joy.

"It's great to see you so fond of Mizumochi-san, Abe-san."

"Yes, Mizumochi-san has become an important part of my family."

Despite his encounter with a goblin, Abe-san seemed in good spirits.

"I'm glad to hear you're doing well. I was worried you might have gotten involved with a weird cult or something dire."

Abe-san reassured me with a laugh, "Don't worry, I'm fine. Maybe joining a slime cult wouldn't be so bad."

I felt relieved knowing Abe-san was okay. His company made going to work a little less daunting, and I looked forward to more interactions with this interesting middle-aged man.