Episode 404: Managing Director

「I still have a bit more to talk about, so could you wait outside for a little while?」

Having been told that by Masaomi-san, I left the special room ahead of him and sat down on a sofa in the hallway to take a breath for the time being.

The talk had ended in what felt like an instant. Even though there had been an unsettling atmosphere at first, after it was over, I felt like I’d been able to talk relatively easily… I think the kindness of the Chairman, who thinks of Sara-san like a real granddaughter, was reflected onto me indirectly.

But putting that aside, I had unexpectedly heard that Masaomi-san would officially take the seat of the next President. What concerned me was what came after… whether or not any changes would come to our lives once Masaomi-san officially took office as President…

One thing I could say for sure was that Mayumi-san, who’d been a member of the founding family, would have the new title of「President’s Wife」added to her, and her daughter, Sara-san, would also have the title of「President’s Daughter」added…

…Nn?

Wait a second.

Does that mean…

Does that include me, who is going to be adopted by Masaomi-san and the others?

No, but we aren’t related by blood…

Mmm…?

「My, my, what a timely guest.」

「Eh?」

I’d been leaning back deep into the sofa, vaguely thinking about those things, when I was suddenly spoken to… It was a slightly portly man who looked about a decade older than Masaomi-san, wearing a gray suit and glasses.

And behind him stood a young man who looked about the same age as the trio from earlier, also watching me…

「Um…?」

「Ah, don’t worry. The fact that you’re here means you were either called by the Chairman or have some appropriate business. I am not being suspicious. Besides, I saw you with the Executive Director and the Madam earlier.」

Setting aside the theatrical way he spoke, it didn’t seem like I’d be suddenly questioned like I was by those three earlier… though I could definitely feel the vibe that this was heading in a similar direction.

「Let’s start with an introduction. I am Yamanashi Yukihiko… I serve as a Managing Director here at Saba Electronics. Nice to meet you.」

「N-nice to meet you. I… my name is Takanashi Kazunari.」

「Takanashi… Takanashi… Hmm. As far as I can remember, there are no executives or officials with the name Takanashi… Do you know of anyone?」

「No, there is no one named Takanashi as far as I know either.」

「I see… well, that’s fine.」

The man who introduced himself as Yamanashi… the Managing Director(?)… spoke while exchanging a glance with the young man behind him… once again staring me down with interest.

Mmm… this is uncomfortable.

「Um, do you need something from me?」

「Hmm? No, it isn’t as if we spoke to you with any particular business in mind…」

「I see. Well then, I’ll…」

「However… we were thinking of asking the Chairman to put in a good word so that we could have a meeting with the Executive Director’s daughter after this. Since she rarely appears in public, today is a once in a lifetime chance, after all.」

「…Huh?」

What did this man just say?

With Sara-san… what?

「…Just as I thought, your expression changed.」

「!?」

The Managing Director’s expression… his gaze… suddenly turned sharp when he saw my reaction to his words.

And from behind him, the young man who’d been watching as well looked at me…

「Father, that talk is…」

「Be quiet for a moment. This isn’t a matter we can just easily overlook. Depending on the situation, I might…」

「Depending on the situation… what?」

「O-oops!? Well, well…」

Abruptly cutting off the Managing Director’s words, someone emerged smoothly from the shadow of the hallway…

Walking slowly, she stepped between me and the Managing Director… placing her own body in the middle as if to protect me. That woman was, of course, my most beloved…

「S-Sara-san…」

「!?」

The one who murmured that name, as if delirious with fever… unfortunately, wasn’t me.

It was the young man standing behind the Managing Director. He called her by the same name I used, staring at her with a heated gaze…

I was violently shaken by it, and as for Sara-san herself…

「Could you please not call my name so casually? There is only one man in this world allowed to call me by that name.」

I couldn’t see her expression from behind her, but I could clearly hear the blatant discomfort and uncontrollable indignation in her voice…

「To begin with, I see no reason for someone I don’t even know to call me by my name so familiarly…」

「No, you and I have met several times before, you know?」

「…I have no memory of it.」

「I-I see… that’s a shame.」

The man’s shoulders slumped in sadness after Sara-san flatly denied knowing him… or so I thought, but he immediately shifted his gears and looked forward with strange energy.

「Um… do you really not remember me? It’s true we haven’t met properly for a while, but we’ve spoken several times before that…」

「…I’m sure there are several people I’ve spoken with at this party before, but I don’t remember specifically who they were.」

「I’m one of them!! Good, at least you remember that much, then?」

「Sigh…」

Completely ignoring the air of rejection from Sara-san, the man was strangely positive… Conversely, Sara-san let out a sound as if the wind had been taken out of her sails by his attitude.

As for me, I felt panicked by this unusual turn of events, but I couldn’t quite find the right moment to butt in…

This is a bit of a problem.

「Hahaha, this is perfect. I thought I’d talk to the Chairman and Executive Director first, but this is a great opportunity. Why don’t we go somewhere else and have a slow talk, just the two of us…」

「I refuse. I have nothing to say to you, and more importantly, being alone with a man like you is no joke.」

「H-haha… I’d heard stories, but you are a young lady who speaks her mind quite clearly.」

「I apologize if it offended you. But this is just my nature… rather, if you don’t like it, please feel free to go home just like this…」

「N-no, wait, Sara-san!! I feel that way about you…」

「Like I said, I told you not to call me by my name so familiarly. Besides, I have no intention of talking to you at all…」

「Please, just give me some of your time!! I really want to get closer to you on this occasion!! So please, at least a talk…」

「…Ugh.」

Sara-san was at a loss for words at the sight of the man clinging on with a desperate expression… I tried to find a reason to cut into the conversation, but I couldn’t think of anything at all.

Don’t get close to my Sara-san?

Sara-san is already my fiancée?

But all of that was at the core of what Masaomi-san had strictly forbidden me from saying. Besides, if I cut in saying something like that, I’d feel like a really nasty person…

「Guh… uugh…」

In my intense frustration and impatience, a sound like a groan escaped my lips… and then, Sara-san suddenly turned around. With a gentle look, she seemed to say,「It’s okay.」I felt that was what she meant.

「…In the first place, what part of me do you like so much? I’m the first to admit that I don’t exactly have a likable personality.」

「The others were too busy hitting on you to notice, but the sight of you looking so lonely left a very strong impression on me. Even as you said things to reject me and those around you, you looked so lonely trying to be by yourself… That’s why I want to gently envelop you.」

「I see. So that’s how I looked to you? I certainly don’t remember anyone ever using that kind of angle with me before…」

「Y-yes! I’m different from the others!! I’m someone who can look at the real you and understand you!! So if we just take a little more time to talk, I’m sure…」

「Then, let me change the way I ask.」

「!?」

Sara-san ruthlessly cut off the voice of the man who was getting excited…

「What was the catalyst that made you notice me?」

「Eh…?」

When she suddenly shot back with that, the man looked at her with a blank expression.

「I understand the story that you felt affection because I looked that way to you, but that’s a reason that came afterward, isn’t it? There must have been a catalyst for you to notice me to begin with, which led to your current reason… What was it?」

「T-that’s, well…」

Questioned by Sara-san, the man suddenly started being vague and stumbling over his words… He didn’t look panicked or troubled, but rather embarrassed…

「I… well, I fell in love with you at first sight.」

The man stammered it out, looking quite sheepish…

But to Sara-san, that was…

「I thought so. I don’t remember having any significant conversations with specific people, and those who speak as if they know me always say the same thing. Love at first sight.」

「S-Sara-san…?」

「Don’t make me repeat myself. How many times do I have to tell you not to call me by my name so familiarly? Or do you just not understand Japanese?」

「!?」

In Sara-san’s voice, anger, indignation, and disgust were finally becoming impossible to hide… Hearing that voice, the man’s expression rapidly filled with panic and confusion.

「In the end, you’re just like every other man. You spoke as if you understood me, but it’s beyond arrogant to think you can understand someone you’ve never even had a proper conversation with. And since we’re here, let me tell you the one thing I hate being told most. It’s「love at first sight」.」

「!? T-that… well, but!! My catalyst might have been that, but I truly, from my heart, admire you…」

「Um… shouldn’t we leave it at that? You realize it too, don’t you? That Sara-san is uncomfortable.」

「Y-you are…」

Finally, having reached my limit, I cut in. The man’s eyes widened as if he hadn’t expected it, and he looked at me.

I don’t know what he’ll think of this, but I can’t just stand by and watch anymore. In so many ways!!

「Sorry, I really debated whether I should butt in… but I’m going to say it. I…」

「You!! I don’t know what you’re intending, but for an outsider to butt into a conversation between two people…」

「Which one of us is the outsider? From the perspective of us two, you are completely the outsiders, aren’t you?」

「U-us two…?」

At that one sentence Sara-san stated clearly, the young man in front of her wore a stunned expression… and next to him, the Managing Director stared only at me with a face like he’d swallowed a bitter bug…

「So, as I thought, that’s how it is.」

「Yes. Or rather, if we’d just done this from the start, we could have saved ourselves a lot of unnecessary trouble.」

「S-Sara-san, that person is…」

「Enough of that. The only man allowed to call me that is Kazunari-san here. If you utter that name again, I truly won’t show any mercy.」

「!?」

「…I had a feeling, but so it was. However… do you truly understand who it is you are dating?」

「Huh?」

The Managing Director narrowed his target solely to me, asking that in an especially heavy tone… Understand what?

「I’ve never heard your family name, which means your parents are just ordinary… I apologize for saying it this way, but they aren’t people with an appropriate standing in our company. Am I wrong?」

「…You’re right. My family is just an ordinary household you could find anywhere.」

「Is that so? For a child born into such a family to just easily…」

「You’re having quite an interesting conversation. Why don’t I join in?」

「!?」

Cutting off the Managing Director, who had started an incredibly annoying speech with theatrical phrasing, someone else appeared from the shadow of the hallway…

「Mother…」

Her usual fluffy, healing vibe was gone. Staring at the Managing Director with a sharp gaze was…

Mayumi-san.