“Yes, it suits you incredibly well.”
“I told you not to be so formal! I get that you’re nervous in front of a god, but just try to be like before, okay?”
“I will do my best.”
It was a tough ask. I wasn’t brave enough to treat a god like my friend. Even though her appearance hadn’t changed, she felt different. Divine. I knew she was telling me the truth.
“Don’t try and look up my skirt, either. Unless you want to feel my wrath.”
I chuckled nervously. “I’ll be careful.”
Was that a joke? Was I supposed to be smiling, or would she find it rude?
“Ugh, this is why I didn’t want you to know we were gods until the very end! I told you, we’re heathens here! We’re only gods in the other world. You don’t have to be so nervous.”
She could tell me as many times as she wanted, but I just couldn’t turn off my new knowledge. This wasn’t an everyday occurrence. How was I even supposed to react to this?
Sewatari-san sighed. “Okay, I’ll keep talking. Don’t go into the office on the second floor. You can do what you like on the third floor, but the second is completely off limits.” Sewatari-san put her hands on her hips as though expecting that to help the message hit home.
I didn’t understand. The second floor was owned by Isekai Connection, too, so these were her colleagues, weren’t they?
“The second floor is a different department. We don’t really get along with them, if I’m being honest. A lot of people on our floor are prejudiced against them, and vice versa, though I’m not one of them. Just, stay away.” Despite her light tone, a frown was carved across her brow. It was intimidating enough to make me shiver, her true divine nature shining through.
Carol, Destiny, and I nodded.
“I’m glad you’re all so sensible!” Sewatari-san giggled. “And now we’re at my department!”
She walked briskly to the door. The third floor looked identical to the second, what with the elevator hall and the decor. The only difference was the type of houseplants.
“Come on in!” Sewatari-san beckoned.
On the other side of that door was an office full of gods, and here I was, a former NEET. I couldn’t really go in there, could I?
I stalled, overcome with fear. Carol, meanwhile, charged right on in with Destiny in her arms. I admired her childish innocence and curiosity. I couldn’t let her show me up. I puffed out my chest and walked in with long strides. Completely feigned confidence, of course.
“My player’s just sent another crazy prophecy! Dammit, can’t I just confiscate that book already?”
“Are you sure you wanna be using that many miracles? You’ll barely have any points left…”
“My screen’s looking weird. Someone call IT!”
“I swear, if those corrupted gods overstep the mark one more time…”
The moment we stepped inside, voices buzzed around us. The spacious room was full of desks, each with three cubicle walls to give its occupant their own space. The ceiling was just over fifteen feet high by my estimation, and there had to be close to a hundred desks, around half of them manned with people…no, gods, going about their work.
Their appearances ranged from all over the world. Some were obviously Asian, while others looked Scandinavian.
“Are these all gods of the other world?”
“Yes. We have humans in here sometimes, but today it’s just gods.”
Their faces, clothes, and speech made them all look completely human, but the inhabitants of the other world were humanlike as well. That made sense then, since a lot of our gods looked human, too.
Despite their appearance, I had to remember their divinity and be careful not to be disrespectful. I braced myself as best I could. The fact that some of them were snacking as they worked or yawning and playing with their phones didn’t help, honestly.
“Shall we go to the meeting room, then?”
“Y-yes, ma’am.” I followed Sewatari-san stiffly. I kept glancing around, but I couldn’t tell this place apart from an ordinary office. I did notice some of the workers giving me a hard stare, though. I couldn’t blame them; any human, especially one as unremarkable as me, would seem out of place here.
I tried not to make eye contact. Even with more than a hundred people working, the office felt spacious. It certainly looked much bigger than it had from the outside; so much so that I could barely believe it. From the size of the building, it shouldn’t even be a tenth of this size. I couldn’t deny what I was seeing, though. Normally I’d be gaping in surprise, but after everything I’d been through, that would just be an overreaction. This office was home to a bunch of gods. Manipulating space was probably nothing to them.
A door to our left flew open, and Nattyan-san’s tanned face poked out from behind it. “Oh, hey, you made it. C’mon, in here!”
Her friendly smile reassured me. Even through the knowledge that she was a god from another world, her attitude put me at ease.
“Thanks, Nattyan! This way!” Sewatari-san beckoned us forward.
I quickened my pace and slipped into the room behind her, relieved to be out from under everyone’s stares.
The meeting room contained a long table surrounded by folding chairs and bookshelves crammed with files. A large tank swarmed with multicolored tropical fish. A whiteboard hung on the right wall, blank except for a few smudges, like someone had erased something in a hurry. I squinted, wondering if I’d be able to read anything.
“Corrup…tion response. Microtransactions… Lower pri…”
“Stop that. Those are business secrets!” Sewatari-san erased the rest of the board and turned around. She slammed her hand on the whiteboard and grinned. “Time to get into the nitty-gritty detail!”