A heavy silence filled the meeting room I should've been used to.
In front of me sat my long-time boss, Department Head Suzuki. His eyes kept moving between the papers on the desk and my face. Ah, this was already decided.
"Sato-kun. The company is in a very difficult situation right now."
There it was. The usual preface.
I stayed silent and waited for the next words. Fighting back wouldn't change anything.
"So, how about... making use of the early retirement incentive system?"
Early retirement. In other words, a layoff notice.
I, Sato Koichi, 42 years old. My 20 career at this company ended at this very moment.
"...Understood."
The voice I squeezed out sounded drier than I expected.
The only face that came to mind was my daughter Misaki's, a college student. Sorry... All I could do was apologize inside my heart. Sorry for being such a pathetic father.
* * *
Carrying a cardboard box stuffed with my belongings, I left the company building.
No one came to see me off. So that was the conclusion of my life as a salaryman.
The sky was gloomy, and soon cold rain began dripping onto the asphalt. I didn't even have an umbrella.
On the way to the station, the despair made my steps unsteady.
My body swayed. And in that moment—
"Uwah!"
The words slipped out before I knew it.
Right in front of me, a semi-transparent blue window appeared, like a video game screen.
I looked around, but nobody reacted. Apparently, only I could see it.
The window displayed the following:
[Name] Sato Koichi
[Age] 42
[Job] None
[Skill] ???
...Job: None.
How kind of it to shove reality in my face. None of your business.
So this was that [Status] thing that caused a stir three years ago? Why now?
No... maybe I just hadn't noticed until today. I'd been too busy with work to even look at myself.
Clinging to this faint last strand of hope, I stared hard at the question marks in the skill field.
Please. Anything. Even just one thing that could break me out of this situation...!
Maybe my prayer got through, because the question marks slowly changed into letters.
[Skill]: [Rearrangement (Change)]
...Rearrangement?
Like a personnel transfer?
A detailed explanation appeared right below.
[Effect]: Within the same floor, you can swap the positions of "monsters," "traps," and "treasure chests" at will. Limited uses.
I read the words over and over.
...Hah?
It just lets me move the "positions" of things.
No attack magic. No boost to physical ability. Combat ability: zero.
What on earth was this good for?
"This... is totally useless, isn't it..." I muttered in shock.
Fired from my company, and the skill I got was a piece of junk with no clear use.
It felt like another cruel blow on top of rock bottom.
In the pouring rain, I stood still, not caring if I got soaked.
Crushed by double despair, not knowing where to go, I could only feel the chill of the asphalt crawling up through my feet.