Yesterday Inoue Tetsuya's spiritual power was 130%. Today it's 100%.
The extra 10% from [Junior Overturns Senior] doesn't count.
Remove external factors, and that's the result.
What changed between the two days?
Overtime!
Why did he get a spiritual power bonus yesterday? The system made it very clear. He worked overtime—and was the last one in his group to leave.
And with just his current strength, he's not a match for Evil Spirit Nanako.
Forget winning. First priority is staying alive. Stacking buffs on himself is the right path.
Back on the 23rd floor,
Half the planning team was still there. Fantastic news.
Nanako's ultimate goal is unknown for now, but during the two months she joined the team she's always acted normal.
If she wanted to become Mrs. Sato, she wouldn't show anything scary in front of everyone.
Besides, she's only D-rank. Unless her brain is broken, she wouldn't dare cause a massacre.
That'd be no different from suicide.
"Damn, suddenly all the seniors feel so friendly!"
Inoue almost cried as he walked into the office area.
"Senior Kojima!"
"Senior Watanabe!"
He set down his briefcase and greeted coworkers one by one.
In the workplace, coming back after leaving is totally normal. Nobody cares.
Sato isn't here. Nanako hasn't come back either.
"I wish those two sweet romance, a hundred years of happiness, Senior Sato forever eighteen, all night till dawn!"
Inoue let out a long breath, lightly patted his cheeks, and prepared to enter overtime mode.
Result, current status—
[Inoue Tetsuya]: Status off work. Spiritual power 100%. Level E.
????
"I already came back to work overtime. Why is my status still off work?"
"Ding-dong~"
[Your overtime has not been approved by your superior.]
What. The. Hell?!
"I need my boss's approval to work overtime?!"
"..."
"..."
Thinking again, the system kind of made sense.
You worked overtime but your boss doesn't even know—what's the point of that overtime?
Besides, usually when Hanada Shizuka says "Overtime!" Inoue has to obediently stay.
If Leader Hanada doesn't say anything, it means normal off-work is allowed.
In other words, whether Inoue works overtime depends entirely on the woman in the office seven meters away.
Inoue fell into deep thought…
He's worked over a year and never wanted overtime as badly as today.
But how should he tell Hanada Shizuka?
"Leader Hanada, why aren't you off work yet? How about I keep you company."
He'd probably get kicked to death.
"Leader Hanada, I am your most loyal servant, please go all out—"
Smack smack smack.
Inoue slapped his own mouth several times.
That would 80% get him treated as a pervert. The remaining 20%… half he'd be kicked to death, the other half would make that woman Hanada reveal her true nature.
Anyway, Inoue felt that kind of woman probably hides an unknown side.
After thinking it through,
He chose the simplest method.
Stand up. Walk forward. Reach the office door. Turn his palm and knock lightly.
Knock knock knock~
"Come in."
Behind the desk, Planning Group Leader Hanada Shizuka was looking at her computer.
She turned, saw Inoue, slightly surprised. "Inoue, what do you need?"
Inoue placed a few A4 pages on the desk and bowed. "Leader, this is the report you wanted tomorrow. I already finished it. Please review."
For subordinates who finish work early, bosses usually encourage them—and secretly decide to give them more work tomorrow.
Finishing early clearly means workload isn't full.
Inoue didn't know what the woman across from him thought, but Hanada Shizuka actually showed a rare smile.
"Mhm, okay."
She pulled the report over and read. Just a few minutes later she set it down.
"Inoue."
"Yes."
"You've shown me your work attitude. Very good."
"Thank you for the praise, Leader."
"But…"
Here it comes. He knew there'd be a turn.
Actually today was already good. Normally when he submits work, there's no "very good." It jumps straight to "but."
But Inoue came here specifically to get picked apart. Hearing this, he immediately took out his notebook.
"This report has quite a few areas needing improvement. First, formatting. I remember I said…"
Inoue: scratch scratch scratch.
Usually when she says "but," everything after that reaches his ears as aba aba aba.
Same logic as elementary students listening to teachers scold them. Aba aba aba.
Today is different. He wants! Overtime!
What he's writing isn't mistakes. It's his life!
One full page.
He wrote a full page before she finally stopped.
Then Leader Hanada, dressed old-fashioned, waved her hand. "That's it for today. Go back and think it over. Submit a revised version before tomorrow ends."
Inoue: (･⊝･∞)?
He checked the system.
Still off-work status.
No choice. He clenched his teeth. "Leader, I want to take advantage of the momentum and revise it briefly now."
Hanada Shizuka froze. After a few seconds she smiled again. "Inoue-kun, if you can keep this enthusiasm for work, my position will be yours sooner or later."
Yeah right!
He's never eaten that kind of empty promise, but he's seen pigs run.
Japan has over a hundred million people. Even those over eighty still work. Imagine how many pigs run wildly every day.
Of course on the surface he still showed 120-point joy, thanked her again and again, then went out to work overtime.
...
[Inoue Tetsuya]: Status overtime. Spiritual power 0.
...
Back at the computer, Inoue typed furiously, like slapping his own face.
That's right.
Too shameful.
His performance in the office just now was the shame of wage earners.
Too much bootlicking. Too much. Voluntarily asking to work overtime, refusing to leave. He truly never thought he'd live into the person he hated most.
"If it weren't for fear Nanako's camping the grass…"
Forget it.
Since step one overtime is done, step two is making all coworkers leave before him.
Estimated overtime bonus: +10% spiritual power per hour. At 9 p.m., three hours means 30%.
Become the most hardcore grinder in the group, plus another 10%.
Finally, [Junior Overturns Senior] 10%.
Total 50%.
"With a level half higher than normal E-rank when I run, who can stop me?!"
...
8 p.m.
Inoue successfully ranked top two overtime grinders in Planning.
The only people still at their desks were him—and Hanada Shizuka in the office.
8:30.
The office door opened. Hanada Shizuka watched a bit, told him to go home early, and from that moment Inoue became today's strongest grinder in Planning!
Just hold out half an hour more.
And it'll be half an hour of slacking.
He's going to log into Spirit Domain and ask if in this situation he can call backup!