Kaori stood in front of the "Employees of the Month" wall, her eyes narrowing as she scanned the portraits. Each frame contained a smiling male employee, their names proudly displayed underneath.
"Was there ever a female employee of the month in this company?" she muttered, tapping her chin.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted her boss, Mr. Kobayashi, shuffling down the hallway.
He was a pudgy, middle-aged man in a slightly wrinkled black suit, his fluffy black hair bouncing lightly with every step. His small, beady eyes had the perpetually sleepy look of someone who wasn't thrilled about managing people.
Kaori turned toward him and said, "Mister Kobayashi, good evening!"
"Ah, good evening, Miss Kurosaki," Kobayashi replied, stopping in his tracks. He gave her a toothy smile, his chubby cheeks puffing out. "I see you're always working hard. How may I help you?"
Kaori offered a polite bow before straightening. "Well, I was wondering... have there ever been any female employees of the month in this company?"
Kobayashi blinked, tilting his head. "No," he said bluntly. "A portrait of a female employee might distract the male employees."
Kaori's left eye twitched involuntarily. She forced a strained smile to her lips, fighting the urge to roll her eyes.
"I see... but perhaps it's time to reconsider? A change could be good for morale," she suggested sweetly, though her tone carried an edge of sarcasm.
Kobayashi rubbed his double chin thoughtfully. "Hmm, you're right..." he muttered, stroking his chin with exaggerated theatrics. "Based on high performance and loyalty to the company, I suppose it is time to promote someone."
Kaori's eyes widened in disbelief. 'Did I just—? Did I finally—?'
But before she could finish the thought, Kobayashi turned to the potted plant atop her CPU box. His eyes lit up as he leaned toward it and gently shook its leaves.
"It's time to promote you, Mister Plant. It's been a long time coming."
He carefully picked up the plant, cradling it like a treasured prize, and shuffled down the hallway without a second glance.
Kaori stood frozen, her jaw slack. Her mind struggled to process the sheer absurdity of what had just happened. Slowly, she raised a hand to her temple and sighed heavily.
"What the..." she muttered, too dumbfounded to finish the sentence.
With a resigned shrug, she returned to her desk and plopped into her chair. "Another day in paradise," she grumbled, glaring at the space where her plant used to be.
Kaori sat at her desk, trying to maintain her composure as she typed furiously on her keyboard. The absurdity of the day was beginning to wear on her nerves. Just then, a male co-worker approached her, his tone polite but expectant.
"Good evening, Miss Kurosaki," he said, his smile the picture of corporate charm. "Do you have the report I asked you to make?"
Kaori took a deep breath, forcing a professional smile despite her growing irritation. "I put it on Mister Kobayashi's desk, Mister Aiko," she replied crisply.
"I see. Thank you, Miss Kurosaki," Aiko said with a slight bow, his smile unwavering.
Before Kaori could return to her work, Kobayashi suddenly appeared, his pudgy frame still cradling the plant like it was his prized possession.
"Oh, by the way!" he exclaimed, his voice brimming with enthusiasm. "Good work on the report, Mister Aiko! Come with me; I'll lead you to your own office."
Kaori froze, her fingers hovering over her keyboard. 'Wait... what?' she thought.
Aiko's expression shifted to surprise and then to a pleased grin. "Really? Thank you, Mister Kobayashi!" he said, stepping beside their boss eagerly.
Kaori's eye twitched. Her professionalism wavered as disbelief bubbled to the surface. "Oh, you've got to be kidd—"
"Ah, Miss Kurosaki," Kobayashi interrupted, turning back to her with a patronizing smile. "Don't frown too much; it'll lower the morale of the male co-workers."
Kaori's forced smile stretched across her face, but it no longer resembled anything close to genuine. "Of course, Mister Kobayashi," she said through gritted teeth, her tone polite but seething.
Kobayashi and Aiko walked off, chatting animatedly about Aiko's "promotion." Kaori sat motionless, her fists clenched tightly under the desk. The hum of the office drowned out the sound of her knuckles cracking.
Finally, she let out a frustrated growl and smashed her fists onto the keyboard, sending a jumble of characters sprawling across her screen.
"Unbelievable!" she muttered under her breath.
Her desk neighbor peeked cautiously but decided not to intervene, wisely leaving Kaori to stew in her barely contained fury.
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Kaori navigated the hallway with a towering stack of papers balanced precariously in her arms. Her footsteps echoed softly on the tiled floor as she mentally prepared herself for yet another ridiculous task from her boss. As she passed the glass-walled conference room, her eyes casually flicked toward the meeting inside.
What she saw made her freeze in her tracks.
Her eyes widened in disbelief as she caught sight of Kobayashi, Aiko, the plant (yes, the plant), and several other male employees. They all stood in a circle, rhythmically beating their chests as if performing some bizarre ritual or tribal dance. Kobayashi seemed to lead the group, his face flushed with enthusiasm as he pounded his chest with both fists.
Kaori's mouth dropped open. "What... the actual hell?" she whispered.
Her shock turned to immediate rage. After everything, THIS is what they're doing during work hours?!
"AHHHHHH!!"
Kaori let out a primal scream, flinging the stack of papers into the air. Sheets flew in all directions, scattering across the hallway like oversized confetti.
The chaos of her outburst was short-lived as she realized, to her relief, that her scream hadn't penetrated the soundproof glass. The men continued their absurd performance inside the conference room, utterly oblivious to the storm brewing outside.
Kaori stood there, fists clenched and breathing heavily, her face a mixture of fury and disbelief. A passing co-worker paused, staring at the papers strewn across the hallway and the enraged woman standing amidst them.
Without a word, the co-worker slowly backed away, deciding it was safer not to get involved. Kaori, meanwhile, glared through the glass wall at the surreal scene inside, her mind racing for ways to regain her sanity—or at least salvage her dignity.
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Kaori stormed out of the office, her heels clicking sharply against the pavement as she muttered under her breath.
"Curse this patriarchy... curse this job... curse that stupid plant promotion..."
Her scowl was enough to make passersby step aside, their faces tinged with mild fear. Kaori's mood was a storm cloud, and no one wanted to be caught in its downpour.
Turning down a quieter street, she chose her usual shortcut, a dimly lit alleyway that would shave a few minutes off her commute. The streetlights flickered weakly, casting long, uneven shadows across the narrow corridor.
Kaori was still grumbling when a strange sound stopped her in her tracks.
"IJDMosk...!"
The noise was guttural, warped, and completely unintelligible. It sent a chill creeping up her spine. Her anger was quickly replaced with caution as she squinted into the shadows ahead.
The alleyway was darker than usual, the weak lighting barely illuminating the walls. She inched forward, each step more hesitant than the last. Something was moving in the gloom—a shadow writhing unnaturally.
Her heart began to pound as she finally saw it. A grotesque creature, its form a horrible amalgamation of a blob and something vaguely human. Dozens of malformed arms sprouted from its body, twitching and grasping at the air. Its legs, if they could even be called that, were crooked and bent at impossible angles. Eyes, too many to count, blinked at random intervals, each one fixed on her.
'Gross...' Kaori thought, suppressing the urge to gag.
Suddenly, a voice broke the silence behind her.
"Oh, what do we have here?"
Kaori spun around, startled, to see a tall man standing at the entrance to the alleyway. His long, messy hair fell past his shoulders, and his face was covered in stitches that ran across his forehead, cheeks, and neck. He wore a strange, old-fashioned outfit, giving him the air of someone completely out of place.
"Who are you?" Kaori demanded, masking her unease with a sharp tone.
The man smirked, his gaze almost playful. "Oh, pardon my lack of manners. I'm just a wanderer," he said smoothly, spreading his arms in mock humility.
Kaori's eyes narrowed as she studied him more closely. His stitched appearance and odd demeanor felt like something out of a horror movie—or worse, a particularly intense cosplay.
'Is this guy a cosplayer?' she thought, briefly distracted by the situation's absurdity.
But her instincts warned her otherwise. The way he stood and his presence seemed to fill the alley... something about him wasn't right. Her eyes flicked back to the creature behind her, which now seemed strangely docile, as though awaiting orders.
Kaori's grip tightened on her bag. "What do you want?" she asked, keeping her tone steady despite the growing unease clawing at her chest.
The man's smirk widened, his eyes glinting with something dangerous. "Oh, I'm just curious..." he drawled. "What does someone like you fear the most?"
"Fear?" Kaori raised an eyebrow, her voice sharp with skepticism. "Not really. But I do hate a lot of things."
The man chuckled, his laughter low and unnerving. He leaned casually against the wall, the dim light glinting off the stitches across his face, giving his grin an even more sinister edge.
"Hate, huh?" he mused, tilting his head as if savoring the word. "Interesting. Hate's not so different from fear, don't you think? Both can make you reckless. Both can make you desperate."
Kaori's grip tightened on her bag as she met his gaze head-on. "Look, if you've got a point, get to it. I'm not in the mood for creepy alley monologues, especially from someone who looks like they're auditioning for a horror movie."
The man laughed genuinely, the sound echoing eerily in the narrow alley. "Oh, I like you," he said, his tone almost playful. "You've got guts. But you're in the wrong place at the wrong time, Miss Kurosaki."
Kaori froze, her pulse quickening. He knows my name.
"How do you know who I am?" she demanded, her voice sharpened by anger and unease. Her eyes darted to the blob-like creature behind her, which now seemed to quiver with an ominous energy, its many eyes fixed on her.
The man straightened, his grin widening, as though her reaction was exactly what he wanted. "Oh, I've been keeping an eye on you. Let's just say... I'm invested in your potential."
Kaori's jaw clenched. 'This guy isn't some weirdo in a costume—he's dangerous.' She thought.
"Look," she said, forcing steel into her voice despite the pounding of her heart, "I don't know what you're after, but I suggest you back off before I—"
"Before you what?" he interrupted smoothly, stepping closer. His stitched smile stretched wider, almost grotesquely so. "You'll fight me? Run? Call for help? You hate your job, your boss, the stupid plant promotion... but tell me, Miss Kurosaki, do you hate feeling powerless most of all?"
Kaori's breath hitched, and for the first time, her confidence wavered. 'How does he know all of this?'
The man gestured to the blob-like creature. It writhed in response, its grotesque form pulsating with an unsettling rhythm, its countless arms twitching as though preparing to strike.
"Because if there's one thing I've learned," the man continued, his voice now soft but insidious, "it's that fear and hate are the greatest motivators. They can drive you to break free. To take control. And if you want, Miss Kurosaki..." He leaned closer, his face inches from hers, his stitched grin splitting his expression into a nightmare. "I can help you. You'll never have to feel powerless again."
Kaori took an involuntary step back, her hands trembling slightly as she clutched her bag. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Liberation," he said simply, his voice oozing with a twisted sincerity. "I can help you deal with that boss, that plant nonsense... all of it. All I need is your answer."
Kaori hesitated. The man before her was unsettling, his motives shrouded in darkness. Yet, his offer was tempting for reasons she couldn't fully explain. The thought of finally breaking free from her frustration and resentment gnawed at her resolve.
Her lips parted. "Fine—"
"Don't accept the pervert's help, Miss Kaori!"
A new voice cut through the tension like a blade.
Kaori spun around, her heart leaping to her throat. Standing at the alley's entrance was a tall man with striking white hair and crimson eyes. He wore a white hoodie, black jeans, and pristine white sneakers, his relaxed posture offset by the piercing intensity of his gaze.
"Who the hell are you?" the stitched man growled, his grin faltering for the first time.
The newcomer smirked, his crimson eyes narrowing as he stepped forward. "Someone who doesn't appreciate creeps offering shady deals in dark alleys." His voice was calm, yet laced with an unmistakable threat.
Kaori blinked, her earlier fear replaced with confusion. 'Who is this guy? And why does he look like he just walked out of a photoshoot?' she thought.
The white-haired man turned to Kaori and smiled. "Miss Kurosaki, I suggest you step back. I'll handle this one."