LIGHTNOVELONLINE Yesterday was really… a tough day.
I was just having a normal day, but then things started to get a little weird at the clothing store.
I never thought I’d be treated like that.
I really didn’t expect to be treated as a proper woman.
Of course, to others, I probably just seemed like a normal girl, but that didn’t mean I understood it.
Click click.
“….”
Even at this moment, working right now, I found it really ridiculous.
I never thought I’d actually be treated like a girl—not even once.
People were looking at my chest…
“Ha…”
“Are you okay?”
“Oh, Midori.”
Maybe it was because I had been sighing constantly.
Midori came over to check on me.
I had to admit, even I realized I had been sighing a bit too much.
I hadn’t been doing it while working, but still, it was a fact that I had done it quite a bit.
“You’ve been sighing a lot, and I’m fine with it, but! The Commander over there is staring at you really intensely!”
“Oh.”
“Cough.”
When I turned my head slightly at Midori’s words, our eyes met.
If I had just seen him looking at me, I might have thought nothing of it and moved on, but thanks to Midori, I could understand why he was looking.
It was probably because I had been sighing non-stop.
Besides, there were only three of us in the office, and unless something special was happening, the only sounds were from the keyboard and mouse.
In that situation, if I was the only one sighing, it was only natural for it to seem strange.
“It’s nothing. You really don’t need to worry.”
“For someone who’s saying that, you’re still sighing a lot. Is something wrong?”
“…No.”
There was a reason, but I hesitated to say it.
It was embarrassing, after all.
Even though I was a man, this situation felt really shameful.
I felt embarrassed that other people were looking at my body.
And to tell my boss that?
“…Really, there’s nothing.”
In the end, my only option was to stay silent and just focus on doing my job.
With my answer, Midori returned to her seat saying, “Then I’m glad!” and the Commander sighed deeply before concentrating on work again.
One thing was for sure, though.
…
I should really stop sighing so much.
At this rate, everywhere I go, someone might ask if I’m okay.
*
“Midori.”
“Huh? What is it?”
The commander had gone to the bathroom for a moment, and while I was taking a break with some coffee in the office, I spoke to Midori.
Normally, I wouldn’t initiate a conversation, but we were on friendly terms… somewhat.
At least, I talked to her more than anyone else in the ship besides the commander, so I felt that counted as some kind of connection.
Well, even if Midori didn’t think so, it wouldn’t be a big deal.
I was just trying to figure something out.
“Do you have a moment?”
“What is it!? What? What’s going on?”
“Uh…”
Her reaction was so intense that I got a bit startled.
I thought she’d just ask what I wanted, but such a positive…? enthusiastic? response was totally unexpected.
“It’s nothing major, though…”
“Okay! Okay! Just tell me! I’ll help you with anything!”
Given Midori’s reaction, I felt like I might be able to get a not-bad answer, whatever it would turn out to be.
Although, I had no idea what that answer would be.
“When I walk around outside, guys are staring at my chest way too much.”
“…Huh?”
“Is there… any way to… deal with it?”
I really couldn’t adapt to it no matter how much I thought about it.
Sure, normally, guys wouldn’t be checking out my chest.
That was because everyone on the ship, except for the Commander, was female.
Well, to be precise, all the agents on board were women, so the ship was full of them.
But outside was a different story.
“Yesterday, when I was changing clothes at the clothing store, people kept staring at my chest. I had completely forgotten about it since I’ve been on the ship all this time.”
“Uh…”
“Is there any way to… deal with it?”
“Uh… my chest isn’t even as big as Lindera’s!?”
That was true.
Midori’s chest had some volume but was smaller than mine.
Of course, you couldn’t quite call it flat, either.
It was a bit larger than what you’d typically consider average.
“Uh… maybe wear really tight clothes…?”
“I already layered a cardigan over my knitwear yesterday…”
“Uh… um… then maybe wear a smaller size for your underwear…?”
“It’s already tight enough as it is…”
“Uh… um… um…”
I understood Midori’s hesitation.
I could agree that this was a tough problem to figure out.
“…So there really isn’t a good solution?”
“How about plastic surgery…?”
“…That doesn’t seem right.”
“I agree.”
Both Midori and I thought that plastic surgery was a little extreme.
The act of it itself wasn’t off-putting, but the process was the issue.
After all, it involves using a knife on your body!
Of course, that would be terrifying.
“Ha…”
“Ah!!!”
“Huh?”
Suddenly, Midori jumped up and yelled.
It came out of nowhere, and the scream surprised me.
She had no reason to be angry, so it didn’t seem that way, but it was just so abrupt.
“I’ve thought of a way!”
“What is it? Why are you suddenly shouting…?”
“Fufufu… Don’t underestimate my brain, alright!”
“I never underestimated you, but, if I did, there wouldn’t be a reason to have you in the office.”
I didn’t know why, but I felt a bit hopeful hearing she had come up with a solution.
“Anyway! Just listen to me, and those weird guys will never look at Lindera’s chest!”
“Oh…”
“That’s because…!”
“What is it?”
I was so excited I almost swallowed my own spit.
After all, yesterday was quite embarrassing.
Sure, I was wearing underwear and regular clothes, but having people check out my chest is not a pleasant experience.
It wasn’t just that they were looking at me, they were looking at my chest… and that was definitely undesirable.
It didn’t matter who they were, it was uncomfortable to have others checking my important body part.
“You need to always walk around with the Commander beside you!”
“…Huh?”
What kind of nonsense was that?
Well, I did ask Midori first, and since she was the one who came up with such a ridiculous answer, I didn’t bother voicing it.
But seriously, what was she talking about?
She suggested I walk around with the Commander next to me.
Logically speaking, how could I do that?
He was at least 20cm taller than me, and I wasn’t strong like the agents.
It was utterly nonsensical.
“Let’s put those bad ideas on hold!”
“……”
“Listen. Our Commander is super tall, right?”
“Yes.”
He was over 180cm tall.
He certainly stood out above average.
“And he’s handsome, right?”
“…Yes.”
I felt a bit annoyed, but she wasn’t wrong.
I wouldn’t argue with it, but I just didn’t like saying a guy was attractive now that I was a girl.
I didn’t want to become one of those females who compliment guys just because they were good-looking.
Sure, I wasn’t pleased to be in this body (the only good thing being that I didn’t have the discomfort of being a guy anymore).
Honestly, if I had the choice, I’d rather go back to being a man because I was so dissatisfied with this body.
Of course… sometimes I felt a bit better when I looked in the mirror and noticed I was pretty, and even had more enjoyable evenings, but still…
“Therefore! When you’re out, you have to stick close to the Commander!”
“They’re big and handsome. What does that have to do with people not staring at me?”
I didn’t get Midori’s logic.
He wasn’t some super strong agent who could provide security; he was just a regular human man!
“Of course it’s relevant!”
“?”
“If you have a boyfriend right next to you, who would dare stare at his girlfriend?!”
“…..”
I felt a strong urge to smack Midori’s head lightly.
If I hit her square on the center of her head, she’d definitely shout, “Nyaa!?” and complain about the pain.
Surely doing that would stop her from saying such odd things.
“Midori, I think you’ve been watching too many strange things.”
“Eh?!”
“Isn’t it just common sense that it would be a hassle for the Commander? Constantly having to accompany me everywhere would be a terrible burden.”
“Uh… wouldn’t it benefit the Commander as well?”
“Huh?”
What was she on about now?
I was sure she was off-track, but the absurdity intrigued me.
“Because he could be seen with someone as pretty as Lindera!”
“…Midori, you probably shouldn’t say that in front of the Commander.”
“Huh? Why not?”
“Well, logically speaking, there’s no reason I’d ever have that kind of relationship with him, and saying weird things would surely get me in trouble.”
It was unbelievable.
We had agents with cat ears and others with strikingly white hair that gave off an ethereal vibe.
There were also so many diverse agents who were incredibly pretty and cute.
But there was no way someone like me, or even Lindera, would ever attract any interest from them.
And if somehow someone did like me? I would reject them outright.
After all, I would never, under any circumstances, be interested in a man.
Just hearing a man confess to me would make my skin crawl.
Whistle…
“What are you two talking about? Break time is over.”
Just as I was trying to wrap my mind around Midori’s absurd suggestions, the Commander arrived.
This was all a result of him being too charming to the agents.
In reality, he was just a guy who brought his subordinates over to his room to play games on weekends.
Of course, none of the other agents knew this at all.
Everyone thought he was a quiet guy who worked hard for the ship with a professional demeanor.
No, it was pretty clear he was just that.
“Yes…”
He would bring over subordinates with no hobbies and have them play games on weekends.
He really was so self-serving; I just couldn’t understand why everyone was so fond of him.
It all came down to his good looks.
It really did.