How to Survive in a Good Small Guild - Chapter 76

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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How to Survive in a Small, Decent Guild
Chapter 76
In any case, we finished viewing all of Gallery 2 on the second floor and moved to Gallery 12.
There, too, a striking painting caught my eye—a woman with two shadows stretching before her. The title was straightforward: “Two Shadows.”
“This painting is lovely. What do you think it means?”
“This work is an experimental piece from just before Symbolism truly came into its own. The very notion of a single figure casting two shadows was extraordinarily bold for its time. Generally, one shadow is interpreted as the social self, the other as the private self. Especially the fainter shadow is often read as one’s original identity gradually fading away. Critics of that era dismissed the concept—that a person could live two lives—as absurd. Ironically, it’s now regarded as the most realistic painting we have.”
The explanation flowed easily, but one part lodged itself in my mind.
“Do you think it’s possible for a person to live two lives, Sedrick?”
“.…!”
He hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“Why couldn’t it be? As you know, these days the face we show at work is so different from who we are elsewhere.”
“Is that so? But you seem like the same person whether I see you on weekends or at the Guild. You don’t strike me as someone living two lives.”
“.….”
Though I’d posed the question to Sedrick, it was really a question about myself.
I had accepted the life of Odret. That’s why I’d become Guild Master and lived this way.
But I couldn’t shake the question: what had happened to the original Odret?
“Even if it looks like two lives, in the end, it’s probably still just one, isn’t it?”
Sigh. Possessing someone else’s body without warning always left me with a nagging unease.
“Master Odret, is something troubling you?”
“Well, everyone has worries, don’t they?”
Then Sedrick fell silent for a moment before speaking.
“You’re right, Master Odret. Even if it seems like two lives, I believe it’s ultimately one life. Because those split paths will meet again somewhere.”
“Meet again, you say.”
“But I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. What I once thought was only a fragment could become the whole of my life, couldn’t it?”
Hmm—could my life and Odret’s truly become one? Come to think of it, dwelling too deeply on this wasn’t going to help matters.
I gathered myself and nodded.
“You’re right, Sedrick.”
“Guild Master, would you like to look at the souvenirs now?”
“Oh, I’d love to!”
Susanna had mentioned the gift shop had adorable souvenirs, so I thought seeing them would lift my spirits. We headed down to the souvenir shop on the first floor.
“Oh, how cute is this!”
I immediately pointed to a small camel doll I’d spotted.
“My goodness, this cat keychain is adorable too!”
Many of the souvenirs featured animals that appeared in the artwork. I was browsing through them in much better spirits when Sedrick paused at one particular spot.
“Sedrick, what are you looking at? …Oh?”
He was gazing at a hand mirror printed with a small reproduction of the “Two Shadows” painting. Since it was a popular work at this museum, they’d made merchandise of it.
“This is rather nice. I like it.”
Since the painting had made an impression on me too, I checked the mirror’s price.
And set it back down.
“You’re not going to buy it?”
“…It’s more expensive than I expected. I’ll just get this postcard instead.”
After selecting some moderate souvenirs, we decided to view the first-floor artwork in whatever order our feet took us.
Oh wait—I’d meant to investigate Sedrick’s past, but I’d gotten so absorbed in the paintings I’d forgotten all about it.
Watching his expression carefully, we entered a random gallery, and I spotted something sitting alone in the middle of the room.
“A chair?”
Beside the chair was written the following text:
“This is a desk.”
“Oh, a conceptual work about the nature of objects.”
“That appears to be the case. The artist is an active, working creator who—”
“By the way, Sedrick—”
I cut him off before he could launch into an explanation about art.
“Did you work in an office at your previous company?”
“Pardon? Yes, that is correct.”
“And do you exercise regularly?”
I’d been curious about his muscular arms since earlier.
“Yes, I do….”
“I see. Do you work out alone at home?”
“I did receive Physical Training instruction in the past, but now I exercise on my own…. In fact, my parents had me learn Physical Training.”
No matter how I thought about it, Sedrick had too many suspicious points. His previous company was completely opaque, and for someone who’d worked at such a dubious place, he was overqualified.
“May I ask about your former company?”
The moment she said it, Sedrick’s pupils began to waver. His face bore the unmistakable look of someone dodging an uncomfortable question.
“Oh, if it’s uncomfortable, you don’t have to answer. I’m just curious.”
Though if he didn’t tell me, I’d simply find out another way.
Then Sedrick withdrew his wallet from his pocket. A small card that looked like an Employee ID Card emerged from it.
“This is… an Employee ID Card from when I worked at that company.”
I accepted it without thinking much, but the moment I saw the company name printed on the card, I gasped in shock.
“Oh my!”
HiWalk-Social Branch One
HiWalk was infamous—the very worst of Black Companies. The Emperor himself had shut down their doors for violating sixteen labor laws, and the trials were still ongoing.
HiWalk-Social, as I understood it, was a subcontractor for HiWalk.
“A Black Company like this! Are you alright, Sedrick?”
Even knowing he’d already quit, I couldn’t help but console him—it truly was a villainous enterprise.
“They violated sixteen labor laws there. I read the newspaper coverage, and I remember some of the violations just from that. Extreme overtime and unpaid wages were basic, of course—and they forced voluntary Physical Training sessions that counted toward performance reviews, and weekend self-development activities were mandatory participation, and whenever a high-ranking noble visited, if you couldn’t identify them correctly right away, you’d be fired….”
As I spoke, the pieces began to fall into place.
“So that’s why you knew the nobility so well and were so good at Physical Training!”
……
“Good heavens, and if it was a subcontractor, it must have been even worse! A subcontractor that felt like family—it must have been truly difficult!”
“Yes, yes….”
I understood now why Sedrick had been reluctant to speak about his previous company.
Naturally, the company was the aggressor and the villain, but some people blamed anyone who’d joined it too, treating victims as though they were foolish.
But how desperate for work must a fresh graduate have been to have no other choice than that place?
When I looked at Sedrick with sympathetic eyes, he seemed a bit embarrassed.
“Don’t worry, Sedrick. Of course it’s all that company’s fault!”
“Yes, that’s right….”
“From now on, my support stands with you. You and I are one body….”
The moment I even mentioned HiWalk, people around us began looking at Sedrick with such pity.
After the truth about Sedrick came to light and we were leaving the Art Museum, he handed me something.
“I… wanted to give this to you, Master.”
“What is this….”
It was a Hand Mirror with a copy of “Two Shadows,” the same painting we’d viewed together earlier. I accepted it with genuine emotion.
First, it was always a good feeling when someone gave you a gift with genuine care. But….
“Sedrick, you don’t need to force yourself to give gifts in our Guild. Don’t worry.”
“…Yes.”
According to the newspaper, the youngest employee at HiWalk had to buy birthday gifts for all sixteen of their superiors, each costing at least fifty thousand pesos. It was truly unreasonable.
“Until the day all unjust companies disappear!”
When I quoted his own words back to him, Sedrick nodded with a bitter expression on his face.
“Yes, thank you….”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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