In the lobby, Kaori was maintaining a facade of professional calm, though her heart was racing. Suddenly, Argo burst into the hallway.
Without a second thought, Kaori abandoned her post and sprinted.
"Tackle low! Aim for the hips!"
"Waaaaagh!"
Kaori's tackle was textbook. She collided with Argo, and though the developer struggled to shake her off, Kaori clung to her like a burr. Seconds later, Shino—who had split from Hachiman to cut off the lobby—arrived on the scene and piled on.
"You're caught!"
"Ugh! Two of you?!"
"Make it three!"
Mai arrived, panting, straight from the development floor. The three girls worked in frantic unison to pin Argo down. To make matters worse for the target, it was nearly the end of the work day. Employees were starting to trickle into the lobby to head home.
"What's going on? A fight?"
"Wait, isn't that Boss Argo? And that's the girls from development and the receptionists..."
"...It looks like they're making a citizen's arrest."
"Oh, I get it. This is definitely a direct order from the Future CEO."
"Right! Let's help out! Don't let her escape, boys!"
Argo's fate was sealed. In a game, she might have found a way out, but in reality, surrounded by a dozen determined coworkers, there was nowhere left to run. Finally, Hachiman arrived, walking calmly through the crowd.
"Well. This is quite the scene."
"Master Hachiman, mission complete!" Mai cheered.
"You're late, Hachiman!" Shino complained.
"Hurry it up, Hikigaya!"
"Future CEO! Did we do good?" an employee asked.
"Yeah. You guys did great, even without orders. Good job."
"Thank you, sir!"
"Hey, you can't work at Soleil if you can't read the room!"
Hachiman stepped toward the center of the fray. He looked at the handcuff on Argo's wrist, then took the other end and snapped it onto his own. Seeing this, Argo finally went limp, all the fight draining out of her.
"Dammit... I'm completely cornered, zoy..."
"You realize you can't run from me now, right?"
"I ran because I was scared! What is this even about, nyo?!"
"I heard you've been living at the office. Well, that ends today. We've rented a new place just for you. We're taking you there now."
Argo's eyes went wide. "What?! I'm fine where I am! The nap room is plenty!"
"Be quiet. It's a liability for the company! It makes us look bad!"
"Ugh... fine! Then I'll offer my final resistance—!"
"You can't resist this. Here we go."
"Eek!"
"Oooooh!" the surrounding crowd roared.
In one fluid motion, Hachiman scooped Argo up into a bridal carry—the classic 'princess carry.'
"Was that voice... the Boss?"
"Whoa, she's actually kind of cute like that..."
"Boss! You're the best!"
"Man, I'm jealous. I want the Future CEO to carry me like that..."
Argo, caught completely off guard, turned a shade of red that put a sunset to shame. She hid her face, pounding weakly on his chest.
"D-Do this to some other girl! Why are you doing this to me, nyo?!"
"You're the one who told me to."
Argo blinked, her confusion momentary overriding her embarrassment. "I did?"
"Think back. When you were talking to Ai and Yuu."
"Ah..."
"I promised them both. I told them that since they couldn't be here, I'd deliver their gratitude to you personally... by giving you a princess carry."
Argo looked up at him, aghast. "I mean, I get that! But why now?! Usually, you do this when there's a romantic atmosphere, nyo...!"
"This is payback for the trouble you caused me the other day."
"Payback?!"
"Pure spite. I swore I'd make you squeal today."
"Save that kind of talk for the bedroom, nyo!"
"Hush, hush."
Hachiman turned to Mai. "Mai, take Kitten and Shino to the nap room. Grab all of her personal belongings and move them to the apartment."
"You got it!"
"Everything? Down to the last toothbrush?" Shino asked with a smirk.
"Everything."
Hachiman looked down at the trapped developer with a wicked grin. "You heard the man. Now, I'm going to carry you out the front door and straight across the street to your new home."
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Argo let out a cry of despair unlike any she had ever uttered before. Ignoring her protests, Hachiman stepped out of the building. Humiliated by the 'public execution,' Argo buried her face into Hachiman's chest, refusing to look at the world.
"Hey! Let's see them off!"
"Yeah!"
"Follow them! It's a parade!"
The high-spirited employees swarmed out after them, forming a procession. When they reached the apartment entrance, the crowd broke into a synchronized cheer. Neighbors poked their heads out, wondering what the commotion was, but once they realized it was just the usual Soleil antics, they simply watched with warm, indulgent smiles. It seemed the company was well-loved in the neighborhood.
"I knew you guys rented a room here, nyo..." Argo muttered into his shirt.
"Oh? You knew?"
"I thought it was for the Big Boss... or maybe for Ha-bo..."
"Surprise. It's yours."
"Dammit. This is the worst. I've never been so embarrassed in my life..."
"Just give it up and go home every night like a normal person."
"Hmph."
(Tomorrow, I'm definitely sneaking back to the nap room, zoy,) she thought.
But despite Argo's internal plotting, Hachiman repeated the 'ceremonial carry' for three days straight. Eventually, even the stubborn Argo broke. From that day on, she became a model tenant, returning to her own bed every single night.
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