Chapter 81

“… So you say, but a woman who left the company around the same time as I got re-employed . In fact, she’s right there!” (Damme)

Damme pointed at a woman dressed as a waitress by the cash register, to which she trembled in response .

Just as I was about to appear before and retort to Damme, my promise with Ryle came to mind and kept me in check .

Sei walked to shield the girl from view, and then he spoke out, “… She was on maternity leave . Since she filed for it, I was made aware of the circumstances and gave her express permission to come back . It is a wholly different matter from yours; so then, why did you inquire about her?”

“… . Well, humph . I didn’t know if it was for maternity leave or whatever, but there are a ton of women in this firm who only serve to stock items or work at the register . And although that woman was able to return, I for some reason cannot . This company is clearly prone to favoritism . . or do you believe that to be unfounded? How about you and that woman over there?” (Damme)

I had to suppress the festering urge to respond to his outrageous claim with every fiber of my being .

My body trembled in anger as I tried to, once more, arrest my urge to retort .

The pits of my stomach lit up with passion, hungry to correct his statement .

This was an insult to the company; it was an insult to Sei; it was an insult that spurned all working women .

Ah, for what reason did this man provoke me? It might be the time to exercise the state power of a duke’s daughter, similar to the time in the Academy .

To hold my tongue . . would be impossible . However, as soon as I opened my mouth to let my feelings erupt from it, a harsh voice rung throughout the room .

“… Do not make light of a woman’s capabilities . Listening to your nonsensical gibberish is nauseating . “(Dida)

Dida and Sei cast a sharp glare at Damme . Dida strengthened his grip upon Damme, whose face now distorted in pain .

“Carrying merchandise, accounting… Well, they do certainly seem like monotonous jobs . But it is because of that very same work that the shop manages to function well . From my standpoint, the work you were doing and work she is doing are of equal importance . The job hierarchy isn’t everything . Either way, she is an important member of our workforce, able to do her job with efficiency, competency, and proficiency .

“Ow, ow, ow, ow! It hurts!!” (Damme)

Damme was more focused on the pain than Sei’s insight .

“Oops, my bad . When Damme’s denouncement of women reached my ears, I flew into an unsightly state of rage . ” (Dida)

Dida’s apology was not directed at Damme, but rather, at Sei for interrupting him .

Sei received Dida’s apology with a bitter smile .

“Upon retirement, you receive your pension and a bonus; but leave the company for good . That is different from a leave as the person in question is bound to come back after their period of absence is over . ” (Sei)

Then, Sei turned to the waitress and remarked: “First of all, in the documents that received signatures when we hired people, it is clearly stated that leave of absence and retirement are different . We also explained it beforehand… You heard the explanation, then you still left the company, correct?” (Sei)

“Well, yes . When Mr . Sei asked me why I wanted to quit, he asked for my reason . I told him about expecting a child, and the need to take care of the newborn . Then Mr . Sei asked me about what I would do after taking care of the baby . I told him that I would look for a new job . Right after I said that, Mr . Sei proposed that I take a leave of absence instead of leaving the company for good . To be honest, it is a very time-consuming hassle to find a new job, and I am very thankful to Mr . Sei for offering me the option to return after leaving for a short period of time . ” (Waitress)

The audience gasped in shock and surprise .

The leave of absence system was a new one, implemented solely by our company . The reactions from the audience made sense; it was only natural . It took a quite long time to introduce and implement .

“Truly? Astounding!! I also want to work here! We can’t get by only with our husbands’ salaries, and considering the child on its own matter is difficult to say…” (Audience)

“Certainly . I’ll put it in layman’s terms: basically, I have to quit my job whenever I give birth to a child; however, in this company, after giving birth, I could go back and work the same way I did before . It’s a shame that this company is the only one employing that system!” (Audience)

The female customers thought the same, agreeing in their minds . No doubt, it was difficult for women to work under such harsh conditions .

Although working women in Japan face the same issues about gender equality, it is more severe here because of the lack of women’s rights .

It would be nice if there were families to depend on near here, but most of the kingdom’s people have many family members . On top of that, there’s no place that can babysit children .

In any case, it may be good to make a facility like a nursery for working women .

The waitress commented,

“Thank you . In other words, what Damme is saying is an accusation and slander towards our company . ” (Waitress)

Sei thanked the waitress and only then it seemed that the cold atmosphere that he had exuded had at last ended .

However;

“After leaving the company, you became independent . However, I never intended to restrict your freedom, even if you joined a separate company . That is, until you caused a ruckus at this store . Now, you are…” (Sei)

Sei turned to face Damme again, but his eyes were cold enough to pierce her heart . Damme trembled in the face of Sei’s glare .

“This circumstance will never happen again . This time, I will stop the guards from killing you . But if such an incident happens again, I will use different methods . ” (Sei)

Sei whispered to Damme with a bone-chilling voice . Damme knew that if an incident like this were to happen again, he would be dead immediately .

He smiled as Damme trembled wildly before him .

“Oh, a local guard came . Dida, hand him over to them . ” (Sei)

“… Is that really okay?” (Dida)

“Yes . ” (Sei)

Sei nodded as Dida handed Damme over to the guard . He didn’t resist or even struggle, instead looking at Sei with dim, lifeless eyes .