Isekai Office Worker: The Other World's Books Depend on the Bean Counter

Episode 8

Is there anyone scarier than a religious fanatic? That's a question we've been openly asking in my family since one, upon learning that we're Jewish, said breathlessly to my grandmother, “Oh, you're the chosen people!” and my grandmother fired back, “Chosen for what, I should like to know?” Seiichirou is having his “chosen people” moment now, because of Siegvold, one of the priests at the church he's been assigned to audit. All the man knew up until this point was the basics of who Seiichirou was, but when he learns about the difficulties the otherworlder has faced as a result of his summoning, suddenly Siegvold is all religious fervor. According to him, Seiichiro is Abram's chosen, forced to face trials for the good of mankind as a foil and support to the Holy Maiden. From the look on his face, you'd think Seiichiro was the second coming of Abram Himself – and for all we know, that's precisely what the churchman is thinking.

This may be a sign that he hasn't heard about what Seiichiro is currently working on – a reason not to summon a Holy Maiden ever again. Although Siegvold may be slightly more onboard with this idea than he might at first appear to be, as he shows Seiichirou through a garden created a couple of Holy Maidens ago, he notes that she joined a convent. That means that, unlike Yurius, he knows that this may not be as romantic as it seems on the surface, although as a churchman, he may also simply think that that Maiden was particularly devout and aware of her role. To me, though, it says that Seiichirou is right, and that the poor girl, far from home and with no hope of going back, sought solace in a place that would at least allow her to be by herself.

That speaks to the danger of this sort of isekai fantasy from the summoners' side rather than the summoned. In Yurius' mind, and possibly Siegvold's, the summoned is doing Abram's work, and there is no greater honor than that – all the more if she also gets to marry a prince. But like Sleeping Beauty never asked to be kissed (or raped, in one early Italian variant), Yua never asked to be turned into a heroine or a princess. It was fun for a bit, but she's keenly aware, thanks to Seiichirou stepping up to be the adult in the room, that she's been put in a position without her consent. And she's being disrespected again when the head of the Second Order of Knights and Yurius try to get Seiichirou to convince her that it's all okay and that she should give the prince a chance.

I love how Seiichirou handles this. Honestly, just walking out of the room is the only way to handle it, because it's not his place to change Yua's mind. We all know that when it's his job that's involved, Seiichirou will move heaven, earth, and time to make things happen. But this simply isn't his business. If Yua wants to teach at the church instead of playing pretty princess, that's up to her. (Norbert, on the other hand, had better not try to do anything but his job, because Big Brother Seiichirou is, in fact, always watching.)

This episode adapts part of the second novel, and as you might have noticed from the pacing, it's trying to cram a lot in so that the story can keep moving forward at the correct pace. It doesn't entirely work, although it's also not bad. But there's Selio, Yua, Yurius, Siegvold, Aresh, Orjef, the household servants, and more to catch up with, plus the requisite scene of Aresh making it abundantly clear that Seiichirou is his now-and-forever boyfriend. (Poor Orjef. He didn't deserve that icy glare.) It's crowded and a little bit rushed, which isn't great. Still, Seiichirou is really thinking about what he wants vis-à-vis Aresh and moving towards admitting his own feelings, if only to himself. Yua and Yurius might not get the fairy tale, but I hope that Aresh and Seiichirou do.

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