Three months have passed since the novel was published. The narrator tells us that he is getting used to his new job. He tells us about a party he is throwing for new recruits. He asks Yukine and Tachibana if they are having fun. Yukine says he is, and they tease each other about how much they like the other's trainer, Tomafuji. The two of them drink too much together, and the narrator is afraid he is drunk. He tries to talk to them, but they won't let him. He says that he doesn't like the trainer because he seems like a "playboy" . They talk for a while, and then the narrator tells them to go back and have a drink. He is afraid that he might have misjudged the trainer, and he says that everyone loves him because he is "reliable and kind"