A Man Who Loved Pachinko So Much That He Changed Jobs To A Pachinko Parlor

My name is Koki Hisamoto, a 32-year-old single man.

I currently work at a construction site.

"Ah, this site today is tough..."

"Hey Hisamoto! Hurry up!"

"S, sorry!"

(That site supervisor is always acting bossy...)

The best way to relieve stress from work is to indulge in your favorite hobby.

So, my hobby is pachinko.

"Alright! I hope I'll get lucky today!"

I was at a pachinko parlor right after work.

This is my only enjoyment.

However...

"Oh no, I can't believe I lost this badly..."

I rarely win, and most of the time, I lose. But I keep coming back because I can't forget the thrill of winning.

I know I should quit this lifestyle, but it's not easy.

The most painful part of losing is that my bank account balance drops so low that I can't go to the pachinko parlor until my next paycheck.

(Pachinko parlor staff are so lucky. They get to be around pachinko all the time... Plus, they might even learn how to win by working there...)

The next day, I got scolded by the site supervisor again.

"Hey Hisamoto! How many times do I have to tell you? Those woods need to be placed over there!"

"Oh, sorry!"

"You're useless!"

(Ugh, I hate that supervisor...)

Many people are scared of that supervisor and end up quitting, especially the young guys.

He seems a bit too strict to me. But he's completely oblivious to it...

One Day

It was just another day...

That day, my colleagues treated me to drinks at an izakaya, and then we went to a cabaret club.

By the time I was heading home, it was quite late, and I happened to pass by a nearby pachinko parlor.

I saw the male and female employees chatting happily while doing the closing work.

(Hmm? A male and a female employee. They look like they're having fun...)

When I took a closer look, I noticed that the female employee was very cute...

I envied them... I wish I could talk to such a cute girl...

Compared to them, I'm surrounded by sweaty, smelly guys at work...

I wish I could work like that too.

Decision to Change Jobs

I really wanted to work at a pachinko parlor, so I immediately searched for job listings on my smartphone.

Being a full-time employee would be nice...

Oh, there are various openings...

To become a full-time employee at a pachinko parlor, there seem to be two paths: getting promoted from a part-time worker or getting hired as a mid-career employee.

The average annual income in this industry is 5 million JPY, which is on the higher side...

Hmm, I didn't know that the pachinko industry includes both hall operation companies and gaming machine manufacturers.

I definitely prefer hall operations.

After all, I love the lively atmosphere of the parlors, and I might even learn how to win at pachinko.

Since I didn't feel fulfilled in my current job, I started looking for a new one the very next day.

However...

It wasn't that simple.

Especially for large companies, many required a college degree.

I went to several interviews, but when I returned home, I found multiple rejection letters in my mailbox...

"Another rejection... I guess it's tough without a college degree..."

Also, age might be an issue.

Working in the pachinko industry requires physical strength, and you need to absorb new knowledge, so being in your 20s is an advantage.

Still, I didn't give up and patiently continued my job search.

Three months later, I finally found a company that offered me a position.

And so, I submitted my resignation to my current company and quit my construction site job.

First Day at Work

"My name is Yukiki Hisamoto, and I'll be joining you from today. Please treat me well."

Today is my first day at work, and I'm now officially an employee of a pachinko parlor. I'm determined to do my best!

Most of the employees at the parlor where I was assigned were men. The gender ratio was probably 80% men and 20% women.

My boss immediately gave me instructions.

"So, for a while, have him work with you and show him the ropes."

"Understood."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Yamashita. Please treat me well."

"I'm Hisamoto. Nice to meet you too."

"Now, I know you're a full-time employee, Hisamoto, but first, you need to understand the basics of the store's operations, so you'll be doing the same tasks as the part-time workers."

"Understood."

One of the jobs at a pachinko parlor is transporting the pachinko balls, which can be heavy, but I'm confident in my physical strength.

"Leave the ball transport to me!"

"Well, we actually use a personal system here, so there's no need for ball transport."

"Huh? Really?"

"Yeah..."

The personal system is where a computer automatically manages the payout and handles the settlement. This means there's no need to carry boxes of balls.

So, my main tasks included patrolling the hall, customer service, managing the prize counter, cleaning the machines, and handling errors.

Over the next week or so, I experienced a variety of tasks.

And finally, I was able to start learning the full-time employee's duties.

The first task I took on was replacing and moving the machines.

This has to be done after closing, as it can't be done during business hours.

(It's tough work, but I get overtime pay, so I'll do my best!)

I also learned how to order prizes and manage inventory.

You have to regularly check the stock of prizes and snacks to ensure there are no shortages.

As I became accustomed to these tasks, I also started managing part-time worker shifts and training newcomers.

Becoming a Reliable Presence

After about half a year, I had become a fairly reliable presence in the store.

"Hisamoto-san! A customer is angry. Can you please deal with it?"

"Hisamoto-san, one of the machines seems to be malfunctioning. Can you take a look?"

"Okay, I'll handle it. Just give me a moment."

This way, even when urgent troubles arose, I could gradually solve them on my own.

However, since I didn't have a managerial position yet, I wasn't allowed to handle tasks involving money, such as using the settlement machine or the change machine.

One of the tasks I was assigned was "competitive research."

This "competitive research" involved going to rival stores and playing pachinko.

(It's great that I get to play pachinko during work hours!)

But from an outsider's perspective, it might look like I'm just playing. It's not like that.

While visiting nearby competitor stores, I checked on customer trends and machine occupancy rates.

After Work One Day

One day after work...

"Hisamoto-kun, do you want to grab a quick drink after work today?"

"Oh, Store Manager, you've worked hard. Yes, I'm fine, let's go!"

This was the first time I had been invited out for a drink by the store manager since I joined the company.

At the izakaya...

"Hisamoto-kun, you've been working hard. Thank you."

"No, it's nothing."

"How's it going? Is there anything troubling you lately?"

"No, everything's fine. Everyone is kind, and I'm enjoying my work."

"That's good to hear..."

That day, the store manager shared stories of his struggles in the past.

He said that in the old days, he never took paid leave, overtime work without pay was the norm, and when he got a managerial position, he had to work long hours without breaks and even work on holidays. It was really tough.

But now, we have a strict two-day work week, paid leave is guaranteed, and overtime without pay is unthinkable.

I felt fortunate to be working in this era.

The Next Day

Hearing about the store manager's struggles made me even more determined to work hard.

Although I wasn't allowed to set up the machines yet, as I worked there every day, I started to get a sense of which machines to put out on which days.

(Just as I thought, that machine is doing well today! Maybe I've gotten a knack for predicting which machines will be lucky? But it doesn't matter since I can't play here... Wait a minute, other stores probably have similar strategies, right? Let me test this out...)

So, on my day off, I went to a competitor's store to play.

And the result was...

"Wow, I lost big time! This is a complete failure!"

I ended up losing 50,000 JPY in one day.

(I guess the settings are different in other stores...)

Transfer to Another Store

One day...

I was called by the store manager and ordered to transfer to the Ikeda store in the neighboring town.

"Huh? A transfer?"

"Yes, Hisamoto-kun, starting next month, you'll be promoted to the position of team leader, and I want you to go to the Ikeda store. I have high hopes for you."

I had just started to get comfortable in this workplace, and I didn't want to transfer...

But it was an order from the store manager, so I had no choice. Plus, I had been promoted to team leader, so I had to do my best at the new store.

Reluctantly, I agreed.

At the Ikeda Store…

And so, I started working at the Ikeda store, but...

To be honest, it wasn't a great store.

There was trash scattered around the store, the employees always looked busy and rushed through the aisles, the sound of the door opening and closing when exchanging medals was loud and unpleasant, and some employees boasted about their past achievements, creating a bad atmosphere.

(I've ended up in a terrible store. Can I even survive here?)

But I had no choice but to do my best. I couldn't give up so easily...

First, to gain the trust of the staff, I took the initiative to do tasks that others might dislike, such as cleaning.

And I tried to communicate by talking to everyone as equally as possible.

After about a month, I started to see the good sides of each staff member.

"The ramen shop that opened yesterday was really delicious! Let's all go there together next time."

"Sounds good!"

"Hey, let's invite Hisamoto-san too."

"Yeah, let's do that."

This way, I made more friends who cared about me, and little by little, I was able to fit into the group.

Also, some of the employees were quite good at chatting with regular customers.

It seemed that they just didn't know the correct way of doing things. At heart, they were good people.

Maybe I was brought here to improve this situation.

So, I tried my best to gradually teach everyone, even a little, the correct way of doing things.

"Store Manager, I've come up with a new training program for the staff, drawing on my past experience..."

"That would be a great help..."

As a result of my positive efforts, I was promoted from team leader to supervisor a year later.

My annual income also increased by 1 million JPY, and now I earn 5.5 million JPY.

Thanks to my efforts, the level of the store improved, and the number of customers increased.

I will continue to work hard with the goal of becoming a store manager someday!

After Closing One Day

"Well, today was busy too. Let's clean up quickly and go home."

"I don't want to clean up..."

"Huh? Why not?"

The girl, Nao-chan, is a 26-year-old part-timer. She's cheerful and popular with regular customers.

"Because once we finish cleaning up, Hisamoto-san will leave, right? I don't want you to go..."

"Huh? W, well, that's... I'm flattered."

I knew she had a crush on me, but I never had the courage to ask her out.

But now I'm getting older, and my work is going well.

It's about time I start thinking about marriage.

And so, I started dating Nao-chan, and six months later, we got married.

From now on, I won't have time to play pachinko on my days off, but I need to prioritize my family.

I changed jobs because I loved pachinko so much, and I never thought I'd be able to start a family.

I'm very happy now.

Changing jobs was the best decision I ever made.