The temperature in Chiba was dropping day by day, prompting Hikigaya to switch into his signature white windbreaker. Chiba City Sobu High School was preparing for an important event at the start of winter: the student council president election.
For nearly two years, Haruno had been using her personal authority to effectively manage the Student Union since joining it. She had been quite successful, treating the members as tools to achieve her goals. However, as she entered her third year of high school, especially after the summer vacation, she had to focus on preparing for the college entrance examination and put her work in the Student Union on hold. Although she believed she could handle both responsibilities, the school administration would not allow it.
Due to Haruno's intense control over the Student Union, most of the junior members had come to acknowledge only President Yukinoshita. While they all worked well together on weekdays to make President Yukinoshita happy, this atmosphere meant that no junior member could convince the others. If Yukinoshita Haruno left, the Student Union would likely fall into chaos.
"You are amazing, senior. You remind me of a former leader of a country that no longer exists," Hikigaya commented after listening to Haruno speak about her troubles.
"In the end, the position of the student council president isn't one that can be handled alone by someone with ability and authority like you, senior sister. I would argue it can be more like a figurehead as long as they are friendly and approachable. After all, Sobu High School is a public school, and the student council doesn't need to worry about most things," Hikigaya continued. In truth, he didn't care about the tedious nature of campus politics and avoided all types of activities organized by the school. He saw them as a complete waste of time.
Haruno criticized Hikigaya's character, suggesting that it was impossible for him to make friends. He wanted to respond with "Isn't it enough for me to have you?" but he swallowed the thought, knowing it conflicted with his nature.
"Are you saying that a candidate for student council president only needs to be friendly, with minimal requirements for abilities?" Haruno pondered. She realized there was indeed a student among her juniors meeting that description: Johkai Mimi, who was gentle and kind. Johkai was the only member of the Student Council who could get along well with everyone, even without Haruno's direction. However, she lacked independent thinking and organizational skills—two shortcomings that made Haruno dismiss her as a potential president.
If Johkai Mizuki became the new president, any dissatisfaction among members would likely remain private. At the very least, the activities assigned to the Student Union by the school would continue without disruption. Although Haruno expected full marks on any activities she organized, Johkai Mizuki would only need to achieve a passing score of 60.
Haruno had a favorable impression of Johkai, who radiated what Haruno described as "Mizuki energy." If the push for her presidency proved challenging, Johkai could always reach out to Haruno for support. After all, if she were to advocate for Johkai's election, she couldn't overlook the follow-up assistance.
"I think what you said makes sense, Hikigaya-kun. Even though you claim not to be interested in this, you seem to have grasped the underlying truth," Haruno remarked, leaving Hikigaya feeling slightly puzzled as their conversation came to an end.
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Back to Hikigaya. As the sales of "Confessions" reached new heights, film and television companies were becoming increasingly anxious. Many of these companies even hired individuals to adapt the movie script for "Confessions," preparing to start work as soon as they confirmed they could obtain the copyright.
However, Sakuraba and Hikigaya were completely refusing to meet with anyone at that time. The publisher had just reprinted "Confessions" for the third time, adding the heavyweight slogan "Japanese paperback sales record" to the book cover, and there was no rush to adapt it into a film or TV series. Hikigaya had decided to discuss adaptation with those companies only after the sales of "Confessions" surpassed two million copies.
Seeing that there was no room for negotiation, most of these companies chose to give up directly. However, a small number of them found alternative ways to contact Hikigaya through publishing houses, hoping that Hachiman could write the script directly for them.
It might seem unusual for a film or television company to request a script from Hikigaya Hachiman, an "outsider," since novels and movie scripts differ greatly in terms of plot structure and presentation. However, this interest stemmed from Hikigaya's significant contribution in the December issue of "All Reading" magazine, which had become a bit thicker due to his extensive article "Disintegration Response" from "Disintegration Causes." This piece was written entirely in the format of a script.
Hikigaya not only divided the entire story into eight acts but also included a cast and crew list at the beginning of each act. Initially, readers perceived Mr. Hachiman's work as humorous and continued reading with smiles, but as they progressed, they realized something was amiss.
"Oh my god, did Mr. Hachiman really write a script?!"
"Mr. Hachiman, please accept my greetings! Aside from showing your face, is there anything you can't do?"
Netizens began a heated discussion after reading the article for a while. "Disintegration of Care" is a stage play script that meticulously explains every detail of stage settings, props, lighting, and includes detailed notes on the tone and movements of each character during their lines. The script was at a level that the crew could directly use for rehearsals.
While the plot may have confused some due to the multitude of character names, the overall writing style was humorous, with a strong sense of colloquialism and constant jokes, making for an enjoyable reading experience. This also allowed readers to gain a better understanding of Mr. Hachiman's writing style.
Once "Disintegration Notes" was published, many college and even high school drama clubs announced their plans to prepare and rehearse the play, aiming for a performance at their school celebrations next year.
"Are the many dirty jokes in this piece really suitable for performance on a high school stage?" Hikigaya wondered. He worried that if the performance had a negative impact, he might be targeted by the PTA. It was a somewhat bizarre thought to consider that a minor might be criticized by the PTA.
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