Chapter 4 - Secretary Hikigaya
The efficiency of the Advanced Nurturing High School's student council was even faster than Hikigaya had expected. The morning after the recruitment event, an updated list of student council members was already posted on the announcement board in the academic building.
Behind the many names printed on the white paper were the class affiliations of each student. At a glance, they were all second- and third-year students.
Yet the name that drew the most attention from the gathered crowd was not the student council president Horikita Manabu at the top, but the only one with "first-year" written after their name: the student council secretary—Hikigaya Hachiman.
"That Hikigaya definitely pulled some strings. Even someone as outstanding as Katsuragi got rejected. How could he possibly become the secretary of the student council just like that?"
Amid the crowd, a boy with a buzz cut expressed his dissatisfaction to a tall, bald companion next to him. Due to the bald boy's towering height, Hikigaya quickly spotted and recognized him.
He was one of the two leaders of Class 1-A Katsuragi Kohei, who had stepped down from leadership after two defeats in special exams. Calm by nature and inclined toward steady tactics.
"Don't go around saying things without evidence. Be mindful of your words and actions." With a deep, powerful voice, Katsuragi admonished his classmate Totsuka Yahiko, and the two left together.
"Though a bit hard to believe, it seems you weren't lying."
Horikita Suzune, who had somehow appeared behind him, sighed with a trace of unease.
"You won't be a bother to the president, right?"
While admiring Horikita Manabu, Horikita Suzune was also afraid of causing him trouble. That's why she had asked him yesterday to not tell others that Horikita Manabu was her brother.
"If you were the one causing him trouble, I think he'd be happy about it."
"No way. Are you an idiot?"
You're the idiot, aren't you? Hikigaya only grumbled in his mind, turning on his heel to walk away. Horikita Suzune was the type who would actually hit someone if provoked.
When judging someone, it's not just about what they say—it's about what they do. Yesterday, Horikita Suzune painted her brother as a cold, ruthless, perfect top student who distanced himself from her because she wasn't good enough.
But to Hikigaya, Horikita Manabu merely looked cold on the surface. In some of the special exams, the students who dropped out didn't hurt the class at all—in fact, they allowed the class to eliminate "inferior" students. Even in Class A, there are inferior types.
Like that Totsuka Yahiko from earlier, who carelessly spoke his mind. With Horikita Manabu's ability, discarding such people would make it easier to keep Class A's top position until graduation—but he didn't do that.
The reason he distanced himself from his sister wasn't because he thought she wasn't good enough. In fact, from what Hikigaya knew, Horikita Suzune was already a very capable person. Her only flaws were a lack of empathy and being trapped in her own world.
As for her looks, just calling her pretty wouldn't be enough. Her long legs wrapped in black over-the-knee socks created a perfect "absolute territory," her sleek black hair cascaded down her back, and the right side had a small braided section tied with a butterfly ribbon. Her delicate face featured a pair of beautiful fox-like eyes—currently glaring at him fiercely.
Ah, he was caught.
Hikigaya quickly turned his head toward the corridor outside the classroom. His seat was in the last row by the hallway, with only one person between him and Horikita—Sakura Airi.
"G-Good morning, Hikigaya-kun."
Always arriving just before class started, Sakura had to greet Hikigaya when they made eye contact. Her fiery red hair had bangs nearly covering her eyes, and behind her plain red glasses, her eyes looked slightly panicked.
"Good morning, Sakura-san." Hikigaya smiled. "Want to eat lunch together in the cafeteria? I found a pretty good set meal yesterday."
There were two people who stuck with him during his past expulsion. Although they hadn't been close at school, after dropping out they became friends thanks to one of them taking the initiative.
"Ah... um, at noon..." Sakura shrank back slightly, her expression wavering.
Sakura Airi was obedient but extremely shy. If no one approached her, she would just quietly stay in a corner. Though she longed for friendship, she also feared being hurt.
Being invited to lunch by a classmate for the first time was a big dilemma for her. Since Hikigaya planned to stay in Class D for a while, he didn't intend to pressure her.
"If you're busy at lunch, next time is fine too."
"O-Okay."
As the bell rang, their always-tardy homeroom teacher Chabashira Sae entered the classroom right on time. Even seeing students still playing on their phones, she pretended not to notice and started the lesson like a pre-programmed robot.
It was already the fourth day of school. Some students who were attentive at first gradually began slacking off when they realized the teacher wouldn't scold them no matter what they did. Some played with their phones; others slept.
Students violating school rules would cause class points to be deducted. Fewer class points meant fewer personal points distributed to students. For Hikigaya, who needed to collect a lot of personal points, the more Class D lost, the harder it would be for him to extract value.
Now that he wore the student council secretary badge, Hikigaya felt the time was right. After class, he texted Kushida to arrange meetings with each class's leaders to sell information. He scheduled Class B—easiest to deal with—first, followed by Class A, then Class C, and finally Class D, the toughest.
After receiving Kushida's "got it" reply, Hikigaya turned off his phone and tucked it into his bag.
"Hey, I heard you pulled strings to become the student council secretary," said Yamauchi Haruki, who sat in front of Hikigaya, suddenly turning around. "The student council president is someone you know, right? Introduce me so I can mess around too."
"The student council isn't a place for people who play on their phones during class," Horikita Suzune snapped, suddenly standing up.
"If you convince Horikita-san, I'll introduce you," Hikigaya replied.
Since someone had stood up to defend her brother's honor, Hikigaya thought he'd leave Yamauchi Haruki—this brazen and tactless problem child—to the sibling-obsessed Horikita.
"The student council isn't something you can join just because you want to."
"My junior high student council president invited me. I just didn't join."
"I was the ace pitcher of the baseball team in junior high. I only didn't join the high school league because I got injured and I'm still recovering."
Yamauchi's voice grew louder and louder until he stood up.
"Hikigaya isn't the only first-year who applied for the student council. It's impossible to get in just because you want to." Horikita crossed her arms. "Also, high school leagues don't allow middle schoolers. If you're going to lie, at least make it believable."
"Hah? I just misspoke! No wonder you don't have any friends with that poisonous mouth."
"I just don't think friends are necessary. Only pitiful men like you feel like they can't survive without them."
Yamauchi, face flushed, reached out with both hands, trying to grab Horikita's collar—but just as Hikigaya expected, Horikita flipped him over with a shoulder throw.
Horikita-sama is badass!
Silently rising from his seat, Hikigaya slipped out of the classroom in a flash.