Monday, 3:45 PM.
This was the first collective meeting held after each class confirmed their executive committee members for the school festival, symbolizing the official start of the School Festival Committee's operations.
Shinra was a punctual person, so he chose to arrive at the conference room right on time.
Before even reaching the door, he could already hear the commotion coming from inside. Various voices mixed together like a vegetable market. To use a phrase Shinra was familiar with: The whole hallway can hear your classroom.
However, since this was a meeting held by students and school was already over, there was no need to worry about a teacher suddenly barging in to scold them.
"Why aren't you going in?"
A female voice rang out from behind Shinra. The tone was clear as a spring, very recognizable.
"I was wondering if I should imitate the grade director and teach the students inside what it means to keep quiet in a conference room."
"You can try."
"Shouldn't you advise me not to?"
Yukino tilted her head upon hearing this, then revealed a somewhat mischievous smile and said, "Idiots can't be persuaded."
"That's true." Shinra acted as if he didn't hear the implication in her words and chose to pull open the door and enter.
The noise in the conference room paused. Everyone present heard the door opening and looked over. After realizing it was a stranger, they immediately looked away and turned back to continue chatting with their companions.
The whole process was smooth and natural, as if rehearsed countless times.
A thought suddenly popped into Shinra's mind: If someone kept opening and closing the conference room door, would this room stay quiet forever?
Glitching the matrix, so to speak.
Shinra stepped into the conference room, and Yukino followed closely behind, holding the door Shinra pushed open so it would make less noise when closing.
The moment Yukino stepped into the conference room, the room fell silent again. This time, it wasn't like when Shinra opened the door—just a glance and then back to chatting. Instead, the silence lasted until Shinra and Yukino found empty seats and sat down before gradually returning to its original atmosphere. However, it was palpably obvious that everyone's voices were a notch lower than before, as if they had some reservations.
This was the deterrence of Yukinoshita Yukino.
Sagami Minami seemed to have arrived very early and had already formed a three-person group with executive committee members from other classes, faintly occupying the initiative of the conversation.
In a sense, Hayama wasn't wrong. Sagami Minami indeed possessed certain leadership skills. At least in forming cliques, her ability was maxed out.
Sagami Minami noticed Shinra when he entered. Just as she was about to greet him, she noticed Yukino following behind him. Her raised hand paused, then she very naturally smoothed her hair, pretending nothing happened, and continued chatting with the person beside her as if she hadn't noticed Shinra.
It wasn't that she was afraid of Yukino... okay, she was afraid.
She couldn't help it. Miura Yumiko at least had to consider her reputation in the girls' circle somewhat, but Yukino was different. If you really provoked her, she wouldn't be polite with you at all.
Circles, unwritten rules—she ignored them all. Purely a reckless youth.
Moreover, if even Miura Yumiko couldn't handle this opponent, how could she?
And seeing Yukino sitting with Shinra, Sagami Minami finally understood why Miura Yumiko didn't come. So she knew this would happen long ago?
However, Sagami Minami didn't care too much. She wasn't like Miura Yumiko, harboring romantic thoughts about Shinra. She just wanted to be friends with him. If it worked out, great; if not, no big deal.
Her main goal today was to run for the chairman of the School Festival Committee. Compared to the obscure executive committee member, the position of chairman was much more glamorous.
Not only could she give a speech at the school festival, but she also had the power to dispatch executive committee members from various classes during the festival. The 'power content' was quite high, almost like a student council president trial card.
While enjoying infinite glory, she could also take the opportunity to accumulate popularity. Maybe she could become a hot celebrity figure on campus like Miura Yumiko.
It perfectly fit Sagami Minami's needs.
"Do you plan to compete for the chairman position?" Shinra turned his head, lowered his voice, and whispered to Yukino.
"No." Yukino just wanted to do her part of the work quietly. The chairman position was not in her plan at all.
In fact, if it weren't for the fact that no one in the class wanted to be an executive committee member, she probably wouldn't have come here.
"Really not planning to?" Shinra leaned in a bit closer.
Yukino gently nudged Shinra's foot with hers under the table, signaling him not to go too far. On the surface, she maintained her cool demeanor and said, "If you plan to compete, don't mind me."
"Also, too close."
"What?" Shinra pretended not to hear clearly.
Then, a smile appeared on Yukino's pretty face. Her brown loafer quietly arrived and stepped fiercely on Shinra's instep.
"Stop stop stop..." Shinra quickly begged for mercy, pulling back to a normal distance and returning his volume to normal.
Yukino glanced sideways at Shinra and let out an imperceptible 'hmph', but didn't continue to 'reward' him, removing her small foot from his instep.
Just as Shinra was about to say something else, the conference room door opened again.
Only this time, unlike before, it wasn't an executive committee member but people from the Student Council.
The leading girl had a gentle appearance, with two braids draped over her shoulders and her bangs secured with an orange hairpin. Her uniform was neatly worn, and her skirt wasn't deliberately shortened, perfectly complying with school rules. Overall, she looked gentle and lovely, yet exuded an indescribable air of magnanimity.
This person was the current Student Council President of Sobu High School, Shiromeguri Meguri.
Behind her was a group of Student Council members carrying stacks of documents, as well as the two guiding teachers for this meeting: the PE teacher Atsugi and the Sobu High model worker Shizuka.
Taking their seats, the Student Council members sat at the long table on the podium in order. The Student Council President naturally sat in the center seat. The two guiding teachers sat by the window; unless necessary, they probably didn't intend to intervene directly in this meeting.
"So, the School Festival Executive Committee meeting will now begin."
Meguri cleared her throat and announced the start of the meeting in a clear voice.
After the announcement, self-introductions followed immediately.
"I am the Student Council President, Shiromeguri Meguri. I am very happy to receive everyone's help this year to make the school festival run smoothly... Mm... Th-Then, let's work hard together!"
After speaking, the gentle-looking Student Council President raised her hand and let out a gentle 'Oh~' as if trying to cheer everyone up.
Honestly, it wasn't clear if she cheered anyone up, but the President's gentleness index was definitely off the charts.
After the President finished speaking, the Student Council members around her immediately responded with applause, leading other meeting participants to clap along.
Loyalty!
Seeing this, the gentle President Meguri nodded in satisfaction.
"Thank you very much. Next, let's decide on the candidate for the School Festival Committee Chairman."
As soon as her voice fell, a commotion quickly spread through the room.
Clearly, many people were unaware that the Student Council President would not concurrently hold the position of the School Festival Committee Chairman this time.
Meguri immediately explained this matter.
"I think many people should understand that according to past practice, the Chairman of the School Festival Executive Committee is usually a second-year student, and I am already a third-year..."
Approaching university exams and being in the autumn semester, the third-year Meguri clearly didn't have much time to devote to the school festival.
The people present weren't stupid and quickly figured out the reason, calming the commotion.
"Alright, so is there anyone willing to volunteer as Chairman?" Meguri asked softly.
"..."
The room was dead silent, exactly like when asking who wanted to be an executive committee member during the class meeting.
Even those who had ideas about the chairman position held back at this moment. If they volunteered now, they would be held responsible if the event didn't go well.
But if they waited until absolutely no one was willing and then appeared in the public eye with a 'forced' posture, even if they didn't do well in the end, others couldn't criticize them too much.
After all, they had made it clear from the start that they didn't want to do it but stepped up to take responsibility because there was no other choice. If they didn't do well... you can't blame me, right?
Shinra looked around, taking in the emotions of everyone in the conference room through Emotion Perception. He could tell the loyal from the treacherous at a glance.
Sagami Minami went without saying; her wolfish ambition wasn't new.
What surprised Shinra was that Yukino beside him seemed genuinely uninterested in being the chairman, remaining indifferent to the situation.
"No volunteers?"
President Meguri asked again. Compared to her gentle voice before, this time there was a hint of distress in her tone.
The guys secretly eyeing the chairman position still held their ground, obviously thinking the atmosphere hadn't reached the point of 'unavoidable'.
Because the meeting host, Meguri, and the two guiding teachers sitting on the side hadn't recommended anyone yet.
Only after they recommended someone and got rejected would it be their time to act.
As for what if the recommended person accepted?
What else could they do? Chalk it up to bad luck.
For opportunists, this was a zero-cost venture anyway.
Moreover, one didn't have to be in the chairman position to shine. With the right timing, a classic Japanese gekokujo (overthrowing those above) wasn't impossible, and it might even carry more weight.
Sure enough, as the situation fell into a stalemate.
The PE teacher Atsugi obviously lost his patience. He cleared his throat boldly and said, "Hey, what's going on? Can you guys show some spirit? Too lifeless! The school festival is your own activity!"
As expected of a PE teacher. This vigorous voice directly called Shizuka, who was spacing out beside him, back to reality.
Rubbing her slightly numb ears, Shizuka cast her gaze towards Shinra.
Teacher Atsugi happened to be looking in the same direction, but his target wasn't Shinra, but Yukino.
"Aren't you Yukinoshita's sister? I'm looking forward to this year's school festival being as splendid as that year!"
Clearly, this Teacher Atsugi had taught Haruno, and the school festival hosted by Haruno that year must have been very successful, leaving a deep impression on him. So much so that this trust was passed on to her sister, Yukino, three years later.
It's just that this Teacher Atsugi obviously lacked emotional intelligence. His wording was too crude, sounding like he was treating Yukino as Haruno's substitute.
For Yukino, this was tantamount to dancing on a minefield.
With these words, setting aside that Yukino didn't plan to be the chairman in the first place, even if she really wanted to, she had to consider if she could surpass her sister.
It was equivalent to setting another benchmark on top of the original success. Failing to meet this requirement would be considered a failure for Yukino. And even if she succeeded, she would only get an evaluation like 'As expected of Yukinoshita's sister'.
Purely thankless.
Shizuka, sitting next to Teacher Atsugi, held her forehead, looking like she couldn't bear to watch.
Meguri noticed Yukino and whispered, "So she's Haruno-senpai's sister."
Seeing everyone's eyes focused on her, Yukino's expression froze slightly. Her expression didn't change much, but Shinra could feel the displeasure from the person beside him.
The displeasure was easy to understand. On one hand, it was because of Teacher Atsugi's singling her out. On the other hand, it was because she was treated as her sister's substitute.
However, based on etiquette, Yukino still responded briefly.
"I will do my job as an executive committee member seriously."
The implication was that she wouldn't run for chairman and follow Haruno's old path.
The rejected Teacher Atsugi seemed to realize his slip of the tongue, so he could only vaguely respond with particles like 'Mm' and 'Oh', shutting his mouth and saying no more.
The scene fell into silence again, but the undercurrents in the meeting became more turbulent.
Shinra observed that Sagami Minami seemed unable to hold back. And not just Sagami Minami; the new bestie beside her also seemed moved, just not as obviously as Sagami Minami.
Truly... birds of a feather flock together.
Just as Sagami Minami was about to step forward and accept this heavy responsibility, President Meguri spoke again:
"Mm... by the way, being the chairman actually has many benefits. For example, you can get extra points when applying for university. This is quite competitive for those aiming for school recommendation qualifications."
OK, the restless mood in the venue was suppressed again.
Because stepping forward at this time would be equivalent to admitting that she/he came for this benefit. At that time, doing well would be taken for granted, but if done poorly... it would be pure overestimation of one's abilities.
I really don't know if this Student Council President did it intentionally or unintentionally.