Chapter 040: Are the Student Council Vice President Positions Already Divvied Up? Class C and D: [Input Text]
Before long, Horikita Manabu arrived at the Student Council office. He pushed open the door and led the four of them inside.
"First of all, I was the one who summoned you here," Horikita Manabu began.
"As the Student Council President, I see that you freshmen have achieved excellent results. Not only I, but the school administration as well, hold high expectations for you.
When I was at this stage in my first year, my class's evaluation score was only 898 points," he added.
Is that so?
It seemed this year's batch of freshmen was indeed extraordinary.
Where there are overachievers, there are naturally laggards. Because besides the two high-scoring classes that broke the 900-point mark, two unprecedented 0-point classes had appeared.
Both records had been shattered.
Naturally, there was no way to talk about punishments anymore—after all, Classes C and D were already at 0. In terms of scoring, they technically owed the school points, but the rewards for Classes A and B still needed to be addressed.
"Therefore, as a reward, I can grant each of your classes one Secretary position," Horikita Manabu announced.
"And I will arrange for you to assist the two Vice Presidents in their work."
This meant that while Horikita Manabu had his own secretaries, the two Vice Presidents did not yet have assistants. By appointing two people, he balanced the situation.
Simultaneously, Vice President Nagumo Miyabi and Kiriyama Ikuto represented the current 2nd-year Class A and the former 2nd-year Class A respectively, and a competitive relationship already existed between them. Letting 1st-year Class A and Class B each take a position integrated them into this system of checks and balances—a well-thought-out move.
However, to Horikita Manabu's slight surprise, not a single ripple of emotion appeared on the faces of the four students present after his proposal. Just as he felt a hint of confusion, Class A's Katsuragi spoke up.
"President, if one were to purchase a Student Council Secretary position from you, how many points would it cost?"
"..." Horikita Manabu fell silent for a moment.
He hadn't expected Katsuragi to ask such a question. In his impression, the one more likely to do so was Hikigaya Hachiman, with whom he had interacted before.
Was 1st-year Katsuragi also this type of person?
Horikita Manabu recalled Katsuragi applying to join the Student Council a week ago, only to be rejected. Perhaps Katsuragi planned to give the Secretary position earned by Class A to Sakayanagi and buy another one for himself?
After all, 1st-year Class A was indeed excellent. Unlike Class B, which broke 900 due to a bonus, Class A achieved it through solid performance, making them the focus of the school. But it was also a fact that Class A had two factions and two class representatives.
To avoid internal friction over a single position—especially now that Class B posed a massive threat and continued infighting with Sakayanagi would be suicidal—the steady Katsuragi chose to buy a second position.
Horikita Manabu quickly finished this deduction in his mind.
But.
"The prerequisite is that you must have my approval. That is not something decided purely by points," Horikita Manabu replied.
"Then, if approval is already granted, what price in points would you set for a Secretary position?" Katsuragi pressed on.
"..." Horikita Manabu grew increasingly puzzled.
If approval was granted, the position would naturally be free. Why would he ask for points from a student he acknowledged?
"Actually, it's like this." Noticing that "Horikita-Brother" seemed to be getting the wrong idea, Hikigaya quickly interjected.
"I plan to sell the Secretary position granted to Class B to Class A.
We've already reached an agreement. Class A is willing to pay double the price to acquire it.
So we need to know the floor price you initially set for this position, President.
Naturally, I hope you'll quote an astronomical price—" Hikigaya said bluntly, "so that my profit will be even greater."
Horikita Manabu: "..."
So before he even arrived, this group of freshmen had already completed a private transaction? And they wanted him to quote a sky-high price?
"If the prerequisite is that I have granted approval, and the student didn't initially get a Secretary position but a general staff role, the price I would give to promote them to Secretary would be..." Horikita Manabu pondered for a moment.
Hikigaya mentioned Class A would pay double. If he quoted high, Class A would have to endure a massive premium.
However.
He wasn't in a joint venture with Hikigaya to buy and sell positions. So he chose to tell the truth.
"Roughly 1 million points. After all, a Secretary position is quite important. If you join in the first year and still have the favor of the Student Council President in the second year, you'll have a chance to be promoted to Vice President. Once you become Vice President, you gain the qualification to run for the next Student Council President."
From this perspective, 1 million points for a Secretary position was indeed reasonable.
However.
"In that case, how many points would it take to directly obtain the qualification to run for the next Student Council President?" Sakayanagi Arisu asked at the perfect moment.
Her question made everyone turn to look at her.
This Sakayanagi-san always seemed capable of keenly grasping the key point. It was like this when she led Class A to buy the school's truth on the first day, and it was like this now.
The importance of a Secretary was the chance to become Vice President, but why not buy the Vice President position directly? Buying into the Vice Presidency would allow one to run for President immediately; it was clearly more cost-effective.
"The Vice President position is not easily sold," Horikita Manabu answered.
"If you can maintain your Class A status when you enter the second year, I will naturally invite you to join the Student Council.
At that time, no points will be required.
Of course, if 1st-year Class B successfully promotes, I will grant them the same treatment," Horikita Manabu added.
These words made the representatives of both classes unable to hide their excitement. After all, this was a Vice President position handed to them on a silver platter.
For free.
But President, by then, you will no longer be at the school.
Since Horikita Manabu was a third-year student, at the end of the academic year, he would not only step down but also leave the school as a graduate. Thus, this promise seemed like it could never be fulfilled.
However, Horikita Manabu could also make recommendations to his successor before resigning. Therefore, his statement still carried weight.
Thus, the next Vice President seats would very likely come from among the four students currently in this office.
And in this short span of time, Classes C and D had been left even further behind in a different direction.
"Then, President, while I have the chance, may I ask you one question for free?"
At this moment, Hikigaya Hachiman rejoined the conversation.
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