Chapter 100: Chapter 100 – Start as vice president
Yukio and Horikita Manabu's attitude was very positive, and since Yukio was interested in the Student Council, they quickly found common ground: "How about Palette?"
"Sure." Horikita Manabu had no objections, and after paying at the counter, they headed to Palette, a well-known café within the school.
However, this unusual pairing immediately drew the attention of the upperclassmen present in the café: "Isn't that Horikita, the Student Council President, and Tachibana, the Secretary? That's rare to see."
"And that person, I remember a junior mentioning him, Yukio from the first year! In just one month, through two special exams during the summer, he turned the tables on Classes A and C, directly ascending to Class A!"
"So strong?! Is the competition this intense now? In previous years, Class A would at least hold its position for an entire school year before dropping, right? This year's Class A couldn't even last one summer?"
"It's not that simple; there must be reasons. I heard that this year's top student from Class A was absent due to illness for both special exams. Otherwise, it's uncertain who would have won."
"Stop making excuses. A win is a win, and a loss is a loss. How do you know the absence of Class A's top student wasn't part of someone's scheme? It just shows that this junior, Yukio, is exceptionally talented."
Due to Horikita Manabu's fame and Yukio's rising reputation, their appearance together attracted many curious looks and whispers, wondering how these two ended up together.
Meanwhile, Tachibana and Ibuki, who followed them, didn't attract much attention.
After ordering and sitting down, Horikita Manabu was straightforward: "Yukio, do you usually prefer to discuss business after the coffee arrives, or does it not matter to you?"
"If you're used to waiting for the coffee, I can start by sharing some experiences from the upperclassmen, or if you have any questions of interest, I'll try to answer them as best as I can if I'm familiar with the topic."
His first statement after sitting down highlighted Horikita Manabu's efficiency. Although very direct and brisk, it didn't come off as unpleasant and managed to set a more formal tone for the conversation.
"No need." Yukio was actually curious about Horikita Manabu's relationship with Horikita Suzune from first year Class D, given their rare surname and somewhat similar appearances, suggesting they might be siblings.
However, setting aside Horikita Suzune's matter for the moment, Yukio had other intentions, first inquiring about the difficulties Horikita Manabu mentioned regarding this year's Student Council: " President Horikita, you mentioned earlier that there were difficulties in not recruiting first-year students this time, right?"
"I'm very interested in knowing the inside story."
The person next to him, Tachibana, glanced at Ibuki across from them, seeming ready to say something. If Horikita Manabu valued Yukio highly, then sharing some insider information about the student council wouldn't be an issue. Tachibana trusted Horikita Manabu's judgment.
However, sharing this with Yukio's companion, Ibuki, seemed somewhat inappropriate, didn't it?
Horikita Manabu, however, did not pay heed, either not noticing Tachibana's hesitant expression or deciding to speak regardless: "Because there is a particularly dangerous person in the student council right now."
"Oh?" Yukio's interest was piqued. How dangerous? He was somewhat eager to see for himself.
Horikita Manabu's words were ice-cold, making it impossible to discern whether his evaluation was free of personal bias or emotional influence: "That person is Nagumo from second-year class A, currently the vice president of the student council."
"His talent is undoubtedly exceptional, but Nagumo always aims to turn this school into an even more absolute meritocracy, which would mean many students who could have been nurtured will lose their opportunities."
"In fact, the student council recruits new members from the freshmen every year, and contrary to my previous excuse, your batch of students is more exceptional than any before."
"With such talented individuals as yourselves, and considering Nagumo's diverse tactics, I worry that freshmen entering the student council would be misled and used by him."
"Rather than letting you be misled by Nagumo, it would be better to keep all of you out, preserving a new force. This way, after I graduate and you move up to the second year, you could contend with Nagumo."
"That's why I pretended to be disappointed with the quality of this year's freshmen, rejecting everyone's application to join, though ultimately, there was one exception."
Yukio had no interest in whatever ambitions Nagumo from the second year had, or his push for an even more pronounced meritocracy. To him, these were just minor disturbances in a highly nurtured environment.
Aside from someone like Nagumo, who went directly against the school authorities from the start, he wasn't much impressed. So, while Horikita Manabu elaborated on Nagumo, he found himself more curious about the sole exception who was allowed to join.
When Horikita Manabu brought this up, his eyes also showed a hint of worry: "You probably know her, Ichinose from your grade, a very outstanding student."
"She applied several times and was rejected by me, but Nagumo used his authority as vice president to give her multiple chances to be assessed. Thanks to Ichinose's exceptional personal abilities, she eventually joined."
"Mhm," Yukio chuckled lightly. Isn't that amusing? While you close off the student council, Nagumo opens wide the door of convenience, showing a vast difference in how to win people's hearts.
To think that they could avoid first-year students being misled by Nagumo like this? Impossible! Only Ichinose joined the student council? Not a single person from the first-year students knew about this?
No, maybe the members of Ichinose's class knew about it, but kept it a secret, not spreading the news, making it difficult for the other three classes to find out. Considering Ichinose's personality, she's not the type to seek the limelight, which makes sense.
Tachibana was very unhappy with Yukio's laughter, wanting to defend Horikita Manabu and was about to speak out when the server brought the coffee, once again interrupting Tachibana, making her appear particularly frustrated.
However, Horikita Manabu did not mind Yukio's laughter at all, instead affirming it: "Indeed, it was my mistake for not guarding against Nagumo, giving him the opportunity."
"It also made me realize that Nagumo is becoming more and more dangerous, so I want to invite you, Yukio, to join the student council to counteract his schemes."
"If you are willing to join, I can use my authority as the president of the student council to directly admit you and appoint you as the vice president."
Tachibana was shocked, knowing that the school rules allow for two vice presidents. This rule is not problematic; the highly nurtured school encourages competition, with the two vice presidents competing for the president's position, which is very much in line with the school's ethos.
However, in previous years, all the student council presidents were not easy to deal with, so how could the school be so satisfied?
All previous student council presidents, including the one a year senior to Horikita Manabu, directly selected suitable juniors to promote and train as vice presidents, passing on the position directly after graduation without any competition.
Therefore, it was assumed that setting only one vice president was enough. Horikita Manabu did the same last year with Nagumo, but now, realizing the situation was wrong, he found Yukio.
Ibuki, on the other hand, was not surprised, perhaps because Yukio had brought too many surprises, and she was used to it.
Originally, Ibuki thought the student council and upperclassmen's struggles were quite childish, but hearing the invitation for Yukio to directly become the vice president, she thought it was quite normal, as Yukio himself had the capability.
***
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