Going to the Student Council Room

Amasawa Yuto came to the Teachers' Office again today.

Teacher Mashima was glad to see him. After all, Amasawa Yuto was a super student who had scored a perfect mark.

"Actually, Teacher Mashima, there's something else I'd like to ask about the phone number from last time."

"You mean when you asked me how many digits the student numbers had? What do you want to ask today, Amasawa?"

"I wanted to ask whether each phone card at this school is linked to someone. Are there any anonymous, unregistered cards?"

Teacher Mashima thought for a moment. "I don't think so. Students' numbers are special ten-digit numbers, and every number issued each year is recorded. Each number corresponds to one student. Teachers and staff also have to report their numbers to the school to be recorded."

"If you're calling a phone on campus, can you only use a school phone?"

"That's right. We provide school phones to everyone we work with so they can contact us. Phones from outside can't call school phones directly. And even school phones can only communicate with one another inside the school."

Apparently feeling he'd said a little too much, Teacher Mashima waved his hand, signaling that Amasawa Yuto should leave.

"I have one more question. If I spend points, could you help me look up a number, Teacher Mashima?"

Teacher Mashima paused. "Ah, sure. It'll cost ten thousand points."

Amasawa Yuto hadn't expected it to be so easy. He paid the points.

Teacher Mashima gave him a knowing look and took out his notebook. "Whose phone number do you want to look up, Amasawa?"

That knowing look struck Amasawa Yuto as a little odd—until Teacher Hoshinomiya, Class B's homeroom teacher, poked her head out from the side.

"Huh? Which girl's number does Amasawa want to look up? Could it be little Honami? Oh my, how youthful!"

So that was what this was about. If you wanted the contact information of someone you liked but were too shy to ask directly, the teachers would look it up for you in exchange for points.

"Please look up who this phone number belongs to."

Amasawa Yuto gave them the number. It was clearly not what the two teachers had expected, and Hoshinomiya looked a little disappointed.

Amasawa Yuto was about to leave the office when he ran into another student coming in.

"Huh, Amasawa?"

"Ichinose, are you here to see Teacher Hoshinomiya?"

The student entering the office was Ichinose Honami, the pink-haired leader of Class B.

"Ah... yes. I wanted to ask where the Student Council Room is. I want to join the Student Council."

"Little Honami, you're here! The Student Council President's in the Student Council Room today!" Hoshinomiya's voice came from behind them. "The Student Council Room is on the third floor of the Third-Year School Building!"

"Ah, thank you, Teacher Hoshinomiya!"

"Are you going to the Student Council Room now?"

"Yes. Are you going too, Amasawa?"

"I'll go with you." Amasawa Yuto remembered the email Horikita Manabu had sent him that morning.

"I'm in the Student Council Room today. You can come find me."

"Actually, I asked Teacher Hoshinomiya yesterday and the day before whether the Student Council President was free, but he seemed really busy and never had time. I can finally go apply to join the Student Council today."

They walked side by side. Ichinose seemed at ease and was in high spirits.

"You got a perfect score on the last quiz, didn't you, Amasawa? That's really impressive!"

"Your grades are really good too, Ichinose."

"I had no idea how to solve most of the last few questions... That's why I think you're even more amazing, Amasawa! Oh, and thanks for what you did before."

"If you mean the points, you don't need to thank me. Class B spent points to buy the information. I didn't do anything."

"That's not true. It was thanks to you that Class B managed to keep the gap between us and Class A. Did Class A start targeting you afterward?" She seemed a little worried. "Do you have enough points?"

She almost seemed like a mother fussing over her child.

"Don't worry. Class A doesn't know what I did."

"I see..."

After they'd walked in silence for a while, Ichinose suddenly spoke again.

"Did you know? At this school, if you save up twenty million points, you can transfer to whichever class you like."

"Yeah. Or use them to cancel one expulsion penalty."

"Then... if... if you were going to transfer, Amasawa, which class would you choose?" She seemed to ask with hope, but also with caution.

"I'm not thinking of transferring at the moment. I'm doing well in Class A, and one of the class leaders, Sakayanagi Arisu, is my childhood friend."

"I guess so... Ahaha..." She seemed a little disappointed.

"But since we're just talking hypothetically, I think your Class B is really appealing, Ichinose."

"Huh?" Ichinose's emotions swung like a roller coaster, and her eyes widened.

"You all seem so close, and everyone's kind. You get along so well with one another. I really like the atmosphere in Class B. You've done a great job leading your class, Ichinose."

"Oh, no... I... It's really all thanks to everyone else..." Ichinose seemed a little embarrassed by the praise.

When they reached the third floor, where the Student Council Room was, they were surprised to find that someone had already arrived before them.

"Katsuragi?" Ichinose exclaimed.

"Hm? Amasawa, Ichinose? What are you two doing together?" Katsuragi Kohei looked at them standing side by side, suspicion plain in his eyes.

Just seeing the two of them together was enough to set his imagination racing.

"Don't get the wrong idea. We're here for the same reason you are—we need to see the Student Council President," Amasawa Yuto said first.

"Exactly. Aren't you here for the same reason, Katsuragi?" Ichinose had also noticed the form in Katsuragi's hand. It was the Student Council application.

"Uh, I see." It seemed they'd hit the mark, and Katsuragi was at a loss for words.

Just as Morishita Ran had said, Katsuragi was the sort of person who put all his energy into guarding against others, but was quite inexperienced when it came to attacking.

A little pushback from the other side was enough to throw him into disarray.

"Katsuragi, are you..." Ichinose looked at him suspiciously. "Were you rehearsing what to say once you got into the Student Council Room?"

"That's none of your business. We're in different classes, after all."

"That's a hurtful thing to say, Katsuragi. Are you saying people can't become friends just because they're in different classes?"

"Hmph. Think what you want. I'm going in."

"Then I'm going in too," Ichinose said, sounding a little indignant.

"Hmph. Fine, let's go in together. I'll prove to the Student Council President that I'm better than you, Ichinose."

They knocked on the Student Council Room door at the same time.