Breaking Down the Walls

"Anyway, I really have to thank you for this, Yorozuya."

"It's no big deal. It was a job, after all... But have you ever thought about what would've happened if I'd turned it down? That letter didn't include any way to contact you, and you didn't offer me any payment."

"Well..."

He hadn't actually thought about paying him at first.

Who hadn't joined a club before?

Clubs often had things like detective societies.

Those high schoolers and college students who fancied themselves detectives loved sticking their noses into other people's business. Their abilities varied, but he'd never heard of any of them charging for it.

So he hadn't planned to distinguish the Yorozuya from a detective club, even though Horikita Manabu had spelled it out clearly in the announcement.

"Forget it... The Student Council outsourced this job to me anyway, so I'll let the payment slide. But next time, remember to include it!"

"Huh? You really want money...?"

"Um... Shinjo... About the payment... I... I'll cover it..."

As soon as he heard Sakura offer to pay on his behalf, the sales champ jumped to his feet.

"No, no, you can't do that..."

"That's not what I meant. I was thinking... maybe I could help Shinjo..."

Sakura hadn't finished explaining, but Shinjo understood what she meant.

She was offering to testify on Sudō's behalf. But if Sakura was volunteering, Shinjo wasn't about to meddle.

Still, if she meant to offer that as payment...

"Oh, that... There's no rush. Sakura, I think you should get some rest today. If there's something you want to say, you can text me or tell me tomorrow. As for that matter, I don't think we need you to step in just yet."

Unless Sakura had video proof that Class 1-C had staged the incident that day and that they'd started the fight.

Otherwise, ordinary evidence would be unlikely to turn things around. Besides, Horikita hadn't come to him for help yet, so why waste this information for nothing?

"That's more or less what happened."

Shinjo reported the full story to Horikita Manabu, leaving out Sakura's secret.

The job he'd been hired to do wasn't to catch some pervert groping people.

It was to uncover the truth behind a request letter with no sender.

"More or less... Never mind. At least no students were hurt this time. You did well."

"Huh? Isn't that a little strange? You make it sound like I'm your subordinate."

"The president praised you, and you still won't take the compliment?!"

"Tsk..."

"You've got the nerve to suck your teeth at me!"

"..."

Horikita Manabu picked up his pen and wrote something in his notebook.

"Still, I had no idea this school had a custodian like that. It seems we ought to conduct a thorough inspection and sweep."

As he spoke, his eyes casually flicked toward Shinjo.

"Look, don't try to rope me into this! There are so many custodians in the school, and there are only a few of us at the Yorozuya. Don't think you can outsource all the Student Council's work to me."

In fact, Satō and Matsushita were still just names on the roster. Neither of them did any work.

Should I expand the Yorozuya...? Ideally, I'd find two or three people who actually get things done, don't need many points, and are easy to feed with promises!

"Hey! If there's nothing else, you can leave. Don't think you can mooch food and drinks off us!"

Tachibana Akane seemed to have seen right through Shinjo's thoughts. Remembering how he'd given her nothing but tap water last time, she immediately flared up.

Horikita Manabu said nothing. He didn't care about little things like that, but he had made sure to note Shinjo's rudeness in his notebook.

"What a stingy upperclassman..."

"You're the stingy underclassman!"

As the two bickered back and forth, someone knocked on the door.

"Come in."

"President, here's last month's financial report. You... Shinjo?"

Shinjo thought he recognized the voice. When he turned around, he saw Ichinose.

"Ichinose? The financial report... Oh! You're doing odd jobs for the Student Council now, right?"

Ichinose gave an awkward smile, but Tachibana Akane beside her was clearly displeased.

"Hey, underclassman! That was a rude way to put it."

"Shinjo, I do handle miscellaneous duties for the Student Council, but calling it odd jobs is a bit..."

Shinjo was unconvinced. As far as he was concerned, every role in the Student Council besides the president's was little more than odd jobs.

The president's power was the only one that was limitless!

"Huh? Why would someone like Ichinose be handling miscellaneous duties?"

"Well... No matter what the position is, I can still help people. And because I'm doing miscellaneous work, I get to learn so many things I wouldn't otherwise."

Ichinose didn't know what to say.

Should she thank Shinjo for thinking so highly of her? But the truth was, when she'd first applied to join the Student Council, the president hadn't thought much of her. If not for the Vice President, she wouldn't have been qualified to join at all...

Shinjo's eyes lit up.

"How about this, Ichinose? Quit the Student Council and join my Yorozuya! We offer all sorts of perks, and you'll get to learn plenty of things you wouldn't otherwise while helping your classmates~"

As he spoke, Shinjo deliberately lowered his voice.

"Just between us, the Student Council is an empty shell right now. Most of its work has been outsourced to my Yorozuya!"

"Huh? This... I..."

Ichinose was at a loss. She couldn't tell whether Shinjo was pulling her leg, but compared with the Student Council, the Yorozuya seemed a little less serious.

Besides, she'd already joined the Student Council. How could she quit now?

"First, there are no other vacant positions in the Student Council. Second, new members always start at the bottom. I was no exception. Third, this was decided through internal discussions within the Student Council."

Fourth, you're trying to poach someone right in front of me?!

"Ha! So you're saying that if I'd accepted your offer to join the Student Council back then, I'd have been stuck doing odd jobs too?!"

"Huh?!"

Horikita Manabu ignored Ichinose's shock. He nodded thoughtfully, then shook his head.

"You're different from everyone else. The miscellaneous-duty position wouldn't suit you."

In truth, Horikita Manabu didn't know what position would suit Shinjo. If he really brought him into the Student Council, figuring out where to put him would be a headache.

Shinjo liked cutting corners and wouldn't lift a finger unless there was something in it for him. A person like that simply wasn't suited to the Student Council.

Still, Horikita Manabu had to admit that those very traits made Shinjo an excellent fit for Advanced Nurturing.

After thinking it over, the Yorozuya really did seem like a good place for him.