Student Council? This is what I want!

Miyano Makoto and Ichinose Honami first went to the restroom to wash their lunch boxes, then headed together to a nearby convenience store to make some purchases.

Of course, it was Ichinose Honami who paid with her points.

"Thanks, Honami."

"It's no problem, Makoto, you should keep your points well~"

Ichinose Honami never stopped smiling, which made it impossible for Miyano Makoto to judge her true state of mind.

Just then, the school broadcast system crackled to life.

It informed everyone that a club orientation would be held at the First Gymnasium at five o'clock in the afternoon.

"Are you interested in any clubs, Honami?"

"A little, I suppose. How about you, Makoto?"

"If they're willing to let me join..."

"What do you mean by that?"

Miyano Makoto leaned in close to Ichinose Honami's ear.

"Because the points I have were snatched from their hands yesterday."

"You could've just said so, why did you have to get so close?!"

Ichinose Honami gently pushed Miyano Makoto away, her ears quickly flushing a shade of red, which soon spread to her delicate, beautiful face.

It seemed that compared to the information he had shared, Ichinose Honami was more concerned about the distance between them.

Miyano Makoto thought to himself, that's another new piece of information about Ichinose Honami.

"Sorry."

"...Makoto doesn't need to apologize."

Ichinose Honami snapped back to reality, feeling as though she had messed things up again.

"Alright then."

Miyano Makoto was speechless; he felt like a fish in a pond that couldn't see where the other fish were.

"As for the clubs, we'll see when the time comes. There's no rush, anyway."

"Mhm, if possible, I'd like to join the Student Council."

"The Student Council? That's a pretty good idea. Honami, you were a student council president before, so I'm sure they'd welcome you with open arms."

The two of them spent their solitary lunch hour chatting in this casual, back-and-forth manner.

Upon returning to the classroom, Miyano Makoto was immediately approached by Beppu Ryota.

"I heard from Hamaguchi, you really do have a childhood friend!"

"Yeah, a person from the Dragon Kingdom never lies... pfft, pfft, pfft! A college student never lies to another college student."

"Hey... could you let your partner, ah no, no, your childhood friend, introduce me to some girls later?"

Beppu Ryota hooked his arm around Miyano Makoto's shoulder, acting like a close buddy.

"I mean, I could, but are you really going to try for an inter-class romance?"

"Is there a problem with that?"

Beppu Ryota asked back, confused. An inter-class romance wasn't like dating someone from another school; what could be so difficult about it?

Wasn't the person right in front of him a ready-made example?

"Uh... then I'll wish you success in advance."

Miyano Makoto really didn't know what to say. Isn't the flower at home better than the wild one?

Kanzaki Ryuji gently adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose and spoke up.

"Actually, I've known for a long time that Miyano is an honest person."

"I think you just saw my lunch box after class."

Miyano Makoto retorted.

Because boys rarely made their own lunch boxes, and even if they did, it was usually made by their mothers or girlfriends.

This was determined by the national conditions of the Sakura Country.

And here, it was obvious his lunch box couldn't have been made by his mother.

The answer was practically screaming for itself.

It was made by his childhood friend!

"Ahem, class is about to start, Beppu-kun, you should head back to your seat."

Kanzaki Ryuji cleared his throat, trying to ease the awkwardness.

The teacher walking in through the door happened to give him a hand.

The afternoon class time passed by very quickly...

"Do you want to go to the club orientation together?"

Kanzaki Ryuji extended the invitation.

"No thanks, I already have plans with someone else."

Miyano Makoto turned down Kanzaki Ryuji's invitation and walked away, leaving him with nothing but his back.

"He's a normie with a girlfriend, unlike us..."

In the end, Kanzaki Ryuji headed to the First Gymnasium with Hamaguchi Tetsuya and the others.

"Have you been waiting long, Honami?"

Arriving at the entrance of the Class A classroom, Miyano Makoto asked.

It was a completely pointless question, as class had only just ended.

"But class just ended."

As he expected, Ichinose Honami retorted to his remark.

"Oh, right, look at my memory."

Miyano Makoto playfully tapped his own head.

However, he soon spotted a lonely figure inside the classroom.

"Who is this...?"

Miyano Makoto asked, despite knowing the answer.

Ichinose Honami turned her head to look at the person.

"Sakayanagi Arisu. I heard she has some heart problems."

"Oh, so it's Classmate Sakayanagi. Why don't we invite her to join us?"

"...Okay."

Ichinose Honami thought about it and agreed.

"Classmate Sakayanagi, would you like to go to the club orientation with us?"

Ichinose Honami extended the invitation.

"I would be delighted."

Even though she was all alone, Sakayanagi Arisu's tone was calm and composed.

"Mhm."

Miyano Makoto nodded. This girl was quite pitiful; he decided right then and there to study medicine and strive to cure this congenital heart disease.

"What is the relationship between Classmate Ichinose and Classmate Miyano?"

"Childhood friends." x2

The two spoke in unison.

"..."

"I see. You two certainly have a deep bond. I wonder how long you can keep it up?"

"Classmate Sakayanagi, what do you mean by that?"

Ichinose Honami frowned; she was starting to dislike this person.

"Nothing at all. You'll understand in the future."

Sakayanagi Arisu gave a mysterious smile, which made Miyano Makoto curl his lip.

"Don't mind her, Honami. She's just a brat, daring to question our relationship."

"What... did... you... say?"

Before Ichinose Honami could respond, Sakayanagi Arisu spoke word by word, like a cat whose fur had been ruffled.

"What? Does having the chairman of this school as your father give you that much confidence? Do you want to write an essay right now titled 'My Father the Chairman'?"

Miyano Makoto continued to taunt her.

"I have never relied on my father here."

This statement was a tacit admission that the chairman of this school was indeed her father.

Ichinose Honami stood to the side, listening in a daze.

"Is that so? Then can you explain to me why you were placed in Class A while I am in Class B?"

"What do you mean?"

Sakayanagi Arisu calmed down. Although she didn't want to admit it, having been influenced by her father, her understanding of this school had surpassed everyone else's from the very beginning.

Except for Miyano Makoto.

"I mean that according to the class placement results, I seem to be inferior to you, but in reality, you are no match for me at all."

"Sure, why don't we have a competition later?"

Sakayanagi Arisu provoked, refusing to believe she could lose to anyone in anything other than sports.

"You should try getting over the hurdle that is Ayanokoji Kiyotaka before you come looking for me. Oh, wait, I almost forgot—you haven't even secured your position as the leader of your class yet."

"...You."

Sakayanagi Arisu's face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot. Although she had gained valuable information, it felt as if she were being looked down upon.

Did the other party mean they didn't take her seriously at all?

Was that why they could reveal information to her so recklessly?

"How do you know about Ayanokoji Kiyotaka?"

Sakayanagi Arisu asked directly. Since the other party already looked down on her, she would have to make good use of that condescension.

"I know far more than you could ever imagine."

Miyano Makoto tapped his temple with his finger, but he did not answer her question.

This made Sakayanagi Arisu grit her teeth in frustration.

"Makoto, why do you know these things? And who is Ayanokoji Kiyotaka?"

"..."

Damn it, this bratty girl was so annoying.

He had spoken without thinking and forgotten that Ichinose Honami was still here.

"Let's talk about this tonight."

Miyano Makoto signaled with his eyes that Sakayanagi Arisu was still present.

"Fine."

Ichinose Honami let Miyano Makoto off the hook.

It was indeed difficult to talk with an outsider like Sakayanagi Arisu around, and judging by Miyano Makoto's expression, he didn't want her to know.

"..."

Sakayanagi Arisu's heart quietly shattered.

These two were flirting right in front of her! Unforgivable!

"Forget it. Since you look so pathetic, I'll give you a chance to challenge me after dinner. You can choose the event. How about that?"

Seeing Sakayanagi Arisu's dark expression, Miyano Makoto softened his heart after all; he couldn't stand seeing such a petite, delicate girl looking so dejected.

"No need. I will reclaim my dignity on my own."

Sakayanagi Arisu offered a cold, insincere smile. She would definitely find a chance to take her revenge.

"Alright, we've arrived."

To accommodate Sakayanagi Arisu's pace, the three of them had moved quite slowly, and it had taken them this long to finally reach the entrance of the First Gymnasium.

The rotation explanation for club recruitment seemed to have already ended, and it was Horikita Manabu standing on the stage now.

He cast his gaze toward the three of them, seemingly surprised that there were students who had arrived so late.

"...We only welcome those who can understand the gravity of this matter. That is all."

"Uh oh, looks like it's over?"

Miyano Makoto tilted his head. "Are we late?"

"Are you stupid? The only thing that just ended was the explanation segment. The actual club application process is only just beginning."

Sakayanagi Arisu thought Miyano Makoto was out of his mind.

"Can't you tell I'm just trying to lighten the mood? You arrogant little brat."

"Say that again if you dare."

"Little brat, bleh, little brat, bleh..."

I understand. Please provide the Chinese text you would like me to translate, and I will ensure it is rendered into natural, punchy English while strictly adhering to your formatting and paragraph constraints.

As Miyano Makoto kept repeating it, Sakayanagi Arisu's expression actually began to calm down.

(●_●)

"Since you call me arrogant, what about yourself?"

"Me? I'm just me, aren't I?"

Miyano Makoto was very confused, not knowing what this brat was talking about.

"Forget it. I don't know where you heard about Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, but please do not interfere with my duel with him."

"If you're sick, go get treated. A 'duel'? Is that something a student should be saying?"

Miyano Makoto felt like this wasn't some Ultraman show or something similar; could she stop using the word 'duel'?

"It feels like I'm casting pearls before swine."

Sakayanagi Arisu let out a deep sigh. She had finally realized that this guy was actually nothing special; he had simply been lucky enough to stumble upon some inside information regarding Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and this school.

"I have the same feeling."

Miyano Makoto nodded in deep agreement.

Sakayanagi Arisu had already developed a resistance to this; she no longer cared about what Miyano Makoto had to say.

"Makoto, which club are you thinking of joining?"

Ichinose Honami finally found an opportunity to speak.

"The Student Council, I suppose. I heard outside just now that those who want to join the Student Council apparently cannot participate in other club activities at the same time."

"I see. Then let's go together. Would you like to come along, Classmate Sakayanagi?"

"I'll pass, thank you for your kind offer, Classmate Ichinose."

Sakayanagi Arisu declined Ichinose Honami's proposal; she had no intention of joining any club or the Student Council.

Her physical condition did not allow her to do so.

"Alright then, in that case, please wait for us, Classmate Sakayanagi~"

After settling Sakayanagi Arisu into a seat in the gymnasium, the two of them went off to fill out and submit their Student Council membership applications.

"Your name is Miyano Makoto, correct?"

Horikita Manabu watched as Miyano Makoto filled in the name section on the form and spoke slowly.