After the Sports Festival ended, the weather in early October had turned pleasantly cool. The morning temperature made everyone eager to switch to their autumn uniforms, but the school had a set date for changing uniforms, and students weren't allowed to switch whenever they wanted.
"Smack! Smack! Smack!"
When Nagami opened his shoe locker, several envelopes fell to the floor. They were sealed with pink heart-shaped wax. There was no doubt about it—they were the legendary love letters.
Nagami now had three options: a best, a middle, and a worst one.
Best option: visit each sender using the addresses on the envelopes, turn them down one by one, and ask them to spread the word that he wasn't interested in dating.
Middle option: stick on a note saying he didn't accept love letters. But that might come off as arrogant and make him a target, earning him the wrath of every single person in school.
Worst option: find a girl to pretend to be his girlfriend. If the act turned real, things could go off the rails! After all, everyone knew how charming he was.
"Ugh, they just won't leave me alone. This is such a pain."
Class D's classroom was noisy. Some students were chatting, others were fooling around, and a few had their heads buried in books.
Compared with the chaos at the start of the school year, things were much more orderly now. Maybe the red-haired gorilla had finally settled down, and the biggest source of instability had been dealt with.
As soon as Nagami entered the classroom, Kushida pulled him over to hear about her weekend. She animatedly told him about the enormous kite she'd seen, wondering if the school had a hidden kite-flying club.
Meanwhile, Ayanokoji was dealing with the same problem. He'd stood out in the relay race, and the few Line contacts he had were now accompanied by a flood of red notification dots. Most of them were classmates he didn't know, and he had no idea what to do.
"Horikita, what do you do when someone you don't know tries to add you?"
"I just reject them. Pointless socializing is a burden to me."
"That's what I expected you to say. I should ask a normal person instead. Let's see..."
Just as Ayanokoji was about to ask Hirata, Hirata spoke up loudly.
"Everyone, quiet down. Class is about to start."
Hirata stood up to restore order. The class quieted down at once when they heard his voice.
The bell rang, and Chabashira entered the classroom. Compared with the gloomy atmosphere in Class D at the start of the school year, the class now had a completely different feel.
"Hmph. Let's begin."
Chabashira said with a faint smile.
"Hey, Nagami, do you have club activities after school today?"
"I remember you're Mori Nene, right?"
I can barely remember this Class D student. Why are you joining in, too?
"Let's talk while we walk, Mori Nene."
On the way to the Student Council Room, Nagami patiently explained his thinking and his plans to avoid romance. He reassured Mori Nene that they could start out as friends.
When they reached the Student Council Room, they spotted Ichinose waiting outside.
"Kagami, you're really popular, huh? When you broke the record in the relay, there were so many people around you that I couldn't even get close. I didn't get a chance to talk to you at all."
"I didn't expect it to be the same on the way here."
Ichinose spoke in a distinctly sour tone.
"Sorry, sorry. You did great at the Sports Festival, too, Ichinose. I watched the three-legged race, and you got a great second-place finish."
"Really? That morning, you suddenly disappeared, and I was worried something had happened to you. Seeing you on crutches really scared me."
"Even though I found out later that it was all an act, my heart gave a huge jump at the time."
"Thanks for worrying about me, Honami. Too bad we only placed first in our year at this Sports Festival."
"You're already amazing. Honestly, I don't really want to leave the Student Council. Kagami, why are you so determined about this?"
Ichinose had originally planned to be a sore loser and refuse to leave. It was one of the little tricks her mother had taught her for being willful in a relationship.
"With a scumbag senior around, of course I'm determined!"
"Wait, does that mean you feel that way about me...?"
Ichinose made a strange expression, as though she were testing the waters.
"A beauty like you could make any guy's heart skip a beat. I just made the same mistake most guys would."
"Doki! A classic Tokyo host-club line! Zero points, zero points."
"You really are all talk."
Ichinose lightly punched Nagami on the shoulder. As the two chatted and laughed, a girl hurried over.
"Here, Nagami. This is for you."
Another love letter. The girl dropped it off with a flushed face and ran away. Nagami shook his head helplessly.
"Looks like your troubles really are endless."
Ichinose teased him.
"I'm tempted to announce over the school PA system that I don't accept love letters."
Nagami sighed.
"If you did that, you'd probably become the school's public enemy."
Ichinose imagined the scene and couldn't help laughing.
"I'm kidding, I'm kidding. If I did that, some guy would sneak up and knock me out during a Special Exam."
Nagami looked at Ichinose and casually opened the door.
"Good afternoon, President."
"Mm. There's something I need to tell you today."
The President looked at Nagami and Ichinose with a serious expression.
"You both worked hard at the Sports Festival and did very well. The President recognizes your abilities. Your paperwork as official members has been submitted to the Student Council Board. Next week, you'll become proud members of the Student Council."
Secretary Tachibana said with a smile.
"Thank you, Secretary Tachibana. Thank you, President. Joining the Student Council has always been my dream."
Ichinose smiled, completely unfazed by her earlier stint as an unpaid worker.
"Nagami, your performance at the Sports Festival has given you a lot of prestige among the first-years. It reminds me of when I first joined the Student Council. If you keep up this momentum, you'll be the Student Council President after the next one. Maybe you'll be able to take this school to new heights."
"President, you're giving me too much credit. I'm not as impressive as you make me sound."
Nagami felt uncomfortable being put on a pedestal after the President praised him so enthusiastically.
"Usually, the presidency is handed over to the next person in December. But seeing such an outstanding junior puts my mind at ease. Next week, I'll hold a student assembly and officially hand the position of Student Council President over to Miyabi Nagumo."
"At this Sports Festival, Miyabi Nagumo successfully raised Class B to Class A. He's already brought the entire second year firmly together."
"Except for Kiriyama Ikuyo, formerly of Class A and now in Class B of the second year. He's an important force I'm leaving you to keep Nagumo in check."
"If you have any problems in the future, ask Vice President Kiriyama. I'll be going into semi-retirement, too."
"President, you're amazing!"
"President, I'll miss you when you're gone."
Nagami pretended to be heartbroken and wiped away nonexistent tears.
"Right. The Student Council Board has sent over the plans and procedures for the next Special Exam. Let's get to work."
"Yes!"
Back to unpaid work again. If I become Student Council President, I'll make people pay to work in the Student Council. That'll prevent anyone from getting stuck doing unpaid work.
Before you continue