President's Fried Noodles

"Hello, I'd like to buy a hair clip branded by Nanako. Do you happen to have one in stock?" With Sawahara snickering behind him and the clerk giving him a rather strange look, Katsuragi braced himself and blurted out the request.

A bald guy coming in to buy a hair clip was, frankly...

"I'm sorry, sir, we don't have that in stock. However, we can order one for you during our next restock. Would that be acceptable?"

The shopping street at Keyaki Mall was well-equipped, but no matter how well-equipped it was, it couldn't guarantee that it could satisfy every student's request. If a student wanted to buy something that wasn't available, what were they supposed to do?

This was the solution. Merchants provided a pre-order service, bringing in the items customers needed during their next restock. Of course, a deposit had to be paid in advance.

"That's fine. But can the pre-ordered goods be delivered to a different location at a specified time?" Katsuragi asked. This was the most critical part.

"Yes," the clerk gave a definitive answer, "but it will require a significant additional amount of points."

Hearing the clerk's words, Katsuragi breathed a sigh of relief. Paying extra points didn't matter; as long as he could achieve his goal, that was enough.

Afterward, Katsuragi also pre-ordered ribbons and a gift box. The clerk kindly mentioned that for just a few more points, they could handle the wrapping for him, and Katsuragi agreed without hesitation.

After paying the points to the clerk, Katsuragi left the shop.

"Thank you so much for this time." Katsuragi bowed to Sawahara. If not for his help, he, as an older brother, would have been completely unable to fulfill his responsibilities.

"It's just a small matter." Sawahara shook his head. "Besides, watching a bald guy go buy a hair clip is a pretty good reward for me."

"..." Katsuragi remained silent. This was likely to become the most embarrassing moment of his entire life.

"Why were you so sure that this would work?" Katsuragi still didn't fully understand the logic behind it.

"Because I was the first person to do it," Sawahara said with a smile. "My father's birthday was on the eighth of last month, and I used this exact method to send him a gift."

"Since I couldn't send a package from within the school, I just had to make sure the package never actually 'arrived' at the school. That way, it could be sent out, right?"

This was Sawahara's line of reasoning.

The pre-ordered goods never arrived at the school, so they weren't items being sent out from the school, which complied with school regulations. Points could buy anything, so was it against the law to have pre-ordered goods delivered to a designated location? No. Was it against school rules? No. Therefore, it was something that could be purchased with points.

As long as he combined the two, he could naturally achieve Katsuragi's goal.

"It's a good thing you weren't planning on making a gift yourself to send to your sister; I wouldn't have had any rule-abiding way to help you with that." Sawahara sighed. "But come to think of it, you really are buying a hair clip for your sister. Even though I used the hair clip as an example at the time, you could have bought something else."

"...?!" Katsuragi looked at Sawahara in utter shock. "Why didn't you say so sooner?"

"If I had, I wouldn't have gotten to see a bald guy buying a hair clip, would I?" Sawahara looked at Katsuragi, puzzled. How could he ask such a silly question?

"...I admire your intelligence, but your malice and shamelessness are truly breathtaking." Katsuragi felt his temples throbbing. He suddenly understood why Ryuen always enjoyed bickering with Sawahara.

"Can you tell me about your sister? Why, even knowing it violates school rules, do you still want to send her a birthday gift?" Sawahara asked about the reason behind it.

"My sister and I are twins. Her health is poor, and since our parents and grandparents have all passed away, we have to rely on relatives to take care of her. An elder brother is like a father; if even I can't celebrate her birthday, then who else can? Before I enrolled, I thought I understood the school's rules, but I never expected that I wouldn't even be able to send a single package. If you hadn't given me this method, I really wouldn't have known what to do."

Sawahara listened calmly as Katsuragi explained his reasons for needing to celebrate his sister's birthday, showing neither sympathy nor the slightest hint of pity.

Only after Katsuragi finished speaking did he calmly open his mouth.

"If I hadn't helped you, would you have given up?"

"No." Katsuragi shook his head. If he had just given up like that, what kind of brother would he be?

"That's enough." Sawahara smiled. Katsuragi didn't understand why Sawahara was smiling like that.

Afterward, the two bid each other farewell and left the campus.

Saturday morning.

The snack street organized by the upperclassmen at the school swimming pool.

"I didn't know you had this kind of skill, President." Sawahara looked at Manabu Horikita, who was running a small stall just like the other upperclassmen, feeling somewhat surprised.

"Would you like some President's Fried Noodles?" Manabu Horikita looked at Sawahara calmly.

"Is it free?" Sawahara asked.

"If it's free, you have to help me." Manabu Horikita adjusted his glasses. Tachibana happened to be feeling unwell today, and he was looking for an extra hand.

"Then I want ten percent of the revenue," Sawahara said without hesitation.

"Agreed." Manabu Horikita nodded, accepting Sawahara's condition.

Sawahara then began assisting Manabu Horikita. After working for a while, Sawahara noticed that business wasn't particularly good; there were quite a few similar snack stalls around.

"Senior, how about I call out to help you attract some customers?" Sawahara quickly thought of a way to improve business.

"Do as you wish." Manabu Horikita agreed, as business wasn't very busy today anyway.

"President's Fried Noodles, President's Fried Noodles! If you want to save face, eat the President's Fried Noodles! If you don't eat the President's Fried Noodles, you're not giving the President face!"

Soon, Sawahara's shouting echoed nearby, leaving Manabu Horikita with a face full of black lines.

The first two lines were fine—just some cliché advertising slogans—but what was that last part? A threat?

Manabu Horikita put down his spatula and intended to go grab Sawahara, but... business arrived.

Thanks to Sawahara's concise and efficient promotion, a long line quickly formed in front of Manabu Horikita's stall.

Whether they wanted to save face or not didn't matter; giving the President face was very important.

"Sorry, we're sold out for today." Manabu Horikita gave up on the idea of continuing to sell fried noodles. If he kept going, it would really look like he was threatening students into buying them.

Putting down the sign, Manabu Horikita went straight to find the culprit behind this, intending to express his 'gratitude'.

"Horikita-san, are you interested in a bowl of President's Fried Noodles?" Sawahara looked at Horikita Suzune with a smile. "The President should have closed up shop by now, and this is the very last portion, you know."