That instantly drew everyone's attention away from Manabu Horikita. They all wanted to know who could speak so loudly in an atmosphere like this.
That took some nerve.
Even Suzune Horikita turned her gaze to Toru Hasegawa, unable to figure out what he was up to.
Seeing that he had achieved his initial goal, Toru smiled faintly and took his place beside Sakayanagi Arisu. He gestured toward the silver-haired girl with both hands, drawing everyone's attention to her, then continued loudly:
"I'd like to introduce someone to everyone. This is Sakayanagi Arisu, who currently serves as the leader of our Class A!"
"Leader? What's that supposed to mean?"
"Are you stupid? He means class representative!"
People whispered among themselves, oblivious to how clearly their voices carried in the quiet room.
But Sakayanagi Arisu, whom Toru had introduced, still held everyone's attention.
"Hello, everyone. As Hasegawa-kun said, I'm currently the leader of Class A. I look forward to working with you over the next three years."
Sakayanagi Arisu introduced herself to everyone with poise, completely unfazed by the crowd.
Good, just like that!
Toru nodded to himself. This was exactly the effect he wanted.
And now... heh heh heh!
When Toru's gaze shifted toward him, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's heart skipped a beat. No way...
"And this is Ayanokoji... Classmate, from Class D. It seems he and Classmate Sakayanagi have some kind of complicated relationship. Anyway, that's all I wanted to say!"
"That's it?"
"You're just wasting everyone's time!"
It was the same voice as before, but this time Toru immediately responded. He turned toward where the voice had come from and said:
"Wasn't the person who just spoke onstage wasting everyone's time too?"
"..."
Clearly, the speaker hadn't expected anyone to answer. He silently backed away a few steps and hid behind someone else.
Meanwhile, realizing he could no longer put it off, Manabu Horikita finally began his speech:
"I am Manabu Horikita, the Student Council President."
The same surname?
Toru glanced at Suzune Horikita, who had turned her attention back to the stage, and began to suspect what was going on.
Once Manabu Horikita began speaking, everyone's attention returned to him.
However, after Toru's interruption, the tense and silent atmosphere had completely vanished.
"With the graduation of the upperclassmen, we will be recruiting candidates from the first-year students.
There are no special requirements for candidates, but if you truly wish to join us, please avoid joining any other clubs.
As a rule, those who wish to join both the Student Council and another club will not be accepted.
"Furthermore, the Student Council does not want candidates with naïve ideas. Such people would not only fail to be elected, but would likely bring shame upon the school.
"Our school's Student Council is entrusted by the administration with the power and responsibility to change the rules. That is why so much is expected of us. We welcome only those who understand this."
After delivering this string of remarks, he stepped down and headed straight out of the First Gymnasium.
As he left, he glanced toward Toru, but since Suzune Horikita was right beside him, Toru wasn't sure whether Manabu was looking at him or his younger sister.
Yes. Judging from Suzune Horikita's unusual demeanor, Toru had more or less guessed the relationship between the Student Council President and Suzune.
But... their relationship was... certainly intriguing.
At any rate, they definitely weren't acting like normal siblings.
"Thanks for your patience, everyone! Despite that little interruption, the information session has gone smoothly." Secretary Tachibana playfully winked. "Club applications are now open, and will remain open until the end of April. So if you decide to join a club later, just take your application form to the club you wish to join."
After that, the crowd began to disperse.
"So? Now that it's over, it wasn't really that big a deal, was it?"
Toru winked, mimicking Secretary Tachibana.
"Phew—I really have to thank you. You gave me such a fright back there."
Kamuro Masumi let out a long breath, as if she'd been holding it in since then.
"See? After a brief commotion, everyone just went back to doing their own thing. It didn't affect us at all." Toru tried to impart a profound truth about life: not that many people were paying attention to you.
Though he himself wasn't very good at following that advice. He'd only stirred things up because he wanted to tease Sakayanagi Arisu, but she'd taken it completely in stride.
"No, something did change. Now everyone knows me and Classmate Sakayanagi... and you, who Classmate Sakayanagi introduced," Ayanokoji Kiyotaka said quietly.
"It's not a bad thing for people to know us, haha..."
Toru tried to laugh it off.
Just then, another voice interrupted them. It sounded a little familiar to Toru.
It seemed to be the voice that had heckled him from the crowd earlier...
"Classmate Ayanokoji, you really stole the show back there."
Three people approached them. Toru recognized one of them as Sudō, whom he'd run into at the convenience store yesterday.
"Oh, it's you. I was wondering why that voice sounded familiar." Sudō scratched his head when he saw Toru.
Toru had spoken loudly, but Sudō hadn't seen him with his own eyes. After all, Toru hadn't been standing onstage.
Kanji Ike chuckled beside them. "Huh? You know him, Sudō?"
"Yeah. I forgot my student ID yesterday, and he paid for me." Ken Sudō nodded, then added, "Come to think of it, I still haven't paid you back."
I'm glad you brought it up yourself.
Toru felt a sudden urge to cry. The two exchanged contact details.
"How exactly do I transfer the points?" Ken Sudō asked, momentarily stumped.
Seeing that, Toru quickly offered, "I'll help you."
He might not have seen a pig run, but he'd eaten pork before. He'd memorized how Sakayanagi Arisu and the upperclassmen had handled their transfers yesterday.
Before long, a message came through on Toru's phone saying that 300 personal points had been transferred to him.
"Thanks again for yesterday. Let me introduce you to my classmates. This is Ike, and that's Yamauchi," Ken Sudō said, introducing the two beside him.
"I'm jealous. You already have two friends?" Toru openly admitted how he felt. After all, he still didn't have anyone he could call a friend.
"Hey, hey, I'm the one who should be jealous. There's an absurd number of girls around you!" Kanji Ike exclaimed.
Toru was speechless. Was that really something he could just say out loud?
Sure enough, Kanji Ike's standing with the three girls present visibly plummeted. Suzune Horikita was already looking at him as if he were garbage.
"They're not involved with me in the way you're imagining."
Toru glanced at Kamuro Masumi, who looked ready to leave. She was only still there because Sakayanagi Arisu showed no sign of moving.
"Did you come to check out the clubs?"
He changed the subject. It was also a good chance to probe for information about Class D. Besides, Sakayanagi Arisu was right there—he ought to do something.
"Yeah. I've been passionate about basketball since elementary school, so I want to play here too," Ken Sudō replied.
"What about you two?"
Toru felt like a nosy person poking into someone else's business, but fortunately, neither Yamauchi nor Ike seemed to find it strange.
"We're just here for the fun of it. Well, we came because it seemed like it'd be interesting. I hope I can have a fateful encounter!"
"A fateful encounter?" Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and Toru asked at the same time.
Toru, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: "..."
Why had their reactions been in sync? It wasn't like they'd been taught by the same master...
"My goal is to be the first person in Class D to get a girlfriend! That's why I'm looking for a chance encounter."
No, people who said things like that usually didn't get girlfriends—especially after what you just said.
Toru scoffed inwardly.
"Oh, right. I started a chat group just for the boys yesterday. Do you want to join?"
"You mean us?"
"We're all guys, so it's fine!" Ike gave them a knowing smile.
Before you continue