Secretary Tachibana, you wouldn't want...

"I'm thinking of going to join the Student Council now. Would you like to come along?"

Toru Hasegawa asked Arisu Sakayanagi, while Masumi Kamuro had already returned after filling out her application for the Art Club.

Upon hearing this, Suzune Horikita instantly lost her composure.

She had just spent 90,000 private points, and now he was turning around to join the Student Council anyway.

Didn't that mean her money had been spent for nothing?

In an instant, Suzune Horikita considered the possibility that she had been scammed.

Toru Hasegawa noticed her expression and felt a bit speechless.

Just because he didn't talk to her brother about her didn't mean he wouldn't join the Student Council; one thing had nothing to do with the other, right?

But right now, he couldn't say that to her face, and Suzune Horikita obviously couldn't confront him about it either.

She could only watch as the situation unfolded.

"Well, it was worth the effort of waiting here for you. Kamuro-san, you can head back now."

Arisu Sakayanagi emphasized the word "effort," but Toru Hasegawa let it go in one ear and out the other, pretending not to notice.

Masumi Kamuro, as if granted a pardon, quickly left the First Gymnasium in a few long strides.

"Alright, let's go. Ayanokoji-kun, do you want to join the Student Council too?"

Arisu Sakayanagi asked with great interest; she was very, very interested in this matter.

"...No, I'll pass." Kiyotaka Ayanokoji flatly denied it, and after glancing briefly at Suzune Horikita, he walked away.

With only three people left on the scene, Toru Hasegawa hurriedly said, "I wonder what the Student Council of this school is actually like. Oh, how I wish I could join."

With his slightly exaggerated performance, Toru Hasegawa hoped Suzune Horikita would grasp the meaning behind his words.

It was unclear if Suzune Horikita understood, but she left with a cold expression on her face.

"Did you say something to her just now?" Arisu Sakayanagi noticed Toru Hasegawa's unusual words.

Toru Hasegawa smiled slightly: "Let's hurry up and fill out the application forms."

Seeing that the other party was unwilling to answer her question, Arisu Sakayanagi didn't press the issue, and the two arrived at the table representing the Student Council.

The person in charge of collecting applications there was none other than Secretary Tachibana, the host of this club orientation.

As soon as she saw the two of them approach, her expression darkened.

Toru Hasegawa felt a jolt in his heart upon noticing this, thinking of a rather unpleasant possibility.

No way? It couldn't really be like that, could it?

"Fill out the application forms here."

Secretary Tachibana took out a printed form and placed it in front of Arisu Sakayanagi, while the space in front of Toru Hasegawa remained empty.

"Um... I'd like to apply to join the Student Council as well," Toru Hasegawa said weakly.

Seeing this, Secretary Tachibana's face immediately dropped: "You should know that we in the Student Council don't welcome people with naive ideas, right?"

"Do I look that naive?" Toru Hasegawa looked down at the clothes he was wearing.

There was no problem; everyone was wearing the school uniform, and they all looked the same.

"It's obvious at a glance. You deliberately interrupted the atmosphere the President was creating earlier, probably just for fun, right?"

"No, I didn't."

"In any case, please go back. I don't think you meet the standards to join our Student Council."

Secretary Tachibana issued an ultimatum, and Arisu Sakayanagi, showing no intention of speaking up for Toru Hasegawa, watched the situation unfold with a light chuckle.

"So, does the President know about this?" Even with his good temper, Toru Hasegawa was starting to get angry. "Or is this... just your personal opinion?"

"This..."

Secretary Tachibana immediately began to stammer. After President Horikita finished speaking, he had left directly; how could he possibly know about this?

"I'm actually quite petty, you know. I'll definitely go report this to President Horikita, saying that Secretary Tachibana wouldn't even let me fill out an application form."

Secretary Tachibana: "..."

"Also, you shouldn't have the authority to stop me from joining the Student Council. If I'm to be rejected, it should be President Horikita who rejects me personally," Toru Hasegawa added.

Seeing that she still wouldn't speak, he decided to deliver the final blow.

He took out his phone, unlocked the screen, and displayed the recording interface.

"Secretary Tachibana, you wouldn't want President Horikita to know that you're abusing your power, would you?"

Seeing that even concrete evidence was now in the other party's hands, Secretary Tachibana couldn't hold it together anymore:

"I'll give it to you, I'll give it to you, okay?!"

Her eyes welled up with tears, and she looked like she was about to cry.

Toru Hasegawa: "..."

He hadn't expected Secretary Tachibana to be so fragile; just a few words had produced such an impressive effect.

And did this person have to make it so obvious that she likes Manabu Horikita?!

"Alright, alright, I'm just fighting for my legitimate rights. You just need to give me the application form."

"Really?"

Secretary Tachibana had already taken out the application form and placed it in front of Toru Hasegawa.

"Of course it's fake. Besides that, you also need to pay me for emotional damages." Toru Hasegawa was expressionless; he felt he could extract something extra from this incident. "Of course, I'm not a devil. You just need to give me 200,000 points."

Secretary Tachibana: "???"

Fortunately, the table representing the Student Council was a considerable distance away from the other clubs, otherwise, these words would have been heard by others.

"This is just a warning. If the price of abusing power is merely redoing what should have been done, then you won't learn your lesson."

He had always hated this kind of abuse of private power, to the point where she wasn't even willing to give him the most basic surface-level fairness.

"Also, I know you like President Horikita, but have you ever thought about whether this is really something he would want you to do?"

Hearing these irrefutable words from Toru Hasegawa, Secretary Tachibana silently took out her phone, regretting her recent actions immensely.

But now, it was too late to say anything. The other party was simply trying to blackmail her, and she had handed over the leverage herself.

200,000 points... it wasn't an unbearable price.

But had she really been that obvious?

Toru Hasegawa had gained his fifth friend, Secretary Tachibana from the Student Council.

He looked with satisfaction at the points in his personal account, which had risen to nearly 490,000.

These consisted of 100,000 from the school, 100,000 from Arisu Sakayanagi, 90,000 from Suzune Horikita, and the 200,000 just given by Secretary Tachibana.

"You really put on quite a show for me, Hasegawa-kun~"

Arisu Sakayanagi had gained a deeper understanding of Toru Hasegawa's character from what had just happened.

Overall, she was becoming less and less willing to let go of Toru Hasegawa.

Because this was a piece that would definitely play a huge role once it was in her hands.

Taking her favorite game of chess as an example, if she were the "King," then Toru Hasegawa would be the "Queen."

"Sigh, I just feel like it's all just troublesome stuff."

Toru Hasegawa sighed helplessly, as if the person who had just been very satisfied with the influx of personal points and the current him were not the same person.

"Is that why you don't want to work under me?"

"What else?" Toru Hasegawa rolled his eyes. "I'm leaving."

Who would have thought that a gray cane would suddenly block his path, simultaneously touching a... rather sensitive area.

This made Toru Hasegawa involuntarily take a step back, a strange look appearing on his face.

"What are you doing?"

"Would you mind going to the Student Cafeteria to have a meal with me again? It would be very troublesome for me to go alone~"

Arisu Sakayanagi's small face flushed slightly; she hadn't done that on purpose just now!

"You can go to the convenience store to buy something; it's not like only the cafeteria has food." Toru Hasegawa refused decisively.

"But I just want to eat the food from the cafeteria. Eating those bento boxes from the convenience store too often is bad for your health."

"This..."

"And Kamuro has already gone back now. You wouldn't really have the heart to let me go to the cafeteria alone, would you?"

Arisu Sakayanagi put on a pitiful expression. Although Toru Hasegawa knew that the possibility of this person acting was almost 100%, he unfortunately fell for it...

"...Fine, but I'll state this beforehand: this is the last time."

Even though he had previously said he would never consider things for the other party again, when it came down to it, he still gave in.

"That goes without saying."

Arisu Sakayanagi dropped her act the instant he agreed; she had found a way to utilize Toru Hasegawa.

Seeing the other party change her face faster than turning a page, Toru Hasegawa was not surprised, and the two headed toward the Student Cafeteria together once more.