Welcome to the Student Council, Hase

Although he felt he'd set his sights a little too high at first, Toru Hasegawa was now full of motivation.

"If there's anything you need help with, just let me know. I'll do everything I can to help!"

He made the promise outright. Maybe being direct would work surprisingly well.

"W-wait, what?!" Even Honami Ichinose, oblivious as she could be, noticed that Hasegawa had ulterior motives. "Could it be... you're trying to pursue me?"

"Huh? Was I that obvious?" Hasegawa scratched his head sheepishly, but his gaze remained fixed firmly on her.

No, your intentions were completely obvious.

Sakayanagi Arisu, watching them from nearby, grumbled to herself. She was small, but cute, wasn't she?

She really didn't know why boys cared about that kind of thing.

"A gentleman's word is as good as gold. I meant what I said."

Hasegawa did his best to make his gaze seem sincere, but Ichinose reacted as if she'd been startled, shaking her head and waving her hands repeatedly.

"I-I can't."

There seemed to be some other meaning hidden in those words, but before Hasegawa could think it over, the door to the Student Council Office opened again.

"Next." Secretary Tachibana's voice sounded exactly as it had before.

He cast Sakayanagi Arisu a look that said, Leave it to you. Then Hasegawa eagerly wanted to know why he'd been rejected.

Katsuragi Kohei glanced at the two of them and left without another word, which came as a relief to Hasegawa.

Perhaps Ichinose might open up if they were alone together.

"Why?" Seeing Sakayanagi Arisu enter the Student Council Office as he'd hoped, Hasegawa asked the question anyone would have.

He hadn't even gotten started, so why had she rejected him outright? It wasn't as if he was bad-looking. If anything, he was above average.

"I-I'm not ready to date anyone yet, so I'm sorry."

Unlike her earlier response, Ichinose gave the familiar, standard answer people often used to turn down a confession.

But Hasegawa felt that was only an excuse. The real reason she'd rejected him was in her first words—that had been Ichinose's instinctive, honest reaction.

I can't?

Why couldn't Ichinose?

Hasegawa wanted to get to the bottom of it, but he knew this wasn't the time.

They'd only just met today. Expecting Ichinose to tell him everything was far too unrealistic, so he smiled and said:

"It's fine. Just remember what I said earlier. If there's anything you need help with, just let me know."

"Mm-hmm."

Ichinose fled as if escaping.

"Sigh."

After Ichinose left, Hasegawa let out a long sigh.

The 90-point affection level he'd seen from the start hadn't changed at all, which meant nothing had progressed.

What was Ichinose hiding?

"Hasegawa, it's your turn. I'll wait outside."

After Sakayanagi Arisu deliberately said something that could easily be misunderstood, she sat down by the door.

Hasegawa stepped into the Student Council Office, unsure what to make of his feelings. Secretary Tachibana closed the door behind him.

"Hase, right? Tell me why you want to join the Student Council. What's your reason?"

Manabu Horikita's sharp gaze bore down on Hasegawa through his glasses.

Hasegawa leaned back in his chair. The warmth left behind by the person who'd sat there before him lingered, but he paid it no mind. Instead, he put on a fearless smile.

He was going to make a move here.

"I'd like to ask President Horikita something. Why exactly did you reject Ichinose?"

"You..." Secretary Tachibana started to say something, then quickly shut her mouth.

"What do you think of this school?" Seeing Hasegawa's casual demeanor, Horikita wasn't the least bit annoyed. Instead, he asked him that question, without answering his own.

"It's great. Tuition and room and board are covered, there aren't any other miscellaneous fees, and the school even gives us pocket money to spend..." Hasegawa crossed his legs. "Or did you want to talk about something deeper?"

"Go on." Horikita's outward demeanor didn't change, even though Hasegawa's behavior was highly disrespectful to him.

"Let me think." Hasegawa counted on his fingers. "The school sorts students into classes by some kind of evaluation criteria, with Class A at the top and Class D at the bottom. The points we receive each month are tied to our daily behavior. I'm guessing some unpleasant class competition is coming next... Should I go on?"

"President..." Secretary Tachibana looked at him in disbelief.

Even Sakayanagi, who'd been there just moments ago, hadn't mentioned the first point, yet Hasegawa had tossed it out so casually.

"But none of that matters. I just want to know why you rejected Ichinose."

Hasegawa steered the conversation back to Honami Ichinose.

"Until just now, I didn't want any first-year students joining the Student Council." Horikita said something that didn't befit a Student Council President.

"Oh? That's interesting." Hasegawa looked intrigued. "Did you change your mind after seeing me?"

"Because I judged that you weren't the type to be easily influenced." Horikita rested his hands beneath his chin.

"That's an interesting thing to say. What, is there some kind of monster in the second year?"

Hasegawa's confidence came from the fact that he could see the affection level above Horikita's head.

His initial actions had been a little impulsive, but after seeing that Horikita's affection level had gone up rather than down, he'd made up his mind.

And the reason behind his question just now was simple. If there were a problem with the third-years, they'd graduate alongside Horikita soon enough. While Horikita was still serving as Student Council President, Hasegawa had no reason to worry about the first-years being influenced.

So the problem could only lie with the second-years.

"You're right." The affection level above Horikita's head rose again. "Miyabi Nagumo, the Student Council Vice President. He's brought the entire second year under his control. I rejected all the new students because I wanted the first-years to escape his influence."

"Isn't that throwing the baby out with the bathwater?" Hasegawa said, exasperated.

Rejecting everyone because there was a risk seemed ridiculous.

Horikita shook his head. "You don't know what kind of person Nagumo is. If you did, you'd agree with what I did."

"You're underestimating this year's first-years." Hasegawa sighed. "I don't know what kind of big shot this Miyabi Nagumo you mentioned is, but..."

He paused for a moment. "Please believe that first-years aren't as easily influenced by upperclassmen as you think."

"That's why you're the perfect candidate." Horikita extended an invitation to Hasegawa. "Welcome to the Student Council, Hase."