"Just as I expected, Vice President Nagumo has a firm grip on the entire second year," Shiraishi Makoto said.
He had been gathering information about Miyabi Nagumo, but this was his first time meeting him face-to-face.
Although the second-year Student Council members around them seemed to be following Horikita Manabu's instructions, when it came to voicing their opinions and responding to him, they were clearly taking their cues from Miyabi Nagumo.
Horikita Manabu took a document out of his bag.
"This is a general overview of the second year. You can look it over first." Horikita Manabu handed the document to Shiraishi Makoto. "Next semester, we third-years will leave the Student Council. When that happens, the entire Student Council will be under Miyabi Nagumo's thumb, so you'd better prepare in advance."
Shiraishi Makoto skimmed the document. It mainly described Miyabi Nagumo's situation at school, including who his close associates were and which classes the second-year representatives belonged to.
"There must be people in the second year who are unhappy with Miyabi Nagumo's rule. Have none of the three lower-ranked classes dared to stand up to him?" Shiraishi Makoto handed the material to Ichinose Honami beside him and voiced his doubts.
"The current second-years have lost both the ability and the courage to fight back. They suffered such a crushing defeat before," Horikita Manabu explained, then went on to tell them about some of the things Miyabi Nagumo had done in his first year.
Miyabi Nagumo had won over the entire year with simple methods: he was ruthless, and at every exam he did everything he could to make students from rival classes drop out. But alongside his fierce attacks, he also used a softer approach, claiming that once he united the year, he would pool everyone's Private Points and use them before graduation to transfer the students who had contributed the most into Class A, where they could enjoy the benefits offered to graduating students.
Under this combination of threats and inducements, many students lost their fighting spirit out of fear of being expelled. Once some of them started thinking, Even if I can't make it to Class A, I don't want to get expelled, the lower-ranked classes could no longer unite. The few who kept resisting were picked off one by one. They either got expelled by Miyabi Nagumo or were utterly defeated in subsequent exams.
"That's too cruel." Ichinose Honami furrowed her brow slightly. She had always believed in never giving up on anyone. Even when it came to students from other classes, she didn't want them to be expelled because of class competition.
"But don't worry. I'm still Student Council President, so you have plenty of time to prepare." Horikita Manabu suddenly smiled.
The timing of that remark was rather subtle. It seemed Horikita Manabu had chosen his words deliberately.
Shiraishi Makoto immediately picked up on it. "You mean we won't have any contact with the upper years in the first semester, but in the second semester there'll be exams where we have to face them?"
"Exactly." Seeing that his hint had been understood, Horikita Manabu nodded with satisfaction.
To prevent first-years, who were complete novices, from being crushed and controlled by the upper years, the school's rules offered them a certain degree of protection.
But outside the school, whether on campus or in the workplace, it was hard to avoid older students targeting their juniors. So in the second semester, once the first-years had gotten to know the school, they would have to face challenges from the upper years.
"So we need to solidify our position in the first year during the first semester. We could even unite the entire year, like the second-years have. That way, we'll be free to deal with the second-years' provocations in the second semester." Ichinose Honami had also understood the situation.
"Exactly. I hope you'll both do your best." Seeing that they had received his message, Horikita Manabu continued, "That's all I wanted to tell you. If there's nothing else, you can go."
"Thank you, President. We'll take our leave." The two of them left the Student Council Office.
After they left the office, they were surprised to find that Tachibana Akane wasn't the only one waiting outside for Horikita Manabu. Another girl was waiting there as well.
"Shiraishi, do you have a moment?" asked a girl with long purple hair.
"Kamuro, is something wrong?" Shiraishi Makoto recognized her and replied.
"It's like this: Classmate Sakayanagi from my class wants to meet you, but she isn't able to get around easily, so she asked me to pass on the invitation." Kamuro Masumi explained why she had come.
"Sakayanagi Arisu?" Shiraishi Makoto and Ichinose Honami both knew that she was one of the two leaders of the current Class B. After a brief hesitation, Shiraishi Makoto nodded and accepted the invitation.
"Then I'll head back first. I'll let the class know." Ichinose Honami said goodbye to Shiraishi Makoto. Their class had already agreed to celebrate their promotion with a party that evening, after their scores were announced and their points distributed. As the class leader, she still had to host the gathering.
After watching Ichinose Honami leave, Shiraishi Makoto turned to Kamuro Masumi. "All right, let's go."
With Kamuro Masumi leading the way, they arrived at a café. Sakayanagi Arisu sat in a corner, with two cups of coffee on the table.
"Shiraishi, you're here. Please, have a seat." Sakayanagi Arisu gestured for Shiraishi Makoto to sit opposite her. Looking at the coffee before him, Shiraishi Makoto hesitated, then asked, "Isn't there one for Kamuro?"
Kamuro Masumi, standing behind Sakayanagi Arisu, froze for a moment and looked surprised, while Sakayanagi Arisu chuckled.
"Hehe, I didn't expect that to be the first thing you'd say when we met, Shiraishi." Sakayanagi Arisu studied Shiraishi Makoto with interest, while Kamuro Masumi shook her head. "I'm not really a fan of this kind of thing... I'll pass."
"Okay, then. What did you want to see me about, Classmate Sakayanagi?" Shiraishi Makoto took a small sip of coffee and asked.
"Of course, I wanted to meet the Shiraishi who solved the school's puzzle on his second day here." Sakayanagi Arisu rested her elbows on the table and elegantly interlaced her fingers in front of her chest. A perfectly polite smile rested on her face, making it impossible to tell what she was really thinking.
"I've wanted to meet you for a long time, too, Classmate Sakayanagi," Shiraishi Makoto said honestly.
"Oh? Unlike a star like you, Shiraishi, why would you want to meet me?" Sakayanagi Arisu's eyes gleamed with interest.
"Well, our school's chairman is named Sakayanagi, after all. It's only natural to be curious." Shiraishi Makoto smiled faintly.
Kamuro Masumi, standing behind Sakayanagi Arisu, reacted most strongly to his words.
"You really are observant, Shiraishi. That's right, Chairman Sakayanagi is my father. But I didn't get into Class A because of my connections, so don't underestimate me." Sakayanagi Arisu admitted their relationship with complete ease.
She paused, her smile deepening. "You really do have to meet someone in person to judge whether they live up to their reputation. Shiraishi, it seems the school life ahead of us will be very interesting. I look forward to working with you over the next few years."
Before you continue