Taking the Stage to Speak

"It's quite lively here, more crowded than I expected."

"That's probably because the upperclassmen are here as well."

After entering the First Gymnasium, Sakayanagi returned to the Class A tour group, while Hiyori and I finished regrouping with the students from Class C.

"Judging by the descriptions alone, the standard of clubs at this school is quite high."

"But this brochure only lists the awards these clubs have won in the past and the famous alumni they've produced.

In a school that can't even scrape together four hundred and eighty students, if you exclude those who don't want to join any clubs, how many people are actually left?

With a brochure this thick filled with so many clubs, someone who didn't know better would think these clubs are all like yours—only needing one president to be founded."

Ryuen was in top form with his usual venomous tongue. The truth was exactly as he said; the portion of the school's club descriptions dedicated to "heroic pasts" took up far too much space.

In a school like this, the information printed in this booklet couldn't possibly serve as a standard for choosing a club.

"I thought every high school in Japan had a baseball club aiming for Koshien~"

I flipped through the booklet and found the baseball club, which holds a unique status in Japanese campus life.

"That's a fair point. The baseball club at my old school was also full of idiots who deluded themselves into thinking they could reach Koshien through their own hard work."

"I find it hard to understand that obsession. In my country, baseball is basically the most niche of niche sports."

Many Japanese film and television works inevitably mention baseball, just as mentioning a South American country inevitably makes me think of soccer.

"Your club is actually an anomaly in this school. Aside from your Traditional Literature Club, the only ones with less physical activity are the Board Games clubs and the Tea Ceremony Club."

Looking around, the only clubs gathered in the gymnasium that were thriving were those related to sports.

Niche cultural clubs like Calligraphy and Tea Ceremony weren't numerous, but they were quite diverse, and most maintained the minimum requirement of three members.

However, none of them could beat me. My Traditional Literature Club was still a one-man show, as I hadn't submitted the applications for Ryuen and the others, and I was even holding onto Hiyori's application.

"The Student Council is calling the club representatives to gather over there. I'll head off first, see you later."

Watching the people who looked like presidents in the gymnasium rise simultaneously to head toward the backstage area, I received a notification on my phone from the Student Council secretary. It was time to head backstage and prepare to go on stage for "recruitment."

"Yo? Isn't this the underclassman from yesterday? I'm happy to see you here again."

Nagumo walked toward me with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"Look who it is, Vice President Nagumo. Are you not doing business today?"

As Nagumo tried to place a hand on my shoulder, I sidestepped to avoid his filthy touch.

"Don't be so resistant, underclassman. I'm just offering you some guidance. This isn't a place for a first-year student like you; you should go back and tell your club president to come instead."

Nagumo didn't give up after I dodged him; he stuck to me like glue.

"Vice President Nagumo, this is the first and last time I will say this to you—you have the right to remain silent, but from this moment on, everything you say will be used as evidence in court."

"This isn't an American TV show. There are no twists and turns here, only the purest concern from a senior to a junior."

"Time is almost up, get ready to go on stage. Solve your personal matters privately."

The incident ended with the intervention of Horikita Manabu. Nagumo pretended to be magnanimous and let me off the hook. I was also curious: where did Nagumo get the nerve to cause trouble for me?

"Line up in the order provided on the forms sent to you earlier. It's your turn to go on stage."

After lining up, we walked onto the stage at the beckoning of the Student Council secretary, Tachibana Akane.

I don't understand why the Student Council would adopt this method for a club orientation. They had all the club representatives walk onto the stage at once, yet only allowed one representative to speak at a time.

The entrance ceremony was more interesting than this. If it were up to me to plan it, I would have these sports club representatives go solo on stage, and have the smaller clubs engage in a battle of wits. Since it's a school that prioritizes "ability," wouldn't that be more interesting than them pretending to be passionate while giving speeches?

After the captain of the Archery Club finished their speech, it was my turn. Since the Student Council didn't specify that the content had to be aimed at new students, my speech shouldn't be a problem, right?

"My name is Sima Zhenglong, and I am the president of the Traditional Literature Club. I am not here to recruit new members. To be frank, my club has very, very high requirements for its members.

My purpose in coming here is mainly to clarify some rumors.

The Traditional Literature Club was indeed founded by me, a first-year student, and from its inception until now, I have been the only member.

Even if this club only has me as a member for the next three years, it will not be disbanded by the school.

Everyone knows how many private points a freshman receives upon enrollment, so I do not possess a massive amount of points.

Finally, and most importantly, the method I used is reproducible. If any of you club representatives are willing to pay a certain price, I can sell you the method.

I will be waiting for you seniors in Class 1-C. See you later."

The claim of clarifying rumors was itself a rumor. My target audience was those clubs whose membership numbers were hovering at the danger line.

In any case, my method was indeed reproducible; I wasn't lying to them. Whether they could actually pull it off was not my concern.

I'll catch whatever fish I can; I won't turn my nose up at even the smallest gains.

The only sensible part of this orientation was that the club representatives could leave the stage immediately after their speeches.

Come to think of it, before I stepped off the stage, I snuck a glance at Horikita Manabu and saw his face was livid, which brought me a sense of joy.

"If anyone comes to ask me about lifting the club membership limit, tell them it costs five hundred thousand private points.

Also, they have to wait three days. If the number of applicants doesn't exceed five after three days, then the deal is off.

Even if someone in our class wants to join those clubs with only three people, talk them out of it first. Put more pressure on those understaffed clubs. And remember, for the registration and lectures, get the money first and sign the contract first."

After giving Ryuen the instructions, I left the gymnasium with Hiyori.