"All right, let's go!"
Mayumi Saegusa patted Chiba Yeyou on the shoulder, signaling for him to follow her.
"???"
"Where am I supposed to go?"
Chiba Yeyou was a little confused.
"With us, of course!"
Mayumi Saegusa spoke as though it were only natural.
"No, wait!"
"We're not even going the same way!"
Chiba Yeyou spread his hands, indicating that there was nothing he could do about it.
"Hm?"
"Don't tell me!"
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck Chiba Yeyou.
"Senpai, isn't it a bit soon to meet your parents?"
"Aren't we moving too fast?"
Chiba Yeyou spoke coyly, his face full of bashfulness.
"Smack!"
All five fell silent and lost their composure, slapping their own foreheads to make themselves calm down.
At this point, even Hattori could tell that this guy simply enjoyed teasing pretty girls.
In other words: he was looking for amusement.
"Could you please act normal?"
Suzune Ichihara spoke helplessly.
"Fine, fine!"
Chiba Yeyou looked thoroughly bored.
"Tell me, what exactly did you want with me?"
Chiba Yeyou looked calmly at them, his voice turning a little more serious.
"Uh..."
His entire demeanor had changed far too quickly!
None of them had even managed to react.
"Um, we're just having an ordinary chat. You don't have to be so serious."
Azusa Nakajo spoke timidly.
"Can't you tell?"
"He's messing with us!"
Mayumi Saegusa spoke helplessly.
She really had no way of dealing with this junior. He was like a nemesis sent down from heaven specifically to punish her for the pranks she had played on her juniors.
"You people have no sense of humor!"
Chiba Yeyou pursed his lips, seemingly even more bored.
"So, what did you all want?"
Both Chiba Yeyou's tone and expression returned to normal. The sudden change left them a little unaccustomed to it.
"Do you want to discuss it here?"
"Or do you have something urgent to do?"
Mari Watanabe did not want to stand in the street discussing having Chiba Yeyou join the Student Council. After all, they were the ones inviting him, and this would seem far too casual.
"No, nothing like that!"
If Student Council members had come looking for him, it could only be about that.
"Let's go. There's a café up ahead. Their coffee is pretty good."
Mayumi Saegusa started walking as she spoke, leading the way.
Akiba Café
Dark red tables of varying sizes, a sensible layout, and the decorations gave the café a somewhat minimalist feel.
"What?"
"You weren't just passing by? You came specifically to find me?"
Chiba Yeyou was stunned.
What was all this?
He had thought they had merely happened to spot him!
"That's right!"
Mayumi Saegusa gave a playful smile.
Hahaha...
So you get surprised too!
Mayumi Saegusa laughed silently to herself.
"Well?"
"That should show enough sincerity on our part, shouldn't it?"
A smile bloomed on Mari Watanabe's face as she watched Chiba Yeyou confidently.
"Why are you paying so much attention to someone as completely ordinary as me?"
Chiba Yeyou was a little puzzled. He did not seem to have shown anything out of the ordinary, had he?
Chiba Yeyou thought it over and felt that his performance could not have been more ordinary.
It was not that he thought he could not reveal his magical talent or anything. After all, he had plenty of talents!
The main issue was that the logic did not add up!
Was the Student Council really this haphazard about recruitment?
As for his exchange with Hattori, that was even less likely!
Hattori was a Student Council vice president, after all. Did he not care about saving face?
From his behavior during their few meetings, it was clear that he absolutely cared about his pride!
There was no way he would bring it up himself!
Absolutely no way!
So, taking all that into account... fine, Chiba Yeyou was baffled too.
"Pfft!"
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Those drinking coffee had already spat it out, while those who were not coughed awkwardly. Hattori's face had turned red with shame!
Completely ordinary, my ass!
If they had not watched the recording of that match, they really would have believed him!
Well, that did not include the one who had been beaten up. Hattori remained quite firm on that point!
After all, it had been a very profound lesson.
You certainly are 'completely ordinary'!
"Whew..."
They let out long breaths. This guy was far too much of a humblebragger.
Oh!
Right, he doesn't seem to know that we know yet!
"We all know about your fight with Hattori!"
"Pfft!"
This time, it was Chiba Yeyou's turn to spray water.
Mayumi Saegusa was sitting directly opposite him and caught it all in the face.
"With that much force, you did that on purpose, didn't you?"
The corner of Mayumi Saegusa's eye twitched wildly.
This table might be rectangular, but it's still about a meter and a half wide. We deliberately picked a table like this because there are so many of us, yet you managed to spray me from that far away. It's hard to explain that as anything but deliberate!
"Cough, cough..."
"I got a little carried away. Please don't hold it against me, senpai!"
Chiba Yeyou hurriedly stood, took out a clean tissue, and wiped Mayumi Saegusa's face himself.
Mayumi Saegusa simply stared blankly at Chiba Yeyou as he did so.
"Ahem. I feel like we're a little superfluous here!"
Mari Watanabe felt as though she had suddenly become a much brighter light bulb.
"Um, I can do it myself."
Mayumi Saegusa snatched the tissue from Chiba Yeyou's hand and quietly wiped her face herself.
"I really didn't expect you to tell them!"
Chiba Yeyou sat back down and looked at Hattori, feeling a little admiration for him.
Good grief!
You really had the guts!
What happened to your dignity as vice president?
No wonder these guys looked so strange when they saw me.
So that's what happened!
"Fine!"
"I wanted to get along with you as an ordinary person, but my strength wouldn't allow it."
"No more pretending! I'm a big shot, and I'm laying my cards on the table!"
Chiba Yeyou immediately changed his demeanor, crossing his left leg over his right, resting both hands on top, and leaning back, looking every inch the lonely master whose life was as desolate as snow.
The girls froze for a moment, then all burst out laughing.
Why did Hattori not laugh? Because he was the one who had been thrashed, and he really could not laugh.
This guy could be said to have made his name in the Student Council by stepping on him, but he had no complaints. After all, he really could not beat him.
"Say, are you always this funny?"
Mari Watanabe looked at Chiba Yeyou as she laughed.
"All right, tell me. Are you inviting me to join the Student Council?"
Chiba Yeyou helplessly spoke first.
That was the only reason these people would come looking for him.
If he had only caught Mayumi Saegusa's attention before, things were different now. He would certainly have drawn all of their serious attention. After all, Suzune Ichihara was far too good at analysis.
Of course, the others were no fools either.
Even Hattori was no exception.
Hattori had simply been stunned by the beating at the time. His defeat had come too quickly, and it had not been a simple loss. He could clearly feel that Chiba Yeyou could have taken his life at any moment if he wanted to.
How could a vice president who had always been undefeated accept that?
The fact that he had recovered so quickly, seemed to have made some peace with it, and had regained his confidence showed that he was no simple character either.
That was true. How could anyone recruited into the Student Council be an inferior student in the true sense?
It was a gathering place for the finest elites in the entire school.
"That's right!"
Mayumi Saegusa and the others stopped smiling as well, becoming serious.
"What do you think?"
Mayumi Saegusa went straight to the point, no longer wanting to sound him out indirectly.
"If I remember correctly, the only vacant position on your Student Council is the secretary position meant for Miyuki Shiba, isn't it?"
Chiba Yeyou looked at Mayumi Saegusa and spoke with a faint smile.
"Oh?"
Mayumi Saegusa instinctively exchanged glances with Mari Watanabe, each seeing the confusion in the other's eyes.
Although the decision to bring Miyuki Shiba into the Student Council had already been handed down, there should not have been many people who knew about it yet.
For now, Miyuki had only started coming to the Student Council to get used to the work. Her appointment had not been formally announced, so how did Chiba Yeyou know?
Besides, judging by this, he seemed to know quite a lot about the Student Council's membership!
"Then why don't you guess what we have in mind for you?"
Mayumi Saegusa suddenly gave a mischievous smile.
"You're not planning to put me on the Public Morals Committee, are you?"
Looking at this little imp's mischievous expression, then at Mari Watanabe's expectant eyes, Chiba Yeyou suddenly recalled how Tatsuya Shiba had been sent to the Public Morals Committee to work for Mari Watanabe.
"No!"
"Absolutely not!"
Before Mayumi Saegusa could speak, Chiba Yeyou shook his head and firmly rejected the idea.
"Why?"
Seeing how resistant Chiba Yeyou was, Mari Watanabe could not hold back and asked outright.
"First, I don't like trouble!"
"Otherwise, I wouldn't have chosen to beat him into submission in one go when he came looking for trouble."
As Chiba Yeyou spoke, he glanced at Vice President Hattori.
The corner of Hattori's eye kept twitching, and he looked utterly pained.
After all, getting one-shotted was already humiliating enough when it happened to the Student Council vice president. Now they were repeatedly beating a dead horse, and doing it right in front of his damn face. It would have been strange if he looked pleased.
Still, he did not react too strongly.
Don't ask. If you did, the answer was that he couldn't win!
"Second, I don't like trouble!"
"I'm afraid I might not be able to stop myself from eliminating the threat once and for all!"
"Third, I like waiting for trouble to appear even less!"
"I much prefer dealing directly with the person causing the trouble!"
"All right, I'm done. Do you still think I'm suited for this position?"
Actually, what Chiba Yeyou said was half true and half false. It was true that he disliked trouble, but he disliked working for Mari Watanabe even more.
There were no extra credits, and apart from getting to know a few people and gaining a title, there were no benefits whatsoever. All that remained was a huge pile of trouble. With that kind of time, lying on the roof and sunbathing for a while would have been far more comfortable.
After all, Chiba Yeyou's goal was clear: coast his way to a diploma!