After school, Fukube Satoshi packed his bag first and stood by Chisato's desk, smiling as he waited.
It had been two days since the students from Sōbu High School came to discuss the upcoming joint sports festival.
Today, the student councils of both schools and other members had to meet again to discuss the remaining details.
The meeting was held at a family restaurant, not at either of the school campuses. The cost would be split evenly between both schools, with the respective activity funds footing the bill.
From this perspective, those in important positions can, if they have the right mindset, use business as an excuse to gain personal benefits in many situations, whether still in school or once they enter society.
Chisato did not mind the upcoming arrangement.
He was invited by Fukube Satoshi as an additional person, and honestly, the important matters were being handled by others.
He felt his attendance was more for filling up space, or rather, to improve the overall appearance of students from Hoshinomiya High School.
After all, at Sōbu High, Yukino was needless to mention, and the rest, such as Iroha, Yui, and the others like Shiromeguri Meguri, all had good looks.
As for his own school, aside from himself and Fukube... Well, he stopped thinking about it—any further thoughts would be impolite.
After joining Fukube Satoshi and the other student council members, Chisato arrived at the restaurant.
The Sōbu High group was already there. Upon seeing them, everyone stood up to greet him.
Since they had met before, and afterward, a group chat was created to discuss work and help everyone get closer, the atmosphere this time was clearly much more relaxed than their first meeting.
It felt far more natural.
Thanks to the prior reservation, the restaurant staff had combined two tables and placed them by a large window.
This created a slightly private space, ensuring that their discussion wouldn't disturb other customers.
After the usual pleasantries, everyone took their seats.
Before Chisato could sit down, Fukube Satoshi quickly claimed his spot, forcing Chisato to sit at the very edge, facing Iroha.
No need to guess; this was intentional.
Fukube Satoshi had a proud smile, as if saying, "No need to thank me."
Since his intentions were good, Chisato couldn't really complain. And...
Looking at Iroha, who was waving her hand towards him with a slight smile, Chisato couldn't bring himself to show dissatisfaction with the arrangement.
But remembering his promise to Eriri, Chisato thought that perhaps the issue between him and Iroha should be dealt with properly.
The meeting proceeded smoothly, guided by the student council presidents, full of energy and efficiency.
The location for the joint sports festival was officially decided.
The initial plan was to hold the event at one of the two schools' campuses.
However, due to concerns that merging students from both schools might make the space too crowded, the suggestion was made to host it at Hojou University.
Since Hojou High was a sister school to Hojou University, it would be easy to apply for use of the university's facilities.
Plus, the university's campus was much larger, with better facilities, and it was not far from the two high schools, making it convenient to reach by public transport.
This proposal was quickly approved.
Then, the meeting moved on to discuss the exact timing for the events, the schedule for each activity, safety during the festival, and additional members for the organizing committee...
For most of the group, it was their first time leading such a large event.
Everyone was excited to share their ideas, and even when some were rejected, they just laughed it off and moved on to consider other possibilities.
The atmosphere was highly motivated, and even Iroha occasionally got caught up in the energy, contributing her ideas to the discussion.
But between Chisato and Iroha, after the initial greetings, they didn't speak much.
The table was filled with snacks like fried chicken, fries, chicken nuggets, and fruit.
After sitting down, Chisato realized he wasn't really contributing to the meeting, so he silently started eating to avoid wasting the food.
On the other side of the table, Yukino, who was responsible for taking notes while sitting next to Shiromeguri Meguri, hadn't stopped writing since the discussion started.
Her gaze stayed on her notebook, but her peripheral vision kept drifting toward Chisato.
When she saw him choke slightly on a chicken nugget, patting his chest with his fist to recover, she couldn't help but smile slightly.
Of course, such small actions went unnoticed by the other excited students, and even Yukino herself didn't realize how she reacted.
As the meeting wound down, most of the issues were settled.
But before it was over, Shiromeguri Meguri voiced her long-suppressed idea:
"I think the students who place in the sports events should receive something beyond just medals and certificates from the school—perhaps some material rewards?"
Everyone was momentarily stunned.
Material rewards—wasn't that just money?
Although the idea was good, it seemed difficult to implement. After all, there were many events, and if they gave a cash prize to every winner, the school's budget would not be enough.
And if the reward was too small, it would look cheap—better not to give anything at all.
"President Shiromeguri, your suggestion is good, but considering our current budget, implementing it might be difficult," said the president of Hojou High School diplomatically.
Most of the others shared the same concern.
Shiromeguri Meguri quickly realized they misunderstood her point and hurriedly clarified, "That's not what I meant.
What I was suggesting is that since this joint event will involve a lot of people, maybe we can get sponsors to help fund the event, which would also motivate everyone to look forward to it more. For example..."
She pulled out a stack of beautiful gift certificates from her bag and laid them on the table.
"I visited a nearby cake shop and explained the situation to the manager.
He agreed to give me these gift certificates, in exchange for us advertising his store during the event. It's a win-win."
"I see. With this, the issue of insufficient funds is resolved."
"Well, we just need to put in a bit more effort, visit various shops, and try to persuade them to cooperate."
"Then, based on the actual value of the prizes, we can distribute them objectively."
"Good idea! Though it's a bit difficult, it's definitely worth trying."
"Yeah."
"By the way, I'm a regular at the bubble tea shop near our school. I'll try talking to the manager tomorrow."
The discussion began to grow lively again as everyone actively participated.
On Shiromeguri Meguri's face, a smile spread. This was the scene she had hoped to see.
She wanted to make this event, her last as student council president, something unforgettable and exciting for everyone involved.
"The president's idea is good, but raising sponsorships may not be as easy as it seems."
After the meeting at the family restaurant ended, everyone separated and began their way home.
Since it was on the way, Chisato naturally followed Yukino, as well as Yui and Iroha, who were going to her house to disturb her once again.
At a quarter past seven, the train wasn't as crowded as usual.
The three girls managed to find seats next to each other, while Chisato stood holding onto the pole in front of them with one hand.
Of course, his shoulder bag was taken away by his thoughtful junior without asking, who then held it in her arms.
Yukino's earlier comment stopped the excited discussion between Yui and Iroha.
Yuigahama spoke up with a questioning tone, "Yukino, why did you suddenly say that?"
Yukino sighed softly.
"Raising sponsorships is essentially a transaction—both sides need to get something out of it.
I don't know how Shiromeguri Meguri convinced the cake shop to give her so many vouchers, but objectively speaking, in the adult world, there aren't many who would see a deal with high school students as fair and beneficial to them."
Yui gave a confused smile.
"Uh… Yukino, can you simplify it for us a bit?"
At that moment, Chisato joined in.
"To put it simply, adults in the real world, when facing high school students, tend to think of them as kids.
So, when we make a proposal, they tend to look down on it, thinking it's not reliable. Right?"
Yukino nodded, glancing at Chisato before turning her attention to the view outside the train window.
Iroha, however, didn't quite agree with Yukino's statement.
"But everyone is so enthusiastic.
Maybe this passion can really move those shop owners. If we explain the potential benefits well, there could still be some rewards."
"If enthusiasm alone could solve all problems, there wouldn't be so many failed cases in the world."
Unlike Iroha, Yukino simply stated the facts.
Her calm certainty caused the two girls sitting beside her to slowly settle down, realizing that Shiromeguri Meguri's proposal might not be so easy to pull off.
At that moment, Chisato spoke up.
"The most important things have already been discussed and settled.
Honestly, the extra material rewards wouldn't be a big deal, and no one would complain if they're not included.
So, there's no need to worry too much. Just do your best and don't leave any regrets."
"Shiromeguri Meguri's request for the Servant Club is to make this event as lively and memorable as possible.
So, as the ones entrusted with the task, we can't back out, even though we know it's going to be tough. We just have to support her as much as we can."
Chisato wasn't very interested in the event being co-hosted by the two schools.
He had always approached it with a "just there to make up the numbers" mindset, which was why he could say these things so lightly.
But Yukino was different. The purpose of the Servant Club when it was established was simply to receive and help clients fulfill their requests.
Her personality made it impossible for her not to take things seriously.
Looking at her, Chisato couldn't help but recall the time they had to spend together in the past.
"Yeah, I hope everything goes smoothly."
He said it with sincere feelings.
Yukino nodded in gratitude, and the topic wasn't brought up again.
But from the way she looked so worried, Chisato guessed she was probably thinking about the best way to make Shiromeguri Meguri's wishes a reality.
When they returned to the apartment, it was no surprise that Iroha came over again, using the excuse that she hadn't finished discussing some personal business.
However, this time, Chisato didn't want their relationship to remain so unclear.
With that thought in mind, he didn't let himself be led by Iroha's words this time.
Instead, he used the topic she brought up to talk about his own future and the blissful vision he had of being with Eriri and the others, hoping to dissuade Iroha from her unrealistic ideas about him.
Whether or not it worked, during this conversation, Iroha didn't make any more intimate or inappropriate gestures or comments.
When she left, she sighed deeply as she faced Chisato.
Her expression seemed a bit down, but she forced herself to straighten up, slightly bending at the waist, and instead of the usual sweet wave, she simply turned and left without saying anything.
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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