3 bar menu

Chapter 171 Part 2

Yuu managed to finish the sushi and soba that were served after that, too.

He was already full.

The only one who had pretty much finished their food was Yuu, and most of the women left some of it uneaten.

The ones who showed surprisingly strong appetites were the Ishikawa mother and daughter, Eimi and Asami.

In particular, losing appetite due to morning sickness, Sayaka, and also Riko, seemed to have left about half of the food uneaten.

When the hot after-meal tea was being served, Sayaka and Riko started talking about things related to the student council.

「Student council election?」

「Yes. I told you before that the Student Council’s term ends at the end of September, so I thought you’d remember.」

「Come to think of it, I get the feeling that I’ve heard about it.」

Riko’s words caused Yuu to jog his memory.

It was no longer relevant, but it was probably around the end of April when he and Sayaka made a promise that they would continue their relationship for the duration of the student council’s term, regardless of her fiancé.

Not even half a year had passed since then, but it felt strangely nostalgic.

「If we follow the annual schedule, we start preparing for the next student council from the second week of September. First, we organize an election committee, then put up candidate posters around the school and hold general policy speeches. Then, we hold the election at the end of the month, and the term of office switches over in October.」

「Yes. Though, it’s customary to contact the students who could be candidates for the next student council president in advance, you see. The previous student council president even called out to me before the summer vacation, saying, 『By all means, I’d like to entrust this position to you』.」

As they had boys-girls’ social events that were unique to co-ed schools, the responsibility of the Sairyou Academy’s student council president was heavy.

The vice presidents could concurrently hold a position in clubs or various committees, but for generations, the president alone was a full-time member and couldn’t engage in any extracellular activities.

Sayaka herself, who was the captain of the kendo club back in her middle school days, wanted to continue and join the kendo club in high school, but with his eyes set on the future, she chose to join the student council in her first year; so he had heard before.

It was said that not only the student council members, but also the members of the boys-girls’ social events executive committee would call out to second-year students who could be candidates for president and vice-presidents.

However, before the summer vacation, there was the quiz championship with Sairei Academy, so they didn’t have time to carefully think about it.

「But among the current second-year students, there’s no one who really fits the bill, you see.」

「We have candidates for vice-presidents, secretary, or treasurer, though.」

「What about Amy?」

「Me? I’m not cut out to be student council president!」

Eimi, the mood-maker-like presence and the only second-year student in the student council, was, calling it unexpectedly might be rude but, highly skilled in desk work.

She got some support from Riko, but simultaneously serving as secretary and treasurer, positions that originally should have been taken up by one person each, must be difficult.

In other words, she was an assistant type.

Yuu noticed that Sayaka and the others were staring at him with smiles on their faces.

Sayaka stared intently at Yuu from the front and spoke.

A hint of expectation could be seen in her expression.

「Yuu-kun, would you be the next student council president?」

「Huh?」

For a moment, Yuu was at a loss for words, and then panicked.

That was because he never expected to be asked such a thing out of the blue.

「W, wait a second! I mean, I’m a first-year, you know? And you want me to suddenly step over the second-year and become the student council president?!」

Perhaps the three of them had already talked about it, in contrast to the surprised Yuu, they were calm.

「I know. When I tried looking into past cases, I found that there was a year when the new second-year vice-president served as the acting president from April because the president was suddenly hospitalized due to illness. But there’s never been a case where a first-year student takes up the position of student council president from the get go. Incidentally, every year the student council asks one male student to serve as honorary vice president, but no one has ever become president. So Yuu-kun, if you become student council president, it’ll be totally unprecedented. Ahahaha.」

Sayaka said so as if it was someone else’s problem, so Yuu stared at her with half-open eyes, and when she noticed that, she started to panic.

There, Riko gave a proper follow up.

「We are by no means kidding when we say this. You see, I think there are two types of leaders in an organization.」

「Two types?」

「Yes. One is the type that goes their own way and pulls others along with them. Sayaka is exactly that.」

「Ah, I can see that.」

Riko patted Sayaka on the shoulder, and Eimi immediately agreed to her.

The qualities of a leader that made everyone want to follow her, her natural charisma.

It was unknown whether they were born with it or what, but there was usually at least one person of that type in every grade.

And even among them, it could be said that Sayaka had exceptional qualities.

「And the other one is the type that, as opposed to taking the initiative and pulling others along, listens carefully to others’ opinions, makes adjustments, and keeps things moving smoothly. Yuu-kun, after you joined the student council and got used to it, you attended the executive committee meetings for various events, didn’t you? And more than once or twice, when we were unable to come to a consensus, you gathered everyone’s opinions and skillfully put it all together.」

「Yup, yup, and for some reason, everyone would obediently listen to what Yuu-kun said.」

「First of all, it might be because it was rare for a boy to be able to boldly express his opinion in front of a large group of girls.」

「I think Yuu-kun is suited for a coordinating role, so to speak. It also depends on the executive members he’s assisting, but I think having such a leader is also nice.」

Now that they mentioned it, that was certainly the case.

Even before his rebirth, Yuu wasn’t the type to say 「me, me」.

As he gained experience as a company employee, he became something of a sub-leader, or rather, someone who mediated between the seniors and the younger staff.

The bottom of the managerial position, so to speak.

For that reason, he had a hard time being caught between the ones above and below him.

As the only boy among the students who managed the events, including the student council, he was surrounded by girls, and once he got used to it, he was able to be himself.

One of the big factors was that even when the arguments escalated and the senior girls looked like they were about to get into a fight, when Yuu called out to them, they instantly felt ashamed and listened to him.

「That’s why, Yuu-kun, even if you were to step up, I don’t think there will be many students who will object. You don’t need to make a decision right away, so could you please give it some thought?」

「Well…」

「Isn’t it fine? It’s your precious high school life, so why not give it a try?」

「Eeh~, isn’t it tough?」

Who knew how long they had been listening, but Martina and Elena also cut into the conversation.

The one who was in favor of becoming president was Martina, while the one who was worried was Elena.

Martina’s motherly intuition told her that Yuu was suited for such a managerial position.

Elena was worried that Yuu would come home late, decreasing the time they spent together at home.

「I’ve heard about your exploits from Sayaka, Yuu-san. Moreover, I don’t think there are many boys who can express their opinions to adults they meet for the first time in such a splendid manner. If it’s Yuu-san who is very popular at school, the students will gladly follow him, won’t they?」

「Well, it depends on the committee members who assist him, including Eimi-chan, I suppose?」

「A male student council president, it’s unheard of and so cool! By all means, I’d love for you to take up the position, Yuu-kun!」

These were the opinions of Tomoka, Mako and Asami respectively.

Before they knew it, the conversation had turned to the topic of Yuu taking up the position of student council president.

Moreover, most of them seemed to be in favor of it.

As far as Yuu was concerned, not only had he grown attached to the current Sairyou Academy as his alma mater, after going through so much trouble, the interactions between boys and girls were going better than previous years, so he didn’t want to disrupt that flow.

That being said, if asked whether he could serve as the central figure of this all, he wasn’t confident, but with so many people showing such high expectations of him, he couldn’t help but feel like doing it.

「I want to be on the student council with Yuu-kun next term too!」

「「Yuu-kun!」」

Seeing the three of them lean forward and stare at him intently with expectant looks on their faces, Yuu couldn’t help but smile wryly.

「Fine. For now, let’s wait till September, and if it doesn’t look like there are any other strong candidates by then, I don’t mind taking up the position.」

「「「Yay!!」」」

Even though he didn’t explicitly say 「I’ll do it」, Sayaka and the others were so happy as if it was already confirmed that Yuu would become the next student council president.

For some reason, Yuu had the feeling that he would have no choice but to become student council president, with no rival candidates showing up, just like that.