Chapter 439
Simon’s party left the bustling market of the Pharonna Peninsula, and after riding a carriage, they arrived at their lodging.
It was a small but pretty place, with mountains behind and a valley flowing in front. Since there weren’t many people around, it was quiet and peaceful.
When morning came, they went down to the valley and played for a while, and as evening fell, they lit a campfire.
On the spot, they whittled sticks, skewered the chunks of meat they had bought at the market, and roasted them over the fire. Needless to say, meat eaten outdoors tasted the best.
All four of them were excited, eating, drinking, and laughing together.
Perhaps because it had been so long since they had last met, the atmosphere reached its peak, and time flew without notice.
“Ugh, too many bugs, let’s go inside.”
Even after going into the lodging, the four of them sat around the table, sipping wine, and chatting away.
“Dick! This place is wonderful.”
“Fufu, what did I tell you? And the real highlight of the Pharonna Peninsula comes the day after tomorrow, so look forward to it.”
As she quietly listened to the conversation, Maelyn turned her head.
“Simon.”
Lost in his own thoughts, Simon flinched and looked at her.
“Uh, um. What is it?”
“......You’ve been acting strange since yesterday. What are you thinking about so much, all by yourself?”
“Ah, well.”
Simon made an excuse with whatever words came to mind.
“It’s just, I was thinking when else I’d get to do something like this. I’ve always lived in Leshill, and this is the first time I’ve ever traveled somewhere with friends.”
At that, the three of them brightened. Dick immediately raised his glass.
“In that case, let’s drink again! May this year be just as full of fun as last year! Cheers!”
Everyone clinked glasses and burst into laughter. Simon laughed along with them, but his face soon shadowed.
‘Damn it, I can’t find the right timing to bring it up!’
The topics were changing too quickly.
Right now, Dick was going on about tips for second-year course registration, and the matter of the student council had only briefly come up yesterday and never returned since.
‘I can’t put it off anymore. While the mood is ripe, I have to do it!’
Simon suddenly raised his head.
“Guys!”
The three, who had been talking about courses, turned to Simon.
“Hm?”
“What’s wrong, Simon?”
He had to.
He had to say it now.
Determined, Simon was just about to bring up what he had been holding inside his chest.
—Of course, I’m honored and grateful for the offer! But uh...... I’m not sure if I can really take such a key position, I don’t think I have the skills.
The voice of Kamibarez, which he had heard yesterday, buzzed in his ears.
—I wouldn’t do it even if they gave it to me. Starting from second year it’s real major life, right? I think student council work is just a burden when I already don’t have enough time to study.
Then Maelyn’s voice followed.
—Honestly, wouldn’t I fit better as some trickster villain who gets scolded by the council rather than being in it?
Dick’s voice echoed next.
Suddenly losing confidence, Simon averted his eyes and let his words trail off.
“Th-the Student Council President this year...... I wonder who it’ll be. Haha.”
The three blinked.
“Out of nowhere? Didn’t we already talk about that yesterday?”
Said Dick.
“Hey, what is it? What were you trying so hard to say?”
Maelyn’s sharp eyes gleamed.
“That’s right, Simon. Please, just speak freely.”
“Wait, don’t tell me!”
Finally catching on, Dick shot up from his seat.
“The Student Council President......!”
Simon swallowed hard without realizing it.
“You were offered a student council officer position by the president, weren’t you? Am I right? Am I right?”
“Ah, I see~ So that’s what it was? You’re joining the student council?”
“Simon! Congratulations!”
The three clapped their hands and congratulated him. Simon forced a troubled smile.
“That’s not it.”
Forget it now.
Whatever happens, happens.
“To be exact—”
Simon pulled out from his pocket the badge he had been fiddling with, and showed it to the three.
“From this year on, I’m the Student Council President of Keyzen.”
“???!”
The three froze, mouths wide open.
Shock.
Surprise.
Astonishment.
And then a heavy silence descended over the lodging.
The three seemed to have their thoughts and reasoning stop, as they stared blankly at Simon’s student council badge.
“Haha, ha! You almost got me. That’s a joke, right?”
The only one still able to move his lips, Dick examined Simon’s badge.
“What second-year ever becomes Student Council President? Where’d you get such a fake.......”
But,
It was far too finely crafted to be called a fake.
“Hey, you’re serious......!”
“Simon!!”
“Really? Really? Really? I can’t believe it!”
Simon covered his ears for a moment. The three leapt to their feet and all shouted different things at once.
“Wait, calm down! I’ll explain!”
Simon calmly explained everything.
As the story went on, the expressions of the three changed constantly.
“I-I see.”
Maelyn sat back down with a dazed look.
“So, because senior Aizel in third year is delayed in returning, the role of president fell to Simon.......”
“Wow, damn....”
Dick let out a hollow laugh and poured wine into Simon’s empty glass.
“Same face I’ve seen all the time, but now you look like a different person! You’re still my friend, right? Do you even remember my name?”
Kamibarez lightly clapped her hands.
“Truly amazing, Simon. Congratulations again!”
Maelyn rested her chin in her hand, giving a meaningful smile.
“Hm~ So that’s why you kept flinching whenever student council talk came up?”
“Well, something like that. And on that note, Maelyn.”
“?”
Clink!
Simon grabbed the glass of wine Dick had filled earlier. Then, in one gulp, he downed it. Maelyn, startled, tried to stop him.
“Hey! What are you doing? If you drink that fast......!”
“Maelyn!”
Simon shot up from his seat, leaning close. Maelyn’s face flushed red.
“Wh-why are you doing this! You’ve been acting strange since yesterday......”
“As the Student Council President of Keyzen, I have a proposal for you!”
What kind of courage did a single glass of wine give him? Simon grabbed her hand, his eyes intense.
“Be my vice-president, Maelyn!”
At those words.
Her time froze.
“M-me?”
With trembling hands, she pointed at herself.
“That’s right! I’m looking for members to work with me, and you’re the only one perfect for the vice-president role!”
Fwoosh!
Her nape flushed bright red, she leapt up and stumbled back.
“W-w-w-w, what nonsense are you spouting!! You’re teasing me, right? Don’t joke like that! Don’t make people’s hearts race for no reason!”
“Do I look like I’m joking right now?”
Simon radiated an incredible force as he stepped forward, and the panicked Maelyn backed away until her back hit the wall.
“Of course I know second-year life is busy, and I know how seriously you take your studies! But......!”
Looking into her trembling eyes, Simon’s voice softened.
“I felt like I’d regret it if I didn’t even make the offer.”
“......”
Her sky-blue hair slipped down, covering her face. A silence fell. But it was the longest silence in the world.
Then.
She raised her head.
“Don’t you lie to me!!”
She shoved his chest with her palm.
“Urk!”
“Why! Why me? What makes you think I deserve to sit as vice-president?! There’s Serne, who’s much better than me! And you’re super close with Loraine too!”
Clutching her chest, she cried out.
“During the break, Serne bragged so much at the Ivory Tower, saying that she and the special admissions, number 1, were invited to the royal ball together, and that it was like a date!”
Simon’s face stiffened in embarrassment.
“N-no! That’s because Princess Molly......!”
“And if they appointed you as president, isn’t it obvious what Keyzen headquarters intends? Naturally, the successor of Lady Neftis, Loraine, would be the one to stand by your side!”
Her eyes were now watery red as she shouted hysterically.
“Why! Why me?! Did you come to me just because those two rejected you?”
“No.”
Simon shook his head, stepping closer.
“From the very beginning, I was only thinking of you.”
At Simon’s one sentence.
‘?!’
Maelyn’s mind went blank.
Her heart pounded wildly, thump, thump.
“I thought of no one but you from the start, and this right now is my very first proposal.”
Simon recalled the voice of Phantasus.
—Choosing council officers is strictly the ‘president’s right’! You must, without fail, select someone you can trust, someone who will stand by your side against any outside pressure!
“Someone I can trust, someone who will take my side.”
—The vice-president’s role is a little special. A running mate whose policies align with yours! They must be capable and excellent. Even better if they’re within the Top 10.
“Capable and excellent. I’ve been watching you all year, so I know you better than anyone.”
Simon thrust out his hand boldly, driving in the nail.
“No one in this school is more suitable for vice-president than you. Please, Maelyn!”
Ripples spread in her blue eyes.
‘He’s serious.......’
A flood of emotions surged inside her. Suddenly her eyes burned hot, her chest tightened.
As though the slightest touch would make her burst into tears, she covered her face with both palms, and turned her back.
“Ah.”
Simon stood awkwardly with his hand still extended. He could see her rounded shoulders trembling faintly.
“Um...... will you accept?”
Though he couldn’t see her face, tiny shining droplets slid from beneath her eyelids.
And then, in a voice tinged with moisture, a small ‘yes’ came out.
‘Yes!’
At last, Simon’s face lit up brightly.
Clatter!
In the end, Maelyn, unable to bear her embarrassment, covered her face and rushed out of the lodging.
“Haah.”
Then belatedly, embarrassment flooded Simon too.
He had said everything, even things he shouldn’t have. He thought to himself that he must drink more moderately from now on, and turned his back.
“And Dick, Kami, you two as well...... hm?”
Kweeng—
Dick and Kamibarez were each crouching in opposite corners of the lodging.
“......Oh oh, how splendid.”
Clap, clap.
Dick clapped hollowly.
“President Simon and vice-president Maelyn! Hahh~ We ‘ordinary students’ should’ve known our place and slipped out, ha ha! But alas, we failed to time it right.”
“Wh-what nonsense are you suddenly spouting!”
Simon shouted, his face red.
“......Congratulations.”
Kamibarez, with a dazed expression, was absently drawing circles with her finger.
“The two of you are drifting farther away. Higher, farther, beyond reach.......”
“Kami! Not you too?”
Everyone was clearly tipsy after just a glass of wine.
Simon quickly regained his composure, cleared his throat.
“Dick.”
“Yeees~ You called, Mr. President.”
Dick sprawled flat on the floor in exaggerated obeisance.
“I’ll get straight to the point. I want you to be the student council treasurer.”
“?!!”
Dick jerked his head up.
“Seriously?”
“Yeah.”
“Truly, seriously serious?”
“I’m telling you.”
“You know my rep among the kids is bad, they call me ‘Cunning Dick’. And more than that, I’m ranked 400th.”
“Rank doesn’t matter.”
Simon smiled and continued.
“What matters most is your ability as treasurer. Remember? At the start of first year, when everyone else was busy studying, you alone did market surveys and started small trades. Now, in second year, you’ve even taken over shops in Rochest and are running pretty big businesses. There’s no one like you in all of Keyzen. And more than that.”
Simon raised his clenched fist upright.
“Because you’re skilled at tricks, you’ll also be the best at catching those who use tricks.”
“......Heh heh.”
Dick’s shoulders shook. Then he raised his head with a grin, slammed his fist against his palm, and stood tall.
“No one in this world is better at that than me! Hahaha!”
At the sight of the fully revived Dick, Simon smiled quietly.
“You’ll accept, right?”
“Hmph! Becoming an officer means I’ll have to step back from some businesses and appoint managers, but obviously, being a student council officer is on a bigger scale than being just a second-year student. The merit is enough! Time for me to swim in the big waters!”
“Oh, of course.”
Simon laid down the condition.
“Maelyn will serve as auditor. Don’t even think of touching the budget however you please.”
“......Tch, I think the problem is we know each other too well.”
With Maelyn acting as a check, Dick’s potential mischief could be kept under control.
Of course, with how seriously Simon spoke, Dick wasn’t the type to actually embezzle money.
“Then next is Kami....... Ah.”
While Simon was busy reining Dick in, Kamibarez had sunk even deeper into despair.
Somehow, she had slipped into the storage shed, crouched there, scratching the floor with her finger.
“Kami.”
Though the door was open, Simon lightly knocked.
“May I come in?”
She gave a small nod. Simon knelt down before her, and spoke gently.
“I understand if the idea of the student council feels burdensome. But I’d like you to take the secretary’s position. It’s administrative work, writing minutes, a task that needs precision.”
At Simon’s kind voice, she lifted her head.
“......Will it really be okay? I worry that someone like me might just drag you three down.”
“You’re still saying that.”
Simon chuckled helplessly.
“How many times must I tell you? You’re more special than anyone else in this world.”
“......!”
Her face flared red.
“You’ll accept, right?”
When Simon held out his hand, Kamibarez shyly took it. Tiny dew-like tears glimmered in the corners of her eyes.
“Yes! I’ll do my best not to fall behind you three!”
“Come on, you’ve never fallen behind.”
Simon gently helped her to her feet.
Bang!
Just then, Maelyn returned, her face burning red again but now full of excitement.
“I’m the vice-president of Keyzen! Kyahaha!”
Her energy had shot even higher.
Kamibarez rushed forward and hugged her tightly.
“Maelyn! I became secretary too!”
“Really? That’s great, Kami! Congratulations!”
Beside them, Dick stood with a lofty chin and shoulders raised like he might ascend to the heavens, proudly pointing at himself.
“I’m the treasurer!”
“You crazy! He’s the one handling money?”
Maelyn recoiled in shock, turning to Simon.
“Simon, are you serious?”
“If Dick steps out of line, you can rein him in.”
“......U-uhm. Well, I suppose.”
“All right, then!”
Dick, excited, refilled their empty glasses with wine and passed them around. Soon, all four raised their glasses high.
“Simon! Which term of the student council are we?”
“This year makes it the 330th.”
“Okay! To the ‘330th Simon Follentia Student Council’!”
The four clinked glasses, shouting together with all their might, “To us!”
With laughter and cheers, the story of the new student council members went on until dawn.
It was a night overflowing with passion.
Superb.
When are we getting more free chapters?
Thanks for the new chapters