Chapter 542
The morning class of Darkness Dynamics had just ended when, out of nowhere, a chase broke out.
"Ah, wait! Just let us talk for a moment!"
"Our club’s business presentation...!"
Simon and the other student council members were running frantically, fleeing from the club students who were hot on their heels.
"What the hell is thisss!"
Maelyn shouted, clutching her fluttering sky-blue hair. Kamibarez was panting as she stared only forward, and Simon pushed their backs along while glancing behind.
"Uhahah! This way!"
At the front, Dick shouted cheerfully as he dashed into an alley.
"They went between those buildings!"
"Catch them!"
Catch them? Really?
Simon shook his head at the ridiculousness of it.
Tatadat—!
Tat!
The student council members shot through the narrow alley in the blink of an eye.
And the moment the club students followed them in—
‘!’
Whoosh—
The alley between the buildings was suddenly empty, with no trace of the student council members.
"What the...? Where’d they go?"
"There’s nowhere to run in here..."
As the students looked around, they tilted their heads up. A rope was being pulled up to the 3rd floor of a building.
"There! They went into that building!"
"3rd floor! Get them!"
Urrrghhh!
All the club students chasing them rushed inside through the first-floor window.
And as the surroundings grew quiet again—
Shhhk.
The wall itself sagged down like a blanket, and the four student council members stuck to it revealed themselves.
"Kyahaha! Fell right into my trap!"
Dick rolled up a mat that looked exactly like the wall and stuffed it into subspace. Simon chuckled and asked,
"You had this prepared beforehand?"
"Of course! I figured this would happen, so I set up an escape route! Even brought the student council’s lackeys along!"
From the noisy 3rd-floor building, the council’s direct lackey Mojo stood at attention, giving a salute. Dick jokingly returned the salute.
"...Hey. You look like you’re actually enjoying this."
Maelyn grumbled, brushing the dust off her clothes.
"Amazing, Dick!"
Kamibarez smiled sweetly, and Dick’s nose went high with pride.
"Come on! Let’s take this chance and get into the student council room."
The duties of the student council were endless.
The key decisions of the school were made by the Keyzen headquarters or the professors, while the council only voiced opinions on behalf of the students. But when it came to matters directly tied to student welfare, the student council’s authority was enormous.
Entrance ceremonies, school festivals, club seasons, student assemblies, external friendship events, departmental activities—everything fell under the council’s jurisdiction.
This club season was no exception. Since the atmosphere wasn’t exactly calm enough to head to the cafeteria at lunchtime, Simon’s group took refuge in the council room.
"Sorry for making you run errands."
Maelyn said.
"Not at all. It’s our duty to do so."
The direct lackeys brought boxed meals from the cafeteria.
The four sat around the table, eating lightly as they began their discussion.
"Since it’s club season, everyone’s just trying to cozy up to the council."
Dick waved his fork as he spoke. Simon tapped Dick’s fork with his own and asked,
"And why do they want to cozy up?"
"Because we control the budget."
"How much money are we talking about?"
"Hmm. This year it’s about... ten thousand gold."
Simon’s jaw dropped at the staggering figure.
"T-that much?"
"Exactly. That’s why competition is so fierce. Didn’t I say? It’s a silent war."
Dick twirled his fork dramatically before stabbing it forward like a spear.
"When that much money is released, not participating in club season is what’s strange. Everyone wants their slice of the pie, and weird, rootless clubs pop up like weeds—then vanish the moment the season ends. That’s why."
"Just like."
Elegantly twirling pasta around her fork, Maelyn spoke in a chilling tone.
"When you, in your first year, created that idiotic club called the ‘Rochest Startup Support Club’."
Kh-hm-hm-hm—
Dick coughed awkwardly, flustered.
"A-ahem~ Here comes the slander again! Hey, my members got to learn about business, so it was educational in its own way!"
"And that club still active today, you idiot?"
After Maelyn’s rapid-fire retorts, Dick turned his head with a sheepish look.
"H-how was I supposed to know back then I’d join the student council! Hate my immature past all you want, but don’t hate the man himself!"
"Then at least, when you’re getting scolded, shut your trap and stop earning more blows."
"Yes ma’am."
Maelyn sighed, wiping her lips with a handkerchief, before turning to Simon.
"That’s the gist of it, Simon. A lot of kids see clubs as nothing but a way to make money."
"Hmm..."
Simon folded his arms with a troubled look, while Kamibarez began drafting the meeting minutes.
"More than anything! Is it normal for them to openly try bribing student council members like this?"
Maelyn pointed under the window. Already, students were crowding below.
"They’ve lost their minds. We need to change the framework."
Kamibarez blinked as she wrote.
"How would you change it, Maelyn?"
"Start with distribution."
Maelyn stretched out her arms.
"Does it make sense that a brand-new business club gets more funds than a sports club that’s lasted over twenty years? We need strict entry requirements for new clubs and a detailed evaluation system."
Dick shook his head.
"They’re taking booth applications for club season tonight. When are we supposed to squeeze in an evaluation...?"
"Just do it while taking the booth applications!"
"Then how are you going to handle the budget distribution?"
Dick asked bluntly. Caught off guard by the unexpected counter, Maelyn darted her eyes, flustered, but answered right away.
"Yeah, the budget. You know how they say club season is the time the student council gets the most complaints all year? Because one club gets more, another less, and people gripe. So the solution is simple—make the evaluations strict, pick only a select few, and then distribute the budget evenly so nobody can complain."
"I object!"
Dick raised his hand.
"And here we see the chronic issue of pampered noble ladies, huh?"
This time, Maelyn’s cheeks turned red.
"W-what’s that supposed to mean!"
"If you hand out the same amount to everyone, then a club with three members gets the same as one with thirty? The thirty-member club won’t even be able to afford one group dinner."
"That’s such an extreme example, you idiot! Obviously we’d separate them into tiers at least that much!"
"But you haven’t even defined what those tiers would be yet."
Simon turned to Dick.
"Then what do you think, Dick?"
"As someone who’s been on the field but is now talking administration, there’s a saying in bureaucracy."
Dick shrugged and grinned.
“Just keep things the way they’ve always been~”
"......You just made that up, didn’t you?"
"Ahem! Anyway, there’s a reason Keyzen’s always done it this way. No need to stir things up and change it."
Maelyn slammed the table.
"Hey! So we, as the student council, should just knowingly ignore the problems and side effects?"
"They probably left it like this because fixing it realistically is too hard. And honestly! If we’re being really honest here—"
Dick smirked, resting his chin on his hand.
"Doesn’t it feel kind of nice, having the entire student body trying to get on our good side?"
"......?"
The other three gave him dry, expressionless looks.
Dick hadn’t expected that reaction, and he faltered.
"You mean you don’t like it when strangers cling to you, when upperclassmen forcibly link arms and drag you off, when people stuff bribes into your jacket pocket and run off, when you can’t even eat lunch in peace?"
Maelyn’s eyes sharpened.
"It’s burdensome. People keep pushing us for ridiculous favors...."
Kamibarez muttered, glancing sideways.
"Even a third-year department rep called me over."
Simon scratched the back of his neck. Dick awkwardly changed the subject.
"Alright, fine! Sorry for being the attention hog! Let me rephrase, then."
He lifted a finger and pointed at the Student Council President’s insignia on Simon’s chest.
"Club season is the time when our student council’s power is at its peak!"
"......."
"Don’t misunderstand me! I don’t mean we should abuse it, but it’s possible. We could funnel funds toward friendly clubs, and starve the hostile ones. Those third-year seniors still treat us like fillers, but we could make them sweat for once! Let’s be honest, our council isn’t exactly in a stable position right now, is it?"
Maelyn’s expression twisted.
"So you’re saying we should ignore all these problems just for that? There are students who genuinely want to focus on club activities but get hurt in the process!"
"That’s unfortunate, but I’m just saying let’s think realistically."
"That’s not realism, that’s evasion!"
Both turned their heads at once.
"What do you think, Simon!"
"......."
Kamibarez, sensing the weight of the moment, tightened her grip on the minutes she was writing.
Simon interlocked his fingers, thinking briefly before speaking.
"You both make good points. We can’t just ignore the deeper problems. And it’s true that club season amplifies our power. But—"
He looked at Dick.
"Power always has two sides."
If one club receives a big budget and supports the council, another gets less and resents them. Gaining an ally means making an enemy.
"If our position is unstable right now, then instead of making new allies, it’s more important not to make new enemies."
"Well, yeah, that’s true. But how do you plan on doing that? It’s impossible to keep everyone satisfied."
At Dick’s question, Simon smiled.
"We set a clear budget distribution standard and make it public to the entire school."
The criterion would be the clearest one: the number of members in each club.
When club season ends, the clubs with more members would naturally get more budget. And as Maelyn suggested, while they wouldn’t preemptively reject new clubs—
"They’ll have to submit reports."
Simon continued.
"Instead of handing out the whole budget at once, we’ll require monthly performance reports from clubs. That way, people can’t just form a club to grab money and disappear. We’ll release funds monthly, after reviewing reports."
Kamibarez clapped her hands.
"I like it!"
Dick folded his arms with a skeptical "hm."
"Won’t the clubs complain that we’re just giving them more work?"
"Please."
Maelyn scoffed.
"Look at how desperate they are right now, trying to bribe us. Writing one report a month is nothing compared to that. It’s money we’re talking about."
"...Ugh, well, yeah. Money’s on the line."
"And! To ensure reports are truthful, the student council will do random on-site evaluations!"
Dick recoiled, crossing his arms in an X.
"Excuse me, Madam Vice President! Let’s not choke ourselves by piling more work on our own plates!"
"Shut it! I’ll do it myself if I have to!"
Things were finally shaping into order.
Kamibarez neatly compiled everything into a report.
"All done! If we want this ready for tonight, shouldn’t we get vice-chancellor Jane’s approval right away?"
"Right. Let’s go to—"
"No need."
Click!
At that moment, the door to the student council room opened. The four stood up instantly.
"Professor Jane!"
From her expression, it was clear she’d already heard everything.
She walked in, swept her eyes over the report on the desk, and smiled.
"I was going to assign you that mission anyway. You’ve done better than most third-year councils would."
Superb.
When are we getting more free chapters?
Thanks for the new chapters