Chapter 32

This is my Christmas present to you, and I’d be really glad if you gifted me back with a review on novelupdates! Incidentally, Reika graduates from primary school soon, so let’s have one chapter every 15 minutes until she does.

It’s autumn again, and the athletics carnival came around once more.

Now that we’re the seniors in primary school, it’s become our turn to act as the executive committee. And for some reason I was nominated as the female executive from our cla.s.s. I’m not particularly good at sports, and my planning ability and dynamism isn’t anything to write home about either, so why me? Or so I was wondering at first, but apparently the teacher secretly decided that it would be better to have somebody with enough authority to handle the undercla.s.smen smoothly.

Honestly speaking, it’s a d.a.m.n ha.s.sle&h.e.l.lip; We’re still primary schoolers so it’s not like the executive committee actually does anything important. Just stuff like collecting the partic.i.p.ation lists from each cla.s.s, or doing odd jobs for the teachers, or well, small stuff like that. And also, on the day of the athletics carnival, we’re supposed to stand in our tent and make sure everything comes along.

*imouto*

The executives from 5th and 6th grades gathered before the real preparations for the athletics carnival, and we introduced ourselves. Amongst these people, I spotted Enjou Shuusuke. The girls here were all excited about it. Apparently they hadn’t expected that Enjou would be an executive committee member. I didn’t either. I looked at everybody else too, but concluded that Enjou was probably chosen for the same reason as me. The two of us are the only Pivoine members. But unlike me, I would have thought that Enjou would have been able to refuse. Maybe he’s a surprisingly cooperative guy. Speaking of which, in Kimidol, Enjou was like the mediator between Emperor and everybody else, wasn’t he.

After the introductions and the explanation of our duties, we were about to begin our work when a problem occurred. The girls were swarming about Enjou and didn’t look like they were going to do anything. Enjou himself was doing stuff like printing out the printouts or organising the numbers, and properly doing what he was supposed to, but the girls around him were just talking to him and not working at all. Even when the boys in the committee gave them a warning, they would declare “I’m helping Enjou-sama!” and far from doing work, would actually look down on the boys by saying “Are you sure you aren’t just jealous because you boys aren’t popular~?” and so the boys couldn’t say anything more. Enjou warned them as well, and they did start to work, but the moment they left his side, their hands would completely stop. This was a total mistake in personnel selection&h.e.l.lip;

While all this was happening, I was quietly sitting away from the trouble and folding the programmes. Thanks to the Enjou Harem, I’m missing a lot of help and it’s terrible. These programmes were ordered from elsewhere, but for some reason the task of folding them in two was left to the executive committee. If you’re going to order them from some shop, can’t you just have them finish the job? I don’t really get it. The paper was stealing the moisture from my hands, and I had trouble picking up one at a time. This is hard&h.e.l.lip; It’d be great if there was a thimble but&h.e.l.lip; Looking around, I couldn’t find one, but I did find a rubber band instead. I wrapped it around my thumb. Then I tried picking up a page. Oooh! It’s easier! Here we go, here we go. Take and fold, take and fold. Like a machine, I continued to repeat this. Like I was possessed by a mother working a side-job from home, I worked single-mindedly. Boys walking past exclaimed “Eh-, rubber band!?” beneath their breaths, but I won’t pay any mind. Like a worn-out housewife, I prioritised efficiency.

The happy voices of the harem were audible from where I was. Work, d.a.m.n you.

*imouto*

Even after that, the girls of the committee continued to orbit Enjou, and basically did no work at all. Apparently the boys in the committee had long given up on trying to make them. And as time went on, more and more odd jobs got pushed my way. From the next day onwards, I provided thimbles. I was also equipped with odourless muscle ointment for sore shoulders. I’m completely used to clerical work now. Using the copy machine has become my specialty. I’m good with shrinking, magnifying, and double-sided copying too. The Year 6 boys all praised me and said “As expected of Kisshouin-san” and pushed more odd jobs onto me. Do you really think I’ll be fooled with such obvious flattery? But I couldn’t refuse, so from copying to printing to stapling, just everything, everything, everything got pushed onto me. Hm? That’s weird. I’m part of the elite Pivoine, and I’m supposed to be in the top caste amongst the girls, but before I knew it, I became the number one gopher. Could it be that Side-Job Reika has gotten too powerful due to her talent? I actually get the feeling that I’m doing every single job that was a.s.signed to the Enjou Harem.

Dammmiiiitt! Work, you lot!

*imouto*

At one point, we realised that one of the undercla.s.sman cla.s.ses had an overlap in their event selections, so I ended up heading there to warn them directly. It was for times like this that Enjou and I were meant to use our authority as Pivoine members, but if Enjou moved then his harem would move, and we didn’t need a whole d.a.m.n court procession so I went by myself.

The Year 3 cla.s.s in question was having a break, so the boys in particular wouldn’t listen to what I was saying. Because of the stress from the committee lately, I was starting to really sulk in my heart.

‘You lot, do you know who I am!? I’m Kisshouin Reika-sama!! The one and only!!’ I screamed in my heart.

I didn’t have the courage to actually say it aloud. Dammmiittttt! Every last one of them is&h.e.l.lip;! Thankfully the girls properly listened to me, and tried to help me out, but a number of the boys just wouldn’t listen. Or rather, isn’t that kid the one that had the overlaps!? Listen, d.a.m.n you!

“As I said, you cannot partic.i.p.ate in both of these events. Choose one, and let other students have a go at the other.”

“Ehhhhhhhh, but then we’re not gunna win!”

Like I care, r.e.t.a.r.d.

“At any rate, you cannot partic.i.p.ate in both. This event will begin immediately after the other, and you will not make it in time.”

“Then I’ll run.”

“That is not the problem here.”

What’s with this idiot? Is he really a student at Suiran? He brings to mind the boys from the public school in my old life.

“Hey, listen to what Reika-sama says!”

“Hah? Who?”

What did you say? Don’t think I won’t punish you!

Before long, the girls and boys ignored me and started arguing by themselves. Aah, it’s beyond my control now.

“Okay, enough.”

Enjou clapped his hands together as he entered the cla.s.s.

“Katsuragi, could you perhaps cause a little less trouble for Reika-san? Just hurry up and fix your event entries already.”

Apparently the naughty kid was acquainted with Enjou, and immediately turned obedient. Even the noisy cla.s.s instantly began to behave, and the girls were entranced by Enjou’s show of leadership. Dammnnnn ittttt, is this the difference between a leader and a faker!?

With Enjou’s arrival, the problems were resolved in an instant, and the two of us returned to the committee room.

“Reika-san, if you were going to go, you could have told me too.”

“It seemed busy around you, so I supposed that you were busy.”

I made sure to p.r.i.c.k at him.

“Ahh, that huh? I’m troubled about it too. It looks like quite a bit’s been left to you. I’ll help out too.”

You’re going to come along with useless extras, so no thank you.

“I will be fine. Please do your own work, Enjou-sama.”

“I see.”

When we got back, the women of the harem swarmed around their lord.

“Enjou-sama, we wanted to go too.”

“We completed the work that you left us, Enjou-sama!”

I reported the corrections that the senpais made, and then gathering up the remaining doc.u.ments, I headed to the staff room.

Aahh, I need soothing&h.e.l.lip;

*imouto*

*imouto*

*imouto*

“Don’t think I won’t punish you!” Actually, “I’ll subject you to the sour plum (force feeding) punishment!”

“Take and fold, take and fold. Like a machine, I continued to repeat this. Like I was possessed by a mother working a side-job from home, I single-mindedly worked.” In j.a.pan, there are some side-jobs that you can do from home. Basically they send you like&h.e.l.lip; well, it’s hard to explain, but it’s basically odd jobs like folding things, or sewing things, and you can work from home.

“and we don’t need a whole d.a.m.n court procession so I went by myself.” Rather than ‘court procession’, the term used actually refers to members of the inner palace (i.e. harem) lining up in two columns on each side to greet their husband.

“Dammnnnn ittttt, is this the difference between a leader and a faker!?” Is this the difference between a real charismatic person, and a papier mache?