CH 213

The Sakura Festival is the biggest event in our school.

The committee members were preparing for the Sakura Festival under the leadership of Shiraishi, their head.

From the student council, Koizumi is in charge of public relations and Miura is in charge of accounting and supporting the executive committee.

Besides the two committee members selected from each class, there were also several students who volunteered to participate, including Ogiwara Yuuto, Kanazaki Shizuku, and Kirasaka Rei, and although things were not going well, they were all working hard on their respective tasks.

What am I doing in the midst of all this…?

“Our school has a large hall used by the brass band, why don’t we sing or play instruments there?”

“Then what’s the point of having a …joint event?”

“What about a joint performance with the brass band of Sakuranaoka Gakuen?”

“The brass band of Kikyo Jogakuin is one of the best in the prefecture, I believe. …If we play at a lower level to match ours, wouldn’t that be even more of a demerit?”

Raving criticism about Kikyo Jogakuin’s proposed joint cultural festival!

What a fun student council activity!

Maybe this is my future job, a critic.

No, these days we live in an Internet society. Comments that criticize something are immediately flamed and can cause a flame war and establish the image of being bad.

I think it would be better for me to quit.

Okay, I’ll quit being a critic then.

So, in about three seconds, I closed my path to becoming a critic and looked around the classroom where we were now with a sideways look.

Unlike last time, the space was small, but it was equipped with desks and chairs, as well as a set for making tea and some snacks… Yes, we borrowed the student guidance room and had repeated conversations.

Those snacks are supposed to be eaten by the staff, but I asked Sudo-sensei to procure them for us.

The other party’s student body president, Sera, seemed to be greatly bothered by the fact that every single idea she put forward was rejected.

It was not that it was a bad idea.

If it was a proposal that she herself had thought up and submitted, there must have been some appealing point that would have overturned the negative proposal that I had vaguely perceived.

However, since it was not her own idea, she was vulnerable when she was denied.

Shizuku and Kirasaka are sitting next to me, and President is sitting next to them.

For over an hour after the discussion began, President had only exchanged initial greetings and had not said anything.

As long as the other party doesn’t tell us what they are thinking, we don’t send our President out either.

This is the measure we came up with.

It is easy for President to take the lead and say something critical of the other party’s idea.

Moreover, it would be more effective than anything else.

But, it would also give the other party the impression that Hiiragi Akane is just criticizing them.

That is why it is probably best to list the problems that even ordinary students feel about the proposal, in order to avoid unnecessary worries later on.

Next to me, Shizuku was taking notes on the other party’s proposal.

The contents of the notes were not something special.

The idea was to collaborate with a brass band or chorus and a festival, the Sakura Festival.

However, the content and process of the collaboration are all problematic, and there is nothing that I can agree with.

“If you want to collaborate, we have a brass band in our school. We have a complete set of instruments, so why can’t they use them for the performance?

Shizuku opened her mouth in the room, which had become silent.

The students of the brass band will also set up a stall on the premises. If you want to move as much as possible, you have no choice but to ask the other side.

However, the other party shakes their head at the suggestion.

“The students will not be able to give a satisfactory performance unless they are familiar with the instruments, and they certainly want to bring in all of their instruments.”

“Then, why don’t you just bring them in?”

Kirasaka immediately responded to Sera’s words.

“Do you know how hard it is to bring in the instruments? There are so many of them, the school buses would have to make several trips back and forth.’

“Then we can just get the buses and people to move them, no problem, right? You can use the servants of my house or the buses.”

Kirasaka, who tells them in a nonchalant manner while brushing her hair, said it as if it were business as usual.

She is, after all, the daughter of one of the largest companies in the country.

That much is a piece of cake.

By the way, how much does that cost?

Do you have any discount coupons? I can give you a massage coupon for a shoulder massage.

Of course, Yuuto Ogiwara, a skilled person, will do this work.

As for me, I won’t do it. …I don’t even know what to do.

“…I refuse to cooperate with you personally.”

“Oh, okay.”

In a low voice, as if squeezed from the back of her throat, Sera refused Kirasaka’s proposal.

So far, I don’t know what the purpose of the proposal is.

If it is just to increase the number of applicants for admission to the school, why not just swallow our idea and hold the event as appropriate?

Is there something they want to show off?

Or, is it simply a matter of pride?

In Japan, a society of educated people, there may be many people who are proud of their schools.

But, I am sorry to say that I have never had such feelings toward schools.

Nor do I intend to.

After all, it is just a passing point in one’s life, and it is probably the ego of those who want to beautify the past.

This kind of discussion was going on for the last two days.

There are two days left until the weekend, which was the deadline.

The students from both schools won’t be available on Sundays, so the limit is Saturday.

It is honestly difficult to say at this stage whether or not there will be an end to this parallel line of discussions.

“I still don’t have a clear picture of what kind of joint project Kikyo Jogakuin is wanting to do…”

President, who had been silent up to this point, asked when the discussion seemed to be coming to an end.

Vaguely, it’s ‘let’s collaborate with the brass band and chorus!’ but they did not present any concrete plan or schedule, nor did they present the impact of the collaboration on attracting visitors.

For our part, we had already talked with the vendors involved in the Sakura Festival.

From equipment rental to stage set-up.

Canceling the event now would only result in unnecessary expenses.

It is almost impossible to change the venue of the festival.

Therefore, if we can share the image of the joint festival that they want, we can clarify whether we should do it in a certain way or whether we should do it individually at each school.

“Therefore, …our school’s traditional—“

“I understand that very well… but if it is to be a joint event, shouldn’t the traditional songs and performances be only be a part of it and not everything?”

President’s words silenced Sera.

Even the members of the student council surrounding her just look on anxiously at the sight of their head.

This alone gives an idea of what kind of position she holds on campus.

She must be a well-liked and trusted student body president.

The fact that the president of the student council is so silent in this situation makes it difficult for the students around her to say anything.

However, we don’t want to just verbally attack the other party.

To be honest, we still don’t agree with the joint proposal.

But, if there is no way around it, we have to find a reasonable compromise.

I don’t want to make the festival as convenient as the adults have made it out to be.

This is a festival for the students.

That’s why we want to share our ideal festival and plan it together, but we haven’t been able to do that yet.

“Let’s call it a day. …So shall we do it again, tomorrow after school?”

“Yes, we will reconsider the proposal on this side as well.”

Sera and President exchanged final words, and today’s meeting came to an end.

Kirasaka mutters as they leave the student guidance room and watches the president leave the students of Kikyo Girls’ Academy to see them off.

“Tradition, pride, those were the only words that came out of her mouth.

“…This has been a traditional event, and those girls themselves have no idea what they’re supposed to do in a joint effort.”

When they were completely out of sight, I turned around and answered.

The direction is towards the audiovisual room.

The committee is discussing the Sakura Festival at this very moment.

“But, why is it that they are also refusing Kirasaka-san’s proposal?”

“I don’t know about that. …Is there a reason why they can’t do it, or is there some sort of order from the school side…?”

I feel that there is too much of their desire to show the colors and characteristics of their own school to call it a joint event.

After all, I think it is obvious that they want to use the Sakura Festival, which is a festival and attracts a high number of visitors, to advertise their high school…

A school is an organization.　

The top gives instructions, and the bottom performs them.

If the top is greedy, the bottom must naturally act greedy as well.

It is natural to try not to be seen through, but if we are talking about high school students, it’s difficult to do so.

Negotiations would be a burden for young people who have only lived just over a decade.

The other party may have brought out the student council in accordance with the student-centered and free school culture of Sakuranaoka Gakuen, but this has become a disadvantage.

It’s a hassle, I thought, sighing and opening the door to the audiovisual room.

“Ah, senpai!”

As soon as the door opened, a voice echoed through the classroom as if it had been waiting for me.

It was Shiraishi who raised her voice.

She rushes over to the boy student in front of her, throwing him the papers she was holding in her hand.

The two girls next to me were about to stand as a wall in front of her, but I stopped them and asked her what she wanted.

“What…?”

“A group asked me to allow them to go over their budget.”

I knew that it would a problem…

After seeing her, I let out a sigh and looked down once.

I heard footsteps approaching from behind Shiraishi, and when I looked back, I saw Yuuto smiling behind her.

“Even you couldn’t convince them?”

“No, that was more like a special-…”

It’s a pity that even Yuuto Ogiwara, who was said to be the prince of the school, a mass of communication skills, and the embodiment of positivity, couldn’t persuade them!

I was thinking, ‘How pathetic!’ but I picked up the form that Shiraishi was holding.

There was a sheet of paper with information on which organization was submitting the budget application.

The name of the organization is…

“The baseball club really wants to hold a cosplay match!”

“Rejected.”

Idiot…

Don’t add more trouble to this place.

I tore up the application form right across his face without thinking, but it’s …okay, right?