" to speak.

“…I heard what happened from Yukinoshita this morning.”

She went through the trouble of calling me out. Then it must have been something
important. I straightened my back and focused my ears.

Miss Hiratsuka tapped the ashes of the cigarette into the tray again.

“It looks like she’s going to run for the student council president.”

“Who is?”

“Yukinoshita herself.”

When I asked, Miss Hiratsuka answered instantly.

Upon hearing it, my heart grew noisy.

Yukinoshita was going to run for the student council president.

The question of why she was doing it filled my head. Yukinoshita didn’t like standing
out in public. She even said it herself. Not to mention during the culture festival
when they tried to push her to be the committee chairman, she obstinately declined.
Above all else, there was also the Service Club.

Did Haruno’s provocations cause Yukinoshita to act? Was the ongoing war-like
discord between the two sisters something that wouldn’t so easily disappear?

As I fell into thought, Miss Hiratsuka added.

“Hayama is apparently doing the campaign speech for her.”

“Is that so…”

Hayama, huh…

True enough, when it came to the campaign speech, he was the most suitable choice.
But that was only if they were completely unrelated. I didn’t know the details behind
Hayama and Yukinoshita’s past. I’ve been doing everything up until now without
ever knowing. However, based on how Yukinoshita typically acted, I felt it didn’t fall
in line with her principles.

During the weekend, Yukinoshita decided to run for candidacy, contacted Hayama,

172

and got his consent to do the speech for her, huh? I couldn’t get a clear image of
what her motive and intent was, but the preparations alone were quite good. From
that alone, I could say it was very typical of Yukinoshita.

When Miss Hiratsuka crushed her cigarette, she softly looked up.

“Hikigaya, what will you do?”

“I won’t do anything. I can’t really be picky about their plans.”

Besides, if you thought about it normally, then Yukinoshita becoming the president
would settle everything. There wouldn’t be a need to look for other possible
nominees for candidacy. There just wasn’t anything problematic that I could see.

I was gritting my teeth, not having realized it.

“…If we’re just considering her qualifications, then she would be the most suitable
person.”

If anything, why didn’t that possibility ever come up? I unconsciously got rid of that
possibility.

That scenery and that period of time could easily collapse on itself at any time for
whatever reason and I was supposed to have been aware of that.

Miss Hiratsuka nodded to my mutter.

“I suppose so… There’s no one more suitable. I’m sure if everyone and the other
teachers knew, they would gladly welcome it.”

That was certain. The teachers probably weren’t the only ones. Even Meguri would
be relieved with it. If they knew, then the election wouldn’t be necessary. It was the
same as winning the majority.

“You haven’t told anyone yet?”

“Yes.”

Miss Hiratsuka made a sweet smile and lit up another cigarette. She puffed out a
smoke energetically and pointed at me.

“Well then, I’ll ask again. Hikigaya, what will you do?”

When she asked me, my thoughts were slower than my response of rejection.

173

I couldn’t approve of Yukinoshita running for the student council president.
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175

That’s why, regardless of what reasoning was presented, that was just an addendum.
However, eventually, she’d try to rationalize it. And I knew that Yukinoshita’s way of
doing things like that was wrong. In the end, if Yukinoshita tried to carry this burden
herself, then that was no different from the culture festival.

That way of doing things was something that I've already rejected.

In that case, this time would follow the same conclusion.

“…Miss Hiratsuka, do you have the key to the room?”

When I asked, Miss Hiratsuka made a dangling gesture with her hand.

“As always, Yukinoshita has been using the room during lunch break.”
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