Volume 1 - CH 3

After we exchanged that first kiss, Kurumi and I began meeting up a lot more frequently. For most of the days, after classes had ended, we met up at the astronomy club’s clubroom. With the Revenge Note in hand, we thought about our next attack, adjusting the schedule. We then prepared and acted out our revenge. Rinse and repeat.

After the ‘All-Student Abuse Distribution Campaign’ and the ‘Teacher Meme-ification Operation,’ we acted out two more plans. We set up a diversion tactic so that the students who hadn’t handed in their homework yet could still head home after classes, and we placed stickers and the like on the sunny spots in the cafeteria, writing ‘Upper classes only.’ We simply repeated our acts of terrorism over and over, which you could very well describe as minuscule mischievous deeds. But even so, we tried to overthrow the rule of this school and its vicious laws, all to make it a better place. And sparing the details, it was a hit or miss for most of the time. When we succeeded, we held a party in the club room. If we had the stuff to complain about, we shared passionate kisses.

Soon enough, this became our daily lives. And we…or at least I was happy. Comparing this to my first year when I could barely breathe in this garbage heap, I was definitely alive right now. And with the success of some of our operations, I would like to think that the atmosphere at the school has changed ever so slightly. The sense of something happening began filling the atmosphere. Both the school and I are slowly changing. This hellish place was moving towards a better time. It’s amazing, and it’s all thanks to Hoshimiya Kurumi.

“Hmm…Doesn’t really hit it home.”

One day, Kurumi was running her eyes through her Revenge Note, muttering these words. As always, we sat in the astronomy club’s club room—Our hideout. I closed the news article on my phone and looked at her.

“What’s up? Are you wondering about our next plan?”

“Well, somewhat. We’ve succeeded in some of our operations, right? That’s why I was thinking of getting into the big leagues, but everything I thought of doesn’t just hit home for me. It lacks the impact.”

Hm, I see. So today, she didn’t struggle to choose which plan to go with, and more like she struggled to come up with one. So even the Revenge Note is running out of material. How troublesome.

“And what did you have in mind?”

“Well, something that goes Bang and Boom and all that. Something that’ll send tremors through the school.”

“So a plan that involves a lot more people at once?”

An act of terrorism that shocks the school. Honestly, it sounds enticing. And after going through four separate operations, we had the experience necessary.

“What should we go with…Is there anything you’d like to do, Senpai?”

“A terrorism I’d like to do? Not even a genuine terrorist would have a conversation like this.”

“Hm, so annoying. Just throw in a suggestion.”

You make it sound so easy…I’ve just been listening to Kurumi’s orders so far, so no way I could easily come up with something. Silence filled the room, until Kurumi opened her mouth first, snapping her fingers.

“I know! How about we completely mess up the cultural festival that’s coming up!”

“Disrupting the cultural festival, huh? Well…”

“Our school has a festival toward the end of July, right? That’s in about a month! The classes and clubs should start preparing soon, so it couldn’t be more perfect!”

Yeah, the cultural festival is held at the end of July, right before summer break. Why is it held at such an inappropriate time? Because “A waste of time so worthless shouldn’t get in the way of the students studying,” duh? Right before summer break is the regular exam that decides which classes students end up in. After fall break, students are busy with entrance exams for university or job search. Once winter break rolls around, all third-year students and teachers are busy with regular exams, too, so that leaves no time for an event like that. That’s why they chose to keep the festival right before summer break. Honestly, it would be a great idea.

“But will we really be able to reach that many people…”

“Huh? Of course. The entire student body will participate, right? That’s plenty of people.”

“Oh? Wait, was your class not told yet?”

“About what?”

“Students from lower-ranking classes aren’t allowed to participate in the festival.”

Kurumi’s eyes shot open, and so did her mouth. I guess this must be news to her. Sadly, this was reality. All students belonging to the lower-ranking classes, as well as those who hadn’t handed in any kind of homework, are prohibited from participating. And it wasn’t just limited to opening up stalls or preparing an attraction. They were banned from entering the premises. According to the school, grades this year were supposedly exceptionally bad, so they decided on this rule in a hurry. When we were told about that during homeroom, the homeroom teacher did say “It’s your fault.”

The majority of students at Saigou High are part of the lower-ranking classes. Pair that with people who had yet to hand in any of their homework, and you won’t have any participants left. The festival is like a special right given to the selected few. It’s like they were nobility.

“And with barely anybody participating, I’m not sure if we could reach too many people. I don’t think it’s the best stage to commit another act of terrorism.”

“Whaaat, are you for real? I thought we actually had a good plan on our hands.”

“That’s the Saigou Law for you. Gotta have discrimination at every corner.”

“This school is just the worst…” Kurumi grumbled and then stretched her arms along the table.

Yeah, well, I understand the frustration of your idea being canceled before you could even plan it out. But, think about it. The fact that the cultural festival has shrunk so much in overall size is a good chance if you change your approach.

“Kurumi, I might have an idea of my own.”

“Oh? What is it? What is it? But it better be interesting.”

That…I can’t guarantee. I just think it’s not bad.

“How about we revive the cultural festival?”

“Revive…? Ah! You want to return it to the way it used to be?” Kurumi nodded several times, showing a mischievous smile.

It seems like she appreciates my idea.

“And it feels like a big operation, too. I like it.”

“Right? Making this cultural festival off-limits for lower-ranking students is another discriminatory rule. It’s the law of this school, so if we open up the festival for everyone, then we’re actively working to destroy the rules. It’s a rebellion against the school.”

“That is very true. And it would allow us to change the school.”

“I haven’t thought of a specific method yet, but how does that sound?”

“I think it’s great. I’m all up for it.”

Since Kurumi agreed, my suggestion was accepted.

“Then that’s decided. From now on, we’ll work towards reviving the cultural festival.”

“Yes! And by doing that…and then we’ll destroy it.”

“No, no, no, why would we go that far after all our hard work?”

I was expecting Kurumi to laugh it off, saying something like “Just kidding!” but…

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

Kurumi blinked at me, but I did the same thing. Did I…say something weird? I thought that was a bonafide report.

“What’s the big deal? Just ruin it all after we revive it.”

“Why would we go that far? We’re just invalidating our efforts.”

“So what? If we revive the festival, we can just do as we planned from the start and act out our terrorism.”

It’s almost like she struggled to understand what I was even saying. But after listening to her argument…We revive it…and then destroy it again. It sounds unnecessarily aggressive, but it’s not unthinkable. With more people there to watch and experience our terrorism, it’ll be even more worthwhile. Ruining the festival after bringing it back…could work. That does make it seem like we’re ridiculing it even more. I guess I was limited by my common sense.

“That’s like a kiddo destroying a block house it just worked hard to build.”

“Hahaha, but that’s just fine! We’re already worthless, anyway.”

Right-o. If Kurumi says so, who am I to disagree?

“Got it. So after we revive the cultural festival, we’re gonna mess it up.”

“Wohoo! Now I’m pumped! Cultural festival! Bring it back! Destroy it all! Oh, that sounds like a slogan, doesn’t it? I’m so clever!” She cheered with a smug face, but I just had to shake my head.

Nothing is clever or cool about this, and I’m not gonna sit here and accept that as our slogan.

“So for starters, let’s try and cook up a method on how to bring the cultural festival back to its original order.”

“Yeah, of course. But I already have an idea in that regard.”

“You cooked up something? Then out with it.”

“That’s…Hehe, I hope you look forward to it once it’s ready. This time, I can handle it myself.”

*

As for what Kurumi was planning…I found out quickly enough. Or rather, I happened to witness it. The day after she and I made up our plans to rebuild and then destroy the cultural festival when I got to school after buying food at the convenience store, the students were already acting restless.

“Hey, did you see that letter? The one you’d see during an abduction?”

“I did, I did. It was already scattered everywhere when I got here.”

On the way to the classroom, I heard conversations like that from all around me. Heading to a small crowd of people, I spotted the letter that turned out to be the basis of those rumors.

‘Restore the cultural festival. If not, you will see hell.’

It was like a threatening message in every sense of the word. Not to mention that this was created using snippets from newspapers. And they were put up all around the school. It looks like it could have been straight out of a drama. The irregularity of this situation and the hope that it might bring about change filled the school. Of course, our class was no exception. People talked about a lot of things happening lately, and this being the work of the same person who caused the stamp incident.

“Hey, Natsume-kun?”

As I was looking around the classroom, Tanaka-san suddenly started talking to me.

“Did you see that letter? I wonder what this scary thing they’re talking about is?”

“…I don’t know.”

“Just who did such a thing…I guess there are some scary people.”

As always, she had no idea who was doing this work behind the scenes. I just shrugged my shoulders in response. But of course, I knew who was behind all this.

*

Surely, it feels like it could have an impact on the level of a TV drama, and it allows us to threaten the school without much danger. Through this, the other students will find out what we’re doing, too. And since the message was created with snippets, they won’t be able to trace it back. I get the idea behind all this…but this won’t work. It’s not like I’ve become a professional after all those small acts of terrorism so far, but seeing that letter, it became clear. This won’t be enough to revive the cultural festival. Sadly, my assumptions were correct.

The letters put up by Kurumi were all removed by the teachers during the morning, and thrown away instantly. The only difference compared to before was the teachers saying stuff like ‘Don’t hang up random letters’ or ‘The criminal is to step forth and turn themselves in,’ but that’s about it. The rumors didn’t spread far, either, and the teacher pretended like nothing happened. And all this also because the letter didn’t mention any accurate threat, like a bomb threat or anything of that sort.

“Mmm…So it didn’t work out at all… Kiss…I thought it would work out a lot better when I set up everything this morning…”

“Mnn…Pah! Wait, Kurumi. Don’t enter your own world while aggressively kissing me…”

“Hmmm? What? You want me to focus on our kiss? Nnn!”

“…No. It just makes me feel like an idiot trying to stay alive.”

Classes ended, and as every day so far, I went to meet Kurumi in the astronomy club room. And right now, Kurumi was venting out her frustration by aggressively smooching me. Or rather, she was on my lap and one-sidedly pressing her lips on me.

“Nnn…Bleh…Puh. I guess we have to cause some act of terrorism, otherwise the threats will feel empty.”

“I think even any sort of crime won’t be enough to pose a genuine threat. It’ll just have the opposite effect.”

“What did you say? Hmph…Then what should we do? If you don’t give me a proper idea right here, right now, I won’t stop kissing you. Mbleh…And your lips will get all soggy…”

Kurumi pecked at my lower lips, licking along them, and stimulated my mind. This is bad. If this continues, the blood in my head is going to boil until I pass out. Luckily, I already gave this some thought on my way to the room. I corrected my upper body’s posture and had Kurumi sit on my lap as we stared at each other from up close.

“Kurumi, your approach is messed up.”

“Hm? My kisses are? C’mere, I’ll show you!”

“…I was talking about your way of creating threats.”

And even as I gave her a dubious look, she continued to press her lips on mine. I thought you were gonna stop with that once I started telling you of my plan…But, oh well. I’ll have to make do with this.

“I understand the intent behind your actions, Kurumi. But, the school won’t just readily swallow whatever condition you throw at them. And they don’t want to create a precedent for that, either. Because this probably won’t be the last time.”

“Nnn…Pah…I see…?”

“With such a direct threat, the school won’t act. We’ll have the school accept that there exists an outrage regarding their newly-enforced regulations in relation to the cultural festival.”

“Nnnn…You’re so cheeky despite being my senior…Open your mouth some more…Mmn…”

Telling me to come up with something out of the blue, followed by calling me cheeky…What’s her deal? Still gonna open my mouth, though. Kissing Kurumi, it’s the same as the cheers from the sports club or the sound of the wind instrument club at my back…A kiss from her is the moment I switch my feelings. By pressing our lips together, my mind becomes sharp. It feels like just the two of us in the world, removing all worries and anxiety. All that’s left is a sense of guilty pleasure and a clear mind.

“Puwah…!”

Kurumi seemed satisfied after our endless kissing and moved away from me, as another line of saliva connected us. It finally lost to the weight of gravity, collapsing, and disappearing. Kurumi watched it with a drowsy expression. She placed a bundle of her hair behind her ear and faintly opened her mouth.

“Senpai, you’re sounding so arrogant, you must have some sort of idea, right?”

“Well, somewhat. No clue if it’ll work out or not, though.”

“Dawww, don’t play with me like that. You keep getting my hopes up…”

I gently caught Kurumi who fell over to lean against my chest, as I tried to explain the idea I had.

“I’ve been thinking about it…but I doubt it’s possible to revive the cultural festival with just the two of us. We’re not going to run around doing pranks and all that. This time, we have to make the school accept our condition. And if we’re going to make this big, we need helpers.”

“…So you’re saying we should gather more allies?”

“Not necessarily. Rather, I was hoping to get temporary assistants, so to speak.”

Was my intent hard to understand? Did she not like my idea? I don’t know why, but Kurumi was pouting for a different reason compared to when we were kissing.

*

To all club presidents,

Summer is closing in on us, and most students from the lower-ranking classes will probably have spent most of their days in displeasure and disgruntlement at the severe discrimination the school has been conducting. As a result of that, any sort of participation in the cultural festival was strictly prohibited for the lower-ranking classes. For that reason, we suggest a gathering of all students to blow off some steam. Any student, disregarding year, gender, and even grades, is free to participate in this extracurricular event. To allow for this to happen, we ask all club presidents of clubs that harbor lower-ranking students to spread this message.

We only get to experience a student life like this once. Who would not want to make some irreplaceable memories? As for the details of the get-together, we would like to discuss them at a meeting. Surely, many of you must be busy, but we ask for your cooperation and your participation. You are free to decline after listening to what we have to say. But, we would be happy to see all of you there. Of course, if no interest is shown, then the get-together will be canceled. And so that regular students don’t spread any false information, we ask you to keep this invitation a secret from the others. The meeting to discuss the possible lower-class get-together will happen:

When? Lunch break, June 25th.

Where? The third floor of the second school building, supplementary room.

*

The supplementary room on the second school building’s third floor is also known as the ‘First-year Supplementary Exam Vista.’ It was usually full of first-year students who had to retake all sorts of tests and exams, which leads to it never being used on regular occasions, and no people come here, either. Because I knew that, I decided to use this room as our meeting space.

“All right. We should get ready before the club presidents get there.”

The room was completely barren, only offering the bare minimum. I changed the desks to create a U-shaped layout, sitting down at the seat the furthest from the entrance.

“…I’m shocked you could just send out invitations to random people you don’t even know.” Kurumi was going with her regular black-haired look today as she looked at me from my side.

“Honestly, I’m 50/50 on this one. Success, failure, it all depends on them.”

“50%? That’s not too high considering you actually went with this.”

“Unlike before, we have to make the school swallow our request. I don’t think we can make it through this without taking any risks. We need the determination to take the leap.”

“…Is that so?”

“Well, if this fails, then I’ll have to ask you to take the fall with me.” I smiled to brighten the mood, but Kurumi’s expression remained as stiff as before.

It seemed like she was concerned about something else.

“…Um, well, I…”

But right as she was about to say something, we heard a knock and footsteps from beyond the door. I moved my hand to stop Kurumi from talking. Once again, the goal of our operation…for this once, I asked her to let me handle dealing with possible supporters. I don’t want them to find out that Kurumi and I are actually on good terms outside of this whole thing. Albeit reluctant, Kurumi moved to the corner of the room, took out her cap with cat ears, put it on, and lowered her head so that her face couldn’t be seen. Finally, the door opened.

“…Excuse me.”

Together with those words, a tall third-year male student with bright, short hair arrived. That’s our first candidate—the president of the soccer club. I kept seated, as I waved my hand and beckoned him over.

“Welcome, welcome. Soccer club president, third-year class four, Iwata Shunsuke-san.”

The soccer club president looked around and then gave me a dubious look.

“…You seem to know about me, but who the hell are you?”

“I’m the organizer for the get-together, Natsume Ren from year 2 class 4. Nice to meet you.” I answered without lying or trying to hide my identity.

By the way, I’m not disguised in any way. I’m showing my true self and everything. It’s best to not try to hide anything when trying to gain others’ trust. Hearing my self-introduction, the soccer club’s president gave a blunt “Right,” response.

“I came here because I found some weird letter in my shoe box, so I came here.”

“So you’re willing to participate in this meeting? Thank you very much.”

“And that girl wearing a cap…Is she some staff? Wait, am I the only one who’s here?”

“We won’t know until we wait a bit longer, I fear.”

As we were talking, the door opened once again.

“Erm, hello? I’m here.”

This time, the club president of the light music club entered.

“Welcome, light music club president Kashiwagi Kanata-san from class 3-6.”

“What’s this about some get-together? Some letter asked me to come here.”

“You’ve made it to the right place. Please, have a seat.”

From then on, the door would open periodically, with more people entering. Towards the end, we had the soccer club’s president, the light music club’s president, the badminton club’s president, the movie research club’s president, and the basketball club’s president. Since I sent this invitation to seven people, that’s a quota I’m quite satisfied with. And with half of lunch break down, I doubt anybody else will get here. I cleared my throat once to gather everyone’s attention and then looked at the club presidents in order.

“Thank you very much for gathering here today. I’m the one who planned this off-school get-together, Natsume Ren from class 2-5. It’s nice to meet you.” I said and lowered my head, but no applause followed.

It seems like the club presidents still seemed a bit dubious about this whole meeting. But, I have to start somewhere.

“I will now explain the idea of the get-together, but first, there is something I’d like to ask all of you.” I breathed in once and then continued with a calm expression.

“Are you aware of what event is happening on the 23rd of July?”

The club presidents looked at each other with an “Oh, that?” expression. Understandably so. There’s no way they wouldn’t know.

“…The 23rd is the day of the cultural festival, right?” said the president of the soccer club, facing me.

Yes, that’s half correct. But, it’s worth 100 points, that’s for sure.

“Yes, that’s when the Saigou High’s cultural festival is held.” I nodded and then continued with a stern tone. “However, to all of you, it’s nothing but a school-free day.”

The presidents closed their mouths and glared at me. Understandably so, as the only club presidents I invited were part of the lower-ranking classes. All of the people present here don’t have the right to participate in the cultural festival.

“…Why’d you have to phrase it that way? What’s your deal?” The soccer club president said.

It seems like he’s going to act as the representative of the club presidents.

“Let me cut right to the chase. The higher-ranking classes are allowed to have their fun at the cultural festival, whereas we’re ordered to stay at home and study…Isn’t that unfair?”

The club presidents kept quiet but their expressions spoke for themselves. They must be wondering why they even came here. The soccer club president then spoke up with a blunt tone.

“It’s our fault for having bad grades, so what can we do?”

“Hearing you feel this way is a wonderful thing, but do you really believe it’s out of your reach? Can you really accept this mistreatment from the school and the higher-ranking classes?”

“…Well, I do think that prohibiting our entry to the cultural festival took things too far.”

The other club presidents seemed to agree with that fact, nodding along. And that’s just fine. If they even have the smallest level of discontent with this whole thing, then this operation will succeed.

“Then, I have a suggestion for all of you. I say that, on July 23rd, the students of the lower-ranking classes should fool around outside of school.”

“…Huh? What do you mean?”

“It’s not fair that only the higher-ranking classes get to have fun on that day, no? That’s why…we’ll do a get-together that’s completely unrelated to the festival…on the day of the festival. And to discuss this idea plus the details, I called you all here today.”

The club presidents were torn between unclarity and consent, as I stood up and explained my thoughts.

“As the badminton club’s president, you can borrow the gym hall and hold a tournament with the goal of interaction and mixing, and the light music club can hold a live concert at the nearby park. The movie research club could gather people to head to the nearby cinema. The soccer and basketball clubs could gather up the students not part of any clubs to do a BBQ or something enjoyable along those lines.”

“H-Hold on a second, this makes no sense.” The soccer club president scratched his head as he interrupted me.

“What do you mean something enjoyable? I get the idea of fooling around outside of the school because we can’t participate in the festival…but why are you the one suggesting that we still center it around club activities?”

A valid question, indeed. But, I set up this whole conversation so that he would ask me that. This is where the real deal starts. I continued my explanation like I was reading off a script.

“There’s a reason why I’m suggesting you to fool around on the day of the festival. To be perfectly honest, I want to bring back the cultural festival to its original shape.”

“Huh? The cultural festival…? Are you…the guy who put up those letters from before?”

“Not at all. It’s more accurate to say that I was influenced by these letters. Finding out that other students wished to bring back the cultural festival for everyone, I decided to assist with my own methods.”

The reason I showed my genuine desire and feelings was to raise the faith the club presidents have in me. I want to take a different approach from threatening the school, and I want to show them that my method will be more successful.

“The school won’t act just because of letters like that. So, I thought about it. What do we do to make the school reinstall the cultural festival to how it used to be? And then, I reached a single conclusion.”

“Conclusion? Do you have an idea…?”

“Yes. We just have to show him the trouble it will cause if they don’t let us participate in the festival.”

The club presidents still had dubious looks on their faces, so I continued.

“Because there are students who could cause trouble, it’s safer to lock up the students who do participate in the festival—That’s what the school will be thinking,” I repeated the same words I told Kurumi. “Something that could cause trouble, something that the school might want to avoid…That is for us students to gather outside the school in larger masses. Rather than gathering off-campus, the school most likely would want to keep us under their control. And to make this a reality, I need all of your help. That’s why I gathered you here.”

“So basically, you want to bring back the cultural festival to how it was, and you need us to do get-togethers outside of school for that reason?”

“Yes, precisely. I’m sorry for sending you such a deceiving letter.”

I apologized, but the club presidents still didn’t seem too convinced just yet.

“I get where you’re coming from, but what do we have to gain from participating in all that?”

“If the school doesn’t agree to reinstall the regular cultural festival, then you’re free to play around outside as you’d like. And if our plan succeeds, you can join us at the cultural festival. Either way, you get to have fun without being bothered by the school. I don’t think it’s that bad of an idea.”

The soccer club president showed a gesture like he was thinking. And if he’s still undecided, then I’ve got a chance, still. If he were to simply decline by saying “We can’t study, so we don’t have any right to fool around,” it’d be over. And then, if he had been brainwashed that much, I would have to give up. I looked at the president with a serious gaze and said.

“In order to move so many people, we need the influence of you club presidents.”

“That makes sense. That’s why you came to us, huh?”

“Exactly. I can get everything organized. You don’t have to worry about any of that. All I’d like you to ask is to get people together. And you can focus on your club members or other people you know. I’d simply ask you to gather up people. Would you be willing to help out?”

“You say that…But if the teachers were to find out, we’re in hot water…”

In that regard, there’s nothing to worry about. I’ve already prepared an excuse for that.

“That won’t be an issue. Even if the teachers find out, it’ll be just the five of us who attempted to get people together. Nobody will become the scapegoat.”

“Hmmm…”

Even now, the club presidents were hesitant. However, I used my final ace in the hole.

“I understand. Then, let’s do it like this…Any blame or responsibility will fall on me. In the truest sense, you will simply have to gather people who would be willing to have fun on the day of the festival. Is that good enough?” I asked, to which the club presidents looked at each other.

They seemed to be discussing things with their gazes, as the soccer club president glanced at me.

“Are you that dead-set on reviving the cultural festival?”

“Yes. If they were to create a precedent of limiting the cultural festival to the higher-ranking classes, they will use this as an excuse to keep going next year and the year after. So, I beg you, won’t you help me?” I asked with a weak voice to show my desperation.

I didn’t know how they took my attitude in this, but it seemed like my aim worked out. I believe they were just seeing me as a “Junior who had to rely on his seniors to save the cultural festival.”

“So we just have to get people together and ask them to ‘Hang out on the day of the cultural festival,’ right?”

“Yes. That is plenty.”

“…Gotcha. I’ll help you. I also wanna have some fun before I start on entrance exams. But don’t come crying if this plan doesn’t work out for you, okay?”

“Naturally. If that happens, you can just have fun at your get-togethers.”

“Great…So, what about you guys? You in on this, too?” The soccer club president turned toward the other participants, who showed positive reactions.

“Thank you very much, everyone. I’m truly grateful for your assistance.” I put my hands on my desk to deeply lower my head.

And then, I laughed to myself. They all played on the palm of my hand, not knowing a single thing. You think you’re helping a poor yet passionate senior, but…you just made a deal with the devil.

“I would like to avoid any risk of the school finding out about our plans. So, I ask you to keep this meeting a secret from other people.”

“…Noted.”

“Thank you very much. Then, let’s move on to discuss the details.”

*

A few days passed since the initial meeting when we arrived at a regular day’s lunch break. The cafeteria at Saigou High once again showed a prime example of discrimination, the sunny spots used by higher-ranking classes, whereas the lower-ranking classes cower in the darker areas. Sometimes, places and chairs were stolen by higher-ranking students, with the teachers not even batting an eye. This whole sight really made you lose your appetite. However, there was a slim difference compared to a few weeks ago. Namely, the lower-ranking students sounded a lot more energetic when speaking with their classmates.

“I heard the light music club’s gonna do a live concert. Are you gonna check it out?”

“On the day of the cultural festival? I’ve actually decided to check out the BBQ.”

“Seriously? Maybe I should go there, too.”

These conversations I heard from the darker places inside the cafeteria. I took out my smartphone and typed up a message.

‘I heard another conversation. Seems like the club presidents are carrying their weight.’

I sent this to Kurumi, who quickly responded.

‘Sure looks like it. The people sitting close to me talked about watching a movie on the day of the festival.’

Raising my head, I looked diagonally across the cafeteria, meeting eyes with Kurumi. She faintly raised her lips and munched her cheeks with curry rice, returning to her lunch. Today, Kurumi and I worked to check how well the development of the get-together was coming along, coming to the cafeteria. Sure, we could have just checked in on the random classes, but here at the cafeteria, you can really see exchanges between juniors and seniors, which makes it the perfect place to check. And the reason we were sitting apart is so that we could listen in on various places.

As of right now, the club presidents were doing great work gathering participants for the events. It wasn’t reaching boiling point, but more and more people have started talking about it. While listening in on the conversations around me, I slurped on my udon, when my phone vibrated. A new message from Kurumi. She might have gathered some new information, so I should check it.

‘When you’re eating like that, you look like a guinea pig, and it’s really cute.’

Never mind, she’s just wasting everyone’s time.

‘Don’t say that, you’re just making me self-conscious.’

‘Sending secret messages like this makes it feel like we’re having a hidden office romance, don’t you think?’

‘We’re not working at an office, nor are we in love.’

This isn’t some game, so get back to your work. I raised my head, when I saw Kurumi stick out her tongue at me. What is with her recently? Then again, I understand that she’s getting tired of this. We’ve been sitting here for a while already. And from all this, it became clear that progress wasn’t half bad. I think it’d be fine to get back to the classroom. That’s why I was about to send one last message, when—

“Oh? Natsume-kun?”

I heard a voice from the previously empty seat ahead of me. I didn’t have to look at their face to tell that this translucent voice belonged to Tanaka-san. She carried a fried lunch menu on her tray, looking down at me.

“It’s rare to see you here in the cafeteria.”

“Well…I couldn’t stop by the convenience store this morning. Are you only now starting your lunch?”

“Ah…Yeah. I met up with some friends, which is why I ended up late.” She showed a complicated smile and gave me a hesitant look. “Um…Natsume-kun? Are you about to finish your lunch?”

“Erm, I’ve still got some left. Why?”

Tanaka-san looked around and then sighed.

“I see. Do you mind if I join you, then? I’m alone right now, see.”

“Oh, yeah. Sure, I don’t mind.”

I cleaned up the table a bit to offer some space for Tanaka-san, who signed in relief while saying “Thank god” as she placed her tray. This is pretty convenient. Not only am I happy that we get to eat lunch together, but I can also use this chance to see if there’s more talk about the get-together.

‘Sorry, you can go back ahead without me. I’m gonna keep checking here a bit longer.’

I sent Kurumi another message and put my smartphone in my pocket. Tanaka-san put her hands together as she said “I’m digging in,” slurping up some of her udon noodles before I struck up a conversation.

“Oh yeah, were you part of any club, Tanaka-san?”

“Club? Nope. I’m too busy with homework and all that.”

“Well, knowing our school, I don’t blame you.”

“It’s a shame. Why the sudden question, though?”

I pretended to feign innocence and brought up the main topic.

“Well, I’ve been hearing about some of the clubs hanging out on the day of the cultural festival. So I was wondering if you had any plans like that.”

“Ah, that? I heard about that, too. The BBQ and whatnot, right?”

“Yeah, exactly. But I guess you’re not gonna participate?”

“Hmm…I don’t think I will. I mean, I heard you can join them even when you’re not part of the club, but I think I’ll pass. I doubt the teachers would let us do that, either.”

So she’s worried about the teachers. I guess she really is an upright girl.

“Did none of your friends invite you?”

“They did. Especially since we can’t participate at the cultural festival. But I still declined.”

I see…so this story has reached even the girls of the second years, huh? Hearing it directly really helps in gathering intel. And I found out how her friends feel about this, now.

“What about you, Natsume-kun? Do you think of participating?” Tanaka-san asked as she tilted her head, and I responded with the answer I had prepared.

“Nah, probably not. There’s also talk about some movie night or live concert at a park, but I don’t feel too interested in any of those.”

“Ah, I didn’t know about that. Everyone’s so proactive.”

With this, I could advertise the other events outside the BBQ. This should do it. I slurped on some of my udon noodles and then struck up a new conversation completely unrelated to the operation.

“Oh yeah, on a different note, we talked about songs I liked before, right?”

From there on, we were just talking about random things. And while we were discussing this and that, I matched her pace and finished eating at the same time as her. But going back to the classroom would have been a bit too awkward, so I said I had to stop by the staff office and get up ahead of her. I grabbed my tray and placed it in the tray storage. On the way there, I spotted Kurumi’s back. She also placed her tray without saying a word, quickly disappearing into the hallway without turning to look at me.

I told her she could go back, and yet she stayed all this time? That being said, calling out to her now would’ve made us look suspicious, so I decided to send her a message instead. Once I had placed my tray down, I looked around to make sure no teacher could see me as I took out my smartphone.

‘Seems like everyone knows even club outsiders can join the events.’

The message went off with a dull SHUP sound. She did read my message, but no response came back. Maybe she didn’t have time to write anything, or maybe she thought there was no response necessary. Either way is fine, really. I was about to stuff my phone away when I saw that her profile had been updated. Looking at it, her status message now read “Liar.”

*

Some things did concern me about all of this, but once we met up after classes ended, Kurumi was the same as always. We had planned on holding a strategy meeting today, but when I entered the room a bit later than usual, she was just lounging on her chair, playing with her cap.

“Oh, Senpai. You’re late today. Were you out taking a smoke break?”

“Homeroom just took longer than usual. And…I haven’t been smoking since then.”

“Hmmm? Since then? What do you mean? You have to be more specific.”

Kurumi snickered, as she was in Revenge Mode. What a terrific girl. I sat down facing her when she put on her cat-ear cap. She then proceeded to take out a yellow notebook and placed it on the desk together with a pencil. What a familiar sight.

“Then, let’s get this strategy meeting started.”

“Right…Though, is there even anything for us to discuss? Things are going great, right?”

“In regard to the cultural festival making a recovery, yes.”

“…Ah, I see what you’re on about.”

“Today, we should discuss our plans regarding destroying the cultural festival.”

The festival happens in the later half of July. Assuming we succeed in reviving the festival, we’d be too late in thinking up a plan on how to destroy it. That’s probably what’s on Kurumi’s mind. And I’ve got no objections with that. I always like to be as prepared as possible when it comes to our terrorism. It’s good to keep everything marked down.

“What should we do, I wonder? It’d be good if we made it something flashy, at least,” she said and flipped through the pages of her Revenge Note.

I was hoping she would have some sort of suggestion, but I guess she didn’t.

“For something big, you need the impact, right? That’s gonna be a lot harder to cook up.”

“Hm…Maybe we could set up some massive fireworks? Make them go boom?”

“But you need official permission for that. No way we can get our hands on any permission, let alone the big stuff.”

“Let’s forget about being able to do it or not. Just as a simple idea, how do fireworks sound?”

“It’d be flashy, but I feel like they will just think it’s a natural part of the festival.”

Plus, fireworks don’t have any beauty in them. We need to think about the message. Our operations so far had a certain level of mischievous behavior to them, but they had definite intent. A twisted perception of beauty. Put in simple terms, it’d like street art from Banksy1, showing a type of rebellion against the government and the world. Leaving aside deeds, the heart behind those actions lines up. It might be hard to accomplish, but equally worthwhile.

“I’d prefer a type of terrorism that will leave regret and pain on the school.”

Seems like she figured out what I was thinking, as she pouted and crossed her arms.

“Regret and pain…Let’s think about the reason the school would even hold a cultural festival.”

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“If all they cared about was the students studying, they wouldn’t even bother with an event like the cultural festival. So, how did such an event manage to survive all the way until today? I feel like the reason for that might help us in figuring out a good idea.”

“Ah, I see. By the way…For regular schools, the goal of a cultural festival is to teach the students how to manage themselves, as well as to have them understand the importance of teamwork and relying on others.”

“Oh, really? I’m surprised you know.”

“I’m a genius, after all. So, please praise me some more.” Kurumi showed a confident smirk and flashed her smartphone screen.

There, she had her browser open, the current search being ‘Cultural Festival – Reasons.’ God damn modern girl.

“Self-management and the importance of teamwork…huh? Now that sounds just dandy. But at our school, it’s all about grades. They don’t think about wanting to prepare the students for society.”

“Most likely, yes. But then…why are they willing to continue a practice like this?”

“This being a private school, they might get some benefits?”

“Hmm, benefits? The sales from the stalls and such?”

“I don’t think the profits are enough to make that worthwhile. Also, the income is mostly being used to be donated.”

In the end, a private school is based on profit. Just how much does Saigou High bring in from tuition fees, and how much do the teachers get paid? Maybe reaching that information could lead to us figuring out an answer.

“…Maybe they’re using the cultural festival to show investors, guardians, and possible new students that there’s nothing wrong with this school? Like a type of visit day?”

“Ahhh, that would make sense. When I was still in middle school, I actually came here to see the festival myself.”

“Without a festival, it might negatively impact future applicants.”

“True. And they definitely would want to avoid that. Maybe that’s the reason? But what a sharp deduction. As expected of Senpai.” She clapped a few times.

I feel like anybody would be able to reach that conclusion, but being praised didn’t feel too bad, to be honest.

“So the biggest pain we could cause the school…is to come up with a method to lessen the number of possible applicants?”

“Yeah, pretty much. If we could teach all of humanity to not apply for this school, that would be the best…”

“Yes, so we should come up with an act of terrorism to achieve that…”

We thought about it for a moment, but the first one to raise their finger was Kurumi.

“Considering possible applicants, wouldn’t it be good for us to hold a true school assembly?”

“A…true school assembly? Ah, you mean like teaching the possible applicants about all the terrible things happening at this school?”

“Exactly! That’s what I was thinking of. A genuine assembly would probably not work out, but we can leak information about the school. For example…leaking recorded audio during classes and playing them out loud? We will let the possible applicants experience what awaits them if they apply at this school.”

“A broadcast of abuse, huh…Possible. But how do we pull that off? Sounds hard.”

“We could hijack the broadcasting room during the day of the festival? This’ll reach the whole school.”

Hijack…But that would make us genuine terrorists. Well, using the broadcasting room during the festival isn’t impossible. You could come up with the right excuses to get in and chase out the other people.

“And during the climax, too. When everyone’s having fun, we play a broadcast of abuse. Saying something like ‘Let us introduce to you…The daily scenery at our Saigou High!’ It’d be the greatest possible finale!”

“I see…Yeah, that could work.”

“Then it’s decided. We should then focus on recording these insults and abuse. Something that’s especially bad. I just hope we can find something…”

“Hold on.”

I took out my smartphone and placed it on the table.

“I’ve got recorded data with me.”

Kurumi looked at me in disbelief as her eyes lit up.

“Huh? What? Why? When did you…”

“…Way before we met.”

It was at the beginning of this year. When I told the teachers to stop being so abusive. I was considering threatening them with releasing this, but could never put it into action. But to think it would come back to help me like this.

“As expected of you, Senpai! Then let’s go with this plan!”

“…Yeah.”

We did a fist bump, and after pulling my hand back, I looked down at my own fist. The first plan of our operation—the revival of the cultural festival—is going great. And we decided on how to destroy the festival, too. I see now…we’re trying to grasp absolute control over this school. Do we bring it back to life? Do we kill it? It’s an odd feeling. Like a sense of anxiety but omnipotence filled my body, making me drunk. And the smartphone in my pocket felt a lot heavier than usual.

*

The following day, I was listening in on the conversations of my classmates from the moment I entered the classroom. More and more people heard about the get-together, creating a snowball effect that raised participants. Of course, some get-together as a name left the girls a bit hesitant, but the boys did a great job of calling it a ‘Recreational party’ or ‘Fun gathering,’ which helped our poor naming. Naturally, with things proceeding in such a convenient way, there had to be a turning point eventually. During the day’s final homeroom class, our homeroom teacher had a few words to say with his sour face.

“There seems to be an individual planning some sort of gathering outside the school on the day of the festival, but you should stop fooling around. We told you that all students of the lower-ranking classes are to stay at home and study. The teachers who have time on the day of the festival will be patrolling the surrounding area, so make sure you stay at home.”

Murmurs could be heard inside the classroom. The people who had planned to head out and have fun clearly did not like this.

“This year’s results of the lower-ranking classes are exceptionally bad. You don’t even understand this without me having to spell it out?”

The classroom was filled with a tense air, but once the teacher began speaking of the end-of-term exams in July, that got even worse. It was the exact moment where all fooling around turned deadly serious. With this, all plans of any get-together on the day of the festival fell flat. Thus, our naive operation reached the worst possible ending—Well, not quite.

Everything up to this point was exactly as I had anticipated it would happen. Just by causing trouble outside school, we won’t be able to bring back the regular cultural festival. That was painfully clear from the very start. All within my range of calculations. My plan is working out perfectly, so it’s time to move on to the next step—and write another invitation.

*

“Hey, that whole plan of yours fell flat completely. What’s that about?”

The moment all members had gathered at the second school building’s supplementary room, the soccer club president fired away. We once again sat in a U-shape, with all the club presidents glaring at me.

“The teachers are gonna be patrolling now. Luckily, we didn’t get drilled out by them ourselves, but this makes the whole plan of reviving the cultural festival a failure.”

“That’s right. That’s the situation on our hands.”

“I was looking forward to getting all the ingredients and whatnot this Sunday. It’s like I got left to hang dry during the rain.”

As the soccer club president lamented this failure, the light music club muttered “And we practiced so hard, too.” Other voices were following, such as “We were training, as well,” and “There was a movie we really wanted to watch.” After they all got their grumbling done, the soccer club president sighed once and looked at me.

“So, Natsume. What do we do now.”

“What do you mean?”

“The get-together and cultural festival. Since you sent us another invitation, you must have another idea cooking, right?”

Gazes of anticipation gathered on me. It seemed like the club presidents hadn’t given up yet. I looked at all their faces in order—and then purposefully created a dubious expression.

“Not at all? The plan has failed. The cultural festival is ruined. That’s all there is to it.”

A few seconds of silence passed, and the one to break apart this silence was the soccer club president.

“The hell?! You didn’t think of anything else we could do?!”

“No, I’m all out of ideas, myself.”

“But then why did you get all of us here?!”

“I figured it would be best to at least report the fact that our plan failed.”

“I didn’t need anything like that! I heard plenty from the teachers!”

The other club presidents nodded along.

“…So, this is the end? The whole thing about creating memories…Done and dozer?”

“That is the case, yes. There is nothing else that I could suggest.”

“So pointless! Tsk, I was an idiot for taking this dumb idea seriously!” The soccer club president cussed and made his way to the door.

He probably thinks that there’s nothing else to discuss here. And with him as the representative heading out, the other club presidents decided to do the same. One scratched their head, and the other shrugged, but they all got up.

“…Senpai.”

Kurumi had appeared next to me, giving me an anxious look. Oh come on, don’t look at me like that. Because…there’s no need to worry. This is where my true plan begins.

“Are you going to just give up?”

Right before the soccer club president could open the door, I called out to him. Like waves spreading on the surface of the water, the other presidents turned around, until he sighed and looked back at me.

“That’s my line. We came here because you called for us.”

“No, what I said still holds true.” I stared back at the president with strength in my gaze that wouldn’t lose against him. “Let me ask you again. Will you just give up as the school and higher-ranking classes still have both your money and freedom?”

“…What?”

“You’re paying money to let the higher-ranking classes have fun and fool around. And you’re fine with that. Thanks for your tribute.”

The presidents furrowed their brows. It sure looked like they had no idea what I was talking about.

“Hold on. What are you talking about? I get the whole freedom part, but what’s this about money and tribute? When did we ever pay money to the higher-ranking classes?”

Oh, huh. I guess they didn’t know after all. Well, then let me teach you—About the twisted darkness of this school.

“I’m talking about the budget for extracurricular activities.”

“Huh? The hell is that?”

“One part of the tuition you pay at Saigou High. In terms of raw money, you’re looking at a solid 50,000 yen. It’s part of the money your parents worked hard to earn and paid for the school at the beginning of the year.”

“…So, what about it? What tribute are you talking about?”

“Don’t you get it? The budget for extracurricular activities…flows into money for the cultural festival’s budget instead.”

Strictly speaking, not all the money goes towards the budget for the cultural festival, but that’s an unnecessary detail that I can leave out.

“The lower-ranking classes are paying the budget for the cultural festival. Even though you’re not allowed to participate.”

“Huh? Wait…I thought the lower-ranking classes were only supposed to pay a minuscule amount of that?”

“Of course not. Prohibiting the lower-ranking class from participating in the cultural festival was a sudden decision. You pay your tuition every year, so you’ve already paid into their pockets.”

The club presidents looked at each other with troubled looks on their faces.

“…The hell? Natsume, that shouldn’t…”

“Not to mention that they adjusted the rule so that not only the lower-ranking classes, but anybody who had yet to hand in any sort of homework was prohibited. That would mean they had to repay all those students. No way they would.”

It might very well be possible, but knowing the track record of this school, the chances are slim. I highly doubt they would care about students that much. And since I was talking to lower-ranking classes right now, they held the same level of distrust as me. The rest is simple. I have to foster this feeling of doubt and distrust with my own words.

“All my dear seniors, this school undoubtedly misuses the money it collects from its students.”

“…Is that true?”

“Money used for planning the festival…I wonder what the teachers are going to do with yours? Heading out to drink? Pachinko? Some might even visit a soapland for all I know.”

Suddenly, the air became much denser. It seems like they all latched on.

“Do you get it now? We are illegally kept away from the cultural festival.”

“…”

“The teachers and the kettle trained by this school truly believe those who don’t excel at studying are not worthy. Sadly, this whole thing isn’t so easy to fix.”

To make the frustration and rage inside their hearts even stronger, I continued.

“Paying for the festival while being prohibited from participating…That is just ludicrous, don’t you think?”

It seemed like they all understood the sheer insanity of this school. They looked at each other, trying to figure out how the other felt. This is it. I tickled their hatred, as well as the complex that was fostered over the years.

“So please, feel free to go home. Fail the next set of exams, score horrible grades, get discriminated against, have your freedom stolen, and your money stolen for the sake of the people who are better than you…howling losers.”

“…”

“Why don’t you keep living your life like this? Worthless except being treated like a slave.”

“You don’t have to phrase it that way, you know?”

The soccer club president walked toward me, grabbing my collar. I can’t be scared here. I just stared him right in the face.

“Apologies, Senpai, but I’m not the one you should be getting angry at.”

This sparked the flames of war.

*

‘We just have to make the school realize that trouble will brew if they don’t let the lower-ranking classes participate in the cultural festival.’

That was my thought and the truth. However, my measures and procedure to revive the cultural festival, I didn’t tell Kurumi or the club presidents. Ever since I saw Kurumi’s letters spread around, I have been thinking about this. At this school, they think that they can control the students simply by tickling their complexes and traumas. And with some half-baked threat, you won’t be able to reach any sort of common ground. The cultural festival won’t be revived with just this. So then, what do you do? The answer I came up was this—

We just have to teach the school that the students won’t abide by their rules and that this isn’t just on any half-baked level. In other words, I’m going to cause a fire that will blow up conflict. If the students can’t be put under control again, the school will move. And then, they’ll be forced to open up the festival for all students. After I told the club presidents about the extracurricular fees, more chaos ensued at Saigou High.

“Sensei, some seniors mentioned this before, but what is happening to our extracurricular activity fees?”

“Is it true that we’re paying the same money as the higher-ranking classes despite being forced to study at home?”

In the morning when I arrived at school, the class representatives were harshly closing in on our homeroom teacher. It seems like the information I spread to the club presidents has been to make rounds. The homeroom teacher seemed surprised to be asked that question, too, as they gave a vague response and tried to leave this place

“Stop worrying about pointless things and focus on your studies.”

Leaving the hallway, I had similar conversations with various other places. You stupid teachers, this kind of vague response will only fuel the flames more. And finally, the students’ displeasure against the teachers and school began rising, as they started speaking out towards not only the repayment of the money for extracurricular activities but also their forceful closure of the get-together, reaching the point where they would write ‘Scam School’ on various boards all around campus. This ruckus only continues to grow.

Sure, the lower-ranking classes may have gotten somewhat used to this environment colored in discrimination, but they are not slaves. With the fraud-like behavior surrounding the money, nobody would stand still now. The teachers fought back by insulting and threatening the students, as well as attempting to explain the rumor regarding the tuition, but the rebellion of the lower-ranking classes only grew stronger with time. And while pretending to be an average student unrelated to any of this, I smiled to myself.

It’s a realistic flow of events. Can’t just put out the fire that I started by setting up the get-together, despite it being such a chore to act out. Because if we wanted the whole school to get criticized, we needed a major plot. Even if Kurumi and I screamed, we’d be met with deaf ears. That being said, if we spread papers and documents of the school’s mistreatment of funds and the like, it would end the same way as Kurumi’s attempt. To actually bring about some major change, we needed to create disgruntlement with a major number of students, and then make it all explode at once. That’s why I planned the whole get-together fully aware that the school would put a stop to it.

The students thought they could have some fun outside of school, only to be left hanging. The soccer club president was absolutely right when he said they were left out to dry. Creating a method that will create even bigger displeasure with the school, I used the fraud of the extracurricular activities fee as a trigger. This was my original plan to revive the original cultural festival. You’re too naive, you damn teachers. You won’t be able to deceive me. Who’s at fault here? You are the ones who caused all this by prohibiting us from participating in the cultural festival.

And a few days after all this blew up, it even reached the outside world. According to the rumors I heard, some parents from the students of the lower-ranking classes came to call the school to ask about the money they paid. And even the higher-ranking classes threw in complaints. That especially was very effective, as the teachers had an emergency meeting after school. You can’t talk your way out of this again. Acting innocent won’t get you far. They now have two choices. Either, they repay the fees to the students who won’t participate in the festival, or they open it up for everyone.

Realizing that Saigou High is a private school, they will need the money. They wouldn’t want to use any money on a lawsuit or to repay the other students. However, letting the lower-ranking classes participate in the festival is simple. They had planned for this to happen from the start, anyway. They had made the preparations. Even if they had changed it so that only higher-ranking classes could participate, they wouldn’t suffer many consequences for taking their initial plan back. This school will definitely open up the cultural festival.

Eventually, a few days passed, a whole week after the rumors started spreading, bringing us to a certain homeroom class in the morning. Our homeroom teacher stood at the teacher’s desk in the front, beginning their talk like they were holding some sort of speech.

“We’ve got some important news today. So listen carefully. We’ve never misused any tuition or budget. This whole extracurricular activity fee you speak of is—”

—not something that is solely being used for the festivals, nor is it something the teachers have access to, and it’s more like a reserve—and so on, so forth. Of course, the students in our class weren’t happy with just that, and they knew this wasn’t all of it. So after seeing all these reactions, the teacher sighed and began bringing up the main topic—which was the same as declaring their defeat against the lower-ranking classes.

“…However, we understand that you won’t believe a word we say, so the decision was made that all students are allowed to participate in the cultural festival, at least for this year.”

The classmates, who had previously looked like dead corpses and zombies, now showed excited cheers.

“We will allow your participation at the cultural festival, but keep it at a sensible level. You are still in the lower-ranking classes, so studying should be your top priority. The end-of-term exams are closing in, too…”

Nobody even listened to the rest of the speech anymore. Instead, the students were basking in their victory, discussing their next plans and such. And while I watched this relaxed atmosphere in the classroom, I quietly sighed in relief. This time around, we deceived a lot of people. I thought about this non-stop, but there could always be errors, which is why the relief really hit right now. I’m just glad everything worked out because now we’ve completed the cultural festival revival phase.

After homeroom ended, I stretched my arms, when I felt a gaze from the seat next to mine. Looking over, I met eyes with a pair of translucent gems. It was Tanaka-san, smiling at me.

“Natsume-kun, now we get to participate in the festival!”

“Ah, yeah. Seems like it.”

“Hee hee, I’m so happy. Let’s make lots of memories together.”

…What did she mean by that? How should I interpret that? I don’t know, but it did feel as if she was praising me, and I didn’t hate that.

*

The following day the school accepted their defeat, I once again invited the club presidents. But this time around, it was more of a personal business. The operation I set up most definitely worked out because of their help. With just Kurumi and I, any kind of attempt would have gotten silenced by the teachers immediately. That’s why I wanted to thank them no matter what. I felt like I had to in order to get proper closure.

So, when I was waiting at the usual supplementary room during lunch break, they arrived. And the atmosphere they brought with them was definitely different from before. Their expressions were full of confidence and relief, almost like their doubts had been cleared up. Once I had confirmed that the five club presidents were seated, I cleared my throat once and began talking.

“Thank you for gathering like this, everyone.”

“…Natsume. Good thing we managed to bring back the cultural festival,” the soccer club president said so, as I greeted him with a bow.

“It’s thanks to you spreading those rumors, putting the school against the wall. Thank you.”

“Nah, we just started acting because none of that made any sense.”

“Even so, it’s thanks to your influence that we managed to get back our cultural festival.”

Everybody would be happy being thanked like this, and they seemed satisfied, too.

“Just like I wrote in the invitation, I asked you all to meet me here because I wanted to thank you.”

“You don’t need to thank us. We did it for our sake, that’s all.”

“Even so, I wanted to. You’ve helped me a lot, and although it happened in a different way from what I expected, we accomplished our final goal. So, thank you very much,” I said with my mouth, but in my mind—

—Thank you very much for being deceived and acting like the perfect pawns.

“It might not be much, but I’ve prepared something of a token of gratitude for all of you,” I said and picked up a vinyl bag that I had left in the corner of the room.

Inside were 500ml bottles of tea. I bought them from the drugstore just this morning. And while I voiced my gratitude, I began handing them out to everyone.

“Sorry about this. Are you sure we should be getting this?”

“Of course, no need to be humble. In fact, I feel bad that this is all I could offer you.”

The soccer club president nodded, opened the lid, and took a sip. With this, my mission is complete. I finished doing everything I wanted. No more regrets. We probably won’t ever be involved again.

“It may have been for a short time, but I wouldn’t want to waste all of your time, so I say we disband our group today. Sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused you, and thank you very much for everything.”

A round of applause followed. I really had no right to receive this kind of treatment, but it’s appropriate, so I’ll take it. I headed to the entrance of the supplementary room and opened the door, when the club presidents slowly began heading out one after the other, talking to each other while saying stuff like “The light music club’s gonna go on stage now.” “Wait, for real? Maybe I should go check it out.” The one who stayed last was the soccer club president. He gulped down the rest of his tea and attempted to leave the room. Since he acted as the representative and did the most help in our discussions, I wanted to thank him personally. When he reached my side, I smiled and spoke up.

“President Iwata, thanks for always gathering everyone’s opinions.”

“Hm? Ah, it’s fine. In fact, I should apologize for my tone that last time.”

“Don’t worry about it. I wasn’t sugarcoating my words either, so we’re even.” I responded with the answer I had prepared.

How do I say this…the soccer club president is just especially easy to read. It’s thanks to him having become the leader during our conversations that I could easily control the flow. In that way, I am thankful to him. Not like I could tell him about that, though.

“The get-together may have fallen flat, but now we can all enjoy the cultural festival, right?”

“Yeah. We’re gonna decide on what our class does from now on, so come check it out.”

“Of course, with pleasure.”

I was thinking we’d shake hands and that would be the end of it…but the soccer club president showed his white teeth as he threw this line at me.

“Oh yeah, I gotta thank you, too, Natsume.”

“What? Why?”

“Your initial idea may not have worked out, but it’s thanks to you telling us about the whole extracurricular activity fee that we realized we were being deceived. So, thanks for that.”

“Ah, well…”

All I did was whisper evil into his ears. Nothing that would deserve any gratitude. Why is it that I can’t read his thoughts at the very end like this?

“But first, we’ve got the end-of-term exams. Catch you later, Natsume.”

“Yes, of course. See you around.”

Watching the club presidents walk off, it felt like a set of fingers grasped my heart. Something made me feel restless and uncertain. What is this? Why am I feeling this way? I tried to figure out what it was—when a warm sensation was pressed against my right cheek.

“…Kiss!”

I was forcefully dragged back into reality. It sounded wet, as a faint breath tickled my face. And, a large cap bumped against my head. I didn’t even have to think about what just happened. Looking to my side, Kurumi had just finished fixing her cap and smiled at me.

“What’s up, Kurumi?”

“Hee hee, I wanted to give you a reward.”

Giving me a kiss as a reward for such an evil deed, she really is a bad woman. She crossed her hands behind her back, making her way next to me.

“Involving the entirety of the lower-ranking classes to cause an explosion…So this was your true plan all along?”

“Yeah. I figured that making things escalate this much will force the school to act.”

“You could have told me, though.”

“My bad for keeping quiet. But, you know…To deceive the enemy, you must first deceive your allies.”

“So the club presidents are the enemy?”

“…No, not at all. Are you angry? I’m really sorry, okay. I just didn’t want to tell you because it’d be hella embarrassing if I failed.”

Kurumi pointed at my lips, saying “I’ll forgive you with this,” and I abided by pressing my lips onto hers.

“Mmnn!”

It was like a makeup kiss. Another type of kiss we experienced for the first time. Once I moved my face away, Kurumi smiled with flushed cheeks. It seems like she forgave me.

“Hee hee…You actually managed to revive the cultural festival. That’s Senpai, for you.”

“I just did what I could, but luck was on my side.”

“But luck is part of skill. I was worried for a moment, but I believed you could pull it off.”

She believed in me…huh? She accepts me and praises me…I’m the one who is being threatened here, but there’s something about her personality that leaves me unable to hate her. There’s the word “Femme fatale,” too. I do admire her, but I have to be careful not to get sucked in. And while I was thinking that, she pushed her elbow into my side.

“But I have to say, you’re weirdly upright at times, Senpai.”

“…Upright? What are you on about?”

“The meeting today. You got everyone together just to thank them and give them presents. That’s sincere.”

I guess…she’s right. But all of this operation worked out because of the club presidents, I just gave them a push. Even so…why did I not let it go? I don’t really understand.

“Mmm…But, this finishes the revival of the festival. And that’s not all.” Kurumi stretched her arms. “From now on, each class has to decide what stall to do, what event to prepare, so I bet it’s going to get very busy from now on.”

“And we’ve got the end-of-term exams before any of that.”

“Who cares about that? I’m going to drop out anyway.” Kurumi said. “You say the weirdest things sometimes,” she continued, as she bumped into my shoulder.

Honestly, I’m pretty sure she’s the one who should be categorized as weird. But, she naturally didn’t know about my thoughts, just grinning.

“I can’t wait for the cultural festival!”

“…Yeah.”

“Let’s make it the best ever…and then completely crush it!” Kurumi formed a fist to show her determination.

“Yeah,” I nodded.

But, for some reason…My response didn’t feel genuine at all.

1 Shameless plug, but I translated a graffiti-focused LN called Overwrite with lots of references to Banksy and great romance, so if you don’t know what to read or just looking for something great, I highly recommend you check it out.