After school.
Tsuru led me and Alina to a classroom where the student council was working.

This is the student council.

As one might expect, the student council was arranged in a U-shape with a large whiteboard in front of it. Other than that, there was nothing out of the ordinary.
There were a total of eight people in the room: the president, the vice president, and a group of homosapiens whom I did not recognize. I don't know if this number is large or small.

Some of them looked at us with surprise. Of course, they were looking at Alina rather than at us.

We decided to introduce ourselves first. The student council members wanted to get some help, but they probably didn't expect me and Alina, or Alina in particular, to show up. So we introduced ourselves first to get to know each other.
They are wary of us at the beginning, so we have to show them that we are not enemies.

My name is Comet Sakakiki. Comet is a comet. I'm in class 2, grade 2, the same class as Tsuru. I'm an amateur in the Student Council, but I'll try to be useful. I'll try to be of help.

I bowed and finished my introduction.
Next was Alina, the girl in question.

Alina Hinoha. Nice to meet you.

Oh, my God, she's really... I had no choice but to give her a lucky break.

'Alina. Do you die if I introduce myself in more than 10 words?
'Shut up. I don't want to be told by you, who's so smug with your model-self introduction. You're cold.

She spat and raised her middle finger.
The act of giving the middle finger is vulgar. I had no choice but to firmly hold her middle finger. It was the middle finger's version of "This finger is for you.

And she slapped me.
I guess it's a little better than being hit with a fist. I almost fainted once. I don't remember if it was a mechanical pencil or not, but it was gentler than when I was stabbed with it. Still, the impact made my vision blur.

'Okay, let's introduce ourselves as student council members!

Tsuru said.
Are you sure you're ready for this? Alina's as accurate as an artificial intelligence reading off a serial number. Is that what you want?
The student body president stepped out with his right foot and opened his mouth as if to ignore my earnest desire.

I'm Seki, the student body president. Jun Seki. We don't have much contact because we're in class 2-4. Thanks for coming!

I got the impression that he was moderately hot-blooded and straightforward. He has a pure heart and fresh eyes. Very different from the rose next to me.
Just as I was thinking that, he stepped on my toe. Apparently, he's an esper. I'd love to see him face off against Uligelaar. I'll bet you a dollar.
I don't mean to be rude, but the name "Jun Seki" is quite funny. Seki Jun, sekijun, seating order. Well, it's very interesting.

Self-introductions followed: vice-president, secretary, festival officer, athletic festival officer, and so on. To be honest, I don't remember them. I remember only President Sekijun and Tsuru, not the order of seats.
That's how human memory works, and that's the extent of the self-introductions. Self-introduction is very important in any environment or organization. A vivid first impression is a very powerful weapon. If your self-introduction is boring, your evaluation may be determined only by that. Therefore, it is better to be unique.
In this sense, Alina's self-introduction may be good. It makes you want to know the person because he/she stands out. I don't know if she is aware of this. But it has a certain effect.

Since Alina and I are helping in the festival, we are going to talk with the festival officer of the student council.
The festival officer is a student of the same grade named Shiho Saeki, who is in charge of connecting the student council and the festival committee.

She is in charge of connecting the student council and the festival committee. I am Saeki Shiho. I just introduced myself earlier. Nice to meet you again!
'It's nice to meet you. I have a quick question for you.
''Of course!
'There's only about three weeks left until the festival, so what can we do now?

Class and club presentations should have already been submitted and finished, and are slowly taking shape. I thought that there would be nothing for the two of us to do even if we were in charge of the festival. The students are in the process of executing their plans, and there is nothing for us to interfere.
If so, what are they going to do?

''To make the opening of the festival, we need the coordination of the student council, and this requires the cooperation of the student council that unites the club activities and the festival committee, doesn't it? The student council is also the main body that handles interactions with other high schools, the general public, and the teachers, so the student council soon loses its members.
In other words, we are not the meat of the festival, but we move the meat. So we have a lot of work to do.

Unable to fully understand Shiho's explanation in one go, I looked to Alina for help.
But Alina listened to Shiho's story sincerely without a glance at me. She's really motivated.
As if to prove her motivation, she began to speak.

I'll help you. I'll help you if you use this paperweight.
'Why am I a paperweight?
Because I'm angry.

I don't get it. Do you have something against paperweights? The conversation was not going anywhere, so I decided to let it slide.
I think I've learned how to handle Alina lately. I've learned that trying to have a real conversation with her makes me lose my temper. One plus one is two, but she might say 'one plus one is a pteranodon'. It seems impossible, but that's the kind of guy he is, so it's best to be prepared.





After that, Shiho Saeki gave a brief presentation summarizing the current schedule and their roles. The first day ended with that, and tomorrow we will start working in earnest.
To be honest, I was anxious because I still did not know what I was supposed to do. Alina, on the other hand, was so resolute and listened to me from start to finish that I thought she was a different person.

Did you understand what we were going to do?

I asked as we walked together to the school gate.

'Mostly. The student council didn't give me any specifics, so some of it doesn't add up, but I can imagine.
''It's a quintessence.''
'It's a hard story for a woolly bear to tell, isn't it?'
'At least make it a mammal.'