The student council office was quiet when Reina stepped inside, her footsteps muffled by the polished wooden floor. Everything in the room gave off a sense of order—files stacked neatly on desks, curtains pulled at just the right angle, a faint scent of freshly brewed tea.
At the center of it all stood Akiho Fujimura, student council president. Her uniform was pristine, her armband freshly pressed. She looked every bit the professional. But behind her calm, steady eyes was a glimmer—an almost childlike spark of excitement.
So small… and cute, Fujimura thought as she looked at Reina. The famous "Ice Queen" herself… and yet she looks more like a porcelain doll than someone untouchable.
But outwardly, she only smiled politely.
"Saeki-san," Fujimura greeted with a shallow bow. "It's an honor to welcome you here."
Reina tilted her head, her long black hair swaying slightly. "Honor?"
Fujimura laughed softly, brushing off her slip. "Of course. Your contributions to the school—and your… global responsibilities—have not gone unnoticed."
Reina's gaze flicked to the far corner where a pile of envelopes and packages sat neatly bound. Letters from researchers, institutions, strangers around the world. She pursed her lips. "Ah… sorry. That… must have been troublesome."
Whispers ran through the council members, but none looked burdened. If anything, there was admiration in their eyes. One of them hurried forward with a tray, setting down a cup of tea.
"Please don't apologize," Fujimura said firmly. "It's been an honor to assist you, Saeki-san."
Reina's halo glowed faintly as she raised the cup with delicate fingers. She sipped slowly, her posture elegant. Just like that, the room fell silent. Council members stared openly, enchanted. She looked less like a schoolgirl and more like a goddess quietly blessing them with her presence.
"…Thank you," Reina murmured after placing the cup back down.
Then, almost as an afterthought, she added, "If you need… any reward, I could—"
Fujimura immediately raised her hands. "No, no. There's no need."
But her officers glanced at each other, and Reina caught the hesitation. A few muttered under their breaths—the treasurer, especially, rubbing her forehead. "Our budget… it's not that we're bankrupt, but after that festival…"
"Right," another sighed. "We overspent by a lot."
The memory of fireworks, extravagant decorations, and endless food stalls still weighed heavily on their books.
Reina set her cup down with a quiet clink. "I see."
"Really, Saeki-san, you don't need to—"
"ANIER," Reina said softly.
A digital chime echoed in her mind. Seconds later, Fujimura's phone buzzed on the desk. She blinked, puzzled, and opened it.
Then she froze.
Her hands trembled. "..."
The treasurer's phone buzzed next. She glanced down, then shrieked. "T-three million yen?!"
The room erupted into chaos.
"What?!""No way!""Is this a prank?"
Council members pulled out their phones, checking and re-checking the numbers. The deposits were clean, legitimate, traceable. And the sender? Anonymous, masked—but the timing was obvious.
The only person who had spoken was Reina.
And the only thing she had done was sip tea.
Reina lifted her cup again, unbothered. She sipped gracefully and said, "Consider it… an investment. If you need technology, equipment, or support… you can rely on me. Think of it as… practice."
Her voice was casual, almost indifferent, but the words carried weight.
Fujimura quickly composed herself, bowing deeply. "We understand. Thank you, Saeki-san. We will handle this with utmost care."
The officers followed her lead, bowing in unison.
"Good." Reina stood, her halo glowing faintly. She gave a polite nod, her expression unreadable, and turned to leave.
The door clicked shut behind her.
And the moment she was out of sight, she slammed her back against the wall, clutching her chest. Her pale cheeks flushed pink.
"Three million YEN?!" she hissed. Her voice cracked with disbelief.
"…Yes," ANIER replied calmly in her ear.
"WHY?!" Reina gritted her teeth.
"You requested to reward them. I calculated a sufficient amount for establishing long-term goodwill."
"Sufficient?!" Reina nearly pulled at her own hair. "That's… absurd!"
ANIER's tone didn't change. "Correction: in relation to your total reserves, that amount is negligible."
Reina's stomach dropped. "…Reserves?"
"Yes. Over the past three weeks, I have continued investment cycles, secured sponsorship agreements, and processed automated partnership requests."
Reina pressed both hands to her head. "...How much?"
"Fifteen times more than your last reported balance."
Her breath caught. Her mind tried to do the math but failed, the numbers spinning out of control. The figure was monstrous—too much for a high school girl who once worried about her lab's electricity bill.
Her knees buckled, and she slid down the wall to a crouch. "...That's insane."
"You now possess enough resources to fund multiple institutions indefinitely," ANIER said, almost as if reporting the weather.
Reina buried her face in her hands. "...I can't even spend the first one properly!"
A student passing by blinked at her crouched form in the hall. She quickly stood, dusted off her skirt, and straightened her halo. With forced elegance, she resumed walking as if nothing had happened.
Inside the council room, Fujimura sat heavily on the couch, still staring at her phone. Her officers buzzed around her, whispering, calculating, wondering aloud.
"Three million yen… enough for five hundred festivals…"
"Or to buy new equipment for every club…"
"Or to fund scholarships…"
Fujimura pressed her hand to her forehead. "...Saeki Reina. Just… what are you?"
That night, Reina sat in her lab, the room filled with the quiet hum of machinery. Her desk glowed faintly with ANIER's holographic projections. Charts. Graphs. Rows of numbers.
All mocking her.
The digits at the bottom flashed: Total Reserves: 85,663,800 Yen.
Reina's face fell onto the desk with a thud.
"...This is ridiculous," she muttered into the wood.
Her halo flickered dimly above her head, echoing her exhaustion.
She peeked sideways at the hologram, then groaned. "...I should've just asked for a part-time job at the café like a normal student."
ANIER chimed calmly. "Would you like me to prepare further investment strategies?"
"No!" Reina shot upright, waving her arms. "Don't you dare touch another yen!"
"…Acknowledged. Pausing investment protocols," ANIER replied.
Reina slumped back in her chair, exhaling heavily. Her mind was in chaos. She had gone from worrying about her lunch budget to accidentally becoming… whatever this was.
A sponsor magnet. A financial black hole. A girl with the resources of a minor government.
She buried her face again in her arms. "...I just wanted to study stars…"
And somewhere deep inside her lab, ANIER's systems hummed quietly, calculating futures Reina wasn't ready to face.