Ding dong, ding dong.
"Excuse me, Morikawa-san. Can I talk to you for a moment?" — Student Council President, Shirakawa Miyuki.
"President? Sure."
"May I come along as well? I won't cause any trouble if I wait outside, right?" — Ayame-san, visibly concerned for my safety.
"Actually, I'd like to speak with both of you. Please, come with me."
"Okay..." — we both replied in unison, glancing at each other.
Once we arrived at the student council room, the president began speaking.
"As far as I know, neither of you have joined a club yet, correct?"
"Yeah, I haven't decided which one to join. And I'm a bit concerned about the midterm exams too."
"What about you, Edomae?"
"Same as Tomoki-kun. I'm still thinking about which club to apply to."
"I see… then I have a proposal. How about both of you join the student council?"
That's actually a pretty good offer. I wasn't interested in any club to begin with aside from cooking club, this might be a worthwhile opportunity.
But will I be able to juggle council duties and study for the midterms?
"Morikawa-san, I'm aware of your test scores. But if you join the student council, it'll be harder for you to lose your scholarship. After all, the male scholarship here is based more on social interaction with female students than academic performance."
So I have no reason to refuse.
"Alright, I accept. I'll be in your care."
"Then, Edomae?"
"I accept as well. I look forward to working with you, Shirakawa-senpai."
"Great! With both of you on the council, people will start seeing us in a much more positive light."
"You're exaggerating, President." — I said with a small smile.
"Not at all. You're both well-known. Edomae Ayame, the daughter of the most powerful company in Japan, and Morikawa Tomoki, the recipient of the rare male scholarship. From now on, everyone will have high expectations of the student council."
So the pressure begins… Let's see how this goes.
"Then, Shirakawa-senpai, is there anything you'd like us to do first?" — Ayame-san asked.
"Yes. As you both know, the school's main goal is to encourage interaction between male and female students. After the recent discussion about concerns from both sides, we've seen some improvements… but some new problems as well."
I hope it's nothing too serious, because it's definitely going to be my fault.
"Could you elaborate?" — Ayame-san asked.
"The good news is that some male students have become more respectful toward the girls, and girls who had low self-esteem are starting to open up more."
That's great. Now for the bad news.
"However, some male students didn't appreciate how Morikawa-san supported the girls' concerns. And there's been an increase in cases where girls are approaching boys a little too aggressively."
"Sorry… Did I make things worse?"
"Not at all, Morikawa-san. In my opinion, this is still progress. Problems don't get solved overnight — that's all. Don't be discouraged."
"I see. Thank you, President."
"Now then… I'd like to ask if the two of you could help address these new concerns."
"You mean, come up with a way to solve them?" — I asked.
"Bluntly put, yes. I believe both of you could serve as strong role models for the rest of the student body."
It seems she has high expectations of us.
Let's think… In my previous world, were there any events that encouraged interaction between the opposite sexes? Not really. They were more about general student involvement.
Besides, we can't exactly force boys and girls to interact — that could make them even more uncomfortable.
The only solution I can think of is—
"President, the best approach I can think of right now is to speak directly with the students who might need guidance. I assume the male students feel a bit overwhelmed by how forward some of the girls have become, right?"
"Would you be willing to spare some time to talk with the boys? That would be a huge help."
"And I'll talk with the girls?" — Ayame-san asked.
"Exactly. You two can tackle this together. Starting tomorrow, expect a few students to approach you for advice."
"Yes!" — we both responded enthusiastically.
"Wonderful! I'm expecting great things from both of you. Thank you for accepting my proposal."
We bowed to the president and left the room. It seemed the other council members were busy with different tasks for now.
"Looks like we'll be busy from now on, Ayame-san."
"You're right, but I'm actually looking forward to working with you, Tomoki-kun."
"But are you sure it's okay for you? I just joined because I wasn't sure which club to choose. Isn't there something else you wanted to do?"
"Fufu~ Thanks for worrying about me. But I was always a little interested in joining the student council. So don't worry… Besides, this might be a good way to show everyone..."
"Okay?" — What exactly did she mean by that? Was she aiming to be recognized as the best student? Or was it something to do with her family's business?
As we walked back to class, we came across an unexpected scene.
"Hey, why don't we exchange contact info? I know a great restaurant we could hang out at." — a girl was clearly hitting on a boy.
"Sorry, I really don't have time to go out. I hope you understand." — The boy looked very uncomfortable… Wait, I know him. He's one of the male students I spoke with to gather the boys' concerns.
"Don't worry, I promise I won't take up too much of your time—"
"I'm pretty sure he's trying to politely refuse. You're not listening. Are you even aware you're a student of Sakurazai Academy?" — Ayame-san stepped in firmly.
"Wha— Edomae-san!? Morikawa-san!? What are you doing here?"
"What, are we not allowed to walk around? Care to explain this to me?" — Ayame-san's sharp tone made it clear she wasn't playing around.
"I was just trying to hang out with him, that's all. Right?" — she turned to the boy, pressuring him.
"I… uh…" — He clearly didn't know how to respond. She wasn't technically lying, which made it even harder for him to escape. He could walk away, but he was probably too nice to do so.
"But he said he was busy, right?" — Ayame-san pressed on.
"I… I mean… it was just for a few minutes…"
"But it still takes time, doesn't it?"
"...Yes, you're right. I'm sorry."
The girl bowed and walked off.
"Thank you very much, Edomae-san, Morikawa-kun."
"You're welcome. As student council members, it's our job to maintain order," — Ayame-san said confidently.
"And if anything else is bothering you, feel free to talk to us." — I added.
"You're both on the council? As expected of Edomae's daughter and the male scholarship student!"
"Fufu~ I hope I can meet your expectations."
"It's not like the scholarship's that big a deal. But… thanks."
"Then, I'll be going. Goodbye!"
We waved him off as he left.
"Phew — and that's just day one. Nice job, Ayame-san. You were cool back there."
"Fufu~ Thanks."
"But talking to him felt kinda strange. Even though we're in the same year, I felt like the older one."
"Well… Tomoki-kun, he's a second-year."
"I see… Wait—What!?"
That caught me completely off guard. Still, if more guys were like him, things would be a lot easier. I think he's the only one who truly respects girls, but ironically, he's also the one who fears them the most.
Unfortunately, there are some guys who are arrogant, and I'm pretty sure they're the ones who didn't like my speech during the last discussion.
Anyway, at least now I don't need to worry about choosing a club. Everything worked out in the end.