Shinomiya Kaguya didn't join the Lamb Club out of some selfless desire to help others. Coming from the prestigious Shinomiya family, that kind of naive goodwill was the first thing she had learned to discard.
Her goal was singular: to use Yukinoshita Yukino as a connection to the Snow family in Chiba. What came after—whether to befriend, influence, or leverage—would depend entirely on the circumstances.
She had meticulously planned everything. Hara Kei, summoned by the student council president Ginko, would almost certainly—eighteen times out of twenty, anyway—leave the Lamb Club. At that point, Yukino and Fujiwara Chika would inevitably experience a period of low morale, which would impact the club's daily operations.
Then, Kaguya would step in to stabilize the club, earning Yukino's gratitude. With Fujiwara Chika—her friend—serving as a bridge, the Lamb Club could be rebuilt anew, and Kaguya would cement her position as Yukino's "close friend."
But reality turned out to be far stranger than she had anticipated.
Although her maid, Hayasaka Ai, had expressed full confidence in Hara Kei's abilities, Kaguya remained skeptical: could he really defy the will of the student council president?
St. Eden Academy was an integrated junior-and-senior high school. Ginko had already been president during Kaguya's middle school years, establishing her reign over the entire academy. Kaguya understood firsthand just how formidable Ginko was.
Hara Kei, valued by Hayasaka Ai, Yukino, and Chika, must indeed be extraordinary. But could he truly defeat Ginko? Kaguya didn't believe it. Not alone, at least.
To stand a chance against Ginko, he would need support—from the Shinomiya family behind her, the Fujiwara family behind Chika, and the Snow family represented by Yukino. There would naturally be a back-and-forth struggle, a give-and-take.
This process—united against a formidable adversary—would strengthen bonds and help Kaguya integrate smoothly into the Lamb Club.
But in reality—
Hara Kei didn't need any assistance. He defeated Ginko single-handedly, in a remarkably short time, barely more than a few days. And that excluded weekends.
By Monday afternoon, Ginko had publicly announced over the school broadcast that the "appointment of Hara Kei as the next student council president" had been a misunderstanding—a simple error during the internal transfer of student council information. As president, she apologized to Hara Kei for the unintended trouble and ordered all clubs to refrain from disturbing him further.
For those unaware of the truth, it was a reasonable explanation. But for someone like Kaguya, who knew the inner workings…
Those who understood, understood.
She finally grasped what it must have felt like for the eighteen warlords in Romance of the Three Kingdoms watching Guan Yu calmly execute Hua Xiong while warming his wine. The shock left her momentarily stunned, right there in her classroom.
Beyond the automatic thought of, How did he do that?, Kaguya now had Hara Kei firmly in her sights.
This completely upended her plans. Her attempt to use this turmoil to become Yukino's "close friend" had collapsed entirely. She would need to find another approach.
But sometimes, when you plant a flower deliberately, it doesn't bloom—but when you plant casually, it thrives.
While Kaguya prepared to lay low and observe Hara Kei during this lull, Snow Hiyono—the true heir of the Snow family—disguised herself as her younger sister and arrived at St. Eden Academy.
Not only that, but she got caught up in the "Pool Incident" commission, even becoming a target herself. Through this strange sequence of events, Kaguya ended up crossing paths with Hiyono, exchanging contact information in the process.
Unlike the principled and naive Yukino, Hiyono emitted a familiar scent—one that spoke of strategic thought and pragmatism. For Yukino, friendship was the fastest route to assistance; for the more "experienced" Hiyono, the most efficient way was through mutually beneficial exchanges.
Kaguya, skilled in this sort of maneuvering, believed she could speak the same language as Hiyono and perhaps sway her to her side.
However—like last time—the events unfolded in ways she had not predicted.
Humming Be the ne cheerfully, Hayasaka Ai gently twisted open the toothpaste cap. With something comforting in her mind—like Kamen Rider or Ultraman—she couldn't change reality, but her mental state had improved. At the very least, the positive messages in these shows—love, justice, and peace—lifted her spirits. The occasional blush or strange noise when recalling Hara Kei catching her "transforming" was minor, almost negligible compared to the mental benefit.
She picked up her toothbrush and positioned the toothpaste over the soft bristles. Her hands, unlike those of Fujiwara Chika or Shinomiya Kaguya, weren't delicate or flawless. Years of work had left them slightly rough, with faint calluses, but their elegant shape made up for it.
Just as she squeezed the paste, a small device on her chest beeped and glowed red. One thing only could mean: the lady required her.
Even at night, a personal maid never truly "clocked out." When the master called, no matter the hour, she had to respond.
Hayasaka Ai's face immediately changed. She tossed her toothbrush and toothpaste into the cup and dashed to Kaguya's room.
What she didn't know was that a ridiculous "mission" awaited her.
"…Could you repeat Miss Snow Hiyono's request?" Ai muttered, a faint expression of irritation.
She had understood perfectly, but the request was so absurd that she half-wanted to believe she had misheard.
"Miss Snow Hiyono said she'd collaborate with us, but first, she wants to gauge our abilities to see how the cooperation should proceed," Kaguya explained, holding her phone, brows furrowed in displeasure.
"So… [make a man and a woman—at least—go on a date before the end of this weekend]?" Ai echoed, incredulous. "Which skill of ours does this fall under? Are we matchmakers now?"
Kaguya was speechless. In her mind, the grand strategy of rival families was supposed to involve verbal sparring and exchanging advantages. Reality: matchmaker duties.
Still, she wasn't giving up. Any support that could help her escape the Shinomiya family's suffocating grip was invaluable—especially from a local powerhouse like the Snow family.
"Hayasaka, any ideas?" Kaguya asked, consulting her maid. Ai simply shook her head.
"If it were ordinary people, maybe," Ai said, "but Hiyono wants us to pair Yukino and Hara Kei. You know Yukino well enough—she's principled, proud, and a member of the Lamb Club. Getting her to show any kind of affection toward a man…" Ai didn't need to finish; it was obvious.
"And Hara Kei? He's a heavyweight," Ai continued. "I've never seen a man with such steadfast will. Honestly, if he's not interested, no one can manipulate him." She recalled the previous attempt by Ginko to do so… and the result.
"More importantly," Ai said, cutting to the core, "miss, have you ever experienced romance? Do you even know how mutual attraction works?"
Kaguya, seventeen, was speechless. She had no knowledge of human love.
Ai, seventeen, was just as clueless.
Yet these two utterly inexperienced teens were now tasked with matchmaking Yukino and Hara Kei…
If this mission had a difficulty rating, it would surely be SSS-class.
..
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