Student Council President Election (1)
It is arrogance that kills the most warriors in the world.
Be wary of those who are confident in their abilities and make it a virtue to charge boldly and courageously.
Do not have any respect for those who risk their lives time and time again to express their existence to the world.
Fear, Clevius.
Fear is your weapon.
If the moment comes when you have to run away, run away with all your might.
Don’t risk your life on pride. Don’t be obsessed with things like fame.
There is no need to force yourself to face and respond to every crisis and ordeal that comes your way. There is no need to injure yourself by attempting the impossible.
If you live like that, there comes a time when you can’t move your feet.
Even though you can run away like you always have, there always comes a time when your feet are stuck on the ground and you don’t want to move.
In the face of an ordeal that everyone in the world shouts is impossible, I feel like I have to stand upright with my legs together.
My whole body is shaking like crazy, but strangely enough, my hand holding the sword is strong. Even though defeat is certain, her body is caught in the inertia of moving forward.
What makes you that way is a completely different kind of belief than pride or honor.
If not, run away. Beg for your life ugly and servile, and survive cowardly.
Even if you roll in the mud, be mean and survive and wait for your time. Never sacrifice your comfort in pursuit of high honor and glory.
Don’t live the life of a hero. Don’t bother walking down the thorny path that no one has forced you to walk.
The flowers blooming on the cliffs look sublime, but it is the tough weeds that eventually fill the garden. I hope you never forget that fact.
– ‘Dalian Application Form’
“… ”
After the snow storm ended. Ofilis Hall also became bustling with students who were busy preparing for the next semester.
A sparring application submitted by senior freshman Wade Calamore against Clevius. It was a challenge that arrived in front of Clevius during a snow storm.
Clevious got up from the bed in the private room and sat down at the table where the maids had prepared refreshments.
In a corner of the room, which was especially dark because the curtains were always drawn, Clevius picked up a handful of snacks, put them in his mouth, and chewed them.
Then, trembling, he lowered his back, looked at the floor, and swore a few times.
“why… Why Is it me… ”
A ray of sweat passed under the gloomy dark circles.
Clevius did not even respond to the challenge from Wade, the genius swordsman of the Calamore family.
However, he was unable to overcome public opinion demanding an answer, and eventually expressed his intention to abstain. I didn’t want to fight and get hurt, and I didn’t want to embarrass myself in front of people.
As expected, Clevious wasn’t even dissatisfied with the people’s evaluation that he was like Clevious. He might be better off like this.
It is better to be called a coward and then disappear from attention than to be beaten and defeated in front of everyone.
Clevious peeked at the window curtain with a timid gesture.
A warm light sneaks into the dark corner of the room.
The scenery outside the window is a scene of spring, where winter is completely over, but new life is blooming in all things.
It was the scene that the gloomy Clevius hated the most.
“If he had that kind of personality, he would go around presenting a lot of challenges… ”
Clevius had also heard rumors about Wade.
It is rumored that he is confident in his abilities and wants to be recognized. It is also a bonus to say that the first-year students are also in high spirits as they shout excitedly that they will beat all the seniors.
It was both bad luck and good luck that the first batter was Clevius. Now that the next batter is decided, the first batter will be quietly buried.
“A life like a dog… ”
Spring comes, bright flowers bloom in the world, and Sylvania’s bachelor is once again engulfed in unique romance.
Secluded in the darkness in the corner of the room, Clevius sat with his back turned to the shining romance.
Most likely, you yourself are a person belonging to darkness.
As if that didn’t matter, the spring flower petals fluttering outside the window were telling.
It was now a new semester.
*
Spring comes when we forget. That’s why it’s a more special law.
As I watch the world covered in white snow disappear and the warm sunlight blooming the flower petals, I realize that it has been a full year since I have been living this life.
It seems like just yesterday that we were kicked out of the Ofilis building around this time last year and had to settle down in the forest, but now there are quite decent camps and cabins, and they are filled with useful furniture.
My body, which used to sweat like a river every time I went to school, has become quite disciplined, and I can now easily handle jogging on my way to and from school.
“Oh my, what a welcome face.”
I was on my way back after purchasing lab supplies at the living room during my lunch break. I had planned to bring it to him after school.
Near the bridge that goes from the living building to the teaching building, a familiar girl was sitting on the terrace of Laplace Bakery, the most famous snack shop in Sylvania.
Now that he has become famous enough, there is no one who doesn’t know that there are hundreds of snakes inside that smile that seems to be good-natured.
“The school opening ceremony has just ended, but are you already working in the lab, Senior Ed?”
Seeing him casually sending me hello, I waved my greeting.
If you want to check the girl’s condition, just look at her hair. Her auburn hair is neatly tied to one side, and her shoulders are relaxed.
This is a contrast to the way she lets her hair down and wears a lot of accessories when doing important work or going out to formal events.
In any case, since she is a person who occupies a place at the top of the list, she is a girl who cannot be taken lightly.
Lortel smiled and motioned with his hand, then spoke to me as if inviting me to come and have a cup of tea.
“You drink tea alone here, Lortel. “That’s surprising.”
“Actually, I stopped by for work and was taking a break. “The important conversation was over, and I was about to leave once the employees had finished taking inventory.”
“Stocktaking?”
“Can I have another cup of tea here?”
Lortel sat with his chin resting on his face and grinning, then spoke quietly to an employee nearby. Then the employee rushed out.
The one who ran out was an employee, but the one who came back with the tea was the owner of Laplace Bakery.
The gentleman, who once worked in the imperial kitchen and owned several famous restaurants in the capital, downed another cup of tea while sweating profusely.
Then I greeted him politely, bowed my head and asked him to call me right away if I needed anything else, and went back into the kitchen.
As Lortel said, it seemed like some kind of finishing work was being done in the kitchen.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen that person make an expression like that.”
“What… Let’s see if there’s anything going on. “No one shakes it off and doesn’t get dust.”
“But what authority do you have to look into the bakery’s warehouse? “Is it okay to just be one business partner?”
“We are just a business partner, but we are a bakery that orders all of its important food ingredients from Elte Trading Company, so we should pay close attention, right? In fact, in Sylvania, there is no other place other than Elte Company that can receive orders for this size of bakery.”
Not only is the quantity limited, but Laplace Bakery uses a lot of high-quality food ingredients. These are also materials where maintaining freshness is key. It is difficult to trust and entrust it to a company that has accumulated a considerable amount of distribution experience and is not fully seasoned.
In a city of any size, it would be possible to compete with each other to receive orders, but the story is different in Aken Island, which is limited in size.
If orders for supplies are not received from Elte Trading Company, Laplace Bakery will have a very difficult time doing business, even starting tomorrow.
Lortel smiled the most kind smile in the world.
“It’s really fun when monopoly power is like this, isn’t it? “It creates rights that don’t exist.”
“Looking at their expressions, it seems like you’re the only one having fun.”
“Oh my, what you’re saying is mean. “That’s true, though.”
Lortel chuckled, smiled, and looked at the teacup.
“From our perspective, there is some justification. “It seems like a false order has been discovered.”
“False ordering?”
“yes. They order a lot of unnecessary supplies in advance, and then cancel them all as the delivery date approaches. “Everyone is bound to get caught in the end, but there are always business partners who do this.”
I put down my luggage, sat down across from him, and gently lifted the teacup the host gave me. The scent is deeper and stronger than usual, and it feels like they put a lot of effort into preparing it.
“Of course, there were some difficulties in supplying supplies to Aken Island during the snow storm. “The roads were frozen, and carriages couldn’t travel.”
“There’s nothing we can do because it’s a natural disaster.”
“yes that’s right. So, most of the business partners in the residential area were waiting for the supply of supplies. From our perspective, the demand was large and we were quickly supplying supplies from urgent points… ”
After that, it was an obvious story.
Laplace Bakery, which wanted to receive supplies quickly, placed a false order by overinflating the amount of food ingredients it did not need, and then, as the delivery date got closer, it canceled most of the orders, leaving only the necessary items.
It was a somewhat complacent judgment, perhaps because they thought it would go beyond this level since the volume of goods handled by the merchant was so large.
Right now, demand for food ingredients is high. Since the canceled supplies can be sold elsewhere, the company does not suffer any financial loss. However, it is shameful for the company to use trickery to obtain supplies while most of its clients are waiting for their turn.
“Merchant people are the type of people who sell their souls for a penny of gold when the bottom line is right… However, this does not mean that there are no business ethics that must be observed. “From our perspective, we are all the same business partners.”
Lortel, who became one of the leaders of the Elte Company, rose to a position that was almost like the king of the underworld, at least within the living quarters.
Of course, Lortel does not rule or govern anyone directly. He has neither the status nor the authority to do so.
However, where people gather, confusion also comes. Therefore, we also need someone to control it.
Lortel’s means of control is money itself. If you look beneath the surface of the seemingly peaceful living quarters, you will see that all money flows eventually into Lortel’s wallet.
– Bang!
Soon, the kitchen door kicked in and a man came out. It was the chef who had just brought us tea. It seemed like the inventory survey had progressed quite a bit.
Comparing actual usage and order quantity is not particularly difficult.
“Oh, Lady Lortel! Please listen to me! It seems like the person in charge is asking too much! I have nothing to say about the order quantity… No matter what, if you limit future orders to this extent… !”
The guy probably knows too. There is no way the employee in charge could have arbitrarily restricted the order quantity without Lortel’s approval. Everything was done with Lortel’s permission.
Nevertheless, with the feeling of grasping at straws, he came out to appeal to Lortel.
In a half-empty manner, I explained the situation to Lortel in detail.
After several minutes of explaining personal circumstances to Lortel, making excuses for the volume of orders, and talking about the current status of the store, Lortel just sat quietly with his eyes tightly closed and put a teacup to his mouth.
“please… Please consider the situation at the store just once… ! If this happens, we… ”
“right.”
When Lortel, who had been drinking tea and listening, opened his mouth, the man quickly swallowed his breath.
And the next words were directed at me, not at the man.
“I also have classes in the afternoon. Would you like to go to the teaching building together?”
From the beginning, Lortel wasn’t even listening to the man.
As Lortel stood up, he glanced at the man, but his gaze was infinitely cold.
*
“The student council president election is coming soon.”
“I guess you don’t want to run for office?”
“I covet the power of the student council, but if I don’t have a hand in the business of the business council as the student council president, my customers and customers will fall into disrepair.”
When you cross the student plaza in the Gyosu building, the crowds are so huge that you think it’s really a new semester.
During vacation periods, it was so empty that if you shouted, it would echo, but now you can’t even see the overall appearance of the square at a glance.
“The best thing would be for someone who is friendly to me to become the student council president. Senior Ed, don’t you want to do it? “I can push you.”
“I don’t mean that. “There is no guarantee that it will work.”
“It’s unfortunate. “I thought you would.”
Lortel wore a semi-robe over her school uniform blouse and walked with a couple of books in her arms.
Lortel seems to be busy with work and studies. Anyway, since I am a student and have decided to train my magic, I am putting in as much effort as possible.
You may not know it, but he probably also divides his day into minutes.
“I heard that your younger brother was running for office. Was it Miss Tanya? “I think I should give her a push.”
“Tanya?”
Lortel glanced around a few times, then lowered his voice and spoke gently to me.
“Even if I beat her to death, I don’t want to support Princess Fenia. Well, it seems like most of the bachelors support the princess… “Once she runs, she will be the strongest candidate.”
“I won’t have to explain it in detail, but… ”
“I know, senior.”
Lortel spoke quietly.
“I’m not sure if Miss Tanya knows, but if Princess Fenia says she’s running for office, it’s safe to say that there’s almost no hope for Miss Tanya. Even if an absolutely ridiculous miracle happens and the majority of seniors in the grade support Miss Tanya… It’s probably still not enough. “Even though she is the second daughter of the Ross Taylor family, the difference in status is too big.”
I nodded at those words.
Even in political affairs, Tanya loses by a truly ridiculous margin of votes.
They try to mobilize all they have and make an ugly and pitiful struggle to get just one more vote, but the overwhelming difference in votes does not decrease at all.
Tanya Rosstaylor, daughter of the lesser evil.
In the face of a hopelessly overwhelming difference in votes, he ultimately suppresses his resentment and walks out in shame… He is just a stepping stone villain from Ross Taylor.
“if… Senior Ed, do you support Princess Fenia?”
“me..? Well, that’s fine. “In the first place, there is no question of who to support or not. If I had to say it, I would support Tanya more, as she is my own blood.”
“I’m glad about that. I was a little anxious because I thought that even my senior could support Princess Fenia. Most of the bachelors look up to Princess Fenia… Well, as long as she’s not actually a senior, it’s okay.”
It’s been a while since I became involved with Princess Fenia. Although there were various incidents, I can’t say that I left such a good impression, even with empty words.
“That person would hate me so much in the first place.”
“is that so?”
“I’m not sure either… If I think about myself in the princess’s position, it seems difficult to have any good feelings towards me… Yeah, I think he probably has a huge grudge against me, or at least some bad feelings… ?”
“I’m relieved if you say that… ”
“… relief?”
“… ”
Lortel quickly wrapped his arms around the book and lowered his head.
“You know that I see Senior Ed as the opposite sex, right?”
“… ”
“Jealousy is a more universal emotion than you think? Even so, I am also a woman.”
Then, he wrapped one of his arms around me and hugged me, and then lifted his downward gaze.
She seductively closes and opens her fox-like narrow eyes a few times and looks up at me with a sinister smile.
“Was it a valid hit?”
“… ”
“Would you like to check your heart sound?”
In the middle of the square, I stopped Lortel, who was trying to put his ear to my chest, by pressing down with one hand. Lortel, who was pushed away with a whooshing sound, grinned and shook her head.
“Anyway, just hit the iron wall. “Have I done something wrong?”
“You haven’t done anything wrong to me, but… “I’m in a bit of a difficult position until the day I graduate.”
“… Until the day you graduate?”
She is a girl who has been able to pick up on the opponent’s weaknesses by catching even the slightest tone of voice at hundreds or thousands of negotiation tables. Even her slight tone of voice and word choice are all clues and information to her.
“What if I graduate?”
“… ”
“Oh my, this feels like I caught a big piece of information.”
The way he wraps his arms around her and smiles brightly is like a serpent. Lortel rested his chin on his shoulder and looked up at me with a sinister expression.
“It’s some kind of time constraint. Is it okay to hand over such tremendous information? “I don’t know what meaning you give to graduation, but I’m sure you’ll see some kind of emotional progress after your studies are over.”
“… ”
“Actually, I’m not sure if you’ll be able to build an iron wall by then.”
Lortel released his arms and quickly pulled his body back. And he would often walk forward, then turn around, put his hand to his mouth, and grin like a fox.
“I’ll leave it at this, well… Graduation may seem far away, but it will happen in the next year. “It arrived surprisingly quickly.”
“I don’t know what I can say about that… ”
“I guess so, whatever. Anyway, I am reassured that your health seems to be fine and that you are making steady progress in your studies. “What happened to the magic engineering supplies I gave you last time?”
“I wrote everything. “I did some magic engineering training during vacation.”
“Oh, did you get good results?”
I thought for a while about what to answer… I nodded. Looking at the results alone, it was a huge success.
I practiced magic engineering all day with a really ridiculous schedule, and I finally completed a prototype of a legendary magic engineering product the day before school started. Since I have not used it in real life, it is treated as a prototype.
“That’s a good thing. It’s a good thing for me to hear that it was helpful. Unfortunately, I had so many problems that I couldn’t deal with them all during vacation.”
“Are there that many problems? Things like Laplace Bakery earlier?”
“Well, that’s just part of the problem. The important problem right now is the lack of cash. “I’m a little tight on money in my wallet.”
Lortel is short on money. I wonder if this is a feasible proposition, but in fact, if I think about it carefully, it is clear what the problem is.
Assets and cash are completely different concepts.
“The amount of cash used was already piled up, and to make matters worse, a carriage carrying a chest of gold coins coming from the head office of the company was involved in an accident. It looks like he was caught in an avalanche, and it looks like there will be a time lag between determining the status of the accident, recovering the damage, and receiving cash. So the available funds are limited.”
There was a problem with the distribution channel of the trading company that regularly receives cash. Disasters like this seem to be a regular occurrence when running a business of this size.
“Thanks to that, even though we have so many assets, we are in a situation where we actually have to tighten our belts. The branch also avoids unnecessary spending. Personally, I will never spend anything unnecessary, and I plan to reduce my spending as much as possible.”
“Are you that short of cash?”
“It’s just a temporary bottleneck. Still, it’s not like we’re running out of money dramatically. There is plenty of room left over for basic maintenance expenses. “It’s just that we don’t have the capacity to spend additional money.”
In fact, even if it is the basic maintenance fee, if Lortel is the standard, the unit of the amount is different.
Most of these variables are the aftermath of a snow storm near Aken Island. Although it was spring, the effects of winter still lingered.
“It’s not a very pleasant situation. “Yesterday, an unstable client requested repayment of a transaction amount that was far from maturity, so I refused.”
“I guess things weren’t so good there either.”
“It’s a difficult time for everyone. “It is a particularly difficult time to manage money.”
Lortel shook off her hair, which was blowing in the spring breeze.
“Well, money management is my specialty. “Once I have made up my mind, I have no intention of increasing unnecessary spending.”
“Still, spending may not be what you want… “It’s going to be a bit of a struggle.”
“What are you saying, Senior Ed? Who am I? How can a person who can’t even manage expenses run the business properly? Aren’t you evaluating me too shallowly? “Don’t worry, you won’t have to increase your spending unnecessarily.”
Lortel said that and smiled like a fox again.
I remembered the cold gaze looking down at the man at the bakery. Whatever it is, Lortel has the temperament to be like cold metal when it comes to business.
“Do not worry. “Senior Ed, you’re on your way to class, why aren’t you carrying a book?”
As we entered deep into the teaching building, there was only a short distance left to reach the classroom where classes were being held.
“me? “I have to stop by the library and borrow it.”
“No, do you want to borrow a book and take a class? “If it’s a student library, you have to go almost to the outskirts of the faculty building.”
“You should think of it as just running around for exercise. “If you don’t take care of your physical strength even a little, your body will quickly become weak.”
“No, it’s not a street worth running around. The bachelor’s side just buys it for a few pennies… ”
Lortel tried to speak but stopped. Certainly, the cost of books is not a small amount of money for a student to afford when piled up. This is because Sylvania’s textbooks are all high-quality books.
However, sprinting between the library and the classroom building is not a sane thing to do. From my perspective, it is a natural thing, like everyday life.
Suddenly, Lortel began to break into a cold sweat. He then took out his wallet and checked its contents with trembling hands.
What is so painful… His eyes trembled in agony until the end, and then he hesitated and asked.
“Uh, how much is it… Putting it all together… ?”
“… ”
I just politely declined.
*
“Have you checked what the library has been organized? Senior Ed.”
It’s been a while since I saw Ziggs’ face since the new semester started.
After finishing the elemental science class, I made my way through the crowds to the plaza of the teaching building, and Ziggs, who was leaning against a nearby tree, spoke to me like that.
“Uh, okay. It was handled well. “I am grateful.”
“It’s no big deal. It didn’t take long because I used magic to get the job done. By the way, Senior Ed. Have you heard about Wade?”
“Wade? “First year senior?”
Ziggs nodded.
After listening to Ziggs’ words, this slowly came to mind.
Act 3, scene 3, the episode that kicks off the student council president election.
Breaking Wade Calamore’s seal. As far as I know, this seal breaking continues until Act 3, Scene 5.
As the son of a corps commander protecting the northern border, Wade was born with a natural talent for swordsmanship and achieved the position of top first-year student with overwhelming force.
Wade, who was not satisfied with being the top freshman, challenged the top students of each department to a duel and defeated them all, and eventually even challenged the senior students to a duel.
Wade, who was going on a rampage trying to win as much as his limitations allowed, challenged the famous and senior members of the Bachelor to a duel, defeating them one by one… Even Ziggs manages to win after a close battle that leaves him completely devastated.
Of course, Ziggs was so exhausted that he couldn’t use his full strength, and it’s unclear what the outcome would have been if he had been intact, but he lost anyway.
It was Wade who went on a rampage as if he was going to take down all the strong players of The Bachelor. However, in the end, he is defeated by Taily in joint combat practice.
This is truly an impressive achievement for a first-year student. All of the opponents he defeated before being defeated by Tail Lee cannot be considered water. He was a student who could be called the ace of the first year.
“Recently, students who seem to be promising are all new students who are being sent to the battlefield. “When I heard it, it seemed like he was interested in you too.”
“Okay, thank you for letting me know in advance. “You too, take care of yourself.”
“They say they are holding a welcome event for new students this evening. Would you like to come and check out our faces?”
I was familiar with Wade’s face anyway.
“No, that’s enough. “I have a separate appointment for this evening.”
“You mean a prior contract?”
“Yenika decided to help me with elemental magic.”
Now that the mana suppression caused by the ring has subsided to some extent, I can slowly utilize my magical power to its full potential.
After completing the mid-level spirit contract, there will be only one person left who can be said to be more skilled in spirit magic than me, at least among the third years.
In addition, if you learn intermediate magic, complete the remaining basic magic proficiency, and make a little more progress in magic sensitivity training… I really think I could be in the top ten among third graders.
Thanks to the progress I can see, I feel like I’ve been accelerating my training these days. If there are visible results, the training itself becomes interesting. I wonder if people who stick to the gym all day really feel this way.
I shook my hands and said hello to Ziggs and left the square.
Suddenly I turned my head and looked at the view of the square, and it was a lively view of a bachelor’s school.
I thought I was the type of person who didn’t really care about these things, but after seeing the lively bachelor, I felt a surge of energy.
The fresh air unique to the new semester makes your steps lighter.
I walked over the hill and across the faculty building.
*
“hmm… “I guess I should have told you.”
It is, of course, very difficult to walk the line between human relationships.
Ziggs muttered softly as he let Ed leave, leaning against a tree.
In addition to talking about the library, it also tells you to be careful about Wade… I wonder if I should have also told you about Princess Fenia.
Since Zix and Fenia are in the same grade, their class paths often overlap. Normally, it is difficult to get close to Princess Fenia because she is surrounded by guards, but it is a different story when taking lessons from her.
This is Princess Fenia, who looks particularly lethargic since vacation.
However, when Ziggs or people around him are talking about Ed, he strangely turns his head to look in that direction, or even pretends to listen.
At first, I thought it was an illusion, but the more I watched, the more I felt like I was reacting to the name Ed Ross-Taylor to the point where I thought it was excessive.
“It’s a bit hard to be sure yet… ”
Ziggs leaned against a tree in the corner of the square and stared blankly at the sky. It was a clear and high sky for the first time in a while.
