Chapter 22: Spending with the Student Council

Translated and Edited by: ynlucca.
Chimcken Numggies

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The student council was temporarily closed for the day. We were going out to celebrate a hard week of work. After school, Shirayuki, Sakura, and I went to the station and bought some snacks and juice.

“Um… Is this how it’s done?”

“Is there anything else I might need to do?”

Since Shirayuki and I were not very familiar with these celebratory parties, and we lacked the so-called ‘lunch etiquette’, we decided to leave all the prep to Sakura, who had a lot of experience.

“Candies! Juice! I’ll bring the party games! Oh yeah, we can’t forget the staple of parties—burgers!” She pointed at that certain red-and-yellow sign.

“Hmm, I see.”

“Makes sense.”

Burger, fries, candies… Seems like a normal high school party to me.

“That’s Sakura for you. You know how to play, huh.”

“P-Please don’t talk like that! I feel like you’re mocking me despite what you’re saying, so I don’t like it!”

We went inside the restaurant. Sakura went for the reception desk with a familiar gait.

“Welcome! Are you ready to order?”

“Hm, let’s see. I’ll have large fries, a set of chicken nuggets, and a… Melon soda, large, please. Oh, and extra ketchup.”

She’s insane…! Not only did she not order the hamburger, which costs more than anything else, but she also ordered only the side-dishes, which come with the most food. She also got a huge drink, which cost almost nothing, and ordered everything separately!

No way, that’s impossible. This is exactly what the corporations want. No, wait, before that…

“Hey, Sakura, are you sure you’re okay with that much extravagance? It’s school money, you know?”

I asked her in a whisper, and she titled her head, confused.

“Hm? Well, other clubs are way more frugal than this, isn’t that right, Shirayuki-san?”

“Yes. Other clubs rent famous hotels in Tokyo, invite celebrities for recreational activities, and do other extravagant things.”

“O-Oh, yeah…?”

As expected of the Hakuou high school. The budget allocated to each club really was out of the ordinary.

Oh yeah, Hakuou is not a place for poor people like me in the first place, huh…

According to a survey, the average yearly household income of Hakuou students average 50 million yen (TL: Approx. 434,400.00 USD).

“There’s no problem at all with our budget, so please don’t hesitate to order whatever you want, Kuzuhara-kun.”

Shirayuki said and began ordering at the register next to us.

Don’t hesitate to order whatever you want, huh…

I gulped and pointed at the menu with my trembling hand. “I-I’ll have a double cheeseburger, um, set, please…”

“Yes, a double cheeseburger set. What are the side dishes and drinks?”

“Fries and some iced tea.”

“Very well, sir. We have small, medium, and large sizes. What would you like?”

“… Um…”

“What is it?”

“A large… Please…”

“Thank you for your order.”

The total for my order was 780 yen (TL: Approx. 6.80 USD). Suddenly, I felt free. I wasn’t shackled by the constraints of cost and savings!

Ha, haha! Great, great… I order a large, a large…! I just ordered a large set!

A brief moment of bliss overtook me, but it was short-lived. Overwhelming regret followed soon after.

Guh! What a stupid thing I’ve done…

Looking at another item, I noticed something. If you bought two cheeseburgers by themselves and ordered water, which was free, you’d spend only 260 yen (TL: Approx. 2.26 USD)! The difference between a full set and the separate items is three times!

I mean, the set does come with fries and a drink, but…

Is that really worth three times the value?

“Shirayuki-san… Why is Kuzuhara-kun muttering to himself with pain in his eyes?”

“… It’s a symptom of one of his few weaknesses, which is wasting money, though I don’t consider this as wasting it… Oh well, he has his own circumstances, so don’t let it bother you too much.”

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