Chapter 19: Bold-face liar.

Translated and Edited by: ynlucca.

Common Honorifics:
-san: A polite suffix, but not excessively formal.
-kun: A common suffix among friends and younger people.
-chan: A common suffix among people you’re close with, mostly used for feminine nicknames and girls, since it’s cutesy and childlike.
-senpai: A common suffix and noun used to address or refer to one’s older or more senior colleagues in a school, workplace, dojo, or sports club.

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“President…”

Saki turned to look at the sudden visitor with an annoyed gleam in her eye. Without words, she seemed to say “We’re having a moment here, don’t interrupt!”

Phew, I’m saved! I, on the other hand, felt happy at the seams.

“Ahaha, don’t make such an unhappy face, girl.” Despite the reaction she received, she was wholly unaffected. On the contrary, she seemed quite chill with it.

“Um, why are you here?” I asked on Saki’s behalf, courtesy of her still intimidating poise. As Midou turned her smile to me, my heart couldn’t help but skip a beat.

“Well…” She raised a finger to her lips, putting on airs. Meanwhile, Saki was about to lose it with her teasing.

Calm down… I tried to tell her with a look of my own.

“Iwaki-kun… No, Akito-kun, I have something I wish to discuss with you.”

“Huh? Me?” I pointed at myself just to make sure, taken aback.

“Yes, I went to the classroom to find you, but you weren’t there, so I had to waste some time.”

“I’m sorry about that…”

“Don’t worry about it. Anyways…” She grabbed my hand. I hadn’t interacted with any other girls except for Saki, so I could feel my hands a tad colder than usual.

“Huh? President Midou?!” Her hand’s soooooft!

However, before I could think about how fair her grasp was, I sensed Saki’s overwhelming killing intent from beside me. Composing myself was all I could do.

“So, President. What did you wish to discuss with Akito, hm? Also, please let go of his hand.”

“You’re scary, Saki-chan! If you bind him like that, won’t he end up disliking you?”

“T-that’s not true, right?” She turned to me, worried. I shook my head vigorously in response. My reaction was enough to ease her, so she sighed in relief.

Against her relief, however, Midou’s smile suddenly turned mischievous. “Oh, that’s strange. According to the rumors, it seemed to me like Akito-kun was the one hopelessly in love with you. But now it looks like the table’s flipped, right, Saki-chan?”

Her eyes bore straight through Saki, whose eyes widened in shock.

“Hey, don’t make such a scary face. This is actually beneficial for you too, Saki-chan.”

“For me too?”

“Yes. Now, Akito-kun, once again…”

“Y-yes?”

Her eyes shifted from Saki to me. Then, she pulled back her seemingly ever-present smile and donned a serious look.

What on earth is she about to ask? I gulped worry, cold sweat dripping down my back. Then, she finally opened up her mouth.

“Will you join the student council?”

“Huh?!” Saki and I uttered.

Her request was so unexpected, I didn’t even know where to begin. Saki, who had rebooted earlier than I did, spoke before I could.

“Um, why him though?”

“Because we’re short on staff. No matter how many talented individuals we have, it’s still not enough!”

“I don’t mean that. Tell me why you chose Akito specifically!”

“Calm down, Saki-chan,” Midou sighed, putting on a ‘C’mon, really?’ attitude. In response, Saki’s face turned blue with anger.

I can’t believe the president’s playing her for a fiddle…

Having witnessed the exchange, I was wholly impressed by how easily she could handle Saki. At the same time, I shared the same doubts she’d expressed earlier.

“W-why me?” I asked her myself this time.

Still holding my hand in hers, the president donned her perfect smile. And every time she did, I would be so shaken I’d avert my gaze. Still, since I was so close, no amount of hiding would stop her from knowing how I felt.

After a beat, she blushed and made her own declaration. “It’s because I’ve taken a liking to you ♡”

“What?” I couldn’t believe my ears.

Did she just say she likes me? What the hell?

Being thrown into this unimaginable scenario, I felt my cheeks get a tad too hot for the early summer. However, the biting cold I felt irradiating from the side brought me back down to reality.

“Akito, are you cheating on me?” Her voice chilled me to the bone.

“Eek!”

The very essence of my being, as well as my instincts, told me this was dangerous. It was the first time I’d seen such a scary gaze directed at me. And the mastermind behind this whole situation was…

“Sorry, sorry. I couldn’t help but play a prank on you two since your reactions are that good~!” Midou giggled naughtily. She was cute, but I wish she’d stop.

Every time another word came out of her mouth, Saki’s stare became more and more harrowing. That said, I turned to Midou. Saki beat me to the punch.

“What do you want, cunning fox?”

“Saki, that’s going a bit too far…”

“Whoops, my bad.”

I tried to retort to Saki a bit since she didn’t bother hiding her displeasure. President Midou then turned to look at me once more.

“Seriously this time, Akito-kun. Are you sure you don’t want to join the student council?”

“Well, but…”

“Earlier, I was just joking, but there’s actually a reason for it, you know?”

“Then just tell it to him straight!” Saki couldn’t care to hide her annoyance any further. It was clear she just wanted the unexpected visitor to leave.

Undeterred, Midou just smiled and opened her mouth to explain, “Fufufu, well—”

“—How about you let me join the council instead?” Another visitor suddenly arrived on the rooftop, interrupting her.

There stood Matsuyama, the one who got humiliated to hell and back yesterday. At that moment, Saki seemed to be done with life itself, so she just regressed to eating a sandwich.

That’s mine, though… She’d opened my lunch box and started eating without permission.

“Yuya-kun… I’m in the middle of something here,” the president looked both puzzled and frustrated as she responded.

However, Matsuyama kept going without a care in the world. “Sorry, sorry. But I thought it’d be beneficial for both of us if I joined the council, big sis Ayaka.”

“Only disadvantages for me though—cough!” Saki muttered something under her breath.

Meanwhile, Matsuyama seemed bursting at the seams with confidence, or perhaps he just didn’t listen to Saki’s silent rambling.

“Hmm, so, what benefits are you talking about, exactly?”

“I’m amazing at math! That means I’ll be an immediate asset in any accounting-related job, yeah?” He didn’t forget to appeal to Saki, the treasurer, as he sold himself.

He still hasn’t given up on her despite the bad experiences…

Meanwhile, Saki, the one he appealed to just said, “Look, Akito. There are some swallows building their nests over there,” she pointed somewhere else.

“Oh, they are.”

Saki just ignored him completely. In fact, she’s just begun to treat him like air since she knows it’d be too exhausting to deal with him. The dude in question just glared at me for such a reaction.

Why the hell?

However, the president herself hit a sore spot for Matsuyama.

“Yuya-kun, you know you lost to Akito-kun in the tests, right?”

“Ugh.”

“That’s right. Akito is more suited for the job,” Saki joined the fray, wanting the interloper to disappear as soon as possible.

“I-it was just a coincidence! Besides, I have a better track record overall. This time with Iwaki was just luck on his part.”

“I could get a perfect score a hundred times over given the difficulty of the tests,” I put in my two cents. It was my honest opinion.

In response, Matsuyama’s veins were about to burst—bulging as his ego—and the girls tried to hold back their laughter.

“Well, anyway, Yuya-kun. There’s no position that would make use of your expertise, so how about giving up this time?” Midou admonished him like a kind older sister. We all thought he’d give up, but…

“Y-you’re right. I may be losing a little—or rather, by a picometer in the accounting field, but what about your other work?”

“Oh?”

“The one that’s open right now is general affairs, right? If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be better to leave it to an all-rounder like me?”

It seemed that although it was impossible for him to win via Saki, he figured he could with his overall strength. He followed it by vying for his prowess in other areas.

“A good-looking guy like me would be better for PR and stuff, for starters. Besides, I’m the son of the chairman of the board of directors, so I have tons of connections. I’m also a good writer, so I’d be better in that area as well. Ah, you’re using a computer for everything now, aren’t you? Turns out I’m even better at that. I also have tons of experience supporting the council in middle school, so yeah, I’m pretty good at all those things.”

“Wow. What a smooth-talker, he is…” Saki responded sarcastically. My sandwich was now down to one last piece.

“Since I have that many skills, don’t you think I’d be more suited for general affairs, big sis Ayaka?”

While there were parts I wanted to point out, I had to admit that he was mostly correct. Setting aside his awful personality, Matsuyama might indeed be more suitable than me. It seemed that President Midou also had similar thoughts.

“Well… then let me ask you one thing, Yuya-kun. Why do you want to join the Student Council?” With an intimidating smile, she looked at Matsuyama. Her eyes seemed to be saying that lies wouldn’t be tolerated. He just shrugged his shoulders without caring.

“Isn’t it obvious? I feel bad about what I did to Iwaki, so I want to work for the good of the school.”

Bold-face liar.

Saki had the same look on her face as I did. If what he said was the case, it would’ve made way more sense for him to come and apologize directly to me—the victim—first. Since he did nothing of the sort, it was pretty obvious he was lying.

Midou just sighed in resignation. “If you’re dead-set on it… Let’s have a test.”

“A test?”

“Yeah, Akito-kun and Yuya-kun. Let’s determine which one of you is more suitable by having the board of council members decide. Is that okay?”

“Oh? That sounds pretty interesting. Sure, let’s do it. Heh, it’s not like I can lose to him in this field anyway,” Matsuyama grinned, eager.

Ay, the conversation is progressing on its own!

“Hey, I haven’t agreed to participate yet…”

“It’s fine, Akito-kun. There’s no way you’d lose to bottom-of-the-barrel sh*t-scrape like him, right?” Saki took it upon herself to challenge him defiantly.

“Saki!?”

“…Iwaki, enjoy your fleeting youth while it lasts. You’ll soon be breaking up with Saki anyway.”

While I found myself at a loss for words, he turned to head back to whence he came.

“Alright then, Saki, big sis Ayaka. See you later.”

“Yeah, see ya,” Midou just waved.

However, thinking he was acting cool, Matsuyama gave a little wink to Saki as he left. As soon as he turned around, she just grabbed my shirt and rubbed it on her eyes. “Yuck. Gross.”

If a girl gave me such a guttural reaction, I wouldn’t be able to wake up…

“Well, this might be good medicine for Yuya-kun to know his place…” The president mumbled something that bothered me, then turned to me. “Sorry, the conversation just went that way without your consent.”

“It’s fine,” though I wanted to say otherwise, I held my tongue and tried to be polite.

“Still, I want you to join the council, not Yuya-kun.”

“Why do you feel so strongly about it…?” I asked, still not quite grasping it.

“When I think about the council, especially the general affairs position, there’s something Akito-kun has that he’s desperately lacking.”

“And what would that be?”

Based on what Matsuyama said earlier, I thought he had the perfect qualifications for the Student Council. He seemed to be way better suited than me in many ways.

“Yes, and if he showed that he possessed that characteristic, I would consider letting him join too. But it seems highly unlikely, so I think Akito-kun has a 99.9% chance of winning.”

“That’s only natural,” Saki nodded with an ‘oomph.’

While I still felt I didn’t grasp what was unfolding right below my nose, it seemed like both of the girls were on the same page.

Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling of unease. Could I really do it? And although the president herself reassured me, I believed Matsuyama was a highly competent person in general. He may have lost in academics by chance, but in terms of overall abilities, I didn’t feel like I could beat him.

“Well, after hearing all this, if you want to decline, feel free to do so.”

“Huh?”

“Of course. The decision is up to you, Akito-kun.”

Oh, so I can decline.

But she continued, saying, “However, we really need someone like you right now! You’re necessary! Right, Saki-chan?”

“Yes, I think so too. Even putting personal feelings aside, I believe there’s no one else as suitable as Akito. So please, consider it…”

You too, Saki… Still, ‘necessary’, huh…?

When all was said and done, I reflected on my past few years. Not once back then did I feel needed by anyone. Even the one person I wanted to be needed by, my previous stepmother, treated me as a slave. She never once acknowledged me as family, and eventually just kicked me to the curb.

All I wanted back then was to have a family. It really wasn’t much…

However, everything changed when Saki waltzed into my life. She turned my world upside down, transforming my whole life in the process. She, who had done so much for me, now needed my help.

That being the case, “I’ll accept the offer.”

I decided to give it a try. Saki and Midou exchanged glances, then looked at me.

“Really?! You won’t change your mind later, right?”

“No, I won’t. But if I lose to Matsuyama, I apologize in advance.”

“Of course! We won’t hold it against you if that happens.”

With that, she swiftly skipped towards the rooftop’s door and turned back to us.

“Then, see you in the Student Council room after school!”

“Y-yeah.”

She rushed off like a storm. Although I had unintentionally roped myself into another showdown with the clown, I would still give it my all.

I turned to look at my girlfriend (tentatively) beside me. “Saki…?”

“Your homemade lunch was delicious. Thanks for the treat.”

“When did you…?”

She had eaten all of my lunch. Well, it was just a sandwich, not a real meal. It was unintended, but if she said it was delicious, it made it all worthwhile.

Well, I don’t have anything left to eat now…

Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! The bell rang. We had about five minutes before afternoon classes began.

“We should head back soon.”

“Yes, you’re right.”

We began to tidy up. It didn’t really matter in my case, but Saki was a member of the Student Council. Being late would leave a stain on her record. Just as she was getting busy, she handed her lunchbox to me.

“Have it during the next break.”

“Wait, Saki!?”

“See you later~”

She’d pushed the lunchbox into my hands and rushed back to the classroom.

“What should I do with her…?” I was happy that Saki gave me her lunchbox, but… Then, I received a message from her.

“I woke up at 5 in the morning to make this love-filled lunch for you. Please cherish it, okay? ♡”

As soon as I opened the lid, I saw it was truly a lunchbox filled with a wife’s love if that made sense.

Should I eat this back in the classroom? Especially when no one else is eating theirs…?

I clutched the lunchbox Saki made for me, and returned to the classroom.

And during the next break, I opened the lunchbox Saki made for me. The container was pink, and there was a heart-shaped mark on top of the white rice. It was all pink in color.

I ate her wifely lunch while everyone eyed me curiously. And yeah, it tasted amazing.

Unbeknownst to me, however, Matsuyama glared daggers laced with pure vitriol as I enjoyed Saki’s homemade food.

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