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CHAPTER 32 – DEFEAT AND STRUGGLE FOR SUPREMACY [1]
It was a complete defeat. To think that the president would happily agree to crossdress, I never expected that. What I expected was for him to hate it, but still reluctantly agree since the others will pressure him to do so. Why was he amused instead?
「Are these the photos?」
And currently today, we’re in the middle of checking the resulting photos. While it was impressive how he confiscated the photography club’s camera to prevent leaks, how will the photography club do its activities in the meantime? From how they didn’t resist at all, they probably have some sort of plan B.
「The gap on the left and the right girls photos is pretty extreme.」
Just as treasurer Saiki said. On the right are the normal photos. And on the left are the situation photos. The difference in expressions is really intense, mostly mine of course. On the right is expressionless, the other full of life. Anyone would wonder if there’s a difference in motivation behind it.
「On the other hand, the boys’ photos aren’t that much different.」
All three of them have innocuous smiles. The situation photos are perfect. By the way, only the president is crossdressing. I don’t really have a grudge against the other two, after all. And I’d rather not see general affairs officer Yamada crossdressing. I know full well that it absolutely won’t look good.
「Since the photos will be part of the prize, how many should we print?」
「Enough for the whole class. Also, some for our personal commemoration, I suppose.」
「Well, for me, I’m fine with these photos. How about you, Kishita?」
「I’m alright with it as well. If we had been pictured with those on the last day, it would’ve been a no.」
All of them are low in skin exposure, so there shouldn’t be any problem with people seeing it. If we had taken the last day’s swimsuit photos, then I absolutely wouldn’t allow this. I have no plans on showing my naked body to other people.
「And with that, one more for the 1st prize. I want to add one more though.」
「Isn’t it already too much? There’s already two, this and the meal tickets, so isn’t that enough?」
「Overdoing it a bit is the perfect amount, in my opinion.」
The president’s rampage isn’t stopping. I’m pretty sure he’s overdoing it. Why’s he making history for the most prizes for? Moreover, it’s only the class that gets the overall victory that’ll get these. It’s certainly sure to increase the hype for the ball games though.
「Are we going to do the Student Council catered lunch then?」
There were other prospective prizes listed on the whiteboard other than the photo collection. The catered lunch is right below the photo collection, so it’s a pretty popular pick. Still, who’s going to make the food?
「It’s a prize that is sure to motivate the seniors to compete seriously, after all. Naturally, all of us student council members will be cooking.」
「You say all, but it’ll be mostly me cooking, isn’t it?」
Not surprising, but Kishita is the start for this event. The secretary, treasurer, and general affairs officer don’t really seem to be the cooking type, so it’s inevitable. Still, why would Kishita’s cooking make the seniors compete seriously?
「Kaoru’s cooking is really delicious, you see. Fights break out over her food during cooking class, just so you know.」
「To that extent?」
「It’s just a hobby of mine. Kotone, you can cook too right?」
「Yes, since I cook for myself. And the others?」
Everyone else shook their heads in reply. I already expected that but in this case, it’ll be only me and Kishita cooking then. I really don’t want to go through the trouble of making a whole class’ worth of lunch, okay.
「What will we do about the ingredients? Besides that, cooking itself will take up quite a lot of time.」
「That’s exactly right. That’s why we’ll be limiting the participants. Perhaps 6 people to match with our members. 」
「President. Wouldn’t that cause an argument in the winning class?」
「But we can’t prepare enough for everyone either, right? Then why not choose from the people that were most active in their class or something?」
「In that case, there’s a high chance that it’ll leave grudges later on.」
As I listened to the president and Kishita’s conversation, I sensed that there’s no clear cut answer to this issue. There’s no solution that would satisfy everyone. It would be fair if we have enough prizes to distribute to everyone but if we don’t, then it’s only natural for there to be discontent. In that case, it would be better off not to offer this as a prize.
「While a whole lunch would be impossible, if we limit it to a dish that can be easily made in a large quantity, like pork miso soup1 or so, it’ll be different.」
That’s why I tried to join their conversation. While it’ll be impossible to prepare a wide variety of dishes, making a large amount of a single dish in one go is a different story. In this situation, we can still manage it. Though we definitely won’t have the leeway to offer refills.
「Kishita. If it’s just soup and rice balls, isn’t it doable?」
「Certainly, if we start preparing in the morning, it is possible. However, despite the effort needed, it doesn’t have any merits for us. Kotone, are you fine regardless of that?」
「It has merit, actually. It saves me my lunch money.」
They’re looking at me like I’m a really pitiful child. It’s not like I’m that pressed with money, I just want to cut down as much expenses as I can. And if we start preparing in the morning, I might even be able to make breakfast on the side.
「Umm, shall we have a meal together some other time then?」
「It’s alright, I’m not that pressed with money.」
That’s why, despite the grateful offer, I refused. If I make a mistake answering here, they might start assuming that I’m impoverished. Well yeah, I’d love to gladly jump on the opportunity of getting treated to a meal. However, considering the long term, it would be better not to jump to every opportunity. It was a tough decision.
「Will it be impossible to prepare multiple dishes?」
「If it’s just the two of us making lunch for forty or so people, then there’s absolutely not enough time. Moreso if we’re making luxurious dishes.」
「Just as Kishita said, there’s not enough merit to justify the effort. If we were to do this, the limit will be a single dish that can be cooked in large quantities.」