Chapter 96: Council Affairs 3


    ?


    "Please have a seat and make yourself at home. Amy, could you please brew some tea for our guest here?" Dorothy asked, her tone polite but slightly nervous as she addressed a girl


    named Amy, who had dark circles under her eyes.


    Just looking at the disappointed and angry expression Amy directed at the president, I could tell she hadn''t had a wink of sleep since yesterday.


    "Are you serious right now?" Amy''s voice was thick with irritation.


    "Ahaha—well, we can''t just leave our guest unattended, right?" Dorothy''s voice grew quieter with each word as Amy''s murderous gaze intensified.


    "Then do it yourself... Or even better, take care of this yourself!" Amy snarled in anger, presenting dozens of stacked papers she had been reading through ever since I entered.


    Judging from the amount she had already stamped and the piles left, it would probably take her a few more days to sort through all of it.


    "Amy, my dear, you know I''m busy too, right-" Dorothy began, her voice pleading.


    "So, do you want to?" Amy interrupted, her tone a mixture of challenge and exhaustion.


    "N-no..." Dorothy conceded, looking a bit deted.


    ''I can''t tell if they''re close or if Amy is just incredibly fed up with her''


    "Ah, let me do it," Rose suggested, trying to lighten the mood. She quickly moved to a corner where she began brewing hot tea.


    As Rose worked on preparing the tea, the tension in the room seemed to ease slightly. Dorothy took a seat across from me, her expression softening as she focused her attention on me.


    "I''m sorry about that, Riley. It''s just that our dear Amy has been too stressedtely, you see, so please don''t misunderstand. She''s actually quite the nice and honest kid," Dorothy said with an apologetic smile.


    "Don''t call me a kid!" Amy snapped.


    "I mean,dy," Dorothy corrected herself, her tone cating.


    I nodded at her words, trying not to say anything that might annoy Amy further. Although she did give me an annoyed nce, she quickly ignored me and refocused on her task at hand.


    "Amy, aren''t you going to greet our new member?" Dorothy asked, her voice gentle but insistent.


    "What''s the point? He already knows my name anyway, and he''ll probably only be here for less than three months. Nah, he''ll probably onlyst a week with your leadership," Amy retorted, her words dripping with sarcasm.


    "Hey, I''m a very good president! You know how I''ve been re-elected three times in a row! right?" Dorothy replied, her tone defensive but slightly hurt.


    "Hah! I don''t know about that... maybe you did the same thing to me? By lying and scamming to people?" Amy shot back, her eyes narrowing.


    "What? I don''t do such things!"


    "Yeah, right... If you were such a good president, this whole office would be full of members right now"


    "That''s..." Dorothy''s voice trailed off, unable to find a suitable rebuttal.


    ''That was true....''


    Even in the game, when Dorothy tried to reim her position as president by running again, there weren''t exactly that many people who were part of her team.


    Snow pretty much had all the most important first years and sophomores by her side, while Dorothy only had Celine and Amy as her big backing.


    Some seniors also proimed there support for her but since majority of the school popce resided within the lower years her downfall was inevitable.


    So, the problem was rooted since the first semester, huh?


    Now I can see why she had to use underhanded tactics during the second semester.


    Though she wasn''t the main viin, she did put up a really annoying thorn in the protagonist''s side.


    In the academy, voting''s are only applicable for those running for president and vice president.


    After winning, they can choose who gets to fill the remaining positions.


    If the whole student council now wasn''t understaffed, Amy wouldn''t be struggling just to keep her eyes awake right now.


    ncing at Rose, I wondered who she had in mind for the other members of her party.


    She said I wouldn''t have to run and only stay by her side, so any position would probably suit me if she does win.


    As I pondered this, Dorothy took a deep breath, her expression softening.


    "Ahem! Once again, I''m so sorry about that, Riley..."


    "No, it''s fine," I said, trying to divert things further. It was fun watching the two banter, but now time was just being wasted at this rate.


    Rose didn''t exactly give me a reason as to why she brought me here, but if I had to guess, it was either to learn from the student council now or to help them out with a problem at hand. And if I had to take a guess, it''s probably thetter.


    Dorothy straightened up, her demeanor bing more business-like.


    "Fufu- I''m d you don''t find our small little group distasteful. I thought a noble of your prestige would''ve walked out by now." She coughed once more and looked at me more seriously this time.


    The fun and friendly atmosphere she had was reced by the grace and aura of someone serious and in a high position.


    "This was the Dorothy I knew in the game.''


    "Allow me to introduce myself properly. My name is Dorothy Gale, the current student council president of the academy. The beautifuldy I just had a small banter with is Amy Heart, our newly hired secretary. And the sleeping junky over there is our disciplinary head, Celine," she said, pointing at a sleeping woman on the couch in the very corner of the room. ''There was someone there? Howe I didn''t notice...?''


    "There''s also Alice Hollowa


    vice president. Anyway, she has multiple roles, so just treat her as any member here, fufu- And thenstly, the person who invited and rmended you to join, Rose Brilliance. Although she''s a new member like Amy, she holds the role of


    treasurer..."


    Dorothy continued, "Now that you''re acquainted with everyone, let''s discuss why you''re here


    shall we?"


    She''s rather quick on the uptake...


    "As you know, the Grand Festival is approaching, and we''ve been facing numerous challenges. Disputes between student clubs, logistical issues, and tensions between noble


    andmoner students have been escting. We need your help to mediate and resolve these conflicts."


    "How exactly am I going to mediate things?" I asked, genuinely curious and slightly


    skeptical.


    "Exactly as we''ve been doing for years now," Dorothy replied. "Authority. I believe a high- ranking student like you should help settle things down. From what Rose told me about you and from what I can see now, I can tell you''re perfect for the job, Riley," she said with a coy


    smile.


    "I don''t think that''s the case, President Dorothy. And besides, do you really think the club leaders would listen to someone new to the council?"


    "Please, just call me Dorothy.... Although what you say is true, the problem doesn''t really stem from that fact. Once they see your brooch, they should probablyply immediately." "The reason we''ve never been able to properly mitigate things until now wasn''t just because of the number of things we have to approve and get approved upon, but rather due to the subtle status quo that we had to follow."


    "Though the academy presents itself as equal to everyone, you know for sure that isn''t the


    case, right, Riley?"


    "Yes."


    Even when I walked past the lower-ranked sses, I could see some subtle bullying happening, and there were even some students who were quite open about it.


    But all the professors just turned a blind eye to it-all because of certain statuses they


    couldn''t touch.


    Even Lucas wasn''t an exception to this. In the game, if you somehow failed the tutorial of the evaluation test and ended up in the lower sses, you basically set yourself up for a hard-


    mode school life.


    Though there were a number of yers who liked such an underdog route, for someone like


    me who wanted to prioritize getting a one hundred percent clear in the heroines'' role ys, paths like that weren''t exactly my thing.


    What she''s basically trying to say to me is simple: "You''re a noble, aren''t you? And a top- ranking student at that. There''s no way they could defy you normally in any way


    whatsoever..."


    Well, as much as most of that was true, even I can''t openly defy someone of higher status, like


    those whose family is marquis rank and above. In order to do that, I would need the duke''s


    backing, which I can''t openly admit to right now.


    Dorothy continued, "With your status and the brooch, you''ll have the leverage needed to


    enforce rules and mediate conflicts. We need someone like you to restore order and bnce within the academy."


    "I could fix it myself but as you can see, I''m stuck here due to IMPORTANT - paperwork that needs my approval. Amy is also here for the exact same reason, hehe~" Dorothy said, her tone


    teasing.


    Amy subtly red at Dorothy but immediately went back to her job as I made eye contact with her. I couldn''t shake the feeling that she disliked me for some reason. Did I do something


    wrong?


    "Of course, you have the full support of the council with whatever you need to do to mediate things," Dorothy continued. "But if it involves moving the budget of the club funds, please make sure to consult Rose or me first. And also..." She pped her hands, and a small firework


    exploded near Celine.


    "What!!?" Celine woke up immediately, her voice tired and annoyed.


    "Miss Celine here will help you out with the rest, so you don''t have to handle everything on


    your own," Dorothy said with a satisfied smile.


    Celine rubbed her eyes, clearly trying to shake off her drowsiness. "Great, more work," she


    muttered under her breath, but then she turned to me with a slightly more focused


    expression.


    "Who''s this guy?" Celine asked, her tone skeptical.


    "I told you yesterday, he''s our new member," Dorothy replied with a light tone.


    "Hmm... He looks weaker than expected," Celine said, putting a hand on her chin


    thoughtfully. "Celine!" Dorothy scolded, her tone a mix of exasperation and amusement. Although it was my first time meeting Celine in this world, it felt like I had known her my


    entire life. Maybe I shouldn''t have put Celine in all of my party in the game... Now I don''t even know how to properly react due to the nostalgia.


    Just like in the game, the way she talked, dressed, and moved was as tomboyish as ever.


    Instead of wearing the girls'' uniform, she was wearing the boys'' version, topping it off with


    her short hair. I didn''t me everyone for thinking she was just a very beautiful boy. "Anyways, nice to meet you, Junior," she said, offering me a wide smile.


    "Yes, it''s nice to finally meet you as well, Senior," I replied, trying to match her energy.


    "Judging from the way you talk, you sound like you wanted to meet me?" she asked, her eyes narrowing slightly in curiosity.


    "I''m from the knight department, so I''ve heard a rumor or two about the academy''s strongest knight," I exined.


    "I see," Celine replied with a satisfied smile.


    ''Just like in the game, this girl really likedpliments.''


    Dorothy, noticing the positive interaction, added, "Celine is indeed one of our best. She''s not


    only strong but also very dedicated."


    Celine shrugged modestly but couldn''t hide her pleased expression. "I just do my job."


    I nodded, feeling a bit more at ease now. "Well, I''m looking forward to working with you and


    learning from you, Senior."


    "Don''t worry, Junior. I''ll make sure you keep up," she said with a wink.


    Dorothy pped her hands, bringing our attention back to her. "Alright, now with all of that


    out of the way, let''s get to work, shall we?"


    "I''m starting now?" I asked, a bit taken aback.


    "Of course! We''re very short-handed, you know," she said with a yful smile. "And our vice president hasn''t arrived yet, so can you please handle her part until she gets here? Don''t worry, we''llpensate you for it. The duties regarding the club problems can be solved next week, so make sure to talk it out with Celine before you start going to the clubs." Dorothy handed me a stack of papers. "All you have to do for now is to continue where Alice


    left off. I believe she was handling thepetitor schedules. Wait, let me get it," she said as she quickly approached her desk, rifling through the piles of papers.


    With the amount of paperwork stacked up, I wondered how she could find anything in that


    mess.


    "Huahh~! I''m going back to sleep. Wake me up if there''s something I can help with," Celine said, yawning as she headed back to her couch and promptly fell asleep.


    How can she fall asleep that easily? I wondered, watching her with a mixture of amusement


    and disbelief.


    But she''s seriously intending to work me through the bone now huh... we haven''t even fully establish if I will actually join or not.


    She must''ve assumed I wouldn''t say no, due to the benefits of being a council member


    brought.


    ''Well it''s not like i have muchins''


    At least now there are certain areas I can have ess through without needing the permission


    of


    a professor.


    All the work she mentioned were rather easy to do, management wasn''t exactly my forte but


    back in my hometown.


    Mother and father used to teach me managerial stuff most of the time. Maybe it was because


    they fully expect me to inherit theirnd and title bing the next count.


    So now it''s mostly ingrained in my head.


    ''Now that i think about it.... the pressure of being Liyana''s fiancé actually helped me improve


    back those days...''


    Dorothy finally found the right papers and handed them to me. "Here you go. These are the current registrations and a tentative schedule for the interdepartmental tournament. We need to confirm these with each department head and make any necessary adjustments."


    Knock...!


    Knock...!


    Suddenly, a knock interrupted the room, grabbing everyone''s attention momentarily before


    the door swung open.


    Since Dorothy mentioned her not arriving yet, I knew she woulde eventually, but it was


    still a surprise.


    It was my first time seeing her with her hairpletely down and without her iconic witch


    hat.


    "Good morning, Pres-" she began, but her voice trailed off as she locked eyes with me, freezing in ce like a deer caught in headlights.


    It was clear she was surprised to see me, but her reaction seemed unusually intense.


    "Senior...?" I started, unsure of how to break the awkward silence. "R-Riley?" Alice stammered, her expression a mix of confusion and disbelief. "W-Why-"


    "Riley, you can''t have a member waiting, now, can you?" Dorothy interjected smoothly, urging me to wee Alice inside.


    "Ah, yes. Pleasee in, Senior Alice," I said quickly, trying to ease the tension that seemed


    to rise in the air.


    "Y-yes..." Alice replied softly, still visibly flustered as she stepped into the room.