EP.62
At the topmost floor of the main student building located in the very center of Nineveh, right in front of the Student Council Room.
Standing in front of the door to the Student Council Room, Jin let out a deep sigh, wearing a somehow glum expression.
“Here it is; this day has finally come for me.”
While there might be some exceptions, most people tend to attach significant meaning to the concept of ‘firsts’ in life.
The first book they read, the first movie they watched, the first friend they made, their first love, first kiss—
…And of course, that first day at a job that can only be described as a complete drag.
Even without that, he was already fed up with waking up at 7 a.m. every day, attending classes with a bunch of kids, and now he had sunk so low as to have to work after school too.
Lost in an inexplicable feeling of self-deprecation, Jin clicked his tongue as Erekaya in his mind posed a question to him, seemingly in confusion.
– I cannot comprehend this. After all, the only tasks you’ll need to do at the Student Council Room are mere trivialities. Why are you lamenting like this? Moreover, this is a task you must undertake, and complaining won’t change anything.
“No… I just dislike being forced to show up somewhere at a specific time. Like when someone imposes their will on me or when a morning trumpet blares every day… things like that.”
– ……?
Is it that she’s overly naive, or perhaps her exemplary upbringing makes her unable to understand the heart of someone like Jin, a troublemaker?
To Jin, Erekaya appeared as nothing more than a sheltered rich girl, blissfully ignorant of the ways of the world.
Damn it, if you had lived through 12 years of school and 2 years of military service, you would understand what I’m talking about.
Experiencing 14 integrated years this way would undoubtedly leave a trauma that would last for a century!
Of course, he knew all too well that grumbling like this would only cause him more pain. Eventually, he resigned himself and quietly opened the door to the Student Council Room.
The Student Council Room.
A space devoid of anything unnecessary, created solely for carrying out tasks.
The arrangement of the items, their shapes, everything pursued practicality. Thus, there was not a single stray or useless object in this place.
And at the center of that space, a woman named Erekaya del Pendragon was seated at a desk, handling paperwork.
“…..”
This was not a space where people lived. It was precisely for this reason that it was exceedingly difficult to find any item that bore the touch or warmth of a human hand.
Yet, despite that, instead of feeling desolate, the place was filled with an inexplicable clarity and serenity.
That was because Erekaya del Pendragon, sitting there, was the one who made this space feel that way.
A beam of sunlight streaming through a slightly open window blended with Erekaya, making the space even warmer.
And for a while, Jin simply watched her silently.
He thought that stepping into this space too abruptly might ruin the atmosphere enveloping the Student Council Room.
“…Ah, Jin. You finally made it.”
However, that moment was fleeting; Erekaya soon noticed Jin had entered the Student Council Room and greeted him with a bright smile.
Her usual icy demeanor and rigid expressions toward others were replaced with a warm smile directed at Jin.
“…Uh, yeah.”
Well, since it was my first day at the Student Council, maybe she’s just trying to be considerate. It definitely isn’t because she thinks of me as someone special.
So, I won’t let myself get carried away with any strange misconceptions. After all, during the past two months, I had been thoroughly educated on the ways of the female heart from the Erekaya in my head.
“By the way, why are you wearing glasses? Is your eyesight bad or something?”
Feeling a bit tongue-tied, Jin pointed to the glasses Erekaya was currently wearing and hurriedly spoke up.
“Huh? Oh, these glasses? It’s nothing special. My eyesight is just too good, so I wear these glasses when handling paperwork.”
“…Too good eyesight?”
“Yeah. Ever since I reached the level of mastery, my eyesight has improved so much that even the smallest text looks incredibly large, whether I want it to or not. Under normal circumstances, it’s fine, but when I’m working, it can hinder efficiency. So, these glasses are a tool for that.”
Erekaya answered quite smoothly while wearing the glasses, leading Jin to think that she looked particularly intelligent today.
While Erekaya in his mind seemed like a total airhead, the current Erekaya was surprisingly sharp and intelligent—what was the difference?
– How rude of you to say that. I have always been intelligent and clever. Had it not been for my help, you wouldn’t have made it this far.
‘Considering the level of conversation you typically engage in, you don’t seem intelligent at all.’
After letting out a soft grumble towards Erekaya, Jin suddenly remembered something and posed a question to her.
“By the way, should I be using honorifics when addressing you in this Student Council Room?”
“Honorifics?”
“Yeah. Well, the last time I saw, both Shura, who is our classmate, and Serika-senpai, who is a year above us, referred to you with honorifics like ‘President.’ So, I thought I should also use honorifics.”
It wasn’t surprising that, despite being a group of students, this organization didn’t seem to share the same principles.
Although it was customary for classmates to speak casually with one another in Nineveh, it made sense that such a principle wouldn’t apply in the Student Council.
After all, even though they were all students, if there were no clear distinctions among members and everyone spoke casually, it wouldn’t really be an organization but rather just a personal club.
Determinedly, Jin thought that it was only because they were in Nineveh that he could address Erekaya informally, as in other circumstances, he wouldn’t have dared to even meet Erekaya’s gaze, so using honorifics wouldn’t be that uncomfortable…
“Honorifics, huh….”
Erekaya, deep in thought at Jin’s words, eventually nodded as if to affirm that he was correct.
“Well, I suppose so. Unfortunately, here, I’m not just Erekaya from Class A; I’m Erekaya, the Student Council President overseeing all students in Nineveh. Since the other Student Council members treat me as the President and use honorifics, you must follow suit. I can’t treat you differently or show special privileges just because you’re you.”
“So, does that mean I have to use honorifics from now on? Or should I?”
But at that moment, as Jin casually tossed out the question, Erekaya stood up gracefully and approached him.
“No.”
Erekaya replied in a soft and quiet tone, raising a finger and gently placing it on Jin’s lips.
“…Ah.”
He could feel Erekaya’s slender finger above his lips. It was remarkably warm and seemed to carry a pleasant scent for some reason.
Caught off guard by the sudden intimacy, Jin stiffened his body in confusion, and Erekaya flashed him a teasing smile.
“You really don’t have to use honorifics. After all, right now, there are only the two of us in this Student Council Room, aren’t there?”
“When there are others around, that’s one thing, but when it’s just the two of us like this, you don’t have to use honorifics. I actually hope you wouldn’t.”
“I think that in front of you, or rather because you’re in front of me, that kind of special treatment isn’t really necessary.”
Erekaya’s finger carefully slid off Jin’s lips.
Magic awakens. Only after Erekaya’s finger had withdrawn could Jin move his body again.
“Then let’s keep this a secret between us. Something that no one else knows, just the two of us.”
“…Okay.”
At that moment, he was overwhelmed. The Erekaya that had just been in his view was exuding an astonishing allure.
Was Erekaya del Pendragon always this kind of woman? Or, before anything else, why was he so flustered as to be unable to move properly in front of someone just in their late teens?
‘Was this how you used to be? Or is this just a phase of emotional turbulence you’re going through?’
– …No, I don’t really know either. At this point, you and I aren’t even good enough friends to justify this. And at this stage, even if we were friends, I would hold rather outdated views about physical contact between the sexes…
While Jin and the Erekaya in his mind were caught in this confusion, Erekaya spun around to pick up some documents from her desk.
“Speaking of which, I said last time that when you formally come to the Student Council, I would tell you what your duties are.”
“That’s right.”
“Unfortunately, though, there’s nothing for you to do today. Well, it’s not that there are always tasks to handle in the Student Council; some days can be quite leisurely.”
In fact, this was a lie. There were indeed things Jin had to do as the Secretary today.
However, Erekaya had already taken care of all the tasks before he arrived.
After all, Erekaya hadn’t brought him here to have him do trivial tasks.
“Well… even if that’s the case, it feels a bit odd to just come on my first day and leave without doing anything. Is there really nothing I can help with?”
As Jin spoke a bit awkwardly, Erekaya looked at him with a gaze that held some inexplicable meaning.
“…Actually, there is one thing you could help me with.”
“Oh? What is it?”
“But are you okay with this? It’s quite a tedious task and could take a lot of time, so I wouldn’t really recommend it.”
“No, I’m fine with it. If I don’t do it, then you’ll have to handle it all on your own, right? Despite appearances, I’m now a member of the Student Council, and I can’t just leave everything to the President.”
In fact, having more time to spend with Erekaya was a favorable situation for Jin.
After all, he hadn’t come to kill time; rather, he aimed to build closeness with her by spending time together.
Even these small moments shared would help in creating tiny memories, making it easier to win her over in the future.
“Actually, it’s nothing major. The various supplies we use in the Student Council are all running low, so we need to replenish them.”
“There are quite a few items that aren’t available inside Nineveh, so I think we really need to go ‘outside’ to purchase them…”
“…So you’re saying we need to go outside together to buy items?”
Uh… If I were to summarize Erekaya’s words in one sentence…
Does this mean that, after school, a pair of boys and girls are going out shopping together?
And probably… what do people refer to the act of a guy and a girl shopping together like this?
‘Isn’t this a date?’
No matter how he thought about it, this seemed like a date time with Erekaya?
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