“Alright, cause some chaos in one!”
“Wait, why am I all alone? Our workers are… ugh…”
Minori’s eyes dim as she looks around. She catches her fellow protestors turning their backs on her. With a bright smile, I chime in.
“Your united spirit, workers, is really pointless, huh?”
“…Y-you traitors! To submit to bourgeois capital, do you have no minimal pride as workers?!”
“Um, Minori… this is not about capital but overwhelming power—eep! I’m so sorry! I’ll stay quiet!”
One of the mob from the Red Winter service crew rambles on, so I flick my finger slightly. The poor workers who’ve seen what this finger can do just silently shut their mouths.
“Now then, Minori-chan, should we… start slowly?”
“Ugh, how can I submit to this wicked bourgeois?! Ugh, fine! This is just a retreat for the advance of this revolution!”
“Hahaha! The first time is always the hardest☆ Now that the spark of revolution within you has been snuffed out once, the second time won’t be that hard.”
“N-no! That can’t be! You tyrant! The will of the revolution is like steel that hardens with every strike; it burns even fiercer under oppression!”
How cute it is to see Minori struggling when she’s hit at the core. It’s like watching a kid who lost their favorite toy desperately shouting, “Ugh… I don’t need that boring toy! I’ve got my ultra-super-bungbung Gundam!”
“Right, right, you’re right, Minori-chan. So, one.”
“…”
Minori, glancing hesitantly around, eventually bows her head in resignation.
Finally, she places her hands on the sandy ground, taking a push-up position. Perfectly glaring at me, as if to say she’ll remember this humiliation.
“Cause chaos…”
“Yep, good job. Two!”
“I’m sorry…!”
Oh, a perfect push-up without any fluff—this friend could be hailed as the next fitness guru of the Millennium!
“Alright, you can get up now.”
“…?”
Minori blinks a few times, staring at me with a blank expression. Her bewilderment is so vividly shown on her face.
What’s got her so flustered? I wouldn’t really go on a power trip over just a couple of 7.62mm bullets stuck in her forehead, right?
“Hahaha! What a blast! Minori-chan, your expression is hilarious☆”
“This is… humiliating… I would rather die than accept the mercy of those wicked bourgeois…!”
Suppressing her anger, Minori quickly stands up and brushes the sand off her hands.
“But now that the protest is suppressed, we need to discuss the improvement of your working conditions, right? It’s not so much about mercy. Time is an invaluable asset that no one should waste away!”
“…Wait, improvement of working conditions? Shouldn’t there naturally be punishment for a failed protest?”
“I’ve heard that’s how Red Winter operates. But here, it’s Trinity and Gehenna…”
“It’s Gehenna and Trinity, Mika. We’re over 1km closer to our Gehenna autonomous district.”
“Shh, Hina-chan. Those trivial details aren’t that important.”
“You seemed quite concerned about them at the press conference, didn’t you? Or am I mistaken?”
“Not really caring about order until I speak…”
Why is Hina being so sneaky with the facts? Besides, I didn’t lie.
It’s just whatever comes off the tongue; who really keeps track of order in day-to-day life?
“Press conference…? Wait, I see now, you’re not just any bourgeois. You’re the supreme commander of Trinity… which means you’re on the same level as President Cherino, a tyrant! Ugh, it makes me twice as mad!”
“Uh, that’s not exactly a compliment.”
Wait… being compared to Cherino suddenly makes this host position feel ridiculously insignificant. What’s this weird feeling? Did I just swallow a red pill?
“And you’re, the head of the Gehenna student council, the strongest armed group of Kivotos… Does this mean our strike attracted this much attention from such big shots? I feel proud, but our protest would have been better if it had succeeded.”
I can’t believe it. Every word is pushing my buttons, Minori. Are you seriously saying Gehenna is the strongest in Kivotos right now?
What if I call Tsurugi in here? It wouldn’t be so bad to see if she could still utter those words in front of that bizarre smile, right?
…No, calm down. I need to finish up and go eat shaved ice with Hina. Shaved ice is a vital issue too.
“By the way, why did the protest start? We could run at least five groups of laborers equivalent to your service crew with the budget allocated for this site.”
“What…? Ugh, does that mean the unit of capital is different here…! But as for why the protest started… Hmm. I guess after hearing the reason, you bourgeois will realize what you did wrong!”
“Hahaha… Come on, I need to hear the reason first before I pass any judgment.”
“The reason we declared a strike is actually simple.”
Right, let’s hear what great excuse sparked this protest.
“It’s so hot… way too hot!”
“…”
Hearing Minori, I slowly scope out her outfit.
It’s thick. Just looking at it screams winter apparel. She came in wearing the same gear from Red Winter and decided to endure the sweltering summer days with it. And so did the entirety of the Red Winter service squad.
Are you kidding me? Just taking off that scorcher of an outer garment would cool things down a bit!
“The fact they managed to get that much done in such oppressive heat is even more surprising.”
I had no choice but to nod at Hina’s remark. The large construction site being built on this beach is just a grandstand for watching maritime events up close, but the construction for market stalls and souvenir shops is also steadily progressing.
Our Red Winter service crew, enduring this heat in such crazy outfits… Incredible. I’m not even being sarcastic.
“So, is the reason you guys are on strike just because it’s hot?”
“…No, that can’t be all! The student council didn’t properly fulfill our request for refreshing beverages!”
“Um, Minori-chan, then what about the ice water that worker over there is drinking and that cold drink in the hand of the laborer next to him? Those look like cool drinks to me.”
“…Sadly that comrade isn’t from our Red Winter service. Thus, they can be satisfied with the beverages provided by the student council. But our workers can only be satisfied with specific drinks! Sugary comfort! Sweet and sour mors! Refreshing kvass! Those are non-negotiable!”
“…Sigh.”
“Hey, wait! Why the long sigh?! Can’t you feel the heartfelt sincerity from the depths of my soul?!”
…Student Council President! How can you throw this on us for not being able to address such trivial demands? This isn’t a joke.
Could it be? Is this person just passing the buck because they don’t want to deal with it themselves? Seriously, it makes me wanna stir up trouble…
“Minori-chan? First, let’s ditch that thick outerwear. I don’t know what possessed you to wear that in this heat, but…”
“Ah, no?! This is the pride of our Red Winter! Absolutely not—sniff!”
“Too late. And I’m confiscating this scarf☆”
“Please, anything but that!”
After stripping Minori of her winter gear, the sight isn’t too bad…? The combination of her white uniform and a cute girl is top tier. Especially her cheeks puffing out like that, it’s a scene to remember.
“Wow, your school uniform is super cute! I really like it!”
“Ugh… the cruel bourgeois has utterly sullied the spirit of our Red Winter…”
“So, feeling better now?”
“…Yeah.”
Sigh, why was she so stubborn? Just taking off one outer garment should’ve lightened things up a bit. I need to prepare some light work clothes for these guys.
Then, I should reach out to Red Winter. After all, what Minori wants is likely the taste of home, so it’s better to just fork over a bit more cash and have it brought directly from there.
“Okay, work clothes and drinks are covered… what were the other demands? Overtime pay?”
“Y-yeah! Overtime and holiday pay!”
“Hmm… hold on.”
I approach a third-party manager from the student council side on-site to ask how much the service workers are being paid. Seeing the terrifying suppression of protests unfold before my eyes, the manager trembles and fidgets when I come closer; it leaves an oddly painful mark in my heart.
After discussing…
“What? You guys are earning nearly 1.5 times… around double the regular pay?”
“…Actually, I thought giving various reasons was more effective than just repeating the same lines during the protest…”
It’s just Minori’s fault for being so infuriating. I lightly tap her hard hat with my palm, then begin seriously contemplating.
Hmm… Am I going to get scolded by Nagisa…? Still, it would be better to accept all reasonable requests than risk a protest breaking out during the construction period.
Oh, indeed. If the construction finishes ahead of schedule, the money I would have to pay won’t change much. Sure, their pay will naturally increase compared to the time wasted…
Since there’s already a predetermined budget set, I shouldn’t face significant losses, should I? Basically, launching a strike indicates confidence in finishing the construction in the allotted time.
“Hina-chan, can you come here for a sec?”
“…Huh? Got it.”
I subtly call Hina over and suggest bumping up the pay and expediting the construction schedule, but she raises a valid counter-argument. The original schedule might be pretty tight, but I’m choosing to trust the earnest Red Winter service crew.
“If you request everything and still can’t finish the construction on time, it would tarnish the name of the Red Winter service crew. I’m sure Minori-chan wouldn’t allow that to happen!”
“If you say so, Mika, I’ll approve the overtime pay on my authority. Should it be like that?”
“Yup! Thank you, Hina-chan!”
“Got it, but step back a bit, Mika. Not that I’m dismissing you; I just feel hot…”
“Ah, my bad☆”
By the way, does Hina even realize her hands pushing me away have no force at all? Since she hasn’t had anyone she could call a friend, her body must be honest after all. Fufu.
“Minori-chan, I’ll cover the overtime and holiday pay… for real?”
“…Are you serious? I know that’s a practically impossible request. No way can you still—”
“Wouldn’t that be an underestimation of Trinity and Gehenna’s capital? This already amounts to less spending than the budget allocated for a book our library head requested!”
“Ugh, is everything ultimately meaningless before bourgeois capital…?!”
Not joking, the additional labor costs will likely surpass the cost of a book brought in last month. So this is indeed a reasonable consumption.
“However, there’s one condition. You have to advance the completion of the construction schedule by the amount of time wasted due to the strike and the planned wasted time moving forward. Is that possible?”
“That would mean moving up the schedule by three… no, four days. It’s tight but not impossible.”
“Great! Let’s resolve it that way… Oh, wait. Wasn’t there another demand? One pudding per day?”
“Yes! All the pudding of Kivotos is for the fighting students…!”
“I’ll give you three per day. The finest pudding from Trinity.”
“Wait, three?!”
Whatever, I’m covering it out of my pocket. I feel bad for these guys sweating it out, so just take this treat gratefully.
“Hahaha, just make sure the construction keeps progressing in return. Poor-quality work is unacceptable for the honor of both academies. And don’t forget safety first☆”
“Hmph, do you underestimate our Red Winter service crew? Poor-quality work is not in our vocabulary! Right, comrades?!”
“Absolutely!”
“Long live the great secretary of Trinity!”
…Wait, hold on. What nonsensical talk is that, service friend?
“Alright, back to work!”
“Waaaah!!!”
Watching the Red Winter service crew dash towards the construction site in outfits they look like they’re about to melt in, Hina and I exchange bewildered looks filled with disbelief.
It was a red summer.
