"Hey… is this really necessary?"
"To stop you from causing trouble, this was my last resort," Iino said. "Please don't bla . You just got reinstated as a Public Morals Committee mber—I don't want to see you expelled again."
"I appreciate the thought, Iino-san," Rinji said, struggling slightly. "But do you really have to tie to a chair? It's kind of embarrassing."
"At least this way, you'll behave during the eting."
Just a mont ago, Rinji looked ready to derail the Cultural Festival committee eting with so absurd ideas, so the ever-righteous Public Morals Committee mber Iino Miko acted quickly, forcing him into a chair and tying him up with ropes from who-knows-where.
Rinji didn't resist much. The ropes were weak enough he could break free without effort, but out of respect, he stayed seated.
"Alright… let's continue the eting," said Tsuba, wiping sweat from her forehead as she looked at her docunts.
"So students proposed 'raising prices on goods' and 'removing cost floors.' Seems reasonable—why can't we?"
"I'll answer that," said the glasses-wearing boy who had been chatting with Tsuba earlier. He was in charge of finances.
"Since this is an inter-community exchange event, we don't need a temporary business license. But that also ans we can't run the stalls for profit."
"I see. So price hikes still aren't allowed..."
"Not exactly. Pricing and costs are negotiable."
Rinji suddenly broke free from the ropes, pulled a signed docunt from his pocket, and laid it on the table.
"Three days ago, I already reported to the 'Tokyo tropolitan Area Recyclable Resource Citizens' Group' and consulted with the office in charge. They approved treating Shuchiin as a temporary flea market during the festival, aning profit-making stalls are allowed."
"What?"
"Three days ago?"
Everyone stared at Rinji in shock. They never expected him to have prepared this far ahead.
Tsuba checked the docunt. It indeed allowed Shuchiin to host profit-generating stalls during the Hoshin Festival.
"Amazing… you went through all that paperwork?"
"What else did you expect?"
Rinji shot a glance at everyone.
"While you were wasting ti discussing the problems, I was already solving them. That's called efficiency."
"Ah… you're right."
Rinji's words annoyed many, but no one could refute him. After all, he had resolved the issue before the eting even started.
"Then… the next issue."
Tsuba quickly turned her attention back to the report.
"About the question of 'why crepes can't be sold'..."
Crepes, a French-origin dessert with cream or fruit inside a thin wheat pancake, were quite popular in Japan.
"I'll take this one," another student raised his hand.
"According to school guidelines, only heated food is allowed during the festival for health reasons. Items like raw cream or raw fish can't be used."
"I see… so that's why."
"This is the school's blanket policy," Rinji said. "But I already consulted the school after receiving the student council's opinion. As long as the cream complies with the Food Sanitation Law and the fruits with the Positive List System, they can be sold without health concerns."
"Huh? You already discussed this with the school?"
"Of course."
"They approved your proposal?"
"Yep."
Rinji smiled.
"I gave them conditions they couldn't refuse."
"..."
The students finally understood how Rinji operated—efficient and forceful. The eting was ant to discuss issues, but he had already resolved them all.
Rather than wasting ti talking, Rinji preferred to get things done.
Ishigami: "...how much did you actually do?"
"What did you expect?"
"So of those proposals had so many loopholes… why bother going through all that trouble?"
"I'm not into loopholes. If you want to solve a problem, start at the root," Rinji replied. "If I cut corners, people might think I'm weak."
"No one thinks that..."
Ishigami knew Rinji's style well—he always tackled things head-on.
"That just leaves the final issue," Tsuba said.
"A student proposed holding another bonfire event."
"!!?"
At the word "bonfire," Iino's expression changed.
It reminded her of a beautiful mory—back in elentary school, she had joined upperclassn at a bonfire event, dancing and smiling around the flas.
She wanted to see it again. But...
"This is probably difficult," Tsuba said disappointedly. "Regulations have tightened in recent years. Local governnts don't allow schools to host bonfires due to fire and safety concerns."
"..."
Iino had expected that. Still, she looked at Rinji, hoping maybe he had already found a way.
"I've heard of the bonfire event too," Rinji said seriously under everyone's gaze.
"I think not holding it is a good thing."
"Huh?"
"It's just not safe."
"I guess that's true..."
"Anyone with experience knows lighting a huge fire at night makes you an obvious target. It's basically suicide—way too dangerous."
"...Are we even talking about the sa thing?"
Everyone stared blankly at Rinji. Ishigami realized this guy was spouting nonsense again.
Iino genuinely wanted to host the event. Glancing at her eting notes, she said, "Maybe if we get approval from the local governnt and residents' association, we could pull it off."
"Sounds simple, but it's a ton of work," one student said. "You need approval from a bunch of groups and departnts."
"If everyone works together..."
"Yeah, first find soone willing to go with you and handle all that."
"..."
Iino froze. Looking around, everyone's eyes clearly showed their answer.
Doing all that work for a bonfire wasn't worth it—it was asking for trouble.
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