Chapter 444: Opening Ceremony of the Cultural Festival
Handling the remaining documents at hand, Hachiman let out a sigh.
At that moment, a cup of tea was handed to him.
"You've been working hard. Take a break with some tea," said Yukino, her usually cold demeanor softening into a gentle smile.
"It's nothing, just some simple document approvals," Hachiman replied with a smile, taking the tea cup from the girl's hand and taking a sip.
"After today, hopefully things won't be as hectic," he added.
With only three or four days left until the opening of the cultural festival, applications from various departments were nearing their deadline.
"Let's hope so," Yukino nodded, also taking a sip of her tea.
Sipping his tea, Hachiman suddenly thought of something and then called out to Minami, who was still at the door.
"Sagami-san, could you come over here for a moment?"
Hearing Hachiman calling her, Minami walked over, somewhat puzzled.
"Hikigaya-san, is there something you need from me?"
After these few days, Minami had indeed grown a bit. At least she wasn't as careless and self-absorbed as in the original story, fulfilling some of her duties as the executive committee chair.
However, her goal remained unchanged; she still wanted to gain fame through this cultural festival.
Looking at Minami in front of him, Hachiman smiled and spoke up.
"I called you over to ask if you have any experience speaking in front of a crowd. You see, the opening and closing ceremonies of the cultural festival are supposed to be led by you as the executive committee chairperson."
In the original story, it was because Minami got stage fright during the opening ceremony of the cultural festival, causing a lot of trouble.
Moreover, after losing face, Minami still hoped to use the award list at the closing ceremony as a lifeline and hid on the rooftop, expecting others to come find her.
Because she was reluctant to show up, and because the award lists from various areas were in her hands as the executive committee chairperson, the closing ceremony was delayed for a long time, leading to situations where Yukino and others tried their best to delay time.
But now that Hachiman was intervening early, such a situation would never happen.
After all, he had promised Yukino that he would make sure this cultural festival was a success.
....
"Eh? Speak in front of a crowd?"
Upon hearing Hachiman's words, Minami became somewhat excited.
The reason she was so determined to become the executive committee chairperson was precisely because this position offered the opportunity to speak at both the opening and closing ceremonies of the cultural festival. In her mind, if she could speak in front of the entire school, it would definitely be a great opportunity to showcase herself. If she performed well, she might even become famous overnight.
In the original story, she did indeed become famous, but only because of her poor performance, which earned her widespread criticism.
"That's right. You must know that as the executive committee chairperson, you not only have to speak at the opening ceremony but also announce the award lists for each region at the closing ceremony," Hachiman nodded, speaking seriously.
"So you need to have experience in this area; otherwise, it could be troublesome if you get stage fright."
As he spoke, Hachiman's expression was quite serious. He didn't want to see a repeat of the situation in the original story.
"Experience... I don't have any."
Seeing his serious expression, Minami didn't dare to lie and shook her head honestly.
Sure enough, this guy had no experience at all, otherwise, the events in the original story wouldn't have unfolded as they did.
Thinking about this, Hachiman said, "This won't do. If you, as the executive committee chairperson, get stage fright during the ceremonies, the cultural festival will be chaotic."
"Huh? Is it that serious? It's just saying a few words, isn't it?" Minami was somewhat surprised.
"It's true that it might seem that way," Hachiman shrugged.
"But don't forget, if you, as the executive committee chairperson, don't attend, who will announce the start and end of the cultural festival?"
"Especially at the closing ceremony, where you need to announce the award lists for each region. So overall, your position as the executive committee chairperson is quite important."
"Is that so?" Minami was surprised to hear her position described as so important by Hachiman. This made her somewhat intrigued.
After all, she took on the role of executive committee chairperson to highlight her importance. In this situation, it completely matched her desires.
"In that case, how about asking Yukinoshita-san to help me write a speech?"
After thinking for a moment, Minami proposed a sensible suggestion.
Hachiman nodded at first, then shook his head. "Having a speech script is necessary, but it's not enough just to read it off. Besides avoiding stage fright, you also need to be able to set the mood for the whole audience."
"In essence, you need to act as a host, warming up the crowd for the next performances. After you announce the opening, the performances from each class will begin."
"So, it's essential that you can set the atmosphere right."
"Is that so..."
After listening to Hachiman's explanation, Minami became somewhat unsure of herself.
Indeed, as Hachiman said, she would be speaking in front of the entire school. If she performed well, she could indeed become famous. However, if she didn't perform well, she might still become famous, but for all the wrong reasons.
That wasn't a scenario she wanted to see.
Thinking about this, in order to fulfill her desire for fame, Minami bowed slightly and humbly asked Hachiman for guidance.
"Please, Hikigaya-san, teach me what to do."
Seeing her like this, Hachiman raised an eyebrow.
"If it's about setting the mood, I'm afraid I can't teach you..."
As he spoke, he glanced at Yukino beside him, then shook his head again.
"Yukino won't do either; she's not quite suitable."
After all, given Yukino's cold demeanor, expecting her to set the mood was like hoping her chest would develop again.
Although she agreed with Hachiman's words in her heart, knowing her own personality, Yukino still felt somewhat annoyed at the look Hachiman gave her.
After some thought, Hachiman came up with a suitable candidate.
"Shiromeguri-senpai, could you come over here for a moment?"
"Hey Hey Yow~~~"
Hearing Hachiman calling her, Meguri hurried over to where they were.
"Hikigaya-san, what can I help you with?" Meguri asked.
Seeing this senior, Hachiman nodded.
Yes, this was the kind of approachability he needed.
Then he briefly explained his plan to Meguri.
"Eh, do you want me to teach Sagami-san how to set the mood?" Meguri pressed her lips.
"That's right, because Sagami-san is the chairperson, she needs to set the atmosphere at the opening ceremony and warm up the crowd for the upcoming performances." Hachiman smiled.
"I think Shiromeguri-senpai is good at this kind of thing. After all, you're the student council president, so I thought of asking you to guide Sagami-san."
"Am I really good at it? Hikigaya-san, you're overestimating me. I feel like my abilities as student council president are somewhat lacking; I can only cheer everyone on." Meguri spoke with some distress.
Didn't expect you to be so self-aware.
Hearing Meguri's words, Hachiman smirked.
After all, this student council president had brought quite a few requests to the Service Club. In fact, both student council presidents from the last two terms were a bit lacking, and even the next one, Iroha, was constantly coming to the Service Club for help later on.
"Not at all, since you were elected as the student council president by everyone, you must have exceptional talent." Hachiman praised with a smile.
"So, could I trouble you, senpai, to guide Sagami-san?"
As he spoke, he gave a nod towards Minami.
Minami wasn't foolish; she quickly bowed slightly to Meguri.
"Could you please teach me, senpai?"
Seeing this, Meguri waved her hands.
"Sagami-san, you're too polite. It's just a small matter, don't worry. I'll teach you."
Upon hearing her agreement, Minami's face lit up with a smile.
"Thank you so much, senpai."
"It's nothing." Meguri smiled and nodded.
At this moment, Hachiman also spoke up, "As for the speech for the opening ceremony, I'll help you write it."
With his current mastery of writing, crafting a lively opening speech would be a piece of cake.
And so, a few more days passed.
Sobu High's cultural festival.
It officially began!
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