Chapter 92: Yes, yes, yes, my head still hurts!
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The reason Nagumo harbors such resentment? Rin Matsuoka flirted with Asahina Nazuna!
Rin earned Nagumo's hatred because he dared to flirt with the girl who has been Nagumo's childhood crush, the one he has thought about yet couldn't claim for himself.
To Horikita Manabu, it seems that his neighbor's younger brother and his own tsundere, quirky sister make a perfect match! The future brother-in-law that Horikita has his eye on is now under the scrutiny of his senior simply because he flirted with an upperclassman. What sort of expression should Horikita wear in such an absurd situation?
"By the way, Akane, who's overseeing the student council recruitment session this afternoon?" Horikita Manabu inquired of Akane.
"Denai is in charge," Akane replied.
"So, Nagumo's associate is overseeing student council recruitment?" Horikita Manabu whispered to himself, then turned to Akane and said, "Tachibana, I'd like you to handle recruitment as well this afternoon."
"Are you worried that your neighbor's junior schoolmate will be rejected by Denai if he applies to the student council?" Akane asked.
"Well, I don't actually know if Rin will apply for the council."
"But I do know that if Rin submits an application, Denai will undoubtedly find some excuse to deny his entry."
As a loyal follower of Nagumo, Denai would never allow Rin—the person who caused Nagumo such a blow—to join the student council.
"All right, then, I'll head to the gym this afternoon as well," Akane agreed, nodding in understanding.
"Thank you," Horikita replied.
In fact, the authority to accept or reject new members rests solely with the student council president. However, the condition is that those application documents reach Horikita Manabu's hands.
If Rin truly intends to join the student council, Horikita Manabu would undoubtedly approve his entry. But for any other applicant, Horikita's answer could only be a polite "no."
Horikita has no intention of letting anyone else join the student council. This is because the current vice president of the council is none other than Nagumo Miyabi.
During his second year, Horikita allowed Nagumo, a promising student, to join the council. However, he later realized that Nagumo held an extremely authoritarian, twisted, and even ruthless worldview.
Nagumo envisions a school ruled by absolute strength, one in which only the capable rise while the weak are demoted or even expelled outright.
In his time working alongside Nagumo on the council, Horikita has seen for himself how his junior harbors a deep thirst for control, refusing to allow anyone to challenge his ideas.
To prevent the student body from falling under the influence of Nagumo's extreme views, Horikita has resolved to refuse all new applicants to the council.
The only exception? Rin Matsuoka.
First, a direct conflict already exists between Rin and Nagumo. With Nagumo's twisted disposition, he would never consider recruiting Rin—the one who has already proven to be a thorn in his side.
Second, Horikita believes in Rin's character. He is confident that his long-absent neighbor has the potential to succeed him as student council president within a year.
If Rin Matsuoka were to take over as president, Nagumo's philosophy of "might over all" would never take root.
Thus, Horikita Manabu would be free to graduate without worry.
Yet, one lingering doubt persists in his mind: What if Rin has no desire to join the student council?
Horikita pondered silently, realizing that if Rin hadn't even considered joining, his carefully crafted plans would fall apart entirely.
"Well, if Rin applies to join, I'll do my best to support and mentor him. But if he has no such interest, then so be it; I'll have to find other ways to prevent Nagumo from implementing his ideas," Horikita concluded, resolved to adapt as necessary.
Horikita Manabu didn't go to Rin to persuade him to join the student council.
It was entirely up to Rin Matsuoka's decision.
Horikita Manabu wasn't in a rush, either. Whether Rin intended to join the student council would be revealed after the recruitment meeting that afternoon.
At this point, Rin had already returned to the first-year teaching building. Since the dormitory manager wasn't around, he easily slipped back into his dorm room. Rin took off his school uniform jacket, revealing the smooth lining, and picked up his cell phone, planning to message Chabashira Sae to ask for leave.
Rin hesitated.
"Sending a message on Line doesn't seem very sincere. I might not get the leave approved so easily. Why don't I call Chabashira-sensei directly? I'll put on a weak tone—people will think I'm really sick."
Rin called Chabashira Sae, and the call connected quickly.
"Hello, is this Chabashira-sensei?" Rin asked, sounding faint.
"Yes, it's me, Matsuoka. Why are you calling at this time? And why do you sound so strange?" Chabashira Sae asked, pausing from her sandwich.
"Because I realized I'm not feeling well, and the illness isn't minor. I'd like to ask for leave this afternoon. Cough, cough." Rin added a few coughs to make it convincing.
Chabashira Sae's expression turned blank—she didn't believe Rin was sick at all. After all, he was perfectly fine that morning.
Besides, hadn't this kid faked being sick to go to the health room earlier today?
"Matsuoka, are you truly unwell?"
"Of course. Didn't I go to the infirmary this morning?"
"Actually, Hoshinomiya, mentioned that you claimed a headache and were sound asleep in the health room."
"Yes, yes, my head still hurts now!"
Sure it does.
Chabashira Sae rubbed her brows and replied, "All right, you don't need to attend class this afternoon. I'll file it as a leave."
"Great! Thank you, Chabashira-sensei. You're the best!"
Hearing Rin's suddenly cheerful tone, Chabashira Sae's mouth twitched. She was certain now he was faking it.
Rin, realizing he'd let his excitement slip, coughed again and returned to a weak tone. "Ahem, cough, I really shouldn't get too excited while I'm sick. I might die, Chabashira-sensei."
"Be sure to come to my office around 7 o'clock tonight. I have the test paper ready for you."
"Understood."
Rin hung up the call with Chabashira Sae, then quickly sat down at his desk to work on his software project.
"Tonight at 7… I should have enough time to finish writing the software before then," he murmured.
Although he hadn't retrieved his notebook from the classroom, he had memorized the programming codes he'd written during class. Rin could type them out as if he were copying and pasting directly from his notes.
As Rin focused on coding, Chabashira Sae frowned as she glanced at her phone. "I forgot to ask him if he's still thinking about changing shifts…"
"Oh well, I'll wait until he comes over tonight and ask him then."
Time passed, and soon the lunch break was over. Students returned to their classrooms, preparing for the afternoon classes, but there was one empty seat in Class 1-D.
That seat belonged to Rin Matsuoka.