NOVEL NEXT Chapter 58
When I finally arrived at the Student Council Room, that uneasy feeling hadn’t faded one bit.
How should I put it? It felt like I was watching a scene in a novel where the protagonist had crafted a plan, only for the villain to smugly utter, ‘Actually, I knew everything all along.’
Well, thinking about it now wasn’t going to resolve anything, so I decided to push it aside for the moment and deal with things one step at a time.
Of course, what I meant by ‘right now’ didn’t refer to the situation unfolding before me. I was talking about the group meeting scheduled with the Chairwoman this Saturday.
In fact, the event happening right in front of me was nothing significant.
Anything that happened here would ultimately benefit me.
“……”
A sharply dressed man wearing oval glasses was staring at us with an incredibly serious expression while interlocking his fingers.
It was the Student Council President.
He neatly trimmed his black hair, parting it to one side. Aside from looking somewhat youthful for his age, it was a perfect corporate hairstyle, much like that of a meticulous male lead from a drama.
Speaking of which, I somehow felt like I recognized this guy.
But I couldn’t be sure. The person I had in mind… or rather, the ‘character’ was one I had sketched out roughly in my mind.
That’s right. He resembled one of the characters from “If You Wish”, one of the three male protagonists, quite closely.
The problem was that I had little interest in male characters, having only cleared Yoon Da-ho’s route as a streamer and catching glimpses of Nam Da-un’s setting from some wiki searches. The only reason I even remembered the character’s features was because he appeared on the main menu of “If You Wish”. I couldn’t recall his name, having browsed the wiki a few times but not committing it to memory.
“If You Wish” was well-known for being a one-man development, and it had gained some buzz within related communities, and though popular streamers had played it, typically this genre of games only attracted a particular audience. The wiki pages seemed hastily put together by almost no one, with a plethora of incomplete sections.
Maybe that character didn’t have a page at all because he was relatively neglected in the public interest.
While I was lost in such thoughts, the Student Council President cleared his throat.
“Uh… so, Yoo Ha-neul?”
“You can just call me by my name,” replied Ha Neul, who was modestly seated next to me.
“Alright. Then… I’ll call you Yoo Ha-neul.”
When the President said this, Ha Neul nodded.
“And… Lee Soo-ah?”
“I-I’m fine with just being called by my name too.”
“Thank you very much.”
Then the Student Council President looked at me with a very tense expression.
…His first impression and his image were quite different. Unlike the impression of a strict boss, his current demeanor seemed… unexpectedly casual.
Could he be a gap moe character? …Well, there was no reason I would feel that way about a male character.
Oh, speaking of which, in Yoon Da-ho’s route, when Ye Sara was causing a ruckus, I think I recalled a scene where the student council fell apart just from a few words from her. Perhaps this fellow was more fragile than he appeared.
After a brief exchange of glances, the Student Council President quickly turned away.
Then, looking back at Ha Neul, he asked, “You’re a new transfer student, right?”
“Yes.”
The President scrolled through some papers on his desk.
“Your entrance exam scores are excellent, and when teachers ask you something, you respond immediately. You’re attending school on a full scholarship.”
“Yes.”
“Have you ever violated any school rules?”
“None, of course.”
“Alright, let’s keep it up.”
“Y-yes?”
When the President finished that exchange, Ha Neul looked back in surprise, clearly not expecting it to wrap up like that.
“Chairwoman!”
Lead committee member Son Ah-reum, who had been sporting a smug grin beside the chairwoman’s side, looked shocked, but the chairwoman ignored her and turned to me.
“Then next is Lee Soo-ah.”
“Y-yes? Oh, yes.”
Soo-ah stuttered briefly, taken aback by how abruptly the previous exchange had ended.
“First daughter of Lee Won Company. During middle school, you were in the mid to upper range academically, well-groomed and popular among your friends—”
After reading that much, the Student Council President cleared his throat, appearing a bit embarrassed. It was undeniable that as Soo-ah and I grew closer, my relationships with my existing friends had become strained dramatically. Even if they treated me like a nonexistent person.
“…Anyway, as far as I know, it seems you haven’t violated any school rules. Right?”
“I-I…”
“During class, a young teacher, who just got their job, erased something incorrectly written on the board and panicked, failing to carry on the lesson… at least that’s the testimonies from witnesses. It seems it has nothing to do with you, assuming a misunderstanding on the lead committee member’s part.”
“Eh?”
Soo-ah’s mouth fell slightly agape.
“So…”
The Student Council President adjusted his glasses and added, “Let’s keep up the good work.”
“Chairwoman!”
The lead committee member yelled, slamming her hands down on the desk.
Bang! It sounded incredibly painful.
“Ugh…”
And seemingly actually hurt, she clutched her hand with the other, a few tears welling in her eyes.
“This desk is super hard. Shouldn’t you go to the nurse’s office or something?”
“No, that’s not the important thing right now!”
If she really had gotten hurt, surely that was crucial… but I figured I’d stay quiet.
“Chairwoman, what are you saying? Three people are currently wreaking havoc in the school! Also, what you just said is completely different from what actually happened!”
“Exactly! I was clearly cuddling with Sara throughout the entire class!”
Ha Neul suddenly jumped out of her seat and shouted.
No, it wasn’t like we were cuddling. I was just sitting on top of her…
Was that what it was?
“No, but you just said earlier that you haven’t done anything against the rules!”
The President’s eyes behind her glasses shook violently. It seemed Ha Neul’s sudden change of words took her by surprise.
“I said you didn’t violate ‘rules’!”
“Didn’t you break the rules?! What’s so wrong with cuddling during class if that’s not breaking the rules!?”
Hearing Ha Neul’s words, the lead committee member seemed to be fuming.
“Does it even say in the rules that you can’t cuddle during class!?”
Ha Neul tossed out that absurd rebuttal!
The lead committee member’s mouth dropped open, but no words came out! The effect was incredible!
I mean, even if someone else spoke so boldly, I felt like they’d be left speechless.
“……”
In that instant, the Student Council Room was filled with silence.
“There are certainly common sense guidelines one should follow, even if it’s not written in the rules!”
Right, that’s true. There are societal norms that exist. It was true I had done things that broke those norms.
“If you’re going to punish according to the rules, that means unless it’s written, you don’t have to follow it!”
Ha Neul, that isn’t something you should be saying with your hands on your hips and head held high.
…Could it be because she’s the protagonist? Her ability to draw attention is overwhelming. The problem was that the focus has now shifted onto me, with the lead committee member and her glaring at me now.
Now that I think about it, this really did feel like I was supporting the villainess surrounded by her closest allies.
Fidgeting my legs as I tried to get on their nerves, I said to Ha Neul, “Just leave it at that. They’re probably not listening from the get-go.”
“But…!”
…Is that an act? It feels like she’s sincerely upset.
I decided to trust that my Ha Neul wasn’t really angry at not being able to cuddle up with me during class.
With my arms crossed and toes tapping in rhythm, I proudly lifted my chin.
…Well, that’s what I thought anyway. Since it was something I had never done before, I wasn’t sure if it actually worked.
And then I looked straight at the Student Council President.
“Chairwoman, say something about me too. You won’t go around telling people you called me out, right?”
Despite how he looks, he’s at least presumed to be the male lead. As a protagonist, he should have some form of resolve.
“……”
The President avoided my gaze for a moment, then hurriedly stood up and declared, “Th-then, we will conclude the Disciplinary Committee here…”
“Chairwoman!”
“Just give me a moment!”
Hearing the call from the lead committee member, the President spoke in a slightly threatening tone.
“……Yes?”
The lead committee member looked a bit flustered, but as the President quickly walked out of the Student Council room, she turned back and forth between us and the door, hastily following after her.
“……”
Well, really.
No matter what, did the Student Council President just leave other students behind in the Council room?
“……”
Ha Neul, who had been standing, slowly sat back down. The confident expression she had just moments ago had completely vanished, replaced with a nearly perfect blank look on her face.
…That’s a bit scary. I should avoid making Ha Neul angry.
“So, this really is reality, huh?”
Ha Neul murmured quietly.
While I might be completely invisible, Ha Neul and Soo-ah were definitely not ‘invisible’ at least for now. Ignoring them was strictly limited to aspects related to me. Of course, Ha Neul also faced some neglect for not being a rich heiress, but ignoring them was of a different sort.
Ignoring Ha Neul meant brushing against her shoulder without apology or sneering as I brushed past.
Ignoring me was simply acting as if I wasn’t even there.
In the latter case, it was almost normal as if the fact that I ‘did not exist’ was unbelievably emphasized.
Naturally. Otherwise, they would eventually have to admit that I did exist after all.
“Right… I might have thought too lightly of things…”
Soo-ah said, her head bowed, fiddling with her fingertips.
Then she suddenly lifted her head and looked at me with sad eyes.
“I’ve been receiving this kind of treatment all this time, haven’t I?”
“……”
I couldn’t think of what to say. I had never faced that kind of treatment myself.
Of course, my time in this world had been an absolute mess for the past two months, but even so, most of my life had been relatively normal. I couldn’t imagine how Ye Sara must feel.
Perhaps the stark difference between Ye Sara’s actions in the original story and my actions now was due to that knowledge gap.
As I remained silent, Ha Neul abruptly leaped back to her feet.
“Sara!”
“Eh?”
She suddenly shouted my name loudly, giving me quite a scare.
“Let’s work harder from now on!”
“……What?”
For a moment, I couldn’t understand what she meant, so I looked up at Ha Neul.
She was looking at me with burning eyes like a passionate protagonist from an action-packed anime.
“We need to stick together more, be more visible, and spread the word so that people can never ignore us!”
“……Eh?”
I couldn’t respond right away; her statement had been so extraordinary.
“Right, Sara!”
Suddenly, Soo-ah, who had been sitting beside me, took my hand. She was looking at me with the glistening eyes of a heartbroken heroine from a romance manga.
“Let’s cheer each other on.”
…
U-um.
So, does that mean we have to do more here?
How far do you intend to go…?