"S-Sorry!"
Sagami Minami froze for a moment, then spoke awkwardly.
At that moment, a girl beside her looked at Sato for a while as if she had noticed something, then suddenly leaned in and whispered in her ear.
"This guy seems to be a first-year. And I saw him at the meeting earlier, he also seems to be an executive committee member!"
A first-year?
Hearing that, Sagami Minami glanced at Sato's uniform and only then realized it.
This made her feel somewhat embarrassed and annoyed.
He is just a dang first-year, how does he dare!
In this country, the concept of hierarchy might not be as extreme as in some places, but compared to most of the world, it is still difficult to understand in its strictness.
As for the reason, it is probably related to a certain global superpower.
After all, neither country has complete sovereignty, their military authority lies in the hands of that superpower. In order to control them, that superpower naturally selects a group of representatives.
These representatives are the upper class of the two countries. To stabilize their control, they cannot be easily replaced, and with the backing of that superpower, their positions remain extremely stable.
In one country, these representatives take the form of conglomerates, and in the other, political families.
Because of their existence, both countries developed rigid class divisions that are difficult to cross. These divisions gave rise to a strong sense of hierarchy and spread its influence throughout society.
However, after taking a look at Sato's indifferent expression, Sagami Minami still backed down.
Social norms are imposed, but people themselves still tend to bully the weak and fear the strong. And this kind of system fears most those who simply do not care about it.
Sagami Minami felt uncomfortable all over.
Because at this moment, not only Sato, but almost everyone in the clubroom had their eyes on her.
Although she could barely be considered part of her class's popular circle and was somewhat used to attention, that circle was not at the very top.
In her class, there was Hayama Hayato's top-tier social group that stood at the school level. Other social circles were inevitably overshadowed and reduced to lower tiers, so she had never experienced this kind of being the center of attention.
And this time, a large part of why she stepped forward was precisely to experience that feeling.
Left with no choice, Sagami Minami cast a pleading look toward Yukinoshita Yukino.
Yukinoshita Yukino sighed softly and cast a barely noticeable glance in Sato's direction.
Sato shrugged at her, signaling her to speak for herself.
Yukinoshita Yukino then looked calmly at Sagami Minami. "If you have something to say, Sagami Minami, please continue."
"Yes!"
A flash of relief crossed Sagami Minami's eyes as she spoke to Yukinoshita Yukino. "I heard from Hiratsuka-sensei that you are the president of the Service Club, Yukinoshita-san, right?"
Yukinoshita Yukino frowned slightly but still nodded. "That's correct, I am the head of the Service Club."
Sagami Minami said somewhat embarrassedly, "Actually, I came this time because of matters related to the school festival. Although I became the executive committee chair, I still lack confidence, so I hope you can help me…"
Sato and Hikigaya Hachiman both clicked their tongues inwardly at the same time, their gazes toward Sagami Minami filled with disdain.
What do you mean "although you became the executive committee chair"?
You make it sound like it was difficult, like someone competed with you for it!
Suddenly, the two exchanged a glance with surprising tacit understanding, silently mouthing the same word.
Bitch!
Seeing that their lip movements matched, they both nodded in satisfaction, as if to say, you really get me.
…
"Wait a moment!"
Sato suddenly interrupted Sagami Minami again. He looked at her with a somewhat amused expression.
"If I remember correctly, when you ran for executive committee chair, your speech was about pursuing personal growth, wasn't it?"
"Ah, yes…"
Sagami Minami's expression turned awkward, as if she had already guessed what Sato was going to say next.
Sato rubbed his brow, then said calmly, "But now, it seems you've already gone against your own declaration."
Sagami Minami steadied herself and smiled. "That may be true, but causing trouble for everyone would be the worst outcome."
Sato raised an eyebrow but chose not to continue.
Impressive, saying it in such a righteous way…
And also…
Isn't Hikigaya Hachiman just too pitiful? He should be in the same class as her, yet after all this time, not a single one of them has even properly looked at him.
Tsk, tsk…
In the end, Yukinoshita Yukino still accepted Sagami Minami's request and decided to assist her in completing this school festival.
After Sagami Minami and the others left,
"Yukinoshita!"
Sato suddenly spoke, looking at Yukinoshita Yukino. The clubroom fell silent once again.
Yukinoshita Yukino raised her head and looked at him with slight confusion. Her gaze shifted. "Is there something you need?"
"What made you change your mind?"
Yukinoshita Yukino's pupils shrank slightly at his words, and she suddenly fell silent.
Everyone in the clubroom carefully watched the two of them, no one speaking.
After a long while, Yukinoshita Yukino spoke again. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"It seems you really aren't good at hiding things…"
Sato sighed softly and chose not to continue pressing her.
Hearing that, Yukinoshita Yukino's eyes widened slightly. She looked at Sato, who had already started reading not far away, opened her mouth, then pursed her lips and said nothing more.
Meanwhile, Sato, with his head lowered, was thinking.
Yukinoshita Yukino's behavior today was far too abnormal. When exactly did this change begin?
From the executive committee meeting, and then…
Sato recalled it, and finally narrowed his eyes, locking onto a name.
Haruno.
Was it because of her?
His intuition told him that this seemed to be the correct answer. If that was the case, then what exactly happened between those two?
He was very curious.