Tap, tap, tap!
The sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the hallway.
The drama of the Student Council Vice President and members chasing after Divine Starlight began in earnest.
After bursting out of the main building, Starlight dashed toward the classroom building at full speed.
In a certain small grove:
A chestnut-yellow Uma Musume with her hair tied in two bun-style twin-tails held a compass in her hand. She was currently facing off against an orange-haired Uma Musume on the other side.
"According to Feng Shui, this is the most perfect location!!!" Copano Rickey shouted, taking a step forward.
"No, no, no! According to my divination, a disaster is about to break out here any moment! The event location cannot be here," Matikane Fukukitaru argued back vehemently.
"Disaster? That would just be an accident, it won't affect the luck and energy of this spot!"
Just as Fukukitaru was about to continue her rebuttal, a cloud of dust billowed from a distance, accompanied by a major commotion.
Seeing this, the two reacted quickly and darted out of the way.
Thud!
A silver-haired Uma Musume was tackled to the ground right beside them.
Pinned on top of her were Air Groove and Hishi Amazon.
"Let me go~! You two, why are you catching me!?"
"Sorry, sorry, Starlight-chan. It's the President's order, we just have to follow through."
"It shouldn't be anything serious, Starlight. Just come with us."
"Amazon! Air Groove-nee~! You... you're hurting me..."
As Starlight yelled their names with intensity, her voice trailed off into a pained, aggrieved tone.
Hearing this, the two hurriedly scrambled up and helped her to her feet.
One helped brush off the dust while the other helped tidy her messy clothes.
"My apologies, Starlight, I'm so sorry. Let me rub it for you..."
Just as Hishi Amazon's hand was about to touch Starlight's cheek, it was suddenly grabbed by Air Groove.
"Not you. Let me do it. You don't know your own strength— what if you mess things up?"
Frowning, Hishi Amazon began to argue back.
"What do you mean!? How could I possibly hurt Starlight-chan? Besides, she doesn't mind, so why are you stopping me?"
"Heh, with your way of doing things? I don't need to say more—"
Copano Rickey and Matikane Fukukitaru, who had been arguing over the Feng Shui of the treasure spot, just stood there silently watching everything.
They watched as the two Student Council members turned on each other, and they watched as Divine Starlight quietly and stealthily slipped away.
"See? I told you a disaster would break out..."
"Fine, then let's go look for the next backup option for the club room."
Only Air Groove and Hishi Amazon remained in the grove.
By the time they noticed something was wrong, it was already too late.
Our Starlight had already reached the High School division floor. She forced herself to look calm as she returned to her own classroom.
She had barely sat down and her seat wasn't even warm yet when the two from the Student Council caught up to her.
Seeing this, Starlight turned around, flipped open the window, and jumped out.
Fortunately, the floor wasn't that high, and thanks to her recent hard work studying martial arts, her physical coordination had improved.
Starlight landed steadily right on a tree branch.
After adjusting her posture and climbing down, she continued her grand plan of running away.
"Bakushin! Bakushin! BAKUSHIN—!!!!!"
Just as she had managed to shake the two of them off and before she could even catch her breath, a passionate shout rang out from the distance.
Tap, tap, tap—!
The sound of ferocious footsteps accompanied by shouting made Star's heart tighten.
Oof—!
In the next moment, she was tackled to the ground by a chestnut-haired Uma Musume with a ponytail.
"Mission accomplished! Mission accomplished!! Haha..."
"Sakura Bakushin O?!! What are you doing—"
"Vice President Air Groove commissioned me to capture you, Starlight-chan! Please don't make things difficult for me..."
Without giving Divine Starlight any chance to argue her way out, Sakura Bakushin O hoisted her onto her shoulder and sprinted back toward the teaching building.
The outcome was self-evident: Starlight was caught.
Back at the Otaku Club room:
Divine Star, who had been forcibly suppressed into a chair, looked at the smiling (but not really) Symboli Rudolf in front of her.
"President... what is the meaning of this?"
"Shouldn't I be asking you that? You clearly said at the door that you had something to come in and discuss. Why did you run the moment you saw me?"
With a forced laugh, Starlight scratched her cheek and stole a glance at Agnes Digital, who had her head bowed the entire time.
"Actually, I came to apply to join this Otaku Club. But when I saw you, President, I thought I had accidentally walked into the wrong room."
"It's just that I'm in a bit of a rush! It's almost time for class, so I had to move quickly, ahahaha."
Nodding calmly, Symboli Rudolf looked toward the nearby Agnes Digital and then spoke as if just making small talk.
"Recently, a video has become quite popular—one of me figure skating with Oguri Cap from your class. Regarding this, Starlight-san, what do you think?"
"What!? So, President, you and Oguri are already together?"
"We are not. Perhaps we did have some... friction in the past, but this video is clearly fake."
"Could you elaborate on the friction?"
...
Rudolf stared at Starlight with a cold face.
"Just kidding, just kidding! Please continue, President..."
"Now then, the President of the Otaku Club, Agnes Digital-san."
"H-here, President..."
"You're certain you just found this USB drive by accident, correct?"
"Yes, President. I'm certain."
"In that case, we'll head over to the computer room in a moment to check the surveillance footage. If we don't find a result, you know the consequences, don't you?"
Instantly, Rudolf's words lost every trace of warmth, causing the temperature in the entire room to drop a few degrees.
Agnes Digital, who was already in a bad mood, now looked utterly desperate.
Seeing this, Starlight clenched her fists. She looked at Digital's expression, her mouth twitching as she spoke to Rudolf.
"President."
"What is it, Starlight-san? As for your club application, let's wait until this matter is settled."
Shaking her head, Starlight stood up and picked up the USB drive from the table.
"This... belongs to me. It has nothing to do with Digital-san. I forgot to take it with me, which is why she accidentally ended up with it."
"It's not her fault, so please don't punish her."
As soon as she said this, the Uma Musume present were stunned. Agnes Digital especially.
Even though Starlight was just stating the truth, Digital didn't see it that way.
'S-Starlight-senpai is speaking up for me. She...'
"Are you certain? Or are you just saying this to get her out of trouble?"
"I am stating the truth, it's not just to get her out of trouble. So, President, there's no need to make things difficult for her anymore."
Nodding, Rudolf stood up. She grabbed Divine Star's wrist and led her toward the door.
"Since that's the case, let's go to the Student Council office to discuss this further."
When Rudolf reached the door, she turned back to the bewildered Agnes Digital.
"Since you were involved in spreading this, you can't escape entirely. According to school rules, you will clean the swimming pool for one month. No objections, I assume?"
Nodding frantically, Agnes Digital said excitedly, "N-no problem, President!"
"Good. Be more careful next time. If you spread something like this again, consider the consequences carefully."
Click—!
The door closed, leaving Agnes Digital alone in the room.
She stared blankly at the shut door, replaying the words Divine Starlight had said when she stood up.
She completely ignored the possibility that Starlight was simply telling the truth.
"Starlight-senpai... hehe. She actually spoke up for me."
Arriving at the Student Council office, Rudolf motioned for Air Groove and Hishi Amazon to wait outside while she pulled Starlight inside.
Once the door was closed, she turned to the grey-haired Uma Musume and gestured.
"Since you've admitted you did it... then, Starlight-san, you should know the consequences. Damaging the image of the Student Council President and your own classmate."
"Yes, I... I know... President, I'll pack my bags and leave."
With her ears drooping, Starlight spoke uneasily.
"Ahem. While that is indeed a possible punishment, considering your brilliant performance on the racecourse, it would be a bit of a waste to expel you just like that, wouldn't it?"
"Eh? Eh? President, is there still hope for me?"
"Of course~"
Walking slowly up to Divine Star, Rudolf reached out and took the USB drive from Starlight's hand.
Toying with the small device casually, Rudolf looked at Starlight with a smile in her eyes.
"This video is fake. But... wouldn't it be fine if we just made it real?"
!!
"I see! President, I get it! I'll help you convince Oguri Cap to come and film it!"