Stealing Spree

Chapter 2306: New Member of the Student Council

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The Student Council remained the same except for one thing, the presence of Minami Shouko in the room. The moment I stepped in, her attention left the paper she was reading and

focused on me.

Although she didn't say anything, the girl's eyes seemingly regained some energy upon seeing me.

"Looks like you're settling quite well, senpai," I said as I continued inside the room, my gaze searching for the others. Shizu was naturally at her desk. Komoe was seated next to Minami Shouko and the couple of Watanabe and Masato-senpai were on the other side of the long table. There wasn't any trace of the dog again. Wherever that guy was hanging out, he was either with Ichihara Jun or Enomoto.

Shizu narrowed her eyes on me. She need not say a word to convey her thoughts. Komoe was probably still embarrassed from earlier but as my assistant, she kept her poker face. Masato - senpai and Watanabe on the other hand were busy whispering about something. In particular, Watanabe gestured to me with a peace sign and a silly smile. Whatever was in her head, I had no idea but it was definitely something funny.

"Does it look like that, Onoda-kun? You tricked me. Now I'm stuck here, drowned by papers," Minami Shouko replied with a weak smile, her voice filled with a hint of resignation. She folded the paper and placed it neatly on the desk.

"What? Everyone was drowned in papers. Welcome to the Student Council," I playfully retorted as I moved in the space between her and Komoe's chair, checking on their work.

Minami Shouko's cheeks flushed slightly as she rolled her eyes at my comment, "Where's the genuine connection here?"

"Well, I'm here now, am I not? Once you're done with that, you can follow me on my patrol. And it's the same for you Komoe." I said, giving the girl a wink.

Shizu who was watching this from her desk clicked her tongue, "Come here, numbskull. I also need you to help me out here."

Clearly, she's showing signs of jealousy seeing me pamper Komoe and coddle Minami Shouko. But this just made her more adorable.

"Alright, one second," I answered Shizu whose pout was slowly growing before I turned my attention back to Minami Shouko, so, what's the status of your atonement to those Club Presidents you inconvenienced? Shouldn't you be starting today?"

The question snapped Minami Shouko out of her thoughts, "Ah... That... I haven't gone yet. You said you'd accompany me, Onoda-kun. That's why I promised."

"When did I say that? Didn't we agree that you're going to make amends? Also, what about your followers? Have you talked to them already?"

Minami Shouko lowered her head, deflated. "I... I haven't spoken to them yet."

"I see. There's no rush then. You can take it one step at a time, senpai."

"But... You said you'd be there for me."

"Yes, I did. I'm your genuine connection, right? But you see, owning up to your mistakes is part of growing up. I'll be by your side when you need me, but you have to do the talking," I assured her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"I understand..." Although she looked like she was not entirely convinced yet, the girl nodded before turning her attention back to the paper in her hand.

To see the confident, smug and manipulative girl from last week acting like this was still quite surreal. However, this just means she's truly trying her best to be better. My words got through to her.

Well, of course, this was just her initial state. I doubt she'd keep acting meek like this. Once she got her bearings again, she'd return to the confident Minami Shouko who could even accomplish such an elaborate plot involving a lot of students just to get me to notice her. As I walked over to Shizu, the girl pulled me down to kiss me. It's her way to abate her jealousy without saying much. "Now get to work, numbskull."

"You know you're becoming more adorable these days, Shizu. What would you do if the student body started feeling like you've softened up?"

Shizu glared at me, "As if they'd feel like that. I'm only like this to you. Understand?"

"Loud and clear" I replied with a cheeky smile, earning another light smack on the head. In response, I embraced her from the back of her chair and showered her with kisses.

Of course, doing this while everyone was working made the atmosphere a little uncomfortable except, Watanabe was once again too excited to witness our affectionate banter. She had her notepad at the ready, scribbling something down just like always. Komoe was also looking distracted. As for Minami Shouko, she narrowed her eyes as though contemplating something.

Masato-senpai was fine though. The dude had already given up commenting. Nonetheless, I could tell that he meant to say something when he cleared his throat but ultimately decided to keep his peace.

Well, if I were in his place, I'd probably act the same way or criticize myself for acting like this in an official setting. The Student Council shouldn't be a place to flirt around, after all. After a while, I moved to brew tea for everyone and served them a cup. Following that, Shizu started a meeting, telling me to sit down on the dog's previous seat. She already deemed that dog of a Vice President a no-show. That's why rather than keep it empty, she had me take up that chair rather than have me sit behind her.

"Okay. It has been a while since we had a proper meeting. However, given that we have a new member, let me introduce her again. Minami-san is our new General Affairs Officer. Masato- senpai, as the secretary, you can pass some of your tasks to her. She's pretty capable," Shizu started.

"I understand, President." The guy nodded calmly.

"Treasurer, coordinate with her about those funds we need to allocate for the upcoming festival. And, Minami, if you have any ideas for the festival, feel free to share," Shizu continued, her gaze moving towards the slightly overwhelmed Minami.

Watanabe nodded as well. Although she's quite silly, she's still quite capable of her job.

As for Minami Shouko, she stood up and then made a small declaration which ended with a small bow, "I... I've been brought here by Onoda-kun and taken by the President from his grasp. I don't know if I'll be able to do my task properly but... I'm looking forward to working with all of you."

Everyone, including me, clapped for her little speech, welcoming her to the team.

Well, I didn't expect her to do that but seeing her take the initiative was quite the sight. It showed that she was willing to make an effort to integrate herself into the council. Even if she reasoned out that she was doing this because I told her to, it was still a step in the right

direction.

If she's going to use her talents, she might as well use them for something productive. Plus, she had a knack for plotting things and gathering support. She's a fine addition to the upcoming busy month of festival preparations leading to the semester finals and summer

vacation.