Shizuka Hiratsuka was naturally very familiar with Yukinoshita Yukino; after all, she was Haruno's beloved younger sister. In her opinion, Yukino was far less friendly than Haruno and wasn't good at communicating with others—or rather, she disdained communicating with others.
It was precisely because of this defect in Yukino's character that Hiratsuka was very worried about her social life now that she was in high school. No matter how outstanding a person is, they can't move forward alone.
And yet, what was she seeing now? Yukino was whispering intimately with a boy, not even bothering to hide her feelings for him in public.
"Hello, Ms. Hiratsuka." After Hachiman had entered the hall, Yukino saw her former teacher walking toward her and greeted her politely.
"Hello, Yukinoshita. It's been a while since we last met. It's very impressive that you're the freshman representative," Hiratsuka said. Her mind was still trying to figure out how to bring up the topic of Hikigaya Hachiman, so she had to resort to polite platitudes. In reality, she had just visited the Yukinoshita family a week ago.
"Well, Ms. Hiratsuka, a week isn't such a long time," Yukino said, frowning slightly. "Also, as a homeroom teacher, shouldn't you be in the assembly hall with your students right now?" She could tell the other woman clearly had something on her mind but was just beating around the bush.
"You're right! Yukinoshita, let's talk later!" Reminded of her duties, Hiratsuka realized the entrance ceremony was about to begin and immediately hurried into the hall. She decided she would find an opportunity to ask Hikigaya Hachiman himself.
Chiba Municipal Sobu High School, a school with strict academic discipline, gave its freshmen a harsh welcome at the opening ceremony: there were no chairs in the venue. All new students had to stand in formation below the stage for the entire event.
The speeches at the ceremony were as boring as they were lengthy. Since the students were standing and couldn't doze off, they could only pray in their hearts for the ordeal to end quickly.
However, when the freshman representative began to speak, a commotion rippled through the crowd. The representative who took the stage was a stunningly beautiful girl. Yukinoshita Yukino's cool temperament was truly outstanding.
Even Hachiman himself had to admit that he rarely observed Yukino from a distance. On weekdays, they were always too close to each other, and he hadn't realized just how beautiful she was from afar. She possessed an untouchable quality, an existence that one could only marvel at from a distance.
At that moment, Hachiman truly wanted to take out his phone to record the brief scene, but the many teachers and seniors from the Student Union's Discipline Department patrolling the lines made him give up the idea.
After the "ice queen" Yukinoshita Yukino finished her speech, another beautiful girl with a completely different style took the podium. She was a current student council member, Joh Hui-matsu. Her speech was full of a spring-like warmth that unknowingly sparked the freshmen's interest in joining the student council.
Finally, after standing for nearly an hour, the opening ceremony concluded. The exhausted students just wanted to get back to the classroom and sit down. As for the beautiful girls who had just been on stage, they were already a distant memory.
By the time they returned to the classroom, it was almost eleven o'clock. Before the lunch break, Class F, Hachiman's class, held an election for the class monitor and other leadership positions. Hachiman was naturally not interested in this, and Shizuka Hiratsuka didn't make things difficult for him, as she had received instructions from Haruno.
In fact, Hikigaya Hachiman was the top scorer on the entrance exam for Class F. In previous years, it was an open secret that the top-scoring freshman in a class would almost always be forcibly assigned a leadership position.
"Finally, I'd like to mention two things," Hiratsuka announced. "First, Sobu High has always focused on cultivating students' comprehensive qualities, so everyone must choose a club to join within the first month of enrollment. Furthermore, our school does not have a 'Go-Home Club.' Failure to join a club will have a significant impact on everyone, so please take this seriously."
"Secondly, our school library has a rich collection of books and plenty of seating. You can borrow books or study there freely with your student ID. It is also open on weekends. The library staff are students. Those who wish to sign up can apply to the Student Union."
Shizuka Hiratsuka finished her final points, which meant the freshmen of Sobu High had completed all their pre-class preparations. Now it was up to them to use their spare time to explore the huge school.
"Hikigaya Hachiman, come with me for a moment."
As she was about to leave the classroom, Hiratsuka called out Hachiman's name. Though he was a little confused, he followed her all the way to the faculty office.
Hiratsuka walked to her workstation and sat down, handing a chair to Hachiman.
"Please sit down, Hikigaya. There's no need to be so formal." She subconsciously reached for a box of cigarettes before immediately pulling her hand back.
"Thank you, Ms. Hiratsuka. What can I do for you?" Hachiman asked, pretending not to have seen the cigarette box.
"Actually, during the class leader selections just now, according to convention, I should have called your name," Hiratsuka said calmly, but her words sent a chill down Hachiman's spine. The implicit meaning was clear: You were almost a class leader, the kind you can't refuse.
"But a few days ago, a student who just graduated called me and asked me to take care of you. She specifically mentioned that she didn't want you to be a class leader," she continued, a smile playing on her lips. "I won't ask why. That student is the best I have ever taught, and we have a good personal relationship, so I agreed to her request. Having said that, you should know who I'm talking about, shouldn't you, Hikigaya Hachiman?"
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