Chapter 40: The Imperial Army Wants a Word with You (Just Kidding)
Every school year at Domino High School, there was a major recreational event designed to help students relax after their studies: the "Domino High School Culture Festival."
During this celebration, students confidently organized activities as classes, clubs, or free combinations, either setting up shops in designated areas to sell items, or performing shows on the school square's stage.
Whether it was fortune-telling booths, target shooting games, BBQ stalls, or maid cafes; whether it was song and dance, Senryu creation, martial arts performances, or Rakugo and Manzai, anyone at the Culture Festival could utilize their strengths to express themselves and release their stress to the fullest.
Although Chumley didn't think that some students, accustomed to being lax, would have any stress. That's right, he was talking about Chazz Princeton, who planned to perform on the Culture Festival stage and then confess his feelings to "Little Ribbon" Miho Nosaka.
"Damn Chazz Princeton!" Tristan sat in his seat, vigorously writing something on a piece of corrugated cardboard. If one leaned in to look, it would be clear to see a pile of words like "shameless," "scumbag," and "brazen."
Joey, however, had an indifferent expression and patted his shoulder. "Ultimately, isn't it because you still haven't given her the puzzle? If you don't give it to her today, it might be too late, you know?"
Chumley chuckled. "Maybe 'Little Ribbon' will see Chazz Princeton confess to her, get carried away, and just agree, 'Oh, Chazz Princeton is so cool! He confessed to me in public, how shy, but so romantic~' Something like that."
"Uh, Chumley, don't be like that, it feels really strange." Joey had a constipated expression. "By all rights, I should be disgusted, but why do I feel like what you just said was… a little cute?"
Shocking, was there a gay man next to him? Chumley was somewhat startled by Joey's surprising statement and quickly returned to normal. He just wanted to make a joke; good heavens, he almost got compromised? No wonder Mai Valentine always kept her distance from you, and then thinking about Rex the 'simp' only thinking about you when playing cards, it became even weirder.
"Compared to all that, let's just finish the work at hand," Téa said, holding a pair of scissors and cutting the corrugated cardboard. "Our group was assigned the airsoft gun game. Although Tristan provided the airsoft guns, the number of cardboard pieces needed for the game is no small amount."
Chumley's class planned to host a "Game Carnival" for the Culture Festival. They chose three games as the main attractions, with a group responsible for each. Chumley's group was assigned the "airsoft gun game." As the name suggests, it was a game where players used airsoft guns to aim and shoot down "human-shaped targets" made of corrugated cardboard, placed at varying distances, and received prizes based on their scores.
Although the airsoft guns weren't very powerful, if the game was played many times, it would inevitably cause the targets to deform. So, after Chumley and his group made enough targets, they also had to prepare a considerable number of spare replacements. A large stack of corrugated cardboard was placed on the game seats; those were the materials they used to make the targets.
Just as the group sat around the game desk, cutting cardboard, Tristan suddenly felt something amiss and turned his head to look at the classroom door. There he saw "Little Ribbon" Miho Nosaka, her face full of panic, running into the classroom and rushing to Téa's side, panting heavily, she said, "Téa, s-s-something terrible has happened! Our class's spot is gone!"
"What!?" As the Culture Festival committee member chosen by B Class, Téa immediately stood up from her seat upon hearing the news. "Nosaka-chan, quickly explain what happened."
"Téa, don't be so anxious. Nosaka-chan must be very tired from running all this way." Tristan watched his crush panting heavily with exhaustion, feeling a pang of heartache, but seeing the strands of hair clinging to her cheeks with sweat, and her vulnerable expression, he also felt a strong flutter in his heart.
"It's fine, Tristan." After taking a few deep breaths, Miho Nosaka managed to recover a little, and after assuring Tristan she was okay, she began to explain to Téa what had happened at the Culture Festival field.
According to the Culture Festival rule, after each class had finalized and submitted their activities to the school, classes requiring a field could draw lots to receive a section of the field to set up their shops. Since tomorrow was the start of the Culture Festival, while the groups responsible for game preparations were making the items needed for their games, other free students had already gone to the field to begin setting up.
Logically, all classes had drawn lots, and the school had ample space for students to hold the Culture Festival. There should have been virtually no possibility of students conflicting over field issues. But there was always that small group of people who liked to challenge the rule.
Just as Miho Nosaka and other B Class students were setting up their class's "Game Carnival" field, D Class members suddenly appeared, led by their class's Culture Festival committee member. They claimed that for the past three years, B Class's field had always belonged to D Class, and savagely broke into the area, destroying the already arranged field. They then left a huge, thick iron plate as proof of their occupation of that field.
After causing a ruckus and being completely unreasonable, the guy from D Class named "Gorō the Pig-Head" didn't stop there. He also demanded that B Class students act as laborers for their Culture Festival field setup as "compensation for occupying their field." Several boys, refusing to yield, rejected Gorō the Pig-Head's unreasonable demands and were severely beaten as a result.
Chumley couldn't help but feel a little nostalgic for Tetsu Ushio, the Demon Prefect who had been driven insane by Yugi and expelled. When that guy was in school, discipline was actually quite good. Would a punk like Gorō the Pig-Head from D Class dare to make such a fuss like this now?
However, Chumley also knew that the reason Tetsu Ushio could maintain such strict discipline was actually because he himself was the biggest villain in the school at the time. Although he would maintain order, he would extort huge protection fees from those he 'protected,' so he wasn't exactly a good guy either.
But at least he was better than those scumbags who took protection money and did nothing.
"Those damn bastards! Hey, Tristan, stop cursing Chazz Princeton, come with me and let's teach those guys a good lesson." The hot-headed Joey, hearing that his classmates were being bullied, couldn't sit still. He immediately stood up and started looking for a suitable weapon and called out to Tristan.
Tristan's face, however, was even more furious than Joey's. "My fists are itching for a fight." Seeing Miho Nosaka looking like she was about to cry as she spoke of their hard-decorated field being destroyed, Tristan's anger was already at 1000%.
"Don't be so impulsive, Tristan, Joey!" Seeing that Tristan and Joey had already set their sights on the large, metal set square that the teacher used for class, "Little Ribbon" quickly stopped the two impulsive boys. "Gorō the Pig-Head from D Class said to tell the classmates something."
(end of chapter)