Pinned against the door by a high-ranking, beautiful girl, being cornered into "eating her soft rice"—what exactly was he supposed to do now?
If someone posted this scenario online, the responses would probably range from, "Wake up, this only happens in your dreams!" to, "Step aside, I'll set him straight!"—hardly serious advice.
Because honestly, something like this should only exist in people's wild imaginations. It was impossible to believe it was happening to a real person.
Yet, at this very moment, it was happening to Hara Kei.
And faced with such… ahem… blessings, his answer was obvious—
Refuse.
Not because he had some secret joy in always saying "No" to someone he thought was a sure thing.
Goko's proposition was simply asking whether he would trade freedom for a comfortable, luxurious life. To Hara Kei, these two things weren't even on the same level. He had no shortage of food—or freedom.
He subtly flexed his muscles.
From Goko's reactions since entering this office, it was clear that she was not someone who could be persuaded with mere words. Trying to reason with this obstinate Student Council President would be exhausting and pointless.
Thus, Hara Kei prepared to use a more physical approach—at least to break out of this passive situation.
Just then, both of them heard a faint clicking sound. It came from beside Hara Kei's waist: the other door handle.
Like the rest of the office, this double-door was decorated with imposing grandeur. Each panel was wide enough for six people to stand side by side, and the two of them barely filled even one panel.
The sound came from the panel that neither had "affected."
Someone outside was turning the handle. The door swung open shortly thereafter.
What unfolded naturally entered the newcomer's line of sight:
The Student Council President had a boy pressed against the door in a dangerously intimate pose, seemingly about to grope him.
"What are you doing?" The newcomer's finely arched brows furrowed. She didn't bother with pleasantries; she grabbed Goko's arm and yanked her away from Hara Kei.
Goko actually obeyed fairly willingly. Though a trace of regret crossed her face, she only muttered a couple of complaints:
"We were at a… critical moment here, Keqing. Couldn't you have come a little later?"
"No." The young woman, whom Goko had addressed affectionately as "Keqing," didn't give the school's nominal ruler an inch of leeway. "St. Eden Academy rules strictly forbid inappropriate relations between the sexes. As Student Council President, you must set an example."
"There's actually a rule like that?" Goko feigned exaggerated shock, tapping her palm in mock disappointment. "I must get it removed in the next central council meeting."
"But until it's deleted, follow it properly," Keqing said firmly. Though slightly smaller than Goko, she gave off no impression of weakness or fragility. Her doll-like face framed by sharply arched eyebrows, paired with her clear purple eyes, radiated a dangerously intense aura.
To slightly soften her sharp presence, her long purple hair had been styled into twin ponytails, with a small loop on top forming two playful "cat ears," making her almost overwhelmingly cute.
Having quickly subdued the "Goko Situation," she turned her gaze to Hara Kei.
"You might know my name, but just in case, I'll introduce myself." Hara Kei noticed a flicker of scrutiny in her eyes. "I'm Keqing, a senior at St. Eden Academy and the Student Council Vice President."
"You seem to have been subjected to some… indiscretions by the President," she continued, shooting Goko a sharp look. Goko puffed out her chest, showing no remorse whatsoever.
"She acts on whim, and combined with this," Keqing tapped her head, "which is a bit… unusual—(Goko: 'Hey!')—if she offended you in any way, I apologize on her behalf."
"Of course, if you require some compensation for the mental trauma caused by her, we can negotiate reasonable terms." Her tone was measured, her enunciation precise, leaving no room for interruptions. If Goko was 'listens but ignores', Keqing was 'speaks first, silences all rebuttals'.
"I hope you consider carefully how to make use of this rare chance for compensation. When ready, come find me in… actually, just come directly to Class 3-A. For now," Keqing pointed to the clock on the wall, "if you don't head back soon, the class bell will ring."
Hara Kei glanced at Keqing, then at the now obedient Goko. He bowed slightly to both and turned, leaving the Student Council President's office without looking back.
As he walked down the hallway, he caught a fleeting glimpse of a blonde figure darting past the corridor's end.
…
Ding dong~!
The melodious school bell rang throughout the campus. Like many other schools, St. Eden had chosen the traditional Westminster Chimes.
The simple yet elegant melody drifted through the campus, including the Student Council office where Goko and Keqing were.
But neither of them went to class.
As President and Vice President, both had already secured admission to their ideal universities. While their classmates were buried in studies, they could fully enjoy the sweetness of freedom.
"Hmph hmph hmph~" Goko hummed happily from her throne-like chair.
"He probably won't come looking for me again," Keqing said. Even seated, she didn't collapse into the sofa, keeping her back straight as a sign of discipline. "I think he might have figured out something."
"Not impossible. Kei's intuition is terrifyingly sharp—I realized that two months ago," Goko replied casually. She reached toward her desk and retrieved a palm-sized photo album from a perfectly organized stack.
"Why start now? I thought you said it would take a full semester to fully observe and analyze him," Keqing asked, curious.
"If Hara Kei had stayed the same as when he enrolled, a semester wouldn't have been enough anyway," Goko said, smiling mysteriously as she flipped open the album. "But someone gave me a big helping hand."
"A very big help," she emphasized. "Her name… Yukinoshita Yukino, I think? Whoever admitted her deserves immense credit."
The first page of the album featured a photo:
Hara Kei, headphones on, walking up the slope in front of St. Eden Academy. White petals drifted around him, making his already handsome appearance almost otherworldly.
The only flaw in the picture was that he wasn't looking at the camera—like a painting missing its final brushstroke, leaving a faint sense of regret.
In the lower right corner, written in elegant handwriting, was "September 1".
The date the photo was taken.
And the first day of the St. Eden Academy school year.
..
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