My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 139

I stared blankly at the screen, pondering this riddle in my mind.

When exactly did it start that even taking meeting minutes became my job? If I remember correctly, this should have been the job of the third-year student who was in charge of the miscellaneous recording group, whose name I don't know.

"The miscellaneous tasks team hasn't submitted last week's meeting minutes yet."

It all started with those words from the Vice Chairman.

The group leader? On leave. The acting leader? Also on leave. The next one, also on leave. And then the next one, and the next one…

Then it was my turn.

When I heard that I was asked to take meeting minutes, I actually let out a "hee-hee" laugh.

Who would remember what everyone said in last week's meeting? So half of the meeting minutes were fabricated by myself, and the other half were vague and pretentious phrases like "working hard on it," "see attachment for progress status," "adjusting as needed," and "preparing to compile from multiple sources." It's okay, the person in charge will take responsibility; that's the point of being a person in charge.

As I casually wrote a paragraph, I took a sip of the tea I had brewed myself.

The meeting room was unusually quiet today, so work efficiency was quite good.

I looked around and counted the number of people. There were fewer than twenty people sitting here working like me. Five of them were student council officers, representing the school anniversary executive committee, which consisted of two representatives from each of the thirty classes. In fact, more than half of the members were not present.

Among these people, Yukinoshita is the most diligent. Since Haruno didn't come today, she was able to concentrate on her work.

Whether it was out of a desire to compete with Haruno, Yukinoshita's workload gradually increased, and her working hours became longer and longer.

Alternatively, this could simply be due to an increased workload.

After Yang Nai formed a group and signed up first, other groups followed suit and signed up to perform, which led to a large backlog of coordination and arrangements.

With fewer people, the workload should have piled up even more in theory. However, thanks to the efforts of the student council officers and other executive departments, Yukino's superb work skills, and Haruno's cooperation as she occasionally came to our school to practice and help out, the pile of work was miraculously gradually digested.

I took a short break and checked on the other students. Just then, someone looked up and caught their breath.

That person was Senior Xun. She made eye contact with me and started to say something.

“Ah… um…”

The senior student was probably trying to remember my name, but it would be too embarrassing if she asked me in a gentle tone, "Excuse me, what's your name?" So I decided to take the initiative to speak.

"Thanks for your hard work."

"Yes, you've worked hard too."

The senior student smiled, though a hint of fatigue was visible in her smile. There was nothing that could be done about it, as everyone's workload kept increasing.

Don't you think there are fewer and fewer people?

"...Yes, everyone seems to be very busy."

The meeting room was empty; I even had the illusion that the room area had increased.

"There should be more people tomorrow."

Despite what she said, I found it unlikely.

The number of attendees will likely only decrease further. Once people realize that absences are acceptable, attendance will continue to decline at an accelerated pace.

There is a theory called the "broken windows theory".

Suppose a building on a street has a broken window. If it is left unrepaired, it represents public indifference to the matter. This indifference will lead to moral decay and a rise in crime rates—this chain of events has become a settled conclusion.

Ultimately, humans are creatures prone to self-indulgence.

Not everyone on the school anniversary executive committee wanted to actively participate in the activities; there were certainly people like me who were reluctantly pushed into it.

Although we participated reluctantly, we knew very well that "everyone around us was doing their job well," and our conscience kicked in, so we still managed to do our job well.

However, once this common understanding, or any force preventing a decline in motivation, is removed, the group will naturally fall apart in a blink of an eye.

It's easier to find reasons to take the easy way out than to find reasons to work hard.

Anyone can relate to this. Whether it's studying, dieting, or doing anything else, if you really want to be lazy, you can use anything—the weather, the temperature, your mood, and so on—as an excuse.

We have now reached a point where we must take action.

I think Senior Sister Xun understands this as well.

But what should actually be done? Nobody knows the solution. Besides, even the chairman himself is absent, and the vice chairman is so capable that he can take on the work of the absent person and still have the capacity.

I didn't say a word to the senior student, and we just drank our tea in silence.

After enjoying a relaxing afternoon tea (though we didn't talk at all) and unwinding, I realized I couldn't rest any longer.

As the anniversary celebration approaches, the atmosphere on campus is gradually becoming more lively, and our workload is getting heavier and heavier.

Knock, knock, knock—someone knocked on the conference room door again.

So, the famous opening "tap tap tap tap~" in Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, "Fate," is said to be the sound of fate knocking on the door. If fate really does knock, then the fate appearing outside the door right now is certainly behaving itself.

If there's a knock on the door at this time, it's probably someone bringing us more work.

In other words, destiny is work.

Having made up my mind to never work, I feel like a hero fighting against fate. I hope some game company can turn my life into a video game, specifically an "RPG about bravely resisting the fate of work," and I want to live off the royalties from that game for the rest of my life.

"Please come in."

No one answered the door, so the senior student spoke up herself.

"Excuse me."

The person outside greeted them and then came in.

The one who knocked on the gates of heaven was Hayato Hayama.

× × ×

"I'm here to submit my application form for the school anniversary performance..."

Hayama found Yukino and approached her to explain his purpose.

"The application form is on the right inside."

Yukino didn't stop typing and answered Hayama directly. That would definitely be a zero-point service attitude, but since it was Yukino, there was nothing that could be done. Hayama understood Yukino's personality well, so he simply said "thank you" and headed in the direction Yukino had indicated.

After submitting the application form, Ye Shan's task was completed, but for some reason, he stayed here and kept moving closer to me.

"...Has the number of people decreased?"

Yes.

"Yes, a little."

"Um……"

Hayama brushed his hairline aside, seemingly lost in thought. "What's wrong with you? If you find hair troublesome, just cut it." I actually felt uneasy because of his presence beside me…

"...What do you need?"

I couldn't hold back any longer and asked, and Hayama answered with a bright smile:

"It's nothing. I'm just waiting for the documents to be reviewed and checking to see if anything has been missed."

Oh, I see... Then why did you come closer?

One second I was wondering what was going on, the next I immediately realized that this was just their nature. For some unknown reason, they liked to gather together all the time, and they would always rush over to familiar faces. If you just imagine them as a pack of puppies, it doesn't seem like a big deal.

During this time, other people entered the meeting room one after another.

Besides those aspiring to perform at the school anniversary celebration, classes and clubs must also go through the application process to participate. There is considerable coordination required between performing groups, as well as equipment issues, which fall under the jurisdiction of the personnel coordination group. Other application-related matters are handled by the executive department, while food-related matters are reviewed and approved by the health and hygiene group.

With the application deadline fast approaching, there has been an unusually large number of people coming to the office today. Unfortunately, the executive committee is short-staffed at this time, and every application counter is a chaotic mess with people crammed together.

Some people didn't know which counter to go to. A girl who looked like a first-year student stood there helplessly, and had no choice but to come here to ask... Hayama, who was next to me. Yes, Hayama.

"Excuse me... what does the performing group need...?"

"If you need to submit an application for a group performance, it's at that counter."

Hayama's responses were smooth and natural, no different from those of a genuine school anniversary executive committee member. The others seemed to mistakenly believe Hayama was an executive committee member as well, and they all came to him with questions. That's right, that's right, everyone go find Hayama.

"I don't know how to fill out the application form, could you teach me?"

"Sure, if you don't mind."

Wait a minute, that woman asked the question specifically to get closer to Hayama, right?

Ye Shan patiently taught her how to fill out the application form, and a long line of people followed behind.

"This person is yours."

"Hey, hello!"

How did I end up being dragged into helping out...?

The girl assigned to my spot instantly looked disappointed. That would really hurt me.

We were busy dealing with one student after another who came to inquire. After a while, a senior student came to help. It took quite a bit of effort to finally process this influx of applicants.

"Excuse me, thank you!"

After finishing a task, Senior Sister Xun brought Hayama a cup of tea... Yes, Hayama.

Okay, after all, Hayama wasn't on the school anniversary executive committee, but he did help, so we should be grateful. However, I also helped with my own extra work... *sobs*

Ye Shan thanked the senior student, took a sip of tea, and asked:

"Do you have enough manpower?"

"I'm not clear about the overall situation, but those of us working like slaves at the bottom are already almost overwhelmed with work just for our own departments."

"department?"

"I belong to the department that records miscellaneous tasks."

"Oh..." Hayama immediately expressed his understanding upon hearing this. "It suits you quite well..."

"..."

Do you want to fight?

The situation on the ground had already given him away. He understood and nodded.

"I see, it looks like you're having a tough time."

"...No, it's nothing."

There's no problem—or conversely, "no problem" itself is a problem.

Currently, almost all the work is handled by Yukinoshita. She is extremely capable, and the position of vice-chairperson grants her certain authority. In addition, she doesn't need to deal with club or class affairs, so she has plenty of time. Even if half of the executive committee members are on leave, she can still manage.

"However, in my opinion, it's almost all of Yukinoshita who's doing the work."

Hayama turned to Yukinoshita and said.

Yukinoshita remained silent at first, but Hayama waited patiently with warm eyes. Finally, she couldn't help but answer:

"...Yes, that's more efficient."

"But we're almost at our limit."

It was unusual for Hayama Hayato to be so blunt. Senpai, sensing the change in atmosphere, began to break out in a cold sweat.

Only the keyboard remained unchanged, clicking away emotionlessly.

"..."

Yes, Hayama is right. Yukinoshita did not refute this point.

"It's best to have others share some of the work while there's still time."

"Really? I don't think so."

When Ye Shan heard me speak, he turned his gaze toward me, waiting for my next words.

"In fact, many things would be faster if Yukinoshita handled them alone, which has the advantage of reducing wasted effort. Delegating work to others based on trust can become very difficult later on; this is especially true if there is a significant difference in abilities between the two parties."

We—at least personally—cannot trust someone to take charge of a task.

If you handle it yourself, even if things don't go smoothly, you only need to blame yourself.

I have no intention of blaming others. If you hate others, that hatred can never end.

This is not about gentleness or a sense of responsibility.

If I didn't do a good job, I can accept my fate and give up; but if someone else takes over the job and doesn't do it well, I can't simply accept my fate.

If he had done that back then, or if anyone had done it properly back then—holding such thoughts will only make life heavy and painful, leading to the highest point of depression.