My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 213

If you think about it for a moment, you'll realize that everyone wants to get rid of work as soon as possible, and if it's already finished, of course you'll throw it away immediately.

I squinted and stared straight at her, while Yukinoshita casually flicked her hair.

"I'm not confirming, I'm putting pressure on you."

"is that so……"

That's true. When the boss asks, "Is it done yet?", the employee can only answer, "I'm doing it now!" It's a workplace scenario where you absolutely can't say no.

There's no choice but to get to work. Since I'm under pressure, I can only accept it. As expected of Yukinoshita, who's skilled at putting pressure on others. She's probably putting pressure on her own breasts too. It would be great if this caused them to bounce back and grow.

I cursed Yukinoshita in my heart as I listlessly sat down in my seat next to her and continued with the work I hadn't finished.

In order to get the documents out of the way, I checked all the files piled up on the table.

One. Two. Three...four, hey—

The workload has increased again...

I looked at Yukinoshita with resentment, as if I were performing a scene from a Japanese ghost story (Note 43, a famous Japanese ghost story often used as material for Kabuki performances, especially the scene involving counting plates). Yukinoshita, noticing my gaze, simply looked quietly at Senior Megurine.

...Oh, really? Is it Senior Xun? But Senior Xun is busy with the camp committee's work too. Is it really okay to have her help out here when she's a student applicant? There's also the student council president election later... she won't be able to relinquish this position until the next president is elected. It would be better to lend a hand and lighten Senior Xun's burden.

I scratched my head to change my mood, then turned to face the documents on the table.

I wrote down the student seating locations, guidance routes, waiting areas between programs, and the locations of entrance and exit arches, and simulated the movement of students from memory before recording the appropriate configuration.

"What a monotonous job..."

"Please take care of this one too."

On top of the mountain of documents, another piece of written material, contained in a transparent folder, has appeared. Seriously, my desk isn't Dropbox; uploading everything to it is really bothering me…

I glanced to the side and saw Yukino typing on her computer.

Hmm, this guy is definitely working... Seeing others work diligently makes me feel compelled to try harder too. Peer pressure is really undesirable.

No, if this pressure could affect the on-site team, then there would be no problem. However, unfortunately, there's a "just do it casually" atmosphere permeating the on-site team right now. This forces us to clean up their messes.

Although I am fully aware of the current situation, I can't let it go without complaining a bit. I said this as I worked.

"It feels like I've been working all the time lately..."

"That's surprising."

A calm reply came from beside me. Of course, the other person's hands didn't stop, continuing to tap on the keyboard.

As Yukinoshita said, it was indeed quite unexpected. I never imagined I'd start working...

"Yeah, my dad would faint if he heard me working."

"That's not what I meant... No, it is indeed surprising. Rather, your father is a bit outrageous."

All I heard was a helpless sigh. But I can resolve the neighbor's doubts with just one sentence.

"Because he's my dad."

"It's subtly persuasive... But putting that aside, what actually surprised me was Sagami-kun's matter."

I was startled when I heard someone's name. I turned around and saw Yukino staring at Sagami, who was working diagonally in front of me.

"She's surprisingly serious about her work."

"That's a really harsh way to put it..."

To use the word "unexpected" to describe it... You were the one who recommended her for the chairperson position... But hearing Yukinoshita describe it this way, I'm starting to feel a little surprised too.

I thought Sagami had long lost her motivation, but to my surprise, she cheered up and started working seriously again.

This is a crucial moment for Sagami as well. If her reputation drops again this time, there will be no chance of recovery. If she fails again, she will only be able to maintain her self-esteem by mocking those even lower than herself.

However, problems cannot be solved simply by doing things diligently.

Yukinoshita seemed to fully understand the situation, adding a sentence as firmly as if driving a nail into the wall:

"Unfortunately, she is by no means outstanding and is not capable enough to entrust my work to her."

"That's certainly true if we're comparing you to someone else."

If we take Yukinoshita as the benchmark, then everyone would probably be categorized as incompetent.

Yukinoshita glared at me fiercely.

"I'm not the only one. There are many outstanding people out there."

"Yes, there is..."

The only people whose abilities can rival this guy are probably Haruno or Hayama.

"and……"

Yukinoshita continued in a soft voice.

Without realizing it, her hands had stopped. Her fist, resting on the keyboard, was only lightly clenched, seemingly without any force.

"...I probably wouldn't call myself outstanding. My schedule is a complete mess."

She pressed a key on the keyboard. It seemed she was adjusting her schedule according to her current work progress.

However, this wasn't Yukino's fault, as she was in charge of creating the schedule. Rather, without that schedule, we probably wouldn't be able to get anyone to work.

"This isn't your fault."

"is that so……"

"Of course. It's all society's fault."

"The ultimate trick for shirking responsibility..."

Yukinoshita chuckled dismissively, then straightened her back and faced the computer again. As if trying to make up for the time wasted chatting, she tapped the keyboard lightly.

Although Yukinoshita believes she needs to take responsibility, I don't think she did anything wrong.

The delays in work progress have a more definite reason than a work schedule or itinerary. The problem lies in the team members' motivation.

Although the meetings themselves were not to the point of being boycotted, they were often stalled due to objections from the audience. When assigning tasks, the audience would use the excuse that "it will not affect club activities" as a shield.

How could the members possibly be motivated to work in such an atmosphere?

Although they follow the schedule, they also use it as an excuse to prevent us from using manpower flexibly. This part can only be compensated for by the decision-making team.

As a result, I had to stay and work overtime to handle miscellaneous tasks.

Furthermore, many things remain unresolved, and many unsettling factors persist.

If the current situation remains unchanged, I can foresee that everything will collapse in the near future.

× × ×

After working for several days in a row, the hustle and bustle that fills my ears every morning always makes me feel depressed.

It's supposed to be the start of a day, but this feeling of "it's already over" is unbearable.

Especially near the building entrance where students from other classes come and go, the atmosphere is even more frivolous and fake compared to the classrooms.

There was no animosity between us, just a certain distance. Friends of friends. Classmates until last year, but friends with whom I'd drifted apart without realizing it. Clubmates. When I encounter all sorts of people with whom I maintain a distance, they all wear masks appropriate to the occasion. The masks on their faces conceal a completely different side of themselves.

Everyone uses lies in everyday life. In that respect, the Lone Ranger is truly remarkable. The Lone Ranger is completely true to himself. In folk tales, someone as honest as me, who is always honest with myself and the world, would definitely make a fortune.

I immerse myself in foolish thoughts to block out the noise around me. Then, to avoid bumping into anyone, I subtly sway my body back and forth and side to side, like a pendulum.

I walked up to my shoe cabinet, muttering to myself, "Makunouchi! Makunouchi!" and quickly stretched out my hand. Of course, I wasn't going to throw a punch; I was just grabbing my slippers. This kind of utterly carefree fantasy was truly delightful.

I reached my hand into the shoe cabinet, but I didn't know what I touched; I felt a rustling sensation on my hand.

What the heck? I peeked out and took a look.

...Oh ho!

Someone threw trash into the shoe cabinet...

The slippers were stuffed with candy wrappers and clumps of paper scraps.

Huh—what is this—bullying—?

In short, first check if there's anything else in the shoe cabinet besides trash, and also peek into other people's shoe cabinets to see if they've been stuffed with anything. But it seems only my shoe cabinet is stuffed with trash.

...Well, I knew it would turn out this way.

After understanding the current situation, I felt a chill creep into my heart, and a strong sense of fatigue washed over my shoulders and back. Perhaps "futile" is a better word to describe my current feelings than anger or sadness.

If I simply ignore it, then the situation will remain the same as before, and it won't bother me. I can use the same hurtful words to insult others myself, so I understand.

However, this childish behavior, reminiscent of that of an elementary school student, is truly incomprehensible. What is the point of such behavior? Who benefits from it? What kind of advantage does it generate?

I originally thought there wouldn't be any idiots in my school, but it seems there are always exceptions. Perhaps I'm lucky I wasn't subjected to violence. I should also be grateful that the trash in my shoe cabinet wasn't kitchen waste. There are countless idiots in the world, but I've only encountered so many; I guess that's already a kind of happiness.

Thanks to this incident, I learned another lesson.

Once a person is pushed off a cliff, they will fall endlessly to the bottom of the valley.

Because everyone believes that anyone who is being bullied has the right to bully others.

I froze for a moment.

Although I had already resolved to understand and be prepared for whatever situation I might encounter, I still couldn't stop my inner turmoil. It seems I'm not mature enough yet. Even for just a moment, such a foolish thing could make me waver, and this makes me feel ashamed.

However, if it's only this bad, I still have ways to fight back.

I rallied my spirits and grabbed all the trash I'd left in the shoe cabinet.

Then, I focused my mind and sensed the atmosphere around me... Good, it seems my invisibility ability hasn't disappeared yet, and it appears I can still use it in environments with many people coming and going.

After confirming that no one was watching me, I re-examined the arrangement of the shoes in the cabinet.

Since student ID numbers are ordered according to the Japanese syllabary (五十音), the number before mine was Hayama, and before that, it was Tobe. Before Tobe was Totsuka.

The shoe lockers were arranged according to student ID numbers, so the order of our four shoe lockers was the same as our student ID numbers.

This is a wonderful arrangement by God!

I grabbed the trash in my hand and stuffed it into the shoe cabinet in the nearest room.

...Forgive me, Ministry of Revenue.

Just as I made respectable sacrifices for the darker interests of others, someone else must also make sacrifices for me.

As a means of self-defense, this is passable. Although it's not a method that can be used anytime, anywhere, or against anyone, it was still a decent strike this time.

I slapped the dust off my hands twice and leisurely left the scene.

Just then, a noisy commotion came from behind. It sounded like the Minister of Revenue had returned to the building entrance after finishing his morning exercises.

I turned my head slightly and saw Hubu greeting his friends who were passing by in Hubu's style, and then he reached into the shoe cabinet.

"Got it... Hey, huh?"

Sensing something was wrong, the Minister of Revenue froze. Then, he carefully took out his slippers.

"Huh... Is it real or fake? Wait, wait a minute, huh—?"

The Minister of Revenue shouted exaggeratedly, causing everyone present to stare at him.

Just as everyone was standing at a distance watching the Ministry of Revenue, a few men who seemed to be friends approached him and burst into laughter.

"Ministry of Revenue, what's going on here? This is hilarious!"

"Pfft, isn't this blatant bullying?"

As the group chatted back and forth, the Ministry of Revenue responded with an extremely exaggerated reaction.

"Wait a minute! Why is there trash in my shoe cabinet? What happened? Is this bullying? Wait, am I being bullied?"

The Ministry of Revenue's noisy shouting carried a sense of tragic grandeur. I, on the other hand, felt a surge of guilt. Alas, I'm so sorry, Ministry of Revenue.

I silently apologized to him. Just then, Ye Shan peeked out from the crowd surrounding Hu Bu. It seemed he, like Hu Bu, had just finished his morning practice.

"Ministry of Revenue, you're being a bit noisy..."

Perhaps annoyed by the noise from the Ministry of Revenue, Hayama seemed somewhat displeased. The Ministry of Revenue, on the other hand, seemed to be trying to compensate for Hayama's cheerfulness, becoming incredibly high-spirited. He gets incredibly high whenever he's around Hayama; could this guy possibly like Hayama…?

"Hey, Hayato—please listen to me! Someone stuffed my shoe closet with trash! Like poke sticks and crispy plums, oh, and even male plums!"

"..."

Upon hearing this, Ye Shan's expression suddenly stiffened. He remained silent, reaching for his shoe cabinet. Then, his hand froze in mid-air as he stared intently at the shoe cabinet.

However, his movement only stopped for a fleeting moment.