"No penalties...?"
"This feels like a normal cultural festival."
"It's... almost unfamiliar."
Saiki could hear the thoughts of those around him. Meanwhile, Ayanokōji Kiyotaka seemed lost in thought.
*[Earlier, Tsukishiro mentioned this cultural festival will be open to the public for the first time.]*
*[If it's Shiro-bane's group, they'd likely use this opportunity to take me away.]*
*[But strangely, they haven't taken any special action lately... Did Saiki do something? Forcing Yagami to drop out so quickly—Saiki must've used some extraordinary means.]*
'Indeed...' Saiki replied in his mind.
"Additionally, choosing the right location on school grounds is crucial. If you want to set up near the main entrance, where guests will pass, you'll need to pay rent to the school," Chabashira continued.
....
After school, aside from club members, most students stayed in the classroom to discuss the cultural festival.
Kōenji Rokusuke prepared to leave, but as he stood up, Horikita Suzune approached him.
"Kōenji, you haven't forgotten our bet, have you?" she asked seriously.
"Hahaha." Kōenji chuckled.
"Of course not, Horikita. I'm not the type to break promises. Since I agreed, I'll follow through. But what can I contribute by staying?"
"Even one more person helps. You're not in a club, right?"
Kōenji shook his head, smiled, and sat back down.
"So, any ideas for the cultural festival?" Hirata Yōsuke asked, opening his laptop and smiling at his classmates.
"How about a haunted house?"
"We could sell desserts!"
"Let's collect rocks and create a rock exhibit!"
'The last idea seems out of place,' Saiki thought.
"The event runs from 10 AM to 3 PM. Food stalls are essential, but competition will likely be fierce," Horikita added.
"Budget is another issue. Compared to haunted houses or mazes, which control costs once built, other projects seem more expensive."
"With 39 students, our budget is 195,000 points. Honestly, it's not enough to decide hastily."
"I have a proposal," Horikita said, raising her hand.
"Go ahead, Horikita!" Hirata nodded.
"As Hirata said, the budget is limited. Empty discussions won't solve problems. For example, selling takoyaki involves material choices and cooking skills. We should gather ideas, then test them using personal points."
Most students agreed with Horikita's proposal. Practical testing is crucial, whether for food or performances. Using personal points for this isn't a bad investment if it leads to class points.
"It's a good idea, but if we use personal points... some might become reluctant," Matsushita Chiaki pointed out.
"That's fine. I don't want half-hearted proposals wasting time. But we must reward those who contribute. If someone has a good idea, they should speak up. If adopted, we'll pay them. How about that?" Horikita suggested.
The class has ample personal points, making rewards feasible.
"Saiki, what do you think?" Horikita suddenly asked.
'Me?' Saiki was surprised but understood her interest due to his performance on the uninhabited island.
"I see no problem," he replied.
"Great idea! Rewarding those who work hard for the class isn't bad!" Hirata smiled.
"We'll discuss rewards later. If we win 100 class points, it translates to 390,000 personal points monthly. We'll split this among proposers. I'll contribute 100,000 points. If multiple proposals are adopted, proposers will share these points equally."
They're now in Class A, with over 100,000 personal points monthly. For Horikita, class points matter more. After the last exam, they've widened the gap with Sakayanagi Arisu's Class B. However, Horikita believes Class B could still catch up. They need a larger advantage.
"I'll contribute 100,000 points too," Hirata offered.
Together, they're offering nearly 600,000 points—no small amount.
Saiki isn't interested in personal points or specific festival ideas.
'Selling desserts might work, but no one's suggested it. I won't either.'
...
Over the next few weeks, the class intensely discussed the cultural festival. Many students offered Horikita ideas, which she recorded.
Saiki noticed Matsushita Chiaki and Satō Maya being particularly active. With his powers, he could sense their plans.
"Horikita, can I have a moment?" Satō Maya approached Horikita one day.
*[Satō's talking to me? This is a first.]* Horikita was surprised but showed no emotion.
"What is it?"
"We've thought about the festival... You said to share ideas, right?"
"Yes, proposals are welcome."
"I have a winning strategy for the festival!" Satō smiled.
*[Horikita won't expect this—a maid café!]*
'Maid café?' Saiki heard Satō's thoughts, only interested in the last three words. Maids would make the café too noisy, defeating its purpose.
"Submit your proposal," Horikita said.
"Of course! But can we meet later? I'd like to present it to you... in an empty classroom in the special building. I've got permission from the teacher!"
"An empty classroom?"
"Please!"
Satō dashed out of the room.
'Just Horikita's meeting. Nothing to do with me,' Saiki thought, preparing to leave.
But Satō suddenly returned, calling out to him:
"Saiki, come too! As a boy, your input is valuable!"
With that, Satō left again.
'...'
"Hey, Saiki, do you have time later?"
Suzune turned to Saiki and asked.
"Me? Uh... yeah."
Saiki could only nod.
At this point, he couldn't refuse.
After chatting for a while, they left the classroom together and headed to the special education building.
They arrived at the classroom Maya mentioned, only to find Hasebe there as well, for some reason.
"Hasebe? What are you doing here?"
Suzune asked, surprised.
"Uh... I'm on lookout duty. I didn't think anyone would come to the special education building after school, but just in case, I'm keeping an eye out."
"Lookout duty? That's more thorough than I expected."
*Though I told them not to spread the word, I didn't expect they'd even assign someone to watch the place,* Suzune thought.
*And they've covered the windows so no one can see inside.*
"Alright, let's take a look," Suzune said curiously.
"Wait a moment. This is a simulation. Please experience it as guests, Saiki and Suzune!"
"I see. That's a better way to understand than reading a proposal. Let's do it."
Suzune nodded, intrigued by the setup.
Saiki glanced at the door, his vision piercing through it to see what lay beyond. Without saying a word, he and Suzune stepped inside.
The first thing they saw was a vibrant, colorful space.
The source of the color was the decorations adorning the once-plain classroom, arranged with care to create a unique aesthetic.
"This is...?"
"Welcome! This is the Maid Café Maimai!"
Maya and Chiaki, dressed in elaborate maid outfits, stood before them. Their figures, accentuated by the costumes, were quite striking.
Mei-Yu wore a qipao, exuding an Eastern charm.
*Hmm, it's not bad, but I still think maids and a café don't really go together...* Saiki thought.
They were led to a seat, and Maya handed them a handmade menu.
"What would you like to order, Master~?" Maya said, seemingly on purpose.
"Hold on, can I ask something before ordering?" Suzune interjected.
"Huh? What?"
"All this must've taken a lot of time and money to prepare, right?"
"Chiaki, how much did we spend again?" Maya asked, turning to her.
"We prepared for about four days. The cost wasn't as high as expected—13,200 points in total. We split it among us, so it's around 3,000 points per person. The expenses include renting three outfits, origami, and colored pencils from a general store. The tableware is ours, so no points were spent on that."
"Impressive," Suzune nodded.
"Then, please try our menu! Master, what would you like?" Maya asked again, back in maid mode.
"I'll have a coffee and a strawberry cake," Saiki said before Suzune could respond.
*I'm not a fan of this project, but as a café, the basics must be done right,* Saiki thought seriously.