COTE: Starting With Love Stock Market System

After being led into the Student Council by Tachibana, the sight before them left the two girls, who were visiting for the first time, slightly surprised. Unlike ordinary clubs, the Student Council dealt with a variety of affairs, making it a place where one could hone their skills.

Their gazes swept past the neatly arranged desks and chairs, taking in the sight of senior students working diligently. Ichinose felt both astonishment and a sense of anticipation, while Ando cautiously observed her surroundings, making a mental note of the layout for future visits.

As the group made their way toward the black desk where Manabu was seated, a playful voice called out from behind.

"Oh? Isn't this Hikaru-kun? Are you here to apply for the Student Council?"

The voice belonged to Nagumo Miyabi. Upon spotting Hikaru, he immediately strode over, his tone unusually intimate as he addressed the boy by name.

"Good afternoon, Nagumo-senpai." Hikaru greeted him with a calm smile.

At the mention of Nagumo's name, Ichinose and Ando's expressions shifted slightly. They vividly remembered Hikaru's warning from the previous day, so their gazes instinctively fell on the male student before them.

Objectively speaking, Nagumo was quite good-looking—someone who might leave a positive first impression upon a first meeting. However, thanks to Hikaru's prior warning, both girls had already formed a strong mental filter when looking at him.

After taking in Nagumo's appearance and demeanor, Ando scoffed internally: Hmph, he looks decent enough, but his personality is absolutely rotten. Compared to Hikaru-kun, he's not even in the same league.

Meanwhile, Ichinose thought to herself: So, this is Nagumo Miyabi? Since Hikaru-kun asked us to monitor his actions, we have to take this task seriously.

"I'm not here to join the Student Council today, Nagumo-senpai," Hikaru replied with an easygoing expression. "I'm just here to submit applications on behalf of two classmates."

With that, he gestured to the two girls behind him and introduced them with a composed tone. "This is Ichinose-san, and this is Ando-san."

"Nice to meet you both. I'm Nagumo Miyabi. Just call me Nagumo," he said, flashing what he believed to be a charming smile.

However, Ichinose and Ando were completely unfazed by his supposed charm, merely nodding politely in response.

"That's strange, Hikaru-kun," Nagumo remarked, tilting his head slightly. "If your class has people applying for the Student Council, why aren't you joining?"

After their last encounter, Nagumo had specifically gathered information on Hikaru. Whether it was his feat of leading Class B to Class A within the first month or his strategy of purchasing exam papers from senior students, every piece of information piqued Nagumo's interest.

Hikaru's capabilities, along with his tactical manipulations against other classes, were traits that Nagumo found particularly admirable.

His gaze flickered toward the two girls standing beside Hikaru. The way they positioned themselves and their subtle expressions revealed that they saw Hikaru as their most reliable pillar of support. This meant that even though Hikaru wasn't the official leader of his class, he had already unified and asserted dominance over it.

No matter how he looked at it, the blond Vice President couldn't help but see a reflection of himself in Hikaru.

Because of that, Nagumo was eager to recruit Hikaru. Once he took over as Student Council President, Hikaru would be the perfect candidate to control the second-year students—without a doubt, he had the potential for it.

"Well, I don't have much free time, so if I joined, I'd probably just be a burden to everyone," Hikaru replied mildly. "Maybe I'll change my mind in the future."

"Oh?" Nagumo smirked before reaching out and patting Hikaru's shoulder. Flashing a bright smile, he said, "If you ever want to join the Student Council, be sure to come to me. I promise you won't regret it."

"Thank you, Nagumo-senpai. I'll keep that in mind."

"Haha, well then, I'll leave you all to your business. I have other matters to attend to." With that, Nagumo shot a glance at Tachibana, who had been left standing awkwardly on the side, and smiled before turning on his heel and striding away.

As the conversation ended, Ichinose tugged at Hikaru's sleeve, exchanging a glance with him. However, the boy simply shook his head slightly and whispered, "I'll explain later."

"Alright."

"Understood."

Suppressing their curiosity, Ichinose and Ando continued following Hikaru.

Tachibana led the trio through the Student Council office, finally arriving at the far end where Manabu was seated.

"Good afternoon, Horikita-senpai."

Hikaru greeted politely, his usual gentle smile returning to his face.

"Good afternoon, Hikaru-kun." Manabu adjusted his glasses slightly, his sharp gaze shifting to the two girls behind Hikaru.

"These are the candidates you've chosen?"

"Yes."

Hikaru nodded before stepping aside, allowing the two girls to introduce themselves and submit their application forms.

"Horikita-senpai, I'm Ichinose Honami from Class 1-A. Here is my application form," Ichinose said confidently after taking a deep breath.

Following her lead, Ando smoothly introduced herself as well.

"Horikita-senpai, I'm Ando Sayo from Class 1-A. This is my application form."

Earlier at lunch, Hikaru had coached the two girls through a practice run, ensuring that they wouldn't make any mistakes during the real thing.

Manabu took a brief glance at the applications before passing them to Tachibana. "Tachibana, process their applications. You'll be responsible for training them over the next few days. Make sure to explain the key responsibilities."

"Yes, President."

Although she was slightly puzzled by the arrangement, since Manabu had already issued the directive, Tachibana promptly turned to the girls. "Come with me. I'll guide you through the application process."

Ichinose and Ando exchanged a quick glance with Hikaru. Seeing him nod, they felt reassured and obediently followed Tachibana.

Once they left, Manabu fixed Hikaru with a steady gaze. "So, you've made up your mind? Using them as informants to monitor Nagumo?"

"Yes. They're both reliable and capable. I believe they'll accomplish a lot in the Student Council."

Hikaru nodded, his gaze inadvertently drifting to Manabu's desk, where a white document lay. It appeared to be another application form.

"Interested in this?" Manabu noticed his gaze and flipped the document over, revealing the front side.

"You're not the only class submitting applicants to the Student Council. There's another one."

"?"

Hikaru's eyes landed on the form. It featured a photo of a girl.

The name written below it was—

Sakayanagi Arisu.

"It's her?" Hikaru's expression changed slightly as he recalled his first impression of her.

"Horikita-senpai, has Sakayanagi's application been approved?"

"Yes, but not by me. It was approved by Nagumo Miyabi."

"..."

"You still have a lot of work ahead of you, Hikaru-kun," Manabu stated calmly as he tucked the application back into a drawer. "I hope you won't disappoint me."

"Please rest assured, Horikita-senpai. I know what needs to be done."

~~~

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