After Ichinose Nanami decided to take one of the spots in the student council, Hashima Hikaru turned his attention to the other participants in this gathering.
How to put it... Under his and Ichinose's efforts, Class A had already united as one. Since everyone was already quite cohesive, there was no problem in telling them these things.
However, some people he had called over were just filling in numbers, like Shirahama Chihiro from Ichinose Nanami's small group. Her overall quality was just average, but given her close relationship with the pink-haired girl, it was fine for her to sit in and listen.
As for the other classmates, they all had decent abilities. Among the boys, there were Kanzaki Ryuji and Shibata, and among the girls, Ando Sayo and Himeno Yuki. They were all outstanding individuals in Class A, so he wanted to select one of them to be Ichinose Nanami's assistant in the student council, supporting her actions.
"So, would anyone like to recommend themselves?" Hashima Hikaru smiled slightly, his gaze sweeping across everyone's faces. "The second spot will be chosen from among you."
"Well..." Shibata had some thoughts but wanted to hear others' opinions first.
"We're actually all quite similar. I feel either Kanzaki or Ando would be excellent choices," Himeno said, scanning the group and offering her view.
Her observation skills were sharp. If she had to choose a second-tier classmate after Hashima Hikaru and Ichinose Nanami, then Kanzaki Ryuji and Ando Sayo, with their good social skills and academic excellence, were indeed suitable candidates.
"You think I'd be suitable, Himeno?" Ando blinked her pretty eyes. Her appearance was actually quite good—while not comparable to Ichinose, she was still a rather striking girl.
"What does Ichinose think?"
Hashima Hikaru listened to everyone's discussion and looked at the pink-haired girl beside him. After deciding to join the student council, she had been wearing a gentle smile on her face, quietly listening to her classmates' discussion.
"I think everyone is quite good. If I had to choose, I might not be able to say who's better or worse."
Ichinose didn't directly answer the question. Apart from Hashima Hikaru, she felt the same about all her classmates in Class A—they were all important to her, so she couldn't show preference for anyone.
"So how do we choose? Should we vote?" Kanzaki Ryuji proposed his plan but still seemed hesitant.
In this situation, everyone was reluctant to make the atmosphere awkward. The relationships among classmates were good, making it difficult to reach an immediate decision.
After observing everyone's expressions, Hashima Hikaru inwardly sighed. This was an issue he had noticed long ago.
Although Class A students were united and trusted each other, with everyone maintaining good relationships, once a situation arose that required determining winners and losers or selecting just one person from the class, everyone would automatically fall into a thinking pattern where they were afraid to take the initiative, fearing they would disrupt the current friendly atmosphere.
While everyone was hesitating about how to vote, Hashima Hikaru decisively spoke up: "How about this? I'll designate someone. After all, I obtained these two spots, and it would be easier for me to communicate with President Horikita."
"That sounds good. Let Hashima decide. We're not sure how to vote anyway."
"Yes, just tell us directly, Hashima. Whoever it is, we'll accept."
Upon hearing Hashima Hikaru's statement, everyone felt relieved.
It was best to let him make this decision.
"Who does Hashima want to choose?" Ichinose Nanami's shoulder touched Hashima's, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.
"Hmm... let's choose Ando."
The young man thought for a moment and decided it was better to choose a girl.
Girls tend to be more relaxed when interacting with each other, allowing them to discuss certain matters without reservation.
Hashima Hikaru also considered another point: the student council secretary, Tachibana Akane, who was always inseparable from Horikita. As the student council president's capable assistant, perhaps a female student could better build a relationship with her.
If successful, they might even be able to extract some information from her, making it a win-win situation.
"So, Ando, are you willing to join the student council with Ichinose?" Hashima Hikaru looked at the girl who had organized the gathering on the first day of school.
She immediately showed a flattered expression and said somewhat sheepishly, "Can I really?"
"Of course, everyone recognizes Ando's abilities. Together with Ichinose, you can definitely serve as our Class A's eyes in the student council, collecting more information for our classmates."
"What does Ichinose think?" Hashima Hikaru softly asked for her opinion.
"I think it's great! Ando and I are already close. If we can go to the student council together in the future, we might become even closer," the pink-haired girl had no objections to this decision and smiled at Ando Sayo sitting in front.
"Ichinose, please don't say that. If we're talking about closeness..."
Hearing Ichinose Nanami's affirmation, Ando wore a teasing expression and smiled at Hashima Hikaru's face, saying, "Isn't Hashima closer to you?"
With these words, the pink-haired girl's face turned bright red, her delicate face brimming with shyness. For a moment, she didn't know how to respond.
After all, in her heart, she indeed considered Hashima Hikaru her most important person, so she couldn't reflexively deny it.
The other classmates, seeing the girl in this state, all revealed knowing smiles. Everyone was well aware of Ichinose's feelings.
After spending this time together, the classmates close to Hashima Hikaru and Ichinose Nanami all understood one thing clearly: if the relationship between these two were to undergo a substantial change, the key would depend on Hashima Hikaru's attitude.
As long as he nodded, the two might immediately become a couple, given how proactive Ichinose Nanami had been.
Just as everyone was about to observe Hashima Hikaru's expression, they found that the young man had calmly taken out his phone and slowly pushed it in front of them.
"Alright, let's get back to the main topic. This is related to the student council."
"Since we've decided on the two classmates who will be joining the student council, I need to explain some related matters to you. The rest of you can listen as well, as this is very important for our Class A."
Hashima Hikaru's demeanor was serious. After all, what he was about to do was create an imaginary enemy to mobilize the enthusiasm of these two classmates who would soon be heading to the student council to gather information.
"Mmm, please explain, Hashima. We'll pay close attention and take notes," Ichinose Nanami and Ando Sayo immediately sat up straight, their faces showing seriousness.
"First, regarding the list of important officials in the student council that I know of, the first is naturally the current student council president, President Horikita. He holds the highest authority in the entire student council and has extremely powerful information channels."
"Next is his assistant, Ms. Tachibana."
The young man's phone screen currently displayed the school's forum, which contained various announcements from the student council, including signatures from these individuals.
"She currently serves as the student council secretary and works as President Horikita's assistant, so after you join the student council, you can proactively build a relationship with her. Do you understand what I mean?"
Hashima Hikaru's gaze fell on the two girls, who immediately understood his intention and nodded seriously.
"As for the next person, this is the key figure I want to discuss today."
The young man paused, pointing at the name on the screen with his finger, his tone deepening, "The current vice president of the student council, Nagumo Miyabi, who is also the class leader of the current second-year Class A."
Seeing the young man's suddenly changed expression, everyone became curious about this senior named Nagumo Miyabi.
"What's wrong with him? Hashima's expression looks somewhat scary..."
"Is this person difficult to approach, or is there some other reason?" Ichinose Nanami, being closest to Hashima Hikaru, could sense the young man's emotions but didn't quite understand why.
"Because after President Horikita graduates, this Nagumo will most likely be the next student council president."
Hashima Hikaru's expression was somewhat grave as he explained to everyone looking at him, "And his policy differs from President Horikita's. He plans to implement true meritocracy!"
"True meritocracy?"
"Does that mean changing the way classes compete? Will it affect our class?"
After hearing the young man's statement, everyone was unsure what it actually meant.
"Heh, true meritocracy is actually quite simple to explain. Have you all forgotten why our class is collecting private points?"
"Does Hashima mean..."
"He wants someone to be expelled!?"
Shibata thought for a moment before his expression dramatically changed, as he had figured out what "true meritocracy" meant.
As former members of Class B, the classmates attending today's gathering weren't stupid. Hearing Shibata's interpretation, they immediately understood what Hashima Hikaru was implying.
"How does this Nagumo senior plan to make people drop out? Is it through exam scores?"
Upon hearing Shibata's analysis, Ichinose Nanami's expression became particularly serious.
After two months, the girl had grown significantly. Although she still reacted to the word "expulsion," she immediately began to analyze its underlying significance.
"That's not entirely clear yet, but this information comes from President Horikita, so it should have a certain degree of credibility."
Hashima Hikaru's gaze swept across everyone's expressions, knowing that this imaginary enemy plan had already succeeded halfway. Now he just needed to add a bit more fuel to complete it fully.
After gaining complete control of Class A, he needed to establish an enemy for his classmates—a target that could inspire everyone's drive to move forward.