By A Slight Mistake - Chapter 40
The student council election is in utter turmoil.
Every faction wants Ookami to join them; on the other hand, they evade me like the plague.
Of course, they wouldn’t want to approach me, seeing as there is a fortification of girls that not even the current student council president can breakthrough you’ll have to be pretty brave to try to break through that.
To my surprise, it’s not only the first year’s girls but also the second and third years girls that have come to my defense.
Nevertheless, Ninomiya senpai still hasn’t retracted his request of me becoming his secretary, thus just adding fuel to the fire.
Ninomiya’s senpai faction has been trying to persuade him to have Ookami join them, but the man himself refuses to listen, thus causing friction within the group.
In as little as two weeks, we’ll go from electing candidates to voting for the election, but that’s still to weeks to far.
The once peaceful campus has now become a war zone.
I have grown tired of the clamorous campus; thus, I decided to flee the scene.
Where else to go but the library.
The library here has a vast collection of books that, by no means, should be looked down upon.
Some of the books here are rare because of this; some students come here seeking to read them.
To no one’s surprise, the rare books are prohibited from borrowing.
The only way to read them is to get authorization from the librarian.
Even then, the librarian has to hand it over personally to you, and it must be returned before you leave.
The main reason I come here is mostly to browse the history books.
Since there is a discrepancy between the history that I once knew and the history that we have here, I’m attempting to merge the two.
Even though I’ve been desperately reading a large number of books, I would never have believed there were many such pitfalls.
Who would have thought that the history books would possess so many traps?
Many of them don’t articulate a proper conclusion, therefore, blurring the lines of their findings, thus leaving me lost for thought.
I’m aware that I may have become a bookworm since I’m always heading towards the library, which has become like a second home since I could always be found there.
I wouldn’t say I dislike reading; in reality, I find it quite enjoyable.
The only thing that disheartens me is that I can longer read light novels.
There is no such thing as light novels in this library.
I also can’t go to a public library due to my social position.
I thought of ordering them online, but all of our packages are checked beforehand for suspicious items.
It may not be considered a suspicious object in that sense, but on the other hand, it may as well be.
Luckily, some history books indulge in their delusions, which I find the most enjoyable to read.
Now then, I was finally able to confirm history up to The Great Migration.
Did Emperor Charlemagne come after this?
The epic The Song of Roland was also written around this time.
I liked The Song of Roland quite a bit.
I cried a little towards the end of the story.
I liked Olivier more than Roland, though.
I hope the story hasn’t changed over here.
With these thoughts in mind, I pull out the book I’m after from the bookshelf and move on to my favorite spot.
It’s a chair next to a window towards the north side.
This is the seat that I have deiced to reserve for myself.
Since the brightness of the lighting is consistent, my eyes don’t get tired.
As I was flipping through the pages and about to begin reading, I realized that someone was standing nearby.
When I looked up, the person standing there was Ookami Guren.
“You’ve done it, Sagara-san.”
While smiling, Ookami looks down towards me as his smile only gets more menacing.
“Whatever do you mean, Ookami-san?”
I know whats he’s talking about, but I’m playing dumb, of course.
“I’m talking about the student council officers. You were the one that nominated me, weren’t you?”
“No, it wasn’t me. I’ve only told the Student Council President that there are dozens of other influential students vying for the presidency, I haven’t said a word towards him on who will be the most capable candidate.”
“Liar!”
“No. I don’t lie… …isn’t that right?”
Sealing the words of Ookami, I look straight at him in the eyes.
As we stared each other down for a while, it was Ookami that ended up giving in.
“That’s right. You don’t lie.”
”It’s more advantageous to not lie in the first place if you’re going to be found out. I don’t like wasting my time.”
“Yeah, that’s the type of personality you have.”
“I’m glad you understand. Have we cleared up the misunderstanding?”
“I’m sorry. It seems I let the blood boil towards my head. May I Have a few words with you?”
He points to the seat in front of me and asks if he can sit down.
“By all means, it doesn’t seem like anyone else will come.”
In fact, there was no one in the library but us.
So there was no need to worry about being a nuisance to others by us taking.
While thinking so, I nod my head.
“Pardon my intrusion.”
Ookami was able to regain his usual calm composure and sat down in a relaxed manner.
“I’m sorry about earlier. That was uncalled for.”
“As long as you realized it was a misunderstanding, then it’s okay. So what’s your story?”
Understanding that right now is not the time to be reading; he closes his book and places it back on the table.
“Do you know who it could have been that nominated me?”
“Unfouranly no as I wasn’t at the scene to witness who it was.”
“I thought you would’ve known……”
“I’m afraid; I’ve been too busy taking care of my self. It’s not my intention to become the kindle for a fire, but the student council president doesn’t seem to want to give up on me yet.”
“Indeed, to go through that every morning must be terrible.”
“Yes, but that’s the least of my problems, it all the girls that crowd me.”
“That’s true sometimes I see second-year girls and occasionally even third-year girls in the crowd.”
“It appears that by going to the classroom of a first-year on a daily basis, the student council president has soured his public relations and has begun to face criticism.”
“……by any chance, does the president admire you?”
“Come now, don’t tell me you believe those rumors.”
To come to such a senseless conclusion, you must be a fool or going senile. (TN: Not sure)
“Sagara-san, are you really not interested in the position of student council president?”
“That’s correct; I find too tedious being part of the student council.”
At the sincerity of my words, Ookami began to smile.
“Ahahahaha… …you truly are something. Well, that’s to be expected since we are under your protection .” (TN: No idea if this is correct)
“I was honestly quite surprised when you unexpectedly flared up on me. What’s more, your plan of attack was full of holes with no solid proof; it honestly was a nightmare.”
“Thank you for pointing out my flaws, cause of this I feel I have grown a little.”
“Is that so? Well, as long as you’re aware of your shortcomings and strive to improve your self, that’s all that matters.”
“What if you were to acquire documentations intend for the secretary. Wouldnt that help you to find out what’s going on behind the scene? (TN: Probably wrong)
“If you would like to try by all means. However, the student council documentation isn’t available for the general public to view, so it will be difficult to obtain. But I’m also not encouraging you or inciting you to do so.”
“… … … … … … yeah. You’re not one to do that.”
Satisfied, Ookami nodded his head in agreement.
For Ookami to be so effortlessly deceived, shows he hasn’t investigated enough.
Yes, I won’t lie, but I make sure to deceive my opponents thoroughly when I do.
If you were not aware of this fact, it just means you still haven’t gathered enough intel.
“……You really don’t have any motivation.”
“It’s not that I’m not motivated; it just that I have no interest in such matter.”
Well, I suppose that what everyone would believe.
“What do you believe I should do in this situation?”
“What do you desire? Whether or not you want to become the secretary or run for the presidency, that’s entirely up to you. As long you keep me out of it, I’ll secretly support you behind the scenes.”
As he honestly conveyed his feelings in a straightforward manner.
Ookami’s smile turned into a wry smile.
“Only in secret, does that mean you won’t openly support me. “
“You and I both know if I were to move now, it would only cause chaos. Besides, it seems that not everything has come out to the surface yet.”
“Oh, that’s right; Sagara-san it rather unusual for you to express your intentions so clearly, also it appears that the first year’s girls have become the anti-student council president faction.”
“It’s something that I never desired … … but its a fact that in reality, that is what saved me.”
As I continue to answer on an honest basis, it appears as if Ookami’s wry smile only deepens.
“I heard from the girls Sagaran-san that you are considered their ideal prince. You are a kind and gentle woman but at the same time, reliable. A girl from my class told me that she wanted to protect you because she knew you would do the same for her.”
“I see. I’ll find it troubling if they think too highly of me.”
I’m far from their idealized views of me. I’m just human. Seeing my troubled expression, Ookami tilts his head.
“In reality, what they’re saying isn’t that far off from the truth. You give off this feeling that you lack what makes one human.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“It’s as if you’ve come out of a fairytale or a dream. It feels as if you can never be reached even if you’re in arms reach. All one can do is make sure you’re real and not a figment of their imagination.”
“……I apologize for my rude behavior towards you, but I just had to make sure you weren’t behind this. I’m a cowardly person at heart. But at the stage, we’re in now the fewer people I come in contact with the safer it is .”
It seems our game of wordplay has come to an end.
Ookaim understands that by shrugging his shoulders, he’s implying that he no longer wants to associate himself with any longer. (TN: Probably wrong)
“You’ve misunderstood me. Sagara-san, the reason I approached you was by doing so I believed that the person responsible for this would show up.”
“Looks like my judgment was wrong. I was just beginning to understand their train of thought; it seems me assuming someone would approach was naive.”
Since I know, I’ll be honest with you.
Chiaki would never approach anyone.
“It’s vexing. This time they may have been able to carry out their plan to trap me. But I’ll definitely drag them out next year and show them.”
“I see. I wish you the best of luck.”
Feeling indifferent, I returned him some half-hearted words.
“By the way, Sagara-san.”
Standing up, Ookami unexpectedly looked at me and asked.
“Who do you believe should be elected to be the next Student Council President?”
“……The would-be the winner, of course.”
When I replied I didn’t care who won, Ookami laughed bitterly.
“It next-to-impossible to get you to take something seriously.”
“Thank you; I’ll take that as a compliment.”
.
.
Reaching my arm out, I pull a book closer to me.
As I look at the cover, flip through the pages, and expel the words, I felt the sign of the Ookami leaving.
For the time being, it seems that they have succeeded in bringing Ookami onto the center stage.
From now on, all Chiaki has to do is figure out the way he thinks and his next course of action.
However, she can’t make any careless contact.
The fact that he was able to figure out that I would always come here, in most likely hood means that he has someone to keep an eye on my movement.
“Ah! Wait, that’s wrong!”
As I was reading the book, a new fact came before me.
It should have been Emperor Charlemagne = Charles the Great, but now it has become Charles the Bold.
It may seem that only the name has changed, but its still a name.
I once read an outrageous version of The Song Of Roland that claimed that Charlemagne was said to be a woman.
That one was quite out there but, at the same time, quite fascinating.
Maybe next year, I should join the library committee and look for some outrageous books and purchase them for the library.
A person who belongs to a committee is expected not to become a student council officer.
Yes, that might just be a good idea, after all.
In a slightly better mood, I began to absorb myself into reading.