People bring their own maids to the training camp

"It seems Hayasaka-san has a lot of confidence in the magazine?"

"Of course! And Chihaya's first place is already the best publicity effect—we have to strike while the iron is hot!"

“The cost wasn’t very high to begin with,” Chihaya said. “Through the school’s channels, we can basically get it done at the lowest possible cost.”

"Then let's wish the magazine great success in advance."

"If it sells like hotcakes, I'm going to sleep cuddling with a king crab," Hayasaka said.

"Can you please stop thinking about king crab?"

142. Student Union Room

After school that afternoon, Chihaya and Kanzaki went to the student council office.

As usual, only Horikita Manabu and Tachibana Akane were in the room.

"According to the school's regulations, you can ask each of you questions about the upcoming exams. I will provide some information and some practical assistance."

"I'll choose this semester's final exams," Kanzaki said.

"Are you sure?" Horikita asked, glancing at Chihaya. In his opinion, Chihaya should be the one making the decision, but she was smiling, exuding an aura of solitary beauty.

"OK." Kanzaki nodded.

"First, let me explain the examination method for the final exams—the exam papers for all subjects are set by the school, all students take the exams on time, and the same as the midterm exams, students whose scores in a single subject are below half of the class average will be expelled."

"So, apart from dropping out, there's no difference between this and other schools?"

“That’s one way to understand it.” Horikita Manabu nodded. “The final exam is just a simple exam; all you need to do is answer the questions.”

"Is that so? Then I understand." Kanzaki nodded.

“Now you can make a choice, which is the actual assistance,” Horikita Manabu said. “You can choose from five exam subjects, and I will give you the standard answers.”

"May I ask what percentage of this answer is?"

"If it's English, I can give you the answers to one of the reading comprehension passages; if it's math, I can give you a word problem. That's about it."

“Then I choose mathematics,” Kanzaki said.

"Sure, I'll send the answer to one of the more challenging math problems to your phone two days before the exam," Horikita Manabu said. "So, do you have any questions?"

"Can I save this for later?" Chihaya asked.

"Sure, you can use it before you graduate or drop out of school. Even if I step down, you can find a new president."

"If it is Nagumo-senpai who succeeds me, I will definitely use it before you step down." Chihaya said with a smile, making a statement that was very directed at Nagumo.

Kanzaki, standing to the side, was somewhat surprised, but wisely refrained from asking any questions. In his eyes, Chihaya rarely expressed her dislike for someone so openly—especially since Honami, Chihaya's friend, held Nagumo in high regard.

Kanzaki wasn't stupid; he decided to keep it to himself, since it wasn't a big deal.

"In that case, please contact me when you need me." Horikita Manabu adjusted his glasses. "By the way, you first-year students should be going on a luxury cruise during the summer vacation. I will be on vacation during that time. Students will not be on duty at all times, so please contact the teacher if you have any questions."

"Understood, I'll keep an eye on Suzune. You can enjoy a relaxing vacation in the dorm, President." Chihaya understood Horikita Manabu's implication but deliberately evaded the question with another topic. For Horikita Manabu, the topic of his younger sister, Horikita Suzune, was always a surefire way to make others think it was a drama of awkward siblings.

"You... never mind, if there's nothing else, you can leave. The student council still has work to do." Horikita Manabu had no choice but to give them the order to leave.

"Alright, then good day, both of you." Chihaya smiled at Horikita Manabu and Tachibana Akane, who hadn't said much, before leaving the student council office with Kanzaki.

......

"Do you think it's a good thing that Nagumo-senpai is succeeding as president?" Chihaya suddenly asked after leaving the office.

"...I haven't had any contact with Nagumo-senpai, so I can't make a judgment without knowing him." Kanzaki replied after a few seconds of silence. "Nagum-senpai is undoubtedly excellent in terms of personal ability, after all, he successfully led Class B to Class A. However, since we can't control variables, it's still unknown whether we can learn from his experience."

“That’s what Kanzaki-san thinks.” Chihaya nodded. “Judging from the current trend, it’s a sure thing that Nagumo-senpai will become the president, but personally, I don’t really want him to take the position.”

"Is Chihaya planning to run for office herself?" Hearing Chihaya's statement, Kanzaki naturally assumed that Chihaya intended to become Nagumo's rival. Putting aside the second and third-year students, Chihaya currently has the greatest influence among the first-year students. After the magazine is released in a couple of days, she will likely reach the top in a short time. If she joins the student council at this time and competes with Nagumo, it is not entirely hopeless.

At least that's what Kanzaki thinks.

"Well, I don't have any plans to run for president yet, but that doesn't affect what I just said, right?"

"...So, do you have a suitable candidate in mind?"

"Yes, there is, but it probably won't work right now," Chihaya said. "Aren't you surprised, Kanzaki-san, that I'm actually like this?"

"I was definitely surprised, but it's perfectly reasonable." Kanzaki was very receptive to this and didn't even show any change in expression.

“I enjoy dealing with intelligent people,” Chihaya said. “However, for now, Class B only needs one voice, so Kanzaki-san, you just need to do what you think is right. If needed in the future, I hope you can help me.”

"..." Kanzaki remained silent for a long time, then said, "Okay."

----split line----

Not long after Chihaya Kanzaki left, Suzune and Ayanokouji visited the student council office.

"As a reward for second place, you can ask questions about future exams, and I will answer them as appropriate," Horikita Manabu said to the two. "Now you can begin asking questions."

"Is it okay if I ask about things related to the final exam?" Suzune asked.

"of course."

"That--"

“No, final exams don’t matter.” Ayanokouji interrupted Suzune. “I wanted to ask if there will be any special exams during the holiday cruise.”

"meeting."

"Will class points be involved at that time?"

"meeting."

“Well…” Lingyin’s mind opened up instantly, and she wanted to continue asking questions.

"That's it for the two questions." Horikita Manabu didn't let his sister ask any questions. "The school has not made any regulations stating that the rewards for the special exam are not linked to class points."

"..."

"So let me remind you one last thing: the special exam that follows will require the participation of everyone."

"Everyone...?" Rinne was slightly taken aback.

"That's it. Okay, that's all I can reveal about the second place."

143. Magazine Release

A week after the Ludo tournament ended, the magazine, supervised by Hayasaka, finally went on sale.

The first issue of the magazine, intended as a trial run, had a print run of 200 copies, each priced at 500 personal points. Students in Class B received a 15% discount on their first purchase, while members of the fan club received a 20% discount. (The current exchange rate is approximately 1:20, so 500 yen is roughly 25 RMB.)

In other words, members of the fan club enjoy long-term discounts, while the discounts for students in Class B are a promotional strategy offered by Hayasaka. So, you're in Class B and you're not joining the fan club? You want to buy the second issue at a discount after buying the first one? Hurry up and submit your membership application!

Of course, the core members received the first issue of the magazine in advance, presented to them in Chihaya's name.

From Class B, there's Honami and Amakura; from Class D, there's Suzune and Kushida; from the student council, there's Horikita Manabu; and even from the second-year student Kiryuin.

Hayasaka's idea was simple: after all, Kiryuin, though a freak, still had influence. If the other second-year students saw a magazine that even Kiryuin was reading, they might be interested.

In addition, all four first-year homeroom teachers received gifts. Whether the two grown men were interested or not was not a consideration, but Hoshinomiya-sensei was as happy as a 30-year-old junior high school student.

The magazine's sales channels are also very simple; after the payment is transferred, it will be delivered to the shoe cabinet.

Of course, if you're powerful enough, you can come directly to Class B and buy it on the spot—but aside from Class B members, basically no one chooses this high-profile approach. And those who can do this are usually people with good relationships with Chihaya and others; they've already received the magazines in advance.

As a result, all 200 copies sold out in no time, and not only first graders, but also second and third graders showed their support.

This caused some students who were unable to purchase the items to complain, saying that they should be sold to members of the fan club first, and then to the general public.

The scarcity marketing strategy did have an effect. The first issue of the magazine performed even better than expected. Leveraging the reputation established by Chihaya, the magazine became a sensation, with the entire grade discussing it.

It has a particularly high influence among girls, since more than half of the content is what girls are more interested in.

So, not long after the first issue was released, Hayasaka was already preparing for the second issue, starting with the photoshoot for the new cover.

The first issue's cover featured Chihaya as a solo act, but Hayasaka planned to have a beautiful girl pose with Chihaya on the cover of each issue starting from the second issue—using his position to help Chihaya increase her popularity.

The current candidate for the cover partner for the second issue is Honami. However, with just one word from Chihaya, it could be either Kushida or Suzune, making it very flexible.

And it was time for photographer Sakura to get back to work.

However, as is customary, Hayasaka consulted Chihaya's opinion before informing Honami.

"The cover star for the next issue? Me and Honami? No problem, you can go and discuss the timing with everyone." Chihaya naturally had no objections.

"I just wanted to confirm the candidate with you again, because it wouldn't look good to change the candidate at the last minute once it's been decided."

"You're not changing partners, or do you have other suitable candidates in mind?"

“There are many candidates, but we will analyze each case individually,” Hayasaka said. “For example, if you want to have more contact with Ichinose, then we will choose Ichinose. If you want to meet with Suzune more often, then you can find Suzune this time.”

"Let's not go through so many twists and turns, let's just find Fanbo."

"Okay, I'll contact her."

"Okay, I'll talk to her first, and then you can make the arrangements."

"clear."

......

"Shoot a cover? Can I do it?" Fanbo was somewhat tempted, but still a little worried, since he didn't have much experience and was concerned that he might affect Chihaya's progress.

“There’s nothing wrong with it, it’s just posing for a photo,” Chihaya said. “Besides, it’s just a cover photo, so there are only four or five different poses at most. We can just choose the one that looks good.”

"That's it."

“It’ll be quick,” Hayasaka interjected. “The timing doesn’t matter. We’re very flexible. The next issue will probably be released after the summer vacation ends and the second semester starts.”

"That's it."

“It can be done in an afternoon on the weekend,” Hayasaka continued. “Quickly.”

"Alright then, I'll give it a try." Fanbo nodded in agreement.

"See, Chihaya? I told you there wouldn't be any problems." Hayasaka turned to Chihaya and said, "By the way, I'm thinking of writing an article about this Ludo battle in the next issue of the magazine, and I hope the two of you can do an interview then."

"Shouldn't we have interviewed Chiya already? I don't think I have anything worth interviewing, do I?" Fanbo's expression suddenly became subtle. After all, she and Shibata had accomplished nothing. She couldn't throw a six, and Shibata couldn't win a duel. It was quite embarrassing.

Chihaya and Kanzaki's team, at least the latter had won a duel, which made Ichinose Shibata's team seem very weak.

"It's not a detailed interview, it's mainly for supplementary explanation, and it's mainly for Chihaya's side—I'll ask the other contestants from different classes if they'd like to be interviewed later."