I, the mastermind behind the scenes at Soubu High, refuse to be caught in a bloodbath.

"If President Himekoji keeps the appointment on time, I have no problem."

After she finished speaking, she pouted slightly, as if complaining that this matter was very unfair to her.

But it's unfair and there's nothing we can do about it; the one who speaks first always loses.

"I always keep my promises." Ji Xiaolu turned around and said, "Well then, that's all for now. See you this afternoon."

See you this afternoon...

Kogiso muttered something under his breath.

After learning that the owners of the second music room were actually Himekoji and Kazusa, Kitahara became somewhat brazen in his attempt to barge in. However, the problem remained: the spare keys were kept by the student council and the student affairs office, with Himekoji and Kazusa each holding one of the remaining two keys. Since that day, Himekoji had taken the key to the second music room from Hiratsuka Shizuka and had also instructed the student council not to lend it out. Therefore, Kitahara was once again turned away, as Kazusa would not open the door for him.

If Kazusa says no, Himekoji won't go to drive it.

This made Kitahara very anxious and upset. He tried to discuss the matter with Kazusa, who sat next to him, but Kazusa ignored his attempts to talk to her. If he kept bothering her, both the boys and girls in the class would have a lot of complaints about him. After all, it was very impolite to pester a girl like that.

"I'm actually quite interested in a light music enthusiasts' club."

"It's rare that you're interested in things outside of power."

"Well... because my mother said she would come to see me during the school festival and hoped that I could perform on stage. Of course, she also hopes that you can perform on stage."

"If that's the case, my mom said the same thing. I really don't know what kind of chaos they'll cause if the two of them meet at the cultural festival."

Kazusa stopped playing the koto, her hands hung down naturally, she twisted her shoulders a few times, and frowned to herself.

"...I need to make some arrangements, but how about we consider the light music enthusiasts' club?"

What are you planning to do?

Kazusa's sharp gaze fell upon him, as if she wanted to see through his heart.

"Let's go over there today to discuss it, see what kind of songs they want to choose, and their respective skill levels. If they're acceptable, it wouldn't hurt to join them."

Chapter 181 What the heck?! [Ogiso Setsuna] actually invited him!

While Kazusa was resting, Himekoji didn't stop playing. At that moment, Kogiri was waiting in the first music classroom next door. She planned to go down to the special building when it was almost six o'clock. At the same time, she noticed that Kitahara, who was playing the guitar, was very concerned about her being there, and his gaze kept drifting towards her.

Well, most normal guys would care about that, and Kiso is already used to it.

"If you want to join... it's not impossible for me to join."

Kazusa placed her right hand on her left shoulder and moved it around. Recently, she had increased her piano practice, or rather, she had been increasing her piano practice since the summer vacation, because Himekoji Daphne was very strict and relentless in urging her students to practice the piano!

"Alright, I'll go check on the situation today."

As he said this, Kazusa met his gaze and nodded slightly.

After finishing her daily task of spending an hour with Kazusa, Himekoji got up and headed towards the special building. From there, she could exit through the school's side gate, which was also Himekoji's usual route home. Reiko and her family's car would be waiting for her there. Kazusa always used the main gate, so they waved goodbye as soon as they left the main teaching building.

The last rays of the setting sun cast a long shadow of the girl, her soft, light brown hair fluttering gently in the autumn breeze. There were very few students left at school, so no one would bother her. Ogiso Setsuna had taken the day off from her part-time job to talk to Himekoji about the light music club.

Finally, the tall figure came towards us. He had a head of white hair and bowed slightly to apologize, saying, "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"It's alright, it's alright. I insisted on discussing it with President Himekoji..."

Kogiso quickly smiled and waved his hand, although he was indeed tired from waiting for him for more than an hour.

"Then let's go this way."

Himekoji pointed to the special building and said that it led to the side gate.

"Huh?! If it's a shopping mall... the main entrance should be closer, right?"

"My car is waiting here, so I can just get in and drive over."

Without any intention of showing off, Himekoji was simply stating a fact, and her tone was very calm.

Xiao Mu nodded obediently and walked alongside him, occasionally stealing glances at him.

"what happened?"

"I, um, um... can I call you Himekoji-kun?"

"Of course, you can call me whatever you want. If you think 'white hair' is better, I don't mind at all."

He smiled and pushed up his glasses. He was always very casual about how girls addressed him; as long as it wasn't something insulting, he could generally accept it.

"Then, Himekoji-kun, just call me Ogiso!"

She clasped her hands together tightly at her chest, gazing up at him with hopeful eyes.

"Okay, Kogiso."

"Ok!"

She closed her eyes and nodded in satisfaction, then walked with Himeko to his car.

Miss Reiko came out just a few steps away from them, raised her sunglasses, put on black leather gloves, and opened the car door. This startled Kogiso, who looked at him hesitantly. Himekoji, on the other hand, didn't care at all. He gestured for Kogiso to get into the car, and she got in rather awkwardly and leaned against the window.

"Hello, I am Reiko Izayoi, the head maid of the Himekoji family. Nice to meet you."

"Yes! I am Ogiso Setsuna, and I am his... um... classmate. Nice to meet you."

Xiao Mu tried his best to bow to Lingzi in the car, but Miss Lingzi smiled faintly, started the car, and drove away.

"Um...excuse me...where are you going?"

Kogizawa hadn't felt at ease since getting into that car; he always felt that something bad was going to happen.

"It's just a family restaurant in a nearby shopping mall. Don't worry, they won't sell you to any suspicious places."

"I don't think that way at all. I would find it annoying or hateful."

Although she said that, her relieved expression betrayed her.

"But it's also very easy to sell you."

"Huh?!"

"Just kidding, just kidding."

Himekoji waved his hand with a mischievous grin, causing Kogiso's cheeks to puff out slightly. She glared at him angrily and muttered, "Really, Himekoji-kun is a bad guy who loves to bully people."

A few minutes later, at a family restaurant in a nearby shopping mall.

The two didn't choose a private room; they simply sat facing each other respectfully. Kogiso ordered red bean cakes and a glass of mango juice, while Himekoji chose some beef dishes and also ordered a glass of mango juice. After eating a couple of bites, Kogiso began to get down to business.

"Himekoji-kun".

She called his name very solemnly.

"Yes, I'm here."

"Actually, I joined the light music enthusiasts club."

Kogizawa clenched her fists and pressed them tightly against the hem of her skirt, her eyes fixed on Himekoji's face, trying to discern something from it.

"I feel like the Light Music Club is facing the crisis of being disbanded. Since the last cohort graduated, there are only three of us left. We were even discussing in the student council whether to disband the club..."

He took a small sip of his juice and explained.

"Ah... I hope that Himekoji-kun will allow this club to continue to exist."

"What's the reason?"

“The reason…” She leaned back slightly and straightened her back as she said, “Actually, I want to work hard with Himekoji-kun and Touma-san to… the light music club.”

"Ah, of course I didn't know it was the two of you at first. I just wanted to be with the pianist in the second music room... I thought it was just one person, but it turns out there were two of you. Your playing was so synchronized that you couldn't tell at all... Of course, each of you is excellent!"

"I originally thought you would invite Kazusa first."

"Touma-san... because Kitahara-kun told me he couldn't communicate with her, I suggested we talk to Himekoji-kun to see if there was any way to change things..."

"A light music enthusiasts' club... What are the benefits if I join?"

Himeko pushed up her glasses and tapped her fingers on the smooth tabletop. Although her mother had given a strict order for Himeko to perform on stage, Kogiso didn't know anything about it anyway, so she figured she might as well see what she could get out of it.

Although it's not certain that you'll get anything.

"Benefits... there don't seem to be any particular benefits... and people who can afford such cars certainly don't need money or anything..."

Komaki became dejected, and his shoulders slumped.

Chapter 182 A Small Proposal, [Himekoji Haruto] Plans to Negotiate

"I have a proposal, would you like to hear it?"

"Uh-huh!"

"You may have already heard about it. Yes, it's about the Soubu High School beauty pageant that's being held at the same time as the cultural festival. If you agree to join the pageant, I'll join your light music club, and I'll also try to persuade Kazusa to join."

Ji Xiaolu leaned back slightly, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.

If it weren't for this, Ogiso definitely wouldn't have participated. So, let's use this as a bargaining chip... Without her, the beauty pageant would probably be said to be meaningless by many people behind her back.

"If I agree to join the beauty pageant, Himekoji-kun will agree to join the light music club, right? He'll also persuade Touma-san to join us."

Ogiso's eyes became serious. She placed her hands on the table and leaned forward, as if she wanted an answer immediately and wouldn't allow Himekoji to back out.

"Yes, that's right."

"Then I agree to join the beauty pageant and become one of the candidates."

“Very good, very good,” Ji Xiaolu clapped lightly, and extended a hand to her with satisfaction, saying, “Then, it’s a pleasure to cooperate.”

"Yes, it's a pleasure to work with you."

After shaking his hand without hesitation, Kogiso became shy again, turning her head away and muttering: "But asking someone to participate in a beauty pageant... I'm still a little embarrassed. Am I really... okay? I'm not very confident..."

"If it weren't for school rules prohibiting the formation of strange clubs, your fan club would be about the same size as the number of students who have joined clubs at our school."

"It's not that exaggerated. I'm just an ordinary girl."

Kogiso waved his hand, but he couldn't suppress the smile in his eyes.

"So, getting back to the main topic, what is your position in the light music club, Kogiso?"

"I'm the lead vocalist... I guess so. If Touma-san doesn't choose to be the lead vocalist, then I should be the lead vocalist."

“I understand. No one should be going to take your lead vocalist position. Kazusa doesn’t really like standing in the center or in the most prominent spot.”

"Does Himekoji-kun know Touma-san very well?"