"You're so mean, President! Since you already figured it out, you should have said something sooner! I was taking the performance so seriously…" Chika Fujiwara pouted angrily, her cheeks puffed out.
"I did bring it up, didn't I? Who was the one adamantly denying it just now?" Kanade Natsukawa glanced at her, utterly unmoved.
"Grr… No way! I'm not satisfied with this! How could you figure it out so easily? We disguised ourselves so well! Even the props were the real deal!" Chika protested indignantly, leaning close to Kanade and jabbing him repeatedly with her finger.
"Come on, President, fess up! How did you see through it?"
"Wouldn't it be more concerning if I didn't figure it out?" Kanade retorted before calmly explaining.
"For one thing, when I untied those students earlier, I noticed the ropes were barely secured. A light tug was enough to loosen them. Would any real kidnappers tie someone up so poorly? Afraid their victims couldn't escape, huh? And they didn't even gag them, practically inviting them to call for help."
"..."
"Then there's your timing. If all of you had been there from the start, it might have been convincing. But no, you showed up right after we arrived. That had to have been planned in advance, or you were hiding nearby, watching us."
"..."
"And that's not even the worst of it. The most absurd thing is this so-called 'boss' leading the operation. When you saw us, your first instinct wasn't to subdue us but to suggest we play a little game? Even middle schoolers wouldn't believe this was a real kidnapping!"
"Kaguya-san must have thought the same, right?"
"Ah? Uh… yes, that's right," Kaguya Shinomiya nodded stiffly.
She thought nothing of the sort! If Chika hadn't taken off her mask, she really would have believed they were in a crisis!
Kanade, oblivious to his partner's inner turmoil, continued his relentless critique.
"Of course, I think the biggest giveaway was you, Chika Fujiwara."
"Me?"
"Yes. Not just your lines, but your tone as well. It didn't resemble a serious kidnapper at all," Kanade added matter-of-factly.
After all, what kind of real kidnapper would make someone as fragile as Chika—who'd cry for ages from just one punch—the leader? It felt more like a spoiled rich girl playing pretend with her bodyguards.
Chika froze for a moment, stunned. Then her face puffed up again in indignation.
"How dare you! That's a blatant insult to me, Chika Fujiwara, the Master of Acting! I demand you take back such an unfair comment!"
"I gave such a stellar performance! The players who came through earlier didn't spot any flaws at all! Clearly, it's just you making stuff up, President!"
"Or," Kanade interrupted, "is it possible that those players were simply too kind? Maybe they saw through your act but chose to play along out of courtesy."
"..."
Chika froze.
She stood there silently for a long time.
Just when Kanade thought she'd finally admitted defeat, she suddenly made a ridiculous face and shouted, "Not listening, not listening! The President's a little turtle! La-la-la~! (?????)"
"..."
When she couldn't win an argument, she resorted to childish antics? How was she like this—a grown child of sorts?
Kanade turned to the burly "henchmen" who had accompanied Chika. They all wore indifferent expressions, as though none of this had anything to do with them. Some had even picked up dumbbells and started working out right there.
"..."
Alright. Classic athletic club members. Making the most of every opportunity to train and bulk up.
Still, Kanade couldn't help but wonder what Chika had used to bribe them into humoring her antics.
"Playing dumb won't help you here. Everything I said is true…" Kanade pressed on.
"Besides, have you thought about the consequences? Even if your acting was good enough to fool everyone, what about afterward? What if people took your 'choose one to stay behind' scenario too seriously and started arguing? How would you mediate between partners with strained relationships? What if they couldn't reconcile and ended up filing complaints with the student council?"
"Practically the whole grade participated. Surely, at least a few people would feel deceived or upset enough to complain, right?"
"B-But this performance was meant for people who chose their partners themselves. There wouldn't be that many people…" Chika protested weakly, looking genuinely aggrieved.
"..."
Kanade hadn't considered that. He turned to Kaguya, who subtly shook her head, indicating she wasn't sure either.
"Even so, there's always a chance someone slips through the cracks. Can you be absolutely certain that none of them would come to complain about you?" Kanade asked seriously.
He always considered the worst-case scenario to prevent it.
He'd entrusted the event design to the Game Club to encourage innovation, and Chika had volunteered to take charge. But this kind of setup wasn't what he'd hoped for.
While creativity and playability were important, the participants' experiences mattered more. Ensuring that no one felt humiliated or uncomfortable was the foundation for any activity to be considered fun or memorable.
Yet with a setup like this, if a pair failed to see through the ruse and genuinely acted out their cowardice, it could create tension between them. That tension might later shift into resentment toward Chika as the orchestrator of the "test."
People were inherently unreasonable. Even if their own weakness caused the issue, they'd direct their frustration toward any convenient target.
And Kanade didn't want Chika to become that target.
Even if it meant using a stern tone, he had to make her understand.
"Do you get what I mean?"
"..."
Chika didn't respond.
Kanade thought she might finally be reflecting on her actions, but then he heard a faint, muffled sobbing sound from her direction.
"Waaah… I worked so hard to come up with this activity… and the President criticizes me like this… I quit! Waaah…"
"..."
It's Just Objective Analysis, No Need to Be So Upset.
Kanade Natsukawa was at a loss.
He didn't intend to blame her; he only wanted Chika to understand the seriousness of the situation.
But when he noticed the looks from those around them—the kind that screamed, "The Student Council President is bullying the poor fool!"—he found it impossible to hold his ground.
"Ahem, I might've been too harsh earlier. Actually, I think… um… it wasn't that bad? Maybe I'm just being too demanding," Kanade tried to placate the eccentric girl.
"Waaah… You're lying! You're probably still laughing at me inside, aren't you? Waaah…"
"No, of course not!" Kanade quickly shook his head. "At most, I just think… there's a lot of room for improvement!"
"Waaah…"
Her crying only grew louder.
Even Kaguya, who had been watching quietly, seemed to have had enough. She silently mouthed to him: Just give in already.
"..."
Fine.
Kanade truly had no other choice. He didn't want to earn a reputation as someone who bullies the clueless, so he reluctantly forced himself to say something he didn't quite mean.
"To be honest, I think your performance was amazing! The concept was great, too! It's just… I was trying to suggest some ways to refine it, that's why I said what I said earlier…"
"What suggestions?" Chika asked instantly.
The speed of her response made it seem as though the crying Chika from a moment ago had never existed.
"Uh…" Kanade hesitated. This was just an excuse he'd come up with on the spot—how could he possibly have improvement ideas ready so quickly?
"Waaah! I knew it! You're still lying to me! President, you big dummy! Waaah…"
"No, I'm not lying! I was just… organizing my thoughts! Yes, organizing my thoughts!" Kanade hurriedly explained.
"..."
Seeing that she seemed to have calmed down a little, Kanade continued,
"The game content itself can't be changed now, since it's your project, and any ideas I come up with on the spot would be impossible to implement. We'd also run into issues with the props. That leaves only one area we can adjust: the performance itself."
"Uh-huh, uh-huh," Chika listened intently, nodding repeatedly.
"First, about the 'realism' aspect—I think you don't need to make the performance so convincing. Like I said earlier, the flaws you've included can stay. In fact, you could even take it a step further: remove the masks entirely and replace them with, I don't know, sunglasses? Wait, no, it's too dark to see anything already; sunglasses wouldn't work…" Kanade coughed lightly to cover his embarrassment.
"Ahem. Anyway, that's the idea. It doesn't need to be super realistic. The more obvious the flaws, the better. The goal is for participants to spot the inconsistencies and realize the truth of the performance themselves."
"But if they figure it out, then we won't achieve our goal! We're supposed to… um… test their bravery!" Chika countered.
"That's exactly what I wanted to talk about next," Kanade said, nodding. "If you encounter participants like me, who expose the act immediately or during the performance, just ignore them."
"Ignore them?"
"Yes." Kanade nodded again.
"By 'ignore,' I mean you keep acting as planned. Stick to the script no matter what they say. Just present them with one question: Who will stay behind?
"To be blunt, anyone with a shred of emotional intelligence wouldn't continue trying to ruin the performance at that point. Most would play along and follow the flow. Whatever happens between the participants after that is no longer your concern. Your only job is to complete the performance."
"Hmm… But isn't that kind of boring? It feels so fake…" Chika seemed dissatisfied.
She could tolerate being found out, but she refused to deliberately expose herself.
Kanade glanced at her, thinking, Wasn't this all fake to begin with?
"In that case, let's set that plan aside for now and move on to the next idea."
"Uh-huh, uh-huh! Go ahead, President!"
"If you're aiming for a realistic performance, then… let's start with your image." Ignoring Chika's indignant glare, Kanade continued,
"While your appearance and physique are fixed and can't be changed, you can alter your demeanor. For instance, in a situation like earlier, you don't need to say anything. Just sit down with your legs crossed on a chair and let one of your 'underlings' speak for you. Your role would be to silently observe the participants with the aura of a boss."
"Grr… But if I do that, I won't have any lines!"
"If you want lines, it's simple—just sit on the chair and use your normal voice. Most participants don't know what you sound like anyway. If you're worried about being recognized, try using a voice changer," Kanade suggested.
"That way, you won't reveal your real voice to anyone familiar with it, and you'll also create a more authentic 'criminal' vibe. A disguised voice will make it harder to identify you later."
As long as she didn't take off her mask, it was entirely possible no one would recognize Chika Fujiwara.
Kanade had already resigned himself to the situation. Since he was offering suggestions, he figured one or two bad ideas wouldn't hurt. As long as Chika didn't blurt out that he was an accomplice, she could execute her plan however she liked.
Still, the ideal solution was for her to stick with the "silent boss" role he had proposed.
Fortunately, voice changers weren't easy to come by, especially at the event venue. It would be nearly impossible for her to obtain one. With that obstacle, she'd either have to settle for the silent boss persona or embrace the "obviously fake" route.
"Oh! That's right! We already bought voice changers earlier for this event!" Chika exclaimed, her face lighting up with joy.
"As expected of you, President! You can be helpful sometimes after all!"
"..."
"Well, even if I can't use my own voice, I suppose it's a sacrifice worth making for the event! All right! Chika Fujiwara is on the move!"
"Wait, how about reconsidering? I still think the first idea suits you better…" Kanade protested.
"Ah, President, stop getting in the way! The next wave of challengers is about to arrive! You and Kaguya should sign in and leave so you don't interfere with our testing—uh, I mean, evaluating participants' bravery!"
Chika waved him off dismissively, shooting him a look of mock annoyance before bouncing over to cling to Kaguya.
"Kaguya-chan, let's hang out after I finish working!"
"..."
Watching Chika's determined expression, Kanade gave up on trying to persuade her further.
He'd have to focus on minimizing the potential fallout from this performance instead.
While Kaguya was still preoccupied with Chika, Kanade approached one of the staff members handling the check-ins and quietly instructed,
"If anyone asks who designed this event, just say it was the Student Council. If they press for specifics, tell them…"
"It was President Natsukawa's idea."