“Please, Souma, listen to me!” (Keisuke)
In the university cafeteria, Keisuke started bowing deeply as soon as he saw me. Unable to comprehend the situation, I tilted my head.
“Huh, what? What do you mean?” (Souma)
Without explaining anything to me, something even more incomprehensible happened. Behind Keisuke, an unspecified number of guys started bowing. There were more than ten of them.
“Please!” (Guy)
“This is how it is!” (Guy)
“Wait, there are too many of you. Who are you guys anyways?” (Souma)
Keisuke and his newfound bowing group, took up a considerable amount of space in the cafeteria, so we were attracting a lot of attention. Soon, those gazes shifted to me, the one whom they were bowing down to. It was an incredibly uncomfortable situation.
“For now, please raise your head. It’s embarrassing to do this kind of stuff here. So, what do you guys want?” (Souma)
“Y-Yeah… we’re done.” (Keisuke)
“Got it.” (Guy)
“Roger.” (Guy)
When Kesuke, who seemed like the leader, spoke, the bowing group slowly got up. Led by Keisuke, they followed me to the usual table. Who are these guys again?
As we sat at the table, Keisuke put on a thin, salesman-like smile and began to speak. What’s with this guy? He gives me the creeps.
“What were you planning to eat, Souma?” (Keisuke)
“Huh? I hadn’t decided yet, maybe Set A.” (Souma)
“Got it. Hey, get a Set A for him.” (Keisuke)
“On it.” (Guy)
Keisuke gave instructions to the guys behind, and one of them rushed to the counter. Is he going to buy my Set A? It feels like Keisuke’s the boss and the guys are his lackeys, and that might very well not be too far from the truth.
“Keisuke, what’s going on today? I don’t need you to treat me. Also, who are those guys behind you? They seem like underclassmen or something.” (Souma)
Even though it’s hard to tell the age of university students, I could still sense that most of them were on the younger side.
Keisuke didn’t answer my question. He gazed down at the table with a complicated expression.
As I couldn’t grasp Keisuke’s intentions or the identity of this mysterious cult, an eerie chill slowly spread through my core.
“We’ve brought your Set A meal, Souma-Aniki1!” (Lackey)
The underclassman rushed over and respectfully placed the tray in front of me. Steam rose from the delicious-looking hamburger, and the enticing aroma of the sauce tickled my nose.
However, I had no appetite right now.
“Go ahead and eat, Souma.” (Keisuke)
Keisuke gestured to the tray with his hand. The large number of people standing behind him added to the pressure, creating a scene straight out of a drama or movie. Kesuke’s expression was deadly serious.
“Just eat, but… can you pass it to that kid from earlier for now?”
I placed 500 yen on the table, but Keisuke didn’t move.
“It’s fine, I’ll pay for it later. This Set A is our way of showing our appreciation.” (Keisuke)
“I don’t get it. I haven’t done anything for you.” (Souma)
“You haven’t… for now. But today, I came with a request for you. It’s an important one.” (Keisuke)
Saying that, Keisuke tightened his expression.
“…Then what about those guys behind you?” (Souma)
“…We all share the same goal.” (Keisuke)
Beyond the rising steam, Kesuke lowered his head vigorously.
“Please… I beg you, we want Mafuyu-chan to participate in the beauty pageant2!” (Keisuke)
◆
“The beauty pageant…?” (Souma)
I was taken aback by his unexpected words.
“The most exciting event in the upcoming school festival is the beauty pageant. You’re aware of that, right?” (Keisuke)
“Well, I know it exists, at least…” (Souma)
However, I didn’t know it was the hottest event in our school festival. In fact, I couldn’t care less about who won the beauty pageant in the past two years. Even if I knew, it had nothing to do with me. Those kinds of things were for sparkly people, and I considered it a world apart from the life of an ordinary student like me.
“Our beauty pageant has a theme for costumes every year. The costume for this year was recently announced by the organizing committee.” (Keisuke)
With Kesuke’s words, his underlings erupted in cheers. Some struck victory poses, and there was a guy looking up at the sky like a soccer player after scoring a goal. What’s with this atmosphere?
…And who exactly are these people? I don’t think they are sparkling enough to be in the Beauty Pageant Organizing Committee, at least…
“So, what’s the costume? You want Mafuyu-chan to wear it?” (Souma)
“That’s right… Listen, Souma, don’t get too excited, okay? Hold onto your composure.” (Keisuke)
“Nah, just hearing about it won’t get me excited. What kind of costume is it?” (Souma)
Getting excited means… it’s probably something like a swimsuit, right? Even though Mafuyu-chan already dislikes revealing clothing, I can’t imagine her wearing a swimsuit.
“So… here’s the thing. This year’s costume is—” (Keisuke)
“—Souma-kun. What’s going on here?” (Mafuyu)
“!!!!???” (Lackeys)
I heard the sound of the earth trembling. It seemed to have come from Kesuke’s underlings losing their balance, and they all collapsed on the ground, looking up in shock at an unexpected figure as if it were a scene from a comedy skit.
“Mafuyu-chan. Perfect timing. It seems like all these guys are your fans.” (Souma)
“Me…?” (Mafuyu)
Mafuyu-chan glanced at the men lying on the floor as if to confirm. However, it didn’t seem to click, and she quickly returned her gaze to me.
“I don’t recognize them. Maybe they mistook me for someone else.” (Mafuyu)
With that, Mafuyu-chan settled down next to me. In her hands, she held the same Set A meal as me. Today definitely feels like a Set A Meal kind of day.
“Keisuke, why don’t you just ask the person herself while you’re at it? It would be faster than going through me.” (Keisuke)
Keisuke had a nervously shifting gaze as he looked at Mafuyu-chan. There seemed to be a sense of awkwardness after gossiping about someone and having them unexpectedly show up.
“Well… if I could, I’d do that… but it seems impossible, so I thought maybe you…” (Keisuke)
“Even if I agree, I don’t think it’ll make a difference. Mafuyu-chan never does things she doesn’t like.” (Souma)
“Wait, what are you talking about?” (Mafuyu)
Mafuyu-chan, unable to follow the conversation, gave me a suspicious look.
“Well, Keisuke and those guys behind him seemed to have a request for Mafuyu-chan.” (Souma)
“A request…?” (Mafuyu)
Mafuyu-chan turned her gaze to the men behind her again, wearing a slightly displeased expression. That’s quite a harsh look.
“For now, I won’t say anything. In the end, it’s up to her. You should talk to her directly.” (Souma)
“Ugh… is there no other choice…?” (Keisuke)
Kesuke’s face flushed with despair. Well, thinking logically, it’s hard to imagine Mafuyu-chan participating in something like a beauty pageant. There seems to be a specific costume too.
Keisuke took a deep breath and, with a determined gaze, looked directly at Mafuyu-chan.
“Minase Mafuyu-san… please, wear a maid outfit for the beauty pageant!” (Keisuke)
TL Notes:
Thanks for reading!
Here it comes, the maid illustration in the LN. Man, I wonder if she’s gonna participate in the beauty pageant. Or she could just somehow find a way to wear it and not participate.
Thanks for the chapter!
She will definitely join the beauty pageant. But she definitely will have a special personal session with Souma