NOVEL NEXT WORLD Student Council Room.
Thanks to cleaning and organizing the dusty room, it became a livable space.
Here, Elly sat calmly and moved her quill. Every time the quill of the demon girl moved, one piece of festival-related paperwork was completed.
Meeting minutes, expense reports, result reports, external official documents, student satisfaction surveys.
The practical work of the student council was being carried out neatly under the touch of the demon girl.
If this black-and-white girl hadn’t been in the student council, would there even have been a student council celebrating a successful festival?
Someone had to handle the practical matters after all.
“Elly! Elly! Look at this!”
Pastel was bouncing around the room.
In her hand was a folded paper airplane. It was flying acrobatically according to her hand gestures.
“Whoosh!”
The airplane swooshed through the air in a dazzling trajectory and flew towards Elly.
“Pewk!”
The paper airplane poked Elly in the head, disheveling her black hair.
“Ahhh!”
Pastel exaggerated her surprise.
“The plane crashed!”
The airplane wobbled according to her hand movements.
“Help me! It’s a super ultra airplane, so it didn’t explode, but it’s stuck in my hair!”
Oh dear.
After gasping, Pastel moved a step to the side and got serious.
“Don’t worry! The rescue team has arrived! Please wait a moment! Rescue team, go~!”
She maneuvered a new paper airplane with her other hand.
“Whoosh!”
It’s doing acrobatics.
Swoosh.
Suddenly, Elly grabbed the airplane stuck in her hair.
Huh?
Her hand moved quickly, and the paper airplane flew away.
The airplane sped through the room, breezing through the opened window and soaring into the distance with the outdoor breeze.
Whoosh.
“Wow!”
Pastel’s eyes went wide.
She looked back at Elly.
“Elly! Elly! You have a talent for this?! I’ll fold the airplane for you! We’ll hone our skills!”
For the victory in the paper airplane competition!
Since it’s just me and Elly participating, it’s the finals right away!
This Pastel will not lose!
Elly casually arranged the papers, slapping them neatly onto the table and handing them to Pastel.
“Review and approve this.”
Pastel paused.
“Oh, is it done?”
She examined the papers.
“Wow, it’s just as I thought Elly! Systematic and sophisticated.”
Elly looked at her with a nervous gaze, typical of a subordinate.
Pastel’s hand, which was flipping through the papers, pulled out the expense report. She handed it to Elly.
“This one’s rejected. The figures are wrong.”
She pointed at the place where the calculations were incorrect.
Elly’s eyes trembled as she confirmed it.
“Uh, how do you catch something like this?”
Pastel stamped the rest of the documents for approval.
Then, proudly pointing at herself, she exclaimed, “Pastel, top honors in writing!”
A brilliant student with a combat score of zero!
Hehe.
Elly looked at her in bewilderment, taking back the rejected document.
“I’ll redo it.”
“Okay.”
Yay, I finished the work.
That was super hard.
Pastel cleared away the paper airplanes and lounged on the sofa humming.
“I’m the top student in writing~.”
So smart.
“But not good at fighting~.”
Just then, a knock echoed through the room.
Knock knock.
Huh?
Elly, who had been fiddling with her quill, got up and opened the door.
A pale first-year student stood there, trembling and pale.
Elly greeted the guest.
“What’s wrong?”
“There’s a, a, a ghost in, in the dormitory.”
Huh?
The first-year grew paler as they spoke. Elly comforted the guest and brought out some warm tea.
“Did you mishear? People don’t turn into ghosts when they die. They return to nature.”
“But, but I definitely heard something moving in the corridor at midnight.”
Elly calmly countered.
“Then it might be a person, right? That’s more likely than a ghost.”
“Th- that’s….”
The first-year slowly calmed down.
“Maybe you’re right. It could be a person.”
Huh?
Pastel jumped up from the sofa.
She strutted over to the two.
Clop clop clop.
All eyes were on her.
Pastel opened her mouth with a serious face.
“Ghosts exist.”
Boom.
Pastel, declaring it.
“Eek!”
The first-year went pale again.
#
Pastel led the first-year towards the old dormitory.
The dorms were not uniformly assigned.
The noble Pastel Lovecraft received a personal room.
Melissa, the daughter of the count, had a somewhat decent personal room but not quite as good as Pastel’s.
However, for most, the situation wasn’t so great.
Real estate on Sky Island is expensive. They didn’t have enough budget to provide personal rooms for most students, who were either illegitimate children or commoners.
Fortunately, there were shared dormitories since it was a military academy, so there were enough shared accommodations.
This place was one of those shared dormitories. It was structured in a two-story building with personal rooms assigned along the corridor.
“Wow, so this is how it looks!”
Pastel whipped around to take it all in.
It’s pretty shabby, but the cleaning is neat.
The first-year followed behind, trembling. Their nervous gaze swept around the corridor aimlessly.
“Is, is there really a ghost?”
Pastel smiled brightly.
“Of course! I guarantee it!”
Fully convinced.
“Eek!”
The first-year blanched.
Pastel cupped her hands to her mouth and shouted.
“Ghost! Are you there?!”
“Eek!”
“Ghost! Ghost! We can be friends!”
The first-year was shaking.
“I, I don’t want to be friends.”
Pastel beamed with a smile.
“I want to, so it’s okay!”
The first-year turned pale again, looking like they would faint.
Huh.
“Are you okay? Is it really that scary? If you’re scared, you can go back. I’ll tell you the outcome later.”
“Okay! Okay, I understand!”
The first-year brightened up and dashed away.
Huh, the ghost will be sad.
“Ghost! Don’t be sad! I’m here! Friend, friend!”
Footsteps echoed nearby.
Ooh? Ghost?
A sturdy male student in upperclassman attire was walking towards them from the end of the hallway.
Leonard Tyler.
A horde of first-years followed behind him.
Wow, playing the leader role, huh?
Leonard noticed Pastel and flinched, before stepping closer and stopping.
“What’s with you? Why are you here?”
“Hey, do you live here?”
Leonard scowled.
“Do you think I’d stay in this shabby dorm? It’s a place for losers.”
Oh wow.
Is it okay to belittle other friends’ dorms like that?
Looking back, several students looked uncomfortable. But seemingly subdued, they appeared more timid than angry.
Oh dear.
“You can’t say that to friends.”
Leonard turned to the followers, then smirked.
“What friends?”
And shook his head dismissively.
“Eh, whatever! It’s no use talking to someone like you. Let’s go, guys!”
Leonard urged the others to walk away. The first-years followed behind.
Oh dear.
There are always kids like that.
Pastel let out a long sigh.
Then she paused as she caught a whiff of something sweet.
Gem scent?
But gems usually don’t smell like this. It seems like something processed.
The sweet scent quickly dissipated like perfume.
Pastel glanced back at Leonard.
Her instincts were tingling.
You guys are up to no good, aren’t you?
Could it be that the ghostly presence at night is because of you?
Pastel hurried after them. She grabbed the arm of the first-year following Leonard and spun back the other way.
“I’m borrowing a subordinate!”
“What?!”
Ignoring Leonard’s surprised exclamation, she dashed away.
“Let’s go, friend!”
Turning a corner and heading towards a secluded area, she released the arm she had grabbed.
Dustin, who was dragged along, gasped for breath.
Pastel smiled brightly at him when their eyes met.
“Hey, friend. Nice to see you again.”
“Uh huh.”
He looked bewildered.
“By the way…”
She leaned in and whispered.
“Is Leonard up to something bad?”
Dustin flinched at her sultry tone and took a step back, avoiding her gaze.
Got it! Got it!
“I, I don’t know.”
Dustin blushed and shrank back even more.
“Come on, don’t say that.”
Pastel took a couple of steps closer. The distance decreased sharply, their shadows merging.
In surprise, Dustin stepped back, leaning against the wall. A shadow fell between them.
Pastel got close enough to almost touch him and tilted her head.
“Aren’t we friends? Are you an outsider? Were you really? Really…?”
Her whispers created a warm breath that wafted through the air and enveloped the boy.
Dustin’s ears turned bright red.
He shrank back, dodging her gaze, staring off into the distance.
“F-friend….”
His lips trembled as he murmured.
“Yeah, that’s right….”
Pastel smiled brightly.
“Wow!”
He was indeed my friend!
Yay!
#
The Gem Awakening Potion.
After the festival, a mysterious awakening potion began to circulate.
Although it started primarily among older students taking combat requests, it was also spreading among first-years, centered around Leonard.
Drug abuse?
Oh no, that’s serious.
“Such a bad!”
Pastel felt a complex mix of emotions and awkwardly grew outraged.
“Relying on something like a gem awakening potion isn’t right! You need to refine your own pure strength!”
Oh dear.
Why did my conscience start pricking when I spoke more?
Huh?
Pastel suddenly recalled her past, when the pink girl was munching on meaty pudding.
Then after that, memories of munching on gems sparkled up.
Is it delusion or fact that someone became stronger every time they ate gems due to the Demon Lord’s heritage?
Oh no.
What’s the difference between a gem and a gem awakening potion?
Top student Pastel doesn’t know.
Pastel awkwardly whistled.
“Well, anyway, as the student council, we cannot tolerate drug abuse! We’ll stage an immediate raid!”
Huzzah!
Time kept rushing on.
By night, Pastel was lying in wait in the garden near the dormitory.
She snapped a branch of leafy tree and held it in both hands, achieving perfect camouflage.
『…Hmm, it’s just kids.』
Pastel stiffened.
“I know it’s a funny disguise. But how can I hide perfectly in the garden with this pink appearance?”
But it’s not a life-or-death situation, so I didn’t want to dirty my clothes and body.
『Hmm.』
“If you keep that up, I’ll roll in the dirt and make a whole laundry load.”
Ooh?
Come to think of it, that sounds fun?
Pastel’s expression lightened.
『That won’t do.』
The demon hurriedly turned serious.
Huh.
A while later, a nervous-looking first-year student entered the garden, as if they were a customer.
Looking around slowly.
Then Leonard and his group appeared and approached.
The customer, looking tense, handed over a heavy pouch. Leonard’s subordinate took it and inspected it, then nodded.
Leonard grinned and nodded. Another subordinate pulled out a small box and handed it to the customer.
A crow cawed.
A perfect crime scene that would make even the mafia cry.
Pastel jumped up.
“Caught in the act!”
All eyes turned to her, faces going suddenly shocked.
Pastel dashed over and halted.
“Here comes the righteous student council!”
The leafy branch pointed menacingly at the criminals.
“I will judge you!”
Leonard stared at her with a dumbfounded expression.
“What’s this?”
“Student council!”
“No, no.”
Leonard blinked in disbelief, shaking his head. He squinted at Pastel.
“Hey, what do you think you’re relying on? Can’t you see our numbers? Just pretend you didn’t see and walk away.”
He gestured to his subordinates. The first-years stared blankly at their boss.
Meh Meh.
Oh dear.
So intimidating.
Is this how police feel when facing off against the mafia?
But it’s okay.
“What do I rely on?”
Pastel threw aside the leafy branch.
Pointing at herself, she declared.
“Talent.”
Hehe.
No way would I lose to them, right?
Leonard’s jaw dropped. He looked utterly perplexed, then turned to his subordinates.
“What is this nonsense? Why did you fall for this?”
The subordinates hastily avoided their boss’s glare, looking embarrassed.
“Hey, you guys! Don’t change expressions?! Ugh, whatever! Hand over the awakening potion!”
Leonard snatched the box. He took out a pill and tossed it into his mouth.
Huh.
Pastel’s eyes widened.
Can you just eat it like that?
Leonard moaned in pain, rolling up his sleeves to expose his arms. The veins throbbed visibly.
Oh, oh?
His eyes glowed ominously, staring at Pastel.
“I lost the last round because the shield was too old-fashioned and got crumpled from a single punch.”
Leonard squashed the awakening potion box with both hands.
A series of loud crunches echoed.
As he dusted off his hands, wooden debris spilled out.
“This time, it’s different.”
His subordinates cheered, looking at Pastel with newfound confidence.
Oh dear.
Pastel paused to scan the garden floor. She spotted an abandoned metal fork and picked it up.
Raising the fork high in the air.
“Fork!”
With both hands, she smashed the fork down savagely. A grotesque noise erupted as the contents morphed into a spherical shape.
Lifting the completed metal work.
“Not a fork!”
The metal glinted under the moonlight.
Leonard and his crew gaped.
The spark of confidence faded from the eyes of his subordinates, replaced by blank expressions.
Leonard glanced between the crushed box and the now-not-a-fork object.
He measured it with his own hand, muttering.
“What the… This is cheating…”
An indignant voice echoed through the garden.
Caw caw.
Soon after, Pastel managed to reclaim the boxes.
“The righteous student council will confiscate this entire stock!”
Her determined gaze pierced the criminal group.
“Next time, don’t rely on drugs, friends! True skill must be built through honest effort!”
You got that?
Ahem.
Then she grabbed the boxes and merrily skipped away.
As for the gem awakening potion?
Isn’t that ultimately made from gems?
Hehe, it’s golden.
I’ll eat it all up.
Yay!