Chapter 20: Doing What You Like

"Alright, alright, no talking, just rest well."

"Cough cough!"

"What, my fault?" Mikami Ai took out her own thermos and poured water into some high-class cup brought at who knows when, faint steam faintly visible.

"Here." She handed the cup to Qingshan Li.

"Cough cough cough!"

"We'll talk about revenge after you recover, but I don't really want any physical contact with you—what if I get infected?"

"Cough!"

"No nonsense, this is reasonable suspicion. By the way, this cup is yours from now on; you can't use this to entertain guests."

Qingshan Li chose to give up.

After giving up, he also became calm and peaceful, no longer coughing.

He slightly pulled down his mask, picked up the water cup, carefully tested the water temperature, then took a sip.

Warm, sweet hot water slowly flowed into his throat, and the discomfort caused by the cold and cough was relieved a lot.

For a while, he had the illusion that his illness was cured.

"What water is this?" he subconsciously asked, then the next moment said, "Forget it."

No matter what water it was, he couldn't afford it, whether financially or emotionally.

Mikami Ai didn't answer either; she poured herself a cup of water with her own thermos lid, savoring it as if in a tea ceremony room.

Even if there were a deadly feud, Qingshan Li had to admit she was a beautiful girl so elegant as to be almost sacred.

Of course, this was when she was quiet.

If not quiet, then although elegant but hateful—some brainless men would think she was elegant and cute.

Qingshan Li's brain was B, obviously he wouldn't.

He took out his textbook, sipping unknown tea while reading.

The whole morning, his spirit struggled in a mud pit, making no progress; yesterday's thoughts were clear as a cloudless sky, today covered by dark clouds.

What was taught in class, not a bit was remembered in his head, only notes were written.

Taking advantage of his head being a bit clearer now, he hurried to seize time to review.

"Classmate Aoyama, I worked hard to found the club, not for you to secretly study." Mikami Ai said.

"Before you figure out what to do next, don't disturb me." Qingshan Li was like catching chickens in a chicken coop, stuffing the lively knowledge into the cage.

The cage had no door; some chickens were caught in, and without paying attention ran out again.

"I of course already"

The classroom door was knocked, then pushed open, Akita Shio walked in.

It was then Qingshan Li remembered she was the club advisor of the Athens Research Club.

"Hello, Teacher." Mikami Ai was very polite.

"Hello, Teacher." Qingshan Li put on his mask.

Mikami Ai's peripheral vision caught his movement, couldn't help but slightly frown, suspecting he deliberately didn't wear a mask just now, wanting to infect her.

After Akita Shio returned the greeting, she smiled and said: "Mikami Classmate, I've finished reading the materials you gave me this morning."

"What does Teacher Akita think?" Mikami Ai asked.

"Hmm—" Akita Shio showed a contemplative look.

Qingshan Li, who was just about to continue catching chickens, raised his head again.

Was Akita Shio hesitating? Did Mikami Ai tell her the true face of the Yaken Club? Was she such an honest and upright girl?

"Teacher, is there a problem?" Mikami Ai said.

Qingshan Li also listened seriously.

"Maybe the teacher was meddling." Akita Shio started with this, "Mikami Classmate, do you really like Greek philosophy?"

"Liked it since childhood."

A lie.

"I've been to Greece many times; I've been to Athens, Kefalonia, Zakynthos, but I don't really like Santorini."

This should be true.

Someone like Mikami Ai, straight to the death penalty, no trial needed.

"If you like it, the teacher has nothing to say." Akita Shio said.

"What if you don't like it?" Mikami Ai asked curiously.

"The teacher is precisely because worried you don't like it, specially came to remind you: youth is like cherry blossoms lasting only seven days; many people only realize when youth is gone forever. I hope you can, under conditions permitting, do as much as possible what you like—philosophy is too profound for most people."

"Teacher Akita, your words I will always remember and practice." Mikami Ai slightly bowed her head.

"Hmm, that's good." Akita Shio smiled.

That was not good!

Teacher, you've been deceived!

"Cough!"

"Classmate Aoyama, take care of your health." Akita Shio said worriedly.

"Teacher, rest assured, I will take care of him." Mikami Ai said.

"Cough cough!"

"He says thank you, Teacher, for your concern." Mikami Ai said again.

"Cough cough cough!"

"Teacher knows your intentions; you don't need to thank me. Don't speak anymore, drink more hot water. Come, let me pour you some more." Mikami Ai picked up the cup and poured some more for Qingshan Li.

Akita Shio couldn't help but smile and nod.

"You all carry on." She left.

". You're too despicable!" Qingshan Li finally barely overcame his coughing fit.

"I'm not only despicable, but also cruel. If you don't want to see my cruel side, you'd best not think I'm despicable either — here." Mikami Ai handed over a document.

"What is this?" Qingshan Li said while flipping through it.

"Kaimei High School has a total of eighty-one clubs, just like Journey to the West — this is heaven telling us: we're doing the right thing."

The document was a simple overview of all clubs at Kaimei High School.

"Does that count us?"

"No."

"Then that's eighty-two clubs. Could the Buddha be hinting that what we're doing is unnecessary?" Qingshan Li said.

"Your perspective on the problem is too negative."

"It's you who's too blind."

"Think what you want." Mikami Ai didn't care.

She flipped through the materials and said: "I really want to take down the News Club right away, but before that, I think we should practice first, grade a few clubs, then find a platform to speak out."

"Oh."

"Start with the easiest clubs to bully."

"Seems you have a lot of reasons not to be troubled, cough."

For instance, always picking on soft targets.

After a while.

"So then, which club is the easiest to bully?" Qingshan Li asked.

"How about the Divination Prophecy Department?" Mikami Ai reviewed a page in the materials. "Looks like it'd be easy to bully."

"Three people total, and from the names they all seem to be girls." Qingshan Li stated the reason it'd be easy to bully.

"But there are three of them and only one and a half of us, so we'll still mainly do an 'undercover visit,' pretending we want a reading."

"Cough!"

"To make the acting more realistic, Classmate Aoyama, is there something you want divined? At your age, you should be curious about your first girlfriend? You'll go to the Divination Prophecy Department with me, holding that curiosity, forgetting our mission."

"Cough cough!"

"Fine, let's go."

Qingshan Li decided to seal off his emotions.

As long as he had no emotions, he wouldn't cough; as long as he didn't cough, his cold would certainly heal faster; then he'd release all his pent-up emotions at once.

Qingshan Li stared at the back of Mikami Ai's head and followed her out of the Yaken Club.

He deeply understood that life isn't good just with money and grades — the body is equally important.

From now on he must strictly limit the number of 'Guidance' sessions!

Trash clubs like the Divination Prophecy Department are all on the fifth floor.

The two went from the sixth floor to the fifth, walking along, seeing nothing but the Camping Department, Milk Tea Department, Light Novel Department, Detective Department, Indoor Tokyo Tower Viewing Department, UFO Department, and other clubs of unclear purpose.

Clubs like these probably have all five stats at 'E'.

Further ahead appeared the Constellation Department, Tarot Divination Department, Daily Item Divination Department.

Then came the Divination Prophecy Department.

He really wanted to have them all divine the same thing.

"Let's have them all divine the same thing, then publish the results in the News Club's newspaper." Mikami Ai showed a 'how truly interesting' light laugh.

Even more ruthless than Qingshan Li.

"But, cough, why does the school allow these clubs to exist?"

"You're a transfer student just like me?" Mikami Ai feigned doubt.

Qingshan Li could hear her sarcasm.

But it was slight, so he didn't mind either.

"I didn't join a club in first year, so I don't know about these, cough."

"The higher the deviation value and the more parental donations a school gets, the more it's like this — nothing strange. Shinkawa High School in Yotsuya even has a Human Observation Department." Mikami Ai didn't think much of it.

"Yotsuya? Shinkawa High School?"

Qingshan Li tried to speak as little as possible, using his tone to convey: how would you know that?

Mikami Ai obviously caught it.

She said: "I was at Shinkawa in first year, transferred to Kaimei in second year. A friend of mine is now the Club President of the Human Observation Department; the previous president was her mother."

Thank you to Wei Truly Tian's Xiao A Dou, I Forever Love Doraemon Rin, Ge Lun Bing Ren, Li Yan Zhi Yu Feng, Jiegiee, Everything Like Flame for their donations!

Thank you everyone for your votes, donations, and reading!

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(Chapter End)