That's My Specialty
Lee Sae-ah's refusal was so sharp I almost had to admire it. Still, I understood well enough. She despised delinquents with a passion. A guy who looked every bit the part walking in and asking to join the student council? I would have shut him down on the spot too.
"Shouldn't I at least get an interview?"
"...Do you genuinely wish to join the student council?"
"If I weren't serious, I wouldn't have waited until after school to come find you."
"I was certain this was some tasteless prank."
Judging by her reaction, Lee Sae-ah had no intention of welcoming me in. Then again, if she'd thrown her arms open at the sight of someone who looked like me, I would have been the one getting suspicious.
I have to overhaul the way she sees me, no matter what.
The student council was the only place that would free up my personal time and still help with college admissions. Which meant I had to shatter her prejudice against me first. Fortunately, I had knowledge of the original story — I knew exactly what she needed right now.
The Lee Sae-ah of this moment would be drowning in work, run ragged by overwork.
With my extraordinary brain and my superpower, solving her problems would be simple enough to flip the way she saw me. In the original, there had even been an episode where the protagonist helped an overworked Lee Sae-ah and naturally grew closer to her.
Not that I need to care about that.
That was a future that hadn't happened yet. If the protagonist and Lee Sae-ah were destined to end up together, maybe I would have thought twice — but they weren't.
I've never even run into the protagonist to begin with.
Honestly, as far as I was concerned, the original protagonist was a complete stranger. I was living my own life. I had no obligation to make room for him. So I would be taking that student council seat, thank you very much. First come, first served.
"First, I have a question. For what purpose do you wish to join the student council? I would appreciate as honest an answer as possible."
"It'll help with college admissions, and I figured I could secure a lot of free time."
She blinked at an answer that didn't contain a shred of a lie. But only for a moment. She cleared her throat softly and looked at me again.
"How honest of you."
"You asked me to be."
"Most people lie."
"I happen to hate lying."
"That is an admirable attitude."
Then Lee Sae-ah gave a small shake of her head and continued.
"Unfortunately, however, you are mistaken. The student council's workload is immense. Far from securing free time, you will find it taken from you."
"Is that so?"
"If that were not the case, I would have no reason to still be here after school."
In other words, unless you were exceptionally good at this kind of work, you would just end up buried in it. Well, too bad for her. Using my head was my specialty.
"I will ask you this. What does the student council gain by selecting you?"
Lee Sae-ah asked, staring me down.
"Overwhelming clerical ability."
I answered without missing a beat. Ordinarily I wouldn't be caught dead bragging like this, but right now it was necessary.
"I'm pretty smart, you see."
I pointed at my own head with my index finger. Most people would have burst out laughing or snorted at the sight. A guy who looked like he'd sworn off thinking for good, saying something like that? Of course it would be funny.
"Is that so."
But Lee Sae-ah's expression didn't change in the slightest. She simply nodded, stood from her seat, and picked up a thick document envelope.
"Then prove that ability right now. Please take a seat here."
Once I sat down, she handed me the envelope she'd been holding.
"These are the accounting documents for the upcoming sports festival. Review them within thirty minutes."
A thick stack that looked like it ran well past twenty pages.
"If you succeed, I will acknowledge your ability. However, if you exceed the time limit by even a moment, you will have to give up quietly."
Thirty minutes for a stack this size? I'd finish with time to kill.
"All right. You'd better keep that promise."
Time to show off a little.
Lee Sae-ah was, to put it mildly, incredulous. A person who, by all appearances, looked like he'd spend his nights wandering around having fun — and he wanted to join the student council?
It wasn't as though she regarded the student council as something sacred. But even so, it wasn't an organization that a student who looked that delinquent should be able to waltz into. Well, his speech was surprisingly polite, unlike his appearance.
...Still, she didn't like it. Looking at that delinquent appearance brought back unpleasant memories. That day's terrible nightmare kept resurfacing. She didn't want to look at him for long.
Overwhelming clerical ability, was it?
Was it the bluster of a student who just wanted in? Or did it actually come from genuine confidence? Almost certainly the former. Geniuses were called geniuses precisely because there were so few of them. She couldn't imagine the delinquent in front of her belonging to that rare category.
She sighed. She was already exhausted, and now this. If it were up to her, she'd throw him out this instant. But then he wouldn't accept it. So she'd decided to give him an assignment — a bundle of sports festival accounting documents she'd planned to handle tomorrow.
Even for her, who'd long since mastered this kind of paperwork, it was a volume that took at least thirty minutes. For a regular student, it was a quantity they wouldn't even dare attempt. If the delinquent in front of her actually finished a perfect review...
Then I'll acknowledge him and let him in.
A student with clerical ability on par with her own was someone she ought to welcome with open arms. Assuming, of course, that he succeeded.
She unwrapped one of the candies piled under her desk and popped it into her mouth. Savoring the sweetness spreading across her tongue, she studied the delinquent in front of her.
"......"
She nearly let out a hollow laugh. Reviewing accounting documents without even taking out a calculator. He didn't even have the basics down.
"Here. Take this."
"Huh? Oh, thank you."
The delinquent accepted the calculator with an awkward, sheepish smile. Silence stretched on after that. The only sounds were pages turning and a ballpoint pen moving.
At a glance, it looked like things were proceeding smoothly. But there was more than one thing about it that didn't sit right with Lee Sae-ah. It wasn't a comic book. The time he spent on each page was far too short. He'd glance at a receipt once and shove it aside. Was he even actually reading the contents? There was no way. Even executives at international conglomerates couldn't read that fast.
Lee Sae-ah was beginning to wonder whether this guy was even taking the test seriously. She sighed. She just wanted to go home...
"...Excuse me?"
...Had that much time already passed? She checked the clock. It had been barely six minutes since the test began.
Hold on. He hadn't even used the calculator. And he was saying he was done?
Lee Sae-ah took back the neatly organized envelope and clicked her tongue inwardly. If he'd at least shown a genuine effort, she would have sent him off nicely. This way, she had no choice but to be harsh. She should check first, at least. Not that it would be anything but a complete mess.
She began reviewing the documents he'd organized from the beginning. And before long—
"......?"
A massive question mark bloomed in her mind.
...What?
The documents that should have been a complete disaster... The calculations were correct. The cross-checks between documents were done. Where corrections were needed, he'd even written out the reasons. He'd found every last missing supporting document. There was even a budget improvement proposal.
...This was impossible.
Why is this perfect?
She wasn't seeing things, was she? Just as that thought crossed her mind, her head tilted slightly. Here — this calculation seemed a little off. She checked again with the calculator. Sure enough, the calculation was wrong.
But that was all. After that, she found no further mistakes. Perfect work. The only thing she'd found was a single calculation error.
She didn't want to, but she had no choice but to admit it. The delinquent in front of her was at least her equal. Perhaps even a monster with clerical ability beyond her own.
"...Verification complete. That is certainly an impressive ability. Aside from one calculation error, the review was flawless."
"A calculation error?"
"Look here."
Lee Sae-ah handed him the document with the sole calculation error. He looked at it for a moment. Then he immediately let out a short laugh.
"Ah, this one? That's not a calculation error."
"Excuse me?"
"Could I have the sports festival master budget sheet? And the tent vendor's estimate, too."
She complied with his request without protest.
"If you look here, this vendor's estimate has been added twice. Over here, the tax has been applied twice. And even though the number of classes dropped by one compared to last year, the budget was allocated at the same amount."
"......"
"If you factor those in and recalculate..."
Tap, tap. With hand movements far too quick for his massive frame, he punched the calculator. Presently, a number appeared on the display.
"See? That's the correct figure."
The exact number she had pointed out as a calculation error. She picked up the calculator without a word and recalculated exactly as he'd said.
Once. Twice. Three times.
The result did not change.
In an instant, life sparked back into Lee Sae-ah's eyes, which had been dulled by exhaustion.