A Fair Share of the Budget

Are you satisfied now?

“6%.” I couldn’t help but let out a laugh filled with both absurdity and amazement as I stared at the Arcane Neuron stat that had skyrocketed overnight. Last night’s “workout” must have been quite intense. Even I had to admit we’d gone at it hard enough to burn through an excessive amount of mana, so maybe this result was only natural.

A character whose growth was best accelerated through sex. It really was just like Asbel. The thought made me sigh even as it brought a wry smile to my face.

“Can’t I level up like a normal person for once?”

No matter how much I complained, there was nothing I could do about it. I simply lay there on the bed, gazing at the two women sprawled out beside me, fast asleep. A soft smile curved my lips.

“I never imagined things would turn out this well……”

Just yesterday I’d been braced for a bad ending, yet here we were. Everything had worked out perfectly. And it was all thanks to Rachel. I never would have guessed that her eccentric personality could untangle such a complicated mess so cleanly.

“She really is perfect as the legal wife, Rachel.”

I poked her cheek playfully. Even in her sleep she let out a happy little purr, smiling contentedly. I watched her with fond eyes for a moment before getting up and heading toward my weapon rack.

Greatsword. Chain sword. And the spear.

Four out of the weapon combinations I’d envisioned were now complete. All that remained was the curved blade. With just that much, I’d have more than enough to handle the early-to-mid story arcs and events.

“I can take my time finding a curved sword. For now, I should pick up at least one skill related to it. I also need to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠keep raising my Arcane Neuron growth and Intelligence stat. And I have to work toward unlocking the Spear of Longinus too.”

There was a lot to do. But none of that worried me. I just had to follow the same growth route I’d always taken. What truly concerned me right now was an entirely different matter.

“Student council management. How the hell am I supposed to handle this?”

I’d somehow ended up as class president. I was now in a position to represent the entire seventh-year class. I had to lead all of them, and at the same time crush anyone who might try to undermine me out of jealousy for suddenly becoming president as a mere freshman. This was completely new territory I had zero experience with.

I had no idea what kind of incidents or events might pop up, so of course I was flustered.

“……There’s no way I can do this alone.”

Asbel was a character who started with practically zero personal connections. Having been treated like an unwanted burden by the Lichtenauer Ducal Estate for so long, he’d never had the chance to build relationships or expand his network using the family’s prestige. He also hadn’t been at the academy long enough to know who he could truly trust.

“The one silver lining is that most administrative tasks are already handled by the factions themselves.”

The Lions' Legion. The Truth Research Society. The Element Followers.

These three groups essentially controlled not only the seventh year but most of the other classes as well. So what exactly did the student council do? They mediated conflicts between factions, handled minor maintenance and inspections of facilities the factions couldn’t manage, and most importantly—they controlled the budget.

A portion of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the academy’s operating funds flowed directly to the student council. Deciding which factions received that massive budget was entirely up to the council’s discretion. That was why everyone had fought so hard for the position of seventh-year class president—the pinnacle of that power.

I hadn’t wanted it, but the situation had twisted in strange ways and here I was.

“What should I do?”

Each faction would aggressively demand budget allocations so they could produce results impressive enough to shock the professors. I’d have to soothe and balance them all while maintaining fair distribution. Just thinking about it gave me a headache.

But they say every crisis is an opportunity.

I’ve thought of one way that could make me happy, Rachel happy, Cassandra happy, and all three factions happy too.

There was one solution that only I could pull off. The idea had flashed through my mind.

Student council president.

It sounded incredibly cool at first glance. Many people coveted that title, which also referred to the seventh-year class president. The responsibilities were heavy, but it exempted you from the monthly evaluations so you didn’t have to worry about scraping by each month. You even received bonus points on final exams. The authority was enormous—you could access facilities with nearly the same privileges as professors. There were countless benefits.

But anyone who knew the truth never desired the position.

Why? Because it was the same as willingly walking into the eye of a storm.

The student council room was pure chaos. The conversation among the pinnacle talents of the prestigious Imperial Academy was anything but refined. They aggressively tore into each other, fighting tooth and nail to secure even one more coin of the budget.

The final exams. The most important test at the academy. A great deal depended on how well you performed—promotion, retention, even graduation eligibility. There were still several months left until finals, so ordinary students didn’t need to worry about it yet. But the faction leaders, who had to think about the distant future, had no choice but to start stressing now.

Asbel was calmly observing the mess as if enjoying a show. The three faction leaders had been arguing fiercely, but as the student council president and seventh-year class president continued to watch in complete silence without intervening, they gradually fell quiet.

“Mr. President. So what do you plan to do?”

Rutrec, unable to endure it any longer, finally spoke to Asbel. Gotrose of the hot-tempered Lions' Legion raised his voice as well.

“Just give the budget to the Lions' Legion. Boldly. I told you we’ll catch a dragon, didn’t I? I’ll give you all the credit. Your reputation among the professors will improve too.”

“Don’t listen to that muscle-brained fool. Did you not hear me? A high-ranking spirit user! A high-ranking spirit user! Support us and your name will be attached to that glory. It’s the perfect achievement to solidify your position as seventh-year president.”

“We have a predictive analysis report on the potential ripple effects if our permanent freezing magic is realized. We can show it to you if you wish.”

Watching the three faction leaders aggressively promote themselves, Asbel smiled and raised his hand. At last, the student council president opened his mouth.

“The budget will be divided exactly into thirds and distributed equally among the three factions.”

And what he chose was the worst possible method of budget allocation. It was the simplest and easiest solution available to a student council president. However, it was also the one that would satisfy no faction at all.

Not a single previous president who had advocated for fair distribution had ever simply declared they would split everything into exact thirds. The norm was to listen to each faction’s proposals, select the one with the highest chance of success and growth, allocate slightly more budget to that side, and then persuasively explain why that faction’s plan was superior to calm any dissatisfaction.

What Asbel had just declared was nothing more than a lazy announcement that he would indifferently split the budget into thirds and toss it at them, abandoning his duties. Nothing more, nothing less. It was an act that directly contradicted the Steel Empire’s belief in choosing the strong and the better.

“I didn’t expect this from you.”

Ruspontia spoke in an icy voice.

“You’re saying comparing and thinking is too much trouble, so you’ll just half-ass the budget allocation?” Gotrose growled.

“Are you truly serious about what you just said?” Rutrec looked at Asbel with a disappointed expression.

But Asbel was still smiling.

“Catching a lower dragon. Producing a high-ranking spirit user. Researching new cold magic. All the goals each faction proposed are impressive. But let’s be honest. Suppose I gave the entire budget to one faction. Would that be enough?”

At the sudden question, the three faction leaders fell silent. They thought it over carefully.

“Honestly… it’s still not enough to catch a lower dragon. Buying equipment, training costs… when you add it all up.”

“It’s honestly far from sufficient for permanent freezing research.”

“We couldn’t buy spirit stones at the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠level we want. Even if you gave us 100%.”

Even receiving 100% of the budget wouldn’t be enough. The budget granted to the student council was never small, but it wasn’t overwhelmingly large either. And the three factions—composed of hot-blooded young students rather than jaded adults who knew how to compromise with reality—often dreamed far bigger than their actual resources allowed.

“There’s your answer. No matter how I distribute the budget, I cannot satisfy all of you. Since the best possible outcome won’t be achieved, I cannot even determine which goal is superior.”

“So in other words,” Ruspontia said irritably, “no matter how you split the budget the best result won’t come, so you’re just going to neglect your duties and take the easy way out?”

Asbel smiled at her words.

“No, that’s not it. Let me be direct. Rachel and I will go hunt a lower dragon ourselves.”

Ruspontia’s irritation vanished. Her mouth fell open.

“We will provide the dragon scales and dragon bones to the Lions' Legion. If you craft equipment with them, your chances of successfully hunting a lower dragon will increase significantly.”

“W-well, that’s true, isn’t it? Armor or gear mixed with dragon bone would make hunting much easier.” Gotrose answered in a daze.

This time Asbel turned to Ruspontia.

“We will provide the dragon blood to the Element Followers. It contains far more mana than spirit stones, so it should allow much easier connection to the spirit realm.”

“You…… Are you serious? You’re saying the two of you will hunt a lower dragon?”

“It is possible.”

After casually dismissing her doubt, Asbel finally looked at Rutrec.

“Finally, we will provide the dragon’s various internal organs and the dragon heart to the Truth Research Society.”

“The dragon heart contains an enormous amount of mana, so it would indeed be very helpful for research.”

Asbel finished speaking and grinned.

“Please do your best to achieve the goals you have set. After seeing the best results each of you can produce, I will evaluate which faction performed more excellently. Then I will decide next semester’s budget allocation and the distribution of byproducts from the dragon hunt. How does that sound? Will this satisfy you?”

The three factions could only nod blankly at Asbel’s words. Asbel had performed the role of student council president brilliantly. He had presented an excellent alternative that left every faction satisfied.