Club Activities
The Bauan All Girls’ Academy differed from the Bauan Royal Institute in various ways, but one particular difference was club activities.
“Hey, you there! You’re Alea François, right? C’mon, join our swordsmanship club!”
“No! Your physical abilities are best suited to join our martial arts club!”
“And you’re Mei François, right? Any interest in joining our magical research society? If not, why not just us in name? That’d be totally cool with us!”
“What about our quiz society? Mei, you’re really smart, right? It’d be perfect, just perfect!”
We found ourselves in the thick of the freshman recruitment period. As we made our way to class, I was primarily approached by clubs that involved physical activity, while Mei was primarily approached by clubs that involved magic or intelligence. I withheld answering in the positive or negative to the fervent appeals from my upperclassmen, and somehow managed to make it to my classroom.
“Phew. Finally, some peace and quiet.”
“… So tired.”
“Y-You both had it rough, Alea-chan, Mei-chan.”
“I guess that’s the price you two pay for your popularity!”
As I sat down at my desk and enjoyed a moment’s reprieve, Lily-sama and Simone approached. We left the dorms together, but since Mei and I were caught in the mob of recruiters, the two of them had arrived first.
“If we’re talking about popularity, Lily-sama is plenty popular herself.”
“… Lily-sama, you concealed your presence… Unfair.”
“Eh, did you?”
“Ah, hahaha… Yeah, I did..”
When Mei and I coldly stared at her, Lily-sama awkwardly looked away. Goodness gracious.
“So? Do you three know what club you want to join?”
Simone seemed to ask mostly out of curiosity.
“Hmm, well, what about you, Simone?”
“Me? I think I like the idea of just going home early. It’s not like participating in a club is mandatory.”
That’s right. The academy respected student autonomy, so while participating in a club was encouraged, it was not mandatory. Thinking along those lines, I couldn’t say that the level of swordsmanship or martial arts that I could experience at a highschool club appealed to me, so I was planning on joining whatever club Lily-sama did, with clear ulterior motives in mind.
“What are your plans, Lily-sama?”
“L-Lily is thinking of starting her own club.”
“Ooh, what kind of club would that be?”
“… Mei’s also interested.”
I was curious as well. With the three of our gazes to urge her on, Lily-sama nervously continued.
“… Y-You won’t laugh, will you?”
“Of course not.”
“… I won’t.
“I swear that I won’t.”
“… The… A-Acts of Kindness Club.”
“The A-Acts of Kindness Club?
Anyone who knew Lily-sama probably had a vague idea of what she had in mind, but I wasn’t sure what the club’s specific purpose would be.
“Just what kind of club would that be?”
“T-To put it simply, it’d be a club that tries to help anyone that needs it. O-Our activities would involve solving the smaller troubles and worries students have that the academy may not be able to officially take on.”
“Oh, that seems kinda interesting.”
“… That’s very much like you, Lily-sama.”
It seemed that Lily-sama wanted to take the acts of service she’d perform as a nun, and continue them within the framework of the academy.
“That’s it!”
“Hyah!? W-What is it, Alea-chan…?”
“I’ve decided. Let me join your Acts of Kindness Club as well.”
“Eh, whaaa…? But uhm, A-Alea-chan, what about the Swordsmanship Club? If you joined them, I’m sure you’d be able to compete at the national level.”
When I stated my intentions, Lily-sama gave me a look of disapproval. However,
“I have no interest in national competition at a highschool level. Beyond that, if that’s your argument, Lily-sama, that applies to you too, does it not?”
“L-Lily wouldn’t be able to compete due to the age restrictions, so…”
“Right, that’s all the more reason for me to abstain. After all, a tournament where I wouldn’t be able to compete with Lily-sama would just be boring to me.”
“Eh, w-w-wait, come on, Mei-chan, Simone-chan, help Lily convince―”
“You know what, I’m interested too!”
“… Same.”
“What!?”
Lily-sama turned to Mei and Simone for help, but the two of them expressed their interest in the Acts of Kindness Club as well.
“Helping the weak and punishing tyrants… It’s just like what I’ve heard about Claire-sama!”
“Er… Erhm, Simone-chan, I think you’ve misconstrued the purpose of the Acts of Kindness Club…?”
“… She’s got the right idea.”
“M-Mei-chan, you know what I mean but you’re just playing along anyway, aren’t you!?”
With things taking an unexpected turn, Lily-sama panicked to correct us, but it was already too late.
“Well, since that’s all been decided, let’s not waste any time. Have you already submitted your application?”
“Y-Yes I have… I did it on the day of the e-enrollment ceremony… A-and it’s already approved.”
“Well then, that makes things easy!”
“… Do we have a room?”
“I’ve heard that I’ll be given a room to use in the club building but… Uhm, are you three… R-Really planning to join?”
“Yes, of course.”
“… Mhm.”
“That’s right!”
As we returned large emphatic nods, Lily-sama seemed to be at a loss for words.
“… I-Is this yet another trial that the Spirit has bestowed upon me…?”
“Wait just a moment, Lily-sama? You make it sound like it’s a bad thing that we’ll be joining you in your club activities.”
“… But Mei does understand where Lily-sama is coming from.”
“Well, it’s true that Alea and Mei seem to be the type to cause trouble.”
“S-Simone-chan, do you really think you aren’t…?”
“Huh?”
And on that note, the bell rang, indicating that class was about to resume.
“Well, let’s continue this talk after school. Shall we all meet in the club room then?”
“… Sure.”
“You got it!”
“… The key to living really is compromise…”
Though one of us seemed to have tears welling up in her eyes, I forcefully brought the conversation to a close and prepared for class.
―I had a lot to look forward to after school.
◆◇◆◇◆
The club room was located in a corner of the club building. It wasn’t a very large room. There were some lockers for us to stow our things in the back and enough space for a table and chairs for the four of us to sit, but that was it.
“Seems like the room is just about the right size for the four of us.”
“… We’re like a select elite.”
“The room isn’t all that bad!”
“T-They were so persistent, Lily had no choice but to accept them…”
Putting Lily-sama’s grumbles aside, Mei and Simone were plenty motivated.
“Who’s going to be the club president?”
As though the thought had just crossed her mind, Simone directed her question toward Lily-sama. Lily-sama seemed to think for a short while before answering,
“W-Well Lily thought she would be the only member, so Lily was planning to… But with you all here too, Lily thinks Alea-chan should do it.”
“… Mei objects.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea either.”
“Hey! I mean, I don’t really care to be the club president myself, but just what do you all mean by that?”
It felt like they were implying I was unfit for the position, and I didn’t like that.
“… If Alea were the club president, we’d surely end up taking on unnecessary work as well.”
“I think Mei’s absolutely right. Considering Alea’s personality, she’ll be going out of her way to find trouble.”
“What? Isn’t that the whole point of this club?”
“N-No, not quite…”
After making it clear that these were just her original plans for the club, Lily-sama explained what her concept for the Acts of Kindness club was.
“T-The Acts of Kindness Club would primarily wait, and if someone were to come and discuss their troubles with us, then we’d do what we could to help them. Or at least… That’s what I had in mind…”
“Hmph, that’s far too roundabout. If we want to help people, what’s wrong with being proactive and finding the people who need it?”
When I confronted her with my question, Lily-sama closed her eyes and,
“The heavens lend a hand only to those who seek salvation.”
Said that as though she was reciting something.
“What?”
“… It’s from the Spirit Church’s scriptures, chapter one verse four.”
“Ah right, that.”
“M-Mei-chan is correct.”
Lily-sama recited a verse from the Spirit Church’s scriptures. As she was a former cardinal for the church, she likely had it all memorized. Lily-sama continued.
“Erhm, i-it’s not Lily’s intent to base the club’s activity off of the Spirit Church’s teachings… But helping people can’t be too one sided, if it is, things… can get twisted.”
“Twisted?”
I couldn’t quite grasp what she meant.
“W-When faced with hardship, isn’t it important that the individual finds the will to resist and struggle against that difficulty on their own?”
“… Ah.”
“I see what you’re saying.”
“Wait, what do you mean, I still don’t get it.”
I didn’t consider myself to be dumb or anything like that, but often had trouble grasping these kinds of things.
“T-To explain it more simply… Lily thinks that if you go out of your way to save someone who doesn’t even want to try and help themselves, they won’t be able to grow.”
“And what’s wrong with that?”
“While, uhm, a-adversity is something that The Spirit bestows and can be painful, but it can also become an opportunity for the person to grow. T-To simply take that chance away from the person, cannot be considered to be to the benefit of that person.”
Was that really how things worked? As I pondered in confusion,
“That said, I think there’ll be some who want to ask for help, but can’t, or don’t know how, too.”
Simone’s words dropped as though she had intended to talk to herself. Perhaps those words had come from her own past experiences, but they certainly carried weight.
“T-That’s true, that is a very valid concern.”
“Right?”
“B-But, it’s still true that… if we go ahead and take care of everything for them, there’s the chance they’ll become unable to take initiative for themselves…”
“… That is… possible.”
It could also be that this problem had no correct solution. At the end of the day, whether or not it was best to just help someone, or wait for them to take action and seek help of their own accord, likely depends on the specifics, and should be considered on a case by case basis. But beyond that―
“… In the first place, Mei doesn’t think anyone would rely on a club run by other students to resolve something that serious. Bullying and criminal activity should be handled by the teachers.”
What Mei said was absolutely correct.
“Well I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“Don’t you think you’re taking all this a bit too lightly?”
Perhaps my comment came off too aloof, Simone’s response took a serious tone.
“I mean, we have you Simone. For the weaker ones in a difficult place unable to call out of their own accord, you’ll be there to relate and consider their needs. We’ll leave it to you to hear the voice of the unvoiced, and guide them by the hand!”
“Eh, wha…!? W-Well, I suppose I could do that!”
It seemed that Simone hadn’t expected to be relied on this way, so she lashed out in surprise. However, though she made it seem like she was sulking, it didn’t seem like she was actually against the idea. Despite what I had just said, there was a reason I wanted to rely on her.
“If I’m honest, I must say that I still don’t quite understand.”
The act of calling out for help―was that really something so difficult?
“Fufu, that’s just like you, Alea-chan.”
Lily-sama laughed off what I said, but there seemed to be some other emotion hidden underneath her smile. I wasn’t able to understand just what that might have been.
“Well, I suppose that’s fine. But if that’s what the intent of the club is, I think Lily-sama should be the club president after all.”
“L-Lily!? The c-club president!?”
“… Agreed.”
“I think so too.”
While Lily-sama herself was unsure, the other two came in and decisively blocked her escape.
“Lily-sama clearly understands the club and what it stands for the best, and Mei isn’t really the type of person who’d want to bear that kind of responsibility.”
“… Exactly. That Alea understands Mei so well makes Mei happy.”
“If Simone wants to be the club president then we’d have to discuss…”
“I’d prefer to just be a member too.”
“That’s that.”
“There’s nowhere left for Lily to run…”
I mean, no matter how I thought about it, she was clearly the best fit for the job.
“Well, now that it’s been decided that Lily-sama will be our club president, The Acts of Kindness club can officially begin its activities!”
“… Yay…”
“This is exciting!”
“W-Wait, wha…?”
And so, the Bauer All Girls’ Academy, Highschool Division, Acts of Kindness Club was formed. My heart raced with excitement, wondering what our first task would be.
Translator Note: You know what Lily, I wouldn’t want to be the club president of a club with Mei and Alea in it either, probably. Alea is definitely the kind of person to just go and do her own thing, and having to take responsibility as the club leader for that sounds like a mess. In that sense Mei is perhaps more tame, but I think she’s also quite the trickster which is also rather problematic…
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