Chapter 26: The Eldritch Goddess Is the Secretary
The academy was in an uproar after the cult incident, but school life carried on nonetheless.
Today, there was to be a meeting to decide the budget allocations for the various student clubsâor so Klaus had told me. I was planning to attend as the student council secretary, responsible for recording the minutes.
âIris!â
âFrieda. Whatâs the matter?â
Frieda had bounced back quickly after everything that happened. She hadnât recalled anything about the incident and was back to her usual self.
âSo, the budget meetingâs today, right?â
âYes, thatâs right. Iâll be attending as the secretary.â
Lately, Iâd started to feel oddly proud of being the student councilâs secretary. Probably because I overheard other students saying things like âDid you hear? Lady Iris is a student council officer!â and âWow! People like that really are built different!â
Honestly? I love being praised so straightforwardly!
âI have a favor to ask.â
âA favor? Thatâs rare for you, Frieda. What is it?â
Normally, Iâm the one who relies on Frieda for everything, so this was truly a rare occurrence.
ââŚI think the literature clubâs budget is about to take a big hit. Is there anything you can do?â
âTheyâre cutting your budget? Why?â
âItâs that whole April incident. A lot of our members still havenât come back to school, so our activity record looks awful. At the culture festival, we barely managed to put out enough work to count on one hand. Even Lord Albrecht said weâre probably going to get a massive cutâŚâ
âI see⌠so thatâs whatâs going on.â
Indirectly, it was kind of my fault. Blaming all the mass suspensions and withdrawals in April solely on the cult is a bit of a stretch.
âUnderstood. For a friend, Iâll see what I can do.â
âYay! Thank you, Iris!â
âThink nothing of it. Youâre my friend, after all.â
Which meant I needed to find a way to steer the budget meeting in the literature clubâs favor.
âFrieda, you wonât be attending the meeting yourself, right? Itâll be Lord Albrecht?â
âYeah. Heâs acting as interim club president right now.â
âThen thereâs hope.â
After all, President Klaus is a man who loves his political connections.
And Albrechtâs father is none other than Field Marshal Ferdinand von Blankenfeldt, the Chief of the General Staff. A connection like that carries serious political weightâKlaus would probably approve without a second thought.
The Eldritch Goddess is clever indeed!
"Thatâs a no-go."
Iâd known it was a bad idea, yet Iâd still brought it up with Klaus in the student council roomâonly to be shot down instantly. Wh-why?!
"Well, donât get me wrongâIâd love to stay on good terms with Marshal Ferdinand, too. The political clout of the Army still isnât something to scoff at. But thatâs exactly why I canât give in to Albrechtâs demands."
"May I ask your reasoning?"
"Simple. Albrecht and his old man donât get along."
Klausâs answer to my question was blunt.
"At his age, most military brats wouldâve already enrolled in an Army-affiliated schoolâofficer academies and the like. But whereâs he at instead? Arkham Academy, right? Rumor has it he and the Marshal had quite the row over it."
"I seeâŚ"
"His older brothers died in the last war. From what I hear, heâs sick and tired of the militaryâof war itself. So he dug his heels in: âIâll never become a soldier!â Personally, I donât mind the attitude, but politically? Eh."
Klaus went on to explain that Albrechtâs brothers had all followed family tradition and joined the military, only to perish in the war. The only ones left were his sister and his much younger self.
"Military men are stubborn. Politically flexible negotiations arenât their strong suit. And as a future Imperial Chancellor, Iâd rather not cozy up to Albrecht and risk souring relations with the Marshal."
"Youâre already set on becoming Chancellor, I see."
"What can I say? I love my old manâs line of work!"
Klaus laughed heartily before his expression turned serious again.
"Besides, the academyâs finances arenât exactly flush after all those suspensions and dropouts. Playing favorites with just the Literary Club would piss off everyone else. You get that, donât you, Iris?"
"YesâŚ"
Ugh. And here Iâd promised Frieda with such confidenceâŚ
"Still, I figure youâd want to show your friend you at least tried. So hereâs the deal: weâll cut the budget, but weâll frame it as temporary. Once your members return, weâll restore the full amount."
"Thank you, Klaus."
"Donât mention it. Youâre the one who helped uncover the dorm basement mysteryâconsider this my thanks. A good politician keeps track of debts, and I intend to be a damn good one."
Listening to him, I couldnât help but think he truly was destined for politics. If he ended up as anything else, Iâd eat my hat.
"Klaus, Iris. Budget meetingâs about to start."
Felixâs voice cut in as he arrived.
"That time already? Letâs head out, then."
"Right."
I followed Klaus and Felix to the classroom where the budget meeting would be held.
"You remember how to take minutes?"
"Of course."
"Good. Write legiblyâweâll need a clean copy later."
"Leave it to me."
With that exchange, we entered the room. The club leaders (or their proxies) were already seated, and they rose in respect as Klaus and Felix walked in. The student council still commanded some authority, it seemed.
"Take your seats. Weâll now begin the budget meeting."
Each club would present their funding requests, complete with justifications. The academy likely designed these presentations to hone studentsâ persuasive skillsâand as I listened, every plea struck me as thoroughly deserving.
"Our goal is a top-three finish in the upcoming tournament, and to that end, we request funds for an intensive training campâ"
Every club laid out compelling cases, making me want to approve them all.
"But given your clubâs track record, isnât âtop threeâ overly ambitious?"
Yet Felix dissected each appeal with icy precision. As the vice president and treasurer, he held the purse stringsâand his scrutiny clearly stung.
Some clubs fought back with data; others conceded defeat.
Activity records, active membership, future potentialâFelix weighed it all with detached calculation. What a capable guy, I mused. If it were me, Iâd cave to sentiment and blow the whole budget in five minutes.
"Next, the Literary Club."
Ah. Our turn.
"Acting club president, Albrecht von Blankenfeld. We plan to submit works for the Imperial Youth Cultural Festival. However, as youâre aware, our club suffered significant attrition after Aprilâs incident."
Albrecht laid out the situation frankly, without sugarcoating.
"Nevertheless, we intend to produce work worthy of Arkham Academyâs reputation. To that end, we request funding for reference materials, printing, and binding, as outlined below."
He then detailed the figures.
"Hmm. But with your current active membership, can you realistically deliver?"
Felix posed the question to Albrecht.
âYes. I will create them and present them. Two works are already complete, and weâre on schedule to finish the rest before the Imperial Youth Cultural Festival.â
âI see.
At that, Felix turned his gaze toward Klaus.
âThen thereâs no issue. The Literature Club has a solid track record. Budget allocations will be based on the number of active members, but if any members currently on leave return, weâll consider a separate budget for that. Thatâs all.â
âThank you very much.â
Ohhâwhat a relief. Now Iâve kept my promise to Frieda~!
âŚâŚâŚâŚâŚâŚâŚâŚ
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