At last, the trial operation of the Eden Treaty Organization has commenced.

In fact, the Eden Treaty, which had been buried under the surface until now, began to emerge seriously when discussions about the proposal for trial operations came to light.

And when the moment came for this Eden Treaty, literally an unprecedented peace treaty between two rival academies, to be discussed, chaos was bound to ensue.

First of all, the least resistance came from within Trinity. Essentially, the moderates held the majority, and the hardliners who would usually raise their voices under Pater were subdued by me. Consequently, it was difficult for them to assert their presence, making it almost natural that if there were any significant backlash, one might start to suspect that the sun had risen in the west.

Unless I made a major political blunder or, for some reason, was absent from the academy for at least a few weeks to months, the hardliners would not make their voices heard in Trinity.

The lack of opposition seemed to be partly due to the close friendship I had established with Hina… Well, the current situation has essentially turned into a marriage alliance. However, since this will lose significance when Hina and I graduate, it’s a bit ambiguous.

After all, Trinity is not a literal autocracy, and I can’t just be a T-party host forever. If things had gone as planned, I would have already handed over the host position to Seiya and would be lounging around right now.

…It’s really infuriating. It looks like it’s time for a regular session of Seiya hatred.

Still, I had expected some level of backlash, mainly due to the existence of kids who were bitter about my being sold as a slave to Gehenna… Surprisingly, no one seems to care about that part at all.

Sure enough, emotions are fleeting. Or perhaps I was just overly self-conscious.

Regardless, it’s rare for the person who was sold to shout, “Gehenna is our friend! Living together is true happiness… I love Hina-chan!” and then hold on to that thought for over two months.

Even I would think, “Ugh, that girl is just a pest, isn’t she?” and would probably keep my mouth shut.

On the other hand, there were certainly voices of opposition from Gehenna.

The name that first comes to mind, Manma Battle… surprisingly took a neutral stance. In fact, it was leaning towards a friendly position, which made me uneasy.

I have no idea what’s going on over there, which adds to my confusion.

Iroha told me that Makoto declared she would stand in the sky… but I can’t think of any other reasons. I have no clue how Makoto’s grand dream of being the Student Council President relates to the Eden Treaty.

Besides that, there seems to be a widespread reluctance towards Trinity among Gehenna students, leading to quite a bit of negative reactions from the general student body.

This is primarily rooted in the differing dispositions of the students from the two academies, as the kids from Gehenna seem to be saying that Trinity is cunning, two-faced, and out of touch, so I can’t help but see it as a predicted backlash.

However, even this has significantly eased after the summer festival, and these sentiments have no substantial impact on the major trend. Given Gehenna’s nature, such dissatisfaction never coalesces into unified expression, no joke, absolutely never.

If the leading department, which could genuinely overthrow the system using force, steps forward to promote, and if the Manma Battle, which has only been obstructing everything, doesn’t apply the brakes, then there are no forces actively opposing the Eden Treaty within the two academies at this point.

Well, at least within the two academies.

Meanwhile, minor academies that we hadn’t even paid attention to raised alarms about the dangers of the Eden Treaty to the Student Council, and there have been voices of concern from places like Sanhaekyeong High School and the Red Winter Federal Academy.

The biggest problem might be Millennium, but their attitude is more like, “Oh, you two are getting close? That’s great! We make good money every summer festival anyway. Good luck!” So, their resistance is quite mild. The engineers quickly realized that more operational funds are always a good thing.

A few months ago, the Odyssey, which got tangled with us concerning Kaiser, seems to be taking a rather friendly stance with Trinity, indicating that they support us.

As for Hakgwiyaeng, the Onmyoubu, which unofficially took on the position of the student council there, isn’t inclined to meddle in other schools’ politics, and it seems they’ve opted for neutrality as they maintain a good relationship with Gehenna.

For some reason, it seems that after receiving a visit from Manma Battle, Red Winter has been tight-lipped. Well, to be honest, I’m not very interested in finding out the details…

As for Ryuuge Kisaki, the Black Lord of Sanhaekyeong, she’s one of the most sensible student council presidents I’ve seen in Kivotos, so I’m sure that with just a little serious talk, she’ll lean towards neutrality. It seems like I need to schedule another visit to Sanhaekyeong soon to handle some personal matters as well.

One tiny problem is that the academy’s matters lie with Hyunryongmun, while my personal tasks are with Hyeonmusanghoe.

The student council at Sanhaekyeong, Hyunryongmun, and the merchant association, Hyeonmusanghoe, are in fierce opposition. From my last visit for personal business, I nearly witnessed a showdown between the traditionalists of Hyunryongmun and the multiculturalists of Hyeonmusanghoe that rivaled the tension between the past Gehenna and Trinity.

So, contacting both conflicting groups in a single visit does seem a bit nerve-wracking.

Anyway, the two-month-long sweet respite comes to an end today. With the trial operation of ETO beginning and Hina gaining some time flexibility, I plan to fully dive into the projects I had tucked away for a while.

Thus begins the opening chapter of the journey to become a millennium idol!

*

[I’ve heard that the Eden Treaty Organization, known for maintaining the peace treaty between Gehenna and Trinity, will begin its trial operation today. Temporary President, can you explain the precise background behind the establishment of this organization, which is abbreviated as ETO and is backed by SRT?]

“As you already know, the initial proposal for the Eden Treaty came from the Student Council President. The burden on the Student Council has significantly increased due to the conflicts between Gehenna and Trinity in Kivotos. The Student Council President proposed this treaty to alleviate that burden, and that’s why we were appointed as the main body of ETO. The two academies accepted the mediation of the Student Council.”

[Temporary President, I understand that you made remarkable contributions during the Kaiser Incident, where SRT was publicly revealed in Kivotos, and also during the Kaiser Gate two and a half months ago. It is often said that SRT is synonymous with FOX Squad, and I’ve heard you’re simultaneously appointed as the interim president of ETO and the first official president of ETO after the Eden Treaty is formally signed. Does that mean FOX Squad will be fully retiring from active duty?]

“No. While I will be taking on the president role, I have no intention of simply sitting back and taking it easy. My FOX Squad and I will still work actively as part of ETO and won’t neglect our responsibilities, like preemptively suppressing serious crimes and terrorism that Valkyrie can’t handle. Also, the rumor that I’m slated to be the first president is completely unfounded.”

[That sounds like SRT’s workload will significantly increase. Given the grueling training regimen of SRT, do you really think it is possible to handle this increased workload?]

“It’s possible. Our SRT is truly the best elite group there is. Moreover, we have a collaborative network in place so that if manpower gaps arise in fulfilling SRT’s duties, the Justice Realization Department of Trinity and the Leading Department of Gehenna can fill those positions.”

[So, that means—]

“Mika, what’s with the roundabout way you brought that up in front of me?”

“Ah, come on, our temporary president is just being too much! You looked so cool, and then you went and switched it off!”

As I watched Yukino’s press conference, she looked utterly confounded as I turned it off. After all, I had been there at the press conference too, so it was indeed ridiculous to bring up something we both knew.

“…Sigh. Please don’t tease me. The temporary presidency really isn’t a hat that fits someone like me.”

“Heueng. But you see, how can we ignore the fact that the Student Council President personally appointed Yukino as the head? Right? SRT is the Student Council President’s arm, so when you’re asked to do something, you gotta do it. Why were you so quiet before and are speaking up now?”

“Well, since I’m in this important position, I will do my best. Since the honor of SRT is on the line, it’s only natural that I can’t accept anything less than excellence. However, isn’t it okay for me to grumble a bit that this post doesn’t suit me?”

“Are you worried you can pull it off?”

“…Does it look that way?”

“Yep. SRT’s work just needs to be done according to what the Student Council President says. But now that you’re sitting in a position responsible for ETO, you’ve taken on a suddenly heavy burden, just as you hinted. I’ve been there, so I understand.”

“Sigh. I can’t deny that. To be honest, I’m indeed worried.”

After all, I had unexpectedly taken on the role of a T-party host, which is a title too grand for me—I too had doubts about whether I truly belonged in this position. In such circumstances, there’s no way I wouldn’t understand Yukino’s feelings.

However.

“Yukino-chan. Trust yourself, and trust the principles of justice that SRT holds dear to heart. You’re already an upright and excellent person, so as long as you don’t forget the justice you’ve engraved in your heart, the path you walk will almost always be the right one. Even if you sometimes choose the wrong path, the kids around you will help steer you in the right direction.”

If I could do it, there’s no reason Yukino couldn’t.

Objectively speaking, there are few who are as upright as Yukino. Since she can decisively declare that even the judgment of the Student Council President is wrong if it diverges from the essence of justice, I believe she possesses excellent leadership qualities.

As I lightly patted Yukino on the shoulder, I saw her blink in surprise.

“Do you remember our previous conversation? I think I asked you if having the Student Council President as a guidepost was absolutely necessary for your SRT.”

“…Yes, I remember.”

“When the responsibility for determining justice is placed on your shoulders, can you truly execute that justice with an unwavering and upright heart? You wouldn’t forget how you answered me back then, would you?”

“SRT can judge and enforce justice based on consistent standards. I said that, didn’t I?”

“Well done, you remembered. It might be a bit limited, but… yes. The time has finally come for you to prove that, Yukino-chan. And that confident version of yourself back then truly suits you best.”

With a step back, I clasped my hands behind my back and smiled slightly. I took in Yukino’s figure, adorned with the emblem representing ETO on her original uniform.

“So, I look forward to working with you from now on, President Yukino☆”

In response, Yukino’s answer was exactly the same confident response I remembered from that time.