With everything finally settled, I led the Game Development Club in offering a sincere apology to the seminar once more, then brought the three girls out with me.
When we reached a quiet corner of the hallway, I stopped. Midori and Yuzu both halted as well.
I dragged Momoi back, since she was still trudging forward with her head down, then straightened my expression and said sternly to the three anxious girls,
"You really caused me a huge amount of trouble today."
"Uu… I'm sorry…"
Seeing them like this, so adorably repentant, I could not hold my expression anymore and broke into a smile. I pulled all three of them into my arms, vigorously ruffling their hair.
"So you absolutely must prove yourselves and make a game that even the judges acknowledge, one that convinces Rion completely. I'll support you with everything I've got."
"Eh…? I will too…?" Yuzu squeaked shyly.
"Yes, Sensei. I'll do my best." Midori agreed obediently.
"Ahaha, Sensei stop it, your clothes are all dirty," Momoi giggled foolishly.
Momoi. Before complaining about dirt, maybe consider who rubbed her head on me in the first place.
In that moment, I finally understood what Yuuka must feel when dealing with Momoi.
A mischievous little troublemaker, never letting anyone relax, always making people exasperated.
Thanks to Momoi's big mouth, I made sure to rub her head even more before letting go.
"So, what's the situation now?" I asked seriously as the girls tidied their hair. "You're short on funds?"
Midori looked up timidly. "Yes…"
I nodded. I did not ask why they did not try getting part time jobs. Not yet, not until I understood them better.
As their Sensei, I believed the Game Development Club surely had their reasons.
"And no more running gambling events," I warned. "If you're really struggling, I can lend you some emergency funds."
Given the scale of a 16 bit retro style game, it should not cost too much anyway.
"No, we can't trouble you like that again…"
Yuzu gathered her courage. "If we need a part time job, I'll go. I'm the club president, so I can't just sit back and watch my juniors and Sensei contribute while I do nothing."
"Yuzu…" Midori asked worriedly, "Will you really be alright?"
Yuzu immediately deflated, face crumpling as she wailed, "Uu… I'll do my best for everyone…"
Momoi nodded. "Yeah, let's work hard together, but don't push yourself too far."
Since they already had their own plans, I said nothing more. I simply decided I would check in on them later and help however I could.
Then Momoi grumbled, "That awful president. How could she make things so difficult for us."
Yuzu pressed a hand to her chest, still shaken. "Haah. She's as terrifying as the rumors say. I thought she was going to kill us…"
Midori, more realistic about the situation, said, "I feel like we brought this on ourselves."
"W-well, maybe…" Momoi protested stubbornly. "But asking us to go win an award at the Millennium Club Competition right away is totally impossible, isn't it?"
I reached out and rubbed her head again. "Enough. What's done is done. Instead of complaining, think carefully about how to make something good enough to win. There are still two months left. Use that time well. It's more than enough."
Momoi pouted, but admitted reluctantly, "Fine, that's true…"
Midori chimed in, flustered. "I also think the requirement is a bit too high for us right now…"
"So you need to work on improving yourselves too."
I had no idea why Midori suddenly grew anxious when she had been acting so resolved earlier. But head pats always worked.
Sure enough, she brightened obediently. "Okay, I understand."
"Still… I didn't expect Yuuka to help us. And the president said Yuuka had been covering for us before."
Momoi pondered this deeply, a spark of world shaking wisdom flashing in her eyes, and reached the most reasonable conclusion. "Could it be… Yuuka was putting on a double act with the president?"
If Yuuka heard this, I imagined she would only sigh and shake her head, not regret speaking up for them.
"Big sister, don't make Yuuka sound like a bad person."
Midori frowned. "She used to give us trouble, but thinking back, she was only doing her job as student council. She never actually targeted us on purpose. We were the ones who messed up first…"
"I know, I know, I was just joking. I'm not actually stupid."
Momoi grimaced. "I know I used to be biased against her. She's actually a pretty good person. It's like those demon generals in the Demon King's army who look fierce but deep down yearn for the light, and later join the hero's party."
"We should thank Yuuka. And Sensei too," Yuzu said quietly.
Momoi nodded earnestly. "Then, to live up to everyone's expectations, and to defeat the true Demon King, President Rion, we should head back to the clubroom and hold a strategy meeting. I already have some ideas. Sensei, will you come too?"
"Sure."
Of course I had no objection. I made a mental note to message Izuna later so she would not keep waiting for me.
Strategy meetings running past midnight were nothing unusual.
However, the moment we reached the first floor of Millennium Tower, Momoi's phone chimed with a Momotalk notification.
She glanced at the screen, and her face instantly darkened.
"What is it, big sister?"
"Yuuka… and here I was starting to trust her a little…" Momoi reluctantly showed us her phone. "She wants us to go back to the seminar office to clean. The cleaning time can count toward our community service…"
"Oh, right, we forgot about that. Then let's hurry back."
Midori apologized to me. "Sorry, Sensei. Looks like we'll be busy for a while. Can we move the strategy meeting to tomorrow?"
"Of course. Why apologize? After school then. I'll come over once I finish work."
Meanwhile, Momoi kept muttering, "Ugh… even after giving us a deadline like that, she still won't cancel the reflection and community service… I won't have to write a ten thousand word reflection, right?"
"Um, that's a separate issue…" Yuzu said hesitantly.
All I could think was that Momoi really did imagine the best outcomes for herself. It was hard not to laugh.
After arranging our meeting time for tomorrow, I waved as the Game Development Club stepped into the elevator.
After thinking for a moment, I took out my phone and sent a message to Yuuka.