The next day...
The students are having lunch in the cafeteria at Night Raven College. Among them are Jack, Ruggie, and other students.
Jack says to Ruggie, "Hey, Ruggie. Sorry about yesterday!"
"Think nothing of it! Shyeheehee..." Ruggie says as he snickers, "Anyways, did the rest of you grab some lunch after?"
"Nah. We just split up and went home," Jack says.
He then asks, "You'll find out soon enough."
"Uh, what?" Jack responds, confused.
Suddenly, the school bell rings.
But Ruggie and Jack are confused, "The bell?"
They soon hear Crowley's voice over the loudspeaker, "All students, please report to the lecture hall at the end of class!"
"Wonder what's going on," Jack wonders.
Ruggie snickers in response, "Shyeheehee..."
Sometime later, all the students arrive in the lecture hall.
Seeing them all here, Crowley says, "It appears we have everyone now, excellent. I have a most felicitous announcement to make! As some of you may be aware, Craneport will be holding an event at the end of the month known as Port Fest. And Night Raven College shall be participating!"
This catches everyone by surprise.
Crowley continues, "I received a personal request for our assistance from the individual in charge of the festival this very morning. He insisted upon having our school—and not Royal Sword Academy! Dear me, one does love to find a person with such discerning taste! Contributing to the local community is crucial for an illustrious institution such as ours, so I offered him the entire school's assistance. Such is the scale of my magnanimity, of course."
"The request came in this morning, huh?" Jack says, a little surprised, "What a coincidence..." But the bigger picture appears in his head and turns to Ruggie, "Too much of one, in fact. That's what you were talking to the manager about, wasn't it, Ruggie? You put the idea into his head to approach the school for help."
With a grin, Ruggie says, "Right you are. He kept saying how it was too much work for him, didn't he?"
"Yeah, I guess. But there's nothing in it for you. You've gotta have some kind of angle," Jack says.
"There's plenty in it for me. Getting class canceled, for one," Ruggie answers, "And he's hooking me up for giving him the idea. I'm gettin' a hundred thaumarks' worth of gift cards to the restaurant."
"Huh. Two birds with one stone, then,"Jack replies.
Ruggie snickers, "Shyeheehee... Oh, that's not all."
Crowley continues, "Additionally, all of you students will set up and run food stands at the festival."
Again, everyone is surprised to hear it.
Crowley then says, "It's not a festival without food, after all! What attendee would not relish the chance to enjoy a host of different culinary delights? This was another marvelous suggestion from the project leader."
"Another suggestion from you, in other words," Jack says.
"Right-o," Ruggie replies.
"Costs pertaining to set up, food supplies, and all other expenses will be borne by the school," Crowley adds.
"Oh good, more nonsense to deal with. Yippee," Jamil says, not very amused.
But Kalim says, "Come on, it sounds like a blast! I can't wait!"
"Carefree as ever. Ugh, " Jamil replies, annoyed.
Then Ace says, "Ugh is right. You can put as much lipstick on this pig as you want, but what it means is we're gonna be workin' for free."
"Yeah, I can name at least one person who's not going to take this lying down," Deuce says.
Suddenly, Azul calls out, "Headmage!"
"Called it!" Ace and Deuce respond, not surprised by it.
"What is it, Ashengrotto?" CRowley asks.
"The notion of contributing to the community is indeed wonderful. Truly, my heart soars at the thought of it. I would be happy to offer my assistance," Azul says, "But I have to imagine this will cut into our class time and club activities, no? Some students—not I, of course—who do not understand the kindness you are doing may harbor some discontent over this. Perhaps in order to bring these poor unfortunate souls on board, we might offer a reward commensurate with the efforts involved?"
Crowley thinks for a minute, "Hmm, yes, you make a valid point, Ashengrotto. As part of our contribution to the community, we will donate half our profits to Craneport for its revitalization... And I, in my continuing munificence, shall grant the remaining half to the student body."
"Munificent indeed, headmage! Your generosity of spirit knows no bounds! Thank you, once again. I am even more excited about this opportunity than before," Azul says.
Deuce replies, "Nice! Azul sure knows how to negotiate!"
"There will likely only be a small amount of funds remaining, but I encourage you to use them for a post-festival celebration," Crowley says.
Azul chuckles, "Heh heh. I shall conduct detailed research into the most popular festival foods and make a huge profit by selling a massive volume of cheap goods!"
"There's no way Azul's doing anything for a 'small amount of funds,' I'll tell you that," Ace says.
And Leona says, annoyed, "Bah. As if I'd ever be caught pallin' around with these mangy strays."
"...Total cringe," Idia says from the tablet.
"I don't get the sense anyone here will want to mingle at some wrap party," Deuce replies.
Ruggie snickers, "Shyeheehee... Masterful, if I do say so myself. I knew Azul would say exactly that!"
"Okay, so what does that mean?" Jack asks.
Ruggie answers, "That, my dear Jack, was my real goal for getting Night Raven College involved in Port Fest! I've worked my fair share of festival food stands, so I know how things usually pan out. All we gotta do is get things going, and we'll make a mint! I'm sure of it! And since all expenses are comin' outta the school's pocket, the leftover cash is ours. I'm talking THREE birds with one stone!"
"You seriously saw that many moves ahead?! That's some impressive foresight," Jack says, surprised.
Then Crowley announces, "Now then, students. When you are selling food and drink at Port Fest... You shall be divided into groups by classes, with freshmen, sophomores, and juniors together. These groups will operate the stands."
"Uh, okay. And what does that mean?" Kalim asks.
"For you, you'll be in a group with the students from Class A in each year, basically," Jamil answers.
"Oh, I get it! So I'll be in the same group as Briar!" Kalim says.
"Yeah, that's right," Jamil says.
Crowley then says, "Your group must select what products to sell, arrange for supplies and equipment, set a prep schedule and your hours for the day-of... There are a great many things to decide, and I suspect this will prove a burden to the younger students. I'll be trusting you older students to guide them well. And as for you younger students, be sure to listen and learn from them! It's a prime educational opportunity. So come together, students! Bond with those who are not your usual chums, and learn the true meaning of collaborative spirit!"
"I can't argue there. We don't usually hang out with the older kids from other clubs and dorms," Epel says.
"Now, I would like each group to select a leader from among the juniors. You have 10 minutes," Crowley says.
Everyone exclaims, "What?!"
"That's absurd! How are we supposed to decide that quickly?!" Deuce asks, shocked.
But Crolwey says, "Hurry it along, children!"
Soon, everyone rushes around to get into the group.
Epel then rushes to Ruggie and Jack, "Hey, we're in the same group, Ruggie! And you too, Jack!"
"Hmm, I didn't plan on us being split by class," Ruggie mutters.
"So which of our juniors is cut out to be the leader?" Jack asks.
"I mean, wouldn't the prime candidates be the housewardens? Only four of them are juniors, anyway," Epel says.
"Yeah, you're right! And the housewardens in Class B are..." Jack says.
And Idia says, "...That's a hard no from me."
"Idia?!" Jack replies.
And Cater says, "Hey, what a great idea! He'd be perfect."
But one of the students says, "I'm not so sure about that... I mean, Idia's not even actually HERE right now."
"Yeah, exactly! Idia's not even here! He definitely won't work!" Idia says.
"Your self-confidence is inspiring," Jack replies.
And Idia says, "Shouldn't Cater do it? I mean, festivals are designed for extroverts like him!"
One of the students agree, "That's a good point! And you already know what's trendy and would attract customers! So will you do it?"
But Cater says, "Yeah, I think I'll pass. Cay-Cay loves festivals. I wanna ENJOY Port Fest, not do work!"
"So we're back to Idia, then, "Ruggie says.
But Idia says, "We absolutely are not!"
"Figured you'd say that," Ruggie says.
Then Jack asks, "What're we gonna do then?"
Just then, Crowley announces, "One minute left, students!"
Class B cries out, "Oh no!"
"We're out of time! Jack, do something!" Epel says.
"Well, if there are no other options... YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO FIGHT ME!" Jack says.
The group is shocked to hear that idea, "WHAT?!"
And Jack says, "I'm not workin' for some half-hearted, indecisive punk. Whoever beats me is our leader."
"Why are you making it HARDER?! They're already arguing about NOT doing it!" Ruggie says.
"I dunno. I thought it would amp up their fighting spirit. Y'know, get the competitive juices flowing," Jack says.
But Idia says, That makes zero sense. You're definitely a Savanaclaw."
And then Cater says, "All right, all right, you wore me down. Cay-Cay shall be your leader!"
"Seriously?!" Jack questions.
"Yes. We're going to run out of time if we keep bickering like this. And now that I think about it, this'll be way more fun if I can pick a food that looks hype. I'll do everything I can to make our booth go viral. Oh, but hard pass on the fighting," Cater says.
"No complaints here, if you're willing to do it. Thanks, Cater!" Jack says.
Ruggie sighs in relief, "Phew. That's that sorted, then."
"Yeah, thankfully!" Idia says.