"Before everyone casts their unwavering votes to our little candidates here, let us swiftly heed their speeches before we finalize our decision."

Tiandra, the handler, asserted as she invited one of them to present their aspects of being the house representative.

Setting an arena for them to battle for the title they hankered for, the house representative.

On the flip side, Mina wasn't a bit appealed to the title she currently contended for. Instead bore a different plan for this election, preventing Dalius from securing the title that was.

"Now, which of you is going to volunteer as the forerunner?" her handler curved her knees, maintaining an appropriate height with them, and stated in a tender voice.

Mina, out of reflexes, pointed Dalius in a straight face, not wishing to be the first.

Dalius was displeased by how Mina pushed him to be the first without his bargain and ranted at her poker face, "Oi! Don't you dare point at me without me agreeing!"

Their handler was tittered by Dalius's furious response to Mina and inserted, "Then, would young Dalius like to nominate himself as the forerunner?"

"If it's for your request... I... might consider it..."

Mina was stumped by how her handler managed to convince that arrogant creature to abide by her bidding.

She also realized how her handler was cognizant of Dalius's name before he was even introduced. Mina sequentially asked her handler in a whispery voice,

"Ms. Tiandra, do you, by chance, be acquainted with that potty-mouth boy beforehand? Also, in Mina's favor, he seems unreasonably obedient under your tongue."

"A... potty... what now?" Tiandra was totally baffled by Mina's nickname for Dalius, stuttering in confusion.

"Mina means him!" Mina clarified by directing her fingertips to Dalius, telling her handler the nickname she appointed.

"Oh, you mean young Dalius? I'm utterly baffled. But what a peculiar designation you have given to him, princess." Tiandra simpered as she was clueless about why Mina referred to Dalius by such a rough name.

"Ms. Tiandra..." Mina once again called her, but in a more sour tone, inflicting worries in Tiandra, reflecting on her action that might have displeased her,

"What is it, princess?" she asked,

"Ms. Tiandra hasn't reasoned with her with the answer she wants," Mina replied,

"Oh, you mean young Dalius and me-"

"Mina also wishes her handler to stop using 'princess' in her calling. Mina is Mina, princess or not..." Mina abruptly interrupted and implored her handler to refrain from further formal addresses.

"Alright then, Mi... na...?" Tiandra then twisted her tongue upon using the casual address on Mina, unsure it was wise to perform so.

"Dalius and I precisely had our history way back, and we're like siblings from different folks. If I did not blunder my recall, our family does have slight connections among mutual interests. And there is how I met him, young Dalius." she then subtly shifted her gaze to Dalius, peeking at his haughty face and smiling.

"Mina still wonders how Ms. Tiandra tamed that brash brute..."

"I don't really understand the meaning Mina tried to convey..." Tiandra replied with a self-conscious smile on her lips.

Mina then squinted at her, implying slight unsatisfactory with her answer, stating,

"Mina doubts Ms. Tiandra to be that blunt."

She also clarified, "Mina means that potty-mouth boy often degrades others, mostly in Mina's case and in the most senseless way possible. So, when Mina saw him pose before Ms. Tiandra, his attitude utterly altered, like from a Cerberus to a puppy. So Mina wants to know how Ms. Tiandra did it! Maybe Ms. Tiandra can share her secret of how she subdues him."

"But Dalius always has been compliant to me, and it's rather puzzling when you described Dalius under those terms. It is relatively new to me since I was never exposed to that side of him, but rather a tender and big-hearted boy."

"What...? Mina... doesn't follow..." Mina blinked, stunned like a deer in a headlight, unable to believe her handler had described him in such a nonsensical manner.

"Anyway, Mina, I suppose we should prolong this matter next time, as we have expanded enough time on this chatter. Let us fall back into the matter on hand, shall we?" her handler swiftly requested Mina to forgo their idle chatter and return to the main objective of the day.

Mina nodded.

Tiandra veered her attention to the audience, speaking in a high audible echo, resuming her opening speech before granting the stage for the candidates to present their saying,

"Everyone, now let us welcome our brave and honorable candidates to present their part of saying to earn your favor! And now, let us please welcome, the first candidate of the election... Dalius!"

Everyone applauded as Tiandra grabbed her chalk from the desk, bent her knees and handed it to Dalius, articulating,

"Young Dalius, here's the chalk for you to write down your name on the board, revealing it to the audience and letting them be more familiarized with you."

"Yes... Sis... I mean Ms. Tiandra..." Dalius muttered and proceeded to jot down his name on the board.

A moment of Dalius attentively wrote down his name. The word was marvelously composed and aligned perfectly on the board, instigating the attention of nearly everyone, astounded by his skill of literacy, except for Mina, who was carelessly fidgeting on the spot, adhering her attention elsewhere.

Dalius cleared his throat, prepping for his speech before the crowd, but a slight nervousness injected into him, hindering him from possibly delivering the perfect speech. Still, he resisted, trying to simmer that speedy pumping heart of his with a few deep breaths.

He then horned his mind stoically and readied to deliver his grand speech. And there he went,

"Good morning, my esteemed housemates, I, Daliusma 'Xogarth' Xorros, intend to contribute my revered section of words. To persuade your aspects of why your nomination to I is logical and favorable... As I have expertized many fields of my life and pursued many stages of ascendancy, granting me a representative seat will reap nothing, but sheer thrive to our house name. So..."

When he remained on his course of the delivery, most students already dulled their interest in his words. Given that the students were only seven, his flowery words will most unlikely to captivate their attention as they either couldn't comprehend or simply despised the long words.

Only a few with suspected proficiency in literacy are still enthralled by his speech, like Patria, Keena, and others.

Mina, without a doubt, lost her interest the moment before everyone else or since he was preparing.

She yawned, stretched, and hummed, but the presentation was yet far from over.

Mina then swiveled her head, seeking something entertaining to spend her time with, and there she found a list of portraits above the window, stirring her curiosity.

She stared at it, figuring out who or which of those portraits belonged to, except for her father.

After 30 minutes, Dalius finally concluded his points, and applause woke that zoning-out princess, who then approached her handler, asking in an uncertain tone,

"Wait, it's Mina's turn already?"

"Yes, Mina. It is your turn to deliver your speech to the audience, and Dalius did a marvelous job back there. Hopefully, Mina can topple that." her handler tenderly and inspiringly responded, only to be interjected by a scornful voice,

"I do hope so, princess. Based on your incompetency, it's rather grueling for you just to execute the introduction." he snickered.

"Young Dalius, please refrain from mocking her royal presence in such a derisive way." Tiandra solemnly corrected Dalius's unjust behavior, while Mina just plainly disregarded, saying,

"Ms. Tiandra, Mina is fine. Mina will defeat his crappy mouth with her speech that is a thousand times better!"

"Oh, I like the courage that stirred in you, Mina. I can't wait to heed your part of delivery then!"

Her handler was amazed by her commendation and determination, wholeheartedly excited for her to speak.

On the contrary, Dalius was lowkey perturbed, worrying his glory might be overwhelmed by her.

He also envied how Tiandra supported his rival, putting sour and bitter in his mouth, remarking in a grunting voice,

"*tcks* We will see about that..."

Tiandra then repossessed the stage, presenting and inviting Mina to deliver her part of the speech, her turn to flaunt her capability in guiding her housemates.

At the same time, Keena immediately drowned herself with apathy, knowing Mina would, without a doubt, foil her winning chance in her speech.

The stage was now spotlighted Mina, and Mina was nervous as ever, foreshadowing the worst to come but also desiring an expeditious end.

Mina was also granted chalk to forge her name on the board, but the truth was she never knew how to write her name.

She immediately struggled at the first stage of the presentation, pondering how her name should be written.

But she was reluctant to admit not understanding her name's written form and coerced herself to scribe whatever was on her mind.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

And there you go, a masterpiece of all Demonkin, "Nimo 'Laladar' Vizsha", was written on the board.

Keena and Dalius were the first to burst into laughter, while others, including her handler, remained perplexed by her writing.

"Your total illiteracy is showing under your skin, Mina! I can't cease my laughter upon seeing such ignorance from you!" exclaimed Dalius, who tarried in a belly laugh.

"Mi- Mi- Mina does this so sh- sh- she can observe who's been paying attention to her talk!" Mina spluttered, and swayed her incapability with excuses. However, it keened many others' regard.

The students promptly dived into their respective circles, awed by Mina's assertion, gushing over her name, except, of course, Keena, Konnaugh, and Dalius, who were not buying Mina's case of hiding her incompetency, where Konnaugh just simpered over the cause, while another two promptly blustered at Mina, resonating with one another,

"Stop deceiving others, Mina!"

"Mi- Mi- Mina is speaking the truth! Two of you are just jealous of Mina's capability!" Mina utilized her quick wit, countering their rebuke over her embarrassing mistake.

Keena was tongued-tied by Mina's retortion and decided to compose herself at the seat, halting herself from further involvement, which most likely resorted to devastation.

Contrastingly, Dalius didn't want to stop at all since Mina's incompetency was part of the catalyst to winning, who's just continuously gnawing at her, roaring,

"I'm not letting you off the hook this easily, you incompetent fool! If you're really fortifying the truth, then she should rewrite your name in an accurate way!"

"Mina doesn't wanna."

"What?!"

"Mina wants everyone to partake in working out what her name truly is, so everyone can learn while Mina has her way of presenting!"

"It is very judicious of you, Mina! To not only introduce yourself to the crowd but also help them to assimilate!" her handler was indulged in admiration by Mina's two birds, one stone technique.

On the other hand, corrections were deliberating in Keena and Dalius's minds,

*But that is not the case!*

Mina then carried on to her speech, exclaiming,

"Mina is the princess of Vuzgaria! Mina is a good, young, tender and kind Demonkin! Mina wanted to become a house representative because of her wish to... to..." Mina lost her words, stumping for what to add next, as her sole purpose of becoming the candidate was to destroy Dalius from officiating as the house representative.

Now she was wordless, clueless, baffling over the right term to insert.

She then scanned through the crowd, realizing the attention fixated on her was horrid, instilling sheer pressure onto her, stressing her mind closer to blankness.

But after minutes of contemplation, a spontaneous answer finally joined in her resolute will, as she agitatedly exclaimed,

"To- TO MAKE EVERYONE HAPPY!"

*This is literally the worst...* Keena muttered in her thoughts with disappointment flooding all over her expression, succumbing to defeat over the hope of Mina winning this election even though she never wished her to prevail.

Out of expectation, the applause was more feverish and ardent than Dalius's, with the whistle and cheers all over her name.

Keena and Dalius were wide agape, flabbergasted by the response from their housemates, murmuring in thought,

*What in the Azemos's name is this?!*

Despite the speech Mina delivered being complete havoc, the audience seemed to favor Mina's name more than Dalius's, which is absolutely predictable.

"Alright, alright, everyone, simmer down!" Tiandra stooped in and interrupted the ovation, recalibrating the students' attention to herself.

"It seemed both candidates had already conferred their part of the speech, which defines that we are entering the voting stage!"

Everyone cheered once again, exhilarated about the voting phase.

As Tiandra casually turned to Dalius and Mina and requested them in a tender tone,

"Now, will you two please, have your back fronted to everyone and seal your eyelids until the voting concludes."

They both nodded, complied with her bidding and faced their back to everyone while having their eyes closed.

In the meantime, Tiandra converted to everyone and announced, "Now, everyone! The vote will undergo in the simplest fashion. When I say one of the two names, if you prefer him or her to be elected as your representative, raise up your hand, and..."

While the instruction was pending, Dalius threatened Mina in a whispery tone,

"When this election is over, our battle is not over with, and I hope you're primed for the worst to come!"

"Mina is not interested in having idle chatter with you, potty-mouth boy."

"It is no chatter, princess! It is a warning!"

"A warning over your ego."

"Have that little rut mouth of yours running, princess. I already know who is going to triumph in this election, ME! So, save your tongue on berating me, if you still value that pathetic presence of yours."

"Meh... Mina doesn't really bother over this election anyway. Let's pray that you really beat Mina, then."

"We shall see, princess... We... shall... see..."

While on the other side, "...I will count the risen hands and record them as their favorability. And who attained the higher favorability win." Tiandra asserted.

"Now, I will be assigned the timer for you all to debate which of them fits more to the representative role in your favor. You can either convince your housemates to join your consideration or insist on your aspect. Without further ado, the timer starts now. Good luck!"

Small groups began to form after another, debating the more rigorous choice between Dalius and Mina, who would represent the superior representative.

And there was Keena, sitting alone in the middle, ruminating,

*Poor Mina... she was about to be destroyed by Dalius. What a wretched sight I'm about to witness...*

She sighed deeply and continued,

*But... who am I to judge? It was her choice along the way, and maybe it could be cited as a lesson for her too... To not always being rash in making decisions. Oh well... if it wasn't for Dalius, she wouldn't even be acquiring my pity vote...*

The cozy sunray lanced through the tinted windows, radiating the room with warm and peaceful light that was in a fiery debate while Keena simply peered through the tinted glasses, dwelling in her reverie.

Suddenly, a bellow pierced through the air, jolting them out of their affair and reverie and bringing their scattered attention back together.

"Time's up, everyone. It's the juncture for the vote to be cast!"

The circles around the table started to disperse as everyone consecutively returned to their seat.

Now the moment they had been anticipating was a step closer to eventuate.

As the students lingered at their seats, waiting for their handler to announce the candidate they wished to vote for.

Not before long, the first candidate's name was emitted from Tiandra, "Dalius" was the name, and the Dalius himself, was struck by uneasiness concerning whether his vote would prevail or fail.

Just the opposite of him, a humdrum princess, was what was posted there, who couldn't even care less regarding the result.

Win or lose was not tagged in her mind at all, but the desire to quickly wrap this up.

A rightful amount of time had passed later, Mina's name was the next to manifest before her handler's echo, and fretfulness was left of Keena upon what she had witnessed.

The vote cast for Mina, including hers, was vanquishing Dalius's by far, leaking its one-sided nature like it was orchestrated.

It injected nothing but a dreadful sensation into Keena's core, registering her with foreshadows of their damnation in the aftermath of Mina's lead.

Keena feebly slanted on her seat, dramatically structuring her last word in mind,

*This is it... the prime time of our house. It's a shame it didn't last... But it was fun while it lasted... Farewell, the House of Lamella. It was nice knowing you... I just wanted to say sorry... That you're about to be abolished...*

Who also rose from the bench, ruffling her hair like a mad scientist and losing it like it was the end of the world,

*How did this happy-go-lucky princess even win this election? Her speech was crap, and her incompetency in writing was displayed all over the place. Yet, many of them chose her over Dalius, who nailed every course! I'm baffled, wholly, and this is downright a house of oddities, isn't it...*

Meanwhile, the two students at her back, watching her, went crazy and petrified, gossiping about her queer behavior and slowly distancing themselves.

After a constant of struggling in her thoughts, Keena finally recollected herself with an excuse, thinking,

*Nevermind... there's still a chance we might receive someone reliable as our second-in-charge (Assistant House Representative). Hopefully, someone can supervise and tame that capricious side of her, stopping her from steering the house into disaster. Well... it seems the sun has not fallen on us yet. I'm relieved...*

She then exhaled through her nostrils, depicting a sign of relief, happily discerning the chance of their house remaining amicable being bright.

But it didn't last and only to be shattered by her handler, who latterly mentioned,

"Before the result came to light, another announcement I would like to declare was that once the house representative is elected, he or she will be the judge for her assistant."

The statement devastated Keena's soul to naught with the image of Mina nominating Laura as her assistant repeatedly broadcast in her brain, presaging the worst of all.

She immediately collapsed on the desk with a thud that once again jotted the girls at the back.

She then surrendered her soul to death, floppily resting in denial on the desk.

Transiting to Tiandra, who summarized the votes and the image of who triumphed in this vying election already materialized in Tiandra's mind, which ensuingly announced,

"To all my endeared members of the House of Lamella, the vote had eventually reached its closure. Now everyone feasts your eyes and ears! Heed the name of our new house representative! Introducing the winner of this election..."

The suspenseful sentiment imbued Dalius's heart, boiling his blood with sheer restlessness.

Meanwhile, Mina was also repercussed by this suspenseful moment whose heart pumped rapidly.

And the name was,

"Mina "Xuredar" Vuzgal!"

Once her name was revealed to the crowd, she was besieged with crowd plauds and cheers. The intensity of the celebration of her name cracked the barrier of sound, with the room coated with nothing but the layers of her name lauded.

Upon seeing the crowds exalted upon Mina's victory, Dalius was shocked by the result and gaped at the reactions, with his expectation exceeded.

Dalius lowered his head, grunting in discontent and quivering in bitterness, which Mina glanced at his defeated pose, uttered in a pitying tone that only resonated to his ear,

"Mina believes the potty-mouth boy's performance was way better than hers as she shouldn't hold this victory. Mina is indeed as shocked as you are, potty-mouth boy."

"I don't need your pity, princess. The war between us is not over yet, princess. It will only be marched on further. Until one day, the dawn of yours will be seized from the grasp of mine."

He then stormed off to his seat, muttering in frustration.

Upon seeing the lamenting side of Dalius, the handler's heart was aching to console his grief, but it was too late for her to intervene as Dalius had already left the scene.

Meanwhile, although Mina snatched this 'hard-earned' victory, no slight enthusiasm was outlined as she just watched everyone praising her name with a plain face.

Tiandra recognized Mina's plain face as she wasn't thrilled with the outcome, so she inquired her in a ponderous tone,

"Mina, what's wrong? You don't seem to long for this victory. Is there something clouding your mind?"

Mina realized her real intention almost leaked through her expression as she quickly denied it with fake excitement,

"No... Mina is very happy about her victory! Yeah!"

"Oh, I'm delighted to hear that!" her handler was relieved.

She also articulated shortly after that,

"Mina, since you had attained the seat of house representative. It's time for a decision cast by you!"

"Mina doesn't understand what Ms. Tiandra is saying. What decision?" Mina blinked, faintly titled her sideways, confused by what she meant.

"To nominate your assistant, silly... You will be the one who does the honor of appointing your trusty assistant. So, feel free to nominate anyone."

"Oh! Mina totally forgets about it..." Mina recalled and added in an unmotivated tone, "But can't Ms. Tiandra pick for Mina?"

Her handler chuckled and added, "No, can't do, Mina. It's your lifelong partner till the end of the semester, so it is prudent for you to nominate someone you reckon compatible with you, as I'm forbidden to be the one to judge that!"

"Sound like a drag," Mina drawled while her handler tittered,

Mina proceeded to scan the crowd, searching for her reliable partner.

During the search, Keena was the first to pop into her mind, wanting her to be her assistant.

She hastily shifted her gaze to Keena but noticed she just glared at her with big cross-arms, signifying that she wanted no part of the role.

Her next-in-line candidate was Konnaugh, who also subtly shook his head, opposing the notion of being nominated as the assistant.

Then, it was Laura. Upon her decision was forged, right before her head twisted to Laura, an audible growl immediately discharged from Keena, hinting the "Don't think about it" to Mina, as she just slowly backed her vision away.

Now Mina had lost all of her prospective candidates, fumbling in her thoughts about who would be her grand candidate.

She helplessly sighed and observed the crowd again, realizing Patria. A woman with dignity, honor, and regulation.

She swore Patria would be a coherent choice, though it may sound unenticing to her and Keena.

Before she reconsidered, her intuition was tingling, signaling the right call to nominate her, as Patria could potentially fulfill her drawback and monitor her in general.

When Mina drove her flickering pupils to Patria, all she witnessed was near to outburst creature submerged in annoyance, gritting her teeth and drawing near to wrestling that bedeviling Laura, who was still pummeling with idle questions.

Mina then raised her finger, pointed to Patria, hollered,

"Mina believes Patria would be the right candidate for her assistant."

Mina's abrupt assertion heavily staggered Keena, who consequentially squealed in surprise,

"Wait... what?!"

However, Patria remained collected, reacting with one of her eyebrows heightened, puzzled by Mina's statement, wondering if what's she heed was concrete.

Her handler then forwarded Mina's resolution once more, stating in a much audible tone,

"Young Patria, would you embrace the decision laid out by Mina? For being the assistant house representative."

Patria then discreetly rose from her seat, and silently glowered at Mina, deliberating answer in her thought. Only after minutes had passed, a distinct response finally escaped from her mouth, saying,

"I...

...

...

...

...accept!"