Chapter 32: The Speech at the Entrance Ceremony

It was truly frustrating. Just after moving into this dorm room, my body was completely seen by someone, as if I were totally worthless. My originally great mood evaporated with it, and I stayed cooped up in the dorm all day without going anywhere. Waking up early the next morning, I ate a quick breakfast at the main campus dining hall and headed straight to Yasuda Auditorium!

Along the way, I saw everyone rushing toward the auditorium in groups of twos and threes. Arriving at the main doors of the auditorium in the center of the university, I saw the secretary who had guided me to the dorm yesterday standing at the entrance waiting for me. Spotting me, she quickly hurried over, grabbed my hand without saying a word, and pulled me directly into the backstage area!

I hurriedly stopped her and asked, "Kindaichi-san, has the President arrived?"

"He’ll be here when the opening ceremony begins. Don’t even think about slacking off!"

How depressing. We hadn’t known each other long, yet she had my personality completely figured out. Helplessly following Secretary Kindaichi backstage, I secretly lifted a corner of the main curtain to peek outside—My goodness! Below was a dense sea of people, chatting in small groups every now and then to get to know one another!

Wiping away the cold sweat drawn out by fear, I turned to Secretary Kindaichi behind me and said, "Dear sister, could you please tell me where the President actually is? I want to talk to him about something!"

Secretary Kindaichi chuckled softly and said, "Don’t even entertain that thought. To be honest, the President is attending today’s entrance ceremony specifically because of you. Otherwise, he would have just asked the department deans to give a quick talk!"

"Don’t joke with me, I’ve never spoken in front of this many people before!"

She glanced at me without saying anything, simply shrugging in a "my hands are tied" gesture. Before long, the auditorium quieted down, and the audience sat up straight, waiting for the imminent start of the entrance ceremony!

Secretary Kindaichi leaned in close to my ear and briefly explained the procedure: "Once it starts, each department dean will first take the stage to give a brief introduction of their department. After that comes the Dean of Academic Affairs, followed by the President’s concluding remarks. Then comes the student speeches—first the Student Council President, and finally you’ll take the stage to speak on behalf of the freshmen. So, do you feel ready?"

"If I say I’m not ready, does that mean I don’t have to go up?"

After asking this, I fell silent and pulled back a corner of the curtain again to peek out. The entrance ceremony outside had officially begun. First, naturally, was the Dean of Academic Affairs announcing the commencement of the ceremony. Following that, the deans of various departments took the stage one by one, sitting down and systematically giving speeches to introduce the state of their respective faculties. It went on for over half an hour and still wasn’t finished; listening from backstage, I was practically falling asleep.

Just as the Dean of Academic Affairs began speaking, the President stepped out from a small room in the backstage area. Seeing me, he walked over, slapped my shoulder, and asked, "How are your preparations coming along?"

"Can I please not go up?"

The President didn’t speak, only looking at me with a smile. "Alright, I’ll go up. But if I don’t give a good speech, you can’t blame me!" Seeing that the President remained silent, I felt a bit lacking in confidence and took a step back as I spoke.

"That’s more like it. I won’t care how well you speak, but if you do poorly, you’ll be the one losing face—so do as you see fit!"

Grit my teeth, I glared at the President who deliberately shrugged, cursing inwardly: What an old fox, forcing my hand like this! I really don’t understand what his goal is in doing this!

"Students, let us welcome with warm applause the President of the University of Tokyo, Takahashi Kenji, to speak to us!" After finishing his remarks, the Dean of Academic Affairs introduced the President. The President adjusted his clothes behind the main curtain and walked out through the entrance onto the stage of the auditorium. Enthusiastic applause erupted below once more.

"Hello, students! I am Takahashi Kenji, the President of the University of Tokyo. First, on behalf of the university, I would like to extend a warm welcome to all the new students who have chosen Tokyo University to spend the most important period of your lives!" Being the President after all, the students below gave him plenty of respect, clapping thunderously!

The President waved his hand to signal everyone to stop, looking at the audience with a smile: "The University of Tokyo has a history spanning over ninety years, nurturing and accumulating Tokyo University’s excellent traditions and profound cultural heritage. As a key national higher education institution, Tokyo University’s development has received immense support from all sectors of society. At Tokyo University, the everywhere-visible international exchange students and foreign faculty demonstrate that Tokyo University has become a world-renowned, top-tier university. There is every reason to believe that you all can learn what you lack here at Tokyo University, and that Tokyo University will serve as a turning point in your lives!"

The President spoke eloquently for over half an hour before finishing. Afterward, someone I was somewhat familiar with came up—it turned out to be Hikaru Li, that rich young master who had dined at my eldest uncle’s house. He walked slowly onto the stage, pulled out a speech script, and began speaking. I couldn’t see his face from my angle, but I could clearly see the discontented expressions on the freshmen’s faces below!

"Respected President Takahashi and university leaders, hello. I am Hikaru Li, the Student Council President of the University of Tokyo!" As soon as the words left his mouth, the bland and uninspired opening line drew a wave of boos from the already impatient freshmen!

Hikaru Li looked at the audience with an awkward expression, a flash of annoyance glinting in the corner of his eyes as he bit the bullet and kept speaking. Every paragraph’s end was met with another wave of boos, yet under these conditions, Hikaru Li managed to drag his speech out for nearly half an hour—it was truly unimaginable that such a rich young master could endure such humiliation! After finishing, he slunk off the stage in disgrace.

Next was my turn. I gripped the bracelet and chanted in my mind: "Summon the Goddess of Wisdom, Athena!"

At my call, Athena appeared before me, nodded gently, and transformed into a multicolored divine light that enveloped my body. Once again, I entered that hazy, ethereal state.

The Dean of Academic Affairs walked onto the stage in high spirits and said with a smile: "I believe everyone has heard the name Fuitsu—the national top scorer in the university entrance exams. Let us now welcome student Fuitsu with warm applause to speak on behalf of the freshmen!" The audience was gracious enough to give me face, clapping enthusiastically!

Calming my emotions, I forced a faint smile onto the corners of my lips and walked slowly toward the front of the stage. The aura born from the merging of Athena and myself began to radiate around me, drawing everyone’s gaze directly toward me.

With slightly trembling legs, I walked to the center of the stage. Looking out at the dense crowd, my head felt light again. "Actually, I didn’t want to come up here, just to avoid getting booed off the stage again—I don’t have as vast a heart as President Li!" I joked with a shrug.

The freshmen below burst into laughter in cooperation, though Hikaru Li glared at me furiously.

"However, on second thought, if I give a speech on stage, a lot of people will get to know me. I wondered if this might be a shortcut for my future romantic pursuits? So, I came up."

The audience burst into laughter again, followed by a round of warm applause. No one who made it here was a fool; they naturally understood that my motivation for speaking was to let the girls get to know me better.

"Thank you for the applause, though it seems mostly guys are clapping for me! Getting back to the point, in this new academic year, we as freshmen have stepped into Japan’s most prestigious institution of higher learning. I believe that in your hearts, just like mine, there is a dream—a dream unwilling to settle for mediocrity! With our wings not yet fully grown and not yet recognized by society, we simultaneously chose this century-old institution, the University of Tokyo, to enrich ourselves, hoping that after mastering our skills, our blue sky can become even broader, allowing us to fly even higher! Everyone should know that the spirit of our university emphasizes self-reliance, continuous self-improvement, and broad-minded virtue. In the course of cultural development, this spirit is constantly enriched and endowed with new meaning. As noble individuals, we should remain unyielding in integrity, moral character, and scholarship, overcoming ourselves, striving upward, and aiming for the highest realm in both career and character. In our conduct and actions, we should align with nature, possess a broad mind, treat others with tolerance, and shoulder grand historical responsibilities."

My incisive explanation of these values brought forth another wave of enthusiastic applause from the freshmen below.