94 Chapter 74.3

The third-year senpai in front of him looked at Sudou weirdly.

He was actually a little speechless, as he didn't know how this good seed, who was a bit dull-witted, could have offended the student council president.

But he still gave Sudou the reason he wanted him to leave.

"Today, we received a report from the student council regarding an incident involving you. Apparently, you had a fight with one of your classmates in class D, and later you made trouble with the student council. Since such a thing has happened, there is nothing we can do about it. You should be clear about the fact that our club has always put a foot down on matters such as fighting. Coach is also a little angry because of the report. These are the same rules for the first years, the second years, and even the third-year players. In short, because the rules of the basketball club have been violated, please leave the club, Sudou. I am already saving your dignity by asking you to quit on your own. If the basketball club were to make an announcement, you would find yourself in trouble when trying to apply to other clubs."

His senpai spoke measuredly, with a serious look on his face.

Indeed, it had been Horikita who had simply convinced this senpai and the coach to remove Sudou from the club.

This was a dark move on his part.

But it displayed the importance of strength and status.

Horikita would help Ying Ye to deliver the lesson.

And Sudou Ken was not even in the starting lineup, so his presence was still unnecessary.

Since he was not yet a formal player, and they were just thinking about his value, it didn't hurt the coach to let him go now.

"That matter has been resolved! I have already apologised and compensated my classmate. I promise nothing like this will ever happen again. Please don't make me quit, Senpai. I know what I did wrong. You can punish me instead! No matter what kind of training you want to put me through, I can agree to it, senpai. Just please give me a chance."

Sudo, who had already apologized and was addicted to basketball, felt that something was wrong with this whole thing, but he was already mired in this mess so he didn't know what to do.

But he quickly reacted and bowed down to apologise to the senpai manager of the club.

He could accept anything else, but he could not accept having to quit the club at all.

If he really was to leave, then everything he had worked towards before would mean nothing.

Every bead of sweat let out in the past two and a half years of his basketball training, the accumulation of his experiences, and his skill with the basketball—

All of this would be meaningless if he quit.

Seeing Sudou's earnest and sincere apology, the manager showed a hesitant expression.

"It really won't work like that, Sudou. This is not something I can decide on my own, and I'm just a club manager. I need to be fair towards everyone. If other people wet to learn about this matter, and everyone was let off like this, how could we explain ourselves? Before you joined this school, there was an official player who was punished and swapped in for a reserve player because of a fight he was involved in, and he was only just implicated.

Official players are no different from everyone else in that we have no qualms about anyone being removed from the club. Everyone should be treated the same."

The senpai didn't hesitate for long though, as he gave an example.

Official players were an important part of the club, but so was a record of any fights they were involved in.

Since one of the individuals involved in the fight was a member of the basketball club, he was also punished.

"I…"

Sudou was startled, as his eyes widened.

Hearing this example, he felt that the situation was a lot more serious than he imagined.

His thoughts on this matter had finally been simplified.

Since there had been such an example before, the club would definitely not change the rules just for him.

At this moment, his strong body seemed to become weak, and his whole body exuded an aura of gloom and dread.

"Is there really no other way? Senpai. I can accept any punishment. No matter how bad the punishment is, I can accept it."

He still begged for mercy in disbelief, emphasising the fact that he could take any punishment.

Sudou seemed to be chasing after the last straw of hope.

The manager looked at this scene and shook his head with a complicated expression on his face.

'This is just a club, but look how much he loves basketball. If it wasn't for the news we received earlier, I really wouldn't be able to bear making him leave the club, but it is what it is. This seems to be a classic case of 'Ten years from Hedong to Hexi, don't laugh at the poor and wear rags.' [T/N: things change, the rise and fall are impermanent, people have aspirations and frustrations, and there is no good way.] His reaction doesn't make sense to me though, since for me basketball is just a way to be social and to exercise a bit.'

Since Sudou was looking for an explanation, he sighed and opened his mouth.

"There is nothing I can do here. But if coach changes his tune, there is still a chance. But the coach won't listen to just about anybody. If you can ask someone from the student council to help you convince him otherwise, and the person who you were in a fight with can speak on your behalf…? Maybe. You can give it a try. That's all I can help you with. It might be a bit difficult, but if you really can do anything to get back into the club, you should work hard to do that."

The senpai finally gave him an actual way to take back the forced resignation.

Anyway, he was just throwing the ball back at the council.

It was up to the student council to forgive or not to forgive Sudou, as the club would continue to run in the background anyway.

If they forgave him, the manager was sure they would take this good seed back.

If they didn't forgive him, it was just Sudou's lack of sincerity, and that was his own problem.

"Oh… I see. Student council president, huh? Alright, but senpai, please help me. Don't publish the news, and don't fire me yet. I will go and convince them now."

Sudo seemed to have caught onto a life-saving straw.

He felt like there was still a chance if he could convince that nice student council president.

"Go ahead. If within a week you are not able to persuade him, you probably won't be able to persuade him for the rest of your life. You don't have to come for training this week. Just think of a way to fix things, and find some friends to help you out too."

The manager patted Sudou on the shoulder, reassuring him a bit.

He wanted to give this boy a little bit of encouragement from his senior, as he hoped that he could hold on and get through this situation.

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T/N: Lowering the bar.

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