-TOKO FUKAWA-

APPEARS LATER IN THE STORY!

-AOI ASAHINA-

I hung with Hina in the dining hall, munching on some donuts. Although Hina kept looking at herself with a disappointed look.

"Something on your mind, Hina?"

"*Siiigh* ... Ugh...this sucks..."

"What sucks?"

"Oh...well... I tried to convince myself I was imagining it, but I totally wasn't imagining it..."

"Imagining what?"

"I... I got fat."

"O-Oh..."

"I'm so fat! Fat from every angle! I hate this... Hate it! I may as well just accept it and embrace my new big fat fatty attitude... I just get disgustingly morbidly obese, and then nobody wants to marry me...! Which makes me depressed, and I get even fatter. Eventually I can't even stand up on my own... And then I die, sad and alone. Nobody notices. I finally lose weight when my body starts to rot..."

"Hina, not to invalidate how you're feeling right now, but I think your worrying too much. And, to me, you look the same, absolutely perfect!"

"You're just saying that. I'm a total chub monster! I'm a perfect circle..."

"No, I'm not lying!"

"Then... I'm still hot?"

"I-I mean, yeah! Y-You always have been!"

God, my face is as red as a freaking fire hydrant...! Damn it, Hina...

"Really!? Then I might still make it out alive!?"

"I'm not leaving without you, Hina~!"

"Thank god... Seriously, thank GOD! But I can't relax now! I'm making an official statement! As of right now, Aoi Asahina is on a diet!"

"You do you, girl!"

"Just you watch! I'm gonna get so thin it'll scare the crap outta you!"

"Just don't overdo it, okay?"

"Don't try and stop me! I've made up my mind, and my willpower is rock hard!And now my resolve is even MORE rock hard! But before all that, time to get stuffed on donuts!", Hina ran off with happy giggles trailing off behind her, off to get more donuts.

At least she's motivated...?

-YASUHIRO HAGAKURE-

I lazed around with Hiro in the hallway, sipping on energy drinks.

"This is getting serious, man... When are we gonna get outta here!? The world is so big, so freakin' huge! And we've all been stuffed into this one tiny corner... Can we talk, man to woman? I haven't told anyone else, but I need to get this off my chest..."

"It sounds serious, so lay it on me."

"There's a big reason why I'm so anxious to get out of here."

"And that reason is?"

"I'm super worried, man! I'm afraid someone's gonna bust into my house and steal my collection!"

"A collection...?"

"I've been surfing black markets and back channels to build a huge collection of OOPArts!"

"..."

"No reaction? Wait... Don't tell me you don't know about OOPArts! You know, OOPArts! Out-of-place-artifacts!? Stuff they find in the ruins of ancient civilizations, but with no explanation how it coulda got there! The crystal skulls, the golden airplanes of Colombia, the Baghdad Battery, just to name a few! But OOPArts can be more than just artifacts! For example, I'd definitely classify the famous geoglyphs of South America as OOPArts!"

"I know about Nazca Lines, I'm just stunned you mentioned the freaking black market!"

"You got it, Ace!"

Why the heck am I Ace...? And he avoided my question!

"Plenty of museums and research centers claim to have all those different OOPArts, but ya see... Here's the shocking the truth! For all of 'em, the real deal is at my house! Did I shock ya? Did the truth slam into your soul like the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs!?"

"But...you have all that stuff at your house?"

"Yup! Got it mostly through the Internet! It's more valuable to me than anything!"

I don't want to tell him it might be a scam...

"I've invested every penny I have into that collection! Which is why I'm so worried... If that stuff gets stolen while I'm gone... It'd just be the most tragic tragedy! You know what I've had to go through to get that stuff!? Why do you think I got held back, like...ya know...three or four years...?"

"I have been curious about that..."

"Oh, uh! Nothing! Forget about the last part!"

"Okay... Anyway, everything I've read is that when you really do serious research on those artifacts... most times they end up finding out that there's perfectly normal explanation for them."

"Don't be stupid! You—stupid—Kuno!"

"Who the fuck are you calling stupid...?"

"N-NO ONE! B-But it's a government cover-up! They want to hide the ancient aliens and the secrets of the universe!"

"...Isn't that occult?"

"This isn't the occult! It's about aliens and ancient civilizations living together! Yes, it's possible!"

I don't think there's anything I could say to change his mind...

-SAKURA OGAMI-

APPEARS LATER IN THE STORY!

-BYAKUYA TOGAMI-

Togami was annoying me in the staff room by trying to get me to admit that his views were right. He suddenly changed the subject.

"A bird in hand is worth two in the bush."

"Where's that from?"

"It's a proverb. It means if you can only obtain something inferior, that's still better than longing for something better."

"So...? What do I do with that info?"

"Put another way, if all you have nearby is a loser, that's better than a proper assistant far away--"

"Found the loser.", I mumbled while pointing at Togami.

"... Kuno. Be my secretary."

"Excuse me?"

"A useless commoner like you could never hope to earn more than, say, 100,000 dollars a year. But as my secretary, you would be guaranteed an ample salary and job security for the rest of your life. And in honor of it being my birthday today..."

"Which I do not care about..."

"... how about I multiply your already impossible expectations by, oh, 5.5?"

"So... 550,000 dollars..."

"Of course, as my secretary you wouldn't be a mere servant. At some point, I would want you to become an actual assistant, taking the lead on important projects. Assuming you produce acceptable results, you could even become a core part of the Togami Corporation. You have no reason to refuse."

"Actually, I do; you're an ass. So no."

"... I'm trying to give you a chance to enter the battlefield of life and claim victory. I'm TRYING to get you actually be like me; apart of the 1%! Most commoners will never get that chance. This is literally a once-in-a-Iifetime opportunity. Do you understand? This is your chance. This is your one and only chance to rise above the 99%. Are you really so scared of having to fight, to compete, in order to win?"

"I'm not scared, I just don't want to work for you, no matter how much money you offer. Also, I have my own battlefield to take over. I don't want anything handed to me. That's the only way I'll be satisfied with my life."

"...Then you meant what you said earlier... That if you can live a life that you're satisfied with, that's all that matters... Hmm... I'm glad to see you passed my test."

"Your... test?"

"That's right. The mere thought of someone like you as my secretary makes me physically ill.""So that was a lie just for the hell of it?"

"The salary offer still stands, of course. It's yours if you want it. I don't need you spreading rumors that Byakuya Togami doesn't honor his word."

"... Don't pay me to do nothing, that's dumb."

"Whatever... But I must say, I just don't understand you. You don't want to fight, and yet you don't flee from the battle, either."

"Happiness, for me, comes from living the life I want to live."

"Hmph. Easy enough to say. Now you have to enforce your will until the very end. If you can do that, if you can make it to the end, I'm afraid I'll be forced to acknowledge you..."

"I don't need your acknowledgment."

"Hm...", Togami held my chin gently with a glare. "That's what you think...", with that, he left. I scoffed, rubbing where he held me furiously.

-KYOKO KIRIGIRI-

FINISHED!

-MAKOTO NAEGI-

Makoto and I hung out in the dining hall, eating some pancakes together.

"Hey, Makoto, what's your family like?"

"My family...?"

"Yeah! Your mom, dad, siblings?"

"Oh, well... my parents are pretty average, but their really kind and take care of me and my little sister pretty well. They *can* be a bit embarrassing but isn't that practically true for everyone? Hehe..."

"I getcha. My mom is super energetic, can't sit still for a second. She just keeps working on inventions and at home stuff all the time, it's practically in her blood at this point!"

"She sounds like a hard worker...!"

"She is! That's why, once I leave this place, I'm going straight home to check on her. My dad too... My dad is a pretty quiet guy, but he's pretty sweet! Everyone thinks he's scary from his looks, but he's just an old man in an adult body, Haha!"

"And do you have any siblings?"

"Yeah, my little brother Azuma... I-I'm worried about him. He's diabetic, so... I used to take care of his food for him, help him take his meds on time, all that good stuff... But now, I don't know how he's holding up. I-I'm sure my mom and dad are taking great care of him, obviously! B-But I can't help but worry..."

"Hey, I'm sure he's doing fine! We'll find a way out as soon as we can! For everyone's families and friends...!"

"Y-Yeah! I shouldn't worry a lot! Worrying makes it hard to focus, so I should stay focused and hope they're all okay! Thanks, Makoto. You're the best, you know that?"

"A-Ah, I'm just doing what friends do! No need to thank me!"

"I still will~!"