I froze, having no idea what Monorakun was talking about. Chihiro had barely told me anything, and now Monorakun was pissed...at me? But why?
Monorakun resumed speaking, his red eye dimming down. "Chihiro's digging into something she needs to stay out of. It's already too late for you to warn her, but Chihiro better prepare for what's coming her way if she keeps at what she's doing."
A question suddenly came to mind, as I stared at Monorakun in terror. "Ummmm...can I ask a question...about the Private Messages?"
Monorakun regarded me cautiously, his arms crossed. "What about them?"
"Can those Private Messages be monitored? If someone sends a message to another, do you read them?"
Monorakun stared at me for several long seconds, then shook his head. "I don't examine every single message sent, whether Private or Group, in real time. I CAN access them whenever I want, but I usually don't unless the students require it for a Class Trial. Does that answer your question?"
I nodded, a bit of relief going through me. "Alright, thanks."
Monorakun nodded and left the room, leaving me to ponder his words. Realizing that I should go check on Chihiro in the Computer Room, I left the Costume Room in a hurry to find her. She was just in the Computer Room, and it was close by, so I headed there immediately.
However, when I arrived, Chihiro...was gone. Only Chiaki remained, playing a game on the computer Chihiro was on before.
"Hey, Chiaki? Do you know where Chihiro went?" I asked Chiaki.
Chiaki calmly responded, "Back to her dorm room, I think." Her eyes never left the screen.
Oh, no! Monorakun's pissed at Chihiro, and now Chihiro's isolated herself? This is bad! I needed to talk to Chihiro at once! I opened my E-Handbook to send him a Private Message, but stopped. What if Monorakun is waiting to see me tip her off?
I quickly made my way down from the Second Floor, quickly making my way to Chihiro. However, as I made my way down the Movie Hall hallway, I was intercepted by Angie, Sayaka, Kaede, and Leon. They had just finished watching a movie together, and were discussing it together in the hallway. They were blocking the entire hallway, their backs turned to me. Since I didn't want to be rude, or make Leon angry at me, I decided to take the long way around instead.
As I passed the Dining Hall, Theo stopped me in the hallway, a concerned look on his chunky face.
"Good sir, it pains me to see you so thin. Have you been eating enough? Meat and dairy can give you the protein you need to help bulk up."
I hastily thanked Theo for his concern, but stated there was something I needed to take care of. Being the respectful gentleman he is, he allowed me to pass, and I made haste to my dorm first, not wanting to draw unnecessary attention to me or Chihiro.
Arriving at my dorm, I checked my E-Handbook for messages, as my alerts were set to Silent. To my surprise, I had two Private Messages, though neither were from Chihiro. One was from Chiaki; the other, from Celeste.
Warily, I opened Celeste's message first.
"Bera, I will give you the same reminder I gave your dear friend Chihiro. Your wandering around, dazed from that buffoon Hifumi's execution, left you very vulnerable to being Victim #2. I would discourage you from losing your wits in this manner, if you wish to leave this place alive."
My eyes went wide. Was this a threat? A warning? Why did she send me this?
Closing the message, I went to Chiaki's message next. Her message was more...cryptic.
"Lightning Wizard gained in Intelligence and Wisdom. Enemy mob could be aware, might plot ambush. Seek out the wizard, and learn the knowledge they obtained. This quest has no official time limit, but this should not sit in your quest log forever."
Lightning Wizard...were these notes for a D&D campaign? Or...
Did she mean...Chihiro? As the Ultimate Programmer, she COULD qualify as a "Lightning Wizard", perhaps. Computers require electricity, and you have to be a "wiz kid" to know how to program, so this could make some subtle sense.
Before I could ponder on it more, my doorbell went off. Curious, I went to see who was at my door.
It was Sayaka, and she looked worried about something. "Bera? Mind if I come in?"
Concerned, I let her in and gave her the seat from my desk to sit in. I sat on the corner of my bed, and let her talk.
"I can't believe we've actually started killing each other. What's going to happen to us now?" Sayaka looked at me, fear in her eyes.
I took a deep breath. "I don't know. I'm scared too, Sayaka, but we can't just lock ourselves in our dorms for the rest of our lives, either, right?"
Sayaka nodded, hugging herself in fear. "Yeah, I know. I just...what is someone comes after me next? I can't...I don't want to die here!"
I nodded, understanding Sayaka fully. None of us wanted to die here. Yet, two of us already had; Hifumi had murdered Sonia yesterday, and was executed yesterday before us all. If the reality of our situation hadn't sunk in yet, it definitely has now.
Sayaka continued, her voice in a . "I need to get out of here. Every moment I spend in here, my memory could be fading from the masses. I could be forgotten as we speak!"
I put my hand on Sayaka's shoulder. "Relax, Sayaka. Things will be ok. We'll find a way to get out of here, and you'll be back, stronger than ever with your group!"
Sayaka stared at the ground, still scared. "I...I hope so. I don't want to be forgotten! Please...please help me get out of here!"
"I'll do my best, Sayaka. Maybe I can even create your new wardrobes once you reunite with your band mates!"
Sayaka's E-Handbook went off. She opened it up and read a message, though I couldn't see who it was from. Sayaka then put up her E-Handbook.
"I have to leave. Kaede needs me for something we're working on. Thanks for talking to me, Bera!" Sayaka smiled at me, happy once again, and showed herself to the door, leaving me confused as to what had just happened.
After dinner, which Theo made meat loaf, mashed potatoes, corn, steamed broccoli, and dinner rolls for everyone, I decided it would be a good time to meet up with Chihiro, to see what was going on with her.
I walked over to Chihiro and rang her doorbell. After several moments, Chihiro nervously opened the door and let me in. Looking at my E-Handbook, it was 7:10pm.
"Hey...Bera?" Chihiro nervously addressed me. "I...think I found something." Chihiro pulled out her E-Handbook and turned it on. Turning to the Private Messages section, she showed me the list of people who she could speak with. I looked over the list, wondering why Chihiro was showing me this.
Angie Yonaga
Celestia Ludenberg
Chiaki Nanami
Chihiro Fujisaki
Kaede Akamatsu
Kaito Momota
Kenchikka Kowareta
Leon Kuwata
Makoto Naegi
Mukuro Ikusaba
Sayaka Maizono
Theo Poster
Yasuhiro Hagakure
未来
...未来? There's that symbol again. It was used as a placeholder for Chihiro's gender, as well as my own. Why is it showing up here, again, in Chihiro's Private Chat list?
Chihiro looked at me. "I found this after my Gender got fixed in my E-Handbook. I've never had the nerve to message it, though." She glanced at her E-Handbook, then back at me. "Yet, I haven't been able to determine yet if this is a glitch, or intentional. This could be the key to our freedom, or a trap waiting to be sprung."
I considered Chihiro's words. Chihiro was right. This "name" didn't show up in my Private Messages list. Only Chihiro would seem to have access to this, and as the Ultimate Programmer, she would know better than anyone else what was going on with this.
Chihiro looked at the E-Handbook, then at me again. "I...I want to try to message this, but I'm scared. But...I don't want to be weak. With you here, I feel like we could face whatever comes up together."
I wasn't so certain; I likely wasn't too much stronger than Chihiro, but there was some strength in numbers, maybe.
I nodded silently, and Chihiro tapped on 未来, and typed a single message.
Chihiro Fujisaki: Hello?
After several moments of silence, Chihiro's E-Handbook went off. We both read the message together, and my blood ran cold.
未来: So, you've found me.
Chihiro's face went pale, his eyes wide open. I wasn't sure what was going through her head, but it wasn't good.
If that wasn't bad enough, a flash of red caught the edges of my line of sight. Looking over, my heart sunk, and a chill of pure fear flowed through my entire body.
Monorakun was standing directly in front of Chihiro's dorm room door, teeth out and sawing back and forth, his red eye glowing brightly.
He...looked...pissed!