After breakfast, I decided to return to Kenchikka to see if she wanted to have that jacket made today.
"Sure. Doing nothing here anyway. Let's go," Kenchikka eagerly replied.
Together, we headed up to the Third Floor to the Shop Room. There, I took the measurements I had gotten from Kenchikka and began work on her new jacket.
While Kenchikka watched, I started cutting out each of the denim pieces I would need to create her jacket, according to the measurements I had already made.
"Very precise. Can tell you've done this before," Kenchikka commented.
"Yeah, though it's not too often that I get to make an entire jacket from scratch." I reply to her.
I take the individual pieces, turn them inside out, and start sewing them together using the sewing machine in the Shop Room. First, I pin the two pieces I'm sewing together. Then as I get closer to each pin, I pull it out so I can sew the two pieces together.
Kenchikka watched me sew the pieces together, one at a time, with interest. Sewing the sleeves onto the torso was the hardest part for me, as usual, but I got both sleeves on just fine.
Kenchikka made it a point to stay out of my light, as well, standing on the other side of the sewing machine so I could see better.
"Nice work. Looks hard to do," she commented, watching the pieces gradually come together.
"It can be, sometimes," I reply. "The trick is to keep your hands steady, and the pieces you're sewing together stable."
"Steady hands also needed for my job. Otherwise, bad lines, wrong measurements, place gets built wrong. Waste of materials, time, money, manpower." Kenchikka replied, nodding.
After I manage to get all of the pieces sewn together, I turned the jacket towards the front, so I could start working on securing the buttons on the jacket. Remembering that women's jackets have their buttons on the left side, I made sure to have to button slots on the right-hand side. I fastened the buttons in place and fastened each button, ensuring that each button was even with its respective slot.
"Buttons stay secured?" Kenchikka asked.
I pulled on several of them. They didn't budge.
"Good," Kenchikka commented. "No sense having buttons if just fall off."
Satisfied, I finished up the jacket, adding the reflective stripes along the back and the sleeves, before having Kenchikka try it on.
Kenchikka looks over the jacket, then tries it on, sliding in one arm before putting the other arm in. She buttons it up, then checks the length on the sleeves and the torso area.
"Nice fit. Sleeves feel good." Kenchikka bends over as if picking something up, minding her skirt. "Back doesn't ride up. Stays in place well."
Satisfied, Kenchikka nods her approval. "Thanks. Wish I could pay, but no money in here. Have to remedy that, somehow. Would offer Monocoins, but Monocoins joke, worthless."
I smiled, waving a hand to dismiss her need to repay me for this. "Thanks, Kenchikka, but you really don't need to pay me anything for it. I'm just happy that you like it. Really."
Kenchikka nodded, having nothing else to say.
Glancing at my E-Handbook, it was now pushing 7pm. While I was surprised to have the jacket done in one day, it was much later in the day now than I realized.
"Oh! Um, we should get downstairs for dinner," I suggested to Kenchikka as I put away the sewing materials and tools.
"Agreed. Lost track of time. Let's go. Thanks again," Kenchikka agreed, and we left the Shop Room together, heading back downstairs to the Dining Hall.
Only Theo, Leon, and Chihiro were left in the Dining Hall at this point.
I made Kenchikka and I some spaghetti, as it was one of the few things I knew how to cook. Afterwards, Kenchikka and I ate together, with only Theo remaining behind now.
"I see the two of you have been gone most of the day. Is that a new jacket I see, Kenchikka?" Theo inquired.
"Indeed. Bera spent most of day sewing it. Just finished tonight," Kenchikka answered him.
"Ah, I've noticed. Very nice craftsmanship, Bera. Very commendable, indeed." Theo seemed very happy with my newly created jacket, as did Kenchikka.
"Hey. Ummm... Bera?" Chihiro started to say, hesitantly.
"Yeah? What's up?" I asked him.
"I think I'm going to keep the clothes you mended for me, instead of making you sew me an entire outfit. I'm sorry." Chihiro looked like I would be upset with him.
"That's ok, Chihiro. I'm happy you like the clothes I mended for you." I smiled, actually happy that Chihiro liked my mending job.
"You're... you're not mad at me?" Chihiro looked at me, surprised.
"No, not at all!" I responded. "I'm happy you liked my work on your clothes!"
Chihiro seemed to relax a bit, and smiled back.
Theo nodded approvingly at our conversation, but said nothing, as he was focused on his meal.
Kenchikka, meanwhile, was already leaving, having finished her meal. "Headed back to dorm. See you tomorrow."
Chihiro, meanwhile, suggested that we try to reach out to 未来 again. While Theo left the Dining Hall for the Kitchen to put his silverware and plate away, Chihiro tried to contact 未来.
Chihiro Fujisaki: Hello?
未来: You are not in your dorm yet. Goodbye.
"Well, that went nowhere," I lamented.
"Yeah, I guess we should have known better," Chihiro agreed. He quickly closed out of the Private Message.
"Well, lads, it's off to the Costume Room for me. Take care!" Theo left the two of us in the Dining Hall with a cheerful wave.
Taking the hint, we decided to head to Chihiro's dorm room and try to reach 未来 there. Naturally, 未来 seemed more inclined to speak to us now.
未来: State your question.
Chihiro Fujisaki: Are you a male?
未来: Yes. Goodbye.
So now we knew that 未来 was a male. While I wasn't certain if that was useful information or not, at least it was something useful to know about them.
"So, we're not dealing with an AI here," Chihiro commented. "This is a real person."
"Yeah, seems that way," I responded.
"Oh! Ummm... Thanks again for mending my clothes. They still fit me well, and they're comfortable too," Chihiro cheerfully praised. He opened his closet to show me how my mending held up with his clothing.
"Oh, no problem! I mean, after what Monorakun did to us both, I had to do something for you. It was nothing, really!" I responded. Granted, it took a large chunk of my night, but that wasn't Chihiro's fault.
Before Chihiro could say anything else, an alert came on over the monitor. The time on my E-Handbook showed 8:15pm, and Monorakun's face was on the screen.
"Attention, everyone! Return to your dorms at once! This is not a drill! I repeat, this is NOT a drill!"
Chihiro's eyes went wide. I quickly left his dorm room, and noticed Mukuro leaving her room nearby, with a gun in her hand.
How did she manage to get that? I guessed it was due to her being an Ultimate Soldier, but still... What was going on?
Against my better judgement, I ran after Mukuro, who was stopping and surveying around every corner, as if looking for someone. I said nothing, and just stayed out of the way.
Mukuro kicked open the doors dividing the Dorms from the First Floor, and I froze.
Mukuro and I were on one side of the Dorms double doors. On the other side of the T-intersection were the rest of our classmates, mostly terrified, along with Monorakun, who seemed to be trying to protect them. Only Kenchikka, Kaito, and Leon seemed more angry than scared.
And separating our two groups?
A man wearing all black, with a bulletproof vest, jacket, boots, gloves, and a helmet. Also, he had a gun trained on my classmates and Monorakun, who seemed to be trying to guard the students from him.
"Kossori Kakureta, Ultimate Infiltrator, you are not a student here. You are trespassing here. Leave, now!" Monorakun warned.
Kossori responded, but I couldn't make out what was said. He then raised his gun, aiming it towards Kaito, Leon, and Kenchikka.
Monorakun responded by lengthening his arms and legs via extending sections, becoming almost six feet tall.
"YOU WILL NOT HARM MY STUDENTS!" Monorakun nearly threatened back, positioning himself in front of the gun while still a good six to eight feet away from Kossori.
...What the hell was going on? Who was this Kossori Kakureta? And why was he threatening to kill us