?

  I wasn’t out for a week this time. I actually woke up from that battle about three hours later.

  When I woke up, I was in a pod of red liquid, wearing a mask that allowed me to breathe.

  I later confirmed that those were, in fact, the healing pods I had heard so much about.

  They’re quite fascinating, actually. They developed a chemical that stimulates the process of Apopstosis in your body continuously.

  I’ve always fancied creating things from scrap metal back in my homeland; my parents allowed me to do it because they thought being good with my hands would be a helpful survival tool.

  When I escape here, I might try to learn how to do engineering.

  Anyways, Zero was standing outside the healing pod when I woke up. I was removed from the pod shortly after and placed on a sickbed.

  The intense burns, combined with the sudden awakening, put my body in a state of instability.

  I was going to be incarcerated here for at least 2 weeks, according to the head researcher.

  The only reason I am able to write in this as of now is that I asked Zero to bring me my diary, so I'm not bored the entire time.

  She brought it without question and told me she would keep me company every day.

  I never recalled asking for that.

  ?

  ?

  Again, she came to my room today.

  She had listened to my unspoken cries and brought a box of cookies.

  I had to restrain myself from eating multiple times so as not give her any material to tease me with.

  We talked for at least a couple of hours about random things. I learned that no.6 had “pantsed” no.2 in the training hall today, causing the head researcher to break up another fight.

  She asked me what I wanted to do after gaining my freedom from this place. I told her I wasn’t sure, but that I may take up engineering.

  I asked her the same question, but all she did was smile and tell me to build her cool rocket boots that would let her fly in the sky.

  That actually made me chuckle slightly, something I now regret, as she made it seem like I was incapable of laughter. Then, they continued to incessantly barrage me with terrible jokes for 30 minutes in an attempt to make me laugh again.

  I expect the person who first said “patience is a virtue” was dealing with something similar.

  ?

  Zero was stuck in the other sick bed, and thus she never needed to make the trip to visit me today.

  The curtains were closed, so I couldn’t see what was happening, but before the chemicals kicked in to make her fall asleep, she had a blank expression, and her eyes had lost some color.

  However, once the curtains lifted, she was jumping around again and started happily pestering me about a dream she had.

  I wanted to ask why she was so often in the sick bed, but I refrained because it was most likely personal.

  She seemed to be in good health regardless.

  ?

  Today, Zero brought what is known as a “comic book”.

  I had never heard of the term before, and she explained to me that they were basically books with only pictures.

  I asked if they were for people who have the attention span of bugs, and she proceeded to start grabbing my cheeks out of rage.

  The comic book was called Rhythm Heaven. It told the story about a girl’s journey with a style of dance-fighting, and how she needed to win a tournament to restore her older sister’s dojo to its former state.

  I commented on how unique the fighting style was, and mused out loud on how applicable it would be in a real fight.

  For some reason, Zero slapped her head in her palm and sighed loudly.

  She then told me that wasn’t the point of the comic book before taking the rest of the series away in a bag.

  Commenting on her way out, that once I learn to appreciate the structure of comic books, she’ll bring the rest back.

  I can’t see myself enjoying these in the future.

  ?

  Today, Zero talked to me about my “awakening”.

  She was referring to the last moments in my battle with Zagra, and asked me if I had felt anything similar since then.

  I told her that I felt no different before or after the battle.

  This is true.

  I am aware that I unearthed a power that lay dormant in my body, but I don’t know how to access it.

  All I remember was responding to a voice in my head, which resulted in the subsequent events.

  I told her this, and she told me that maybe my power is so strong it’s manifested itself as an entity or a reflection of my self. Well, she said in a far more boorish manner, but......

  This could be the case, but the voice felt far too real for that.

  I have no evidence to back up my claims, though, so for now I’ll trust her.

  ?

  No.2 came to visit Zero and I today. He barged in as she was watching me read the first issue of Rhythm Heaven.

  He asked how my condition was, in which I told him I was feeling fine. He glanced over at the comic I was reading and immediately ran over. I had never seen him so excited before; even Zero looked stunned.

  He inspected the back and front covers while talking profusely about the lore and intricacies of each character. He spoke so much that he ended up spoiling the end of the issue I was reading, much to Zero’s dismay and rage.

  She kicked him out of the room and told him if he comes back, she’ll hit him with a Smooth Jig Combo. In which he pushed up his glasses and said he preferred the Breakdance Breaker move.

  This sparked an argument, and both of them spoiled the next couple of issues inadvertently.

  I had no idea what was happening.

  ?

  ?

  I was reminded of a heavy source of irritation today.

  Mushrooms.

  I hate mushrooms.

  Instead of cookies, Zero brought a bowl full of mushrooms and expected me to eat them with her.

  She wanted to get out of eating them alone, so she brought them to me, hoping I would have some.

  I don’t know why she would assume that I would eat some. I’ve always hated mushrooms.

  Back in my homeland, mushrooms assisted in building up natural immunity to the toxic air there.

  I was force-fed grown mushrooms almost every day, and I never liked the taste of them. It was the only thing we could plant in my homeland so I couldn’t avoid it.

  I explained this to her, and she looked at me, dumbfounded, commenting that she thought I would spew a slew of health benefits and how they would assist you in survival.

  Mushrooms have various benefits for your immune system, and are an overall healthy choice for a snack. They can improve the health of your heart and are a good source of various vitamins and minerals.

  But the thing is….I could say the same for other vegetables as well, meaning they aren’t essential to survival.

  I then called the assistant over and informed her that Zero wasn’t eating her mushrooms, resulting in a lengthy game of tag between her and the assistant.

  Hopefully, she learned her lesson.

  ?

  I had felt fine for a while, but it was only today that I was cleared to walk around. I still couldn’t return to my daily life, but I could spend a couple of minutes a day walking around outside the room.

  I was relieved I could finally go to the bathroom by myself again, but on my way there, I ran into Zero holding a makeup kit.

  She had a huge smile on her face and immediately told me to go wash my hair so she could style it.

  I tried to run but was reprimanded by the assistant watching us to take it easy, even though I felt perfectly fine.

  The assistant wanted to assist in bathing me, and it took 15 minutes of reassuring her that I wouldn’t slip or run the water too hot for her to leave me in peace.

  Predicting this might take a while, Zero stated she would come back tomorrow to style my hair before promptly leaving.

  Maybe I should cut it off completely before she comes back tomorrow.

  As promised, she came back with her makeup kit. And I stupidly used my 30 minutes of free time to go to the restroom, and secretly do some light physical training to stay in shape, so there was no avoiding it.

  She had a large assortment of brushes and combs, along with various hair products meant to make your hair “shine”.

  She inspected my hair as if she was a professional hair stylist, flipping it upwards and scrunching it together, attempting to find the best style.

  I asked her why she was taking this so seriously, and she told me that she wanted to be a hair stylist when she grew up.

  I attempted to ask her a couple more questions, but she told me to be quiet so she could focus.

  After about two and a half hours of attempting different styles and hair products she had formed my long hair into a braid.

  In her words, she “melded the tips of my hair into the inner fold to make a cool half-purple half-black braid.”

  I looked in the mirror, and I was pleasantly surprised.

  I commended her for her efforts, in which she gave a confident smile and told me she’d teach me how to do it.

  There was no need for me to do it myself if I had her there to do it for me, so I denied learning.

  However, she said it was essential for me to learn, because once she dies, I’ll need to learn how to do it myself.

  I chuckled and told her that with the energy she has, it’d be a miracle for her to not live past 70.

  She remained silent as she began showing me the motions on some hair in her kit.

  ?

  I was visited by No.4 today. Although from the moment he entered, it was clear that his target wasn’t me, but Zero.

  He barely looked my direction before talking to Zero about new types of hair moisturizer and facial cream. Zero met him in conversation, but she didn’t seem too interested in what he was talking about.

  I commented that I could use some moisturizer, considering how grimy my hair gets. This caused her expression to lighten up, and she began recommending different types of moisturizer for me.

  Zero asked No.4 for more recommendations, but he glared at me, expressing that he didn’t want to give any more.

  After that, he promptly left the room.

  I don’t know what I did to earn his ire, but Zero looked extremely annoyed when he stormed off. I heard her say she was going to add hot peppers to his exfoliating cream.

  I don’t know how she would manage to do that, but I already pity him.