Alright then, the first investigation chapter!
Seth – well…she is a sweetheart…yeah, that person will pay
ZetaKuma – welcome back, Zeta! Thank you for the review and that you loved the previous chapters. Hopefully the suspect won't be too obvious…ehehe, who knows.
Anima – well, your deductions are as good as anyone's. Atsuko just like to do that and all. Well, I don't really mind if you get suspicious of some of the characters. The suspect, hopefully, won't be so obvious.
Nemris – yep, she's gone now…how sad…anyway, you just have to wait and see. As for Lexus, I'm guessing it's one of those 'keep your friends close and enemies closer' sort of thing. Thank you for the review!
Ichinose – hm, well, whether you be suspicious of them or not, we still aren't sure.
Guest – we'll just have to wait and see.
Let's get on with the first investigation chapter!
Kazuma
"Upupu, three people have discovered the corpse, now it's time for investigation time!"
"What…the hell…" I muttered as I stared at Mari's dead body. I couldn't help but feel…angry. Who would kill her?!
Monokuma appeared from nowhere and just poked Mari with his bear fingers. "Yep, she's dead alright."
"Are you serious?!" Eleonor shouted as she clenched her fists tightly. "How could you feel nothing, you insensitive moron?!"
"Hey, it's not my fault that she got murdered. Blame the one who did." Monokuma retorted and just smirked. He then handed a strange file to Kaede. "Okay, so this is how it will work out: I'll give you guys some time to find some clues or evidences that will point towards the real murderer or something. That is a Monokuma file that will give you starting details."
Masayoshi just looked at the mechanical bear. "…What kind of starting details?"
"Oh, the obvious, what time the victim died, and all that." He replied as he faked a cough. "Now for some added details. For the winners with the questions, you are allowed to ask anyone, but don't ask the question 'did you kill blah blah blah' and something like that. Also, since we have the punishment and stuff, the maids and butlers can be forced to keep quiet by those who have control over them the most. Meaning, if a maid or butler spent more time serving a particular master than the others, they will follow only that person. So even if another winner commanded a maid or butler to speak, if their 'main master' ordered them not to, they cannot speak or answer your questions, which will be a waste."
"Jeez, what a long explanation." Chion commented.
Monokuma chuckled. "Upupu, you'll thank me for that. Anyway, gotta go, see ya later!" With that, the bear disappeared.
"Upupu, happy investigating!"
"This is barmy." Shaun commented as he just stared at the body, looking away afterwards.
Atsuko just began suddenly, "Knock knock."
I just looked over at her. "Who's there?" I asked in a monotone.
"Death." She replied in a low voice as she averted her gaze away and just chuckled a bit.
I just looked around and saw that Ryouko was just staring at the body. She didn't blink nor looked away until Kin tapped her. "S-Sorry…I-I was just…"
"It's alright." Kin muttered as he looked somewhat depressed yet more anxious than usual. He continued to bite on his nail as he looked away.
Masa just sighed. "We should not just stand around." He muttered.
"Yeah, you get bad vibes if you all stick around a corpse." Lexus commented as she folded her arms across her chest.
"…I don't really mind." Xun invoiced, looking somewhat amused.
"Ahahahaha!" Chion just laughed out loud arrogantly. "I just can't help myself." He said.
"H-How cruel of you!" Lulu retorted as she looked teary-eyed. "How heartless can some of you be?" She cried as she looked away and began wiping her tears away.
When I looked over at the others, I saw that Numi was trying to calm down a panicking Kaede. "That's it, we're all gonna die!"
"We're not!" Numi replied.
Kaede just shook terribly as he shook his head abruptly. "No no no no no…t-t-this can't be happening…"
"Well he's lost." Eleonor muttered as she looked sadly at the dead body.
Ryou looked somewhat sad as he approached the body and put his hands together. I heard him mutterering something before bowing. He looked over at us. "We should begin the investigation."
I nodded. I looked over at the others. "It's best if we spread out. That way, we can cover more area if the clues happen to be around the establishment." Most of us just looked at each other, as though cautious or doubting of one another. "Guys, don't dawdle, just come on." With that, a few of them left while others stayed behind, like Lexus, Xun, Ryouko, Atsuko, Kaede and I.
"I wir stay here and keep watch on the body." Ryouko offered as she stood on guard.
I nodded as I walked over Kaede who was about to leave. "Can you read the file for me?"
"E-E-Eh?" He stuttered as he shook in his place. After a moment, he nodded as his trembling hands opened the file. "…V-Victims is Choi Mari, U-Ultimate Hallyu Star. T-The cause of death is unknown, but time of death was around 10 at night, near 'Closing Time'. She was found in the Gym." He looked up at me and just handed me the file before dashing away from the murder scene.
As I checked the file again, I noticed that Xun was checking the body, and he looked like he had no trouble doing so. "Find anything?" I asked as I approached him. My eyes turned to look at the corpse as well.
"First comment is that this is a strange set-up." Xun muttered bluntly. "Why put the left arm up there and leave the right hand?" He invoiced as he stood up and cracked his neck to the side. "No physical injuries except for what that lunatic Comedian did yesterday. Must be an inside wound that killed her."
"How could you say that?" I inquired.
He sighed. "She's bleeding from the mouth, idiot. It's not that hard to figure out."
"HAHAHAHA!" Atsuko laughed out loud as she came bouncing from the bleachers. "Just so you know, I ain't the one that killed her."
Lexus scoffed. "What a convincing thing to say. That would really put you off the suspect list." She commented sarcastically. "I'll be looking someplace else. Come running back to me when you're scared, Xun." She teased as she smirked and left the crime scene.
"She's just as suspicious as the others." Xun whispered quietly.
I just stared towards the direction Lexus went off to. Atsuko left as well, so that leaves me, Xun, and Atsuko with Mari's dead body. "Well, Xun got the body's details covered, and apparently Atsuko will keep watch over it, so I just have to scour the area of death." With that task in mind, I began wandering about. It proved to be useful, actually. I found a battery with live wires just behind the benches and seats. Perhaps this was the murder weapon? As I continued looking around, I noticed that the area wasn't really damaged, meaning there was no struggle, or the fight was short. "Let's see…ah, found it." I found a pile of rope by the equipment section. This was probably used to tie Mari up. "Well, nothing else to look here for now." I muttered as I left the Gymnasium.
I ended on a random floor as I stepped out of the elevator. I noticed that I arrived at the thirty-ninth floor, which was the Whispering Gallery. I have never been in such a room before. There, I saw Shaun and Kin, just standing by the railings that keep people from falling over. I walked over to them. "What's going on here?"
Shaun looked over at me and shushed. "Some chaps are talking down there."
I just stared at them curiously. Kin said, "This Whispering Gallery is connected to a lot of places throughout the establishment, making conversations almost open to everyone who listens."
"So basically, you're eavesdropping?" I responded.
Kin just began to anxiously bite on his thumb. "I-It can't be helped, Lady Choi died by someone's hands, a-and I aim to find out who did it."
"Such a harsh predicament!"
"W-Was that supposed to m-make you sound more sincere?"
I looked down as I began to hear some people talking. The loud and pompous style of speaking was definitely Chion's, and the stuttering one was Lulu's. ("What are they talking about?") I thought to myself.
"Still, I didn't really figure that she would be the first one to go die."
"I-It was truly shocking."
"You don't sound too surprise, madam. Perhaps it's you who killed Mari?!"
"W-W-What?! N-No, I'm not the one who killed her!"
"Please, I've interrogated the others as well, you know."
"T-That can't make you assume that I'm the one who killed her!"
"Ohahaha! That's what interrogation is all about!'
Shaun sighed. "This isn't going anywhere right."
"It's quite the opposite, actually." Kin muttered. I was about to say something, but the Accessory Designer gestured us to keep silent.
"A-Aren't you going to visit Masayoshi in the C-Clinic?"
"And why would I do that?"
"W-Well, i-it's because he got into an accident l-last night, a-almost around the same time Mari was killed. Well, at least that's what I heard from Numi."
"And where did he get the accident?"
"S-Strangely, the Gym."
"Oh? So you're saying he could be a suspect as well?"
"I really don't want to assume that he is one."
I hummed as I began to take in the new information. I looked over at Kin and Shaun. "I'm going to the clinic."
"I'll come with." Shaun suggested as he just looked away and just went ahead.
I reverted my attention back at Kin. "You?" Kin just shook his head as he continued to stay there. Strange, he's just going to stand around here? Why? Well, for now, I should not be bothered by it. With that, I followed Shaun.
As we reached the Clinic, Numi was already there to welcome us. "Hello!~"
"N-Numi…" Shaun muttered as he just keep his gaze away from getting into contact with others. I looked over at the Diver's shoulder and saw Masa with a bandaged knee. "W-What happened to you, chap? Been getting into basketball now?"
He nodded. "…Just wanted to."
Silence fell over us for the moment. Numi just looked curiously from me to Masa to Shaun to me to Masa then back at me. "What are you doing here?"
"We're here to see the gentleman with the bandage." Shaun responded in an awkward way.
"Ah, don't worry, Masa-kun is doing fine!" Numi replied.
"I would just like to ask Masayoshi something." I stated.
With that, Monokuma appeared suddenly in between me and Shaun. "Upupu, finally!"
"…." Masayoshi just stared at Monokuma, whereas Shaun looked a little surprised.
"What are you doing here, you grizzly?" Shaun inquired.
The mechanical and monochromic bear looked at the Brit. "Well, I assumed that Kazuma is going to use his five questions." He looked over at me. "When you wish to confirm to use these questions, you will have to say 'I require candor!'"
"Why?" Numi asked curiously, obviously unaware of what the word means.
Shaun just trembled in his place as he brushed his hair downward a bit. "C-Candor is the quality of being open and honest in expression. Y-You could say it could be a reference to Veronica Roth's 'Insurgent', which is the second book of her Divergent Trilogy. There's a part in the book where the leader of the Candors tested Tris and Four and asked for their truthful answers."
"…Wow." Monokuma muttered as he just stared at me blankly. "You really are a bookworm at heart, ain't ya? Oh well, just get on with it. I'm just gonna go pass this instruction to the other winners as well. See ya soon!" The bear then left.
After another moment of silence, I faked a cough and said, "I require candor." I then approached Masayoshi. "Who are the other people in the gym last night?"
The Basketball Player just looked up at me and looked down. While he was answering me, this was stated through the intercoms:
"Upupu, time's up, dear guests! Please proceed to the thirty-fifth floor, which will lead you to the Courtroom!"
"I see…" I muttered.
Numi just looked worried while Shaun just continued to observe us. "Well, let's get goin'."
"Agreed." Masayoshi replied. The four of us left as we took the elevator and headed towards the designated floor.
As we arrived and entered the courtroom, we found the others there. For some strange reason, the atmosphere is heavy, and no one bothered talking to one another. Further inside, Monokuma was sitting on a high-and-mighty judge's chair. He peered down on us and grinned. "Upupu, welcome, dear guests, to the Courtroom!"
"Weird décor." Eleonor immediately commented as she looked around.
"I-I-It's far from exquisite." Kin muttered, stuttering.
Monokuma fumed slightly. "Just shut up already. Anyway, go into the stalls." I looked around and saw that there are fifteen stalls in the room. As we took our place, my attention averted towards the bloody picture of Choi Mari.
"K-Kyaaa!" Lulu screamed out as she saw the photo.
"What a horrid mess!" Chion exclaimed, who I thought was Chion but is actually Ryouko being the Impressionist she is again. Well, time to call her Ryouko Chion.
"Aw shucks, that's mighty kind of you." Monokuma cooed.
Xun sighed heavily. "I doubt that was a compliment."
"Numi thinks it's just strange." Numi invoiced.
Kaede just looked around, trembling in his own stall. "T-T-This is t-t-too overwhelming f-f-for me."
"Oh just stand straight you limp noodle!" Chion shouted in a loud voice.
Atsuko just laughed. "Ahahaha, I remember the time when I noodle delivery guy…"
"…..Not now." Masa cut Atsuko off as she just pouted.
"That's not really nice…I think." Shaun invoiced.
Lexus just clicked her tongue. "Let's just get this over with."
"Rushing things won't do any good." I heard Ryou speak. It's been awhile since I heard the guy. All of our attention averted towards him. "Our lives are on the line, after all."
Those words shivered through our spines coldly. To think that our existence depends on this Class Trial…we have to make sure to find the culprit.
One of us has killed our fellow guests, and they must secure their freedom, or else it's execution. A trial for life, a judgment of death. Deception in life, and treachery in death. Betrayal for life, and betrayal for death. The riddles of life, and the mystery of death. Justification for life, and realization in death. Faith in life, and trust in death. The Class Trial to live, or the Class Trial to die.
Class Trial is in Session!
Well, that took a little longer to put out. Anyway, I hope you're ready for the first Class Trial of the sequel! Whether it'll be hard or not, I just want to make things go smoothly.
Also, please forgive me if they are any typos or wrong grammar. I rushed the proof-reading slightly...
Made your guess yet? Just wait and see.
READ AND REVIEW. ARIGATOU GOZAIMASU