The aftermath of "A Next Generation Legend! Stand Tall, Galactic Hero!" Which I guess means we're almost halfway done, since there's only six chapters in the game. "All Star Apologies" is next. Not much to say about this one.

I hope you can enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 19

Monokuma giggled to himself. "It's basically a formality at this point, but once again you're totally correct! The blackened this time... the true killer who devised the whole stinkin' scheme, was... Yasuhiro Hagakure!"

The man in question looked downright miserable. With good reason, of course. "Aw, man... I guess trying to work with Hifumi wasn't the best idea... The guy's dumber than I thought."

"So you really did approach Hifumi with this plan?" Kyoko asked. "But how did you get him to agree? I can't imagine he would have happily agreed to commit murder. Did you use... you know...?" Kyoko gave Monokuma an aside glance.

"I should've known you'd figure it out... Yeah, to get Hifumi on my side... I used "her." You know... the one thing both Hifumi and Taka were both into."

"Yes, we... we get it." I said.

"What!?" Monokuma asked. "What what what!? What are you talking about!?"

"Don't interrupt." Kyoko snapped. "We're in the middle of a very important conversation here."

"I'm totally out of the loop, as usual." Monokuma sighed. "How sad..."

Kyoko turned back to Hiro. "Then you're the one that stole it?"

"Yeah, that's right..."

"And you used it to drag Hifumi into the plan you'd come up with?"

"Yeah. Last night, after we had our meeting about how it disappeared, I paid Hifumi a visit. I told him that Taka was the one who took the laptop, by threatening me into stealing it for him. He was already so pissed with the guy, he believed me almost instantly. Then, I told him my plan, and he helped me without a second thought."

"I have another question for you." Byakuya said. "Was that strange costume Hifumi's creation?"

"Yeah. Making it was a real pain. All I asked for was something to hide my face and body with, and he showed me a design he had for that suit. I added a few of my own notes, and that's where the Robo Justice suit came from..."

"Why did you make me the suspect?" I asked.

He scratched his head and considered it. "Well, everyone already knows you're crazy, right? I thought they'd really fall for it if it looked like you killed them. Plus, we're both pretty similar in height and weight, so the suit would fit both of us just fine! I had a hard time figuring out how to break into your room, but when we got there, your door was wide open anyway!"

This was news to the other students, who turned to me with a mix of shock and concern. "I... don't really know how that happened." I lied.

The other students just shook their heads, obviously shelving the topic for later. Sakura asked "But when you were explaining your plan to Hifumi, how did you explain the part about him playing dead?"

"What she's asking is, what was Hifumi supposed to do after that, assuming you had actually let him live?" Byakuya rephrased.

"I told him to say he'd been seriously wounded, on the verge of death, but miraculously survived." Hiro said, as if it were obvious.

"And he really believed that?" Hina asked.

"What, you guys wouldn't believe that?" He asked back. "I'd believe it, if I didn't come up with it. And so did Hifumi, I guess. I was also supposed to kill someone while you guys were watching him, so he'd have an alibi and stuff."

"It all seems very... straightforward. Stereotypical." Byakuya groaned.

"But you were planning to kill him from the very beginning, right?" I guessed.

"Well, I mean, yeah. If I didn't... he could've betrayed me! So I..." He trailed off, and finished he sentence by running his finger across his neck.

"How can human life mean so little to you...?" Hina asked.

Hiro at least had the grace to look guilty. "It's not like that! I just... I mean, it wasn't..."

"What made you take things this far?" Kyoko pressed.

"Was it really... just for money?" Hina asked.

"The ten million dollars?" Hiro recalled. His look turned guiltier. "I mean, yeah, kinda..."

I shook my head. "It wasn't just money. Ever since the beginning, or, at least, since the first death, you've been thinking about escape, weren't you?"

Hiro hesitated, but nodded. "But, I knew that when I got out of here... I'd also need that money. See, uh, long story short... I pissed off this guy with connections to the mob, and now I got people after me, looking to sell my organs on the black market! The instant I leave this school, they're gonna come for me, so I figured, if I had ten million bucks, I could just pay off my debt and move on..."

"That's the same reason you were held back three times, isn't it?" I asked. "So you could hide from them?"

"Well... yeah. Mostly..." He shook his head. "Honestly, I can't believe just how lucky I got. Al leaving his door open, Celeste suggesting we step out into the hallway. And in the end, you still figured everything out."

"One last question..." I said. "How... how did you plan all this out? I mean, I don't wanna sound like an asshole, but, you're... kinda stupid."

Byakuya scoffed. "Well, obviously, that must've been an act, seeing as how he did plan it out."

"Yeah, sorry, but I'm not buying that." I dismissed. "Even now, he's still acting like he always does. This doesn't add up."

Hiro entered a pose similar to his "praying" portrait in the game. "It was a message from above!"

"Really."

"Yeah, really! For serious! After Monokuma gave us his motive, I got an answer from above! It was a highly-detailed plan to escape without being found out! Except... in the end, I was found out anyway..."

Was he just being dumb again? But why would he be making shit up at a time like this?

"You all done?" Monokuma asked. "Okay, then let's get rollin'! The blackened disturbed the peace, and must pay the price! Now then, I've prepared a very special punishment for Yasuhiro Hagakure! The Ultimate Clairvoyant! Let's give it everything we've got! It's... PUNISHMENT TIIIME!"

"No! I don't wanna die! Please, can't you just, like, take my organs or something!?" Hiro begged.

"Wait!" I interrupted. I didn't know what I would say, though. "Hiro. You're about to die, and I'm sorry it has to be this way. But, you have a key or something, don't you? The key to... y'know. We need it. So, before you go, you can still do the right thing, right?"

Hiro hesitated before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small key. Gulping, he tossed the key to his left, where Chihiro stood. "This is...!"

"If you think it'll help you guys, then you can have it... Doing the right thing..." He seemed to be thinking deeply. Right before Monokuma was about to take over again, he shouted "Wait! You guys, I remember something else! There's another thing that message from above told me!"

"Are you serious?"

"It's about Al!" He shouted. Uh, oh. "You can't trust him! He's not supposed to be here! He's not one of us! It's a conspiracy!" Monokuma pounded his gavel, and iron shackles flew out from the curtains behind Hiro, restraining him and pulling him back. "A conspiracy...!" He flew down the hall to the execution chamber. Monokuma, once again, waved us through to watch the spectacle.

The room, in contrast to the previous executions, was bright and colourful. It resembled the set of a game show, like The Price is Right or Wheel of Fortune. Hiro was seated in a small booth, and a Monokuma dressed in a tuxedo showed up, holding a microphone. Speakers around the room blared down at us in Monokuma's voice, deafeningly loud:

"QUIZ TIME! THERE'S A CHANCE OF 30%!" The rest of the set lit up, revealing three doors across from Hiro, labelled 'A', 'B', and 'C'. In front of him, three buttons appeared. Hiro, hesitantly, pushed the first button. Instead of the 'A' door opening, it quite literally grew legs and walked away. Hiro hesitated again, and pushed the second button. The 'B' door also got up and left. Hiro stared at the 'C' door, but didn't do anything. He didn't dare push the button. After a few agonizing seconds, which felt more like forever, the door finally opened up anyway... revealing a twisted mouth. The door grew legs, stomped up to Hiro menacingly, and ate him alive. His screams echoed throughout the chamber.

I took a deep breath. One of both relief and remorse. It was over. We passed the class trial. But, like always, it was hard to feel any accomplishment. After all, three more students died in the last twenty-four hours. Eight. That's how many victims this goddamn killing game has claimed. Half of the cast is dead, all because I couldn't save them...

"Isn't it just awful?" Monokuma sulked. "Someone couldn't cut free of their regrets from the outside world, and so more people had to die... You guys are still young! You need to place more value on your lives! Jeez... and here I thought you guys were gonna pass the torch of hope to the next generation!"

"Don't gimme that shit!" I shouted. "Don't pretend this isn't what you wanted! If you just didn't give us any motives, none of this shit would of happened!" My tirade was cut short with a sharp pain in my temple. All this stress was giving me a migraine. Either that, or the combination of Toshihide and the mastermind fucking with my head was causing my brain to turn to mush. I hope it's not the latter.

Monokuma chuckled. "You're all the embodiment of hope, whether you like it or not! And it's my destiny to knock you down one by one! It's sad, yes it is. But that reality just can't be avoided."

"Don't talk like you're not responsible..." Makoto said, backing me up. "How long are you gonna make us keep going through this!? What do you want from us!?"

The bear groaned. "God, I'm so sick of people asking me that! Give it a rest already! So anyway... Chihiro, did I see you get some kind of key-type object from Hiro? So uh... what's the deal with that?"

Before Chihiro could say anything, I burst again. "It's none of your business! Just leave us the hell alone already!"

"Huh? What's the matter?"

"Actually," Kyoko got in between me and the bear. "I'll answer his question, if he'll answer mine." Turning to the teddy, she asked "What did you do? What did you... do to me?"

"...What!?" Monokuma fanned his face.

"Answer me." She demanded. "What did you do to my body?"

"Uwaaah! Oh man, oh jeez... Oh man, oh jeez! What do you mean, what did I... do!? I-I have no idea...! I don't know anything about it!" There was a silent stare-down between the two of them for several seconds. "Okay, things are getting kinda awkward. I think it's about time I got out of here... Meanwhile, you guys can go on enjoying your school life. If you get lonely, gimme a shout! Not that I'll do anything about it, of course!" In a blink, he was gone, and we could hear the elevator gate opening behind us.

We stood, in a daze, as we usually did at the end of the trials. I was still massaging my temple, trying to ease the pain. Kyoko turned to me briefly, and told me "You need to get a handle on that temper of yours." And before I could respond, she moved on to the others.

Makoto spoke up. "Hey, Chihiro. Monokuma already mentioned it, but... What's that key that Hiro gave you?"

Chihiro held out the key for the rest of us to see. "Most likely... I think it's a key to one of the dressing room lockers."

"What!?" Hina jumped. "Then that means...!"

"Hiro probably hid it in there..." Byakuya decided.

"I suppose sometimes it's easiest to miss what's right beneath your nose." Sakura said. "Well then, we'd better go check."

"Good idea." Kyoko agreed.

We all hurried onto the elevator, grasping onto the small bit of hope that still remained. When we were all on board, it began to rise. After several seconds, I checked the elevator for cameras or wires. When I was satisfied we weren't being listened to, I decided to suggest "I don't think we should all go to the dressing room. That'll draw too much attention."

"Of course." Kyoko agreed. "I'll go alone. Everyone else can head to the dining hall. I'll check in with you later."

"Why, exactly, are you going alone?" Byakuya asked.

Everyone gave him a look like he was stupid. "Do you even have to ask?" was Kyoko's answer.

"That's not what I mean. Why you?" He asked. "There's still the risk of a spy, you know."

"Then I'll go, too." Chihiro offered.

"You...?"

"Problem solved." I said. "They can't both be the spy." Just as I said that, the elevator slammed to a stop.

"...Standing here arguing is just going to draw more attention to us." He decided. "Hmph. Do whatever you want." He walked off, leaving the rest of us alone. Kyoko and Chihiro hurried off to the bathhouse, while the rest of us went to the dining hall.

Nobody really had much of an appetite. What else is new? I stared at my fellow classmates. What was left for me to do? There's really only one more death to worry about. Should I even try to stop it? I think the only real way I could do that was if I killed the mastermind. What are the chances of me getting that accomplished in the next couple of days?

A little over 0.1%. Oh, shut up, you...

I scanned the room and did a headcount. I found myself doing that a lot lately. I must be getting paranoid. Let's see... Byakuya's doing whatever... Kyoko and Chihiro are in the bathhouse... we got Makoto, Hina... hang on... where's Celeste? Oh, she's sitting on her own. Great.

Sighing, I stood and trudged over to her. She looked at me from the corner of her eye as I stood awkwardly next to her table, wondering if it would be appropriate to sit down. I decided it wouldn't. "...I'm sorry. About the trial."

"I don't want your apology." She said. "But I suppose it's good that you at least learned of your error before it was too late..." After a few awkward seconds, she slowly continued "You seriously wounded me, almost killed me, but said injury turned out to be a vital clue in proving my innocence. But you were the one who began questioning my innocence in the first place, which went so far as having you expose my real name. But in the end, you changed your mind and helped prove me innocent."

"Uh, yeah..."

"I suppose my point is, I'm not sure whether to completely hate you, or simply be upset with you. I swear, it sometimes seems that there's two different people in that thick head of yours. I suppose I'll keep you at rank D, but keep in mind you're very close to rank E."

"I, uh, guess I'll start my redemption by not asking what that means." I decided. "But I do have a question. You don't have to answer it. In fact, I'm not really expecting an answer, but I have to ask it, anyway."

"Alright, quit wasting my time and ask already." She said impatiently.

"Right. See, the thing is, I thought money would be a perfect motive for you. And that plan was so convoluted that it seemed like something a gambler could come up with. I guess my question is: Why haven't you killed anyone yet?"

She sipped her tea. "Al?"

"Yeah?"

"You are now officially rank E." She warned. "I feel I should warn you that if you fall to rank F, I'll pay a special organization to have you killed."

"Right. Well, it was worth a shot, I guess..." I turned to leave.

"But I suppose the answer you're looking for is... I was worried." She said. "I certainly considered it. Many times, in fact. Ever since day one, all I had been thinking of was escape. But while I might be a gambler, even I know there are some bets you shouldn't take. Between Makoto, Kyoko, Byakuya, and... well, you, I just couldn't take such a risk."

She put me up on that list, huh? "You're too kind. All I did in the second trial was offer a few stupid theories, and in the last one, I nearly got everyone killed. I'm not a puzzle solver like you guys."

"You're right about that." She said. "But, like I said, I sometimes feel like you have two different people in your head."

"The fact that you repeated what I originally thought was a throwaway line worries me." I said.

"Whatever. Are you going to keep standing there?" She asked. Coincidentally, at the same time, Kyoko and Chihiro entered the dining hall.

"No. I'll catch you later, Celestia Ludenberg." As I turned to leave, I could swear I saw a hint of a smile at the mention of her fake name.

I went and sat by Chihiro. "You good? Is... you know, good?" He nodded. "Good."

He quietly explained "He said that he's almost done with the files. He should be able to get the last set open by tomorrow."

"Awesome. Any clues we can get will be useful. Here's hoping we can keep everyone alive long enough."

"You don't sound optimistic..." He noted.

"Well, I'm not an optimist. I'm a realist. And a bit of a nihilist, given recent events. Optimism is Makoto's portfolio." Speaking of, I noticed the lucky student speaking to Kyoko quietly. Right, she was supposed to tell him about where she went during the investigation, the secret room. Makoto will go there tonight, and the mastermind will knock him out and take all those important documents away. Or will they? I suddenly got a pretty nice idea in my head. I could take out the mastermind tonight...

I got up from my seat. "Y'know, despite sleeping in until noon today, I think I'm gonna head to bed early tonight. I'm exhausted."

Chihiro seemed concerned. "Speaking of... Why was your door open last night?"

Right. I need a cover story for that. "I dunno. I mean, I was drugged, so I guess I just fell asleep before I could lock the door."

He didn't seem convinced, but didn't push it. "Okay. Just make sure you lock up tonight, okay?"

I nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow." He bid me farewell as I limped out of the dining hall.

This was it. Everyone was in the one spot, except for Byakuya, god knows where he is. The point is, nobody's watching me. I limped over to Makoto's room. I slowly turned the knob and, sure enough, it's unlocked. The guy's too careless...

Checking once more that I was alone, I slowly opened the door and slipped inside. Right there on his shelf was the weapon I needed. The golden sword. I've never been in a fight before, but a sword is such a dangerous tool. All I need is a single good flick of my hand at a vital point, and it's over.

I grasped the golden sheath, and instantly pulled my hand away. Jesus, Makoto wasn't lying when he said the glitter sticks. Besides, it probably wouldn't be best to take the sheath, anyway. With a bit of force, I slid the sword out, and left the sheath on it's stand. Even if Makoto went to his room before tonight, he would probably be so tired after today, he won't notice the blade is gone.

The sword is heavier than an inexperienced swordsman (such as myself) would expect. But the added weight reassured me in my ability. I could do this. Careful not to stab myself, I tucked the katana under my coat, in a way that nobody could tell I had a weapon at a glance.

With my heart pounding in my ears, I dashed past the dining hall, and made my way through the school, until I reached the boys bathroom on the second floor. I went into the stall at the very end, next to the storage closet, and waited with bated breath for the moment of truth.

A few minutes after the nighttime announcement played, I heard the bathroom door open slowly. I squatted on the toilet so that no one could see my feet, and peeked through the cracks. Makoto walked past the stall and all the way to the closet. I listened intently as he slid the false wall out of the way. I'll let him act as the bait for the mastermind, since I know they won't kill him, before I swoop in and take them out.

Can I do it? Could I bring myself to kill? To kill the mastermind? The Ultimate Despair? Oh, yes. Yes, I could definitely do that. That's the least I could do.

I waited a full minute, counting the seconds as they went. I had the mastermind trapped. Even if they knew I was coming, they couldn't risk Makoto reading too much of those documents. They couldn't knock him over the head and run, or I could go in and read some, too. Like it or not, they had to face me.

I heard a quiet thump in the other room. Taking a deep breath, I dropped my cane, grasped the handle of the sword with both hands, and shoved the stall door open. I ran around the corner, and there they were. The mastermind, complete with that weird black wrestler's mask concealing their entire head, and the white coat covering their body. They held a wooden bat in their hands, and stood over Makoto's unconscious body.

I stabbed the katana forward, but they were faster. I ended up impaling the side of the bat. They twisted it, pulling the blade out of my grip, and swung the bat in a way where the sword came loose and flew into one of the exposed pipes in the corner. Shit.

I ducked their next swing, and dove under the table, coming up on the other side. They threw the bat at my face, but I managed to pull one of the binders off the shelf to shield myself, knocking their weapon over to the pipes as well. I ran over to the pipes, and yanked the blade out, spinning just in time to swing at the mastermind. They dodged.

I kept swinging, and they kept jumping out of the way. Eventually, they ducked, and kicked my good leg out from under me. I fell, and they wrestled the blade out of my grasp as I did. I quickly tried to get up, but paused when I saw them.

They weren't holding the blade toward me, but against the back of Makoto's neck. I'm no biologist, but I'm pretty sure at the point the tip is, all it would take is a little jab before Makoto's spine is severed and he's paralyzed, if not outright killed.

"You wouldn't dare." I growled.

They tilted their head slightly. "Wouldn't I?"

I sighed. Yes, they would. I sat back down, and held my hands against the back of my head.

"If I had my way, you would have died yesterday. You can thank you're scientist friend for the fact that you're still alive." They slowly kicked Makoto along as they made their way over to the bat, sword tip still pointed in his back. "He told me you would make things more interesting, but I have yet to see any results."

"He told me you usually don't listen to him." I said.

"That's right, I don't. But I thought it might actually be cool having someone who knows what's gonna happen and shit. But it's still so fucking boring, I can still predict everything you're gonna do. So I'll let you live, but remember, if you do something like this again, just one more time, I won't hesitate to kill you." They plucked the bat off the ground. "This bat in my hands is more dangerous than this sword in yours."

With that, they swung the bat at me, and the splitting pain in my head was the last thing I felt as I slipped into unconsciousness.

My dream started with a bright flash, just like the last one. Makoto stood at the front of the classroom, and lowered the camera he was holding. I was seated in a desk, actually in the camera's view this time, with a hand raised in a V sign. I quickly lowered it. I was seated between Hina and Hifumi, and behind me stood Chihiro, Junko, and Taka. The rest of the students were also in the shot. Another odd detail, I was dressed in a Hope's Peak uniform, missing my usual lab coat. Odd. Then again, the lab coat really belongs to Toshihide.

Speaking of, where is that rascal? Ah, there. The door to the classroom was slightly ajar, and he was standing there with his arms folded. Nobody seemed to notice him. He gestured for me to follow him. While everyone was crowding Makoto in an attempt to see the photo, I excused myself and made my way out to the hall.

"That didn't quite work out the way you intended, did it?" He asked in his signature raspy voice. His skin tone was definitely healthier, but he still had his greying hair, his dull purple eyes, and his lab coat that was just three or four sizes too big for his thin frame.

"No. No, it did not. Maybe I should've asked you for advice beforehand."

He gestured to himself. "Does this look like the body of a kendo master?"

I shrugged. "I dunno, you could've distracted the mastermind with some freaky messages. Like, maybe, describe to them the last shit you took or something. Anything that'd buy me a second."

"Ignoring the vulgarity of that statement..." He unfolded his arms and stuffed them in his coat pockets. I'm pretty sure he was fidgeting with something in there. "Were you really planning on killing the mastermind, right then and there?"

"Do you even need to ask that? I mean, I don't want to compare a fictional character to a real life figure, but if I had a chance to kill Hitler, or any other mass-murderer, you can be damn sure I'm taking it."

"Did you just call the mastermind a fictional character?" He asked. "Never mind. I was going to say how surprised I am at how quickly you gained the mind of a murderer. It took me years for my morality to develop that badly. But I'm even more surprised that your still thinking off all this as Danganronpa. I thought you'd start valuing these lives more."

"That's the exact reason I was ready to kill them!" I snapped. "It would've saved so many lives! The needs of the many, and all that!"

"Really? I think you do have a murderer's mind. When I induced your sleepwalking during the second murder, the first thing you did was clean a crime scene."

"Oh, screw off. You understand the circumstances of that case better than I do!"

"You're right, I do. I'm also a psychologist." He sighed. "Imagine what would happen if one of your classmates got in the crossfire of that? I doubt little Fujisaki-kun could defend himself."

"Don't even joke about that." I shook my head at him. "What the fuck's your problem, man? Isn't this usually the part where you try to encourage me or something?"

"I would... but, frankly, I don't see much else you could help with here. The next case revolves around a suicide, correct?"

"That's right. Sakura kills herself after the mastermind reveals she's the spy. She does it so that there's no more infighting with our group. In fact, her case is what ends up uniting everyone. Even Byakuya."

"With Fukawa-kun and Hagakure-kun out of the picture, wouldn't there be less infighting to speak of?" He wondered.

"I dunno. Byakuya's a prick, and will probably be bad enough. If not, part of me also feels Celeste might get in on the distrust. Though I can never tell what she's thinking..."

"I noticed you haven't been calling her Taeko, even in your mind." He noted.

"Well, when Chihiro wanted me to call him a boy, I started calling him a boy. If she wants me to call her Celeste, that's what I'll call her." I shrugged. "Maybe that's an odd comparison, since Chihiro really is a guy, but that's just the way I see it."

"You refer to people the way they want you to refer to them." He nodded. "It's similar to how you refer to the mastermind as "Monokuma," and "he," even in your mind."

"Nah, that's just habit. Anyway... do you think it's even possible for me to save Sakura?" I asked.

He stared at me for a long moment. "I'll be entirely honest with you, Albert Wright. I don't believe in your abilities very much at all. I feel as though... I made a mistake, bringing you into this. I apologize."

"Wait, what? You're ditching the plan now!? After all this!?"

"Frankly, I don't see what "all this" refers to. In the long run, you've changed very little, and the few changes you have made are inconsequential, in the long run."

"Inconsequential!?" I snapped. "And you say I don't value these people's lives!? Sure, we had a few slip ups, and my plans nearly never work, and I have my bad days. But you know what, Toshihide? I'm going to keep trying. I won't give up, I won't throw it all away, and I won't give into despair! I'll keep trying, even if I end up dead because of it. That's how far I'm willing to go to keep my classmates safe!"

We stood in silence for about a solid minute. Toshihide stood there, taking in what I said. Eventually, he removed his hands from his pockets, and begun to slow clap. And, what else would you expect, he hands clapping made a sound like metal clacking.

"Congratulations, Albert. You passed the test. I only hope it isn't still too late to change things."

"Wait, you were testing me?" I shook my head in confusion. "You can read my mind. Why the hell would you need to test me like that?"

"The test wasn't for me." He said. "I wanted to hear you say that out loud. I wanted you to say that with your own lips. Even if you end up dead, is that right?"

I actually thought about that. "Yeah, yeah, I think I would." What else would I do in this world? If my sacrifice could affect the future, if it meant saving even one other life, why not?

"I also wanted to say, your not without a plan, are you? You have an idea that could save Ogami-kun's life, do you not?"

"I do." I'm not sure how well it'll work, but it's worth a shot. "And I wanted to ask you something..."

"Yes?"

"Do you think... I mean, you're a physicist, and you brought me to this world, right? So I was wondering... would it be possible, one day... that I might be able to return to my home world? And maybe... maybe without necessarily leaving this one behind?"

Toshihide considered my question. "Hm... I... don't know about that. But, well, we live in the age of the Ultimates, and our understanding of science has been expanding exponentially in the last hundred years. Maybe someday, space-time travel like that would be possible. In your lifetime, though? I can't say. Part of me... doubts you'll be alive long enough for that."

"Yeah, yeah... I get it." With that, my resolve hardened. This was my world now. I'll do anything I have to to keep it running. "I'll see you later, Toshihide. The climax is coming. Let's give it everything we've got."

He turned and walked down the empty hallway. "Likewise, Al. If we're going down, let's at least leave some marks, yes?"

A few steps down, he faded into the light, and I felt my senses dimmed. My vision blurred, there was a ringing in my ears, my body numbed, and I felt close to vomiting.

Alright, well, that was unpleasant.

I awoke still in the secret room. Makoto was still fast asleep, which was nice, since I definitely didn't want him to see me here. The katana was laying next to me on the ground. I'll have to return that to his room on my way.

As I rose, I heard a crinkle underneath me. There were a few papers stapled together where I was laying. It must've fell out of that binder when I used it as a shield, and the mastermind didn't notice it since I was laying on it. Doesn't matter to me, since I've played the first two games and know all those twists. Still, I wonder what this one says... It seems to be a profile... hmm... wait... what the hell...!?

Hope's Peak Reserve Course Student Registry

Name: Albert Wright

Yeah, cliffhanger. Actually, multiple weird pieces have been introduced to the puzzle in this chapter. What does it mean, what does it mean!? Also, from this point on, Albert's going to be a little more aggressive against the mastermind, as you could probably tell from his actions. Obviously, he's not going to be all-out defiant, or else he'd be murdered before he could blink. But after his main plan of escape has failed, he's going to have to try something different for the rest of the story.

Survivors-8: Makoto Naegi, Aoi Asahina, Byakuya Togami, Celestia Ludenberg, Chihiro Fujisaki, Kyoko Kirigiri, Sakura Ogami, Albert Wright

Victims-8: Sayaka Maizono, Junko Enoshima, Leon Kuwata, Toko Fukawa, Mondo Owada, Kiyotaka Ishimaru, Hifumi Yamada, Yasuhiro Hagakure

In the next chapter, we'll explore the fourth floor of the school.