A/N: Hehehehe- it's time, everyone. The time has come to end this trial once and for all! I'm actually surprised how quickly I managed to get this part out- like, it's been a little over a week? When usually I take about two weeks? Haha, and here I thought I'd be running late with this! Incredible how life works out, eh?
Now...the truth is within the reach of the 80th Class (or what's left of it), they just gotta go for it! Last time, a lot of revelations were made, including the identity of who tried to kill Hana at the end of Daily Life Part 2! In related news, angry Hana is scary in-universe but so much fun to write in real life.
Now, I feel the killer is pretty self-evident at this point, and it seems most of the class has it figured out too- but there are still a few more mysteries to sort out before they can come to a clear answer. Did Tadao Shimaru truly make good on his earlier threats and become the blackened? Or could there still be one more nasty twist to this trial? The end of Chapter 3 begins...now!
Review Replies
PokeDrifter: Honestly? I don't think Hana would mind that. Anyways, still seems like you have your doubts on who the true killer is, but don't you worry- by the end of this part, those questions will be answered and more!
MaskedGamer: You would think, and honestly I think he's considered it, but- you know. And regarding the message- like Hiroshi said, Shiro was probably trying to write more than just the culprit's eye color, but he was killed before he could finish, and thus 'aquamarine' was what the class was left with. And as for the other things you speculated...well, this part should wrap up any lingering questions!
BloodyCarnage: Oooh, lotsa stuff to unpack with this one! So where to start...well first of all, I think the chances of you being right about Tadao are 99% at this point, and if this part should wrap it all up in one last murderous package, so look forward to that!
And, oh my...is that shipping I see? Awesome, this story has officially entered the phase where people ship the characters (and no, Rumi doesn't count), that's great! ...I say that now, but I think we all know how crazy shipping can get, but I have hope things won't get too insane with this story! Oh, also- is that an OT3 I smell? ...Well, not gonna deny what you wanna ship, so go for it! And as for Akira...well, I'm not gonna say anything about that, you'll just have to let time tell where her relations with Hana will end up.
And lastly, regarding reviewer stuff- the only things I really 'draw' from reviews would be, like, ideas for jokes and such (for example, Tadao being called "Penguin"). More plot-related stuff, not so much- like, Tadao being called out for his strangely aggressive behavior, for example, was planned all along, you guys were just perceptive enough to pick up on it as well (which is not a bad thing- this is a mystery story after all, and what fun would it be if the readers have no idea what's going on?). All in all- solid stuff you've got going on here, and I hope you enjoy the conclusion to this trial and chapter!
Chapter 3: A Dark Design- Class Trial (Part 3)
"It's irrelevant! It's all completely irrelevant!" Tadao shouted at his classmates. "I may have been the one to attack Amari the day before, but I did not kill Yamamoto or Koichi!"
Hana said nothing, but narrowed her eyes with a rage that was sill smoldering within her, despite the (slightly) diffused situation. This trial had been stressful enough- from the deaths of, not one, but two classmates, Saku unintentionally complicating the trial from beyond the grave with his note to Shiro (but then again, Hana realized she hadn't been much better, keeping the note a secret until the last second), the killer's attempts to frame said kickboxer and Hana fighting an uphill battle to clear his name...but this? Uncovering the identity of the student who had nearly killed her the day before? That had been the straw that broke the camel's back, and she had nearly paid for it with Monokuma's bunch of spear guns (which she still couldn't wrap her head around, and the fact that he had those gave her no security at all).
And now, here she was- staring down Tadao Shimaru, her attacker and the current prime suspect of the double homicide. The path to get to this point had been a long one, not unlike the last two trials, but now the truth was within their grasp...hopefully.
"Tadao, you can't just chalk up everything to be either coincidences or unrelated," Hiroshi told him with a disapproving frown.
"And even still- the knowledge that you were the one that attacked Amari the morning before..." Akira remarked to herself, before telling him in a threatening tone, "If you do turn out to be innocent, Shimaru, you'll have to answer for that too, you know."
"Fine, fine, I don't care- as long as you realize I'm not the killer!" Tadao insisted yet again. "Until you can provide more proof that the two incidents are connected, I cannot be voted as the blackened!"
I don't see how it could be anyone but Tadao at this point, what with all the evidence against him... Hana thought to herself. But he's still got a point- the fact that the wine bottle was used both times could be a coincidence. One hell of a coincidence, in my opinion, but still...if we can find something else to connect what happened to me with the murders, then that should be enough. Shouldn't it?
"You attacked Hana the day before Saku and Shiro died!" Ryoto shouted at Tadao. "That CAN'T be a coincidence!"
"It is! How was I supposed to know a murder would happen the next day!?" Tadao refuted.
"You've got a lot of nerve, you know!" Rumi angrily told the waiter. "First you try to kill Hana, then you accused her right off the bat? I may have stopped her from beating you up, but that doesn't mean I like what you did!"
"Honestly, what he did to Hana was bad, but that alone doesn't prove he's the killer this time..." Hiroshi rationalized. "The wine bottle, on the other hand..."
"Oh enough of that, Ashi! I already said that doesn't truly prove anything!" Tadao yelled at the coroner.
"Well, you were the one who used it the first time," Asuna said. "And then the same weapon was used on Saku..."
"Slow down a sec- how'd we prove the wine bottle was the thing used to K.O. Saku again?" Hinata inquired. "Something about shelves?"
"Seriously? Do you have the attention span of a goldfish?" Shiori snapped at the thief. "The shelf in the wine room was missing another red wine bottle, when before there had only been one missing."
"Okay...but what about other weapons?" Hinata then asked. "Nothing else was used besides the wine bottle, right?"
With a clear contradiction heard, Hana interrupted the Ultimate Thief and called out, "Wait, that's wrong!"
"Hold on, Hinata- the wine bottle wasn't the only thing I was attacked with," the surfer informed him.
"Really? Ah, you know I don't remember that morning, thanks to that damn motive..." Hinata responded, muttering to himself bitterly.
"Anyways, before I was knocked out with the bottle, I was stabbed in the leg too," Hana explained. "Right, guys?"
"As the one who treated you, I can confirm," Shiori responded. "The stab went directly into the right thigh, even severing the femoral artery- with a wound like that, you very easily could have bled out if the others had found you later."
"S-Stabbed too!?" Asuna yelped. "Tadao, why!?"
"S-Self defense! I- brought a knife with me in case someone tried to murder me," Tadao explained. "Like I said, I thought that was why Amari had followed me into the wine room- obviously, I was wrong, but at the time..."
"Don't 'at the time' us, I thought I was the one about to be murdered!" Hana snapped at the waiter before he could finish. "For someone who thought he had to defend himself, you sure did a hell of a job jamming a knife through my leg!"
"Hana, Hana, watch your temper- don't want to make Monokuma angry again," Hiroshi admonished her. He then said, possibly in an attempt to change the subject, "Uh- weren't you going to talk about the knife, Hana?"
"O-Oh, yeah, I was," Hana replied, quickly trying to calm herself down.
"On the topic of the knife used on Amari...we never found it," Akira spoke up. "But, I believe I managed to come up with a good idea of what it might have been. I asked Shimaru the day of the attack if anything had been missing from the kitchen-"
"And I was honest with her to deflect suspicion towards me- I told her a chef's knife had gone missing," Tadao confirmed. "You asked me something similar during the investigation, Amari."
"The depth of the stab wound seemed to confirm this- from what I could gather, I'd say the blade was about...eight and a half inches long," Shiori explained. "So, yeah, seems about right for something like a chef's knife."
"Well- what if I said that knife had been found?" Hana then told the others, leaning forward slightly. "Not just by me, but by anyone who saw the scene in the sunroom."
"The sunroom? But the only things that were in there were Saku's body, the knife, the-" Ryoto began...before he realized what Hana was getting at, and he loudly declared, "WAIT A SECOND!"
"So...your second attempt at connecting what I did to these murders is the knife that was used on Yamamoto?" Tadao inquired, skeptical. "What, are you going to say it's the same knife?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying!" Hana confirmed. "That knife the killer used to slit Saku's stomach was the same knife that you used to stab me!"
"Gah-!? Don't say something so asinine without proof!" Tadao retorted. "It's not like there was only one knife of that type in the kitchen, maybe-"
"Actually...I noticed something about the knife in the sunroom," Hiroshi spoke up. "Now, the blade was covered in Saku's blood, yes...but I also found traces of more blood beneath that. Older blood, I'd say about a day old at that point."
"Ew!" Rumi yelped. "God, I could never handle doing your job, Hiroshi..."
"Gross, but important," Hiroshi added. "Because that means the knife had been used at least one other time prior to the murders. And look at that- someone was severely stabbed a little over 24 hours before this incident- interesting timing, wouldn't you agree?"
"But that wasn't the only thing weird about the knife," Hana went on. "On the handle, there was...something. Like, little pieces of something sticking to it. Looking back on it, I...think it might have been tape. Like, masking tape."
"Masking tape?" Hinata asked. "Well that's weird- why were there pieces of tape on the handle?"
"And does it actually tie the incident yesterday to the incident today?" Shiori also inquired.
"I think it does," Hana responded with a nod. That's right...if what was stuck to the knife was really masking tape, then the evidence that ties my attack to Saku and Shiro's murders is...
"Shiori...during the investigation, remember when I found that floorboard in the wine room?" Hana asked the surgeon. "The one that was loose, and you could just take it out?"
"Oh yeah- you were pretty damn ecstatic about it," Shiori confirmed. "Something about how, just before you were attacked the day before, you...bumped your foot into it or something. In fact, you didn't remember what exactly it had been until that moment from what I could gather."
"Well, yeah- finding it during the investigation was what made me remember," Hana told her. "But at the time, I didn't know what it meant...but now I think I do."
The surfer went on, "See, on the back of that floorboard, I found some torn strips of masking tape. Not even that, but on the tape- and kinda on the floorboard itself- there were older bloodstains. And that, plus the torn tape on the knife handle...makes me think the knife that was used on me had been hidden under the floorboard, then the killer went and grabbed so they could use it on Saku!"
"But who the hell just has masking tape lying around?" Hinata asked.
"And why did they just leave the knife all bloody instead of cleaning it?" Rumi also questioned.
"W-Well...the storage room has, like, supplies and stuff- like, paper and pencils and other office stuff..." Asuna responded. "Masking tape would probably fit into that category too, a-and it's not like the storage is locked 24/7- I should know, I'm the one who locks it- so..."
"And as for why the knife wasn't cleaned..." Shiori pondered. "Well, the kitchen's locked at night so there's no accessing dishwashing stuff, and washing a bloody knife in your bathroom sink wouldn't be as effective, not to mention carrying around a bloody knife is suspicious enough- yeah, I guess it would just be the least riskiest move to just leave the knife, bloody or not."
"...I wonder..." Akira muttered to herself. "Amari? When you went to the wine room that morning, and your foot hit the floorboard...was it already removed at that time?"
"...Uh...I think...?" Hana responded, trying to wrack her head for the memory. "When I first hit it, it didn't seem like it was evenly in the floor. Plus, I picked it up pretty easily, like it was already lying there, removed. So...I guess yes, it was? Maybe?"
"...Perhaps, Shimaru..." Akira began, turning back to the waiter in question. "Perhaps that was the real reason you went to the wine room that morning."
"W-What are you saying, Rimutsu?" Tadao asked, narrowing his eyes somewhat.
"I'm saying- assuming you are the killer- you've been planning this murder for a little while now," the prosecutor explained. "Seeking out the motive, exploring the West Wing like you were, even going so far as to test out the motive on one of the others. Who's to say, as part of your preparations, you didn't plan on hiding a potential murder weapon somewhere in the Wing? And when Amari walked in on you, you attacked her out of fear that she would figure out what you were doing?"
"Th-That is...! I...!" Tadao stammered, clearly caught off guard by the accusation.
"And by the way- don't try to deny anything about the attack, because you confessed beyond all doubt that you were the one who attacked Amari," Akira then added, crossing her arms. "Stabbing and bludgeoning and all."
Tadao's eyes widened in horror as the realization of what he had done by confessing dawned on him. His hands began to shake, his breathing grew rather quick, and his usual composure was evidently beginning to break down.
"Which I wouldn't have, by the way!" Hana then added with a glare. "Seriously, you didn't have to-"
"Oh, shut UP, Amari!" Tadao snapped at the surfer. "I already confessed to being the attacker! And now you all intend to pin me as the murderer too!? Desperation is what this is! You all just have no other leads, so you've been listening to that idiot lead us all down a rabbit hole!"
"The evidence doesn't lie, Tadao," Hiroshi told him. "Listen, it's not that we like doing this, but-"
"Hah! Well, if you love your evidence so much, then maybe you should look again!" Tadao rudely responded. "Don't you realize this entire story you've concocted is completely impossible!?"
"It's not impossible!" Hana shouted at him. "You had to have known about the marked glass, Shiro's dying message was talking about your eye color, you were the only one besides me and Hiroshi and Akira who knew about the wine bottle, you also had to have known about the knife-"
"Knock it off! God, don't you ever know when to shut up?!" Tadao shouted at the surfer- apparently, any fear he may have had towards Hana following her outburst had evaporated with his rage. "This is all your fault, you know! If you hadn't brought up what happened in the wine room, the discussion wouldn't have come to this! You've screwed up everyone's perception of this case with an impossible theory!"
"Do you hear me!? The idea that I'm the killer is impossible!" Tadao cried out. "Impossible, impossible, impossible, impossible!"
"We heard you the first time, thanks," Shiori stated flatly.
"Why do you keep saying it's impossible!?" Hana yelled right back at him.
"Look at the evidence!" Tadao responded. "The alibis! Or have you forgotten about those!?"
"HEY! Don't bring my brilliant idea into YOUR BULLSHIT!" Ryoto shouted at the waiter.
"But look again! We've established from the very beginning that I was one of the two people who never once left Hamasaki's party!" Tadao explained with an arrogant grin. "Riddle me that Amari, since you seem so intent on pinning this on me, is there some way I could have left the party without anyone noticing?"
Hana's eyes widened as she stuttered, "W-Well, you-"
"No, even better- let's say, by some miracle, I did leave the party before anyone noticed!" Tadao rambled on. "I would have had to have left before 6:05 in order to make it to the sunroom before Yamamoto and/or Koichi arrived, correct? The Despair Drink took effect at a little after 5:45, so that would be no issue, right?"
"Well, maybe-"
"But then I had to wait until- what, after 6:30 to kill Yamamoto? And then I spent even more time having to chase down Koichi and killing him too?" Tadao demanded. "What would that leave me- about ten minutes to stage two crime scenes, then return to the banquet room before the Despair Drink would have worn off and thus causing everyone to realize I was gone!?"
"You're honestly saying that I knocked out Yamamoto, strangled him, chased Koichi, killed him, took the knife and slit Yamamoto's stomach, climbed up the watchtower, pushed the crate down the stairs, took the debris into the wine room, and returned to the banquet room before the Despair Drink even wore off!? In the span of less than ten minutes!?" Tadao continued. "What kind of divine intervention do you think was assisting me!?"
Hana grit her teeth, yet she still had no explanation for what Tadao was describing.
"That is why this entire story is impossible!" the Ultimate concluded. "There's no way I could have done all of that and make it back to the party in time!"
All the while, Hana kept silent as she thought about Tadao's final argument. He's the killer. I know deep down that Tadao's the one who murdered Saku and Shiro. But, even with all this evidence...it doesn't change the point Tadao's been making. Yeah, it does seem weird that he could do all that and make it back to the banquet room before everyone's blackout ended. But, for him to be the killer...that has to have been what happened! So there's gotta be a way for that to have happened! That's the only way to end this damn trial once and for all!
The girl thought hard, and she thought quickly to try and come up with an answer. She thought about the layout of the West Wing, anything that could have allowed Tadao to get from the top floor of the West Wing back down to the banquet room in time- it had to be possible, right?
...Wait a second... Hana thought to. The more she thought about it...there was one thing he could have used to make the trip back downstairs, and make it quickly. I wonder...could he have used that thing...? No way, that seems pretty weird, but...I mean, it's possible, isn't it...?
"...I think there is something you could have used, Tadao," Hana answered. "And it doesn't just explain how you made it back to the party before the Despair Drink wore off, but it also kinda explains how you snuck out in the first place."
"What...!?" Tadao gasped, his eyes wide. "There is no way..."
"There is a way- you used the dumbwaiter, didn't you?" Hana asked him with an accusing tone. "The one that goes between the wine room and the banquet room!"
"The...dumbwaiter...?" Shiori spoke. "Not to rain on your parade Hana, but those are typically used to move items, not people."
"I dunno Doc, I saw that dumbwaiter myself..." Hinata responded. "And honestly, it seemed a bit bigger than your average lift. Seriously, I can see someone Tadao's size squeezing themselves into it."
"Plus...it seems like a more sophisticated type of dumbwaiter, what with it having a motor and all..." Asuna added. "It probably could have held up if a person was inside it."
"Yeah- and if you used that, you could cut the time it would take to get between the two floors into seconds," Hana explained. "Definitely enough time to return to the party before the Despair Drink wore off. Even if you cut it super close, using the dumbwaiter would make all kinds of difference."
Narrowing her eyes, the surfer inquired, "So, how about it, Tadao? You being the killer doesn't seem too impossible now, does it?"
"I...I refuse to accept this..." Tadao hissed, clenching his gloved hands. "You have no place accusing me, do you understand? You...You don't even know what you're saying! You're a fool, you're an idiot! You don't know the first thing about proper investigation, you honestly think I'm going to listen to your arguments!?"
"Hey! I've made some breakthroughs in the last two trials, didn't I!?" Hana pointed out. "I may be an athlete, but-"
"Luck! That's all it was! You're no detective, your talent is completely useless to everyone here!" the waiter retorted. "So just shut up, would you!? Your opinion means nothing! I refuse to acknowledge the arguments of a fool like you!"
"Then how about you acknowledge my arguments- will that suffice, Shimaru?" Akira suddenly spoke up, cutting off both Tadao and Amari.
"R-Rimutsu...?" Tadao began, his arrogance vanishing yet again as he faced the Ultimate Prosecutor.
"I agree that Amari is far from detective material, and her victories in the past were based on nothing but luck and instincts," Akira conceded, speaking as if the surfer in question wasn't even in the room.
"Luck"...? "Instincts"...? I mean yeah, some of it, but come on... Hana sadly told herself. What's a girl gotta do to get some validation around here...?
"But I cannot ignore the argument that has been made," Akira went on. "Thinking about that dumbwaiter...while it may seem somewhat unorthodox and unsafe, especially considering the other examples of questionable structural integrity in this castle, I have to agree with what Amari is saying."
"You do!?" Tadao yelped in shock.
"Dumbwaiters are built to be able to hold and transport items like food and such. A larger lift would mean stronger cables, especially if they would have to be able to last against being spun around a motor," the young woman explained. "So, to have to carry a person who is about...5'5", and only two times at that...the lift would survive."
"So in other words, it's entirely possible for Tadao to have used the dumbwaiter to get between the two floors?" Hiroshi summarized, raising an eyebrow.
"It's not just possible, it's the only way he could have snuck out and returned on time," Hana concluded.
At last, Tadao went silent, but the Ultimate Waiter was clearly seething from the revelations.
"Well then, unless anyone has any other objections..." Akira spoke up. "I believe we finally have all the information we need to piece together the events of the murder and identify the blackened."
"Hey, Hana- do you want to handle this?" Hiroshi asked the surfer. "After all, in a sense, you yourself were somewhat of a victim of this case too. If we didn't have Shiori's talent, you might not be standing here right now."
"No need to remind me..." Hana responded, taking a deep breath. "But...yeah. I'll do it."
Well, it's finally time again...I just need to put together the pieces of the murder itself using the evidence, just like I've done before. Hana told herself to assure herself. Okay...this is for Saku, and for Shiro...but I guess it's also a little bit for myself, too. I wanted to know who tried to kill me, and who killed Saku and Shiro...but I never would have guessed they'd be the same person...
Resolving herself yet again, Hana declared, "Here's what I think happened!"
"The killer was actually planning these murders a while in advance, by at least a day or two- and I think it all began when they found Monokuma's motive hidden in the West Wing. It was a beverage that he called the "Despair Drink", and whatever it did, it would help the culprit with their murder plot. But the killer probably didn't know what the Drink actually did, so they planned to test it out on one of their classmates during one of the meetings. At that point, the culprit probably hid the motive somewhere they could access it and where nobody would try to look for it- they also tore the label off too, since Monokuma said the motive would have his eye symbol on it."
"In addition to using the Despair Drink, the culprit also evidently wanted to utilize the West Wing into their plan. So, the morning before they planned to test out the Despair Drink, the killer also went into the West Wing a little while before the morning announcement played. Their plan was to make more preparations for their murder plot- specifically, they were going to hide a potential murder weapon in the wine room: a knife from the kitchen. They brought the knife and some masking tape from the South Wing's storage room, then proceeded to remove a loose board from the wine room's floor. But before they could finish setting up the knife...something happened."
"The killer didn't realize this, but I was having trouble sleeping at that time, and I decided to go for a walk around the castle while everyone else was asleep. And when I did, I saw the culprit on the second floor of the South Wing, and I ultimately followed them into the wine room. The lights in the wine room don't work too well, so I couldn't turn them on, so as far as I knew nobody was actually there. But when I went a little farther into the wine room...my foot bumped against that floorboard that the killer had removed. Probably afraid that I would realize something was wrong, they attacked me right after. They used the kitchen knife to stab me in the leg, and then, before I could even figure out what was going on, they grabbed one of the large red wine bottles that was kept in a rack full of eleven other identical bottles and bashed me over the head with it. I was knocked out, and the bottle was broken slightly, causing the drink inside to spill on me and the floor.
"Now, the culprit could have killed me right there...but for some reason, they didn't. I can only imagine it was because they wanted to incorporate the Despair Drink into a more elaborate murder plan somehow, which wouldn't happen if they killed me like that. So, the killer got rid of the broken bottle and finished taping the now bloody knife to the bottom of the board, putting it back in its spot on the floor, and left before the end of nighttime."
"That morning, before the others realized I was missing, the culprit made good on their plan to test out the Despair Drink. Because the drink itself doesn't look that suspicious, it would have been easy for them to simply serve it to one of the others, who would be none the wiser. They chose to give the Despair Drink to Ryoto- which I think was a bit of spite on the killer's part- but Hinata swiped it during breakfast and drank it himself. Not that it really deterred the killer; either way, seeing how Hinata acted during and after the effects took place allowed them to figure out just what the Despair Drink would do. To be more specific: the Despair Drink has this drug in it called midazolam, and that ingredient is what causes whoever ingested the Drink to have a memory blackout, although it doesn't make them act any different than they normally would. And based on what Hinata could and couldn't remember from that morning when Rumi and Hiroshi and found me, the killer was also able to figure out the effects lasted for an hour."
"So, they had the motive sorted out and a possible weapon hidden- now they needed a target and an opportunity. The day after the incident in the wine room, Saku provided the target; I can only assume the culprit must have overheard him telling me about the 'threatening' note he had written to Shiro, though Saku only wrote it that way because Shiro, in his depressed state, refused to talk to anyone unless they planned to murder him. From that conversation, the killer was able to figure out when Saku and Shiro would be by themselves, that they would be in the sunroom, and that they would meet at 6:05 PM. As for the opportunity...well, Rumi unintentionally provided that when she told the rest of the class about her plans to throw a party in the West Wing. With a good chunk of the students gathered like that, it would be easy for the killer to serve them glasses of the Despair Drink and render all of them blacked out, leaving the perfect opportunity to leave and commit a murder."
"So, at little after 5:45 PM while the party was underway, the killer got to work. Being the Ultimate Waiter, it only made sense that they would be the ones handing out the food and drinks- and it gave them the chance to pour the Despair Drink into everyone's glasses. Well, almost everyone's glasses; the killer wanted everyone else to think that they had also been under the Drink's effects, so they filled their own glass with a similar-looking but different drink. How did they know which glass was safe? Simple- they used a marker, which they also probably got from the storage room, to draw a dot on the bottom of one the glasses to show which one didn't have the Despair Drink in it. The others at the party- Akira, Hiroshi, Rumi, Shiori, Ryoto, and Asuna- thinking the drinks were safe, all drank from their glasses, and wound up under the Drink's influence not long after. After the killer was sure they were all under its effects and waiting until they wouldn't be missed, they snuck out of the party using a...unique way of transport."
"Between the banquet room on the ground floor and the wine room on the second floor, there's a larger-than-usual dumbwaiter powered by a motor. The killer climbed into the lift, pressed the button on the side, and was transported to the second floor just like that. Before heading to the sunroom, they took another one of the red wine bottles from the wine room- identical to the one they had used to attack me. Making their way into the sunroom before anyone else arrived, the killer hid themselves in the closet, and waited for an opportunity to attack. That chance came a little while before 6:30, when Shiro left the room to go and grab his notebook. Once Saku was alone, the killer slipped out of the closet, snuck up behind him...and smashed the wine bottle over his head. And the killer knew the red wine bottle would make a good weapon, because they had used the exact same weapon on me the day before!"
"And also just like the attack in the wine room, the wine bottle worked; Saku was knocked out, and some of the contents of the bottle spilled out onto him and the chair he was sitting on. From there, the killer moved in to finish him off- and they didn't need to prepare a weapon beforehand, because they had one right in the sunroom. The culprit took the tablecloth off the middle table, and...while their victim was lying there unconscious, the killer used the tablecloth to strangle him to death. But as Saku's last breath was suffocated out of him...something that the killer did NOT prepare for happened."
"Shiro returned to the sunroom after retrieving his notebook, probably expecting to see Saku waiting there for him, only to see the culprit having just finished him off. Having regained his will to live and realizing that he, too, would be in danger, Shiro fled the scene. The Despair Drink was a good way to create a cover for their crime, but having an actual witness to the murder would be disastrous to the culprit. Thinking fast, they grabbed the first thing they saw that could have been a weapon- the stone dragon statuette placed on the sunroom's other table. Shiro ran into the wine room, chased by the killer; he probably realized he may not survive, so he began to write a description of the killer in his notebook. But he only managed to write down the killer's eye color- 'aquamarine'- before they caught up to him. The killer ran into the wine room, which was dark again because of the faulty lights, and bludgeoned Shiro with the stone statuette- he was killed in one hit. Fortunately, the impact of the statue sent Shiro flying, and it caused his notebook to slide underneath one of the wine room's shelves. Because of that and the darkness, I don't think the killer even knew about the dying message until this trial."
"But now the killer had a problem- they had to deal with two victims instead of one. But despite this, the culprit wasn't about to give up, and they formed a new plan. They went to the back of the wine room and removed the loose floorboard again, ripping the knife from the tape and putting the board back before heading back to the sunroom where Saku's corpse was. Using the same chef's knife they had used to stab me, the killer made a deep slice across Saku's stomach in a way reminiscent of a seppuku to make it look like a suicide- in fact, the killer probably got the idea from how Itachi died in the last trial. After that, they put the tablecloth back in its proper place and was going to do the same with the statuette- but the killer probably hadn't visited the sunroom that often and couldn't remember which of the two tables the statue was supposed to be on, so they just put it on the center table in the hopes that it would be correct. Which it wasn't, that was how we figured out the statuette had been moved in the first place. After that, they probably cleaned up any other obvious blood spots from the strangling, let down Saku's hair to hide the head injury, and put the knife near one of his hands, all to make it look like the stomach wound was the cause of death."
"After staging the scene in the sunroom, the killer had to tamper with the scene of Shiro's murder next- specifically, making it look like Saku was the killer. They made their way up the watchtower where a bunch of big and heave wooden crates are kept. The culprit took one of those crates, and they pushed it down the tower's steps- the stone steps and the stone floor of the tower's base did a number on the crate, and it was broken apart effortlessly. From there, the killer took the largest chunks of the broken crate, leaving behind the smaller pieces of debris, and put them in the wine room. The killer also made sure to dip some of the pieces in Shiro's blood to make the crate seem like the murder weapon- and since the crate was so heavy, it would put even more suspicion onto Saku."
"With the deaths staged, the killer had to get back down to the banquet room before the Despair Drink wore off, and chances were they didn't have much time left after having to tamper with all that evidence. But luckily for the killer, they still had a way to move between the two floors quickly- the dumbwaiter. Just like they had used it to leave the party, now they'd use it to head back to the party. Normally, the trip to the banquet room from the wine room would take a minute or two, but with the dumbwaiter the trip could be made in seconds. And sure enough, the killer was back in the banquet room, and if anyone had noticed their disappearance...well, that changed when the Despair Drink wore off. Everyone's blackout had ended, they had no memory of the past hour, and the killer could act like they had also lost their memory while being at the party the whole time, and the others wouldn't suspect anything due to memory loss."
"And...that's how this whole case played out. It was complicated and cold-hearted, but somehow we were able to figure out who set up this whole plot and killed both Saku and Shiro," Hana concluded, facing the blackened student head-on. "So then...have I got everything right, Tadao?"
Tadao's eyes were narrowed towards the surfer, and she was sure he was about to try and make some rebuttal.
"And for the record, Amari's summarizing of the case sounds plausible, so I second it," Akira stated, crossing her arms. "Any objections?"
Ryoto was glaring daggers at Tadao, and judging by the fury in his eyes he agreed with the surfer too.
"I think that about covers it too," Hiroshi also stated, nodding at Hana in agreement.
Tadao glanced around the room and, realizing everyone else seemed to be in agreement, calmed himself enough to respond, "Fine then...so that's the end of it, isn't it? Hmph..."
He adjusted his gloves and straightened himself into a dignified posture. "Very well then. You're all in agreement, and there is nothing else I can say. So then...I suppose it's time to close off this trial."
"That it is," Akira replied, before turning her attention to Monokuma. "Monokuma. We're ready- let's start the voting time."
"Phew! That climax was quite the rush! Such emotion, such anger- I'd love to see you all at each other's throats some more, but all things must come to an end!" Monokuma replied. "You know the drill- pull the lever next to your podium to cast your vote on who you believe the guilty party is! Who will be chosen as the blackened? Will you make the right choice, or the dreadfully wrong one?"
Loudly declaring in exuberant enthusiasm, "What's it gonna be? What's it gonna beeee!?"
This time around, while Hana still had a few reservations- after all, they were sentencing someone to death- her hesitation was less than it had been the previous times, and as a result she pulled the lever and made her vote quickly.
Finally, everyone had cast their votes, and the familiar large monitor descended from the ceiling for the class to see. Moments later, it came to life in a flash of static like it had in the past, depicting the flashing slot machine with the massive 'VOTE' glowing above it. Then, the three slots began to rapidly spin (and despite the speed, Hana could still make out more grayed-out faces of the deceased students), finally stopping after a few seconds. And when the slots stopped...they all showed a graphic of Tadao's face. The word 'GUILTY'! flashed colorfully above the slot machine, countless coins flew out of from the machine to signify victory, and the screen went black as the fanfare ended.
The voting time having ended, Monokuma stood up on his throne and said, "Well, as the old saying goes, third time's the charm...for the spotless, that is!"
He hopped off the throne, declaring, "That's right! The blackened student who murdered two of his classmates was the one and only: Tadao Shimaru!"
The Ultimate Waiter in question kept a straight face, looking over his classmates as he spoke up, "Well...I suppose congratulations are in order. I thought I had created the perfect murder- a way to create a false alibi, a pair of students that I would make perfect targets..."
Hana let out a soft sigh- well, there was no more doubt. Tadao was the true killer all along. Somehow, unlike the previous blackened students, she didn't feel that shocked or betrayed by this revelation...perhaps that was due to Tadao's earlier murder threats?
"Seriously dude...? Killing one person wasn't good enough, you had to go and kill two?" Hinata began. "The hell is wrong with you!?"
Tadao glared and responded, "Well I didn't plan on killing two people. My plan was to murder either Koichi or Yamamoto, then frame the other for the crime. But, as you all figured out...things went wrong."
The waiter shook his head, bitterly adding, "To think...I spent all that time planning things out in advance, and I still had to improvise..."
"So, what, you don't feel bad about what happened at all?" Shiori asked him, crossing her arms. "Somehow, that doesn't surprise me..."
"Not exactly. Like I said, I would have preferred to only kill one of them- if someone had to die, I would have preferred to have some form of purpose to it," Tadao explained. "But alas, I couldn't just allow a witness like Koichi to tell the others what he had seen, in spite of the motive."
Doesn't sound very regretful to me... Hana told herself, narrowing her eyes at the Ultimate Waiter.
"If you want to know what I regret most, however..." Tadao continued. "Looking back on it...I shouldn't have left the wine room like I did the day before."
"...What?" Hana began, taken aback by what the waiter was saying. "What do you mean?"
"I mean...I was too hasty. I thought your previous two successes in the class trials were just flukes- that if you lived, you wouldn't be able to figure out the murder that I planned to commit," Tadao explained, his voice growing more frustrated. "But now I know...I should have killed you right then and there, Despair Drink be damned. It would have been easy, too- you were unconscious, I had a knife, everyone was asleep...!"
With a furious growl, he shouted, "You're no Ultimate Detective, you're a surfer! What right do you think you have to make all these accusations against me!? Rimutsu or Ashi would be one thing, but you!?"
"And you know what I should have done!? I shoulda beat the CRAP out of you ages ago!" Ryoto furiously shouted. "I knew you were up to no good all along!"
"Hey, Ryoto! If you're gonna beat him into a pulp, save some for me!" Hana yelled as well, her earlier fury towards Tadao resurfacing.
"Hana, Ryoto! Don't," Hiroshi scolded the duo. "He's going to be executed soon...it's not worth it."
Extremely begrudgingly, the duo backed off. Still, Hana furiously glared at the waiter to make her feelings about what he had done to her, Saku, and Shiro clear as day.
"I...can't understand this at all..." Rumi began, her voice quavering like she was on the verge of tears. She then yelled at the waiter, "This wasn't supposed to happen! The party was supposed to bring us all together again! It was supposed to be fun and happy, and you...you used it for your stupid murder plan!"
"Oh come on! This is some murder game, did you honestly think throwing a party wouldn't open up an opportunity for a killing?" Tadao retorted harshly.
Rumi's hands curled into fists as she visibly attempted to hold back tears, responding shakily, "I...hoped it wouldn't come to that. I...really didn't think it would..."
"Hey! You were the only one who took advantage of her party you asshole!" Hinata yelled at the Ultimate Waiter, seeming outraged at what he was saying to Rumi.
"S-Seriously, can you quit being so...unpleasant?" Asuna asked, trying to restrain her aggrieved tone.
"Excuse me, but I'm about to be sent to my death," the waiter told her, contempt. "Why should I care who I offend in my final moments?"
"...Tadao. Before you, you know...get executed, can you at least tell us one other thing?" Hana then asked, taking a step towards her classmate. "Why did you do all this? Monokuma's motive, it was...just a way to make it easier to commit a murder, wasn't it?"
"That's true- the motive this time was far from typical, simply being a means to an end," Akira added. "It wasn't anything psychological like the first motive, nor did it have ties to our lives on the outside like the second motive. So what exactly was your endgame here, Shimaru? Were you simply that desperate to escape this place that you gave in?"
Tadao was silent for a moment, as if contemplating whether or not to tell the group about his motivation, before he stated, "Come on now, you've proven how good your memory is. I've told you all before- I have big plans for my life after graduation. I may be trapped in this damn castle with the rest of you, but I have not once given up on my ambitions. Understand?"
Hana's eyes widened somewhat. That again...I remember him mentioning something about that the day after Mikio's trial, yeah...and I think he might have mentioned it somewhat a few times after that...
"Yeah? So do I, but you don't see me killing people," Shiori critically spoke. "What the hell could you want that's worth committing murder?"
Tadao chuckled slightly, a sinister grin forming as he responded, "Oh believe me- when I say 'big plans', I really do aim high for my goals."
"See, for years now...I've always wanted to open my own restaurant. And no, not just any restaurant- but the largest, cleanest, most pristine restaurant in the country. It would be staffed with the most skilled cooks crafting the most delicious meals, the most skilled waiters like yours truly, filled with the most prestigious clientele. Why, the highest class individuals from all over the world would flock to my restaurant just to experience it- prime ministers, presidents, queens, kings, you name it! And as for me- well, I would be the owner of all kinds of riches, known as the founder and owner of such an exquisite establishment- I might even rival the wealth of, say, the Togami corporation!"
"That has been my one true goal in life for years- why do you think I'm a waiter? I'm learning every aspect of the food industry, working my way up. Attending and then graduating Hope's Peak Academy would have only accelerated that process, honestly. I have dreamed of that achievement for as long as I can remember, I have worked myself in so many ways to make fantasy a reality. Imagine what my restaurant would have accomplished, what it would have contributed..."
Tadao then turned his attention back to the others and demanded, "Do you honestly, honestly believe I would throw that dream away for you people!?"
"..." Hana was completely dumbfounded. She did not think anything else in this trial would shock her so badly, and yet hearing Tadao's motivation accomplihsed the impossible. "That's...That's it..? You murdered...two people..."
She then furiously cried out, "You murdered two people so you could open a restaurant!? Are you insane!?"
The smile faded from Tadao's face; the waiter softly sighed and responded, "Oh, I should have known none of you would understand. Well, I suppose it doesn't matter- you all wanted to know my motivation, and I explained- I can't help it if no one likes what they've heard, and honestly I don't care."
The more her fellow Ultimate talked, the angrier the entire situation made Hana. She had wondered just what could have led Tadao to act the way he did, to want to kill someone so badly- to find out it was all for a restaurant was like another blow to the head.
"That's not the problem, you motherfucking murderer!" Ryoto snarled at the waiter. "You killed two of your own classmates! You caused ANOTHER murder! Even after what Itachi said before he died, you STILL did all of this! AND ALL FOR SOMETHING SO STUPID!"
"Would you knock it off, Miura!?" Tadao demanded in frustration. "Do you honestly think I ever gave a damn about Kunata's 'dying wish' or what-have-you? I dare even say I was somewhat glad to see him gone- if it hadn't been for him murdering Tenmaru, I probably would have been able to pull off a murder much sooner..."
"...Uh, come again?" Hinata spoke, doing a small double take as Tadao made that remark.
"Mmph, I suppose there's no harm in admitting this, too..." Tadao mused to himself before elaborating, "Truth is, I was planning a murder back when the second floor of the South Wing first opened up."
"W-Wha-!?" Asuna stammered in surprise.
Hana, just as shocked nearly fell over at that point. "Y-You were!? You actually were!?"
"Get real- his threats were serious before this murder, what makes you think he was being any less serious back then?" Akira pointed out, her eyes narrowing in a subdued fury- not exactly her trademark death glare, but close enough.
"W-WAIT! Then...the night the murder happened, when we were arguing in the dining room..." Ryoto stammered, appearing to speak faster than his mind could keep up. "I was RIGHT!? I mean I knew I was right, but seriously, I WAS RIGHT!?"
"He was right?" Shiori yelped at the same time, staring at the Ultimate Racecar Driver.
"Yes, he was- now I wasn't planning to kill that exact night, but the facts are the same," Tadao confirmed in an inappropriately casual tone.
"So let me get this straight- Ryoto had good reason to suspect you, even if it wasn't at the right time...he was right to suspect you this time, even if he didn't have real evidence to back it up...and he had the actual decent idea of that log...?" Shiori said to herself, before crying out (in genuine bewilderment, no less), "What is this, some kind of alternate universe where Ryoto is semi-intelligent!?"
"HELL YEAH! See, I'm more than just a pretty face!" Ryoto declared...before his triumphant mood fell and he added, "Well, I would have preferred to be right and be able to stop you from killing someone, Tadao."
"But, you didn't- just like I told you back then, you wouldn't be able to stop me if I killed someone right in front in you," Tadao told the other Ultimate with a dark grin. "And with the motive, I could have easily done that."
"You are REALLY making me wish we had let Ryoto drop you from the tower when he had the chance," Hana growled at the Ultimate Waiter. It took all of her willpower and the memory of Monokuma's Arms of Gungnir to keep her from launching at Tadao and beating him like she had attempted to do during the trial.
"Like I said- I'm about to die, so I really have no concerns over who I offend with my last words," Tadao repeated haughtily. "Whether they be living or dead."
"Silence, Shimaru," Akira growled at the waiter- this time, it was her signature death glare, and it shut even Tadao right up. "Kurobe was one thing, Kunata was another...but you? I despise criminals, but those as selfish as you I loathe the most."
"...I'm selfish?" Tadao inquired, before chuckling softly. "I'm the selfish one? Haha..."
"Well yeah- you killed for a restaurant," Hinata pointed out.
The Ultimate Waiter, however, still appeared amused. "Oh, fair enough I suppose. I killed for something that would benefit me and me alone- so, you're right Rimutsu, I am very selfish. But, ah...answer me this- anyone, really, can answer this..."
He then turned his attention to the other students and asked one simple question: "Why did Kurobe kill Nakamura?"
Hana's eyes widened slightly. "What...? Hey, what kind of question is that?"
"Just answer it, someone," Tadao said again. "And in the same line of reasoning, a follow-up question: Why did Kunata kill Tenmaru?"
"W-Why that too?" Asuna asked herself, visibly tensing.
"Azami...was scared by the first motive. She...thought Mikio was going to kill her when he was actually trying to calm her down, and in her frenzy of panic, she..." Hiroshi recapped, trailing off as he realized he didn't need to explain beyond that.
Hana furrowed her brow in confusion- why was Hiroshi going along with this? And what was Tadao's point?
"As for Itachi...he hoped to graduate Hope's Peak so he could restore his family's name. He thought the second motive would make that goal a reality, in spite of not being in Hope's Peak itself," Hiroshi went on, answering the second part of the question.
"So- saving your own life and restoring your family's honor..." Tadao summarized. "Tell me, are either of those any less selfish than what I've done?"
"Excuse you, Shimaru, I never said those two were any more innocent," Akira reminded him with an annoyed scowl. "But unlike you, I can somewhat see how someone would argue the sympathy factor of what they did- not that I'd agree with them, obviously. But you? There's no chance."
"Selfish is selfish, and it cost people their lives," Tadao replied as if he hadn't heard the prosecutor. "Kurobe and Kunata were as selfish in their crimes as I was with mine- the only difference is that I admit to it."
"...Tadao...can you please stop talking like this?" Hiroshi asked the waiter- to Hana's surprise, he was the only one who wasn't looking at Tadao with any form of anger or resentment. If anything, the look in his eyes was almost...pitying?
"I know you're going to be executed, and you want to die with no regrets, but...do you have to make things worse with everyone? Committing a double murder was bad enough, and the way you isolated yourself everyone before..." the coroner spoke, his voice strained from trying to keep his emotions in check. "Why do you want to die with everyone hating you? We're your classmates, Tadao- so were Saku and Shiro. Your motive is one thing, but-"
"Stop calling me your classmate!" Tadao snapped once again. "None of us are classmates!"
"What!? Of course we are! We were all going to be a part of the same class at Hope's Peak Academy!" Rumi quickly responded.
"We were going to be. But thanks to whoever kidnapped us and forced us into this damned killing game, that never happened. We never once set foot in Hope's Peak, let alone once as a class!" Tadao refuted. "That is why I don't care what you all think of me, nor will I feel much positivity for any of you- as far as I'm concerned, we're nothing but strangers. Sure, some of us may have formed friendships, and we have 'Ultimate' titles...but that doesn't change how, before coming to this castle, we never even met one another."
"..." Hana glanced at Hiroshi once again, but his saddened look did not subside or give way to resentment. She then looked at Tadao again- not appearing completely joyful or fearful of his position, instead looking rather tired, dare even say irritated.
The surfer shook her head- all the rage in the world wouldn't bring Saku or Shiro back, so maybe it was time to take a page from Hiroshi's book yet again.
"...That's not completely true, Tadao," Hana told the waiter. "Maybe we never got to attend Hope's Peak like we were supposed to. But even still...that doesn't make how we feel about each other any less real!"
"The amount I care for my friends is real! The joy whenever I get to spend time with them is real! The pain I feel every time I lose one of them is real! We may not have been able to become classmates, but we're still friends!" the surfer shouted at Tadao, her prior rage replaced by the all-too familiar sting of grief- instead of her willpower holding back her anger, it was now holding back the urge to break down and cry. "I...I'm pretty sure you used to feel the same way, didn't you...? At first, anyways...before the first murder happened..."
"..." For a moment, Tadao's countenance remained stony...but Hana could swear she saw his face soften just a bit. However, if he was starting to feel any form of regret, he was doing an excellent job of hiding it.
"...Maybe so. As cynical as I was in the beginning, I did believe working together was the sensible thing to do," the waiter admitted with a frown. "After all, fifteen heads were better than one."
He then shook his head with a soft growl as he added, "I was naive then, though. A part of me actually believed we might be better than the temptation to kill. But after that first murder, that trial, the execution...I knew we were all just pipe dreaming. We're not as strong as we believe- Kurobe was proof of that. And I...I learned my lesson."
"...It...really didn't have to be this way, Tadao," Hiroshi then said. "Azami and Itachi made their choices. And you...you had a choice too. We could have found a way to escape, and then you could have realized your dream that way. But this way...you just doomed yourself."
"..." Tadao was quiet again, his face contemplative. He then asked, his face unreadable. "That's easy to say now, but...even if that first murder hadn't happened, would you have the same opinion in a few weeks? What about months, or what if we were trapped in here for years? Even now, it is uncertain. And that uncertainty, the idea that all I've worked for would ultimately be for nothing..."
"That doesn't matter," Akira told him. "We can and will find a way to escape this hell of a castle- and rest assured, we will not resort to murder to do so. Take that knowledge with you when you go to your execution."
"...And just so you know, Tadao- the killing game's been hard on all of us," Hana added with a sigh, glancing down. "It's not like no one would have understood what you were feeling."
"...I have another question," the waiter suddenly spoke, his blue-green gaze going steely. "Can any of you, any one of you say, with absolute and unyielding certainty, that there is another way to escape this castle besides the Graduation Clause? And don't tell me 'if there is, we'll find it' or something like that, I want something concrete."
Hana was about to respond right then and there...only to realize all her possible responses were exactly what Tadao did not want out of an answer. They were hopeful and optimistic, sure, but...they weren't facts. She had no concrete way to know if there really was an alternate escape from the castle...and judging by the deafening silence in the room, no one else did either.
"..." Tadao looked around at all the silent faces, gave a solemn nod, and flatly stated, "That's what I thought."
He then turned to the other end of the courtroom and said, "We're done here, Monokuma. Would you kindly start the execution? I'm sure a majority of the people here are eager to see it."
I'm never eager to watch someone die... Hana answered to herself with a deep frown. Tadao had nearly killed her, and coldly murdered Saku and Shiro...yet hearing his hopeless mindset made her wonder if he himself was, in one way or another, somewhat of a victim of this killing game as well, much like the two blackened students before him. Not that it was easy to forgive what the waiter had done, especially after she herself had nearly died by his hand.
"Oh? Just like that?" Monokuma inquired. "Nothing else to say? No cries for forgiveness? Or are you going to say that you won't die on my terms either?"
"No, no, none of that," Tadao told the bear. "I'm not going to sit down and cry like Kurobe did, nor will I try and defy it like Kunata did. I will go to my execution, I will face what ever fresh torture you have for me, but I will be content knowing that I will go down with dignity."
"Go out with dignity, eh?" Monokuma remarked. "Man, that's disappointing...well, at least I'll be happy seeing that composure crumble to tiny pieces at the very end!"
"Now then, I've prepared a very special punishment for Tadao Shimaru, the Ultimate Waiter!" the robotic bear then declared, speaking to the class as a whole. "Let's give it everything we've got! It's...PUNISHMENT TIIIME!"
"...Well- farewell, everyone. I suppose you all weren't the worst customers I've ever served," Tadao said to the group, doing one last bow for farewell. "I wonder...will that optimism of yours truly pay off in the end...?"
He then turned his back to them, unable to make eye contact with anyone. "...I can't say I believe it will."
Monokuma hopped back into his throne, and in that instant the foreboding red button arose from the courtroom floor, on its cubic base and held up by a metallic pole. The bear grasped his gavel and slammed it onto the button with gusto; one resounding 'click' later, the small screen beneath the button came on. Like before, it depicted a pixellated environment with a sprite resembling Tadao standing in the middle, only to be dragged away by Monokuma seconds later with text appearing.
GAME OVER
Tadao has been found guilty.
Time for the punishment!
The large TV monitor displayed what appeared to be the outside of a fancy, five-star restaurant- a Monokuma-themed, fancy, five-star restaurant. The camera then sped forward, bursting through the front doors and zooming in front of a table in the center of the expansive dining room. The other tables were packed with well-dressed men and women wearing masks resembling Monokuma's face- but the one in focus was seated with only a single person. It was Tadao Shimaru, his hands behind the chair and tied together while his ankles were bound to the chair legs; he was effectively immobilized, though he didn't make any motions to escape. If anything, he seemed almost mildly irritated, as if he'd prefer not to go through the hassle of one of Monokuma's dramatic executions.
Suddenly, a man wearing the same type of mask and a waiter's uniform came up to Tadao's table, carrying a covered silver dish. The man set the platter down, lifted up the lid, and on the plate was...another red button? Moments later, the masked man slammed his hand down on the button, causing a hole to open up in the floor beneath Tadao and the chair he was bound to.
The Ultimate Waiter and the chair plummeted down the dark opening, landing in a dim room with a thud- somehow, the chair remained upright and intact, while Tadao looked around to try and figure out what was happening. Then, the room erupted into light, illuminated by what appeared to be spotlights on the ceiling. This revealed that Tadao was now on top of a giant countertop, a plethora of oversized ingredients spread out across its surface. A shadow appeared over Tadao and the counter- it was a giant Monokuma, dressed as a chef and staring down intently at the uncooked food. An audience, their seating surrounding the cooking area, let out a roaring cheer; the scene was clear- this was meant to emulate some kind of cooking show.
Execution: Fit For A King
A loud buzzer sounded, and a timer began to count down. Chef Monokuma wasted no time going for the first set of ingredients- an assortment of vegetables. He swept the vegetables from their spot onto a cutting board- and Tadao ended up swept along with them, ending up on the board himself. Not to mention, he was now lying on his side, and due to being tied to a chair he could not right himself. Chef Monokuma whipped out a large knife and began to chop up the vegetables at lightning speed. Once he was done with one, he would move on to the next, and the knife got closer and closer to Tadao each time. Then the final vegetable, which was right next to the Ultimate, was minced to bits- and the final chop came mere inches from slicing Tadao. Somehow, he managed to keep his composure during the whole ordeal- though the slight blueness to his face indicated it wasn't the easiest task.
Chef Monokuma swept the sliced vegetables to the side, once again taking Tadao with them and actually sending the waiter flying towards the second part of the dish: a few uncooked chicken breasts. The meat was then picked up- again, Tadao was mistakenly grabbed as well- and then dropped into a large plastic bag that was zipped shut, likely cutting off any oxygen to the waiter. Chef Monokuma then proceeded to grab a meat mallet and pound on the sealed meat rather viciously- and yet the bear seemed to deliberately miss any spot Tadao was, sometimes just barely managing to avoid crushing the suffocating waiter with the mallet.
Finally, Chef Monokuma appeared satisfied and opened the bag, dumping the tenderized meat and Tadao into a baking dish. The force of the impact was enough to finally smash the chair, effectively freeing Tadao; however, the Ultimate Waiter was busy gulping down large amounts of air as a result of being trapped in the plastic bag. Not that it would matter in a few moments- Chef Monokuma added olive oil (much of which got on Tadao as well) and seasoning to the chicken, added the vegetables he had chopped up before, then picked up the dish and placed into an oven just as Tadao regained his bearings. The door was shut, and the chef proceeded to turn up the heat on the oven...so the chicken would be cooking at 999 degrees.
The interior of the oven began to heat up almost instantly, the dish itself starting to glow a bright red. Sweat began to form on Tadao, who was looking around in growing panic- there was no other escape from the oven's inside, and he would be unable to open the giant oven door. More heat built up, and flames began to erupt from the bottom of the oven, licking the bottom of the dish and making it even hotter. Finally, the oil on the chicken and Tadao began to react to the heat, and the Ultimate Waiter let out a pained scream as his body and clothes began to burn. The young man made a break for the edge of the dish, in spite of the horrific heat; he grasped the edge of the silvery dish and hoisted himself up to the edge of the brim, though the now glowing orange metal burned right through his gloves and pants, searing his hands and knees.
The dish was close enough to the door that Tadao could lean over and place his burned hands on the glass- which is exactly what he did, even going so far as to desperately pound on the door while he burned and cried out in agony. Finally, the oven seemed unable to take the immense heat, and the flames engulfed the entire interior- including Tadao. Then, the top of the oven seemed to practically explode as a smoking platform ascended from the same spot, carrying the chicken dish with it. The platform then burst through the ceiling of the studio, stopping...in a throne room?
A second Monokuma dressed in a large crown and a fur cape sat in a massive throne looked down at the freshly-delivered food. By some miracle, the baked chicken and vegetable dish looked utterly perfect and delicious, despite the intense heat and flames that destroyed the oven. There was only one thing off about the king Monokuma's food:
The charred skeleton of Tadao Shimaru that lay slumped over the side of the baking dish, the scraps of his burned clothing just barely clinging to his remains.
The courtroom kept silent as the execution ended and the TV went dark again. Once it did, Hana felt as if she had been holding her breath the entire time she watched the execution- not that the feeling she was left with was much better. It was over- Tadao had been found out, Saku and Shiro were avenged, the spotless get to live another day...but like before, there was no sense of reward or triumph. In fact, watching such a gruesome death made Hana feel somewhat sick to her stomach, and she was certain the others would be able to tell if they saw her.
"Aaaand that's all, folks!" Monokuma declared as he reentered the courtroom (carrying the dish of baked chicken and vegetables from the execution- minus the skeleton, of course). "Didn't that just get your blood pumping? Your adrenaline racing? Lemme tell you, this definitely made up for that disappointment of an execution we got last time, am I right?"
He then added, "And the best part- I was the one who was right! What'd he say before the execution? Something about dying with dignity? Ahahaha! Look how that worked out for him!"
Hana refused to look up and see Monokuma- she had enough to deal with, in trying to sort out her conflicted feelings, the last thing she wanted was to look at the smug grin of their 'headmaster'.
"...Get out of here, would you?" Hiroshi said to Monokuma, an uncharacteristic amount of anger entering his voice. "You got what you wanted, the trial's over. We've been through enough today, we don't need you to add to it."
"How dare you use that tone of voice with me? You don't tell me to leave, I tell you all to leave!" Monokuma growled at the coroner. "Besides, what are you getting so snippy for? I highly doubt anyone here really liked that guy, if anything I thought you'd all be glad to see him dead..."
Hana let out a low growl, responding, "Still...what you put him through while he died was terrible...no one should have to go through that while they die!"
"And don't try to say it was justice, either- because getting a conviction for a criminal is justice, but those executions of yours are nothing short of cruel and unusual," Akira added. "They should spend a considerable amount of time in prison, not be slaughtered so brutally."
"Oh, like you're one to tell me how to treat the killers, you hate all of them!" Monokuma pointed out with narrowed eyes. "Buuut I'm not gonna debate ethics with you. Like I said, I tell you all to leave, so...leave! This trial is over, so there's nothing left for you all! So, get out of here- as you can imagine by now, you're gonna be busy tomorrow, so get all the rest you can!"
With a last, dark laugh resounding through the walls of the trial room, Monokuma left with the food in hand. When he did, Hana had to bite back any and all retorts towards him- there really was nothing else to be done.
"...Still can't believe this guy was right the whole time," Hinata muttered, gesturing to Ryoto before telling him directly, "So uh...good job, I guess?"
"..." Ryoto frowned, then told him, "Y'know what? Yeah, I was right about Tadao's threats, and I was right to suspect him this time. But...honestly? If it was a choice between being right and stopping Saku and Shiro from dying, then..."
With a frustrated shout, the Ultimate Racecar Driver finished, "Dammit, I would have preferred to be wrong again!"
Before anyone could add anything more, Ryoto stormed out of the room, filling it once again with awkward silence.
"...Guys. I, uh...still kinda feel like this whole thing was my fault, for coming up with the idea of the party..." Rumi then spoke up, looking away and rubbing her arm. "S-So...I'm really sorry-"
"Hey, come on, it wasn't your fault what Tadao decided to do. The idea was great! I'm sure it would have worked if he hadn't pulled all that," Hinata reassured her, crossing his arms.
Akira, on the other hand, spoke up, "Personally, I myself had my doubts about the party. Still, I wouldn't put the blame on you, Hamasaki- if anything, we all could have done more to keep a third murder from happening- myself included..."
Adjusting her glasses, the prosecutor went on, "But...maybe we can finally learn something from all of this. Don't let what Shimaru said at the end get to you all- we will escape from this place without a murder, or my name isn't Akira Rimutsu."
"Right, and you're just the pinnacle of unity," Shiori growled at her. "Like I said a few days ago- you're no great leader, and to be perfectly honest the way you handled this case hasn't changed my opinion much."
The surgeon turned away before Akira could respond, adding dryly, "Whatever...do whatever you guys need to do, I'll be at the lift."
Shiori exited right after that, ignoring any attempts to talk to her from her peers. Rumi grimaced and followed her out soon after; Hinata frowned, glanced back and forth between where Rumi went and where the rest of the class stood, ultimately choosing to follow the former. This left four people in the trial room- Hana, Hiroshi, Akira, and Asuna.
"..." Asuna awkwardly cleared her throat, remarking as she began to exit as well, "We, uh...shouldn't stay here too long, otherwise Monokuma, h-he'll get mad at us, so..."
Akira still appeared rather bitter about what Shiori had to say, before stating, "You're right- there's nothing left for us here. We found the killer, and that's all there is to it, perversion of justice notwithstanding."
"But, still...it's bad enough Saku and Shiro died, but...now even Tadao's dead..." Hana remarked with a wince.
"...I know not everyone's gonna agree with this, but...I think looking on the bright side will do us all some good right now," Hiroshi spoke up. "And the way I see it...I think trial proved something. Hana, Akira- you guys really can cooperate when you need to."
That took Hana by surprise. "Wait, what?"
"Excuse me, Ashi?" Akira inquired with a glare.
"J-Just saying-" Hiroshi began, turning away from the prosecutor's glare. "-You both made great strides in being able to solve the murder. Hana's memory of the attack and Akira's plan to keep a lot of the information on the incident between the three of us, among other things. If the two of you kept that up, well..."
Hana furrowed her brow in thought; it would be nice to have the Ultimate Prosecutor's respect after all this time, and not feeling like she was poking a bear every time she spoke to her would put her mind more at ease. Hana turned to Akira to see if she seemed to feel the same way...
"..." Akira glanced down at Hana...then narrowed her eyes in annoyance, haughtily turning away from her and Hiroshi before leaving the trial room to join the others.
"...You couldn't have thought that would work," Hana told Hiroshi with a frown. "That Akira...she's too prideful to actually consider me an equal, especially after the times I ended up being the one in the right with her in the wrong."
Hiroshi shrugged. "I'll agree, she can hard to approach. But...I still stand by what I said."
The coroner gazed at one of the portraits of a deceased student- Hana couldn't quite tell who- before he added, "I...just think we could use something positive to latch onto, you know? Finding a silver lining in this whole mess- that's the only way to move forward, I believe. And moving forward is all we really can do. For Saku, Shiro...and yes, even Tadao."
With that, Hiroshi made his way towards the exit of the trial room, leaving Hana slightly more confused. She always knew Hiroshi was the forgiving type, but...Tadao still murdered two people, nearly killed her prior to that, and had a purely self-centered motivation. Even Hana, who had come to grips with how she would view her previous two blackened classmates had mixed feelings about the waiter's fate.
Hiroshi- just when it seemed like Hana understood what his mindset was, he threw something new into the loop.
Shaking her head slightly, Hana made her way out of the trial room as well, still mulling over what Hiroshi had told her. Find a silver lining- easier said than done, considering the circumstances. The surfer walked to where the remaining students awaited the elevator, not too far behind Hiroshi; as usual, the group was almost dead silent. Not too surprising, what with the strenuous ordeal of a class trial and the fact that it had to be far past 10 PM by now, plus everyone seemed to be dealing with their own personal emotional baggage...
Then, she noticed Asuna standing amongst the group- she, too, was silent and seemed to be focusing on her own thoughts. However, Hana couldn't help but think back to the trial, and how the revelation of Shiro's dying message had affected its direction.
That's right...the dying message what was really helped prove Saku's innocence, or at least start to prove it. Hana thought. If Asuna hadn't found that, who knows how long it would have taken me to start putting the right pieces together, and by that point...well, who knows if the group would have even listened to me by then?
Hana kept quiet for a few more moments...before coming to a decision and approaching the Ultimate Gardener, whispering, "...Psst- hey, Asuna."
The shorter girl nearly jumped out of her skin from the sudden voice, swiftly turning around before softly responding, "O-Oh- it's just you, Hana."
Looking over the surfer, Asuna then asked, "Hey, h-how are you feeling? I'm no expert on head injuries, b-but all the stress from the trial couldn't have been good for you..."
"Oh, uh..." Hana awkwardly began. "Actually...it hasn't been too bad. Maybe the trial just distracted me and I'll be feeling some kind of pain later on, but right now- I could feel worse."
Shaking her head, the Ultimate went on, "But, I'm not here to talk to you about that."
"I-I figured, uh..." Asuna began. "What...are you trying to talk about, then?"
"Well...I wanted to say thanks," Hana told her with a smile. "If it hadn't been for you finding Shiro's message, who knows how long it would have taken to prove Saku wasn't the killer. So, I'm pretty grateful you did that- I just wished I had listened to what you had to say sooner, I think it would have saved both of us some hassle."
Asuna blinked a few times in surprise, sheepishly responding, "N-No, you don't need to thank me, it's just...I-I knew something like that was important, s-so that's why I tried so hard to bring it up, and uh..."
She fiddled with the fedora on her head, adding, "Honestly, I...didn't think I had it in me to make myself heard like that. Th-The days after the last trial were one thing, but that...I-I kinda surprised myself, honestly."
"Well, I'm still glad you did it," Hana responded with a nod. "See? You really are a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for."
This, too, seemed to catch Asuna off-guard...but the girl soon responded with a small, somewhat sad smile. "Thank you."
After a moment of silence, the Ultimate went on, "I...I decided last night, after you and I talked...th-that I wasn't going to run anymore. I-I've been running from things for so long, a-and...I can't afford to do that anymore. I-I'm alive right now...I'm alive right now because my best friend put her own life at risk to save mine."
With determination in her voice, Asuna concluded, "I...I won't let it go to waste! I-I'm going to survive this killing game, and I'll do it with you and the rest of our classmates! Th-That's a promise! I guess...this trial was me starting to make good on that promise?"
Hana was silent for a moment, surprised by the gardener's newfound determination, but the surfer then returned the smile and gave a nod of response. "Well...I'm really glad to hear that, Asuna."
The two went quiet again after that, but as the elevator finally descended to return the students to the surface, Hana found her saddened mood had improved quite a bit. A pretty incredible feat, considering the day's events. Still...it appeared finding something to feel hopeful about, despite the terrible day, wasn't so hard after all; and just as Hiroshi said, it really did make a difference.
Returning to her bedroom, Hana's earlier prediction regarding her injuries came true; the pain in her head was returning like wildfire, but at least her leg injury wasn't bothering her. Still, even after collapsing onto her bed to rest, the pain still refused to subside- she told herself that she would have to talk to Shiori tomorrow.
With a small sigh, Hana rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. The party, the murders, the trial...had all of that truly happened in the span of one day? Shiro and Saku had been alive this morning, and now both them and Tadao were gone. Though seeing Asuna's heavily improved mental state had given her a sense of hope for the future, she still couldn't help but think about who had been lost today. A part of her still wanted to cry for her lost friends...but her eyes remained dry. At this point, she just felt...tired, yet she couldn't fall asleep. Her thoughts were far too intrusive.
"..." That's when Hana remembered something Saku had told her a few days ago- she had had a lot on her mind back then too, and Saku had told her about meditation as a way to clear her head and calm herself. At the time, she had failed miserably, but maybe this time...
She shook her head and sat up on the bed, getting into the same cross-legged position the kickboxer had shown her before.
Saku, this is for you- sorry I couldn't figure it out the first time. Hana thought, hoping her deceased classmate would hear her.
She then closed her eyes and tried to focus her mind while trying to remain still. It proved difficult due to the pain still throbbing in her head, but she did her best to ignore it; trying to focus her mind was still as difficult as it had been the last time, but this time Hana had an idea to try and focus. She tried to put herself into the same mindset she had during a trial, where she had come to learn focus was key; it was easier said than done, since there was no longer a threat...but eventually, Hana found herself finally able to clear her mind enough to find a state of calmness.
It would seem Saku had been right- it really did help Hana clear her mind. And it probably would have worked more...if Hana hadn't been interrupted by something else.
Bleep...bleep...bleep...
Hana let out a soft growl of frustration as she opened her eyes. She recognized the annoying beeping sound and looked around for the source- only to realize she still had her e-Handbook on her and never set it down anywhere.
She quickly grabbed it, asking herself, Seriously...? This again? What, is this going to be a regular thing now or something?
Once again, the usually blue screen flashing green and continuing to beep. A few more moments of this passed before the screen went black, code flashed up faster than Hana could read it, and green text scrolled across the dark screen.
Hey there, Hana- me again...not that you know who I am, and I have no idea when that'll change. In fact, if you're seeing this third message of mine, I doubt you and the others are much closer to finding a way out of the killing game. If anything, I'm hoping you don't see this message, or the ones I programmed to come after- because if that's the case, then it means you and the others escaped! Yay!
Okay, okay, I can't waste much time here. I'm not going to go too crazy with what I have to show you this time- mainly because I don't want to overwhelm you too badly, I have no idea what's happened in there by the time you see this message. So...one last, kinda lighthearted picture; like I said, I'm hoping this will be the kick you need to figure out how to end the killing game. If not...then I hope you and the others survive long enough to see the next message.
Just as before, a file appeared beneath the text- another picture? Unsure of what else her mysterious messenger would have to show her, Hana tapped the file with her finger to open it.
Like the message implied, there was only one photo to be seen...but it still caused Hana to tense up as she viewed it.
The scene was a classroom, one that Hana only recognized from the previous message's photos- well, it probably wasn't the exact same, but the similar interior design made her think it was from the same location. And the people in the picture- she recognized them immediately. They were everyone in the 80th Class- herself, Akira, everyone; they also all wore the same brown uniform with the Hope's Peak insignia that Hana had seen in the previous photos. What really caught her attention and sent a pang of sadness into her heart, however...everyone looked pretty happy. The only person who looked slightly less happy was Akira, and even then she didn't seem nearly as annoyed with everyone as she usually did.
Tadao's words came back to Hana as she looked over the photo...
"We were going to be. But thanks to whoever kidnapped us and forced us into this damned killing game, that never happened. We never once set foot in Hope's Peak, let alone once as a class!"
Hana furrowed her brow- she still didn't remember taking any of these photos, even though she herself was in many of them. And yet...something instinctively told her these pictures were real. So then...had Tadao been wrong? Had they actually been a class at one point? But then how come she couldn't remember what happened in any of these pictures?
She stared down at the photo one more time, and two things caught her attention. First of all, she focused her attention on Hiroshi- specifically, his appearance. Uniform aside...he looked very different; Hana hadn't noticed his appearance in the last photos, but she was sure he likely had the same look in those. His hair was much shorter, he didn't have that calm and collected countenance she associated with him, and he actually appeared somewhat shorter than his current height. Overall, he looked...younger? If anything, Hana might not have recognized him at first glance if not for his deep gray eyes. Just why did Hiroshi look so different in these photos?
Hiroshi's strange appearance, however, was nothing compared to the biggest elephant in the room- the return of the mysterious green-haired girl from the other photos. It was the same person all right- same bright green hair dyed with neon blue, same large ponytail, same purple eyes, same bracelet with a circuit design. She was leaning on one of the desks, one arm propping her up while she grinned at the camera. She alone was the largest question Hana had regarding all these confusing photos- did they honestly have a sixteenth student that nobody remembered? How could that even-
Nanako.
Hana blinked in shock at her own thoughts. Where did that name come from-
Nanako Tokumei.
Hana stared down at the green-haired girl in the photo- no, Nanako?- in even more bafflement than before. For all she knew, this was a random name...but a part of her told this was far from random. That girl's name was Nanako Tokumei...but Hana still had no idea how she suddenly remembered it. Last time, she was completely dumbfounded by her existence, but now- here she was, sitting on a bed with a head injury, staring down at a mysterious photo...
Then, a realization came to her, and she reached up to touch the bandages on her head. Could that have been it? Could the head injury she received have something to do with her sudden knowledge of the green-haired girl's identity?
No...no, that's crazy, that sorta thing only happens in cartoons! You don't bash someone with memory loss on the head and they suddenly remember things! Hana told herself, shaking her head. ...W-Well, that's assuming I do have memory loss. Do I have memory loss...? Do the others have memory loss!? Or...can I try and remember something else...?
Hana then tried to focus her mind on any other things that may surface in her mind...mostly in relation to Nanako. Her talent, her relationships with the other students, something that might give Hana an idea of why she wasn't in the killing game...but nothing else came to her. All she could remember at this point was the girl's name: Nanako Tokumei.
Then, Hana was brought back to reality when she went back to the black text-riddled screen and she realized more text had appeared.
So, maybe you were expecting something more, and if this really didn't help you remember much of anything...well, I'm sorry about that, but when you see the next message- you'll thank me for giving you a break, I can only imagine how you felt about that first batch of photos. You never did like being confused, Hana- which is why I feel even worse for not being able to just tell you everything outright, but I need you to trust that I have reasons for doing that. And...keep trying, alright? Don't ever think that there's not a way out other than murder, because there is. I'm telling you right now, there IS a way. And you can find it- I know you can.
All you have to do is remember everything.
Remember the class.
Remember your own role.
With that, the text disappeared, and Hana's e-Handbook returned to normal, leaving the Ultimate Surfer reeling. She fell backwards onto her bed, staring up at the ceiling again- Hana was certain no amount of meditation would be able to calm her after seeing that photograph. The remembrance of Nanako Tokumei's name and the partial memory of her identity, not to mention Hiroshi's strange appearance, had led to all kinds of dark implications about the class's past...
But even so, Hana thought about what else the message had said- that there was, in fact, a way to escape without murder.
Hana turned onto her side, staring at one of the walls of her room. If there is a way to get out...why does this person keep telling me I'm the one that can find it? Who's to say, like, Hiroshi or Akira won't be able to find a way out? I can barely handle these murders and trials, why do I need this added pressure!?
Why...do I...
Hana turned again as she recalled the final question Tadao had asked the class just before his execution...
"...I have another question," the waiter suddenly spoke, his blue-green gaze going steely. "Can any of you, any one of you say, with absolute and unyielding certainty, that there is another way to escape this castle besides the Graduation Clause? And don't tell me 'if there is, we'll find it' or something like that, I want something concrete."
Hana was about to respond right then and there...only to realize all her possible responses were exactly what Tadao did not want out of an answer. They were hopeful and optimistic, sure, but...they weren't facts. She had no concrete way to know if there really was an alternate escape from the castle...and judging by the deafening silence in the room, no one else did either.
Her hands curled into fists as she thought about him, and the other blackened students as well- her classmates, her friends, who had all given in to a desire to kill because they believed it it was the only way out (among other reasons). If it weren't for the "you have to kill someone and get away with it if you want to escape" rule, Hana was certain there wouldn't be nearly as many deceased students as there were now. Tadao's final words had brought that terrible reality to light- that they didn't truly know if there was another way to escape.
...No. No, there is a way- I know there is. I don't know who messed with my e-Handbook to have those messages show up every few days, but if they're right, then... Hana pondered to herself, the fire of determination reigniting within her.
You'll see...Tadao, if you can hear me, then just you wait! I'll prove that you were wrong about this killing game- there's a way out of here, and it doesn't mean killing people, and I'll find it! Hana mentally declared to whoever might be listening- but most of all, she vowed it to herself. What was that Hiroshi had told her to do again- find a silver lining, something to grasp onto?
Well, this latest message, whether that was the intent or not, had given her that. She still had so many questions about "Nanako", what Hiroshi's strange appearance could mean, and whether or not the class really did have some kind of mass memory loss...but they were overpowered by her sheer desire to see this killing game ended, and ended without more death.
Yeah...that'll be my promise. Whatever way of ending this killing game there is, I'll find it. Maybe not even what the message was specifically talking about, I'll take anything if it means stopping the mastermind and saving everyone else. Hana vowed, resolute. And I mean that, too...if I ever get the chance to end this killing game and save everyone, whatever it might cost me...
I'm going to take it!
Chapter 3: A Dark Design- END
STUDENTS REMAINING: 8
TO BE CONTINUED...
A/N: And so, another chapter ended, and ended on a different note than the last ones. Last ones were sad and mysterious, this one's mysterious but determined! And even slightly hopeful! And it would seem we finally have a name to the mystery girl's face: Nanako Tokumei! Who is she? What's her talent? No one knows yet! Also Hiroshi- lookin' a little weird in those photos, cause for concern perhaps? Only time will tell...
Sooo...how about the conclusion to this case, huh? I gotta say- if nothing else, I just hope I managed to avoid the whole "third case syndrome" thing that plagues so many murder mystery games- including Danganronpa, though in my opinion it could be worse in canon's case (say what you want about the games and their Chapter 3s, I will defend Case 1-3 until the day I die...even if it's not my favorite case in the game). But I digress- this case may not be perfect, none of these three murders that have been written so far are, but I sincerely hope it's not despised like the third cases in the canon games. Well, I can hope it'll be well-received as a whole, but whether or not that happens...I'll just have to wait and see.
On another note- in relation to the execution (which I very much like how it turned out, Tadao can now join the likes of Celeste and Korekiyo in "killers with fire-related executions")...didya notice how the things Tadao was put through mirror the things he did to victims? The knife that was used to cut up the vegetables- he stabbed Hana and slit Saku's stomach with a knife (the same one, no less); the meat mallet, he bludgeoned Shiro to death (but not with a mallet...although originally, I had planned to have Tadao use a hammer to kill Shiro instead of the statuette); the plastic bag, Tadao was nearly suffocated like he himself suffocated Saku.
Aaah, executions- they really are fun for these ironic reasons, no wonder so many people are so passionate about analyzing and making their own, they can be so creative!
But, with Chapter 3 done, this means Chapter 4's gonna start up, right? Well...not exactly. See, next time, we're gonna have a little...intermission before the start of Chapter 4. What do I mean by that? ...You'll see. Yooouuu'll seeeee...~ Until then...thank you all for reading and the continued support, it really does mean a lot to know people really do care about this story of mine and enjoy it enough to keep coming back to it. Stay tuned for more, because...I think we're about halfway through? We might be about halfway through. So...hooray, milestones!
P.S. Is it me, or do these Closing Argument sections get longer and longer with each chapter? Chapter 1's was five paragraphs, Chapter 2's was effing ten, and this one's was thirteen. I know I said it in Chapter 2, but- eat your heart out, V3's Closing Arguments! Gosh, what in the world does this mean for Chapter 4...?
P.S.S. I'm still surprised there were people who were suspecting Rumi for a good portion of the trial- heck, some even after the end of the last part! Not shaming those people or anything, I know full well what it's like to feel strongly about a prediction and yet still be wrong, but like- cut the poor girl some slack, guys! She just wanted to throw a nice party, she didn't want two of her classmates to be murdered!
