"Before we start, let's remember how these trials are supposed to go. The victim wasn't a commander but who cares, he died and one of you six-minus-one bastards murdered him! As always, find out who did it and that person will be executed. Let's begin with-"
"We don't really need to discuss for long. We have a suspect and a lot of evidence that say he's guilty" Koshimizu said "Hikari-kun, you were allowed to investigate because if there's anyone who can prove you're not guilty, it's you. Did you find anything?"
"I did. I can prove I didn't kill him"
"Really? And do you know who the real culprit is?" Romi asked.
"I do"
"But we can't trust you! You could be the culprit, trying to save yourself. First prove you didn't kill him!" Kobayashi demanded, and Mitsuhiko had to admit he did have a point. Until he made clear he was not the murderer there was no reason for any of them to believe what he was going to say.
"Let's start. What do we know about the murder?" Koshimizu was the one to start the discussion, trying to find out what was the general opinion about how Veritas had died. From that the hunter could destroy all misconceptions and lead to the truth if he hadn't done it. The medic was sure that, if Mitsuhiko was guilty, then between all of them they would be able to get through his lies.
"I couldn't see anything, for obvious reasons, but from what I have heard around it seems Hikari-kun and Veritas met in the hallway"
"They shot each other"
"But Hikari-kun doesn't have any wounds. Veritas was shot, he ran to the Cafeteria-"
"And he collapsed there. I arrived shortly after that when I was looking for everybody. Kobayashi-kun and Hikari-kun were already there, in my opinion, the murderer must be one of those two"
"Why me?!" Kobayashi exclaimed.
"Because of the body discovery announcement" Koshimizu pointed at him "Three innocent people discover the corpse, that's the requirement. I couldn't have done it because I was in the Basement, and Romi-san can't have done it because she was the fourth. It was either you or him!"
"That seems to be all we know. Was anything useful, Hikari-kun?" Romi didn't contribute much, mainly because she couldn't investigate. The hunter hummed, analyzing everything that was said and forming an attack plan. This could be good!
"I can work with that. Let's go from the beginning, okay? Start with the confrontation"
Nonstop Debate
Monobear File #5 / Tampered Food / Silencer / Bullet on the Floor / Shackles
KOSHIMIZU: The duel happened in the hallway
KOSHIMIZU: Who started it doesn't matter, though
ROMI: Hikari-kun has two guns; he could be carrying one easily!
KOSHIMIZU: He had the Beretta. I saw him take it.
KOSHIMIZU: They tried to shoot each other. How many times did you fire, Hikari-kun?"
MITSUHIKO: Six times.
HASEGAWA: That's the same number of bullets on that guy's corpse.
KOBAYASHI: I heard the bullets came from Hikari-kun's gun
KOBAYASHI: The noise is what brought me to the hallway
ROMI: You mean Hikari-kun's gunshots?
ROMI: Or Veritas' gunshots?
KOSHIMIZU: That may be important, but it is impossible...
KOSHIMIZU: ...to distinguish which gun made what noise.
"I don't know why that is important, but I do can answer which gun made the noise" Mitsuhiko said "It came from my gun. That person's gun had a silencer on it, it didn't make much noise"
"Oh! I see" Kobayashi said "I was on the Second Floor Lounge when I heard the gunshots, six in total, and I ran downstairs. That's when I found Hikari-kun in front of the Cafeteria"
"Were you on the Lounge the whole time?" Romi inquired.
"Um, a-after I talked to Hikari-kun I went to the Lounge and stayed there until the gunshots"
"If you had mentioned there had been six gunshots we wouldn't have needed to wonder anything" Mitsuhiko grumbled "That person only fired twice"
"Twice? I found a single bullet" Hasegawa intervened.
"Yes, twice. It must have gotten lost somewhere"
"Okay! Veritas' gun had a silencer. Does that change anything?" Romi asked and nobody was able to give her a satisfying answer to that question. It seemed they had argued something that didn't really lead anywhere meaningful "He shot him six times, the body has six bullets, what else do we need to know?"
"Be patient, Romi-san, we need to take this all calmly. Let's continue, okay? What else do you guys think happened?"
Nonstop Debate
Blood on the File / Bullet on the Floor / Silencer / Blood in Yurie's Room / Veritas' Shoes
HASEGAWA: The body was found in the Cafeteria
HASEGAWA: Veritas must have run in there!
KOSHIMIZU: There was a strange lack of blood on the floor, though
KOSHIMIZU: I would have thought six wounds would make him bleed more.
HASEGAWA: His cloak was coated in blood, it may have absorbed it
HASEGAWA: Veritas entered the Cafeteria and collapsed
HASEGAWA: He wasn't able to do anything else, right?
KOBAYASHI: I found the body with Hikari-kun, there was no tie for him to hide evidence.
KOBAYASHI: Nobody could have gotten through the hallway, either.
KOSHIMIZU: This isn't looking good for you, Hikari-kun
"Yes! This is where I start proving my innocence" Mitsuhiko grinned, excited. This wasn't bound to be very difficult "Hasegawa-san, I can guarantee Veritas didn't run into the Cafeteria"
"Is it because he was too weak to run?" Romi inquired, but that wasn't the point Mitsuhiko was trying to make.
"No, the person I shot did have enough strength to run, but what I'm trying to say is that Veritas can't have done it. We all know what happened in the hallway around twelve hours ago, it was on fire. The hallway hasn't been cleaned up yet"
"We all saw that, what is your point?"
"Did you all notice you all left footprints when you walked into the Cafeteria? I bet the soles of all your shoes are covered in soot. I'm happy to inform all of you that Veritas' shoes had absolutely no soot at all"
"It's true, all of us must have left footprints" Hasegawa touched the sole of her shoes. "So are you saying that..."
"Yes, Veritas can't have stepped onto the hallway. I doubt anyone would have cleaned his shoes, right?"
There was silence for a moment while the commanders tried to understand the implications of this. "...Veritas never went through that hallway. The only way that is possible is if...if he was inside the Cafeteria or the Kitchen from before the fire happened" Romi said, trying to make order of what was going on.
"That is impossible; m-many of us would have seen him!" Kobayashi refuted.
"I know it's impossible, but what other option is there? It isn't like he could have gone onto the Cafeteria through some other way. I suggest we leave this conundrum aside for a moment"
"There's one last thing I'd like to discuss about Hikari-kun's guilt" the illusionist requested, straightening up on his seat "I suspect him because it's impossible anyone else could have done it, I'll tell you how!"
Nonstop Debate
Lilith's Wires / Blood on the File / Bullets in the Body / Monobear File #5 / Bullet on the Floor
KOBAYASHI: I ran as fast as I could when I heard the gunshots
KOBAYASHI: When I arrived Hikari-kun was in front of the Cafeteria
KOBAYASHI: I never saw anybody else!
KOBAYASHI: And I'm sure the windows weren't opened at all
KOBAYASHI: There's no other escape route, either
ROMI: Maybe that culprit never exited the Cafeteria
ROMI: They could have gone into the Kitchen
KOBAYASHI: There's the ventilation system but...
KOBAYASHI: It's too high to reach.
KOBAYASHI: And with the a-announcement that settles it!
KOBAYASHI: Hikari-kun is the only person who could have done it!
"I wouldn't leave aside the ventilation system so quickly, Kobayashi-kun, because that is how the culprit escaped" Mitsuhiko crossed his arms "It's true it's too high to reach, but with help it can happen"
"With help? Help from who?"
"Help from Lilith. Have any of you noticed the wires that have been hanging from the grates and shafts around the building? That is Lilith"
"But she's just a little robot girl! Do you think she would be capable of lifting anybody?" Romi raised her eyes towards the steel passage over their heads, where Lily was still listening from "I insist the Kitchen may have been where somebody could have been hidden in"
"No. We all would have noticed if somebody had gone to the Kitchen. If anybody had gone there, we would have found this in the Cafeteria"
Monobear File #5
Blood on the File
Body Discovery Announcement
Bullets in the Body
Bullet Wounds
Gash
Cloak
Veritas' Shoes
Ventilation Shaft
Soot Footprints
Bullet on the Wall
Bullet on the Floor
Blood in Yurie's Room
Lilith's Wires
Shackles
Tampered Food
Bloody Room in the Basement
Buried Body
Twin M9 Beretta
Silencer
Soot Footprints
"If anybody had gone to the Kitchen we would have seen their footprints on the floor of the Cafeteria. There was no time to clean anything, either"
"Okay, I suppose, but can you really imagine a little girl lifting somebody up there?" Hasegawa asked.
"...I don't think she is a little robot girl anymore, but that's not the point. She'd be capable of dragging anybody into the ventilation system, and that's how a person could have escaped the Cafeteria"
"But you can't be sure she'd be capable of that!"
"I can, because it almost happened to me" Mitsuhiko showed the bandages on his wrists "IT wasn't a pleasant experience, either. Those wires she uses can cut through your skin with ease"
"So Lilith is an accomplice!" Hasegawa stood up, raising her voice towards the grate "You! Get down here and explain it!"
"Um, I didn't say she was an accomplice"
"Then why would she do that? Why would she help the culprit escape?"
"...I didn't say that either..." it was a bit difficult to explain, but before he could, the grate opened and something descended from it. It was Lilith, but Mitsuhiko had been right. That wasn't a little girl anymore. It resembled more a large spider completely made of wires and steel. The only thing left was the head, which descended upside down. The wires grasped the steel tunnel on the ceiling; Mitsuhiko could see it was being dented. "What the hell...Lily, what happened to you...?"
"Last Bastion code. It's nothing you need to be concerned about. What is it?" her voice sounded different, too. There was no trace left of the Lily they had known until now.
"Did you help the culprit?" Romi demanded to know, glaring at the gray bundle she could barely see. Lilith's face didn't react although she somehow managed to do a dismissive gesture with her wires.
"I did no such thing. I'm leaving now. There's nothing else to talk" without letting anyone ask her anything else, she retracted back onto the ventilation system. Everybody could hear her slithering away through the innards of the walls, leaving them stunned. That was a horrible change, and not knowing what was Lilith's new agenda made Mitsuhiko greatly uncomfortable. What could happen now?
"She's an accomplice! She helped-"
"No, no, you're getting this wrong" Mitsuhiko interrupted before that wrong idea could go any further "Lilith didn't cooperate with the culprit and had nothing to do with the plan. In fact, I'm sure the culprit nor anybody involved could have expected Lilith getting in the way"
"...I don't get it, did she help or not?"
"She didn't!"
"Okay, that's enough" Kobayashi interrupted before Romi could say anything else "I admit somebody can have escaped through the ventilation system, fine. Who would fit in there?"
"Only two people would: you and Mimori-san" Hasegawa said "To be honest I suspect Mimori-san more. She isn't here, she may have gotten away"
"We can't accuse Mimori-san of being the culprit yet, let's do something first: solve the problem about Veritas not being able to run to the Cafeteria"
"That's not difficult to do. If we solve that, I can prove decisively I didn't kill him" Mitsuhiko said, mulling an idea. He had more or less a plan for how to lead everybody to the culprit, but Kobayashi had shown to be much more stubborn than he had expected "Who wants to start that?"
"I will, I suppose" Koshimizu said.
Nonstop Debate
Body Discovery Announcement / Lilith's Wires / Silencer / Veritas' Shoes / Shackles
KOSHIMIZU: The lack of soot on his shoes is the biggest problem here
KOSHIMIZU: Couldn't there have been some sort of vehicle?
HASEGAWA: There were only footprints
HASEGAWA: Tracks would exist if anything else had been used
ROMI: But how do you explain Veritas' body being in the Cafeteria?
KOSHIMIZU: It may have been carried
HASEGAWA: Maybe it was in the Cafeteria the whole time.
KOSHIMIZU: That'd require some sort of trick
KOSHIMIZU: Like one of them being a fake
KOSHIMIZU: Would it be the body we found?
KOSHIMIZU: Or would it be the person Hikari-kun shot?
"...the person I shot wasn't Veritas. It's as simple as that" Mitsuhiko declared. That was the most obvious solution, and the one he was completely sure was the correct one. It explained all inconsistencies and let him be innocent, so what else could it be?
"That makes sense! If Veritas' body was left in the Cafeteria by the culprit, and the culprit fought with Hikari-kun, that'd explain why the body didn't have any soot on its shoes" Hasegawa supported "Then the culprit escaped through the ventilation system, meeting with Hikari-kun after that!"
"Yeah, that is what I mean. That's why I'm saying I'm innocent, because whoever I shot can't have been Veritas"
"No" Kobayashi stood up, hitting the table. His face was contorted in a look of disbelief at everybody, as if nothing had gone like he thought it would go "I can't believe you all are going to accept that. He shot somebody six times! If it hadn't been Veritas we would have another dad body in our hands!"
"That's true, but we would have found it already, right?"
"We already found it! Do you all think six bullet wounds are something one can survive for long? A second corpse would have been found already, even if it was taken away by Lilith. There can be only one dead person right now!"
"And how do you explain the lack of soot on Veritas' shoes? You're practically saying he went to the Cafeteria by himself" Mitsuhiko stood up too to glare at the illusionist, but his opponent had gotten brave during the last few minutes. He maintained eye contact without fear.
"T-That will be explained later. Everything is always explained at some point! You shot six times, Veritas has six wounds. I can't be the only one who thinks the simplest explanation is the correct one, am I?!"
It seemed that Kobayashi's denial of the progress so far was rooted on the belief the simple explanations were more likely to be true than the convoluted story they had all concocted. All I should need to do is prove to him the person I shot can't have been Veritas. No big deal.
Panic Talk Battle
KOBAYASHI: Why does it have to be so difficult?
KOBAYASHI: Six bullets, six shots
KOBAYASHI: It's so simple!
KOBAYASHI: Are you even listening?!
KOBAYASHI: If not you, then who?
KOBAYASHI: I'm the illusionist, not you.
KOBAYASHI: You can't lie to me!
KOBAYASHI: It doesn't make sense
KOBAYASHI: I don't get it
KOBAYASHI: There's nobody else dead in this building
The six wounds and six bullets prove it. You shot Veritas!
Bullet in the Wall
"Yeah, that won't fly. It's true there are six bullets in Veritas' body and that's exactly what makes me innocent. Hasegawa-san, remember the bloody bullet you extracted from the wall?"
"Of course. I gave it to you"
Mitsuhiko took out the bullet from his pocket and rolled it on the table so everybody could take it and examine it. "This was found in the wall of the hallway. It's covered in blood and deformed, but I have no doubts this bullet came from the gun"
"B-But how is that related to Veritas? I don't get it" Kobayashi was looking from the bullet to Mitsuhiko, back and forth.
"I think this bullet went through the person I shot's shoulder and embedded itself in the wall" Mitsuhiko explained but Kobayashi still didn't seem to understand what that meant. To his right, Koshimizu gasped, his eyebrows rising almost to his scalp.
"We found six bullets in the body. If this one went through his shoulder, then I shouldn't have extracted the one we found in his shoulder"
" Exactly! How is that possible? The only way is if the person I shot and Veritas were different people!" There! That should demonstrate there was no way Mitsuhiko had killed Veritas-
WAIT, THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG HERE
Mitsuhiko sighed wearily when Kobayashi shouted that at the top of his lungs. "What now, Amy?"
"If there are six bullets in his body then where did they come from?" Kobayashi asked, that was what he had a problem with now.
"It could be a new bullet, does it really matter?"
"No, he does have a point there too" Koshimizu mulled "It wasn't a new bullet, I'm almost sure it was shot as well"
"Huh" That was something Mitsuhiko hadn't considered. It was undeniable a sixth bullet had been found in Veritas' shoulder, and it couldn't just have been shot against a wall or anything like that. The damage to the bullet would have been very different to the rest of the bullets, it wouldn't have fooled anybody. Where did that sixth bullet come from?
"Are you sure about that, Koshimizu-san?" Romi asked. The medic seemed to be pretty sure that sixth bullet had been indeed shot against something. Maybe...that was the key to finding out where it came from. That'd explain that clue, now that I think of it. That could work.
"Okay, Amy, I know the answer...I think"
"Then tell me! I'm all ears" Kobayashi said, ready to clash his argument against Mitsuhiko's. The victory or failure to succeed against it would define if Mitsuhiko was innocent or not, so it all relied on that.
Rebuttal Showdown
Bullets in the Body / Monobear File #5 / Cloak / Gash / Bloody Room in the Basement
KOBAYASHI: The number of bullets in the body...
KOBAYASHI: ...fit the number of times Hikari-kun shot
KOBAYASHI: And it has already been defined that sixth bullet really was used
KOBAYASHI: It can't have been against a wall
KOBAYASHI: Or else we would all have known it already
KOBAYASHI: The only possibility left is obvious
KOBAYASHI: That bullet hit something made of flesh and bone
KOBAYASHI: And that something is Veritas!
MITSUHIKO: Just because the bullet hit Veritas' body
MITSUHIKO: It doesn't mean I was the cause of it
KOBAYASHI: All those bullets came from a gun like yours!
KOBAYASHI: That's decisive evidence.
KOBAYASHI: There's no place to obtain the bullet from...
KOBAYASHI: ...other than from his shoulder
KOBAYASHI: The bullet's state confirms it
KOBAYASHI: As long as this problem exists...
KOBAYASHI: ...you can't be considered innocent!
"I admit you are right. The sixth bullet came from Veritas' body. Yes, it was found in his shoulder but what I mean is that one single bullet was moved into that wound"
"I-I don't know I'm f-following..." Kobayashi stammered.
"Veritas was shot six times, yes, but all those six times...were on his abdomen. The culprit had to make a wound on the shoulder, and for that reason they extracted a bullet from the body and put it in his shoulder!"
Kobayashi frowned. "What are you talking about? How can that be possible?"
"Koshimizu-san, you found that gash in Veritas' body, didn't you?"
"I did, but I'm not sure..." Koshimizu raised his eyebrows "Oh. I see. I see what you're trying to say"
"I think I do too" Hasegawa said "Hikari-kun, you are saying Veritas that gash was made when the culprit extracted the bullet from a wound, right?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying" It was good to see they understood what his point was.
"But why was such an ugly wound made? Couldn't the culprit just use their fingers or a knife to extract the bullet?"
"They couldn't do that. They had to use what they had, and that's why such a gash was done"
"Why did the culprit have to put a bullet in the corpse's shoulder?" Romi inquired "Was that really necessary?"
"It was very necessary. The culprit made that wound and put a bullet inside to..."
To change the cause of death
To defile the body
To make it match the duel in the hallway
To hide evidence
To make it match the duel in the hallway
"...to make it match the wounds the person I shot would have. If we had examined the body and we had found out all wounds were on the stomach, then I would have known immediately something was wrong. And it would all have worked if it weren't because of one of my bullets passing through that person's shoulder"
"So it was all a charade to make us think you had shot Veritas" Hasegawa said "Well, to make us and you think you had done it"
"Wait, wait, there must be something wrong! For that to happen then Veritas must have been dead for a good while already. Not only that, but the culprit had to plan to frame Hikari-kun since the beginning, otherwise he wouldn't have been shot to death!" Romi mused.
"Veritas must have been dead for a while, I bet" Kobayashi had finally accepted the possibility of Mitsuhiko being completely innocent and had decided to join the rest's discussion "W-We were all led to think he was in the Basement but he was actually dead and stored somewhere"
"The body wasn't cold in any way, it can't have been in a freezer" Koshimizu pointed.
"The blood seemed pretty fresh to me" Hasegawa also added, but Kobayashi had a counter to that.
"Aren't there blood transfusion bags in the Infirmary? If the culprit had taken a few and poured them on the body, we would have thought he had bled recently"
"That's not a bad theory, but Veritas can't have died too long ago" Mitsuhiko said. Kobayashi, once again having his arguments attacked by the hunter, scowled in frustration.
"Can't I get a- a-anything right in this trial or what?!"
It's obviously the first time you're trying to make an effort and it's pitiful Mitsuhiko thought, but any pity he could feel was gone when Kobayashi's efforts were stubbornly focused on getting him convicted for Veritas' death. "You can't, too bad. Veritas was alive just a few hours ago, this proves it"
Monobear File #5
Blood on the File
Body Discovery Announcement
Bullets in the Body
Bullet Wounds
Gash
Cloak
Veritas' Shoes
Ventilation Shaft
Soot Footprints
Bullet on the Wall
Bullet on the Floor
Blood in Yurie's Room
Lilith's Wires
Shackles
Tampered Food
Bloody Room in the Basement
Buried Body
Twin M9 Beretta
Silencer
Tampered Food
"In the room where Veritas was kept shackled, I found a plate with food. Seemed like breakfast to me, and it was still relatively fresh and edible. If Veritas had died some time ago, I'm sure I wouldn't have found the food there"
"That has logic to me" Romi nodded "When Hikari-kun shot the false Veritas the real one must have been dead already! The culprit was trying to make Hikari-kun shot them. How did they survive?"
"...hm. I don't think I ever saw a bulletproof vest or anything like that in this building" Koshimizu said.
"I once heard Veritas used to hear a bulletproof vest all the time. The culprit must have taken it from him"
"But what about the blood? I shot and that person really bled" Mitsuhiko noted, but Kobayashi had something to say about that too, and for once nobody had a counter to it.
"Again, blood transfusion bags. The culprit was trying to make Hikari-kun think he killed the man, without blood he wouldn't believe it. Those bags would be useful"
"That makes sense to me, somehow" Hasegawa nodded, the illusionist nodded with enthusiasm at finally getting something right here.
"Right, now we need to find out who the real culprit is" Romi said "I'd say discussing the place of death would be important here. Let's start with that now" The place where Veritas died? That's easy. If only it did lead to the culprit...
Nonstop Debate
Gash / Blood in Yurie's Room / Body Discovery Announcement / Cloak / Lilith's Wires
ROMI: Where did Veritas get killed?
HASEGAWA: In the Cafeteria, obviously
HASEGAWA: That's where the body was found
KOSHIMIZU: I wouldn't say that with so much confidence
KOSHIMIZU: But I do think it was near the Cafeteria
KOSHIMIZU: All we know right now is that it wasn't in the Hallway
KOBAYASHI: There was this bloody room in the Basement
KOBAYASHI: It may have been there
ROMI: I'm more partial to the Kitchen
ROMI: It is close to the Cafeteria
HASEGAWA: There's a chance it happened...
HASEGAWA: ...in a place nobody investigated
KOSHIMIZU: That'd be very bad for us.
ROMI: Somebody must have seen something!
"I think I found the crime scene" Mitsuhiko said slowly. That got everyone's attention, all of them waited for Mitsuhiko to say what he meant. "Koshimizu-san is right, it must have been near the Cafeteria. I found a lot of blood in Yurie's room"
"Was it fresh?" the medic inquired.
"Yes, I think that's where Veritas was killed"
"The culprit must have used the gun with silencer Hikari-kun had mentioned, so nobody heard a thing" Kobayashi said. "And once he was dead...he was carried to the Cafeteria?"
"He wasn't dragged, that much is obvious!" Hasegawa took off her cap, thoughtful "Why was there not enough blood in the hallway?"
"I think the culprit carried Veritas' corpse, and to avoid any blood spilling on them or the floor they used this:"
Monobear File #5
Blood on the File
Body Discovery Announcement
Bullets in the Body
Bullet Wounds
Gash
Cloak
Veritas' Shoes
Ventilation Shaft
Soot Footprints
Bullet on the Wall
Bullet on the Floor
Blood in Yurie's Room
Lilith's Wires
Shackles
Tampered Food
Bloody Room in the Basement
Buried Body
Twin M9 Beretta
Silencer
Cloak
"Veritas' cloak was near the body, and one of its sides had a lot of blood. Maybe the body was wrapped with the cloak and carried to the Cafeteria"
"Did the person you saw have the cloak on?" Hasegawa asked.
"Yes"
"That's gross!"
"But it's a valuable clue: the culprit is strong enough to carry Veritas" Romi stated "I think he would weigh quite a bit. Mimori-san and Kobayashi-kun wouldn't be able to carry him, I think, and you can't expect me to lift him"
"That'd leave Koshimizu-san and Hasegawa-san as our suspects" Kobayashi completed, looking at the two new suspects "One of these two must have pretended to be Veritas so they would get shot, and then ran into the Cafeteria"
"And how do you suggest we got out of the Cafeteria? We don't fit in the ventilation system"
"Maybe through the window. I think nobody checked them! The w-w-window would be the only way you could have escaped"
At least I'm not a suspect, but if I don't set everything straight they'll make some serious mistakes here. Damn it, Amy! And why isn't anybody else protesting?!
Don't they get the person I fought with can't have been the culprit? It was no more than an accomplice, what's wrong with them?!