Hi guys! Here is the trial! I hope this will make things clearer for everyone!

The remaining ten students are inside the elevator as it goes down to the courtroom. The ride was silent. No one dared to make a noise or even whisper to the people they were with. Everyone was laser-focused to solve the murder. However, this is not the only reason why they were quiet. It was mainly due to the nature of the murder.

The murder was bloody. It was not anything like the previous two murders. It felt so new and so wrong that it made people shut up. It has intimidated most of them. This is new territory for me. This is the first time I have seen so much blood. How was the killer able to stomach this?

Nao looked around and observed everyone. I can't believe one of us was able to stab Jitsunori in the face. I don't think I could ever stab someone, especially in the face. After that, he looked at his facts. The murder is messy. A lot of things are all over the place. Rags, equipment, chemicals…

As he was scrolling through his facts, he thought of something. I thought everything needed to solve the murder is on the third floor and then this last fact showed up. He looked at fact #22. It was about the note he received. People probably have no idea about this. I should tell them during the trial.

After a while, the elevator stopped and its doors opened. They were already on the floor where the courtroom is. Everyone reluctantly walked out of the lift and went straight to the courtroom. Nao, Umeko, and Norio were the last people behind the group. Everyone has entered the courtroom except for them.

As they passed through the hallway, Nao noticed one of the doors. It had a keypad just like the locked door on the first floor. He stopped in front of it grabbing the attention of Norio and Umeko. He stared at it and noticed it was the exact same keypad on the first floor.

It also needs a four-digit password. Nao started pressing the buttons. Zero… Zero… One… Nao was about to press the last button when Monokuma suddenly appeared. He stood beside Nao and immediately slapped his hands.

"Ouch! What was that for?" Nao asked as he stroke his hand that Monokuma hit.

"What are you doing? We have a trial! You are making people wait!" Monokuma shouted.

Nao immediately responded, "I was just going to open this door. I only wanted to take a quick look at it."

Monokuma suddenly shouted, "No!"

"What do you mean no?" Nao asked.

"No means no!" Monokuma answered.

"Why?" Nao continued to ask.

Monokuma answered, "Because the rules say so!"

Nao opened the tablet and said, "There is nothing in here that says I can't enter this room!"

Suddenly, his tablet rang. He received a new file. It was a new copy of the rules. Monokuma just added a new rule.

Rule #17

Rooms on the basement floor are prohibited from being opened by any student except for the courtroom.

"Now it is! So get going already!" Monokuma said. And just like that, he disappeared into thin air. This is unfair! Monokuma must be hiding something inside of that room.

Nao continued to walk with Norio and Umeko. Umeko immediately asked Nao, "What was that?"

Nao replied, "I was going to open that door. It has the same keypad like the one on the first floor. Monokuma must be hiding something in there."

Suddenly, they heard a chuckle behind them. They turned around and saw Norio. They have completely forgotten Norio was still with them. Norio walked side by side with them. He looked at Nao and said, "So, you two have opened one of the locked doors on the first floor."

"Yes…" Umeko answered.

"Why haven't you told the group yet?" Norio asked.

"We keep forgetting since a lot of things happened. It is not just us who knows we have opened it already. Reyes also knew about it." Nao answered.

"Well, I advise you two to tell the group after the trial before you forget to tell everyone again." Norio said. After that, he whispered to Nao, "I know that is not your secret so I am still watching you."

Norio went ahead of the two and entered the courtroom. Nao and Umeko were the last ones to enter the room. The three were immediately greeted by a grumpy Hana. "Come on! Move already! We don't have much time!"

The three immediately went to their podiums. Nao immediately noticed three new pictures. Hana was standing in between Jirou's and Jitsunori's pictures. Hana is visibly uncomfortable being surrounded by pictures of dead people. Beside Norio was a stand with a picture of Reyes. He was indifferent about it.

Nao observed everyone. This going to be a weird trial. We are all wearing our identical sleeping outfits. Some are not in their usual selves. Some are grumpy like Hana and Manon. There are people who are surprisingly quiet like Samuru. Well, I just hope we are all in the right mindset to solve this murder.

Nao stretched a bit and shook his hands. After that, he patted his cheeks. I am awake. I think I should be able to do this. After reenergizing, Nao took a look at his gathered facts for one last time before the trial begins.

Fact #1: Autopsy Report #3

The first victim is Reyes de Todos los Santos de Borbon Ortiz. The estimated time of her death was 12:06 am. The victim died from a stab wound on her back.

Fact #2: Autopsy Report #4

The second victim is Jitsunori Setsunosuke. The estimated time of his death was 12:31 am. The victim died from a stab wound on his head.

Fact #3: Dark Splotches

Reyes' face was covered with dark splotches. Most of the splotches were around her eyes.

Fact #4: Wet Face

Reyes' face was wet. However, it is not water that is drenched on her face.

Fact #5: Glass Shards

Reyes' hair was covered in shards of glass.

Fact #6: Reyes' Stab Wound

Reyes has a stab wound on her back below her left shoulder blade. It was deep and aimed right at her heart.

Fact #7: Mako's Testimony

Jitsunori and Mako stayed in the cafeteria until midnight. Jitsunori mentioned he was worried about something. Reyes was not with them.

Fact #8: Jitsunori's Stab Wound

Jitsunori's face has Reyes' epee stabbed through it.

Fact #9: Wet Hilt

The hilt of Reyes' epee is wet with the same liquid on Reyes' face.

Fact #10: Torn Cloth

A piece of white cloth is stuck between the epee and Jitsunori's face. Its edges seem to be torn.

Fact #11: Jitsunori's Face

Jitsunori has dark splotches around his stab wound.

Fact #12: Blood Trails

There are two blood trails each leading to one of the victims. There is more blood away from the victim. Reyes' blood trail was smaller than Jitsunori's.

Fact #13: Puddle

There is a puddle of yellowish liquid near Reyes' blood trail. It looks like it had been wiped with something.

Fact #14: Slashes And Dents

The floor and some of the equipment have slashes and dents. Some markings are shallower than the others.

Fact #15: Broken Erlenmeyer Flask

A broken Erlenmeyer flask was found on the floor near one of the stations. It was wet. Some of its shards are missing.

Fact #16: Hana's Testimony

According to Hana, after she used the station earlier this afternoon, she cleaned it up and put back everything she used. The equipment she used were different. It took her five hours to make the slime.

Fact #17: Instruction For Acid G

The guide was opened on the page that shows how to make acid G. The instruction contains the following:

Chemicals needed:

10g of Chemical V

10g of Chemical O

10g of Chemical L

25g of Chemical E

5g of Chemical G

Tools needed:

Alcohol Burner

Steel Stand

2 Erlenmeyer Flasks

Thermometer

Bowl

Funnel

Steps:

1. Mix 10g of chemical V, 10g of chemical O, 10g of chemical L, and 25g of chemical E in an Erlenmeyer flask.

2. Put it over the alcohol burner using a steel stand. Put the thermometer inside the flask. Wait for it to reach 89C.

3. Once it reaches 89C, pour it into a bowl. There, add 5g of chemical G. Put the thermometer in the bowl. Wait for it to reach 57C.

4. Once it reaches 57C, pour the mixture inside another Erlenmeyer flask and store it until use.

Expected duration of process: 5 hours.

Fact #18: Rubber Gloves

The rubber gloves are misplaced. It is also wet.

Fact #19: Burnt Rag

A rag had burnt patches. It could also be noted that it was wet since around it was also wet.

Fact #20: Acid-Proof Rag

An acid-rag was ripped in the center. It was also wet.

Fact #21: Missing Chemicals

There are missing chemicals in the storage room.

Fact #22: Nao's Note

Nao received a note that tells him to go to the chemistry laboratory room around midnight.

This is a lot to discuss. I hope we will not run out of time like the last trial. We cannot afford to lose. Our lives are at stake. Nao looked at everyone. All of them looked confident to win the trial, including the killer.

Monokuma chuckled and said, "This is going to be fun! I expect great things from the killer! Anyway, let's start the trial!" Immediately, the group started talking. Everyone first looked at Norio who was standing with a different composure from the previous trials.

Nao noticed this and asked him about this. "Norio, is anything bothering you?"

Norio looked at him and said, "There is one thing that is bothering me."

Everyone was surprised by his answer. Hana asked, "You don't know who the killer is?"

Norio snickered and said, "Of course I already have a solid guess on who the killer is!"

Hana sighed with relief. "Thank god! Because if you can't, nobody can." Norio is kind of our safety net every trial. I am so confident to get off-track because I know Norio can lead us back to the answer.

"There is one thing that is bothering me and that is why those two are in the laboratory. I did not find any clue about that. Manon and I searched everywhere for anything but we still ended up with nothing." Norio said.

I think I have an answer for that. Norio immediately noticed Nao's sudden change of expression. He immediately called him out for it. "Nao, what's with your face? Do you something to share with us?" Norio asked.

I guess here goes nothing. "Uhmmm… I think I know why Reyes and Jitsunori are there." Nao said. This grabbed everyone's attention.

"What is the reason?" Norio asked.

"It probably has something to do with the note I received earlier." Nao revealed to everyone. Norio was intrigued by this and asked, "This is the first time I heard something about this. Would you mind sharing with us what the note contained?"

Nao nodded. "When Umeko and I were looking for my tablet, we went to my room. There, we found a note, probably slipped under the door, saying I should go to the lab around midnight."

"What does that have to do with the two?" Samuru asked.

"After your fight with Reyes, I told her about it. Jitsunori was there when I told her about it. Reyes said I should not go and she will handle it." Nao answered.

"Are you saying Reyes visited the place instead of you?" Norio asked.

"That is probably the answer." Nao answered.

Asuka suddenly asked about Jitsunori. "What about Jitsunori? Why was he there?"

Nao looked at his facts. I know I have something in here to answer her. Let me see… He immediately found the fact he was talking about. "I think Mako can answer that for us." Nao said.

Everyone looked at Mako who was blankly staring at everyone. They were confused with what Nao said. "What do you mean?" Mako asked.

Nao immediately replied, "Yous said during your talk with Jitsunori that he was worried about something, right?"

Mako nodded, "He did seem bothered about something. He kept looking at the clock. I would ask him what the problem was but he won't tell me."

Norio then said, "I am going to take a guess. You two separated around midnight and he was the one who wanted to go to sleep." Mako nodded. Norio let out a snicker. He smugly looked at everyone. "Killer, I already know what happened…" Norio teased.

Nao wanted to ask Norio who it is that he thinks killed the two but he knew Norio will not share it before everyone figures it out as well. I guess we will just have to solve this just like always. Nao continued with, "With that, I think it explains why Reyes and Jitsunori are in the lab, right?"

Everyone agreed. Norio suddenly asked, "Now that is settled, I have a question to ask. Why did the killer target Reyes and Jitsunori?" It silenced the group. Nao immediately understood Norio's question. He looked at Norio and said, "Obviously, the killer didn't target those two. I was the killer's intended target, am I right?"

"You are right! I think it is clear when you put two and two together. Someone wanted you to go to the lab. A few minutes later, we find two people dead there. I don't think that was just coincidence." Norio answered.

Hearing this suddenly shook Nao. It took him time to process. Eventually, he realized something. He looked at Jitsunori's and Reyes' stands. "I am the one who is supposed to be dead…" He said. It rendered him speechless.

Norio added, "If Reyes did not tell you to not go, you are probably the one who we are talking about right now." This did not help Nao. He was starting to crumble. He knelt down. His hands were shaking. He was starting to hyperventilate. This made everyone worry about him.

Umeko left her podium and went to his side. She whispered, "Hey, it's alright…"

"I was supposed to die!" Nao said.

"But you are not!" Umeko said.

Nao looked at Umeko and said, "It is my fault they are dead."

Umeko immediately said, "It is no way your fault. It is the killer's fault why those two are dead. If we do not solve this case, their deaths will be all for nothing."

Umeko helped him calm down. Nao took deep breaths stopping him from hyperventilating. He looked at everyone. Some were indifferent while others were worried.

"Is Nao okay?" Eri asked.

"He is starting to calm down." Umeko answered.

This is not about me. I have to help solve the case. This is no time to panic like this. Calm down, Nao. Calm down! Eventually, Nao was able to stand back up again. He looked at everyone and said, "I am sorry about that. Let's go back to the trial."

Norio immediately continued talking. "Now, you guys know it is Nao who should be dead, not the two who are dead. What else should we talk about?" Norio asked.

Immediately, Asuka answered, "Can we talk about how messy the place was? It was wet. Blood was everywhere. And, what were those dents?"

"Let's talk about one thing at a time so that it will not get confusing." Nao said.

Everyone agreed.

Nao started with the blood. "Let's start with the blood first since it is the obvious one. I think we should be able to tell why there were trails of blood."

Umeko quickly answered, "They were moved."

Everyone agreed to this answer but a question was stuck in their mind. "Why would the killer move them?" Manon asked. It is weird. There was no reason for the killer to move them. The killer could have just left them be.

Let's think about it carefully. We said that they were moved because of the blood trail on the floor. Are there things on the floor that looked like it was moved? Nao immediately looked at the clues specifically about the markings and things on the floor.

There were slashes but that does not help me explain anything right now. The acid, I know there is something weird about the acid. Suddenly, it hit him. He told everyone, "I think we should focus on the puddle of acid first."

Hana asked, "What do you mean?"

Nao explained, "I think it is not just the bodies that were tampered. Near Reyes' blood trail was a puddle of acid. But, there is something weird about it. It was just like the bodies." Nobody could understand Nao at first. All of a sudden, Umeko realized what he was talking about.

"I get it! Someone messed with it as well!" Umeko said.

"What?" Takashiro asked.

"The puddle of acid looked like it has been wiped by someone." Nao said.

Everyone thought about it. Realizing what they meant, everyone agreed. "You are right! From what I remember, it looked like it was being wiped off." Asuka said.

"Someone was definitely wiping off the acid but, if you think about it, it probably was not just the acid that was being cleaned up." Nao tried to further elaborate his point.

Umeko added, "The blood was also being wiped off as well."

"Exactly!" Nao said.

Suddenly, they were cut off by Manon. "How can we definitely say the blood was also being wiped off from just the puddle of acid? I don't get the connection." It is quite hard to explain but I will try my best for this trial.

Nao answered, "Let's take a look at the blood trails again. If you would notice, one blood trail is bigger than the other one. Reyes pool of blood was quite little unlike Jitsunori's which is strange."

Eri suddenly joined. "I-I-I have to agree with Manon. So what if Reyes' pool of blood is little?"

"I was going to get to that point. It is strange because of Reyes' wound." Nao answered.

Suddenly, Norio chuckled. "Nao is on the right track."

"What?" Eri asked.

"Nevermind me. Please continue Nao." Norio said.

After hearing Norio's comment, he felt relieved. At least I am on the right track. Nao continued. "Reyes' wound reached her heart. If you think about it, compared to a stab wound in the face, a stab wound to the heart should have caused more blood to spill out but in the crime scene, there was so little of it."

"Okay… Reyes' pool blood should have been bigger than Jitsunori's b-b-but it is the complete opposite in the crime scene." Eri said.

"Exactly! I think that suggests the blood was cleaned up." Nao explained.

It seemed clear but Norio said, "I think you could use more evidence to prove your point. It would also explain a lot of things about the killer's action" Nao was confused by this. There are other things point out to this? Nao looked at the evidence. He tried to carefully analyze what Norio meant.

Hmmm… What else points out cleaning up the crime scene? All of a sudden, he found the fact Norio was talking about. "Are you talking about the rags and the gloves?" Nao asked.

Norio nodded. "Yes! I think you should explain this to others. I think only a few got these facts."

Nao looked at the others and saw confused expressions. I forgot we all might have a different amount of clues. Because of that, Nao explained. "We found a pair of rubber gloves and two rags wet. I think they were used to clean up the scene."

Hana immediately knew what he was talking about. "Oh, I almost forgot about those things!"

"Do you think you could explain it?" Nao asked.

Hana said, "There were wet gloves and rags. If we think about it, those were wet but not because of water. There was something else that could have made it wet."

Umeko added, "The acid…"

Nao then continued, "That's right! There was no reason for the killer to use gloves if they were not going to come into contact with the acid. The rags would not be completely wet if it did not absorb a liquid. My guess is that what the rags absorbed was the acid."

Umeko added, "And, those things are usually used for cleaning as well."

"Let me get this straight. The killer was cleaning up the crime scene. But, my question is why did the killer only tried to clean up Reyes' blood?" Hana asked. Her question is valid. Why would the killer only try to clean up Reyes' blood?

Nao was thinking about it carefully but could not come up with an answer. Everyone was stumped as well. I think we should try to answer other questions first. I think we can come back to this one later.

"Let's try to focus first on the rags. There were two rags. One was ripped while the other one was burnt. Does anyone have an idea why is that?" Nao asked.

Immediately, Hana answered, "If we are going with our theory, the killer used the rag that was not acid-proof to wipe off the acid. It must have burnt it." Hana is right. She must have really stayed quite a while in the laboratory to know these things.

"Hana is right. The killer used it to wipe off the acid without knowing about the rag being not acid-proof." Norio clarified.

"That also tells us something, right?" Umeko said.

"What is it?" Nao asked.

"The killer is not familiar with the tools in the laboratory." Umeko answered. That is true. If they were used to using this stuff, they would not commit this clumsy mistake. It means the killer has not used the laboratory that much.

After that, Eri raised a question. "What about the other one… the one with the rip? Why was it… ripped?" It is an interesting question. It was ripped. That means its other torn part must be in the crime scene somewhere.

Nao tried to remember where the other part of the rag. After a few seconds, he remembered where it was but Nao was weirded by it. Why would it be there? Samuru saw Nao's weirded out expression. "Is there something wrong?"

"I think I know how it was ripped but it sounds weird." Nao explained.

"Go ahead. We are trying to solve a murder. Anything would be helpful at this point." Samuru insisted.

Nao took a deep breath before continuing. "I think the sword tore a hole in the cloth but it was stuck so the killer tore it off from the sword."

"Why would it be stuck?" Hana asked.

"Because the cloth was in between the sword and Jitsunori's face." Nao said.

"How are you so sure about that?" Manon asked.

"There was a piece of cloth stuck between the epee and Jitsunori's face. It also looked like it has been ripped apart from something." Nao answered.

"That would be the acid-proof rag." Hana added. Nao nodded.

"It would also explain the dark splotches on his face." Norio added.

"What do you mean?" Nao asked.

Norio suddenly said, "Figure it out."

Nao suddenly thought about it. What would cause the dark splotches? It would probably be the acid. But how did the acid got to his face? I think I know the answer. Nao was ready to answer. "The killer threw the wet rag right after using it to wipe the acid. That must have caused burns or the dark splotches on his face."

"Then the killer stabs him?" Takashiro asked.

"Yes!" Nao answered.

"That made it sound like the killer was not prepared for Jitsunori." Takashiro said.

Nao thought about it. "Can you explain to us why said that?"

"Well, out of all of the things you could throw, why throw a rag?" Takashiro asked.

He does have a point. The killer could have just easily done something quicker like stabbing him directly with a sword. What would make the killer throw it first? Nao thought about it. He tried to think about what has been talked about already. Eventually, he was able to make something up.

"The killer threw the rag because it was what they were holding." Nao said.

"What?" Takashiro asked.

"What do we know so far about the killer?" Nao asked.

"The killer tried to clean the scene." Umeko said.

"Exactly! The killer must have been cleaning when Jitsunori appeared. They were caught off-guard. They instinctively threw the cloth at his face. It must have blinded him for a bit. The killer could have easily taken hold of the epee to stab him." Nao said.

"That would explain two things as well." Norio added.

Everyone's attention shifted to Norio. Norio continued, "The wet hilt and…"

Nao continued, "The unfinished cleaning."

Norio continued to explain. "The killer must have grabbed the epee with the wet gloves and stabbed him. They ripped off the cloth off of Jitsunori's face but thought the rag was unusable. Because of that, they must have thought cleaning would be impossible."

"Can anyone please summarize the shit that we have talked about so far? I am fucking falling asleep." Asuka said.

Umeko did the summarizing. "So far, we are able to make a concrete guess on how Jitsunori died. The killer must have been cleaning when Jitsunori walked in. Instinctively, the killer threw the cloth to Jitsunori's face and quickly stabbed him. Then, the killer ripped of the rag but thought there is no way they can clean using the ripped rag."

"Basically, we still have no fucking idea about Reyes' death." Asuka said.

She is not wrong about that. I think we are able to solve Jitsunori's murder. I think it is time for us to focus on Reyes. "Let's talk about Reyes then." Nao said.

"What should we talk about her first?" Umeko asked.

"Let's talk about something we already know." Norio said.

"I am guessing it is the dark splotches on her face." Hana said.

"You are right!" Norio answered.

"We all know it was caused by the acid. Knowing that, what do you guys think happened?" Norio asked.

The acid was thrown to her face. That is the only thing I could think about. Nao thought about it deeper. However, it just made him more confused. He tried to stop thinking like that and tried to think in a more direct logic.

The killer threw the acid on Reyes' face. Of course, that caused the dark splotches. The dark splotches are around her eyes. That means her eyes were exposed to the acid. Nao suddenly got it. He immediately said, "She was blinded, wasn't she?"

"That is right! Continue the trial with that." Norio said.

"How could you say that?" Samuru asked.

"Try to think about where the dark splotches are on her face." Nao said.

"They were around her eyes." Samuru answered.

"It is quite possible some of the acid got into her eyes. I am not a scientist but I think that would blind her." Nao elaborated.

"That must have thrown her off." Umeko said.

"Can you explain what you mean by that." Nao asked.

"I don't think anyone can kill Reyes. Samuru cannot even defeat her. The killer must have done something to even the playing the field." Umeko.

"Uhmmm… I have a question." Eri said.

"What is it?" Nao asked.

"According to the autopsy report, she was stabbed t-t-to death. I think we can say it was the sword. But, how could the killer stab her if Reyes has the sword?" Eri asked.

It is true. Even if Reyes was blinded, that does not automatically make it easy for the killer to take hold of Reyes' epee. The killer must have done something else. Nao read his facts again. Two facts caught his attention.

"There was broken Erlenmeyer flask with missing shards. There were glass shards on Reyes' hair. I think we can connect that in some way." Nao said.

"I have an answer!" Asuka said.

Nao looked at her and said, "What is it?"

"The killer fucking hit her in the head with the flask! That must have hurt so bad!" Asuka answered. Everyone agreed to Asuka's answer. If the killer hit her in the head, that must have done something to her.

"I think I know how the killer got hold of the epee." Nao said.

This got everyone's attention. "How?" Hana asked.

"I think the killer incapacitated her. Even if she was blinded, Reyes can still fight back." Nao said.

Manon immediately asked, "Can you please prove that to us?"

There are a lot of signs Reyes could still fight back. It was all over the room. "The random slashes and dents can prove it." Nao answered.

"Please elaborate more." Manon said.

"After she was blinded, Reyes must have grabbed on to her epee and started flinging her sword randomly. I think that would be the most logical thing to do to make the killer stay away from her. But since she had no vision, her swings must have been random. She must have hit the floor and equipment and made few scratches." Nao explained. This silenced Manon.

Umeko continued Nao's statement. "Because of her erratic behavior, the killer must have thought Reyes should be knocked out. They hit her with the flask."

"That is I think what happened as well. Knocking her out, it is easy to take the epee away from her and stab her in the heart." Nao said.

"I have to say, the killer must be really knowledgeable about the body." Samuru said.

It caught everyone's attention. "Why do you say that?" Nao asked.

"It was a clean stab. The killer did not have to stab her twice to hit her heart." Samuru added.

After that, the room became silent. They did not know where to continue. They are confident with what they have so far. I think we pretty much solved the murders of the two. But, there is one problem. We still do not have a name.

Nao was getting more worried about this. He knew time was ticking. He tries to scan again all of his gathered clues and try to find something. There must be something we are missing. I need to figure out this quickly.

Suddenly, he figured out what they were missing. "I got it." Nao said. This surprised everyone.

"What is it?" Hana asked.

"I think we already have the murder mapped out but we could not name the killer because we have completely glossed over one important detail." Nao said.

"What is it?" Manon asked.

Everyone was waiting for Nao to answer. Nao was starting to feel nervous. I hope I do not lead us to the wrong answer. He looked back at everyone and said, "We have completely forgotten about the guide on how to make the acid."

Everyone was confused but Nao was sure of what he was saying. He looked at Norio and received a smile from him. I guess I am on the right track.

"There is something in the manual that would narrow down our list of suspects." Nao said as everyone listens intently to him.

That is all for this update! I hope this made it clearer who did it!

Who do you think killed those two? You can tell me by answering the poll on my profile.

If you want talk about this fanfic, you can join the discord server for this story. The link is on my profile.

If you want to say anything about this story, you can comment.

Anyway, that is it for now!

Good luck to all of us!