Epilogue Part II: A New Lease On Life
Azuki's POV
I slowly opened my eyes, and found myself in an enclosed space, inside a pod-like machine. It distinctly reminded me of the room with the pods that Higurashi had shown me not long ago, before I'd been executed for accidentally killing Mihama. Maybe that had all been a dream, but if it was, why was I in the exact same spot I'd visited on the day I was executed?
I saw a couple people I knew gazing at me. Chiyuri was trembling with nervous anticipation, while Himeno put a hand on her shoulder- while they got along reasonably well, I didn't know when they'd become friends. Next to them was Kojima, who was supposed to be dead. Even if he'd been playing possum this entire time, he would have been left behind when the ship departed the island. All of them were dressed in the outfits I'd recognized. So was I, and I noticed that my clothes weren't ripped or covered in blood, as they'd been after the knife-wielding Monokumas with my classmates' faces had their way with me.
Finally, the pod opened up, and I uneasily got out and stood up. The floor beneath my feet felt solid, so this obviously wasn't a dream.
"Oh, Akira..." Chiyuri said. "You're finally back with us!"
"Finally?" I said. "How long has it been? And how the hell is Kojima still alive?"
"Same reason you are," Kojima said, "but you'll have to ask Nagato or one of the others who made it to the end about the time."
So I wasn't imagining things, or at least I wasn't the only one. I had died, after all. The only question was how I'd come back.
"It's been a little less than three weeks since you, er, died," Chiyuri said, "but it turns out that we were in a virtual reality simulator known as the Neo World Program this entire time."
"So we didn't actually die, then?" I said.
Chiyuri shrugged. I'd thought my question was simple enough, but apparently, things were a bit more complex than that.
"Yes and no," Chiyuri said. "While it isn't possible to actually die in the Neo World Program, all sensations are real, and the shock of dying would send you into a persistent vegetative state."
"Talk about a crappy video game," Kojima said. "So how did we get an extra life, so to speak?"
"Good question, Kojima-san," Chiyuri said. "Perhaps I should let him explain."
Glancing to my side, I saw the other four people who'd died before me, as well as some unfamiliar faces. One of the latter group, a boy in a shirt and tie, stepped forward, accompanied by some of the others.
"I owe you guys an explanation," the boy said. "We were informed that some of you were in a predicament not unlike the one we had recently found ourselves in, and came here to help. Since my talents are uniquely suited to that sort of thing, I was able to reverse any damage that the Neo World Program might have inflicted on you."
"So basically, we came back to life?" I said. "Thank you so much; you're a lifesaver."
"Don't thank him just yet," a girl in a kimono said. "He said he fixed the program inflicted on you guys, not that he undid how you spent a month killing each other. If your killing game's anything like ours, I'm pretty sure everyone who got killed remembers how they died and who killed them."
I nervously glanced over at Mihama. She always struck me as composed for a girl her age, but just because she played her cards close to her chest when it came to her feelings didn't mean that she didn't have a hand that would pose problems for me.
"That may be true, Hiyoko-chan," a girl wearing a jumper dress, a blouse and a necktie, said, "but as for you guys, I hope you all are able to forgive each other. You may have hard feelings over what happened during the killing game, but please understand that nothing good ever comes of holding grudges and seeking revenge."
The girl in the jumper cast a glance at a fairly tall girl in a sailor fuku and a glasses, and a one-eyed short guy in a suit. I didn't know who they were or what history they had, but I could tell that something had gone down between the three, resulting in at least one of them "dying."
"Did you forget?" the guy in the suit said. "We're not supposed to use names here. It's for their benefit, as well as ours. It's bad enough that he forgot, too."
"Oh, sorry," the girl in the jumper said. "You're right; I guess it would be safer if they don't know who we are."
"That is correct!" a boy in a gyakuran with a scarf said, " for as the result of my countless evil deeds, my name will invite a curse upon anyone who dares speak it!"
"What he means is that associating with us, the Remnants of Despair, would be construed as an act of treason," a foreign-looking girl in a jumper dress said. "By accepting our help, and remaining quiet about seeing us, you would possibly be accused of aiding and abetting us."
"Even though you just saved us?" I said. "That's fucked up."
The boy in the shirt and tie nodded.
"You're right," he said, "but that's reality for us. The crimes that the members of Ultimate Despair committed are too great to atone for, even with a lifetime of penance, but the least we can do is use our talents to help others. If you believe you owe us your lives and wish to repay us, simply live as well as you can."
"I will," Tatsuki said. "It took me a long time to learn that lesson, but by following it, I'm able to persist."
"That's great, Tatsuki-chan!" a girl with horned hair said. "Ibuki- I mean I'm- sure looking forward to hearing more of your and Taiga-chan's music!"
As the boy in the suit facepalmed, I knew that while Ibuki Mioda, the Ultimate Musician, was the only one who'd made the mistake of referring to herself in the third person, I could identify a couple of the other members of Class 77-B of Hope's Peak Academy. Of course, if anyone asked, I'd say I didn't know who'd helped us.
A girl in a nurse's uniform made the rounds, inspecting each of us and confirming that we hadn't sustained any lasting damage from the Neo World Program. She tripped and fell on her back, giving us a glimpse up her skirt, but I bent down and helped her up without looking.
"You all right?" I said. "You might want to watch where you're going and wear pants."
The nurse blushed a bit.
"I...I'll keep that in mind," the nurse said. "Thank you very much."
The girl looked me over and found that I hadn't suffered any damage from my ordeal. Once she was done, the Remnants of Despair
"If all of you are well, we should be taking our leave," the foreign-looking girl, who looked like more of a princess than even Himeno did, said.
"Please do, Your Highness," Himeno said, bowing. "From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for your help. I hope I speak for all of us when I say I will never forget you."
Himeno bowed deeply, as did Kanae, who was on the same wavelength as her best friend, and the rest of us followed suit a moment later.
"Thanks," the boy in the shirt and tie said. "I know that memories are to be cherished, since often, they're all you have left of the people most important to you. Well, they're not the only thing in my case, but they're precious and irreplaceable, so I'll hold on to them for as long as I can."
I saw something in the boy's hand, what looked like a hair instrument shaped like a pixelated spaceship from a shmup. I had no idea what girl (or so I assumed) had given him the trinket- a little sister, a friend or a girlfriend- but she must have been special to him. Perhaps she was gone, but she certainly wasn't forgotten, just like I would never forget the people who had brought me back to the land of the living.
The Remnants of Despair left unceremoniously, got on the ship and headed off to parts unknown. After they left, Chiyuri held an impromptu meeting and proceeded to explain the situation to us- how Nagato-sensei was the mastermind, how she'd been brainwashed, how our kohais in the Future Foundation helped us, and where the world stood. She'd come a long way from being Higurashi's assistant, so I wasn't surprised that she could manage in my absence.
Chiyuri placed a call to headquarters. The screen showed Kaori Miura, a kouhai of mine, wearing the female Future Foundation uniform, which was essentially a suit and tie. Even though I'd only spoken to Miura a handful of times, I easily recognized her.
"Future Foundation Division 14, this is Miura," Miura said.
"Miura-san, this is Nagato," Chiyuri said. "The people who came off the ship helped revive the victims of the killing school cruise."
"Excellent, Nagato-senpai," Miura said. "I'll pass the word along, and the ship should come for you in about a day or so. Before they do, though, did your benefactors identify themselves?"
Chiyuri shook her head.
"Not at all," Chiyuri said. "They didn't give us their names."
"I see," Miura said. "I would like to thank them personally, but I doubt that is possible."
"It's for the best," Chiyuri said. "From what I understand, those people weren't looking for thanks or rewards."
I cracked a grin. Chiyuri had always been more intelligent than she realized, and she'd grown quite a bit in my absence.
Chiyuri finalized the details of our pickup and signed off. I wasn't exactly thrilled about spending a night on the island that was the basis of the one where Mihama and I had died, but at least we were going home... or what was left of home.
Those of us who had awakened got settled in to the office complex, which, while not the most comfortable place to sleep, didn't have any booby traps. As we expected, while everyone was glad that the death toll of the killing game had ended up being zero, that didn't mean we were glad to see the dead students again.
Himeno pulled me aside, and asked me to sit down with her and Kanae in one of the more intact-looking offices.
"Hey, you two," I said. "It's great to see you again."
"Likewise, Akira," Himeno said. "Words can barely describe how happy I feel to have you and my oldest friend back among the living."
"Me too," Kanae said. "To be honest, though, it's weird. It feels like only a few minutes have passed since my encounter with Yamazaki-san. It's almost as though the entire thing was just a bad dream."
The thing about dreams was that you tended to forget them when you woke up. Unfortunately, none of us would be forgetting the killing game any time soon.
"In a way, I guess I'm glad you feel that way," Himeno said, "but how do you feel about Yamazaki-san?"
"I can't really judge him," Kanae said. "He gave in to the pressure of the killing game, and did something he regretted, but he wouldn't have done that in better circumstances. Now, he has a second chance like me and everyone else, and that only seems fair."
"I guess it does," Himeno said, "but that still doesn't change what he did. His punishment was brutal, perhaps worse than he deserved, but I doubt I can forgive that he killed my best friend, much less forget about that."
"You don't have to," I said, "since I haven't forgotten, either. Then again, don't you think that forgiving him is mainly Kanae's decision?"
Himeno reluctantly nodded. Perhaps it was a bit much to ask her to put aside her grudge against him, but if Kanae could do it, there was little point to Himeno remaining bitter.
"I do," Himeno said. "It's just that it will be hard for those affected by the killing game to let go of their hard feelings. We'll likely bear the trauma for the rest of our lives."
"I know," Kanae said, "but I, for one, am grateful that I have a life, and plan to make the most of it."
"I'm glad, too," Himeno said. "That reminds me didn't you and your family promise to serve the Himemiyas as long as you live?"
"Yes, we did," Kanae said, "but what does... oh."
As the realization hit Kanae, a smirk crossed Himeno's face.
"At the risk of sounding morbid, you died in the Neo World Program," Himeno said, "and since you served me well until then, your obligation to my family is fulfilled. I'm sure no one would object if you quit your job as a maid, got married, took on your husband's name and had children who could do what they wanted with their lives."
"That sounds lovely, Himeno," Kanae said, "but no matter where my life takes me, I'll always leave a place in it for you, as my best friend."
I excused myself and let the two have some time together, since I had places to be and people to speak with.
I went searching for Mihama in the office complex. After checking the office on the first floor, where I'd discovered her body, I looked in the second floor office, where she'd been killed. She was sitting in the chair and perusing some of the research materials.
"I thought I'd find you here," I said. "There's, er, something I need to talk with you about."
"Do you mean...?" Mihama said.
I nodded. At the very least, her perceptiveness saved me the trouble of breaking the news to her. I then got down and prostrated myself before Mihama.
"Please forgive me, Mihama-san," I said. "Because of my negligence and incompetence, you lost your life."
"Stand up, please, Azuki-san," Mihama said.
I complied, then looked Mihama in the eye and prepared to listen to what she had to say.
"There is nothing to forgive," Mihama said, "save for my carelessness, which cost you your life, as well as mine, and I am truly sorry. In fact, by uncovering the truth in the class trial and laying down your life, you saved the rest of us."
"From a problem I got us into," I said, "but if you insist, I guess we can call it even."
Mihama didn't argue with that. Since we both had apologized, there wouldn't be any point in holding a grudge.
"In the end, Monokuma's goal was for two of us to die on that island," Mihama said. "My accident was unfortunate, but losing one of us to bad luck was better than choosing to sacrifice someone, or one of us committing murder."
"I agree," I said. "I'll probably always regret screwing up, but at least I don't regret any of the choices I actively made."
After seeing Yamazaki and Taiga, I wondered if the other killers were truly sorry about what they did. Contrition wouldn't be enough for them to earn forgiveness, but maybe I wouldn't judge them as harshly as if they'd refused to apologize.
On the way back from seeing Mihama, I saw Kojima standing in the hall, apparently waiting for me.
"Oh, it's you," I said.
"Hey, Azuki," Kojima said awkwardly. "I, uh, don't know where to start."
"How about by apologizing to the twins?" I said. "None of this would've happened if you hadn't tried to kill Taiga."
"I already apologized," Kojima said. "Tatsuki returned the favor, of course."
That was pretty much what I'd hoped for, so I paused and waited to see if he had anything else to say.
"Of course, Taiga wasn't ready to let me off the hook," Kojima said. "She said, and I quote, 'By know, you know what my sister's capable of. If you even think of laying a hand on her, you'll find out what I'm capable of.'"
I chuckled. Judging by the bead of sweat running down Kojima's brow, Taiga's point had gotten through.
"Seriously, though," Kojima said, "I'm not too keen on dying a second time, so I won't pull a stunt like that again."
"You'd better not," I said. "For some of us, one murder attempt from you was more than enough."
Kojima nodded glumly as I excused myself. His estimates of his chances with me had always been unrealistically optimistic, but even he knew that I wouldn't get together with him after what he'd tried to do.
I saw Kurogane standing in an office, staring out at the ocean. He turned around, and I saw that he'd been crying.
"Mind if I join you?" I said.
"Sure thing," Kurogane said. "I checked, and there aren't any traps here."
I thanked him, but still proceeded into the room carefully. The window had a pretty good view, at least by my standards. I'd occasionally looked out over the sides of the Ursa Major at the ocean, but it had been a long time since I'd taken the time to enjoy the view.
"So, uh..." I said. "Did you talk to Kojima?"
"I did," Kurogane said laconically.
"What'd he say?" I said.
Kurogane sighed and shook his head despondently.
"Nothing that would excuse him trying to murder Taiga-san," Kurogane said. "I made up my mind about him in the second trial, and the only thing that changed these past few weeks was that I came to terms with that truth."
"Sorry to hear that," I said.
"It's fine," Kurogane said. "I'll never forget what happened here, but now, I feel free to move on. I can only hope that Kojima-kun will do the same when it comes to you."
"Yeah," I said. "If we don't see each other again, take care of yourself, and be sure to get a good boyfriend."
It was a shame that Kurogane and Kojima's friendship hadn't survived the killing game, but I was glad that Kurogane had achieved that sense of closure. Perhaps someday, he'd find a boyfriend who'd reciprocate his feelings and be worthy of his love.
We ate whatever we could scrounge up. Most of us dined separately, although the girls, myself included, ate with their cabin mates. After dinner, I found the twins sitting together on the ground floor.
"Oh, hello, Azuki-san," Tatsuki said. "I have a question I'd like to ask you."
"Ask away," I said, "although I can't guarantee I can answer it."
"Well, it's sort of philosophical," Tatsuki said. "Do I deserve to be this happy?"
I was kind of taken aback by this question. The only reason I could think of that Tatsuki chose me to ask that question was because I'd accidentally killed Mihama.
"Are you saying you don't?" I said.
"The intervention of the Remnants of Despair does not change the fact that I was responsible for killing Kojima-kun and letting Taiga die," Tatsuki said. "It only undid the consequences. My actions still remain, and I'll still have to live with them."
At the time of my "death," Tatsuki was nearly suicidal from grief and guilt. She'd made some progress since then, although she probably would remain haunted by her actions for the rest of her life. Maybe it was because I liked her better than Kojima(which wasn't saying much), but I felt that she didn't deserve it.
"That may be true," I said, "but I think you've started down the path of atonement, and have become a better person. I think it's only natural to be relieved that your sister, Kojima and the others are back among the living."
"That's right, sis," Taiga said. "Back then, when I saw Kojima-kun go for me with a knife, I couldn't think of any way to resolve the situation without at least two out of three of us ending up dead. All I wanted was to be able to get out of here with you, after all, and that dream came true. There's no reason for you not to be happy."
"No, of course not," Tatsuki said with a smile. "There's no Dragon without the Taiga, after all."
"Exactly," Taiga said. "If Mom and Dad are alive out there somewhere, I'm sure they're waiting for us to return. If not... then at least they'll rest a little easier knowing that their daughters are still alive."
Tatsuki simply decided to leave it at that. I didn't know if there was an afterlife, even after I seemingly died, but that was a good enough answer for Tatsuki, so I accepted it, too.
We set up sleeping bags in the basement, but I found I couldn't get to sleep. For the longest time, I'd been focused on getting out of the killing game, so I hadn't paid much thought to what would come after that.
After a while, I got up and took a walk. In the halls, I saw Kumakura, who looked exhausted but wasn't any more successful at falling asleep than I was.
"Hey, Kumakura," I said, unsure of what the right greeting was for the wee hours of the morning.
"Hello, Azuki-san," Kumakura said. "I guess you can't sleep, either?"
"Nope," I said. "I guess I'm worried about what'll happen from here on out."
Kumakura nodded.
"In other words, the future's what's troubling you," Kumakura said, "but for me, it's the past. On the fourth island, Kirishima-kun poisoned me with muscle relaxants, then smothered me to death in my hospital bed while I was helpless. I came back because of a miracle, but I will never forget the feelings of fear, pain and betrayal I experienced before my death."
"I don't think any of us can forget," I said. "Not even Mihama, who blames herself for what happened, rather than me."
"True, and you should be grateful to Mihama-san," Kumakura said. "Forgiveness isn't always an easy thing to give."
I agreed. Part of the reason why I was hesitant, albeit not completely unwilling, to judge the killers was because I'd inadvertently become one myself.
"I know," I said. "If anything, I wonder if I deserve it."
"Mihama-san understands the circumstances," Kumakura said. "She knows you didn't want to kill her, let alone get away with it. You're as much of a victim as she is, and as deserving of a second chance."
"Thanks," I said, "but what about Kirishima?"
"I can't forgive him," Kumakura said, "but I do understand that he wouldn't have gone this far if it wasn't a killing game. He deserves a chance to live in a society in which murder is a crime... and whatever punishment the courts hand down if he breaks the law again."
I could respect that. Kumakura wasn't soft, considering that he'd voted for my execution, as well as for Yamazaki and Tatsuki's. He'd done it to ensure the spotless' survival, and because he had no real choice, but he wasn't scared to do what was right.
"I guess that works," I said. "We all did what we felt we had to, both the blackened and the spotless, because our situation required it. Because of that, I don't know if a court has the right to judge us."
I wasn't the most idealistic person, but I had to admit that I'd never spent any time around murderers before, so the idea of people killing each other didn't feel real for me at the start. Both Kumakura and I had been disabused of that notion, and we'd likely spend many more sleepless nights thinking about what we'd learned.
The next morning, a Future Foundation ship came to pick us up and return us to what was left of civilization. When we got off the ship, we all went our separate ways, with most of us barely even saying goodbye. That was the last time the sixteen of us were in the same place at the same time.
There were some exceptions, though. The six who'd made it it all the way to the end, as well as those closest to them, stayed in fairly close contact. I kept in touch with Chiyuri and a couple of my other friends. Sayuri and Himeno moved in together, and the twins did the same with each other. A couple of us ended up going to work together at the new Hope's Peak. Despite that, most of us drifted apart from the group, especially Yamazaki, Kojima, Kirishima, Karita and Asakura, and we lost track of some of our former classmates.
While I was pretty cynical for the most part, and the killing game only made me more so, I knew that lingering bitterness and pain was only part of the reason. The fact was that Talent High School had pulled together students with divergent interests from all over the country, so it was a miracle that even a handful of us stayed friends after this was over.
Despite that, I was glad that we'd all made it back, and that we had a second chance. Neither our lives nor the world would ever be the same again, but I looked forward to restarting my acting career, and once again gracing the silver screen. If nothing else, I knew I had a second chance, and I had no intention of wasting it.
Author's Notes
While the whole twist of Class 77-B coming back from the dead was controversial, to say the least, I thought it was worth exploring here. Class 32 of Talent High School isn't quite as forgiving, and some people are still bitter about what happened in the killing game. There's also less of a sense of camaraderie, than in the canon games, resulting in the survivors going their separate ways.
One more chapter will show the reopening of Hope's Peak, along with the lives of Kaori, Sae and the friends they keep in touch with.
The omake shows Akira calling Chiyuri to catch up.
Omake
A few months later, I called up Chiyuri for old times' sake, hoping she wasn't too busy to take the call.
"Nagato residence," Chiyuri said.
"Hi, Chiyuri, it's me," I said.
"Certainly, Akira," Chiyuri said.
We talked for a little while about our jobs- mine as an actor, hers as a teacher.
"Mihama-san was in town lately," Chiyuri said. "She had dinner with Sayuri-san and Himeno-san, and briefly stopped to visit some of her other classmates, myself included. Her job as a defense attorney is going really well."
"That's great," I said. "It's been a while since I've heard from her- Mihama, that is."
"I see," Chiyuri said. "Well, the same goes for me, but..."
An awkward pause followed. Chiyuri knew why Mihama and I might not be on speaking terms, but wasn't willing to say it out loud.
"Don't get me wrong," I said. "I don't hold what happened at the third island against her. It's just that we don't have a lot in common, so it's not as though we had to be friends."
"I understand," Chiyuri said. "Apart from you, Sayuri-san and a few of my coworkers at the new Hope's Peak, I don't keep in touch with many of our classmates."
Part of the reason I considered Chiyuri such a good friend was because she was a bit more like me than I'd initially thought. She realized some people weren't worth the effort to befriend
"Still," Chiyuri said, "I'm so glad you came back, and hope to keep in touch of you. It's natural for bonds of friendship to weaken due to time and distance, but I'll keep ours alive."
"Me too," I said. "I've got to get going, but I'll call again soon- hopefully a bit sooner next time."
"Thanks, Akira," Chiyuri said. "I'll talk to you later."
I hung up. From here on out, Chiyuri and I probably wouldn't be as close as we were at school, and we might eventually drift apart. Despite that, I had no intention of forgetting her or the people who mattered to me or letting my friendships die due to apathy.
