What's this, I didn't need to take a month-long hiatus in order to write the investigation chapter? Well that's just unbelievable!
Even more unbelievable is the fact that this chapter is 10k. Can't remember off the top of my head when the last non-trial chapter that long was. Hopefully, this will be the last non-trial chapter to be anywhere near this long, though I can think of at least one instance in the future that might reach or surpass it.
In any case, as we learned in the last chapter, Nagito survived the extreme circumstances of his attempted-murder, and now the other students have to figure out what to do with him. Let's see how well they handle having the most hated member of their group grievously injured before them.
As always, I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Chapter 38
Bad Luck Charm
"Nagito is still alive!"
Maki's words still echoed through the warehouse, but the other students didn't know how to react to them. Time seemed to stand still.
The next thing that occurred was Monokuma appearing next to Nagito. Everyone expected him to start with his maniacal laughter and poor-taste jokes, but he merely stared down at the boy, anger clear on his face.
He grumbled, "Cheaters. I knew they weren't above fighting dirty, but to go and do this... Heh, perhaps I underestimated him. Oh well. I'll have plenty of time to come up with a way to pay them back for their interference..."
"Monokuma." Maki started. "As I'm sure you're aware, Nagito isn't dead. That means you have to employ whatever measures you can to keep him alive."
"...Says who?" He looked up at her with curiosity. "With Fuyuhiko and Nekomaru, they were each injured from my executions, so I had to step in to fix that. However, Nagito sustained these injuries because of the actions of a student participating in this killing school trip. As such, I have no obligation to get involved! Soooo, let's just give him a minute to bleed out, and then we can get ready for the next-"
"Hold it right there!" Monomi appeared across from Monokuma, staring him down.
"What!? Don't get in my way like that! I was about to start the next investigation in such a cool way..."
"Shut up! I can't stand this anymore! How much longer are you going to keep putting them through this!? No more! I won't let you! I'll make sure I pulverize your evil intentions!"
She pointed dramatically at him which, given that they were only about a foot apart, left her hand mere inches from his face. After a moment, she added, "S-Say something...!"
He glanced down at the hand in front of him, then back up to her face. "Oh, now I remember who you are... you're Monomi."
"Y-You just now noticed!?" She recoiled.
"Anyway Monomi... if you're gonna talk about my intentions, why don't you talk about yours first?"
"...Huh?"
"What're your intentions anyway? Why are you keeping everyone cooped up on this island? I'm sure everyone here wants to know too, y'know?" He paused, giving her a chance to respond, but she remained silent. "Whaaaaat!? No fair! You're shutting up too!"
"E-Enough already!" Sonia snapped. "If Nagito really can be saved, then please... Please, restore his health! We do not want anymore victims in this game!"
"Damn right!" Nekomaru shouted. "I don't care if our circumstances were different, if you can save me, then you can save Nagito!"
"Yeah!" Hiyoko agreed. "We don't wanna play this stupid game anymore, and you're gonna force us to do it again even though he wasn't really killed!?"
Monokuma looked between each of the students, as if doing a mental headcount. "...Ah, jeez. I guess I have enough already, anyway. But you're really gonna make me pull out this skit for the third time? Then again, I guess the third time is always funnier than the second... Alright, fine."
Suddenly, everyone could hear a siren in the distance. A moment later, an ambulance parked itself outside the warehouse, and a Monokuma wearing a stethoscope climbed out. "Just leave it to me: Doctor Killgood!"
Two other Monokumas walked in with a stretcher, cut the ropes around Nagito's arms and legs, and carefully loaded him onto it, weapons and all. As they did so, Doctor Killgood recycled his only other line, "We gotta get this patient to the Monokuma Hospital ER and get him under 24 hour observation, stat! Soooo, I'll see you later!"
With that, the Monokumas, Nagito, and the ambulance all disappeared.
"Hmmm, y'know, somehow that wasn't as entertaining as it was either time before..." Monokuma mused.
Chiaki finally looked up from the ground, turning to her classmates. "...Anyway, let's begin."
"Begin?" Hajime repeated. "Begin what?"
"Isn't it obvious? We need to investigate this incident. We need to figure out who attacked Nagito."
"Huh...? B-But..." Monomi protested.
"Why do we have to investigate it?" Hiyoko asked. "It's not like he's dead for real, right? So we're not gonna have a trial over this."
"I mean... that doesn't change the fact that he was attacked, right?" Chiaki asked. "One of us tried to kill Nagito... even if we're not having a trial, we still need to figure out who it was, so we can prevent something like this from happening again..."
Hiyoko hesitated, but relented. "...Fine, I guess. I wanna know who I can trust or not, so we just gotta do it."
Monokuma laughed. "Puhuhu, looks like you kids are way more well-behaved than Monomi!"
"Hey, we're all sick of this, too!" Nekomaru argued. "That's why we have to do what we can to make sure this never happens again!"
"Ah, does that mean... you guys are getting bored of this school trip? Don't worry! The end is near!"
"...Huh? The end?" Hajime repeated.
"Don't make a face like a pig that's about to become bacon! You've already noticed it, right? The meaning behind that Monokuma Timer... Um... I guess there's only two days left, huh?"
"Wh-When that timer reaches zero... two days from now... What will happen to us?"
"Hm? The killing school trip will be over."
"I-If this will finally be over... Does that mean we can go home!?" Hiyoko asked.
"Don't count your bears before they've hatched... There's still something you gotta do before that, right? Meanwhile, I've still got one little trick that I want to try... Puhuhu..." With that ominous statement, he disappeared.
"H-Hold on...! I won't let you escape this time! Wait right there!" Monomi quickly followed him.
"The killing school trip will end...?" Maki muttered in disbelief.
"Hey, it's safe to say we'll all get to go home, right...?" Hiyoko asked.
"Hiyoko... I understand how you feel, but we need to focus on Nagito's case first." Chiaki insisted.
"Then let's hurry up and solve this case so we can go home!" Nekomaru shouted.
"It is nice to think that everyone can go home, but... that is impossible, right?" Sonia mused sadly. "Because... we have lost so many of our friends."
Maki looked up, scanning the group. "We won't be receiving a Monokuma File this time, so we'll need someone to examine Nagito's wounds. In lieu of Mikan, I suppose I'm the next best thing. Since I'll be over at the hospital, Hajime, Chiaki, I'll leave this area to you."
"We don't have to divide up tasks this time, remember?" Hiyoko pointed out. "Since we're not having a trial, we can investigate as long as we want to."
"That's... a good point, actually. Still, I should get started on the "autopsy" as soon as possible. We can meet up later and tell each other what we learned. After that, I guess we do what we always do and debate amongst ourselves."
"In that case... I will also accompany you." Sonia decided.
"That's a good idea, too. I need someone to corroborate my findings. If I were alone, you guys would have no proof that I didn't falsify everything."
"Well, that, too... However, I also... wish to see if Nagito is alright."
"Hm." Maki thought about that for a moment. "You know, Sonia, I think you may be too compassionate for your own good."
"Is that so...?"
"Despite your status, and our reprehensible actions, you treat both Nagito and I as your equals. As your friends, even. Your disdain for us is clear, and yet you never let it affect your behaviour. I suppose I... envy that compassion, in a way. But eventually... it'll catch up to you. You're going to get yourself killed."
Sonia stared at her unflinchingly. "The moment I was born into the royal family, I was destined not to die a meaningless death. When I die... it will be meaningful to my country and my people. So... I do not fear death. Especially not one brought about as a result of my compassion."
Maki's gaze moved to the floor. "...If only we could all be so confident."
Sonia turned to the others. "Now then, I believe we should be off. Please, do your best, everyone!"
The two girls were waved off as they left the warehouse.
Hajime turned his attention to the back of the room, where Monokuma had drawn a chalk outline of Nagito's position. A puddle of blood covered part of the outline, likely the blood from the spear wound. As he approached, he glanced at Chiaki, who was not staring downward, but upward.
"...What happened? Is there something strange about the ceiling?"
"Yeah, about that sprinkler..." She pointed.
"That's one of the sprinkler heads that activated to put out the fire."
"You can see a girder right next to it, right? There..." She pointed again. "Can you... see that red streak?"
"...Huh? You're right... I definitely see it... It looks like a small red line... on the ceiling girder..."
"Is that... blood?" Chiaki wondered.
"...Blood? The colour definitely looks like blood... but there's no way blood can get up there, right? Plus... it's in a straight line..."
"That's why I've been staring at it. I think it's strange."
Hajime made a mental note of it before turning back to the ground. He noted the ropes at were used to tie Nagito down. Each of the ropes were tied to a nearby pillar, so movement would have been impossible. Other than that, however, there didn't seem to be much evidence in this little are. It was likely all moved along with Nagito, which meant he'd have to hope that Maki and Sonia turn up something.
His eyes trailed a little ways away, where he noticed the form of Monokuma, with a bloody hole in his chest. "H-Hey..."
"No response... He's dead, Jim." The real Monokuma appeared next to the plushie. "Juuuuuuust kidding! I'm not dead!"
"Is this... one of the life-size plushies that were being produced at this factory...?"
"If you're mistaking a plushie for me then there's something wrong with you!"
"You're a stuffed animal, too..."
"Don't put oversized garbage there!" Monomi scolded as she appeared. "It's so misleading!"
"Wh-What are you calling oversized garbage...!?"
"Could this be... one of Monokuma's tricks?" Hajime wondered aloud. "Then why'd he do it? Making a hole like it got stabbed, and then going to the trouble of dirtying the hole with blood... Did he try to imitate Nagito or something?"
Monokuma shook his head. "I had nothing to do with that."
"...Huh?"
"H-He's probably lying!" Monomi accused. "Seriously, you're always lying...! You should just die like that plushie over there...!"
"You seem more pissed than usual these days, Monomi, but you better watch what you say... If I feel like it, I can wipe you out easily, you know!" With that, he disappeared.
"Gh... I won't give into your threats... I'll fight you until the very end... I will definitely take back the seat of world supremacy from Monokuma!" With that, she followed him.
"...Could the killer have done this?" Hajime wondered. "I have no idea... how this connects to the incident."
He noticed, scattered across the floor, all of the pieces of the fire grenades that he and his classmates threw earlier. He recalled how they turned out to be useless, and they had to rely on the sprinklers to put out the fire. "Well, nevertheless... This evidence really isn't all that strange." His gaze once again moved to something else. "Ah, this is... It's an oil lighter."
"A lighter!" Nekomaru walked over. "This is definitely what caused the fire! I heard oil lighters can keep burning even after you let go of them."
"Using the oil lighter, huh..." Hajime thought about it. "Do you think the killer set up some sort of trick with it?"
"Maybe they wanted to destroy all the evidence by burning down the warehouse?"
Hajime considered it as he inspected the area around the lighter. Scattered Monokuma panels seemed to lead all the way to the front of the warehouse. The ones closest to the curtain at the back were burned by the fire.
"Maybe... we're the ones who made this mess?" Chiaki suggested.
"...Huh?"
"Look, the tipped over panel by the entrance is really close to the door, right? So... maybe the reason these panel are tipped over is... when Mechamaru kicked the door down?"
"Could it be...? Was that it...?"
"And there's something else I've been wondering... These Monokuma panels are tipped over starting from the entrance to the back of the warehouse, right? They seem to be lying on top of each other... in a straight line."
"Yeah... compared to the tipped over panels, that line is the only one that's neat and orderly..."
"Isn't this clearly strange?" Chiaki asked.
He nodded, then looked up. Sitting on a nearby cardboard box was an old-fashioned MP3 player hooked up to a speaker.
"That weird music was probably playing from that." Hiyoko deduced. "Remember, that creepy hymn that was blaring before the fire?"
"Yeah, you're right..."
"Looks like the sprinklers broke it, though. But anyway... why would the killer be playing music? Were they trying to get into the right mood?"
Hajime looked around the warehouse one last time, but seemed to realize that he had collected all the evidence. There wasn't really anything else to look at.
"You look worried!" Chiaki noted.
"Y-Yeah... I am..." He admitted.
"At a time like this, it might be good if you broaden your investigation range."
"You mean... it's good to investigate other places as well..." He started thinking of some of the other locations that could have evidence.
"I'm pretty sure the others have already finished investigating..." Chiaki added. "Hey, you guys! Isn't it about time we leave this place and try exploring other areas too!?"
In response, Hiyoko and Nekomaru made their way over.
"Yeah, there isn't that much more to see here." Hiyoko agreed.
"But is it safe?" Nekomaru asked. "There won't be anyone to guard the crime scene."
"We don't have a choice, there just aren't enough of us." Chiaki explained. "Besides... we've investigated all we can here."
"I guess you're right."
"Also... it looks like the clues we found aren't enough to piece this incident together. So... we need to search for them in other areas... probably. Well, alternatively... if there aren't any clues in other areas either, we'd have to give up completely."
"You don't really need to say that..." Hajime muttered.
"...Then it's okay to leave this place already?" Hiyoko asked.
The others nodded, and the four of them left the warehouse.
Maki stepped away from Nagito's unconscious body. He was dressed in a hospital gown and covered in bandages. She was wearing a pair of rubber gloves and a surgical mask, which she pulled down to her chin as she approached the newcomers.
"So, what did you find?" Hajime asked.
"Where to start... The guy has so many separate injuries, it's better to go over them one at a time." She approached a nearby table, where all the objects Nagito had on his person sat in metal trays. She picked up a bloody knife. "Let's start here. This knife was found stabbed straight through Nagito's right hand."
She gestured to the victim, whose right hand was covered in bandages.
"This knife... It must be from the military base." Sonia said.
"...Military base?" Hajime repeated, moving to get a closer look. "Ah, now that you mention it, you're right... It looks like a survival knife..."
Maki nodded. "Everyone probably assumed this, but I confirmed that the wounds on his thighs and left arm are consistent with the knife's blade as well."
"Which means... after the killer was finished stabbing Nagito's legs and left arm... They stabbed the knife through his right hand?"
"And then... they finished him off with the spear..." Sonia muttered. "H-How cruel!"
"Then... does that mean the killer went to the trouble of using two weapons, a knife and a spear?" Hajime wondered. "But... they could've just killed him by stabbing him with the knife... Why did they need to use a spear at all?"
"That... is definitely strange. Was there... a reason they had to use it?"
"Speaking of..." Maki pulled lifted the spear with both hands. "...as you all know, this was found in his torso, just below the rib cage."
"There's no way around it... that looks like the fatal wound." Chiaki decided.
"Oh my? What's this?" Monokuma appeared in front of Maki and began inspecting the spear closely. "Such a strange-looking speak, isn't it? A cord extends from the tip of the handle... and there's an iron weight attached to it... I see, I see... you use the cord as a whip to capture the enemy, and deliver the final blow with the spear..."
"Is this your first time looking at this, too?" Hajime asked.
"O-Of course not! Um... this is the Spear of Gungnir, right!?"
"You... definitely just came up with that now..."
"By the way, I wanted to ask you... where did that spear come from?"
"I feel like... I saw it at Nezumi Castle." Chiaki recalled.
"What!? Nezumi Castle!? I was designed to be afraid of mice, so I can't go in there... Damn you, mice! Damn to all to hell!" With that, he disappeared.
"Well, since he mentioned it..." Maki picked up the end of the cord, which was covered in just as much blood as the spear's tip. But there was a small section in the middle of the bloodstain, about as long as a human fist, that was spotless.
"I also noticed something odd." She made her way over to a bunch of short ropes. "These were tied around Nagito's wrists and ankles, but there's something about the one that was tied around his right wrist." She picked one up, and revealed that one end of it was burned. "The others were cut off by the ambulance, but this one was apparently already burned off. A result of the fire, perhaps?"
Hajime turned to where Nagito's clothes were hanging. He inspected the sleeves of the jacket. "Why are Nagito's clothes completely unaffected by the fire when he was so close to the blaze?"
Maki thought about it as she picked up some duct tape. It had flecks of dried blood on it, and was crinkled. "This was found on his face, covering his mouth. I assume our would-be killer wanted to drown out his screams of pain. The blood on it likely came from the wound on his left arm. Unlike the stabs on his thighs, it appears his left arm was sliced open, and it isn't as deep, comparatively. Also, well..."
"What is it?" Hajime asked.
"It's probably nothing, but... I managed to get a look at some of the bloodstains before Monokuma cleaned them off. There was blood on his left hand, but it only covered the back of his fingers, leaving the rest of his hand relatively clean."
"Hmmm... that's strange..." Chiaki muttered.
"You're right... why was it only on that part?" Hajime asked.
"It's another mystery." Maki agreed. "In any case, I think that's everything. All that's left are the leg wounds which, as I mentioned, are stab wounds. Lots of them, at that."
"Why... would the killer do something like that?" Hajime asked.
"If you ask me... I'd say the killer was holding a grudge. They wanted him to suffer, so they resorted to torture."
"T-Torture...!?"
"If they wanted him dead, they would've just stabbed him once through the chest, right? The spear is the only weapon used to inflict a lethal injury. Everything else is just added pain. Honestly... I can almost sympathize with the culprit this time. I can definitely understand the feeling of wanting my enemies to suffer..."
"M-Maki..." Sonia started.
She brushed her off. "Whatever. In any case, that's everything I could find. I should probably start cleaning up now in preparation for the "trial"."
"Preparation?" Hajime repeated. "You plan to have us meet back here?"
"Why not? By the time we're ready, Nagito will probably be regaining consciousness. I'd like to have him participate in our discussion. I don't expect him to cooperate, but if he knows anything, then we'll pull the truth out of him one way or another. That's what we've done in every previous case, right? Sometimes, it's even how we catch the killer. It's how I caught Mikan, after all..."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop a few degrees.
"C'mon, Hajime... we should go." Chiaki quietly urged.
"Actually..." Maki interrupted. "I had a few questions for you, Chiaki. However, I also hold some respect for you, and don't want to violate your privacy. As such, I was wondering if you and I could get a moment alone together?"
Chiaki stared at her. "If you have something to ask me, you can do it right here."
"Hmph. Fine..." She seemed to consider her wording for a moment. "Let me start with... Chiaki, did you attack Nagito?"
"Ch-Chiaki!?" Sonia gasped.
"H-Hey, what do you mean? Why would you suspect Chiaki?" Hajime asked.
"Consider it a hunch. I have my reasons, but as I've said, I can't divulge much without betraying her privacy."
"Th-That seems like a rather skewed set of priorities...!" Sonia remarked.
"Chiaki? I would have you answer?"
"No." The Gamer said with no hesitation. "I never attacked Nagito."
Maki started thinking. "Assuming that's true, it puts a hole in my theory. Whatever. That's the only question I can ask at this time and place, so I guess you can leave. Seeya."
"...Right. Seeya." With that, Chiaki turned and marched out of the room. Almost stormed out.
"Maki..." Hajime turned to her. "What are your reasons for suspecting Chiaki?"
"I already said I wasn't spilling secrets. I'll save that for our trial. If you're so curious, why don't you ask her yourself?"
Hajime stared at her for another few seconds, before turning and following Chiaki out of the room.
Hajime found himself approaching Nagito's cottage, where Chiaki was already waiting for him. If they were going to find out the reasoning for his actions, they would need to know what kind of information he had.
"Oh my, you want to go inside Nagito's room, too?" Monokuma asked as Hajime approached. "I was just... listening to Chiaki's request. She wants me to unlock the door to Nagito's cottage because she really needs it for the investigation... She begged me to do it while she was licking my black eye."
"...I didn't do that." She argued.
"Then do it! It's sweet cuz it's made out of black bean paste!"
Hajime rolled his eyes. "Hey, we don't have time to mess around. Hurry up and unlock the damn door."
"Fine, fine, I guess I have no choice... I just gotta do that, right? Now then... Va-Va-Valuse!" In response to his chant, the lock on the door clicked. "Seeee, I've opened the door. You can freely investigate now!"
"...Why... does it open with a magic spell?" Hajime asked.
"Maybe the cottage key is computerized?" Chiaki suggested. "More importantly, let's go inside now that the door is open."
"Y-Yeah... you're right..."
Inside, Nagito's cottage looked identical to everyone else's. He didn't bother to decorate much, the only furniture unique to him being some shelves, a refrigerator, and a table with an odd pink chest on top of it.
Hajime made his way over to the chest first. It stood out, after all. But he also recalled something Monomi told him when he was investigating her house earlier. "Ah, could this be...?"
"That treasure box...!" Chiaki gasped.
"...Chiaki, you know about this?"
"...It's really cute."
He gave her a look before turning back to the chest. "This looks like Monomi's stolen treasure box. If this is here, that means... The thief Monomi was talking about was Nagito. It might be good to see what's inside..."
"Is it... gonna be okay? It looks a little dangerous..."
"It might be, but... this could be some kind of clue, you know." He slowly and carefully opened the lid. Sitting inside the box... was a notebook. "This is it...? Why is a notebook inside this treasure box like it's something important?" He started flipping through the notebook. It contained sloppy, child-like drawings, and entries written in chicken scratch.
Day 1: I was able to talk to everyone for the first time today! Monokuma showed up and things turned bad!
Day 2: Byakuya is the leader! A lot of things happened today so everyone's tired!
"What is this... a diary?"
"...Looks like it." Chiaki said. "Did Monomi write these?"
"Probably. These pictures and entries totally suit her..." He continued flipping through it. "I don't really understand, but... it looks like there aren't any clues here." Suddenly, he stopped on a page labelled Day 16.
Day 16: We've been in the Funhouse for three days! Everyone's hungry and on edge! Hajime tried to go in the Final Dead Room today. He's probably panicking because no one believes him.
"...Huh...?"
"...Hajime, did something happen?" Chiaki asked.
He glanced up at her. "Oh, it's nothing..."
"Heeeeey! Stooooop! Don't look at my notebook!" Monomi suddenly appeared between them and snatched the notebook out of Hajime's hands.
"Whoa...!"
"Phew! I did ask you to look for my treasure box, but I never said you were allowed to peek inside! Jeez, that was close. If I had come any later, he would've seen the inside of the notebook!"
"...Unfortunately, you were a little too late." Chiaki said.
"But if this notebook is here... Then... Nagito was the thief? B-Betrayal! I was betrayed by my beloved student!"
"Hey, that notebook... It's pretty much your diary, right?"
"D-Diary...? Um... it seems that way... That's right! This is my important diary where all my maiden secrets are written!"
"Hey hey, you're a liar!" Monokuma appeared next to her.
"Ha-wa-wa! You always show up out of nowhere!"
"Monomi... it's not good to lie, you know..."
"...Lie?" Hajime repeated.
"There's no way you wrote in that notebook..." Monokuma argued. "After all, Monomi can't even write!"
"Wh-What are you saying...? Jeez... I can write letters easily... I... can finally write the letter B..."
"Nooooooooo you can't! Cuz you have no fingers on your hands!"
"Hyaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
"See? Bullseye! I know cuz I'm the same way, too!" She simply glared at him in response. "Huuuh? Are you mad? Are you angry that I exposed a weakling like you?"
"So that's what this is about... You... you're seriously trying to crush me..."
"...Hm? What are you saying? There's no way a big brother would ever crush his little sister!" With that, he disappeared.
She continued to glare at the spot he was standing. "It looks like... the time to settle things between us is getting closer every second..."
"Hey, I don't know why you're getting so serious, but is what Monokuma said true?" Hajime asked.
"...Huh?"
"He said you didn't write in that notebook. Is that true? If so... who wrote in it?"
"U-Um... well... you know... it's... u-um... how should I put it... E-Excuse me!"
"H-Hold on!" But before he could stop her, she disappeared. "...Dammit, she totally ran away again!"
"The same pattern as usual..." Chiaki noted. "Looks like it's a waste of time to try to get answers from her."
"But still... I really wanted to ask her about that notebook..." He sighed, briefly wondering if the answer he would get would be the one he wanted. In order to distract himself, he continued investigating. "...There's a refrigerator."
"Nice... My cottage doesn't even have a refrigerator." Chiaki said. "I wonder where he got it from?"
"Nagito probably supplied it himself..."
"Why would he go to the trouble of putting a refrigerator in his room? Does he really enjoy cold drinks?"
As she spoke, Hajime made his way over and opened the fridge door out of curiosity. "Hm... there really isn't much inside." The only thing inside was a brown glass bottle.
"Hmmm... for someone who likes cold drinks, it doesn't look like he stocked very much. But... that bottle clearly isn't a drink, right?"
"Really? It looks like some kind of dietary supplement to me... Protein powder, maybe...?" He grabbed it and started reading the label. "H-Hey! This is...!"
"Yeah... looks like it's poison." Chiaki said.
"P-Poison...!?"
"Looks like there's a warning label on the back. Let's examine it in a little more detail. But... be careful with that bottle. Don't drop it."
"S-Stop it... If you worry like that, I'm going to get nervous..."
Poison made specifically for killing someone! It's Monokuma's Special Poison! This enchanted liquid is highly potent and takes effect immediately. Please handle with care. Though it's volatility is low, this liquid is very dangerous when vaporized. In a gaseous state, it is heavier than air, it breaks down in minutes, and it is susceptible to hydrolysis. So it is possible for you to poison someone to death without any complications. Keep this liquid secure by storing it in a cool place in a glass or plastic container, away from sunlight.
Chiaki spoke up. "This... sure does look like a chemical made solely for poisoning someone to death... This refrigerator must be here to keep the poison secure."
"B-But... where did Nagito get something like this?"
"That question could apply to the bomb he used at the hotel, too."
"Apply to the bomb...?"
"There should be a reason Nagito was able to obtain such dangerous items..."
"...The Octagon inside the Funhouse. This poison... he must've brought it with him from there too, right?"
"He was probably hiding them somewhere on his body during the last class trial."
"He was hiding a bomb and poison... during the class trial?"
"Jeez, how dangerous..." She sighed. "What would he have done if he accidentally tripped and broke the bottle...?"
"Just thinking about it scares me..."
"...Also, he already blew up the bomb he took with him at the lobby... But what about this poison?"
"...Huh?"
"It looks like the bottle is less than half empty. Was it like this from the beginning? Or did Nagito use it? If so, where did he use it? I wonder... is there still a trap somewhere that hasn't been sprung yet?"
"A-Another trap...?"
"For example... maybe he was making some kind of trap using this poison before he was attacked... If that actually exists, it'd be real bad. It could potentially kill everyone on this island."
"E-Everyone... on the island...?"
He stepped back, trying to reorient himself. He needed to sit down. He made his way over and sat on the edge of the bed, head in his hands.
He noticed Chiaki across from him, bending over to see under the bed. "Maybe there's something hidden under his bed. It's a usual place for hiding things."
Hajime briefly thought that the sort of things teens typically hid under their bed weren't the sort of thing he wanted to image Nagito owning. But he simply shrugged. "Well, we should still check just in case." He slid down and looked under the bed himself. "...Hm? There's something here!... What is this?"
"It looks like... a gas mask and rubber gloves..." Chiaki said. "These look like the real deal. Did he get these from the military base?" She thought for a moment, then spoke up again. "Hajime, was there anything else under the bed?"
"Hmm... let's see..." He pulled something out and showed it to her.
"A round, thin piece of aluminum, huh... It's similar to those seals that go over unopened jars of mayonnaise."
"I get what you're saying, but does that mean this is just a piece of trash...?"
"Hm... who knows...?"
Hajime stuffed the aluminum in his pocket, then stood up and made his way over to the shelves. "The genres and the types of items are all so random. I can't make any sense out of them whatsoever."
"They say "A shelf is a mirror that reflects a person's heart"..."
"...Do they now?"
"I definitely don't know much about Nagito just by looking at this."
"So what should we do? It'd be really difficult to look through all these piles."
"That doesn't mean we should ignore it though... I'll leave it to you then, Hajime."
"Wait, what?"
"It's better if a boy goes through another boy's things. You know, there might be private stuff here..."
"Well, that might be true but..."
"Sooooo I'll leave this shelf to you."
"I think... I just got persuaded to do this without realizing it..." He sighed and started removing items from the shelf, inspecting them one by one. Each one was entirely random, with no connection to the others. "There's no way there are any clues here..." Just as he said it, however, he pulled a familiar black file from the shelf. "...Huh...!?" It was the Hope's Peak file that Nagito claimed only contained information about Hajime, saying he was from the Reserve Course and had no talent. "That... might be another one of his lies, too."
In order to confirm, he opened the file and began reading. Sure enough, there wasn't just information about him. There were files on Hiyoko, Nekomaru, Sonia... and everyone who died. All 17 students were contained within the file.
""Only my information," my ass... I can't believe he'd make up such a strange lie..." A ray of hope shot through him as he realized, if that part was a lie... maybe the rest of it was a lie, too?
He flipped until he made his way to his profile, and began reading quickly. However, the words that caught his eye read "Reserve Course student." There was no more room for doubt, no denying it. It was real. He had no talent. He wasn't special.
"...Hajime, did something happen?" Chiaki asked.
"Ah, well... I just found a strange file..."
"Ah... Isn't that the special prize Nagito received when he cleared the Final Dead Room? As I recall, your student profile should be in there..."
"It's not just my profile... The profiles of everyone on this island are in here, too... Nagito... was lying."
"When you say "everyone," do you mean... everyone?"
"Yeah, it's just basic information but... there should be profiles for all 17 of us."
"...Can I... take a look at that file?" She took the file from his hands and flipped through it. "You're right... My profile is really in here. But unfortunately... There doesn't seem to be any details."
"...Details?"
"Details about our missing memories... Information about the time we spent at Hope's Peak Academy. Hmmm, if it's not written in there... These profiles might've been written before we entered the academy."
"Then... it's impossible to obtain new clues from them..."
"Yeah, seems like it..."
"Ah, hold on!" Hajime noticed something and took the file back.
"...Hm? What happened?"
"I... I just noticed it right now, but... The file... His name isn't in there, right? There are supposed to be 17 names worth of profiles... But his name is the only one missing, right?"
"Hm? Who are you talking about?"
"Byakuya... I'm talking about Byakuya Togami. Look carefully! No matter where I look, I don't see his name anywhere!"
"Puhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhu...!" Monokuma's laughter cut through the air as he invaded the room once more. "So what if a name isn't written in that file? Perhaps... based on that, you think he might be the traitor?"
"...No, it's not just because his name isn't written in here...! That's not the only reason I think he's suspicious...! He... participated in the killing school life at Hope's Peak Academy, right? For someone like him... to be in a similar situation on this island... No matter what, it's definitely suspicious!"
Monokuma shook his head. "Well, it pains me to say this, but... What you're saying about the missing name... and about the killing school life... It's totally wrong! There's a completely different reason!"
"...A-A different reason?"
"How should I put this...? You guys have been getting all worked up about that Byakuya for no reason! Which means... the great mystery that you think surrounds that Byakuya doesn't exist. You're basing it on one person's cheeeeap speculation..."
"Wh-What do you mean!?"
"You don't have to ask me that. You'd know the answer just by looking through those profiles, right?"
"...Huh?" He looked back down to the file, and started quickly flipping through each profile, confirming the names. Until suddenly, he came across a page that was filled with question marks. There was so little information, it could barely be considered a profile at all. However, there was one thing he was able to confirm.
Talent
Ultimate Imposter
"Ultimate... Imposter...?"
"That's that Byakuya's true identity!" Monokuma laughed.
"T-True identity..."
"He was a fake that was pretending to be the Ultimate Affluent Progeny, Byakuya Togami!
"...A-A fake!?"
"The fact that his profile is filled with question marks isn't a mistake or an oversight. Surprisingly enough... that's the correct information regarding him. The Ultimate Imposter has no name, no permanent address, and even his age and gender is unknown. Basically... he doesn't exist. Because he doesn't exist, he's able to exist as anybody... That's his talent! Puhuhu, though I'm not jealous of that at all!"
Hajime could barely keep up. "Th-That person... wasn't really Byakuya Togami...?"
"Is that why he was so much fatter compared to when he was involved in the killing school life?" Chiaki asked.
"Puhuhu, his physique doesn't affect his ability to fool others at all! Real imposters are skilled like that!"
"Then... he was lying to us the whole time?" Hajime muttered.
"But... he couldn't help it." Chiaki said.
"Wh-What...! Why couldn't he help it...?"
"Cuz... that was his talent."
"...Huh?"
"Well... having talent means you're also bound to that talent. The moment you obtain talent, your way of life has already been chosen for you... You can't do anything else except rely on that talent... Regardless of whether you want that life or not."
Monokuma nodded, turning to Hajime. "In that sense... compared to the other Ultimates, your life might be a bit more liberating."
"Wh-What the hell...!?"
"Ahem! Anyway... I'm not happy that you guys fell for a scam that I had nothing to do with... So I'll tell you straight up! This revelation about Byakuya is exactly the truth!"
"Th-Then... What was he trying to say to me at that time...!?" He recalled back to before the very first death of the game, when he and Byakuya were confiscating dangerous objects in the kitchen.
"I cannot talk to others about my past... I suspect that my skeptical nature is to blame. Distrusting others... and being distrusted in turn... For a long time, my life has been a living hell."
Monokuma thought about it. "Hmm... based on the context, if I had to guess... Maybe he was just complaining that he was cursed to wander the earth as nothing more than a fraud?"
"...Tch!"
"But... if you guys had your school memories, you never would've been betrayed in the first place. I mean, it'd be different if you were meeting him for the first time... But since you guys went to Hope's Peak Academy, you should've known about the Ultimate Imposter already."
"So in the end... It all leads back to memory loss..."
"Jeez, the Future Foundation sure is awful. There's no way you should ignore Monomi or the traitor."
Hajime looked down at the file in his hands, then back up at Monokuma. "...Who is it...? Who's the traitor...? Just from looking at these 17 profiles, I still wouldn't know who's from the Future Foundation... Is there really... someone like that...?"
"Well, obviously you wouldn't know! I made that file so you guys couldn't find out!"
"So it's just as I thought... you're the one who did it." Chiaki said.
"The fact that there are 17 profiles in there is what's wrong... I mean, the traitor is a spy sent by the Future Foundation, not a student from Hope's Peak Academy!"
"You... you made a fake profile for the traitor and included it in here...?" Hajime asked.
"It wouldn't be fun if you figured out who the traitor was so easily, right?"
"Then... we can't use this file to figure out who the traitor is." Chiaki summarized. "...That was true for Nagito too, right?"
"Well... probably." With that, it seemed that Monokuma was content to leave them.
As he disappeared, Hajime dropped the file onto the floor. He tried to think of more places to investigate, more things to distract himself from reality, but he came up with nothing. "...What now? I can't think of anywhere else to go."
Chiaki seemed to come to the same conclusion. "I guess, if there's nowhere else to go, we might as well start the trial, right? Maki probably has everything ready by now."
"The trial... do you think we're ready for it?" For some reason, he couldn't stop himself from shuddering. He knew there were no stakes for this trial, no risk on his life, so why was he so nervous? It was as if he expected the results of the trial to turn his whole world upside down.
"Well, you don't have to worry so much."
"...Huh?"
"I mean... we're not fighting this alone, you know?"
He nodded, realizing that what she said was true. "Yeah... if we do that, things will turn out fine..."
They turned to leave, but Hajime stopped, deciding to return the file to the shelf. As he bent over to pick it up, however, he noticed the page it had landed on, and gasped when he read it through.
"What is it?" Chiaki asked.
"It's... Maki." He held up the profile to show her. The image provided was undoubtedly the girl that they both knew, although she seemed healthier at the time it was taken. All of the other information seemed accurate, as far as they could tell. Her talent was listed as Ultimate Criminologist, as it should have been. However, what unnerved him was the name listed.
Name: Alice Kizuki
"Maki... isn't her real name?" Chiaki asked. "No, that's impossible..."
"I recall something she told me a little while ago." Hajime explained. "Maki... er, Alice... whoever she is, she told me that she knew some things about our situation, and planned to reveal all of her secrets after we stopped Nagito. Now, well, she hasn't really had the chance to."
"Reveal her secrets... Can she even do something like that?"
"Chiaki?"
She looked up at him. Judging from her expression, she probably said more than she meant to. "Never mind. We can ask her about her real name some other time. For now, we should go."
Before he had a chance to respond, she was already out the door.
I was pacing back and forth throughout the Observation Room, unsure what to do next. Chihiro's trick had managed to prevent another pair of victims, but adding Nagito to the current survivors... certainly complicated things. I wasn't even sure what kind of mental state he'd be in once he woke up and realized his plan failed. As I paced, I found myself repeatedly glancing at Chihiro, and I could tell it was getting on his nerves a little. Maybe he thought I was disappointed in him or something.
The truth couldn't be further. I was amazed that he managed to pull off something like that, and come up with the idea in such a small window of time, under stressful work conditions. Typically, staying cool under pressure was a skill reserved for protagonists. And me, I guess, for a more liberal definition of "cool." Despite this, I was shaken by this whole incident. Because, for the first time since this killing game started, I really had no idea what came next. Even for all the small changes Alice made, I was still able to keep up for the most part. She wasn't nearly as unpredictable as she seemed at first. But Nagito? Yeah, that's unpredictability right there. And I also can't begin to guess how Junko plans to respond to this. Monokuma seems to be taking a more diplomatic approach, though I can't guess when he'll flip back around on that one. Too many variables.
The door slowly opened, and Chiaki stepped inside. Miaya's shift had ended a little while ago, so I asked for Chiaki to replace her. Originally, I had told the others to make sure she stayed far away from this room today, no matter what, in anticipation for the day's events. With these new developments, however, there were things I needed to discuss with her. As she entered, I noticed she was averting her gaze from the monitor. "Is it true...?"
I nodded. "It's true. No murders today. Though, Nagito did sustain some injuries, so we could cut away from the camera in his hospital room if you want?"
She shook her head. "No, that's... that's fine. I think I can handle it..."
"No shame if you can't." I assured her. "That said, they'll be holding his "trial" in the hospital room. Even if I already know what happened, I was planning on watching it, anyway..."
"I can handle it." She insisted. "I have to see if they can get through this mystery or not."
I nodded. "Well then, don't let me stop you. Take a seat."
She did so, and seemed to notice that I was still pacing. "What's wrong?"
"Sorry, it's just... restless leg syndrome, I guess. I'm trying to go through all the possible ways Nagito can change the future. Problem is, his luck is impossible to keep track of. He's impossible to keep track of."
She seemed to understand. They were classmates, after all. "How did this happen, anyway? I'm not complaining, but... what changed this time that let Nagito survive?"
"Ugh, where do I begin...?"
Chihiro looked over his shoulder and started explaining. "Well, Al didn't give us too many details about the murders, since the initial plan was to just let things play out. He told us that for the fifth case, Nagito would die from being poisoned. So, I made a plan that gave me some access to some of the object files. I didn't have time to go into the poison's code and disable it manually, since I needed to focus on preventing the virus from changing it back right away, so I just copy-pasted the code for water and left it at that."
"So, essentially, the bottle of Monokuma's Special Poison is now just a fancy glass bottle filled with water." I said. "And that goes for any other containers that were filled with that poison. Just water."
"Right. But you never mentioned the spear, or the knife, or the ropes, or the fire, or-"
"Yeah, I-I get it... I left a lot of stuff out that you didn't anticipate. Good news is, in canon, poison was the killing blow for Nagito, so in this version of events, he was able to pull through. Barely. Bad news is, Nagito's a loose cannon and we have officially lost control of the plot, but that was gonna happen no matter how well he survived."
Chihiro frowned. "What was I supposed to do, let him die?"
"My sense of humour is begging me to answer that with a blunt yes." I shook my head. "No, obviously I don't want Nagito to die. This is just one of the roadblocks of trying to save everyone. Some of the people you save are just gonna make it harder to save other people. It's like a never-ending game of Jenga."
Chiaki appeared to be lost in thought, staring at the monitor that displayed Nagito's room, where her Alter Ego and Hajime were finishing investigating. She muttered, "How much longer will they have to do this? How much longer until Junko's satisfied?"
"Well, for your classmates, they'll only have to go for a few more days. Assuming Nagito's survival doesn't cause Junko to change strategies or something. But as for the second question... I can't give an answer. Once this killing game is over, I don't have any... any..."
The realization didn't hit me like a truck, more like it slowly crept up my back, chilling me like an icy knife. I was out of knowledge. Originally, I was working on the idea that I'd at least be able to see through to the end of this game before I was blinded, but... I was already blind, and now that I was experiencing it, I was afraid. I had been operating with my knowledge since I first arrived in this world, and even if I didn't remember the first two years or so of that time, that still left roughly half a year of time that I was aware of. The knowledge carried me through that entire period of time. Now that it was gone, I suddenly felt lost. And more than that... my knowledge was how I stayed on par with the others. They had their talents, and I knew the future. Without that, what was I left with...?
"Al? Are you okay?" Chiaki asked.
I blinked. "Huh? Oh... Yeah, I'm fine."
"Are you sure?" Chihiro asked. "You just zoned out for a minute."
I glanced between the two of them, taking a moment to think how best to answer that. "I just had a nasty thought, is all. But it's fine. I was just worrying over nothing."
I did know what came next. I knew what I had to do. My friends needed my help. I needed to help defend Makoto at his trial, whenever that was. I needed to help Chiaki save her classmates, and confront her teacher. I needed to help rebuild the world. No matter how blind I was, my friends needed me. Now matter how much time wears down my abilities and skills, I wouldn't let it stop me. Lack of hope or talent be damned, I'm in this for the long haul.
I let out a short chuckle. "Having talent means you're also bound to that talent..."
"Huh...?" Chiaki gave me an odd look.
"That's something your Alter Ego said a few minutes ago. I guess there's some truth to that. You guys never had a chance to be anything other than a Gamer or Programmer, have you?"
"I guess I never thought about it that way..." Chihiro admitted. "But you're right. I was always stuck inside, playing on the computer. There's no way I would have ended up as anything other than a programmer."
Chiaki thought about it. "Video games were always the only thing I'm really good at... but I also love games for what they are. I think I'd still play them even if I was terrible at them. So, when you put it like that, I guess there's no way I ever would have stopped playing games."
I nodded. For Ultimates, talent was something that you were. It defined you, whether you liked it or not. For some of them, like Toshihide, it would totally and utterly consume you. For people like Hajime and I... maybe we really did live a more liberated life. We could forge our own path, decide what skills to pursue and which to ignore.
The end goal wasn't talent. It was the ability to take responsibility for yourself. The ability to do what you knew had to be done.
With that, I took my seat next to Chiaki. "Right, then. Let's get down to business. We're gonna need to make a timeline of what we plan to do from here moving forward."
"Is it safe to talk about the details with Chihiro in the room?" She asked.
"Oh, yeah. Chihiro, there might be a traitor in the Future Foundation, but we don't want to tell the others or we might cause a panic. Alright?"
He reacted with surprise, as anyone would, but nodded. "I, uh... Um, sure... I won't tell anyone if you don't want me to..."
"Cool." I turned back to Chiaki. "He's my best friend, and we both kept secrets for each other in the past. We can trust him."
She nodded. "Okay, then. Well, what did you have in mind?"
"Well, let's not put the cart before the horse. We'll still need to get off this island, first. So... let's talk about our attack plan."
Maki paced the hospital room as the others arrived. She had brought some chairs in, but nobody seemed content to sit. Other than Nagito, of course. The boy had finally woke up just a few minutes ago, but he was still somewhat delirious and in no state to hold a conversation. Which was just as well, since he didn't say much, either. He simply stared out the window, not even bothering to watch the others enter the room.
"Looks like... everyone's here..." Maki muttered.
"It doesn't feel like a lot of people..." Hiyoko noted.
"Stop it... you're making me depressed." Nekomaru said.
"...So... it is going to happen again..." Sonia sighed. "The cruel conflict... where we must doubt our friends..."
Maki shrugged. "Look at it this way: With Nagito neutralized, the only remaining threat to us is Monokuma. And he seemed to imply that we would all get to go home when the timer reaches zero. So... this will be our final class trial." She glanced out of the corner of her eye, seeing Monomi appear on the table next to Nagito's bed. "What are you doing here?"
"...You haven't realized it yet? That feeling of wanting to leave this island... Thinking like that is Monokuma's trap, you know?"
"Huh? What are you saying...?" Nekomaru asked.
"There's no way... Monokuma will end things here... He's planning... something far worse!"
"I concur." Maki said, surprising many of the others. "However, to ask the others to abandon that desire is the same as asking them to abandon hope. Because, for them... the idea of leaving this island is the only hope they have left."
"Maki...?" Sonia called out.
"Of course, that only applies to them. I have no such limitations. I've... abandoned hope a long time ago. Whatever Monokuma has in store for me, it can't be worse than what I've endured. So, I will reveal the truth behind this case, and I will survive whatever comes afterwards!"
"...Everyone..." Monomi said. "You mustn't run away from despair..."
"...Huh?"
"I have finally realized... after losing my powers... I've realized that cursing your powerlessness or your fate accomplishes nothing. The possibility may be small... But as long as there's a possibility, you must face it. In order to become... someone who can be proud of yourself... So I will fight!"
"Somehow, I understand what Monomi is saying... I think." Chiaki said.
As if to mimic Monomi, Monokuma appeared next to her on the table. "I hope you don't mind if I sit in on this, too. I know it's not an official trial, but it just wouldn't feel right without my judgmental stares, right?"
"Do whatever you want. Just be quiet while you do it." Maki demanded.
"Now then, let's get this trial started! This is the last class trial! Let's show some enthusiasm and kill each other!"
And so, the curtain rose on... A trial for life, and a judgement of death... Deception in life, and treachery in death... Betrayal for life, and betrayal for death... The riddles of life, and the mystery of death... Justification for life, and rationalization of death... Faith in life, and trust in death... A life or death... Class Trial!
Hajime and Chiaki learn a frightening truth about Maki, and Albert and Chiaki start working on a gameplan for the future. I'm sure that sentence won't be confusing for anyone. Hey, there's a reason I've been referring to one of them as "Alter Ego Chiaki."
I closed off the last investigation chapter by talking about this story's length. Back then, it was the point where this officially became the longest story I've ever done. I've been working on the timeline in my head, since we only have this trial and chapter 6 to go through, and I predict we'll reach the end some time this summer. I can't be too certain, though, so don't hold me to that.
In the next chapter, we will begin the (sort of) class trial to discover who (almost) killed Nagito Komaeda.