Rei Ryghts: Ace Attorney

The High School Turnabout

By Derald Snyder

Investigation, Day 1

February 14

Lowee North High School

Newspaper Club

"So, first things first," John Smith said as the trio walked down the hallway, "let's get a copy of the school paper. That'll be a good summary of the ghost rumors. Then we can start questioning students."

"Speaking of which, sh-shouldn't you two b-be in c-class now?" Rei asked.

"Uh... You know how my friend Koizumi-san is a member of the Lowee Guild?" John replied. "Let's just say he pulled some strings with the student council for today..."

"I'm already finished with all my assignments... and, um, I helped John-kun with his," Yuki spoke up. "I already have a straight 4.0 GPA in all subjects, s-so missing a day or two isn't a big deal for me..."

(Oh, right, Itsuki Koizumi... I'd all but forgotten about him,) Rei thought to herself. "B-but, how does a high school student b-become a Guild member at such a y-young age...?"

"Family ties, for one," John responded. "And he's a straight-A student like Nagato-san, too. A real prodigy, you might say. Now if only he didn't have that smug attitude of his, we might get along a bit better. Anyway, here we are." Politely knocking at the door, John heard a faint 'Come in!', promptly opening the door and heading inside with Yuki and Rei. "Yo! Got a copy of the ghost paper for my friend here?"

"Sure thing, Smith-san!" an NPC student nodded, opening a file cabinet and plucking out the paper in question. "Here you go!" he tossed it to John, who promptly handed it to the lawyer.

"Th-thank you," Rei acknowledged, opening the paper and skimming over it... (Hmm... seems the only real consensus is that the ghost is a young girl, of sorts...)

*School Paper has been added to the Court Record.*

"Hey, by the way," another NPC spoke up, "did that alien goddess propose to you yet?!"

"Sh-shut up!" John yelled as his face reddened, causing a round of laughter through the whole club. "Ugh, let's go!" he turned on his heel and stomped off, Yuki and Rei running to catch up... "Geez, ever since Haruhi took me on that world tour of Gamindustri..."

"I heard sh-she wanted you t-to be an ambassador?" Rei queried.

"When I graduate, yeah," Kyon sighed. "Hopefully I made it clear to her that it's my choice, no one else's..."

"Well, I wouldn't want you to go away, John-kun! You're one of the few real friends I have!" Yuki said worryingly.

"Not to worry, Nagato-san," John smiled at her. "I'm not leaving you behind, I promise. Besides, I think you'd get along with Oracle Neon if you two ever met... you two seem alike in a few ways."

"I-I don't know... I think I'd pass out from fright," Yuki shook her head.

"They're really not that bad," Rei spoke up. "I should know, I met Neon personally when she first touched down... I even defended her from false charges in court."

"O-oh, right... I think I heard about that, actually," Yuki nodded.

"On a side note, some students have joked that Nagato-san might be an alien herself, because no human could be that smart," Kyon said. "Which kinda fell by the wayside when actual aliens showed up... Anyway, let's head to my classroom, we can ask about the ghost rumors there first..."

"Okay," the two ladies agreed.

February 14

Lowee North High School

Kyon's Classroom

"Guys, this is Yuu Kobayashi, an independent journalist looking into the ghost rumors," John introduced 'Yuu' to two of his fellow students. "Kobayashi-san, these are Taniguchi and Kunikida."

"Hmm..." Taniguchi eyed the bluenette critically. "Nice hair... kinda cute... but you lose points for the tacky hoodie and sunglasses. You're a B-, at best."

"Huh...?" 'Yuu' sweat-dropped in confusion.

"Ignore him, he likes to grade any cute girls he comes across," Kunikida sighed. "If you want rationality and objectivity, I'm your guy."

"O-oh, right..." 'Yuu' sighed. (I actually don't mind being called cute, but...) Clearing her throat, she spoke up, "So, um, Kunikida-san, what d-do you know about this supposed g-ghost...?"

"Honestly? I think one of the girls here is just pulling pranks on the new professor, by making everyone think a ghost is haunting him," Kunikida said matter-of-factly. "All the quote-unquote 'strange things' that happen can easily be explained by rational means... It's just gossip so the student paper has something to talk about after the whole First Contact thing with John-kun settled down..."

"Yeah, you lucky dog, getting to meet all the cute CPUs!" Taniguchi playfully punched Kyon in the arm. "And I heard the alien goddess and Oracle were damn cute as well!"

"Except she'd probably vaporize you if you tried to hit on her," Kunikida pointed out.

"Nah, she'd probably just douse him in disgusting slime instead," Kyon snarked. "She did to her Oracle a few times, from what I remember..."

"Eh, I'll pass on getting slimed," Taniguchi deferred.

"W-well, who d-do you think would b-be responsible f-for these p-pranks, then?" 'Yuu' inquired next.

"Part of me wants to say Nagato-san could be a possible suspect, but that's not really her style," Kunikida mused.

"What about that Tsuruya-san?" Taniguchi cut in. "She's definitely mischievous enough to do something like that..."

"I doubt it," Kunikida shook his head. "If she was pulling the pranks, she'd let everyone know she did it, by pointing and laughing at them! She's way too loud to be the ghost!"

"Sure, and the fact you have a crush on her has nothing to do with your defense of her," Taniguchi taunted.

"No! I mean, yes, that has nothing to do with it!" Kunikida's face reddened slightly.

"W-well, perhaps I could speak with Tsuruya-san myself?" 'Yuu' asked.

"Sure, I can point you to her..." Kunikida nodded.

"We know where she is, too, you know," Kyon snarked.

February 14

Lowee North High School

Tsuruya's Classroom

"Buahahahaha! Taniguchi thinks I'm the ghosts?! That's mega funny, nyoro~!" So said the student with long dark green hair, matching eyes, and a protruding canine on the right side of her mouth.

"Keep it down, please," the teacher chastised from inside the classroom, Tsuruya, Kyon and the others having stepped into the hallway to not disrupt the class too much.

"We're sorry!" Rei apologized, instinctively moving a little further from the door. "U-um, so anyway, wh-what d-do you know about the gh-ghost...?"

"Same as everyones else," Tsuruya shrugged. "I mean, maybe it IS some other girl playing pranks, but I have no ideas! Poor Nagato-chi, thoughs, she can't even read a book in her club, she's so scareds the ghost will get hers, nyoro!"

"Even though no students have vanished yet," Kyon sighed.

"I know, I know... intellectually, I realize that ghosts shouldn't even exist, and yet..." Yuki shuddered a little.

"Then why are you letting these rumors affect you so much?" another voice spoke out, the group turning to see two students standing there. The one on the right was a young man with dark hair, black eyes, and glasses that gave him a slightly sinister look, while the one on the left, the one who had spoken, was a petite girl with bright green hair, blue eyes, and a small smile on her face.

"Student Council President," John Smith acknowledged the male student. "Come to chastise us for not being in class?"

"I'm well aware of what Koizumi-san did to allow you to technically skip class today," the president stated. "But that doesn't mean I'll just let you do whatever you want, like disrupting other classes."

"Wait a minutes! I was the one that disrupted, nyoro! Don't blame its on John-kun!" Tsuruya protested.

"Yes, Tsuruya-san is just naturally loud," the girl next to the president agreed. "But who is this woman with you, Nagato-san? She's clearly too old to be a student here..."

"I-I'm Yuu Kobayashi, independent journalist," Rei introduced herself. "Um, Kyon- I mean, John hired me to help investigate the ghost rumors, to put Nagato's mind at ease..."

"...Really?" The president locked eyes with the bluenette. "Ever hear that saying, 'you can't fool all the people all the time'? Your disguise is easily seen through by anyone with a brain..."

"Meep!" Rei started to sweat.

"I'm sure she has her reasons for doing so, Mr. President," the light greenette spoke up again. "Oh, I'm Emiri Kimidori, the president's secretary. Apologies for not introducing myself sooner." She bowed politely, Rei awkwardly returning the bow.

"Well, while you're here, Mr. President," John cut in, "perhaps you could arrange for Kobayashi-san to meet with the substitute history teacher?"

"So, you think he's somehow involved with the ghost as well?" the president mused.

"W-well, I have t-to c-cover all my b-bases," 'Yuu' pointed out.

"Fine. The next class break is from 10:30 to 10:45, you can speak with him then. But keep it succinct, he doesn't like to keep his students waiting. In the meantime, go and wait in the teacher's lounge. Understood?"

"Y-yes, Mr. President," Yuki spoke for the group.

"Guess I should get back in class thens," Tsuruya shrugged. "Well, if you've got free times later, come and see mes at the calligraphy club, nyoro! See ya!"

"Sayonara," Rei nodded to her as she left.

February 14, 10:30 AM

Lowee City High School

Teacher's Lounge

Rei's head jerked up as she heard the bell ring. "W-well, he should be c-coming any second now..." she said.

"I j-just hope he d-doesn't get upset at us for wasting his time," Yuki sighed.

"Does he even get upset?" Kyon snarked. "He seems to keep his feelings close to the vest..." He looked up as a silhouette appeared behind the glass pane of the door, which soon opened, revealing a man in his mid twenties, with short, yet unkempt teal-colored hair, cobalt blue eyes, slightly dark skin, dressed in a dark green vest, shirt, and matching slacks, a bony sword strapped to his waist.

"Oh, not again," the young teacher sighed upon seeing John and Yuki.

"P-Professor Byleth Eisner?" Rei stood to her feet and bowed. "I'm Yuu Kobayashi, independent journalist. I was hoping for a moment of your time-?"

"If it's about those stupid ghost rumors, absolutely not," Byleth cut her off. "I've got better things to waste my time on..." He promptly turned to leave-

"Not so fast, worm," Rei suddenly growled. "If you had any idea who you were really speaking to, you wouldn't blow me off so easily, maggot." The professor slowly turned back to Rei, who had doffed her sunglasses.

"...Oh. Ohh," Recognition suddenly dawned. "I see... alright, I suppose I can indulge you for a bit." He stepped back in and shut the door behind him. "But I still say you're wasting your time."

"I'll be the judge of that," Rei deadpanned as she slid her sunglasses back on, the two sitting down. "First things first... why would a professor of a military academy sub for a history teacher in some run-of-the-mill high school?"

Byleth blinked a few times at that. "...Not what I was expecting. That's a very good question, Miss Ryghts. Unfortunately I'm not at liberty to say at this time, especially since it has no relevance to the rumors. Next question."

(Cool as a cucumber... he barely flinched when I tried to flank him,) Rei pondered. "Alright, fine, how about why a former mercenary becomes a professor to begin with?"

"That I can answer. One, it's a military academy, which includes learning how to fight with all manner of weapons, which I have ample experience with," Byleth replied. "The other is that my old man used to work there back in his youth, leaving just before I was born. It was basically the fact that I'm his son that landed me the job."

"He must have been quite impressive back in the day," Yuki postulated.

"He was. They didn't call him the 'Blade Breaker' for nothing," Byleth nodded. "As for me, I was known as the 'Ashen Demon' back during my mercenary days..."

"S-speaking of which, I'm g-guessing that sword is a holdover f-from your t-time as a mercenary?" Rei pointed out.

"That's right," the professor nodded. "You might say I've got something of a personal attachment to it..."

"You do realize you don't have to carry it with you through the whole school... are you that afraid someone will steal it?"

"Nagato, th-that's not v-very p-polite," Rei turned to face the bookworm.

"Huh? But I didn't say anything!" Yuki stammered.

"You sure you aren't hearing things, Kobayashi-san?" Kyon said.

"B-but, I thought... ugh, never mind," Rei sighed and shook her head. "(ahem) Anyway... th-that sword almost looks like it was made f-from somebody's s-spine or something..."

"Yeah, no wonder they called you a demon, with a sword like that," John Smith deadpanned.

"I highly doubt that it is, though," Byleth demurred. "You'd think a weapon made from human bones would be far too brittle to wield effectively, right?"

"Unless the bones weren't exactly human to begin with..."

"Oh, for- excuse me a moment..." Rei promptly stood and headed to the door, opening it and shouting, "Knock it off, you filthy maggots!"

"Aaahh! We're sorryyyy!" a couple of NPC students cried as they ran off in fear.

"What was that for?" Byleth asked curiously.

"Somebody was making snarky comments," Rei growled as she sat back down. "If it wasn't Nagato, then someone was listening in from outside. It's only logical."

"Yeah, there's really no place to hide in here, huh?" John looked around a bit.

"... Hmmm. Well, hopefully they won't make anymore snide comments after that," Byleth stated, seemingly staring at a random spot on the wall. "Will there be anything else?"

"S-so you think th-there's no s-such thing as gh-ghosts, right?" Rei pressed.

"Right. At least not the kind that spirit you away to the depths of hell, or something like that," Byleth replied. "Honestly, Miss Nagato, I don't know why you're letting something like this bother you so much... It's not like you've taken another's life, like I have, even if said lives weren't innocent..."

"Y, yes, sir, you're right. I-I'm sorry," Yuki lamented, shaking her head. "Maybe I'll just refrain from reading any horror or suspense novels for awhile..."

"That's not a bad idea," Kyon nodded. Just then, the bell rang. "Whoops, time's up."

"Yeah, I should get to my next class," Byleth stood up. "And I expect you two will be in class on time tomorrow, understand?"

"Yes, teacher," Kyon and Yuki assented, the professor nodding and walking out.

"S-so now what do we do?" Rei asked.

"Let's head back to the literature club for now," John suggested.

February 14

Lowee North High School

Literature Club

"Th-this place d-doesn't seem very active," Rei couldn't help but observe as they entered.

"There were more members last year, but they all graduated," Yuki explained. "I was the only one left... even with John-kun and Koizumi-san joining, We're still in danger of being shut down for lack of membership... Kimidori-san's the only reason it hasn't been repurposed by another club already.

"I've been trying to have Asakura-san join, but seeing as she's our class president..." John trailed off.

"I-it's hard for her t-to meet obligations f-for both the c-club and c-class president?" Rei guessed.

"That's pretty much it," Yuki nodded. "If only we could get two more members to join... but that's not your problem, Miss Ryghts."

"W-well, I wish you g-good luck in recruitment efforts," Rei said.

"Thanks. So, have you figured anything out?" John inquired.

"W-well, that sword of Professor Eisner's is suspicious, t-to say the least," the lawyer mused. "I mean, he's right th-that human bones are t-too b-brittle t-to be used as weapons, but... what if those bones were fortified, somehow?"

"Fortified? But why would someone do that?" Yuki pondered.

"M-maybe somebody killed his or her rival, and th-then made their spine specially p-preserved and made into a sword, as a t-trophy of sorts," Rei theorized.

"Eww!" Yuki grimaced.

"I second that," Kyon said. "I see where you're going with this... you think the professor's sword is haunted, not the man himself."

"I-it's definitely a p-possibility," Rei nodded.

*Byleth's Sword has been added to the Court Record.*

Just then, a knock was heard at the door, another student peeking in, with long blue hair, matching eyes and thick eyebrows. "Ah, I thought you might be here, Nagato-san."

"Speak of the devil..." Kyon muttered. "Kobayashi-san, this is Ryoko Asakura, our class president." He then introduced 'Yuu' to Ryoko.

"Oh, so you're the person John-kun hired to investigate the ghost rumor," Ryoko said, stepping fully into the room. "Well, it's very nice to meet you. I just came by to drop off the assignments these two missed."

"Thank you, Asakura-san," Yuki nodded gratefully. "I'm always glad to be able to count on you..."

"That's what friends are for, right?" Ryoko winked. "Well, I won't take up any more of your time, since I have to get back to class myself. Sayonara!"

"Bye!" Rei called after her. "I wish I had had a f-friend like her when I w-was in s-school... maybe I wouldn't have g-gone off the d-deep end and b-became a f-final b-boss..."

"Well, hey, unlike most final bosses who either disintegrate or explode in an awesome cutscene, you lived to see another day," John pointed out.

"T-true... I'm so g-glad the other CPUs sh-showed mercy on me..." the bluenette nodded.

"Yes, and you even managed to get a job as a lawyer and repair your reputation somewhat," Yuki concurred. "Well, we should head to the cafeteria soon and get some lunch, and then we can continue our investigation afterward..."

"Okay... I j-just hope the food is d-decent," Rei said grimly.

"Don't worry, I'll tell you what's good and what to avoid," John promised.

Unfortunately, the rest of the day would prove rather fruitless, though Rei promised to come back tomorrow if she didn't get a legal case, exchanging phone numbers with Kyon and Yuki before leaving...

February 15, 6:23 AM

Rei's Apartment

*ring... ring... ring...*

(Ugh... who could be calling me so early in the morning?) Rei groaned as she felt around for her cell phone, eventually finding and answering it. "H-hello...?"

"Miss Ryghts! It's me, John Smith! We've got an emergency!" Kyon's panicked voice shouted.

"Huh, what...?!" Rei groaned as she shifted to laying on her back. "W-what's going on...?"

"It's Nagato-san! She's been arrested!" John cried. "They say she stabbed Professor Eisner late at night...!"

"WHAT?!" Rei abruptly sat up in shock.

*To be continued...*