ACT I: THE TITANS, THE BEAR AND THE FORTRESS OF DESPAIR

Chapter 2: Past and present

Sixteen years earlier

Massachusetts, USA

In the suburban, two children were playing a game of tossing the ball to each other on the pavement. One was a chubby four-year-old boy who moved around languishingly on his stubby legs which looked to be barely holding to the weight attached to their top. His steps were small and, as much as he tried to pace up, nowhere rapid enough to get him more distance than the width of a car. Each time he failed to catch the ball, it took tremendous effort to walk to its location and picked it up. After falling a few times, he thought about crawling to the ball but decided against it. Not only it would make him look bad in front of his friend here, but his mother would not approve such neglect of hygiene (not to mention safety).

"Keep it up," his friend whooped. The girl he played with was of his age, but lankier in appearance and energetic in personality. She had long dirty blonde hair and was dressed in a tight suit. Out of the two, she was the one clearly enjoying this game, jeering every time the boy clumsily stumbled from trying to exert a little more force than his body was capable of.

"Stop throwing the ball so hard," the boy complained as the ball bounced from his legs and rolled to the side, a few meters from where he stood. "You know I can't run well."

"That's what you get for having that extra of fat, Melly," the girl replied. "Time to get rid of it."

"How is this supposed to help?" asked the boy.

"I don't know," said the girl cheerily. "My mom told me you need to exercise a lot to keep fit. And eat fewer sweets too."

The boy called Melly finally picked up the ball as it stopped spinning, his pudgy fingers barely holding on to it. "What is wrong with eating sweets anyway?" he asked.

"Mom said so," the girl shrugged. "It has to be right. Otherwise, it makes no sense."

"Your mom also said you should play nice with me," the boy moaned and tossed the ball back. Tired and beaten, he was ready to stop and get indoor for some cool drink. Yet, he knew his father was still inside sulking and complaining and he did not want to hear any of that. Apparently, the family was robbed and much money was lost. He knew it because his mom told him so, but he could not understand how the burglar came in without breaking the door or window, and why no police were called to their house. When he inquired his mom about that, she simply stated it was too early for him to understand.

And so every time his father was home, he tried to be out. The weather today was nice. It was sunny. The air was cool and there was a breeze. And since his best friend happened to be outside as well, he might as well entertain himself and her (mostly her at the moment).

"I am playing nice with you," the girl caught the ball elegantly and threw it back. It hit the boy in the tummy and nearly toppled him. "You are the one being lazy around here."

"Cut it out," the boy whined, having to walk four meters all the way to the ball. The strenuous journey made his sweat like a pig.

"So how is your father?" asked the girl.

"Still angry," the boy replied sadly. He had happier memories with his father, but lately, things had been quite difficult between his father and the rest of the family. His mother was very upset as well, partly with the 'robbery' and partly with his father's less-than-model behaviors. Hopefully, one day it would get better. "He's not drinking anymore. I guess that's good news. Lucky you only live with your mother, so you don't have to hear more than one person shouting at one point in the house."

"Really?" the girl chuckled. "I am thinking the exact opposite. You have both parents while I only have my mom, so your family should be happier. The more the merrier they say."

"That's one way to put it," the boy finally lifted up the ball. This time, his fingers failed to grab hold and it slipped away, rolling a few meters forward. Frustrated, the boy chased after it. A wheezy noise came to his ear and before he could react, he heard the faint sound of his friend calling out to him.

"Melly!"

The next thing the boy knew, he was shoved back and landed on his hiney. A terrible deafening sound indicated something big had made an impact on something just as large at high speed. As he came to be, he saw a red truck stopping a few meters away from him. The front of the truck was a mess where it had crashed into a large tree and dark smoke was visibly coming out of it. Trucks do not drive on their own, so he hoped whoever inside was not too badly damaged from this accident.

Picking up the ball, the boy noticed something peculiar. The cool breeze suddenly turned cold and there was no sign of his friend anywhere. Perhaps she was playing a little game with him and took advantage of his slow response to hide. Once he let his guard down, she would jump at him and scare him halfway to the graveyard. Or perhaps…

His head was spinning. Something was definitely, definitely wrong. He did not hear the siren of the police car, nor the terrified shrieks of his mom and dad as they embraced him like it was the end of the world, nor the buzzing of the truck's malfunctioning and burning engine. His entire body was covered in red, sticky liquid from head to toe. The smell was funny. It tasted funny, too. The ball he held was likewise bathed in the same substance.

"Becca," he stuttered, the words weighing heavily on him as he came to the realization of what had transpired. "Becca, wh-where are you?"

Day 3

Tartarus Keep

14:00

Warehouse

Out of all the people in this accursed fortress, I never thought the ladies' man librarian Akihiko was the best choice for a companion. Sure, I hated the way he flirted around females. Sure, I envied his being too much of a Gary-Stu kind of guy. Sure, wearing a shade in a medieval setting wasn't the best fashion trend. But his fondness of reading and putting stuff to where they belong in good order proved to overcome all of that.

After lunch, we decided to get to the warehouse to sort things out (assuming Hokuto had not fully wrecked the whole place up in his mad quest for a tool to drill his way out). To my relief, while it was a mess, it was salvageable and there was no dead body to be found. Nevertheless, the Ultimate Miner was on his way out when we entered and he said he had enough for his contraption. I might not agree with his method, but if there was any chance, however remote, that it worked, I saw no reason to stop him at this point. Both he and his assistant Kai were covered in dust and looked more scruffy than ever, the latter more pronounced due to her lack of protective clothing and her overall elegant appearance.

"Hold still guys," said the miner confidently. "I will get you out in a jiffy. This baby here can drill the walls of Arkham Asylum from inside out."

"Good luck on that," I said half-heartedly.

"Dude, are you sure this is alright?" asked Akihiko uneasily. "I mean, that bear is quite messed up. Tearing down a section of the wall in it castle like that, do you think he will not be provoked?"

"Let him try," said Hokuto.

"Well, here goes," said Kai wiping the dust from her clothes with some difficulties.

"Here, let me do that for you." Akihiko lent a hand and I…had no idea how to describe it. It worked, actually, and Kai looked as good as ever. But… on religious ground, I would refrain from making further comments. Kai and Hokuto seemed to have the same idea. I wondered if any of them had a religion.

"I think I will take a hot bath," said Kai. "Right now."

After they were out, the librarian and I started working on tidying and taking into account of the stuff that was in the warehouse by writing down their names, amounts and in a book for better accessibility when required. At the moment, there was no way of knowing how long our stay in Tartarus Keep would be, so it was prudent to be prepared for the second-worst (I prayed to God the worst would not come to pass), and having the right items might be the solution. Necessities such as medicines, cleaning products, toolkits, tissues, and office supplies were given more attention than others. Items of ambiguous or meaningless use were discarded altogether while the package containing the medieval weapons was placed deep in the corner so that no one would ever seek anything from it. Ultimately, it was up to the decision of the persons whether to kill or not to kill, but no point in giving them the idea.

It took a lot of effort, but we were pleased with the result, especially each of us utilized our talent for a common purpose. He did most of the counting and organizing while I calculated and wrote down systematically. And since we were both physically capable, tidying the whole place up was a piece of cake. We had everything of potential usefulness covered by late afternoon.

"I think that's pretty much it," I said proudly.

"Dude, that was one hell of work," said Akihiko stretching out. "I am begging for some relaxation. Hey, you want to head to the botanical garden for some rest? I heard Minako is having a sermon here this afternoon."

Obviously, after all our cooperation, I could not say no despite my uneasiness towards his tendency around women.

On the way out, I thought I might have a talk with him about his background.

Hang out with Akihiko Kazuhiko?

Yeah, sure/Not now

Amelda began the conversation by asking, "How did you become a librarian? You seem very out and about. I thought the job of being a librarian is routine and indoors, much like what I am doing as an accountant."

"It's not as routine as you think," Akihiko laughed. "Once you appreciate the beauty of reading, you will know just how magical being surrounded by books can be. Each of them is a different story. Whether it is a soapy romance or a crime thriller, an action sci-fi or just something that gives you advice on making your own life better. And even if you don't like what you pick up, you can always find another that suits your taste. That's the beauty of it: there is always at least one for each and every one of us."

"I guess you are right," said Amelda. "My occupation only deals with numbers, facts, and reasonable assumptions. Not a lot of room for imagination, it seems."

Akihiko shook his head. "Then perhaps you are not looking at them from the right perspective. Each number should represent something. Use your imagination to explore what they physically represent and what is the story behind them."

"Thanks for that," Amelda smiled. "I will take your words. Anyway, you have not answered my question yet. Did you become a librarian after hitting up with some girls in the library?"

"I can hit up with girls anywhere I want to," said Akihiko, scratching the back of his head nervously. "The library is a poor choice, though. I much prefer the schoolyard or the locker room. Anyway, I did not bother going to the library until late high school. The girls loved me, some of the dudes could not get it over their head. One of them tried to frame me by attempting to crack the file containing the answer key to a math exam and left my student ID there as he ran away. It was night, so they never saw his face. The only evidence they had left was me."

"I am not surprised you were a source of envy," Amelda said. "So, what happened next?"

"I got into detention," Akihiko replied.

"But you didn't do it," Amelda noted. "Why didn't you just tell them?"

"Nah, I was cool either way," Akihiko chuckled. "I heard girls tended to have a thing for bad boys. Besides, I didn't think I could argue back against the teachers. It's sort of a taboo at the high school I went to."

"That's not the way it works in the US," Amelda said. "Teachers there didn't have the power to impose upon students like that."

"Lucky you then," said Akihiko. "Your high school years were smooth then?"

"Not at all," said Amelda.

"What happened then?" asked Akihiko.

"Let's just say I was the definition of a dork," said Amelda. "Which was pretty much the exact opposite of you. I also got unwanted attention as well, namely from the bullies who went mostly unpunished."

"That's pretty sad," Akihiko commented.

"I got over it," Amelda replied. "Back to your story. What happened next?"

"So the janitor ordered me to clean up the corridors," Akihiko explained, "but the principal, Daisuke Fumio, decided to have me working in the library instead. I was surprised at first because of how quiet it was. Since there was not a lot to do - people were pretty organized so I rarely had to tell them anything – I started reading. It was really good. So I read some more. And it felt great, like being transported to another world altogether, you know what I mean?

"Of course." Amelda nodded. "That's how I feel when reading certain books as well."

"So after a week, since I did my job so well, the principal offered me a seat as a permanent librarian," Akihiko jubilantly recounted his time. "I was delighted. Although it meant I would have less time with girls, I knew at that point how I was destined to be with books. During summer, I went to the city's library, and, thanks to Fumio-sama's recommendation, I got it immediately. Had a lot of fun there as well."

"That's quite a nice story," Amelda remarked. "Perhaps someday people will write a story about it."

Akihiko burst into laughter. "Probably not. I hear the readers hate Gary-Stu characters. By the way, just asking, what was the first book you read?"

"The Torah," said Amelda.

"Written on cow's hide?" asked Akihiko.

"Yes," Amelda replied.

Hope Shard obtained!

Akihiko Kazuhiko

It was refreshing to hear that he was not a full-time flirt. His origin story is akin to someone who got tossed into the water for the first time and, in his desperation to survive, realized he was a bona fide swimmer. Still, his acknowledgment that he is the Gary-Stu character in this story is just iffy.

18:00

Botanical Garden

We arrived at the botanical garden and found it populated by Minako who was sitting on a tree-branch holding her 'sermon' and her listeners which consisted of Hijiri and Ashley. The former's porcelain-pale skin and lustrous yukata set her apart from her fully green surroundings.

"Greetings to you, Amelda-kun, Akihiko-kun," said Minako as soon as she saw us. "Come in. I am having a big talk about the importance of nature. It only just started minutes ago, so you didn't miss a lot. I hope we can all appreciate it."

"Nature, yes," said Hijiri plainly. "Your lacking style of delivering the message, not so much." The geisha seemed clearly annoyed at the stains on her expensive-looking clothes, but interested, nevertheless in this which she referred to as enlightenment. As an American, environmental discussions were something I had gotten to the point of being tired of, but obviously, the topic remained somewhat fresh in Japan. "Perhaps it would serve you to have me teach you on the art of communication."

"Thanks, Hijiri-chan," said Minako. "But I think I'm fine like this. I'm not really a good learner, unfortunately. I tend to fall asleep when people talk for too long. Do you know that bears sleep through the entire winter in their den, kinda like someone in cryostasis? I wonder if Monokuma ever sleeps. He's a robot, so does that mean he is switched off or something?" The herbalist mumbled on about Monokuma having his winter sleep, and yet she said as though people would not fall asleep if she herself spoke for too long in that kind of manner.

"Oh, just get on with it," I urged.

"Okay, then," Minako said as she jumped down from the tree, spinning twice in midair before planting her bare feet firmly to the dirt like an aerobatic.

"Do you ever wear shoes?" asked Hijiri, looking a bit disgusted. "It's cold and dirty going barefooted around like that. You should know to take care of yourself."

"On formal occasions," said Minako casually, wriggling her toes on the ground. "But this is much better. It makes me feel closer to Mother Earth. Besides, I am used to this now."

"Why did you come here anyway?" I asked. Out of all the people, I thought she was supposed to be too dainty and clean to want to be in such a place. Those clothes did not look cheap, and I wondered how many of them could Monokuma provide for her in her wardrobe.

"Trust me, not best intuition," said Hijiri, keeping a calm voice as always. "But Miss Ashley here has invited me to this enlightenment. If there is wisdom to be had in here, then I would like to hear it."

"I highly doubt that," I said incredulously.

"Oh, come on, Amelda," Ashley chimed in. "Give me a break, will you? Anyway, she seems quite quiet and distant from everybody, so I thought it wouldn't hurt for her to come in and spend some time with us."

"She is right," said Hijiri. "I do not tend to enjoy the company of others. But since we are classmates now, inmates of a strange prison even, it was time I opened myself a bit."

"Of course," said Akihiko, clearly excited at the opportunity presented. "You are always welcomed among us."

"Come on everybody, sit down," Minako urged excitedly and waved at us. All of us took a seat on the grass except Hijiri who would rather waste her legs than staining her precious clothes any further. "Alright, let's continue with our talk."

And by talk, she meant her talking monotonously for the next hour or so on things nobody wanted to have a piece of such as detailed comparisons between how long it took a lumberjack two century ago to fell a try and how long it took now, the story of a family of chipmunks escaped from a forest fire (and no, they did not sing) or the fact Mother Earth had an appearance in every place in this world. By God, this was as dry as a log found in the middle of a desert. In my youth, I used to listen to sermons in synagogues, and, even back then, I could barely tolerate the long periods of one-man rambling even if the content contributed to my understanding of my own religion.

I could not just leave or interrupt her, not when she was so passionate in her delivery of gibberish. So I decided to spend the time talking with the geisha next to me who tried so hard to stay focused and failed so hard in her attempt instead.

Hang out with Hijiri Kaneshiro?

Yeah, sure/Not now

"You can sit down, you know," said Amelda. "Don't worry about dirtying your clothes. There's plenty in each of our wardrobes if I am not mistaken."

"Amelda-san, I appreciate your care," Hijiri replied with a formal voice, "but I insist you let me continue my course of action.

"But you can change your clothes after this, can you?" Amelda pointed out. "There's plenty in each of our wardrobes if I am not mistaken."

"That would still be to disrespect this traditional and elegant dress," Hijiri answered sternly. "Even if the one providing is full of malice, a gift is still a gift, and that is something I must cherish. I am standing my ground here."

Amelda shrugged. "Suit yourself."

"Oh dear, I now think it is a mistake to even come to this place," Hijiri moaned. "When will this end? On one hand, I do not wish to disrespect Minako-san's efforts."

"How about we talk to kill time?" Amelda suggested.

"That would be nice," Hijiri agreed. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I am not familiar with geisha," Amelda began. "I have heard about them before. I know they are different from, well what Rin was thinking. Can you be bothered to enlighten me on this?"

Hijiri nodded. "I see. As I said, geisha are entertainers trained to excel in fields including traditional art, literature, dancing, and music. Our sex and love lives are separated from our profession. In the past, geisha were a common sight, but our popularity has declined over the years, though recently there has been a resurgence of interest."

"How did you come to be one?" Amelda asked. "What makes you into it?"

"It was not my choice. Hijiri explained calmly. "When I was little, my family was very poor and when my father died after an earthquake, my mother became desperate. She sold me to an okiya to spare me of a miserable life. I was seven back then."

"She sold you away?" Amelda frowned.

"Perhaps the correct term would be permanently assigning," said Hijiri. "I don't care, though. The region I grew up in was quite backward compared to the rest of the country."

"That must have been rough," Amelda stated. "No child should live without the care of their parents."

Hijiri sighed. "It was the only option at that point, and I do not hold any grudge on my mother for her decision. The okiya is not an orphanage. They provide me with hospitality and education, expecting a return when I finally make my own money in the geisha business. I worked as a housemaid, learning only through watching and listening to others performing until I was twelve. After that, the real training began and I was taught many disciplines of art that a geisha should know. The people there were nice and dedicated. I was satisfied with what I had there. If anything, I find enjoyment in learning. By the time I was fifteen, I was promoted to become a full-fledged geisha and within one year, I paid back my debt to the okiya that raised me."

"It took you only one year to pay back all the debts accumulated over the course of nine years?" Amelda exclaimed, almost excitedly. "That's amazing. Many of my clients are the exact opposite, struggling for many years to make up for the debts they end up as a result of a single bad investment. Most of them even had to massage their accounts to hide this fact from shareholders."

"Do they go to jail for that?" Hijiri asked.

"Some of them," Amelda admitted.

"Much like Rin-san, you seem quite happy to send people to prison," Hijiri noted.

"Only those that deserve," said Amelda.

"In my case, well, there is…actually a reason why I was able to pay back so quickly," Hijiri continued.

"What is it?" asked Amelda.

"I believe it is not convenient to discuss right here," said Hijiri.

Amelda raised his brows. "Is it illegal?"

"No, it's not," Hijiri denied. "But I am uncomfortable telling you here. Maybe another time."

"Alright, so are you still working for the okiya at the moment?" Amelda asked.

Hijiri shook her head. "No, I have moved on since then. I am working independently. How guests are chosen, how they would be entertained, what kind of payment, I have full reign over those things now."

"Best of luck then," Amelda congratulated.

Hijiri smiled. "That's kind of you. My thanks."

Hope Shard Obtain!

Hijiri Kaneshiro

As a child, Hijiri was abandoned by her mother and introduced to the art of geisha. Either she was one of the greatest entrepreneurs out there or something had happened that allowed her to pay back all her debts so quickly. She did not want to discuss and I saw no reason to put my nose into it.

As my talk with Hijiri came to an end, Minako was still in full swing with her 'sermon' despite the obvious lack of audiences. Ashley was sleeping while wearing the glasses with open eyes painted on and even Akihiko looked as though if he were given the choice of jumping into a pit and bury himself or go on with this for the next hour, he might choose the pit.

"Any question so far?" Minako finally, FINALLY, came to a halt. Both I and Hijiri let out a sigh of relief. Ashley was jolted awake by the lack of sleep-inducing gibberish and seemed as lively as ever as soon as the monotone stopped.

"Yeah, you said something about swinging vines to save a baby bird that fell off the nest," said the Pranking Queen quickly. She pointed at the bunch of vines trailing down like a waterfall. "Care to demonstrate?"

"Of course," said Minako, as cheerful as always. Wasting no time, she climbed up the tree and grabbed hold to one of the vines in front of her.

"No, use that one," said Ashley, pointing out at a peculiar-looking vine which was blue instead of green. Closer inspection revealed it was covered in some sort of powder to give its distinctive color as if someone had marked it for some specific purpose. And knowing the Pranking Queen, I could not expect it to be anything good. Anyone that can put two and two together would have known at that point to avoid it at all cost.

"Thanks, Ashley-chan," said Minako, taking the bait. I braced myself for what about to happen. And it did. No sooner had the Ultimate Herbalist begun her performance than Akihiko, Hijiri, and myself began shouting out the warnings.

"Watch out for that…."

"Tree!" I said.

"Plant!" Hijiri said.

"Oak!" Akihiko said. Out of the three of us, he got it most correctly.

*SLAM*

Ouch. That had got to hurt, flinging oneself into a tree-like a battering ram like that. To make matter worse, Minako slipped from her vine and fell into a bunch of entangling vines, getting stuck in the process like a professional bondage artist.

"Ugh, this is rather unsightly," Hijiri remarked with a wide cringe.

"Ashley-chan, Amelda-kun, Hijiri-chan, Akihiko-kun," Minako wheezed. "A little help here please."

"Coming," Akihiko and I said in unison. We finally got her out of those vines, but in doing so, Minako fell to the ground head-first, giving all four of us plenty of time marvel in the glory that was the fan service. It looked just like the one my little sister wore, right down to the very Hello Kitty detail. It was unfiltered, uncensored, uncut, but since we were all above the age of eighteen, we were all good.

"I didn't see that. Please forgive me!" Akihiko exclaimed as he immediately looked away. Well, some of us were better than others.

"Now I will never get married," Minako moaned with teary eyes.

"Come on, it's not that bad," said Ashley.

"I concur with Wiltarrow-san here," Hijiri added. "Your future relationship will unlikely be affected by what had transpired."

"Hold your horse there, girl," said Monokuma. "Here is a piece of good news for you, delivered from your venerable overlord himself, you don't have to be concerned about getting married. All evidence points out you will not even survive the killing game."

"And who are you to say that," I demanded. And then the realization hit me. "What the heck?"

"Can I look now?" Akihiko turned back and instantly lost color. "I regret that decision."

"Where did you come from?" Ashley yelled.

"You didn't see that, did you?" asked Hijiri, the only person who showed no sign of agitation at the sight of Monokuma popping out of nowhere.

"Unfortunately, I did," said the bear grumpily. "Not the type of entertainment your liege expects, but I will forgive your lack of taste. This time only."

"Why do you think she will not survive?" I asked out loud.

"From my personal experience, dumbass," said Monokuma matter-of-fact. "This is the 23rd Mutual Killing Game, remember? At this point, there are enough trends and data for me to come up with a conclusion, and a girl like that has….approximately ten percent chance of surviving."

"Ten…percent?" said Minako tearily. "That's so low?"

"You are assuming we would devolve into barbarians so easily, Monokuma?" asked Hijiri venomously.

"No way I am laying my hands on a girl," said Akihiko. "Or boys, for that matter. I mean, killing is wrong, no matter what."

"That is preposterous," I said indignantly. "How in hell were you able to organize 22 other games?"

"You underestimate my influence," said Monokuma gleefully.

"You are not making any sense at all," I retorted.

"Big words," Monokuma sneered in his shrilly voice. "Coming from a boy who, according to religious texts, should have been stoned to death."

"What are you talking about?" I cried. Monokuma must be referring to that incident I had with Dirty Fitzgerald earlier. God, this was embarrassing. "Those rules were written ages ago. And if this is about that snogging thing, it's not my idea, okay?"

"What snogging thing?" asked Akihiko.

"Amelda, your nose is bleeding," Ashley blurted.

It took me a moment to realize the red liquid coming from my nose. God damn it, why did it have to be now?

"As your overlord, I will have no toleration for perverts," announced Monokuma solemnly. "Anything left to say before I handle you to the castrator?" How could he say that when he did not even have any.

"It's not my reaction to seeing Hello Kitty panties," I explained, immediately regretting that for Minako blushed more than ever at my blunt statement. "I have had this condition for a while now."

"Prove it," said Monokuma. "Your liege demands evidence to support your claim of innocence. Playing with me and I will make sure it is done slowly."

"How?" I asked, frustrated.

"Oh, God, Amelda," Ashley cried out in terror. "Are you alright?"

As I noticed, blood was oozing from not only my nose but my eyes as well, forming two crimson lines down my cheeks. All present were clearly shocked at the sight. Hijiri, in particular, looked to be on the verge of throwing up.

"Urghh," said Monokuma in a panicky state. "You look like one of those things from a cheap horror movie. They always give me the creep."

"Is this proof enough for you?" I asserted.

"Whatever, just keep away from me. I don't want any red on this perfect black and white attire." With that, he disappeared from sight.

"It's nothing serious," I assured, lying down. Nowhere lethal or as serious as Inu's condition, that's for sure. "I have hemorrhage disorder which causes inexplicable blood outflow. It has been like that since I was little. Uncontrollable bleeding like this only happens once a month."

"Come here, let me take a look." Minako examined me like a doctor before she went out to pick up some herbs from the trees nearby.

"Are you seriously okay?" asked Akihiko worriedly. "I mean, losing so much blood is a big deal."

"I'm fine," I confirmed, feeling embarrassed at letting my friends see me like this. I was hoping to undergo this while alone, but the haphazard nature of its occurrences made it impossible to predict when it was going to happen. The bleeding always came abruptly and then just stopped for no reason. I remembered having one during class back in elementary school. After that, nobody wanted to be anywhere within five meters from me.

"Sorry for my rudeness," said Hijiri. This was the first time I heard her sound so shaky. "But, it seems I lack the stomach to digest this gruesome sight. May I depart?"

"No problem," I said, feeling a bit hazy over the loss of blood. "Sorry for the inconvenience." And with that, the Ultimate Geisha left the botanical garden.

Minako came back with a mixture of herbs in her hand. "Close your eyes," she told me. "Try to breathe through your mouth. Nice and slow. Here, have this. It helps stem internal bleeding."

"Thanks…Agh, it tastes horrible," I nearly gagged. If I were to chew and swallow a piece of clay, it would taste just like that. This made me wonder whether the sickness or the cure was worse.

"Bear it," said Minako softly as she cradled my head like a mother to her child. "It will make you better."

"Anything we can do to help?" asked Akihiko. I could not follow the conversation between the three of them at this point, for my mind was like a fruit blender. Could be because of the loss of blood. Or perhaps the medicine Minako gave me had such side effects. Maybe the environment had something to do with it; the air was cool and fresh and the grassy ground as soft as a bed. Whichever the case, I fell asleep quickly.

20:30

I groggily opened my eyes and found myself lying exactly at the spot where I had passed out. More importantly, my head was placed on the lap of the Ultimate Herbalist who undoubtedly had been keeping watch over me the whole time. I still recalled it was I who carried her back to her room after the announcement of the Mutual Killing Game. Now, the situation had awkwardly been reversed.

"You are awake," said Minako. "Are you feeling better now?"

The bleeding had stopped. It usually did not last long, an hour at most. I wondered if the medicine actually worked or not. Either way, it mattered little other than I owed gratitude to Minako.

"Yeah," I said as I sat up next to her. There was nobody in here aside from the two of us and a bunch of trees. "Anyway, thanks for your help."

"You are welcomed," Minako beamed happily. "Take this. I have wrapped the mixtures together for you. If you ever start bleeding again, take one them. They work instantly."

"I will remember that," I said, although it was unlikely that I would. The bleeding occurred rarely and usually receded before any treatment was applied, the reason why I had decided to simply live with it and move on. Still, I could not quite get over the fact it had happened right in front of my friends. I just hope they weren't too freaked out about it.

Item acquired:

Medical herbal mixtures

The cure to internal bleeding, according to Minako. Not my best bet in fighting this disease, but I took them nevertheless as a gift of friendship.

Hang out with Minako Yuza?

Yeah, sure/Not now

"It's quite late now," Amelda muttered. "Damn it, I missed breakfast, and now dinner as well. Not exactly what I would call a healthy eating habit. Anyway, I'm going to the kitchen for some snacks. Are you coming?"

"You may ahead," Minako replied. "I will stay here and commune with Mother Earth. There is plenty of sustenance around here. So don't worry about me."

"Wait, are you sure you want to stay here all by yourself at night?" Amelda asked worriedly.

Minako nodded. "This is where I sleep. I am sorry I did not bring you back to your room as you did to me last night, but it requires the electronic ID to do so, and I frankly…cannot see the head or tail of that strange device. You know, like a turtle. Speaking of turtle, I wonder if there is an aquarium around here. If they do, I hope there are some catfish. Those are the best."

"You mentioned Hanako while you were sleeping," Amelda continued. "Pardon me for asking, but who is that?"

"She was my family's maid and my mentor," Minako explained. "She was a very pleasant person to be around with and spent more time with me than anyone else ever since I was a toddler. I learned a lot from her, the importance of protecting nature, and she was the one who taught me acquiring knowledge was the best way in doing so. She encouraged me to read a lot, especially in books about plants, which, in turn, gave me an interest in herbology. She was the one who gave me full support in pursuing my passion as a herbalist back when I was young. Ironically, I found her more of a mother than my mother was."

"Did she inspire you to sleep in the woods as well?" Amelda asked.

"No," Minako replied. "She's actually quite formal."

"What are your parents like anyway?" Amelda asked. "I hope you don't mind me asking. From what I have seen, I thought you were brought up in the forest."

"They are business people, very strict and busy," Minako replied dispassionately. "As a result, I barely had any time with them. To think about it, I could not remember the last time we were in the same room for more than an hour. They run a multinational food company. I had been to one of their facilities before, and what I saw disgusted me. Animals were callously slaughtered and put on display like some sick show. Can you imagine how cruel is that?"

"They are just animals," Amelda replied. "Isn't it part of nature? Nature can be cruel as well, you know. Predators must feed on others because if they don't, they will starve."

"But that is nothing compared to humanity," Minako persisted. "Can't you see? We are interfering with nature on a scale never seen before. Tigers eating deer is the way of life because, in the end, they are savage animals. Humans, on the other hand, are civilized beings. How could we stoop so low as to force other species that share the earth with us to suffer for our greed and selfishness?"

Amelda shrugged. "Given the cruelty, we inflict on our own kinspeople out of greed and selfishness, I can't say the animals stand much of a chance. As for the slaughtering of livestock, as long as shechita was applied, I wouldn't mind. For the very least, the animals wouldn't suffer."

"I guess I can't argue about that, can I?" asked Minako, defeated.

"You used past tense to describe Hanako," Amelda noted. "Is she no longer around?"

Minako nodded. "As I grew up, Hanako grew old and senile. Her service declined and, eventually, my parents stopped seeing the usefulness in her and sacked her without showing any respect for her many years of tireless and dedicated service. After that, I came forward to as for permission to honor Hanako by following my dream to become a herbalist, but my parents would not let me. They want me to follow their footstep and take over the business when they retire as if I would ever want my finger on that abhorrent industry."

"So what happened next?" asked Amelda. "Wait, don't tell me you ran away into the woods all by yourself."

"That's exactly what I did," Minako replied bitterly. "I had a heated argument with my parents. They were furious with my decision, and I was furious with their dictation of my life. In the end, I had enough. With my own home no longer feeling like a place of comfort, but more like a prison, I fled to the forest where I would find sanctuary in its purest form. That's how I became like this. That is until Hope's Peak Academy scouted me out."

(Though Amelda would love to learn more about what Minako did during her time living on her own in the forest, it was quite late at this point and he wasn't keen on skipping meals. With that, he concluded the conversation, said bye to Minako who returned with a warm smile and headed off.)

Hope Shard Obtained!

Minako Yuza

Minako's passion for herbology was inspired by her family's maid, Hanako, with whom she was on better terms than her parents themselves. Minako shows a lot of vehemence towards mankind's treatment of animals. Though I have my own reservation regarding the goodness of our race, I prefer to consider what we do with others of our kind instead.

Author's note: With the direction I am taking, I am thinking of changing the rating from T to M due to some rather disturbing contents later on. This is Danganronpa, so you know things are quite fucked up from the start, but this story will feature a little bit more dark theme outside the current killing game. Tell me what you think about it.

As always, hope you enjoy it.

Cheers.