"Sorry I'm late…" I said sadly as I entered the dining hall. Noticing my tone, Asahina walked up to me.

"Hey…" She said. "Are you okay, Naegi?"

Ishimaru stormed up to me next. "You sure to took your sweet time!" He angrily exclaimed. "I was just about to go get you and drag you back here!"

"S-Sorry…" I apologized.

"So? What happened?" He asked. "Was your room fixed up like he said? I imagine it would be pretty hard to sleep with a rotting corpse in your bathroom!"

"Jesus, that's fucked up, man." Said Mondo. "Why would you say something like that?"

"My room was… Spotless." I spoke up. "There wasn't anything left. Like the whole thing never happened."

"It must be tough staying there, knowing what happened." Mused Sakura. "Why don't you just stay in Maizono's room?"

"Well…" I began. Not knowing how to word it. "Staying there, with her scent still hanging in the air… That would hurt just as much. Plus, I've decided that I can't turn away from her death…"

Sakura raised an eyebrow as Asahina put her hand on my shoulder.

"N-Naegi…" She began. "Hey, cheer up! Getting depressed isn't gonna help anything, right? If we all work together, I'm sure we'll find a way out of here! So everyone, just… Just try and cheer up and get back on track!"

"Is that honestly supposed to make us feel better?" Togami asked suddenly.

"Huh?" Gasped Asahina.

"We were already "Working together", and yet, someone was still murdered. Anyone could betray us at this point." He explained. "Now that it's happened once, it's a question of when, not if, the next one takes place."

"Y-Yeah, because M-Maizono made the first move…" Fukawa began angrily. Asahina nervously cut her off.

"B-But…" She began. "If we work together against the mastermind, nobody'll have any reason to do something like that!"

"Keep telling yourself that." Togami sighed. "I'll be over here in the real world. Working together, fighting a common enemy… Like it or not, it's not that simple."

"…What do you mean?" Asked Yamada.

"The mastermind seems to me much more powerful than we ever suspected." Assumed Celeste. "They took over Hope's Peak, which was supposed to be well defended, then modified it to fit their desire. They created Monokuma, which seems to be incredibly advanced, and they're providing for our every need. And the cherry on top was the execution we witnessed. Everything has been planned down to the last excruciating detail. This is not the work of your everyday psychopath. Defying them may be too great of a risk…"

"Then…" Began Sakura. "What are we supposed to do?"

"Anyone who truly does want to escape will have to fallow the rules." Said Togami. "In which case, the only option is to deceive those around you, and win the game."

"N-No…" Sobbed Chihiro.

"No what?" Asked Togami. Agitated.

"I don't want to live… If it means killing someone else to do it." She shakenly explained. "I don't want to kill anyone else…!"

"Anyone… Else?" Asked Hagakure. "What do you mean?"

"Lean died because we all voted for him, right?" She asked. "It's no different from us killing him ourselves!"

"B-But…" Stammered Hagakure. Trying to find the right words.

"If we hadn't voted for him, then we all woulda died instead, right?" Asked Asahina. "That isn't what you wanted, isn't it…?"

Chihiro was silent, but nodded in response. "She's right." Said Yamada. "If you heap that kind of blame on yourself, you'll turn into a full-fledged masochist."

Having enough of this banter, I approached the programmer. "Chihiro, listen." I began. "You're not to blame. Not you, not Leon, and not Maizono. The mastermind is responsible for everything that's happened. We had no choice but to vote. I can't even imagine what would've happened to all of us if we'd refused… And in the end, it was Monokuma who ultimately killed Leon…! So, don't waste your anger on yourself… Instead, direct it at the mastermind!"

Just when Chihiro was about to give her response, that damn sound played.

Ding dong, bing bong!

The monitor in the dining hall then turned on. Revealing Monokuma.

"Ahem." He cleaned his throat. "This is a school announcement. It is now 10 PM. As suck, it is officially nighttime. Soon the doors to the dining hall will be locked, and all entry at that point is strictly prohibited."

If it had ended right there, it would've been normal. But this was anything but.

"Oh, and one other thing…" He continued. "It was totally obvious before that you were trying to make yourselves feel better and justify what you did. See you, see you, don't see you, see you! That's about how much I can see you, even when you try t hide! Now pay attention and remember this well!"

His next words haunted me, and I assumed the others.

"The burden of judging others is a heavy one to bear. So be well aware of your actions! Order and stability rely on the sacrifice and responsibility of everyone! Okay then… Sweet dreams, everyone! Good night, sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite…"

After that, the monitor turned back off.

"What w-was that about just n-now…?" Worried Fukawa.

"Was he saying it's our fault what happened?" Asked Hagakure. Disbelieved. "That's pretty cruel, man…"

"That piece of shit!" Yelled Mondo. "Who does he think he is?!"

I walked back into my dorm room and laid down in my bed. The day drew to a close…

A tense, maddening day that saw the deaths of three classmates; Maizono, Junko, and Leon…

But… This is just the beginning…

Our despair has only just begun…!

As I dozed off, I couldn't help but think about how horrible Maizono's last moments were…

Flashback. Maizono Sayaka's P.O.V.

I screamed in pain as Leon stabbed me in the abdomen. I tumbled down to the back of the shower and tried to pull it back out, but it was no use. I could see Leon's panicked look on his face. He kept repeating the word "Shit!" over and over again.

I then thought of Naegi, Kirigiri, and especially, the rest of my group. Using my last ounce of strength, I wrote Leon's name behind me in my own blood. The last thing I saw was Leon calming down as it all went black.

At first, I couldn't move, nor see anything. Was this really what dying is like? Nothing for eternity? But then I saw light, I tried to move something, call for someone, anything to help me. Nothing. Eventually, the light faded.

And then… My eyes opened.

A/N: Say whaaa?! What happened here? Sadly, we'll have to move on from this, but it'll all be revealed in due time.

I would also like to take this moment to say thank you to everyone who reviewed, fallowed, and favorited this story! It means a lot to me! Well, until next time! Upupupu…