Chapter 1: Early Graduation or Early Grave? Part 8 (Deadly Life)
Remaining Students: 17(?)
Yūgo Hachiken (Silver Spoon): Ultimate Tutor
Reyn (Xenoblade Chronicles): Ultimate Tank
Pietro Maximoff "Quicksilver" (Marvel Cinematic Universe): Ultimate Speedster
Miles "Tails" Prower (Sonic The Hedgehog): Ultimate Pilot
Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd (Fire Emblem: Three Houses): Ultimate Prince
Satou Kazuma (Konosuba) Ultimate Thief
Bede (Pokémon): Ultimate Gym Leader
Ray (The Promised Neverland): Ultimate Strategist
Finn (Star Wars): Ultimate Rebel
Sayori (Doki Doki Literature Club): Ultimate Poet
Konata Izumi (Lucky Star): Ultimate Otaku
Saki Nikaido (Zombie Land Saga): Ultimate Biker Gang Leader
Tsuyu Asui (My Hero Academia) Ultimate Amphibian
Kokomi Teruhashi (The Disastrous Life of Saiki K): Ultimate Beauty
Minori Ichinose(Tropical-Rouge! Pretty Cure): Ultimate Bookworm
Sora Takenouchi (Digimon Adventure Original): Ultimate Love
Kale (Dragon Ball Super): Ultimate ?
Sakaki (Azumanga Daioh): Ultimate Animal Lover
Hachiken's POV
TRIAL
ALL RISE!
"Let's begin with a basic explanation of the class trial! So, your votes will determine the results. If you can figure out "whodunnit" then only they will receive punishment. But if you pick the wrong one... Then I'll punish everyone *besides* the blackened, and the one that deceived everyone else will graduate!"
Monokuma is addressing us all from the very back of the room on a throne.
The "courtroom" is definitely not what one would imagine when they think of one. Checkerboard carpet, the aforementioned throne, stained glass windows featuring Monokuma in teachers' outfits, and at its center eighteen podiums for each of us. In the spots where Teruhashi, Sora and Sakaki would be, there's screens with pictures of them with big question marks over the latter two's faces.
Bede turned to Monokuma from his podium, "Before we start looking into the murder, I would like to ask a few questions. Number one, is it true that the murder was commited by one of us? There's the possibility that you or that Sird woman could have killed the victim."
"Puhuhuhu~, of course! We would never harm any of you unless you decide to… poke the bear!" Monokuma guffawed.
Kazuma rolled his eyes, "Well that was lame. Also that does not sound anywhere close to trustworthy."
"It's all true though! I saw the whole thing happen myself on the cameras, so I know who it is… and it sure as hell wasn't me!" Monokuma told the thief.
"I assume it's pointless to ask you who the killer is too, since you want this trial to happen for some reason. I'll just move on to my second question, where is Sird?" Bede asked.
That's an honestly good question. We know she's behind all of this, but she's just letting Monokuma sit here and do all the work for her.
"Oh? Are you enamored by her looks, Mr. Bede? I knew you were hanging out with an older lady, but I didn't think you'd be into them…" Monokuma teases him.
Bede was far from amused, "Arceus no… I am just wondering what the point is to hide from us after revealing herself at the start of the game? Wouldn't she want to overlook her captives and make sure everything is going to plan?"
"Well… we're in a trial aren't we? And a murder happened too! No one has broken the rules yet either, so YES! EVERYTHING ACTUALLY IS GOING TO PLAN! I am dedicated to keeping this game under control by myself, so she doesn't have to get her hands dirty. She will only step in to en-FORCE the rules of the killing game, through FORCE. Ya dig?"
Monokuma's answer makes some sense. Though I'd hate to find out what she'd do if she was here, though this isn't much better.
Bede nods his head as he takes in the new information,"Only have one more question, Monokuma…"
"ANOTHER ONE?! I'm starting to get bored, and when I get VERY bored I might just give you less time to find the blackened!" Monokuma warns him.
"L-Less time?!" Tails's eyes go wide at that statement.
Konata leans over to the left of Bede's podium, "Uh… can you make this one quick? I'd rather not have our lives be on a time limit, those things suck."
"Of course I will, I'm not stupid. Now then, what is the point of these digital portraits?"
Bede points to the pictures of Sakaki, Teruhashi, and Sora on their podiums.
"Oh! Those are there to represent them in case they aren't able to attend due to… unfortunate circumstances. I'm excusing Teruhashi's absence for now, but she'll be punished if she doesn't attend the next trial! So yup, just for representation!" Monokuma leaned back on his throne.
Huh… that's very odd. I looked at Sakaki and Sora's pictures and squinted at them, trying to think of how the burned victim looked, but alas I still couldn't figure it out. Even when comparing it to the picture of the corpse (which I unfortunately had to take, ech), it is still impossible to tell right now.
"Very well. Let us begin discussing the murder." Bede stated, not entirely satisfied with the answers, yet deciding that was enough.
"Finally! I thought you were gonna keep blabbing on 'til we all got done in!" Reyn groaned.
"I thought you all would be more appreciative that you got more information, but I should have expected that you'd be ungrateful." Bede scoffed.
"You're really pissing me off, Curly…" Saki cracked her knuckles.
Thankfully Dimitri interrupted before a fight could happen.
"Can we all just move forward now, please? Ahem, our first order of business is to figure out the order of events. Once that is all set and done, we will commence the matter of locating the suspects in this case."
Pietro questioned this, "Would it not be easier to find the killer, then see how they did it?"
Tsuyu responded to his statement, "If we skip right ahead to the who, instead of the why, then it would be way more difficult to determine who it is ribbit. It's like waiting until a big reveal in a movie, you have to build it up and then you'll start to see who it could be."
"Yeah, was gonna say something similar to that, but you nailed it so… good job." Finn complimented her.
"Indeed, thank you Ms. Asui." Dimitri smiled.
"Please call me Tsuyu, Your Highness." She told him.
She's really insistent on that name preference.
Dimitri bowed his head for mistake, "My apologies. So I assume we all know how the victim died, correct?"
Truth Bullet Selected: Monokuma File #1
An easy answer.
"They, ugh, died to shock after suffering sixth degree burns in Gym 001 in the Recreation Center. At 11:00 pm." I said to my fellow classmates.
"Obviously." Bede shook his head at my answer.
I didn't ask for his opinion…
Minori looked through the Monokuma File in her Handbook, "The victim at the moment is currently unknown, so along with finding out the killer we must also determine their identity."
"Aw man, my head's gonna explode if I have to figure all of that out!" Reyn complained.
"Then just leave the thinking to the professionals, Big Guy." Ray snarked to the redhead's dismay, "Anyways, in order for us to correctly figure out the correct order of events, we might need to know the alibis of everyone here. It will also help us with determining suspects later on…"
"A brilliant suggestion on your part, Ray. Recalling the groups we had formed during the building of the generator, I was gathering parts alongside Finn, Hachiken, and Sora. The last of whom went off on her own to assist the group of Sayori, Sakaki, and Teruhashi with the search for a fuel source." Dimitri turned to me to confirm his story.
I nodded my head, "That was the case, yes. The rest of the groups included those in the student store: Saki, Tsuyu, Kazuma, and Konata, the other scrap collectors: Reyn & Pietro, the three working on building the generator: Minori, Ray, and Tails, and finally the two that we have no intel on: Bede and Kale."
"Hmph. Does that make us prime suspects in your eyes?" Bede asks.
"..." Kale stays silent as she just stares down at her shoes.
"As much as I would love to mark you down as one, just to see how you react, no. Until more evidence is given, we shouldn't assume you two are involved just because of your absence." Ray snickers, to Bede's chagrin.
Kazuma then spoke up, "Yeah, could you imagine accusing someone of a crime just because of only one miniscule thing? That would be ridiculous…"
Sayori is the next to say something, "I'm not sure about accusing someone in general… when we vote for them we're just choosing them to die…"
"It is what it is though, nothing else we can do, since our lives are on the line too ribbit. Now Bede, Kale, where were you?"
Kale gave a meek reply, "I was… in my room sleeping until I saw the Body Discovery Announcement. I haven't left my room since dinner."
"I was busy looking for… important items taken from me." Bede sighed as he revealed his reasoning.
"And we're supposed to believe all that?" Saki looked at Bede with suspicion.
I agreed, "If that's all you're gonna tell us, we can't rule you out as suspects right now. The evidence will decide whether you're innocent or guilty as we go on."
"If you say so. I'm not the killer, but the rest of you can assume all you want." Bede shook his head.
I may not believe him, but I'm not sure he's the murderer either. I guess we'll see, but now we should really get into who was actually around the location of the murder.
Non-Stop Debate
"What about those of you in the student store, did anyone leave for a while?" Dimitri asked.
Konata raised her hand to answer, "Nope, was mainly sitting back and talking to these two about games." She pointed to Saki and Kazuma who nodded.
"Ribbit… I was the one mainly doing the work…" Tsuyu sighed.
Sayori was the next to ask a question, "Tails, were all three of you at the generator the whole time? Ah, sorry if I'm accusing you of something."
"I-It's okay! We took some breaks in between, but yeah we were together the entire time!" Tails reassured her.
"So… was there no one near the rec center during the murder?" Kazuma had his hands up in a shurgging motion.
"That was not the case." I thought as I heard that last statement.
"No, that's wrong!"
COUNTER
BREAK!
Truth Bullet Used: Pietro's Account
"There were certainly people INSIDE the recreation center, right Pietro?" I turned to him.
He nods as he explains, "Yes I did. I had to stop by while a certain someone had to go in for 'business', and saw four others go in afterwards. It was the group of girls looking for generator fuel."
Finn puts his thumb and forefinger to his chin as he ponders, "I see… and they certainly managed to find it, albeit leading to said fuel causing the fire."
"Hm… if you indeed saw those four girls enter, why was she outside with the rest of you when I got there?" Bede referred to Sayori.
"H-Huh? I-I was…" Sayori stumbled on her words.
I better stop this before Bede gets the idea to accuse her.
Truth Bullet Selected: Sayori's Account
"She was around at the time the generator was about to be turned on. She was told to carry back one propane tank back so that it would be able to work until they could deliver the rest. Sayori was with us the whole time afterwards, we even saw her struggling to carry said tank back with her." I explained to him.
Pietro joined in to say a few more words, "I saw her leaving while carrying the tank as well, someone like her is not strong enough to cause a big fire like that."
Bede stays silent for a while before accepting it, "You're right. Someone like her couldn't have pulled this off…"
Sayori crossed her arms and pouted at him before mouthing the words, "Thank you", at me. I gave her a smile and a quick thumbs up before the subject was changed quickly.
"No, not someone like her. Someone like him!"
Pietro once again accused Reyn, this time in front of all of us.
"W-What?! You think I killed 'em?!" Reyn's eyes go wide at the accusation.
"Nyohohoho! Finally some exciting trial escalation!" Monokuma cheered.
I hate how he's treating this trial like it was a sports match.
Kazuma shrugged at this, "Wellll… saying you have 'business' in there kinda paints a big fat target on you back, dude."
"Reyn, if you could explain your whereabouts inside the recreation center, we'll be able to dismiss Pietro's claim much easier. We're only doing this for your own good, so please…" Dimitri calmly tells the redhead.
"Ah, well… it's too embarrassing for me to say right now…" Reyn hid his face as he struggled to explain.
Sayori tilts her head in confusion, "Embarrassing? What could be embarrassing about—"
"This is going too slow!"
ARGUE
"You either tell us where you were, or I hit my vote button now! We do not have enough time for this!" Pietro raises his voice at Reyn.
Sheesh, no need to rush things! Although I shouldn't be surprised that someone who moves so fast wouldn't want a trial like this to take its time.
I guess I'll have to step in for him.
Rebuttal Showdown
"He was in the Recreation Center for about half an hour, plenty of time to set fire to the gym!" Pietro assumed.
"Didn't you see his face earlier? Something was clearly wrong." I brought up how pained he looked after the food eating contest.
"Ha! He was just feeling guilty about having to commit his crime, Reyn is the one who killed the victim!
What did we say earlier about assuming someone did it only because of one factor? Ugh, sorry Reyn, but you have to be honest, even if it's unbearable.
"Your claim has been cut down!"
COUNTER
BREAK!
Truth Blade Used: Reyn's Account
"... Reyn had a stomach ache and he got stuck in the Recreation Center restroom for a while, he had only finished washing his hands before the fire started." I bluntly reveal it to everyone.
"Yup… that's what happened." Ray groaned.
"Bullshit, do you have any proof?" Pietro stated.
"This was stuck on his shoe if you looked closely earlier, is this enough?" Ray showed the picture of the piece of toilet paper to everyone's disgust.
Truth Bullet Selected: Toilet Paper
"Ew." Konata said before giggling to herself.
Bede rolled his eyes at this, "What… a waste of time."
Sayori tried to hold in her own giggles, "R-Reyn, were you really in there for that long?"
"Remember the food eating contest and that'll explain everything, now quit it." Reyn continues to hide his face in his hands.
"Ohhhh, I get it now. I guess it's a good thing that I didn't win then, never thought I'd see the day. Say sorry to him now, you Speedy Bastard!" Saki said with a smug grin on her face.
Pietro, still baffled that he was wrong, bowed his head in failure.
"Sorry Big Man, I was too quick to accuse you."
Reyn scratches the back of his head, "Just don't do that again and I'll call us even, pal. Can we please not talk about this more?"
Everyone agreed and we focused on the next topic.
"Now that that's settled, let us figure out how the fire started in the first place. Time for another debate!" Dimitri took out his e-Handbook and started scouring through the evidence.
Non-Stop Debate
(Insert Song: Danganronpa - Discussion -HEAT UP-)
"Was it a damaged circuit?" Konata asked.
"There weren't any electrical appliances in the gym that looked unsafe, plus the blackout would have shut it off anyways." Tails shoots that idea down.
"Maybe an oil spill?" Finn suggested.
"Hm… does anyone smoke here?" Saki questions.
"Only thing I like smoking is meat!" Reyn responds defensively.
Only one of those is correct, and it sure as hell isn't smoked meat… although it does sound kinda good right now.
"I agree with that!"
CONSENT
BREAK!
Truth Bullet Used: Empty Fuel Canisters
I bring up the image as I make my statement, "You were correct, Finn, there were some fuel canisters that were left completely empty by the entrance doors to the gym."
Finn hits the palm of his hand with his fist, "Alright, that explains where the fire came from, but how were they spilled and lit?"
Ray answered that one, "Smple, it was ignited by one of the lighters we were carrying around with us to light the candles Monokuma gave us."
Truth Bullet Selected: Lighter
"And as for the spill—"
"Oh! I can answer this one, Hachiken!" Sayori interrupted me, "There was this utility cart that was tipped over, and the wheels weren't exactly stable on it."
Truth Bullet Selected: Utility Cart
"R-Right…" I let out.
I mean I shouldn't feel too bad, everyone should have a chance to speak, but still that was a little rude.
"You mentioned earlier that they needed something to help transport the propane tanks, right? If you put that many tanks on a cart of that size, which also has bad wheels… then that's going to end very badly." Tails frowned.
Saki's eyebrows furrowed, "Ugh… this could have been avoided if they asked me, Dimitri, or Reyn for help. We could've been able to carry at least two tanks back each."
"Indeed, and I would have been happy to lend my assistance… But continuing on, you said that you found the lighter inside the gym?" Dimitri asked.
I addressed his question, "Yes we did, you figure something out, Dimitri?"
"Perhaps, although I could be wrong on this. Would you all care to listen to what I have to offer in this trial?" Dimitri says as he awaits our approval.
"I feel like at this point, I could care less as long as we don't die in the end. Go ahead." Kazuma told him.
Bede grunted, "As long as it's useful to the trial."
"Ribbit, feel free, Dimitri." Tsuyu nodded.
"..." Haven't heard a thing out of Kale since she revealed her alibi, and from the looks of things that won't change.
Dimitri cleared his throat, "Thank you all. This may be a bit… unnerving to think about, but I'm currently assuming that the perpetrator was inside the gym at the time of the fire."
A few gasps were let out when he said that, mine included. I saw Bede raise his eyebrows in response as he pondered this and Sayori holding her head while trying to process it.
"E-EHHHHH?! Man, that's both my actual reaction to and how a character in a visual novel would react to a twist!" Konata pointed out.
I have no idea what she's talking about.
"A visu-what?" A confused Reyn says.
Tails slightly raised her hand to ask something, "How are you so sure? Pietro would have spotted someone else entering the gym, and there's no other entrances besides the front."
"I did manage to find another point of entry on the backside of the center. Though it isn't one a person could easily go through." Dimitri explained.
Hold on, is he talking about…
Truth Bullet Selected: Open Window
"You're talking about that open window that leads to the closet in the back of the gym, right?" I spoke up.
Dimitri nods, "Correct. So here is my theory…"
Non-Stop Debate
"My theory is that someone must have used it to enter the gym, right before startling the three girls. Then using the lighter they were carrying, they ignited the spilled fuel before retreating out that same window." Dimitri elaborates.
"That does sound about right…" Sayori listens intently.
"Does it really? Something seems off…" Tails doubts the story.
Finn replies to him, "Well, sometimes it's not as complicated as it seems at first."
"Ah, the 'most simple answer is usually the most correct' theory…" Minori brings up.
As I think about it more, I do agree with Tails, this whole thing seems fishy. Ugh, I feel like the only way to move this forward is if we had information about the fire itself… Wait a minute, I've got something!
"No, that's wrong!"
COUNTER
BREAK!
Truth Bullet Used: Teruhashi's Account
"Um, Your Highness. I'd like to present a counter argument if you don't mind." I politely bowed my head as I asked.
"Feel free, Hachiken. If you've figured something out, then please share it. There is no need for formalities, however." Dimitri allows me to speak.
"Ok, so according to Teruhashi, there really was no one else in there besides her, Sora, and Sakaki."
Ray recognized what I was saying, "Right, the information she gave us back when we visited her in the infirmary."
"She would have mentioned if she heard or seen someone else in there with them, but there were also two things that prevented anyone else from getting in. A wall of fire blocking the front door that she mentioned, and the fact that the window in the gym can only be opened from the inside."
"I-Is this true?" Dimitri's eyes widened.
"I figured it out after just recalling how the window was opened, but your idea about it being used for escape was correct at least. Just not in the way you thought."
"In addition, there's also the fact that they would have been trapped in the building as well. A murder plan using a building fire, while being that close to it I might add, without an exit strategy would just go up in flames." Minori stated.
Pietro noticed her slight pun, "Was that on purpose?".
"N-No, of course not…" She cleared her throat as she realized what she just said.
"Maybe the killer is a dumbass who didn't think about all that stuff, y'know?" Saki suggested.
No, I don't think so. This whole thing just seems like it's an… wait hold on, it could possibly mean… Ok, stop hesitating, Yūgo! This could be big! Say it, even if you're wrong!
"Or… it was all just an accident." I suddenly let out.
Kazuma blinked twice after hearing that, "I'm sorry, come again?".
"Accident, then do you mean that…?" Sayori turned towards me with concern.
"T-That's impossible, Hachiken, are you saying that the person responsible for this entire case was one of the three girls in the gym?" Dimitri was in disbelief.
"I know it sounds crazy, but it's plausible. And I can prove it!" I told them all.
Monokuma then sat up and leaned in from his chair, "Oooooo, then show them! Show them all!"
Ugh, I'm not doing this for your enjoyment, bear, I'm doing this because I'm almost sure that it's right. Key word almost, but it's starting to add up. The lack of planning on the escape route, the details we got from Teruhashi, and also these pieces of evidence…
Non-Stop Debate
"If it was an accident, does this even qualify as a murder case?!" Tails asks aloud.
"In Monokuma's case it still might be…" Bede sighed.
"That's true! Murder is murder here, even if by accident!" Monokuma chimed in.
Reyn was unconvinced, "How are you so sure about this? There's no way it was caused by an accident!"
"It's not out of the question, Reyn, ribbit." Tsuyu told him.
"No, that's wrong!"
COUNTER
BREAK!
Truth Bullet Used: Blackout
"Something did happen to cause an accident, it was the blackout!"
"HUH?!" Reyn let out loudly.
Konata held her hands to her ears, "Ow, I'm right next to you, y'know."
Ack… It hurt my ears too, but I'm not surprised it would hurt more if one was standing right next to him.
"The sudden power shutdowns throughout the day have been chaotic, right? So a full on blackout in a space like the gym would have been just as or maybe even more troubling. Teruhashi also mentioned that she actually bumped into someone in the dark, so maybe a lighter was dropped during it!" I hypothesized.
"That does sound like that could be the case, Hachiken, but even so you can't just assume that they would automatically pull out their li—"
I stop Bede by pulling out another thing we found at the crime scene.
Truth Bullet Selected: Candle Wax
"If they weren't using a lighter, then there wouldn't be melted candle wax on the ground. Plus there's some signs that someone had slipped on it, proving her story true and making the accident angle more likely."
I look around and see a few people visibly impressed by how I've managed to steer this trial in the right direction. It's honestly embarrassing and it's making my forehead sweat a bit more than it already has. I better refocus.
"Hmph, don't interrupt me like that again. This is all starting to make sense, I'll give you that, but we still have a couple more important factors that we haven't covered yet." Bede mentions.
"Ah, kid's right. We still don't know the identities of the killer and the victim." Finn remembers.
"There's also the matter of how the killer managed to escape through the open window, while the victim did not." Tails points out.
"Precisely, so don't get ahead of yourself until we figure everything out, brainiac." Bede insults me.
"Tch…" I clench my fists tightly.
"Don't act like you know everything either, Bede. Collaboration is key to survival, so shut up." Ray glares at him.
"Yeah! You shouldn't say things like that if you want to get through this, you meanie!" Sayori raises her voice at him.
"Meanie?" Bede grits his teeth.
I appreciate the support guys, but he's still right. Now let's see, what could have allowed the killer to escape, but not the victim…? Think it through…
B A S E B A L L S
"I've solved it!"
"What if… they were overwhelmed by a mess of baseballs?"
"I… beg your pardon?" Dimitri did not know what I meant, neither did most of the people here.
"Are you talking about the mess of baseballs we saw in the closet of the gym?" Minori asks and I nod yes.
"Uh, last time I checked there weren't any baseballs that I could see in that gym." Kazuma claims, "Where could they have been?"
"The pitching machine, of course!" Sayori mimicked a pitching motion as she said it.
Truth Bullet Selected: Pitching Machine
Minori whipped out the image of it in her e-Handbook, "We tested the machine and it can shoot baseballs with both power and speed."
Yeah, tested it out on me. I saw Ray chuckling to himself, and it made me annoyed, but I shouldn't hold that big of a grudge.
"Wait, it couldn't have been working during that time." Konata points out.
"Why not?" Dimitri questions her.
"The blackout was going on, remember? The pitching machine couldn't even be turned on." She answered.
"Yeah… that makes sense. That doesn't explain the amount of baseballs there though." Reyn shrugged.
"Oh, welp, I don't have any idea about that." Konata admitted.
Is that really the case though? I really doubt it. I scrolled through the evidence once more and I saw what had been listed for each of the events. The blackout at 10:48pm, the victim dying at 11pm, and the generator activating at… 10:56pm!
"This is it!"
Truth Bullet Selected: Generator Activation
"The pitching machine could still have been used, the blackout lasted for eight minutes until the generator activated and the victim was still alive at that time!"
Tails smiled upon hearing that, "Ah-hah! I knew memorizing the time would be helpful. Of course the power coming back on would allow for that machine to function again."
"Wow! I stand corrected." Konata grins, happy to have been proven wrong.
"How do you turn it on anyways?" Pietro pondered.
Ray decided to explain, "It's through a button on the top of it. And funny enough, it was right beneath the open window. Perfect for someone to use to get a boost upward."
Saki was starting to piece it together, "So… the murderer steps on the switch and it knocks back the victim? That just seems like bad luck."
"Regardless, it's a scenario that is beginning to seem more and more clear to us. Good work everyone, we're so close to the end." Dimitri addressed us.
It really is starting to wind down, we can't fail now or it would have all been for nothing. It's time to discuss who the killer and the victim are. For the sake of the victim, let's finish strong!
Non-Stop Debate
"Sakaki, Sora, and Teruhashi, which one of them could it be?" Ray lists off the three in the gym.
"It… couldn't have been Teruhashi, right? She's in the infirmary and she's… so pretty." Reyn slowly begins thinking of her radiance.
"Stay focused, Big Guy." Konata pinched him to get him back to reality.
"We have a ⅔ chance of getting the answer wrong for both of these…" Tsuyu puts a finger to her chin as she thinks.
"I mean, I could vote right now and still beat those odds." Kazuma says quite boldly.
"Even if you do get it right, the rest of us could still get it wrong, dumbass!" Saki growled at him.
"There should be something to help us make this final push…" Dimitri's eyebrows lower.
Finn doesn't seem to think so, "Would there even be anything left in that fire, though? I doubt it."
I mean I have something, but it's so hard to tell…
"That's wrong!"
COUNTER
BREAK!
Truth Bullet Used: Piece of Cloth
Wait, that wasn't me.
I look over and see Sayori, trembling on her side of the podium.
"S-Sayori? Is there something wrong?" I ask with concern.
"... I know who it is." She reveals.
S-S-She does?!
"What did you just say? How did you find out?" Dimitri questions her.
"She's bluffing, there's no way she'd find out out of the blue." Bede doubts her.
Tails holds his hand out to defend her, "Now now, we should listen to what she has to say."
"Yeah, Sayori, go ahead if you know something. Especially if it's something like this, feel free." I reassured her.
"T-Thank you… remember that burnt pink piece of cloth we found near the window in the closet?"
"Pink?! Then it's Bede!" Reyn points at him in accusal.
"Does it look like my jacket is scorched in any way?" He rolled his eyes as he shows it off and not a sign of anything is on it.
"No… It… looks like a part of a school uniform." Sayori says more about it.
"Uh… pink school uniform? (gasps) It's me? I was the one who did it! I should have kept a better eye on myself!" Konata tries to act shocked.
"Well, it's not really skirt-like, so it can't be you." Sayori told her.
Konata lowers her head in disappointment, "Aww… oh wait, that would mean I would get executed. No 'aww' then."
Wait, the only other person with some pink in their school uniform is…
"So it's you!"
"... Sakaki, is that who you're thinking of, Sayori?"
She doesn't answer verbally, only responding with tears trickling down her face as she nods.
So it is her…
Saki's anger started to fill up once more, "Tch… this shouldn't have freaking happened…."
Finn's head hung low, "So that body we found in the gym, that was…"
"Sora, yeah." Ray stated as he grimaced.
"I'm not convinced. That one piece of cloth should not automatically point to a killer." Pietro expressed his opinion.
"Agreed, that piece of scrap could just be trash left there by Monokuma as a red herring." Bede doubted it as well.
"Say whaaaa? I could never do that…" Monokuma held his arms behind his back and kicked at the ground.
"You got anything else, or is that it?" Kazuma asked as his hand was nearing his vote button.
Oh no, we have to have all of us in agreement in order to make a vote. C'mon, Yūgo!
Non-Stop Debate
"Hold on, we can't just vote now!" Sayori warns them.
Dimitri began to raise his voice at them, "Are you two insane, you could kill us all if you don't vote correctly!"
"Then give us something, other than just relying on trash." Pietro is tapping his foot impatiently.
Bede was really getting annoyed, "Just give it up, it's not like there's something on you that can just tell you the identity of the corpse."
"Aw man, are we screwed? Do we have nothing left?" Reyn clutches his head with frustration.
That's it!
"I agree with that!"
CONSENT
BREAK!
Truth Bullet used: Broken e-Handbook
"Thank you, Bede, for reminding me that we have something that could actually tell us the name of the corpse… well keyword could. This right here!"
I show off the broken e-Handbook to everyone.
Ray was confused, "Uh… isn't that the Handbook that just couldn't turn on? I know what you're getting at but…"
"Are you really trying to use this useless piece of junk? Our lives are on the line here." Bede groaned.
"To be fair, this Handbook was the victim's, as it was on them while we… uh, checked out the body." I defended my choice.
"Guh… glad I wasn't investigating…" Kazuma retched in disgust.
"Same here, pal." Reyn's teeth clenched at the thought of it.
"It did belong to the victim, but how does that tell us if this is Sora or Sakaki?" Sayori asked.
I was gonna ask Monokuma to repair it, but then something else just popped back into my mind. What timing too.
"Remember when we were all in the cafeteria for dinner? Well, I had a conversation with someone during that time. They told me they accidentally left something back in their dorm. Their e-Handbook."
There were a couple of gasps at that last part of my statement.
"That person was…"
"Me, it was me."
A voice then came out of nowhere. I looked behind me and saw Sakaki stepping into the trial room, making her way to her podium.
"Sakaki…" Konata uttered with sadness in her voice.
"My actions are unforgivable, despite what you all may think. It's why I took so much time getting here, so I can prepare myself for my punishment…"
"Tch…" Bede turned away from her with disdain.
"Now if you wouldn't mind, I would like to hear how you managed to put it all together. That way I can confirm your story much easier."
She's… just admitting to it. Her face is just filled with remorse and I can see her eyes watering a little. I… really wish that everything could have gone differently. No one here deserves to die, but…
I agreed to do it.
"Ok… I'll sum it all up."
(Insert Song: Danganronpa - Climax Return)
"This all started when Tails brought up the idea of building a generator to power the campus, after we got our first motive: a complete shutdown of all electrical services. In order for the generator to work however, it needed a fuel source to keep it running. Originally it was a group of three until Sora decided to go help them out. Pietro saw the group go into the recreation center as he was waiting for Reyn to finish his "business". They discovered a whole bunch of propane tanks, but unfortunately they were all too much to carry by hand. They dispatched Sayori to deliver one tank to help the generator turn on, while the rest of them tried to find an easier way to transport the tanks. They happened to find a utility cart, but it was unfortunately not up to the task. It tipped over and caused a huge mess on the gym floor, and right as that happened the power went out on campus. The three girls left in the dark stumbled around, one of them ended up tripping on candle wax and causing the leaked propane to catch fire. Teruhashi ended up fainting to the fumes, while the two left scrambled to find an exit. Eventually they reached the closet in the back of the gym and saw a window they could escape from. As soon as one of the girls attempted to climb up, the generator activated and the power returned. Unfortunately, the switch for the pitching machine was hit and a wave of baseballs hit their companion backwards. A piece of the culprit's uniform was burned off, but they managed to escape. Sora was left behind as the flames engulfed her… and you, Sakaki, had caused this incident to occur."
COMPLETE!
"Okay people, it's time to cast your votes! Will you make the right choice? Or the dreadfully wrong one…" Monokuma cheered as we all voted.
The votes were all tallied up on the large screen above us, and they were all for Sakaki. She even voted for herself…
TRIAL END
ALL RISE!
"Not a single flaw with that summary. My carelessness had caused the fire in the gym to occur and the pitching machine to activate. There's… nothing left for me to say except that I'm deeply sorry. To Sora, and to the rest of you." Sakaki spoke softly, accepting her fate.
"No… it's not your fault…" Sayori sniffed as she cried and hugged Sakaki.
"It isn't her fault, yet it all happened anyway. This game is unforgiving to anyone, no matter what intentions you have. It'll just throw you into a situation where you make mistakes that lead to your downfall." Bede stated.
It's true, but he shouldn't have said it in that way.
Sora and Sakaki were both people who I didn't ever see killing someone. Sora was almost like a mother or big sister to us and Sakaki was quite calm and cool, yet she seemed to hide a softer side. The fact that the motive had eventually led to an unfortunate incident like this…. Like Bede said, it's unforgiving. This game, this campus… it's all the handiwork of Monokuma, Sird, and whoever the hell else is behind it all. They are the most cruel, most disgusting people to have done this to us or maybe even anyone else. It enrages me to no end that I can't do anything about it, except watch.
"D-Don't go… please." Konata hugged Sakaki as well from the side.
"I have no choice…" She told them before turning to me, "Thank you for being able to reveal the truth about everything. Once again, I'm sorry for putting you through this."
I then began to get choked up too, "I… I… I'm sorry Sakaki…."
I really wish I got to spend more time with her, even if it would have made saying goodbye hurt a lot more…
"Enough with the waterworks people! Actually, never mind, keep crying! I'll be able to bottle up those tears and sell them for profit!" Monokuma jokes, and nobody was laughing.
"It looks like time is up…" Sakaki told us as Konata and Sayori walked back to their podiums.
Monokuma's laughter began to rise in volume, "Now then, I've prepared a VERY special punishment for Sakaki, the Ultimate Animal Lover!"
"Farewell, everyone… good luck." That cool image she had originally presented was broken, just like the hearts of a few of us having to watch this.
"Let's give it everything we've got! It's...PUNISHMENT TIIIME!" Monokuma cried out as he hit his button with a gavel.
GAME OVER
SAKAKI HAS BEEN FOUND GUILTY. TIME FOR THE PUNISHMENT!
A chain with a shackle on it shoots out and attaches to Sakaki's neck, dragging her to a cage right before releasing it. Monokuma, dressed like a zookeeper, locks the cage door before she could escape and the other students are behind a guard rail looking on.
Execution: Goodbye Kitty
A large pen is dropped through an opening from the top of the cage and is lowered down to the ground. It slowly opens to reveal… a small gray cat. Sakaki walks over to the cat, squats down, and holds her right hand out to it. The cat then proceeded to bite it. Sakaki tried to shake it off, but it just wouldn't let go.
Another cat, an orange one, quickly dashes over and bites Sakaki's left hand. Both cats bit down hard and blood dripped down onto the cage floor. It was then that two more cats made their way out of the pen. Two big cats. A lion and a tiger.
Sakaki tried to run around to escape, but the pain from the two smaller cats biting her hands was slowing her down. Eventually she fell to her knees as she continued to bleed from her hands. The lion and the tiger cornered their meal, and the poor girl was then torn apart before her companions' eyes. Blood even splashing out onto the guard rails, lightly covering the hands of those that are the closest to the action. The four cats return to their pen, after finishing their fast food.
…
…
I looked at my hands and stared at the blood that had covered the tips of my fingers. I couldn't stop trembling as I continued to stare at them. I… I did this to her.
"AGHHH!" Sayori cried out in anguish as she held her own bloody hands close to her chest.
"You monster… putting a young woman like her through suffering like that…" Dimitri seethed with rage.
You… freaking… BASTARRRRRRRD!" Saki yelled at Monokuma as she punched the floor hard enough to break it.
"Hey now! You're lucky this place gets changed up in between trials! That would have been instant punishment if we were back on school grounds!" Monokuma warns her.
"Silence you beast… Tell your master, that wicked woman… that she will pray for a mercy that will never come. When I get my hands on her, I will break her skull with my bare hands and she will regret ever having placed us in this twisted game!" Dimitri threatened.
I would be more concerned about his choice of words, if I wasn't feeling numb from the execution we just witnessed.
Monokuma just laughed, "Puhuhu… BEAR hands? You really know how to make me laugh, Your Princeliness. Anyways, I'm going to take it easy for the rest of the night. Rewatching your faces of despair via replay on my cameras! Sweet nightmares!"
He disappeared as he usually does, and the rest of us went back to our dorms (now back to having electricity). Everyone's faces were a mix of anger, fear, and utter depression. To put it in Monokuma's terms, our expressions were filled with despair. We all returned to our rooms and I went over to the bathroom to wash my hands.
Despite the blood flowing down the drain, I could still see traces of it left behind. It seems like I won't be rid of it right now. Perhaps… the blood on my hands will stain them forever.
Remaining Students: 16
To Be Continued… (When Fictional Guardians Ends)
That felt…. Exhausting. This is longer than any essay I have ever written. Regardless, that's the end of Chapter 1: Early Graduation or Early Grave?. That was certainly a wild ride, and this cast is thankfully getting some rest after going through all of that. I'm curious about what you all thought on the trial and on the story so far. I'm sure you all have some interesting things to say about it, so please don't be afraid to share as much as you can. Anyways yeah, a roadblock has been placed on this story until the Guardians finish their own journey. Once again I apologize to those reading this story, but I really do need to focus on one for now. Thank you all for reading this chapter, and I hope to see you all when the next Danganronpa: Fictional Guardians part drops! Whenever that happens, because this was a lot to write. This has been the Renegade, and I'll bid you farewell for now! - Renegade Braveheart