Toko's corpse is shown.

Rantaro's chunks floating on the water are shown.

Meanwhile, something was happening…

« Miu, we are breaking the nighttime rule we established ! We shouldn't be outside ! » Keebo complained.

« It's important, Keeboy ! Follow me ! » Miu grabbed his hand.

She led him… to the bathhouse… ?

« Uhhh Miu, why are we at the bathhouse ? » He asked confused.

« For something important. Now hold still ! » She got closer to him.

« W-wait- » He stepped back.

Then everything went black for him.

CHAPTER 3

Digital Damaging Despair

Daily Life

End of Day 10

Beginning of Day 11

I lied on my bed, ignoring the morning announcement, not bothering to get up…

Why would I ? My best friend which I considered a brother got executed…

Why did it have to happen… ? Why him ?

Yet… I can't hate Toko… It was Genocide Jill's fault…

He was only defending himself… He didn't mean to kill her… Yet he got executed anyway…

Ding dong

Huh ? Who would want to talk to me ?

Whatever, I don't want to talk…

Ding dong

Leave me alone… Please…

Ding dong

Urgh, fine…

I got up from my bed, causing to fall a few tissues, and walked to the door, opening it…

And Kazuichi was standing in front of me.

« Hey Makoto, everyone is waiting for you at the Dining Hall. I tried to talk to Mikan, but she refuses to open her door, I could hear her sob. » He greeted me.

« Hey Kazuichi… Sorry, I didn't sleep well… I cried too… » I replied.

Kazuichi sighed sadly.

« Come on, man. We are worried for you. » He told me.

I sighed, and got out of my room, following him.

We arrived in the Dining Hall, where everyone was hrre except Mikan.

« Hey Makoto, are you alright ? You look tired. » Taka asked in worryw while I sat and looked down at the table.

« Taka ! His best friend got executed, of course he would feel bad ! » Mahiru scolded him.

« R-right, sorry… » He looked down in shame.

« It's fine Mahiru… Because I couldn't sleep yesterday… » I replied.

« We can see that, you have bags under your eyes, youb look like a zombie ! » Kokichi noted.

« Kokichi ! » Taka frowned at him.

« What ? It's true ! » Kokichi pouted.

Ignoring them, Keebo approached me.

« Hey Makoto, I know you are sad, but you can't lose hope ! It's what you told us ! We must keep Rantaro and Toko in our memories, so their deaths won't be in vain ! » Keebo told me.

I looked up at him, surprised by his speech about hope.

« Come on, Makoto ! This isn't you, we don't want to see you like this ! Rantaro wouldn't want to see you like this ! You must keep hope ! » He continued.

What…

What am I doing… ?

« You're right… I can't give up… I have to stay alive… For all who died ! » I clenched my fists.

« That's the spirit ! » Taka cheered for me.

« That's the Makoto we know. » Mahiru smiled at me.

« Stop it… »

We all turned around to see Himiko sad.

« We shouldn't give up on hope… ? We still haven't found any way out, and we still haven't gotten any help ! How are we supposed to stay hopeful… ? » She cried a bit.

« Oh come on, Himiko ! Cheer up ! Why would you want to leave ? » Kokichi sat on the table, just next to her.

« H-huh… ? » She looked at him in surprise.

« Forget about the outside world ! We have everything here ! Food, clothes, everything we need is in here ! Why leave ? » He asked.

« I… I know… But I wanna leave ! I hate this place ! » She exclaimed.

« Kokichi, let me ask you this. Why wouldn't you want to leave ? What about your organization ? They can't work without their leader. » Keebo asked.

« Oh, don't worry about them ! They can take care of themselves, there are thousands of them ! Plus, I have chosen my right hand man to lead my organization if something happened to me ! » Kokichi explained.

« You're not even worried a little bit ? » I asked him.

« Of course not ! They are as old as me ! They can take care of themselves ! Besides… » He replied with a grin.

His grin looked more sinister…

« If they can't, then they aren't worthy to be part of my organization ! » He commented.

That was… unsettling…

« Ok… Ignoring the nightmare fuel for a second… After we ate, we should begin our search of the school. » Mahiru pointed out.

« Searching the school ? » I asked.

« That's right ! We survived the class trial, which means the third floor is open for us ! » Taka declared.

« That's right. There should be new places for us to investigate. We should create groups to cover more ground once again. » Kyoko added.

« Makoto is with me ! » Kazuichi placed his arm around my shoulder, surprising me.

I guess it wouldn't hurt to investigate with him…

« Taka is with me, Keebo you go with Miu, Kokichi will be with Himiko, and Kyoko will go alone, while we let Mikan recover. » Mahiru listed our groups.

« Alright, Keebo ! Let's do this ! » Miu wrapped her arm around him, albeit a bit suggestively, much to the robot's dismay.

« I don't want to do this… » Himiko said depressed.

« Cheer up, Himiko ! We will make a great team together ! » He made a smile on her face with his fingers.

« That's fine by me, but let's eat first. We can't investigate on an empty stomach. » Kyoko pointed out.

No one argued that, and we all began to eat. I felt better, so I could eat more, and I was hungry. Once we were done, Kazuichi approached me.

« Alright man, you're ready ? » He asked me.

« Yeah… And Kazuichi ? » I said.

« Yeah, what's up ? » He said.

« Thanks for cheering me up, I feel a bit better. » I gave him a weak smile.

« Hey, you helped me after Sonia died, so it's normal for me to return the favor ! Now, come on, let's do this ! » He gave me a thumbs up and winked.

And so we took the stairs to the third floor. I wonder what we're gonna find this time…

The first room we checked had a pool table and dartboard, alongside magazines.

« This place is so cool ! It's a Recreation Room ! » Kazuichi exclaimed in excitement.

« Seems about right… At least we won't be bored for a while. » I nodded, looking around.

Suddenly, Monokuma appeared !

« Hello there ! Time for an expoundation ! As you may have noticed, we have all sorts of things here ! So you're correct, welcome to the Recreation Room ! » He told us.

« So you're the one who gave these magazines to us ? » Kazuichi asked.

« That's right ! But don't get too excited, nothing dirty here ! This is a school, after all ! If you need a quick fix, check out the swimsuit mags ! » Monokuma began to sweat.

« I-I wasn't asking that ! » Kazuichi defended himself.

« Anyway, will you be adding new magazines when they come out ? » I asked.

« Nope ! At the moment, magazines are kinda- » Monokuma suddenly interrupted himself.

« What was that ? » Kazuichi looked at him in confusion.

« N-nothing ! Anyway, that's it for my expoundation ! Bye-bye ! » Monokuma quickly disappeared.

« What the hell was that ? » Kazuichi asked.

« I don't know… We should keep checking out the rooms. » I replied.

He agreed, and we eventually arrived in another room, the Art Room, where Himiko and Kokichi in. There was a couple of statues, including one of Monokuma.

« Hey Himiko ! Use your magic to give life to these statues, so they can help us get out ! » Kokichi exclaimed.

« I-I can't… My mana is not ready yet… » Himiko replied, although a bit… nervously ?

« Oh hey, Makoto ! Like these statues ? » He asked me.

« I guess ? They look very well detailed. Whoever made these must be the Ultimate Sculpter. » I replied, looking around.

« Well, if you guys wanna try it out, There's the equipment behind that door ! » Kokichi pointed at mentionned door.

« You wanna check it out, Makoto ? » Kazuichi asked.

« I will join you in a bit, I wanna check out this place a bit more. » I replied.

« Alright man, see ya soon ! » He went on without me.

The reason I did that was to look for Monocoins to buy gifts, since I only had two left. Sadly, I only found one behind the Monokuma Statue, so I went inside the Repository Room. I found Kazuichi staring at some piece of paper.

« What did you find Kazuichi ? » I asked him.

He didn't reply, as he looked very troubled, which worried me. The paper was actually a picture, and on that picture was…

What…

Rantaro, Byakuya and Sonia.

They were… smiling.

They seemed to be on a conversation, with Byakuya nodding at the two. Other than him, Rantaro and Sonia were in school uniforms.

« What… is this… ? » I couldn't help but ask.

« I don't know… And look at the windows. » He pointed at said windows.

The windows…

« They aren't bolted ! » I exclaimed.

« Yeah… That means it wasn't taken at Hope's Peak. » He nodded.

Suddenly, Monokuma snatched the photo !

« That's mine ! You peeked, didn't you ? They had a fun time together. It's like they ripped a page right outta the book of youth ! » He exclaimed.

« What do you mean ? » I asked.

« I'm not telling you nothin' ! » He left.

« Jeez, why can't he give us a straight answer ?! » Kazuichi groaned.

« Don't bother asking him. Anything useful you found here ? » I asked him.

« Well, it's true that this place holds all art tools, but nothing out of the ordinary, I'm afraid. » He replied.

I nodded, and before leaving, I checked the Repository, and found two Monocoins ! And after that, we left and arrived at the Physics Lab, where there was a giant machine in the middle of the room, with Miu and Keebo in it.

« Woah, what's with this big machine ? » Kazuichi exclaimed.

« Isn't that obvious ? It's gotta be a time machine ! » Miu replied.

« A time machine… ? » My eyes widened.

Once again, Monokuma appeared !

« Yup, yup ! It is a time machine ! It was designed by the Ultimate Physicist ! Although, they died during The Tragedy ! » He explained.

« W-wait… I wanna go back in time… I can stop all of this ! » I exclaimed, surprising everyone.

« Nope, sorry. It can only go back one minute in the past, so if you left your pizza bagels in the microwave one minute long, it's prety handy. » He grinned.

« D-damn you ! » I cursed. Of course he would do that…

« Hey, what's the point of a time machine for just one minute ?! That's just stup- » Miu snapped.

« Oh, I was actually lying about that. » Monokuma replied quickly.

« H-huh ?! » She exclaimed in surprise.

« That's just an air purifier ! Jeez, for the Ultimate Inventor, you're really are dumb. » Monokuma snickered.

« S-shut up ! » She shivered, losing her cool.

« Hey, leave her alone ! She is smart, I know it. » Keebo took Miu's defense.

« I doubt you know that, after all, you did let her touch you rather… sensually. » Monokuma grinned.

« Woah woah, time out ! What does he mean by that ? » Kazuichi interrupted him.

« H-huh… Ummm… » Poor Keebo began to blush.

« Oh, I just gave him some few upgrades. Maybe my hands were a little out of control though.~ » Miu purred, as she began to snuggle the robot from behind.

The collar around Keebo's neck shut itself, trying its best to conceal Keebo's immense blush, but failed miserably.

« You go get her, bro ! » Kazuichi grinned and cheered for Keebo.

That didn't help poor Keebo end his blush. Monokuma then cleared his throat, bringing back the attention to him.

« Anyway, this machine is the reason you guys have all this delicious air. So don't go messing with it ! You break it, and it's your butt ! » He left.

We noticed a door behind the air purifier, so we went in there while Miu kept snuggling Keebo.

« An equipment room… » Kazuichi thought out loud.

I searched around, and found one Monocoin, ending with six of them. I will buy gifts after returning to Dining Hall to report our findings.

« So, you ready to return to the Dining Hall ? » He asked me.

I nodded, and we left the Equipment Room and went for the Dining Hall. When we got back there, we saw…

« Mikan ! » I exclaimed.

« H-huh ? Ah ! » She tripped.

« Are you ok ? » I asked, giving my hand to help her up.

« Y-yes… I guess… » She replied.

« I'm glad to hear that ! In that case, we will tell you about our investigation ! » Taka smiled.

« I-investigation ? » Mikan repeated.

« Yeah, the third floor opened, with a few new rooms ! » Kazuichi explained.

« I-I see… I-I'm sorry I wasn't here to help you… » She cried a bit.

« Mikan, I don't blame you for that. Nobody does. But like the others told me, we can't fall to despair ! We must fight it, for Rantaro ! » I approached her.

She stared at me, took a deep breath, and nodded with a sad, but determined smile.

« Y-you're right… I have to ! I-I'm sorry for letting you down… I will do better now ! » She said.

« That's the spirit ! Now, shall we begin ? » Mahiru asked.

« Yes, there was a rather remarkable physics lab on the 3rd floor. In the middle of the room, there was a machine bigger than anything I have ever seen before… » Kyoko started.

« Oh, that's an air purifier ! Miu thought it was a time machine. » Kazuichi turned his attention to the Ultimate Inventor and chuckled.

« H-hey… ! C-cut it out already ! » Miu shivered.

« Why am I not surprised by her stupidity ? She literally has the intelligence of a cow. » Kokichi grinned mischievously.

« S-shut up you ! » She gave a quick glare at him.

« Anyway… Me and Mahiru checked the windows, they were all locked, and none of them budged ! » Taka continued.

« So yeah… No escape from there… » Mahiru looked down dejectively.

« There was an Art Room, with the appropriate tools in the Repository behind it ! » Kokichi added.

« There was also a Recreation Room, with various games and magazines- Oh right ! Makoto, tell them about the photo ! » Kazuichi told me.

« The photo ? Oh yeah ! We found a photo in the Repository. » I said.

« What photo ? » Kyoko asked in interest.

« It was a picture… of Rantaro, Sonia and Byakuya all together. They were having a good conversation. » I added.

« Oh ? And when was it taken, Makoto ? » Kokichi asked excited.

« I don't know… But there weren't any metal sheets covering the windows. » I replied.

« Huh ? But I don't recall them spending time before coming to Hope's Peak ! Are you sure it was them ? » Taka asked.

« No, I'm sure it was them ! » I answered.

« I saw it too ! No mistake there ! » Kazuichi defended me.

« It must be maaagggiicc ! Monokuma casted a spell on you ! » Himiko pointed at me, narrowing her eyes.

« B-but then… If it wasn't taken b-before or after we g-got here… W-when was it taken ? » Mikan asked.

« Monokuma must have forged it ! I can't see any other possibility ! » Mahiru exclaimed.

Forged ? Is that all there is to it ?

« If I might say, I would like to say something. » Keebo said.

« What is it, Keebo ? » Mahiru asked.

« Miu and I went outside yesterday night. » He answered.

« W-what ?! You ignored our rule about not going out at nighttime ?! » Taka exclaimed out of shock.

« K-keebo ! Why did you tell them ?! » Miu snapped.

« I'm sorry… But we need to tell them what we did. » Keebo felt bad.

« What did you two do ? » Kyoko narrowed her eyes at the two.

Miu didn't respond, then sighed.

« Urrgghh, fiiiinneee ! I will tell you, or rather, show you. Follow me. » She got up and went outside of the Dining Hall.

So we followed her, and she led us to the Bathhouse.

« The… Bathhouse ? » Himiko noted in confusion.

« It's right here. » She went to a locker…

And pulled out a laptop.

« I found this in the Library. It was broken, but I managed to fix it. I had the idea to see what it contained in hopes we could discover somethin' about our situation. » She explained.

« Wait, how are you going to do that ? I doubt there's any Internet here, since that could compromise the mastermind's operation. » Taka asked.

« That's where Keebo comes in ! » She grabbed the robot's arm, and…

Opened a hatch, revealing a USB opening !

« I can connect Keebo to this laptop, so we can decrypt the files ! » Miu explained.

« But how ? The mastermind will notice… » Himiko pointed out.

« No they won't ! 'Cause this place has no surveillance cameras ! » Miu laughed.

« Hey, that's true ! Keebo can come in and check the files in here ! Brilliant, I say ! » Taka cheered.

« Huh. She does make sense when she's not talking loudly. » Kokichi placed his index on his chin.

« Shut up, you twerp ! » Miu snapped at him.

« There's just one problem with that plan, Miu. Keebo is a robot, so why would he go to the bathhouse ? It's useless for him ! » He grinned mischievously.

She was about to reply, then her eyes widened as she didn't realize that hole in her thinking before.

« To be fair, he does make a good argument. How are we going to justify that ? » Kazuichi scratched his head.

« U-umm… W-well… » She played with her hair.

Then suddenly, she had a grin, and threw a towel at Keebo !

« I got it ! Everytime I will send him to analyze the files, we will go take a bath, and he will serve as our towel holder ! » She pointed at him.

« N-now hold on- » Keebo didn't look pleased with that proposal.

« Ohhhh, for once, I agree with Cow Tits ! Keebo will finally be useful for once ! » Kokichi had stars in his eyes.

« C-cow tits ?! » She shivered.

« Hey ! No way I'm accepting this ! It's robophobic ! » Keebo said upset.

« Seems like the only possible solution without looking suspicious man, sorry. » Kazuichi told him.

« Yeah… I'm not a fan of what Miu suggested, but it's the only way for us to get some clues without bringing the mastermind's attention. But you can always refuse… » Mahiru said.

Keebo was silent for a moment, then sighed.

« No… You're right, I have to do this. I don't like it… But I will do it. » Keebo nodded.

« Thanks, Keebo. You're the best robot I ever met. » Miu snuggled, causing the robot to blush.

« Alright then ! It's decided ! Shall we go now ? » Taka declared.

« Yeah, let's get out of here. » Kazuichi nodded.

So we got out of the Bathhouse, and Kazuichi let out a joyful shout.

« Man, isn't that awesome ? We did something awesome today ! » He said.

Then suddenly…

« Dun da-da duuun ! Kazuichi has gained enough experience to level up ! So… what was this awesome something ? You guys all seem in remarkably good spirits, did something happen ? » Monokuma asked.

« N-no, nothing in particular ! » I quickly replied.

« Hey, keeping secrets ? No fair ! I demand an exclusive interview ! » Monokuma frowned, getting redder.

« Nope, denied ! » Kokichi chuckled.

« You will give me an explanation ! What is going on ?! » Monokuma raised his claws.

Everyone was trying to find an answer…

« Oh, we were just talking about going to the bathhouse, we have not had a chance to relax in some time ! » Taka declared out of the sudden.

« Huh ? » Monokuma calmed down, now confused.

« But you see, the bathhouse is not divided into men and women sections, so we decided to do rock-paper-scissors to decide which group would go first, and we won, right Kazuichi ? » Taka explained.

« E-exactly ! Which reminds me… You go girls need to leave, we gotta take a bath ! » Kazuichi quickly nodded.

« Awww man ! I really wanted that bath ! » Miu complained, maybe a little bit too much.

« Relax Miu, you will get your bath tomorrow. » Mahiru added.

« Well then, guys, shall we go ? » Taka looked at us.

« Don't forget Keebo ! He needs to hold our towels in the Dressing Room ! » Kokichi grinned.

« Pwahahahaha ! Finally Keebo gets to be useful ! » Monokuma laughed at the robot, who looked down in annoyment.

Seeing the other guys heading back into the dressing room, I decided to join them.

« Alright then ! Let's take our bath ! » Taka declared.

« Wait, we are actually taking a bath ? I thought it was just a diversion. » Kazuichi raised an eyebrow in confusion.

« At first yes, but I figured out we might take the opportunity to do so ! » Taka began to undress.

« Well, I guess we should… » Kazuichi followed suit.

Well, looks like we will take a shower. I began to undress, with Kokichi doing the same. We were completely stripped of our clothes, and then…

« W-what the hell ?! How… How is this possible ?! » Kazuichi stared eyes wide at Kokichi.

« Hmm ?~ What's wrong, Kaz ?~ » Kokichi smirked.

« How… How the hell are you bigger than us ?! » He pointed… at Kokichi's… 'equipment'.

« Th-there's no way ! This is impossible ! » Taka was shocked.

Me and the other boys did stare, and realized Kazuichi was right. Kokichi… had a better 'equipment' than us !

« Oh ?~ You guys are jealous about my size ?~ Or perhaps you're… interested about it ?~ » Kokichi smirked mischievously.

« N-no ! It's just- There's no way it's natural ! You must have had surgery ! » Kazuichi glared at the purple-haired shota.

« Oh it's natural, I assure you.~ I'm the Ultimate Supreme Leader, I gotta have the biggest dick in my organization ! » Kokichi winked at us.

Then he turned his attention at Keebo.

« See, Keebo ? This is what you will never get.~ » He smirked at the robot.

« Now hold on- » Keebo tried to answer back.

« Anyway, can we get to the bath now, please ? » I interrupted them, as this was getting really awkward.

« Agreed ! Let's enjoy this male bonding time ! » Taka nodded.

« Don't forget our towels, Keebo ! » Kokichi chuckled as he threw his towel at Keebo's face, much to the robot's annoyment.

So we gave our towels to him, and entered the bathhouse. I went inside the bathtub, and enjoyed the warm water.

Yeah, it feels nice…

Around me, Taka and Kokichi began to wash their hair, as they sat on a stool. I heard Kazuichi screaming as he slipped and went in the air. Overall, it is a pretty good experience.

« Ahhhh, doesn't it feel nice to be between us boys ? » Taka said out loud.

« Y-yeah, I guess… » Kazuichi got up in pain from his slip.

« Mhm… » Kokichi nodded as he got up from his stool to go for the door.

Then he opened it wide, as a female shriek was heard !

« Well, well, if it isn't that bitch of Miu spying on us.~ » He smirked at the Ultimate Inventor.

« What the hell Miu ?! » Kazuichi snapped.

« What are you doing here ?! » Taka yelled.

« I-it was M-monokuma ! He suggested us girls to take a p-peek ! » She shivered from all the angry stares.

I was watching from the bathtub, relieved she didn't see me naked, unlike the other guys.

« I knew it ! I knew she was nothing more than a perverted pig ! » Kokichi mocked her mercilessly.

« N-no, I also had to connect Keebo to the laptop- » She tried to justify her actions.

Then she noticed Kokichi's… long member.

« W-w-what… ?! How… How the fuck is this possible ?! There's no way a purple-haired shota like you… » She stared at it in shock.

« Oh, but it is possible. I bet you would want to touch it or even more, do you ?~ » Kokichi smirked at her.

« A-as if ! » She snapped at him.

« Enough ! Get out of here you pervert ! » Taka snapped, pointing at her.

She screamed and fled, as we saw Keebo sitting on a bench, as he was connected to the laptop with a USB cable, the towels next to him.

« Huh, so she was telling the truth about connecting to the laptop. » Kazuichi noted.

« Yeah, she forgot to leave the USB cable in the locker so I could connect to the laptop. » Keebo nodded.

« But it shows you let her in to spy on us, I guess you became her robot butler.~ » Kokichi grinned.

« For my defense, my back was turned away from the door, so I only noticed she was watching you guys when she screamed ! » Keebo glared at him.

« Anyway… I will take that towel and dress up again. » I said, grabbing it.

The others followed suit, drying up and dressing up again, then we exited the Bathhouse and returned to the Dining Hall, where the girls were waiting for us. We noticed how they were smirking at Miu, who was blushing and looking away in shame.

« Well, that wasn't too bad. » Kokichi said, looking at Miu, who looked away.

« No questions here ! » Taka agreed.

Then Monokuma appeared again !

« Yes, there's a question you must ask yourself ! » He said.

« What do you want now ? » Kazuichi groaned.

« I want you all to come to the gym ! I got a present for you ! » Monokuma smirked.

« Seriously ? » Keebo said in disbelief.

« Ah, I got your attention now ? Then let's head to the gym, where your present awaits ! » Monokuma then left.

« I have a bad feeling about it. » Mahiru pointed out.

« He's probably going to repeat the same thing again. Providing us with a motive to get things moving… » Kyoko added.

« No… I don't want to do this anymore… » Himiko cried again.

« Don't worry, we have our trump card, so we will figure out something. So for now, we have to endure it, come what may. » Kyoko finished.

So we made our way to the Gym, where Monokuma was waiting for us at his podium.

« It looks like everyone's here ! So without further ado, I give you… THIS ! » He raised his arms.

Suddenly, stacks of bills fell onto the podium.

« Ten million dollars ! I have prepared this graduation present for whichever lucky student makes it out of here alive ! » He declared.

« So that's the motive, huh ? » Taka thought out loud.

« When it comes to motives, money certainly is the gold standard, so to speak. » Kyoko added.

« But… There's no way we would kill each other for money ! » I exclaimed.

« Yeah, you can't just purchase someone's life ! » Mahiru agreed with me.

« Come on, stop trying to act tough. You guys lost five of your friends, you will break, it's undeniable ! » Monokima laughed, leaving the stack of money behind.

Ding dong, bing bong

Monokuma's nighttime announcement played, but we ignored it.

« Well, time for us to head back to our rooms ! And don't think about the motive ! Got it ? Good ! » He left the Gym.

We followed him and went in our respective rooms. As I crawked into my bed, I couldn't think about the motive…

Money… There's no way that's gonna get anyone to kill each other…

I thought that, yet Toko and Rantaro died…

That's the lesson we learned…

But still, we got to try ! We have to !

End of Day 11

Beginning of Day 12

Ding dong, bing bong

Alright, time to spend time with my friends, but first, I need to get gifts.

I went to the school store, and used all my six Monocoins except one.

I got myself a Measuring Flask, a Rose in Vitro, a Golden Gun (without bullets, sadly), an Illusion Rod, and a Small Degenerated Reactor.

Now, who should I spend time with first…

« Mikan… She needs my support. » I thought, and looked for her.

I found her in the Art Room, where I saw her drawing on a piece of paper with crayons. I sat next to her, bringing her attention to me.

« A-ah ! H-hello, Makoto ! » She greeted me.

« Hey, how are you ? You're feeling better ? » I asked her.

« I-I guess… » She kept drawing.

I looked at the drawing… It was me, her and Rantaro. It wasn't a masterpiece, but it was nice.

« Your drawing is nice. » I told her.

« T-thanks… I-I have to draw this… for him… » She began to cry.

I pulled her into a hug, which she accepted, as she sobbed.

« Want me to help you finish it ? » I proposed.

« Y-yes, p-please… » She sniffed.

After she calmed down a bit, we finished her drawing. She stared at the drawing, before turning around to face me.

« I-I still can't believe he's gone… » She said.

« Me too… But we have to survive for him ! We can't lose hope, Mikan ! » I exclaimed.

« I-I know ! B-but… Someone is going to kill for the money ! » She replied.

« We won't, we- » I tried to say.

« YES THEY WILL ! » She snapped at me.

I recoiled, and she quickly lost her anger.

« N-no, please, I didn't mean to snap at you… ! » She cried once again.

« It's ok, don't worry. Just calm down... Please take this. » I gave her the Measuring Flask while patting her shoulder.

« F-for me… ? T-thank you, Makoto… » She said as she took it.

She stared at me for a few seconds before continuing.

« H-how do you do it, Makoto… ? » She asked me.

« What do you mean ? » I asked back.

« W-well… H-how do you never lose hope… ? Y-you're always positive, even when we are in a bad situation… H-how do you do it ? » She asked again.

« I did feel despair yesterday… But thanks to our friends, I realized one thing. No matter what happens to us, we must never lose hope, because it is like a lighthouse guiding us on the darkest foggiest night. This is why we must continue to live, for all who have died, so their deaths are not in vain ! » I explained.

She stared at me for a few seconds, then nodded with a determined look.

« Y-you're right ! I have to live for Rantaro ! I won't fall to despair ! » She told me.

« Together, we will escape with our friends. I promise you that. » I told her.

« T-thank you Makoto, I feel much better now. » She gave me a weak smile, but a smile nonetheless.

« No problem, I'm glad we talked. I will see the others now, see you later ! » I got up.

« G-goodbye ! » She said.

I looked around, and saw Kazuichi in the Recreation Room.

« Yo, Makoto ! What's up ? » He waved at me, as he was playing pool.

« I was hanging out, can I spend time with you ? » I asked.

« Sure thing ! Wanna play pool with me ? » He replied.

« Why not ? I could use my luck to beat you. » I nodded.

So the two of us played pool, and I won just a small margin !

« Wow, you really are lucky. » Kazuichi chuckled.

« You weren't bad yourself. Please take this as consolation prize. » I gave him the Small Degenerated Reactor.

« Makoto, you're seriously a nice guy… I'm a little touched, really. Seriously, thanks ! » He took it with excitement.

« No problem, I guess you could say it's a thanks for you cheering me up when I was sad yesterday. » I told him.

« Hey, no problem man ! You helped me when Sonia died, so I owed you one ! » He gave me a thumbs up and winked.

« Now, could you tell me more about yourself, Kazuichi ? » I asked him.

« Well, my family is very poor, so I help them run our bike shop, though most customers only come for a flat tire or needing an air pump. But other than that, I can fix anything ! Toys, bikes, cars, anything ! » He replied.

« Wow, that's amazing ! » I praised.

« Well, growing in an environment full of tools makes you a natural at this. Now, I gotta ask you… What are you aiming for ? » He chuckled.

« Huh ? What do you mean ? » I asked in confusion.

« What do I mean ? I mean the ladies, dude ! » He exclaimed.

« W-what ?! I'm not interested in ladies ! » I quickly said.

« Wait, you're into guys ? » He raised an eyebrow in surprise.

« N-no ! I-I mean, I like girls, but that's not my main goal ! » I exclaimed.

« Huh ? What's your goal then ? » He asked impatiently.

« Well, to make friends ! » I replied.

« Friends, huh ? To tell you the truth, I'm really excited to meet you guys, I didn't have a lot of friends before the Academy. I have always wanted to go on a trip with my friends and all, wait, we're not close enough yet to call each other friends, huh ? » Kazuichi said.

« Are you kidding ? Of course we are friends ! You're a good person, Kazuichi ! » I exclaimed with a smile.

« Hehe, that sounds pretty awesome. I'm looking forward to working with ya, friend ! » He grinned.

« Same ! I better get going, it's getting late ! See you tomorrow ! » I said.

« See ya ! » He nodded.

So I went to sleep, happy that I made my friend happy again, and made a new one.

End of Day 12

Beginning of Day 13

I woke up, and to my surprise, someone ringed my doorbell !

Ding dong

I got up, dressed up, and opened the door to find Taka standing in front of me.

« Hi Taka, is something wrong ? » I asked.

« Come to the Bathhouse Makoto ! Mahiru and I have an important announcement ! » He said.

« The bathhouse ? Why- » I asked.

« Quickly ! It's important ! » He repeated, almost dragging me there.

So I arrived at the bathhouse, where everyone was waiting there.

« Hey, why the hell you guys woke us up just after the freakin' morning announcement ?! » Miu asked angrily.

« With the new motive in place, we can't allow any more deaths, so Taka and I had an idea on how to deal with this ! » Mahiru started.

« Since the two murders took place at night, we decided we would do nightshifts to ensure no one broke the nighttime rule ! » Taka continued.

« Nightshifts... I don't want to do nightshifts… » Himiko complained.

« Don't worry, only us would do the shifts ! Mahiru will start from 10 pm to 3 am, and I finish it from 3 am to 7 am ! » Taka replied.

« So that way, it will be pratically impossible to commit a murder undetected. I agree with that idea. » Kyoko nodded.

« Ok, is that everythin' ? Can we go now ? » Miu asked impatiently.

« Yes, thank you for your time ! » Mahiru nodded.

So we left the bathhouse to do our own things. I should see who I will spend time with-

« Makotoooo ! » I heard Kokichi call me.

« What is it, Kokichi ? » I asked the Ultimate Supreme Leader.

« Let's spend time together ! We are partners after all ! » He said happily.

« Huh ? I don't know… » I thought about it however. Should I spend time with Kokichi-

« Come on, Makoto ! Come on, come on, come on ! » He circled me while saying that.

« Ok, ok ! I will spend time with you ! » I exclaimed in frustration.

« Yipeee ! Let's have fun ! » He literally dragged me across the school.

He led me to the Recreation Room, and we sat on the chairs.

« So, Kokichi, I gotta ask. Can you tell me more about your organization ? » I asked him.

« Huuuhh, didn't I tell you ? I'm the supreme leader of a secret evil organization of 10 000 members ! » He said.

« Yes, you have said that, but… » I replied.

« Jeez Makoto, stop being boring with those questions ! All you need to know is that my organization is big and does evil stuff ! » He exclaimed.

Urgh… This leads nowhere… I'm having a headache trying to understand that.

« Then let me ask you another question. Why are you doing this ? » I asked again.

« Huh ? » He said in confusion.

« Why did you become the leader of an evil organization ? What is your motivation ? » I said.

« Because I can. » He simply answered.

« Because… you can ? » I repeated in surprise.

« Of course ! I made this whole killing game after all ! » Kokichi exclaimed.

« You- WHAT ?! » I exclaimed in shock.

« Yup.~ This is my doing, I did all of this !~ » He smirked at me.

« WHY ?! Why are you doing this ?! » I asked angrily.

Then…

He laughed out loud.

« Oh, Makoto.~ You're so gullible.~ » He grinned at me.

Wait…

« Were you lying ?! » I asked.

« You forgot that fact again. You know it's what will get you killed ?~ » He had an innocent smile on his face.

« H-huh ? » I said in surprise.

Suddenly, he grabbed me by the collar of my hoodie !

« You should be very careful of who you trust, Makoto…~ If I had a knife on me, I could have killed you no problem…~ » His innocent smile turned into a sadistic one.

He let go of me with a sigh.

« This is an actual advice I'm giving you right here. And I'm not lying this time, I mean it. » He said.

« O-ok… I-I get it… » I nodded, still shocked of this sudden attack.

« Look, why don't you tell me more about yourself ? » Kokichi asked.

« W-well, I have good parents and a little sister, and I got here thanks to winning a lottery the Academy. » I told him.

« Mhm, so you were a boring normie before this ? » He grinned at that.

« Again with this ? You sound like Miu. » I sighed in exasperation.

« Hey ! Don't compare me to that stupid bitch ! It's so uncalled for… WAAAAHHHH ! » He gave me his crocodile tears.

I rolled my eyes, not buying those fake tears.

« Alright, I feel better now. Now give me an apology gift. » He told me.

« H-huh ? » I said in surprise.

« Yeah, you compared me to Miu, which is pretty insulting, so you gotta me a gift to prove you're sorry ! » He pointed at me.

He sounds serious about it… But what could I give him ? I don't think the items I bought would be good for him ! What else do I have…

« I know this may not be much, but please take this as apology. » I gave him the Hammock I bought a couple of days ago.

« H-how do you have something this amazing, Makoto ? Did you steal this ? » Kokichi asked, showinh surprise.

« No ! I bought it at the MonoMono Machine ! » I exclaimed.

« Just kidding. Thank you ! » He took it.

Huh. I wasn't expecting him to like it, guess my luck played well.

As I was about to leave to go see someone else, Himiko entered.

« Oh, hey you two. » She greeted us.

« Hello Himiko, how are you ? » I asked her.

« I'm good, I guess I'm here to relax. » She replied.

« Oh great, let's spend time together ! Show us some tricks ! » Kokichi grinned.

« They are not tricks. It's magic. » She frowned, pouting.

« How did you become the Ultimate Magician, Himiko ? » I asked her.

« I'm not a magician ! I'm a mage and I use real magic ! Don't get it wrong ! » She exclaimed in annoyment.

« S-sorry… Could you show us some real magic then ? » I apologized.

Himiko suddenly got tense, as if worried for something.

« Nyeeh… W-well… That's… T-there's no mana here so I can't. If you sacrifice yourself, then maybe I could… » She sweated.

« Great idea ! Let's sacrifice Makoto ! » Kokichi grinned at me.

« H-how about no ?! » I exclaimed.

« Awww… You're no fun. » Kokichi pouted.

« Anyway… Maybe this could help ? » I gave Himiko the Illusion Rod.

« Oohh… This is the item I needed. Not bad, it will increase my magic stat, but unfortunately that's not enough to restore my mana. » She looked pleased.

« Ah, that's unfortunate… » i said.

« What were we talking about again ? » She asked.

« Well, why did you become a mage ? » I asked.

« It's all thanks to my master. When I first saw him use his magic, it's instantly what I wanted to become. It took me a few years of training to become a mage, and I was his assistant while training. » She explained.

« That's impressive ! What spells do you know ? » I asked her.

« What my master taught me : Levitation, Teleport, Sawing a Person in Half, and many more. » She listed out what she knew.

« Your master must be worried for you right now. » I noted.

She didn't respond at first, before replying with a nod.

« Hey ! Let's not be gloomy and play some Othello ! » Kokichi brought the game on the table.

« Yeah… It sounds nice. » Himiko nodded.

« I will watch you two, I'm pretty bad at it. » I told them.

So I watched the two play Othello, ending with Kokichi's victory.

« Yay ! I won ! » Kokichi cheered.

« Nyeehh… I will go to sleep… It's getting late anyway. » She said.

« Well Himiko, it was nice to know more about you. » I told her.

« I guess… Thanks for the gift. » She replied.

I bid my goodbyes to the two of them as I returned to my room to sleep.

End of Day 13

Beginning of Day 14

Two weeks. It's been two weeks since we arrived here. We have lost five people, and now we are at risk of more deaths with the new motive…

I want to spend time with someone to unwind a bit…

« I wanna spend time with Kyoko again ! » I thought.

I looked for her and found her next to the air purifier in the Physics Lab.

« Hey Kyoko ! » I called her, but she didn't reply, even though I did get her attention.

« How do you stay so calm, Kyoko ? » Kyoko asked.

« Calm ? » Kyoko said.

« I mean, you never lose your cool. You told me you hide your emotions to not let others know your feelings. » I added.

« You say that like I'm some sort of inhuman beast. » She had a playful smile on her face, catching me off guard.

« N-no, I didn't mean it like that ! » I defended myself.

« It's like I told you. I keep my emotions to myself, I don't show it in my face or my voice. » She added.

« You make that sound way easier that it is. Especially in these kinds of circumstances… » I noted.

« Well, you should consider trying. Your naive honesty makes you an easy target. » She rolled her eyes, but it wasn't in an annoyed way.

Isn't there something I could do to get a reaction out of her ?

« Protection against deception, and never allow others to read your emotions. And whoever stands before you, don't let them push you around. Remember that. » She finished.

« And that's why you hide your feelings ? But… But that's such a waste ! » I exclaimed.

She raised an eyebrow.

« Your smile is just so cute ! Hiding it behind that mask is such a waste ! A bright smile is way better ! » I told her.

« Wh-What are you talking about… ? C-Cute ? It's much too soon to be bringing up things like that… ! » She actually blushed !

« Ah, looks like I got you to show a hint of emotion, didn't I ? » I smirked.

« What… ? You… Makoto… Y-you… deceived me ?! » She stared at me in shock.

I quickly lost my confidence and panicked internely.

« I don't believe this… To use the word 'cute' to deceive someone ! That's just... too cruel ! » She glared at me.

« N-no ! I just got carried away ! B-but still… I did decieve you, but it's not like it was a total lie ! » I exclaimed.

You see how easily you yourself are deceived ? » She said normally.

Huh ? Wait… I tricked her… But she ended up tricking me ?

« You would never just come out and call someone cute like that. Completely out of character. You thought I wouldn't pick up on such an obvious ploy ? » She smirked.

I was completely speechless, I couldn't answer…

« Hmm… That wasn't too bad though. Thanks for the talk. » She said.

« Oh, please take this ! » I gave her the Golden Gun.

« Well now, this is interesting. Thank you. » She nodded, trying not to smile.

« Anytime, Kyoko. Thank you for spending time with me. » I replied with a smile.

« Goodbye, Makoto. » She told me, as she left. I noticed she actually looked at me and sounded less hasty than the last time we spent together.

I returned to my room, where I noticed a piece of paper on the floor near the door.

Meet in the Bathhouse !

Jeez, the handwriting is pretty bad…

So I went in the bathhouse, and everyone was there.

« Ah ! Finally you are here, Makoto ! » Taka said.

« Why are we here ? Who sent the letter ? » I asked.

« It was me ! I have somethin' very important to say ! » Miu exclaimed.

« Of course it was you. I knew you sucked at writing.~ » Kokichi rolled his eyes playfully.

« S-shut it ! T-this is really important ! » Miu snapped at me.

« What is it about then… ? » Himiko asked.

« Isn't it obvious ? It's gotta be about Keeboy ! » Kokichi said.

« Oh that's right ! Did you finish analyzing the files ? » Mahiru asked the Ultimate Robot.

Keebo looked down dejectively.

I had a bad feeling about this…

« It's gone. » Miu frowned at us.

« Gone… ? » I repeated.

« Keebo and I were going to continue analyzing the filrs, and that's when we discovered… The USB cable has disappeared ! » She exclaimed.

« What ?! » Taka shouted.

« H-how can this be ?! » Mahiru was horrified.

« It has to be the mastermind ! They discovered what we were up to ! » Kazuichi panicked.

« Impossible ! We made sure to not raise suspicion ! And Mahiru and I didn't see anyone outside during nighttime ! » Taka exclaimed.

« Exactly, I only came when you guys took a bath a few days ago ! » Keebo agreed.

« Besides, why would any of us want to steal that cable ? » I asked rhetorically.

« Oh, I have an idea… There is a traitor among us. » Kokichi suggested.

We all froze at this suggestion.

« One of us is working for the mastermind, a spy. And they are the one who stole the USB cable. » Kokichi explained.

« I-it can't be… ! » Himiko sweated.

« Oh, I think I am right. The mastermind brought someone in to help keep things moving smoothly. » Kokichi grinned.

A spy for the mastermind, a traitor ?

No… It's impossible…

« We are screwed… All that work for nothing… » Kazuichi cried a bit, holding his beanie.

« I think it's still safe, for the moment at least. » Kyoko suggested.

« I agree, if they wanted to destroy it, they would have done it right then and there. » Mahiru nodded.

Ding dong, bing bong

« Well, looks like we will have to get some sleep. » Kazuichi sighed.

« I agree, we will start our search tomorrow. Good night everyone. » Taka nodded, leaving the Bathhouse.

As we returned to our rooms, I can't help but think… That little hope we got from the ability of Keebo analyzing those files… taken away from us like the SUB cable necessary to analyze the files.

We were given hope, and then when that hope was taken away… despair. It's just like what the mastermind is doing to us…

Do we actually have a traitor working for the mastermind… ?

We are doubting each other again…

I stopped thinking about it, and went to sleep.

End of Day 14

Beginning of Day 15

I woke up to the morning announcement, and got out of bed to look for the USB cable. I went to the Dining Hall, where only Kyoko, Mahiru and Taka were here.

« Hey everyone, how are you ? » I asked them.

« Ah, Makoto ! Good morning ! I am well, thank you very much ! » Taka smiled.

« I'm good, but concerned about the others… Aren't they coming ? » Mahiru pointed out.

« Let's wait for them then. » I suggested.

« … » Kyoko frowned.

We waited, but no one showed up.

« It's been thirty minutes… » I pointed out.

« Unacceptable ! We are supposed to look for that USB cable ! » Taka said upset.

« Something must have happened. » Kyoko replied.

At that, we felt a shiver down our spines.

« Don't tell me someone did something… for money ! » Mahiru was horrified.

« We need to go look for the people who never showed up. » Kyoko said.

Without a word, we left the Dining Hall.

« We should split up. Mahiru, check all of our rooms. Taka, search the first floor. I will check the second floor, and Makoto you check the third floor. Don't take any risks, if anything happens, scream for help immediately. » Kyoko told us.

Well, to the third floor I go…

I went to check the classrooms first. Nothing out of the ordinary, so I went to the Recreation Room, and no one there as well. I took the corridor that led to the Art Room, when I saw him, lying on the floor in the middle…

It was the body of Kokichi Oma, the Ultimate Supreme Leader.

« EVERYONE ! COME TO THE THIRD FLOOR ! » I shouted, as I rushed to Kokichi.

One thing odd was that while there was blood on the floor, there wasn't any on him.

I heard footsteps behind me, and I saw Mahiru, Taka, Kyoko, but also Kazuichi.

« Holy shit ! Is Kokichi… ? » Kazuichi cursed.

I looked back at Kokichi's body…

« It's a lie ! »

Everyone but Kyoko gasped, with Kazuichi having the highest pitch.

« Nishishi…~ Did I surprise you all ?~ » Kokichi grinned as he got up.

« Are you serious ?! Someone can be dead and you're joking around ! » Mahiru scowled him.

« Oh, but doing that you all here.~ Well, except Himiko, at least. » Kokichi rolled his eyes.

It's true, the Ultimate Magici- Err, Mage, was nowhere to be seen.

« There's a small blood trail… » Kyoko approached said blood trail.

« Don't tell me it happened again… » Kazuichi began to sweat.

« B-but look, isn't it strange ? It's not a continuous line of blood… It's more small puddles of blood. » Taka pointed out.

« It points to the Art Room, and the Physics Lab… » Mahiru added.

« T-then let's split again. Mahiru, me and Kyoko will go to the Physics Lab, while Makoto, Kokichi and Kazuicji will go to the Art Room. Let's hurry ! » Taka proposed.

So Kokichi, Kazuichi and I went to the Art Room. We noticed the small puddles led to the Repository Room.

We noticed a bigger puddle, and one of the big hammers was near it.

« Shit, shit ! Someone was killed, and the body is nowhere to be seen ! » Kazuichi panicked.

« Relax, at least we know this big hammer was the murder weapon. » Kokichi pointed at the hammer on the floor.

And then…

« EVERYONE COME HERE ! » I heard Mahiru scream !

We all rushed to the Physics Lab's Storage Room, as everyone was here…

My whole body just froze at the scene…

As I saw the bodies of Mikan Tsumiki, the Ultimate Nurse, Miu Iruma, the Ultimate Inventor, and K1-B0, the Ultimate Robot.

CHAPTER 3

Digital Damaging Despair

Deadly Life