Trial 1-1: Everything Lost, Nothing Gained
Beta Read by: Lupus Overkill
"You got to remember the rules, right? That is the logical thing." There is a figure painted entirely out of the night, having their skin be created out of brilliant white stars and the sky.
"The rules?"
"Your life will be ruined by this trial, just as you ruined mine. You might not notice it at first, but I will make sure that you suffer as much as possible. After all, you got me stuck in this place, and now I can manipulate you to my heart's desire." The night sky could easily send a supernova or black hole but chooses to prolong the encounter as long as possible.
The stars move to the figure's desire, forming a smirk and crossing their legs. That is when I realize that the figure is sitting on the rubble of what is presumably something like a dance hall or theatre stage. In the middle of the rubble, there is dried up blood reminding me of the sun.
"What do you want?"
"That is something you have to figure out yourself. It is not that hard. You have your assets, as I do mine," The figure laughs. "Everyone has a role to play and you're simply the understudy."
Before any more information can be gathered, the night sky makes it leave. Not through any normal means, but from a bloodied hand pulling it underneath the rubble. All there will be now is an endless day. Where there will first be cheers, but panic as people finally begin to realize the importance of the moons and stars.
...What was that? Never mind, this is no time to focus on my mind's wild imagination. I could spend hours dissecting my own thoughts, but there are clearly other more important events happening right now.
"Fine, fine, I've been forced to explain the rules again. So you better shut up so I can finally get some sleep," Mononeko complains. She is curled up in her throne but raises her head a little bit, to avoid muffling her voice.
"What kind of bullshit is this?" Tahlia questions. Right next to her, Choumi nods her head.
Really, the only people who are even remotely happy right now are Sora and Chika. Both of them have all the stars shining in their eyes despite the fact the rest of their bodies are shaking. Not even the pursuit of science can defeat somebody's survival instinct.
"This is the Trial Room. Simple as that." Mononeko yawns.
"I think they can see that," Fubuki rolls her eyes. From the other side of the courtroom, Jun slaps his head so harshly I can see his red handprint lingering on his face. "Stop underestimating us and treat us like what we are: the hope of the future that you are trying to destroy."
"Whoever said this was about destruction?" Mononeko's voice is oddly emotionless.
"Hehehe, let's not talk about this! We're only wasting time and making the people in charge really angry!" Himura waves his arms around like he is trying to create as much attention as possible.
"I want to know so I can create this myself, dummy! Do you know how much this technology could improve my ideas? Oh, just one look at that framework and I'll be able to create something ten times more grand! No, twenty! Since I'm Tahlia the Great and Powerful!" Tahlia begins 'evilly' laughing. Once again, Jun facepalms.
"Imagine what advancements mathematics and safety protocols could have with this!" Mizore jumps up and down. She almost falls from her podium but does not seem to mind that very much.
"Even the arts would benefit from such a feat," Kaimaru points out. Looking at him again, I notice that Kaimaru has been changed into his casual wear. Aito is back into his usual outfit as well, to the relief of everybody. "My parents would be very proud if I showed them this!"
"Maybe your parents would be more proud if you weren't such a creep," Rokuro smirks at the dancer. That is much like the pot calling the kettle black, but sometimes you gotta take what you get.
"Uh, we should probably focus on the trial..." Ayumu says.
"Oh yeah, somebody is dead," Mizore responds.
"How can you forget somebody is dead, Mizore? Why are all of you acting so weirdly!?" Emilynn shouts out. "This isn't the time for this! Saitou was just like all of us! A young person with hopes and dreams! So stop acting so callous and learn how to feel emotions again!"...I never expected somebody like Emilynn to express that much.
"Emily, sweetie, calm down. We don't need any of that." Etsuko being the voice of reason is freaking me out. Though, knowing her, Etsuko probably has a reason to act this way. "The sooner this is over, the quicker this all ends."
Getting my bearings as well, and adjusting quickly to the new environment, I decide to overlook the clues we have in this case once again. With this new setting, and all the information together, I could create more theories.
Truth Bullet #1: Monokuma File #1
Victim- Saitou Kurokoma, Ultimate Substitute
Cause of Death- The victim of this case is the substitute. The body was discovered in the Labyrinth, room Undisclosed. A map will not be provided. The cause of death was blood loss, caused by a singular bullet wound to the stomach. There are no other injuries on the body. It took the substitute two minutes to succumb to his wounds.
Truth Bullet #2: Ichiko's Testimony
Ichiko testified that she was with Sachiko and Ayumu during the party. It should be noted that Seina was with them for some time but left. Shortly before the murder, Ichiko's group met with Shiro, Emilynn, and Saitou. Ichiko decided to stay behind while the five of them investigated the Labyrinth. She stayed by herself the entire time. Nobody else entered. Once Ichiko heard the gunshot, she went running into the Labyrinth to check up on the group.
Truth Bullet #3: Gunshot
There was a gunshot that could be heard throughout the Labyrinth and nowhere else. Only one gunshot was heard.
Truth Bullet #4: Secret Passageway
The murder happened in a secret passageway none of the participants knew about beforehand. Or that is how it should have been. The secret passageway connects to an empty room with no light. The way to get into the secret passageway is to pull a specific book out from a bookshelf. It is Alice in Wonderland.
Truth Bullet #5: Shiro's Testimony
Shiro testifies that he went with Emilynn, Saitou, Sachiko, and Ayumu to the Labyrinth for exploring. It should be noted that it was Emilynn and Saitou's idea. Saitou stopped and claimed he found a secret passageway from one of his trips before. He showed it to the four other classmates with him. When he decided to explore it, only Emilynn came with him. Shiro, Sachiko, and Ayumu decided to stay outside. The three of them only went inside when they heard the gunshot.
Truth Bullet #6: Yuki's Testimony
During the murder, Yuki was with Yuu, Himura, Rokuro, and Aimi in the karaoke room. She admits that she does not know where Aimi has gone off to. Before anybody says something stupid, the killer cannot be Aimi, otherwise, there would be no investigation. Wait, Aimi? No, Aito! Who makes these stupid mistakes!? First, it was Natsuo. Now it's this shit! Ahem, Yuki, Yuu, Himura, Rokuro, and Aito have been in the karaoke room on the higher level of the restaurant all night. Before then, there were Leonie, Shiro, Emilynn, and Saitou. Leonie is still in the restaurant. Somebody should get her. Seriously, how good are those headphones? Shiro, Emilynn, and Saitou all left. In the karaoke room, the gunshot could not be heard.
Truth Bullet #7: The Gunshot Hole
In one of the walls, there is a gunshot hole. No shit, Sherlock.
Truth Bullet #8: The Keyhole
Right underneath the gunshot hole, there is a keyhole with no door or purpose. It is unharmed despite the closeness of the shot.
Truth Bullet #9: Sachiko's Senses
Sachiko sensed evil right before Saitou was killed. During the entire investigation, her senses have not gone away.
Truth Bullet #10: The Wire
Using her senses, Sachiko found a wire (not a string, you idiots!) with Rokuro, Ayumu, and Shiro. It is transparent and extremely hard to see with the naked eye. Also, the string (no, wire!) appears to be broken.
Truth Bullet #11: Silver Star Charm
There is a silver star charm that must have broken off of something. It was found by Aito but hidden. Both Ayumu and Shiro worked at getting it back. The star charm itself is in bad shape and old but still looks to be well-loved.
Truth Bullet #12: ?
Ț̸̑̾̅̑̽͂ẖ̶̢̛͕͙̺̩̱͙̌͒͂̇͝i̵̪̩̲̘̺̎͒̓̋̕ͅs̵̙͆̒͘ ̴͕̫̗̈́̊̈́̆͆̇̂͂ḭ̶̙͚̌̐͒̆s̶͈͛̓̋͠ ̷̦̤̪͈̟̩͖͎̍a̶͈̳̣͖͍̰̓ ̶̨̖͔̖̝̖̜͓̄t̶̖̯̗̠̍̈̋͌̕͠ȑ̴͕͖̼̜̹̜̝͐̚ā̷̰̰͙͌̈́͒̈́̇͝ͅp̴̢̪̟̎́̿̌͐.̶͚̻̖̂̔͌̋ ̸͇̼̣̫̀͐͌͜͜͠͠R̶̳͍̈́̏̓̕͘͝u̸͚̿̈́̔̄͊͗ň̵̖̞̈́̔ͅ
Truth Bullet #13: Party Planners
Seina was in charge of planning the majority of the party with the help of Mononeko. She also had the help of Ayumu, Jun, Renkou, Himura, Kitsu, Mei, Asuka, and Fubuki. To be honest, none of them actually did much. I guess they can get participation trophies. Seina did not do much either with the final result, since Kaimaru took over.
Truth Bullet #14: Party Alibis
Mei, Asuka, Jun, Ryusuke, Kitsu, Natsuki, Mizore, Keiji, Choumi, Renkou, Sora, Chika, Kaimaru, Suzunami, and Fubuki spent their entire time at the party. Everybody in this group but Kaimaru was also drugged in the late stages. Saitou and Shiro went to the party at first but left before the drugging, though Saitou left far earlier than Shiro. After the drugging, Seina, Tahlia, Etsuko, and Shiro entered. Shiro and Tahlia left shortly afterward.
Truth Bullet #15: Hallway Alibis
Hanane, Osamu, Etsuko, and Tahlia were all in the hallways. They were all originally alone. Hanane and Osamu made a team, while Tahlia and Etsuko made another.
Truth Bullet #16: Flash of White
Shiro testifies that he saw a flash of white going into the Labyrinth before Mononeko changed his outfit. He was about to go after the suspicious flash before Mononeko stopped him.
Secret Information #3: Gimmick
The room has a gimmick. It can change shape with the right controls. Good luck finding the mystery with this added clue. I will always believe in you, Shiro Amari.
Truth Bullet #12? I was so focused on other things before that I did not notice that a number was skipped. What does that say? It is hard to see with all the corrupted text on the screen. Trap? Run? How would anybody be able to run in this situation? Enough of that, however, two other people have secret information. Is what they have the same as mine? Also, do they have the same requirements for this trial?
"If only such wonder wasn't being wasted on such a cruel game..." Chika says as she examines the arena, her eyes growing wider. "If only we could finally reach out to them." She raises her hand up to the starry sky, hiding a twinkle coming from her eye.
"It's alright! We only have to keep our chins up, and this won't have to happen ever again. We avenge Saitou and find out how to get out of here!" Kitsu awkwardly smiles. Nobody is convinced by his empty words. Less of all Natsuki and Sachiko, who both are becoming paler by the second.
"I should mention that we go by a 'three strikes, you're out' rule here. If you're wrong three times, you'll be booted from this trial. Or if Monokuma gets bored or scared. Luckily, Monokuma isn't here. You can retain points by correctly refuting other people's falsehoods. Blah, blah, blah. The only person with unlimited points is the killer." Mononeko nuzzles her throne to get into a more comfortable position.
Three strikes, huh? Considering how smart I am, I do not need to worry about losing them all. Though, it could be a potential strategy to expose the killer by how many times they are wrong.
"Also, don't be alarmed by the giant floating words in the middle. That's just a thing that happens. The same words will appear on your student handbook so you can contradict them and all that stuff," Mononeko tells us with her eyes closed. Then, she begins snoring.
"I guess you can say that she's...taking a cat nap." Suzunami snickers. "Sorry I couldn't help myself."
"She's feline great after her sleep," Kaimaru joins in. If those two were anywhere near each other, they would have high-fived each other.
"Guys, somebody is dead!" Emilynn shouts.
"People die all the time. In this world, you should get used to it, otherwise, it'll destroy you and take you next." Hanane once again proves to be a voice of reason with these young people.
"You're not helping very much, just saying." Etsuko shrugs.
"I just don't want more people to be dead because of their naive nature." The yosegi artist knows too much of the truth.
Class Trial: All Rise!
"To defeat whoever this evil is, we have to fully learn how to take advantage of this system," Renkou states. "Which means first off we should figure out where to start. Does anybody have any experience with actual detective work?"
The room is silent. If anybody has that type of skill, they would not trust anybody in here to expose it right now. Admitting to such a thing will mean that you automatically have a target on your back for the next killer and the possible mastermind and/or traitor.
"Does anybody want to admit they have experience with these killing games?" Mei asks. That is going to be even less likely.
"Exposing secrets has to wait a little while. We're getting nowhere and Mononeko is refusing to help us out. Quite typical." The stage manager shifts his feet. "You know how teenagers and young adults can be. The oldest person here is twenty-five, so none of our brains have developed fully enough to comprehend everything-"
"Hey, psychology is my thing! Stop trying to do my job, Jun!"
"Etsuko, I'm just trying to keep everyone alive-"
"You've got to be kidding me. The dog is more well-behaved than most of us." Choumi sighs. "Let's stop acting like children since we don't have that luxury right now. We start with what's clearest."
"Then what's the clearest?" Kitsu questions.
"Hmph, I'll say that we should discuss the time of death and check everybody's alibi." Choumi grinds her teeth together. "Then we'll be able to narrow down the suspects. Trying to do this suspicious of almost thirty people would be a waste of time."
"Um, are the alibis really that important? There's something off about all of this..." Ayumu says. That would surely paint a target at him.
Now that Ayumu mentions it, however, there is something odd. If the alibis were truly straightforward, people would only need to know where people were during the murder. But there is also information relating to before as well.
"A wonderful brain like mine needs all the information. Even if it's not important, the killer can easily slip up. I'll be cockier in this game if I was the Blackened with the number of people I can point my fingers at!" Tahlia shouts. "So commence in the debate! Talk about the alibis and I dare the killer to try to defeat my deductive genius!"
Battle Arena Prepared -
Non-Stop Debate: Commence!
"Do the words really float...oh my god, they do! Jun, we gotta get this tech for my project!" Fubuki jumps up and down, way too excited. I keep forgetting that she is an adult.
"This would be cool for my games, but there are other things to worry about. Does the party have anything to do with this? If so, I'm sorry I couldn't be there sooner!" Seina bows down and almost hits her head on the podium.
"That's purely my problem, not yours. Don't waste time apologizing for useless shit." Kaimaru points at Seina. "Otherwise, you're a masochist. Which is fine but not what we need right now. One of my kinks is staying alive."
"I'm not a masochist!" The game master blushes.
"I already see where this is going. You see that slanted text that's appearing all over the place? You break those with the evidence you have. Did I explain that already? I don't know. Why does everybody need instructions?" Mononeko softly cries over her pathetic pleas. "Why did I become a teacher!? Why did I agree with this!? With these people!?"
"So let's ignore all of that before and focus on the alibis. Wasn't everybody with somebody else during the night?" Asuka asks.
EVIDENCE: ICHIKO'S TESTIMONY
"You're committing a violation of the court!" Renkou exclaims. Once he does so, Asuka's words break away like glass.
Although the words are gone right in front of us, they stay forever. Even if the memories fade, some part of the human mind will always remember. Perhaps that phenomenon will have something to do with all of this.
Non-Stop Debate: Stop!
"Shouldn't everybody have an alibi? That's part of what makes this so hard..." The volleyball player lightly bites her lip and narrows her eyes. "Usually the first cases are easy, but whoever did this has experience. It's like going against a novice team."
"That's what the killer would want you to think. Somebody was clearly stated as being alone during the time, however! Ichiko Miyashita, explain yourself before you get kicked off the team!" The basketball player is perhaps a little too into his new role. I would not want to go against the likes of him anywhere.
"M-me...? I-I can't..." Ichiko hunches her shoulders. She finally stops writing in one of her journals.
"If you want to live, fight for yourself!" Even though Renkou is literally accusing her of murder, he still smiles at Ichiko. That only causes Ichiko to make herself even smaller.
"You know that could be a possibility..." Himura smirks. Ichiko turns to face him and sweat immediately starts to fall down her face. "She's been awfully quiet..."
"A lot of us have been quiet," Leonie comes to the historian's defense. She is visibly shaking but still stays true to her word. Maybe this is why she has such a high survival rate. "Though she could be hiding something with that nice act of hers."
Never mind. That only dug Ichiko's grave further. Ichiko can be seen looking person to person, searching desperately for somebody to believe her. For somebody with such a strong mind, she is truly helpless whenever anything does not go her way.
"You're quite smart, Renkou, but sadly you didn't roll high enough! Try again! If you need help, I'll point out your fatal error in defeating our common foe!" Even though our lives are on the line, Seina refuses to drop her persona.
"I'd like to see you try to find a hole in my defense." Renkou is still keeping his positive attitude despite being directly challenged. In fact, both Renkou and Seina are grinning. Also, both of them are having too much fun relating their dialogue to their talents.
"Do you two want to duel?" The robotic cat yawns, still bored by the events of the trial.
"Duel? Yes!" Renkou's eyes begin to match the shining lights in the sky.
"I don't want to, but, if that's what has to be done. I'll protect Ichiko." Seina nods her head.
"Thank you..." Ichiko's weak voice can barely be heard. Her head is facing down, with her hair covering her face from the majority of her classmates.
When Renkou and Seina consent to the duel, their podiums are placed in the middle of the arena. Both of them are directly facing each other and unwilling to back out of the avoidable event. Finally, Renkou becomes more serious, with nothing remaining of his laid-back demeanor.
"Do I have to explain the rules? Okay, fine. Renkou, I guess you can go first since you're the one clearly in the wrong. It's been like a couple of minutes-"
"Hey!"
"You state your evidence behind your theory and Seina will choose with her evidence how that's wrong. Then you keep going until you either give up or fail three times. Then, because you're the loser, Seina gets to explain her logic without any question," Mononeko says. With each word, she is becoming more and more awake, much like if she actually had a soul.
Rebuttal Showdown:
Renkou VS Seina!
COMMENCE!
"Let's think about this critically, shall we? Ichiko admitted that she was alone during the time of the murder. Who else could have done it? Emilynn? She was the only person that was by herself during the murder-" Renkou's mouth opens wide by the audacity of him being interrupted.
"Your roll has failed yet again, new player. There were other players alone during the time of the slaying! Such as Emilynn. Thanks to the chaos, it could've also been easy to slip away unnoticed. Roll again or experience the death of your argument!"
"That's conjecture!" Renkou points out. "Nothing in the evidence points to that conclusion! Have you been listening to anything about this trial! If Emilynn was the killer, there would be a gun at the scene! That's why nobody is picking her out despite being a clear frame target-"
"This is already going horribly! This was supposed to go clearly!" Mononeko cries on the podium. Looking over, I can see that Emilynn's face becomes tenser. This is becoming as much of a disaster as I thought it would. If this continues, I might actually have to talk.
"Seina is the one in the wrong here-"
"Do I have to stop this, Renkou? Because I will." The cat strengthens her posture and stares at Renkou. Renkou, however, refuses to stand down. Seina stays where she is, keeping her focus on Ichiko.
"I will improve my story then. Let me ask you a simple question about a serious plot hole: how could Ichiko go to the scene of the crime? I'm pretty sure you can't give your character the power of teleportation here. Ayumu only found one clear route throughout the labyrinth, so there is no way that she can avoid confronting the boss," Seina explains.
"That's where you're wrong and should just listen to me. Ichiko used the vents! There's clearly something behind that fake wall that could have easily been connected to that room!"
"If the killer used the vents, anybody could be the killer! We haven't had the time to search them all thoroughly. They could be connected throughout the spaceship!" Seina purses her lips. "Wouldn't there be a Truth Bullet also if it was actually important to the case? You can't just reveal a twist and not foreshadow it."
"Time for crunch mode!" Renkou shouts. "Ichiko could've set up everything before the murder took place. She had the perfect opportunity while she was in the Labyrinth-"
EVIDENCE: ICHIKO'S TESTIMONY
"Objection! Do do do do do~" Seina points her finger at Renkou. Emilynn follows after her from the audience. "Ichiko couldn't have done it because I left her with Sachiko and Ayumu! Those two would've said if Ichiko left! Plus, Sachiko has evil-sensing powers that are so OP!"
BREAK!
"I can't believe I lost once again!" Renkou cries out in agony.
"I never want to do that again," Seina faceplants dramatically onto her podium.
After she finishes speaking, the podiums return to their original positions. Even when we are disconnected, we are forced back into the circle. Death itself cannot break anybody from the cycle of returning to this courtroom. Their pictures are forever abused in a mockery of their lives.
"Uh, has anybody else explored the vents other than Shiro?" Ayumu questioned them. Nobody responds. "Shiro, can you explain why the vents couldn't be used in this murder?"
Wait, is Ayumu putting me on the spot and forcing me to speak? I guess I cannot stay quiet for very much longer. At least this will give me an opportunity to potentially put the blame on somebody else. However, right now, I only want Ayumu to shut up and leave me alone.
"There is nothing in them. Besides, the vents that I went through in the Labyrinth only seem to connect to the white hallway," I 'inform.' There is no need to tell the truth, especially when there is nothing at stake for when you lie.
"Now what though? I don't want my pretty face to be in the grave just yet!" Yuki sobs. The ever silent Yuu tries to hide his face with his hand. During the process, he almost accidentally hits Sachiko with his wings but she dodges in time.
"Stop crying. If we can't figure out the killer with alibis alone, we figure out how they did it. That might lead us to figure out a slip up the killer did," Choumi chastises.
"No, I think I got a suggestion before we try all of that," I say. Choumi rolls her eyes. "I think Ayumu did it."
"...Shiro...If this is what you truly believe, then I guess I've got no choice but to defend myself." Ayumu's voice is low and quiet, with his words only being able to be understood due to the holograms in the center. "I'm sorry for making a fool out of you."
"Tell me your reasoning so I can calculate your rates of winning the argument." Mizore finally is focusing on the trial. Before now, she was literally just staring off into space. Maybe I have finally met somebody more jaded by death than I am. After all, she most likely cares more about the supposedly evil ducks.
Truthfully, I did not think this through very much. Maybe this is all it takes for me to be by myself once again. If I think about it, though, there can be a way to turn this trial against him. I may have accidentally outed the real killer. If so, I truly never have to worry about him again.
I̶ ̶w̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ ̶m̶i̶s̶s̶ ̶h̶i̶m̶
Non-Stop Debate Commence!
"Listen to me. Ayumu is the person with the most experience exploring the Labyrinth. He could've easily tricked Ichiko and Sachiko with them being easily distracted by their notebook and 'senses.' If the crime was planned out beforehand, Ayumu could have made it so that he can have an alibi and trick people into thinking that he cares about others." It is not my best work, but it will have to do for now.
After all, nobody would care that much about somebody they just met without any ulterior motive. There would be no reason for Ayumu to be so apparently traumatized by the death of Saitou. Plus, it was foolish for him to try to make him not die, maybe that could all just be for show.
"There's not really a high chance for you winning this argument, Shiro. Better prepare yourself your first point being taken away which will be the start of a whole new journey of friendship-"
"Did you just disrespect the amazing Sachiko Isobe once again!? I'll not let you continue to get away with your insolence!" Osamu screams to the Heavens. Of course, the Heavens do not reply back. Or maybe they did in the form of Mizore continuing to talk nonsense and nobody listening to her.
"Um, that didn't happen..." Sachiko points out, completely ignoring Osamu. Unreliable narrator.
"I get that I'm stuck in my books a lot but not that much..." Ichiko then pulls one of her many notebooks and starts flipping through it.
"The amount of Ichiko slander in this trial is unreal. We're trying to find the culprit. She's not dumb." Emilynn groans. For once she is not entirely focused on her phone. "This only makes you suspicious, Shiro."
"Let's stop throwing around accusations of each other. Choumi was on the right path with her reasoning. We got to find the bastard who did this and not turn against each other!" Fubuki says. As usual, her arms go all over the place and I do not know how to interpret her bizarre body language.
"Finally, somebody that understands my brilliance-"
"I understand your brilliance, Choumi-"
"Keiji, be quiet! You're part of the jury!" Choumi's face becomes all red.
"Ahem, we should go back on topic. In fact, I should point out that everybody that was in the Labyrinth before the murder, including myself, could be considered suspicious. Saitou did somehow know about the secret passageway somehow..." I begin to think.
Maybe this has something to do with the secret information I have been given? Although learning this detail should be huge, there is no way to fit it in this case. Except if it has nothing to do with any of this. If so, why?
"There's nothing pointing to Ayumu's innocence anyway-"
EVIDENCE: SILVER STAR CHARM
"Sorry, there's a black hole in your argument!" To my surprise, it is Chika who has 'won' against me. She has one arm against her chest and the other resting under her chin.
BREAK!
"Oh, that worked..." Chika clears her throat. Looking over to Sora, I see that he gives a shaky thumbs up to his sister. "Think about it logically, Ayumu wouldn't help Shiro get back the star charm if he was the killer. It has to be considered a Truth Bullet for a reason. I bought something like that once and it was really expensive too."
"I can't afford that even if I tried..." Ayumu moans.
"He could've had somebody give it to him..." Even knowing that my theory is wrong, I refuse to let go. Maybe because the only way I know how to trust is to be suspicious of the person.
"I don't really have anybody in my life to do that." Ayumu gives me a pained small smile.
"Why don't you hate me?" I question Ayumu. Perhaps working so much in customer service has taught him to deal with difficult people like me.
"I was mad but then I thought about it. You had to, right? Because of that thing in this game," Ayumu responds. "You still need to learn manners though. And to create an actually compelling lie."
Hm, what does Ayumu mean by that? Does he somehow know about the conditions of the secret information? It could be possible that he holds one of the others. Enough of that, however, I am too offended by the gull he has. I know my manners and how to lie! How else would I be alive?
"Does anybody remember somebody wearing a star charm?" Natsuki asks, abruptly interrupting our conversation. Of course, nobody does. If I can't remember that small detail, none of these other people can.
"This will be harder than usual considering everybody changed outfits. For all we know, it could be part of one of the new formal outfits that were discarded before anybody noticed," Hanane says. She bites one of her fingernails. "But, if that is so, then why would it be evidence? And why would Aito be so protective of it?"
"I wasn't protective of it! I'm a prankster, dammit!" Aito exclaims. Mononeko unenthusiastically bonks him on the head.
"I made notes about what everybody was wearing, but Mononeko has messed with everything." Ichiko takes what little notebooks she somehow has with her and starts flipping through them. Mononeko must have taken the rest of them away.
"Shouldn't we be focusing on figuring out the how of the crime now? This is going nowhere!" Fubuki whins. "I don't know about all of you, but I want to live. I've got a lot of plans."
"Of course you do," Etsuko scoffs. "I got plans of making a book based on your insane antics-"
"Etsuko, this isn't the time. If you all don't improve your attitude, I'm giving my nonsense theories! One of which is that we're all in the Matrix. So, yeah, you don't want me to talk. Because I will. And you will suffer." Emilynn smirks.
"Hey, Choumi, want to share more of your thoughts? You're the one who came up with this line of thinking." Fubuki takes her mask off for a second and sticks her tongue out at Etsuko.
"Actually, I think Shiro did it."
"...What." I cannot comprehend what Choumi is thinking.
"Thinking about it logically," Choumi impersonates my voice. "Shiro wouldn't have a reason to point all the blame at Ayumu with that horrible reasoning-"
"Hey! It was perfectly fine-"
"That's the shortest amount of time I have seen a potential culprit be dismissed." Mononeko does nothing to help my bruised ego. She should know why I am so desperate to come up with theories on the spot.
"It was because he was trying to frame Ayumu. It may not be stated in the evidence, but he was alone with Emilynn and Saitou for some time. All of the evidence he used with Ayumu could be pointed to himself." Choumi's grin becomes more sly with every word coming out of her corrupted mouth.
"I think that has the same logical faults as Shiro's theory." Himura sweats.
"Let's test it then. I just want this part of the trial to finally be over. I told them we should've added somebody that knew what they were doing but noooooo we just had to have a game with amateurs!" Mononeko complains.
Non-Stop Debate Commence!
"Do we have to do another one of these with an easily disprovable theory?" Yuu shifts his feet. Yuki copies him but does it in a much more dramatic fashion.
"Who says I actually believe the theory? I'm just trying to make everybody see that my previous thought process is the right one!" I would not be surprised at this point if Choumi has some secret information.
"Why?" I sigh.
"Most likely she wanted the killer to pounce onto her theory and expose themselves. Sadly, the person who did this is not that stupid." Hanane bites the inside of her cheek.
"I want people to focus on Shiro. You may not be the killer, but the evidence you found could lead us to the right conclusion. It's alright if you don't understand my brilliant mind!"
"Choumi, do you need a Kobi hug?" Keiji tries to point Kobi to Choumi, but the dog refuses to leave his side. Just as stubborn, Choumi ignores the dog walker.
"That's it, Choumi has lost her marbles. Time to add her to the potential patient list." Etsuko reaches under the skirt and pulls out a notebook much like one of Ichiko's. She begins doting something down that is much longer than Choumi's name.
"...You know what, we should just be focusing on evidence relating to Shiro. This is wasting time, and I really don't want to learn about Emilynn and Mizore's theories. Which will happen if we stall any longer," Osamu warns the rest of us. For once, he is being a sensible person.
"There's the string that I helped find with Sachiko, Ayumu, and Shiro-"
"Wire, Rokuro, wire!" Mononeko corrects him. Rokuro only shrugs and Kaimaru laughs.
"Do you mean the flash of white? The vents aren't important to this case, but I can't figure out how that fits in." Asuka fiddles around with her necklace. "This is harder than I thought."
At that moment, instead of seeing something to contradict, I noticed an agree option. Perhaps it is best to show that despite the moral failings of the rest of humanity, I can work along with others.
EVIDENCE: FLASH OF WHITE
"Let's better compose your statement!" This is more emotion than I am used to expressing. Is it because of the adrenaline this environment is giving me?
BREAK!
"Hm?" I responded. Oh well, I have to work on my improvisation skills after this. Maybe Jun will prove useful for something. "Oh yes, I saw a flash of white but I could not make out what it was. I was stuck in the vents, but something or somebody helped me get out of them. Then I tried to pursue them but Mononeko stopped me to change into our dumb outfits."
"They're not dumb outfits. Other people had to spend a lot of time and effort getting them right, you know? I did none of the work but all of the effort!" Mononeko yawns, retreating back in her so-called friendly persona.
"Instead of focusing on the great Tahlia, you gave your time to Shiro! Almost like you were trying to hide something!" Tahlia leers at Mononeko. "Like you were trying to help whoever was behind this!"
"Why would I ever do that? I'm supposed to be impartial and that's way too much work." Mononeko rubs her swollen eyes. Although she is always sleeping, the cat looks like she hasn't slept in five days.
"You could've been preventing my chaos instead! Really, you just left in the middle of me changing and happened to leave this cute bunny outfit on the floor-"
"Change out of that! This is a serious trial! I don't want to be yelled at by my producers again! Think about the children, Kaimaru!" The robotic cat cries.
I almost forgot about the real cat, Pon-chan, until I saw her park herself on top of Mononeko's head. That does not look like a very safe position. Kobi and Pon-chan quickly get into a staring contest, while Pon-chan does not seem to mind the visitor.
"Pon-chan, come over here!" Sachiko sobs. Surprisingly well behaved for a cat, Pon-chan follows the shrine maiden's orders. That is enough focusing on cats, however.
"Enough with that. Doesn't the existence of the wire and charm prove that the act was planned out beforehand? Add onto that this suspicious behavior, then it's evidence-"
"It's a trap!" Emilynn exclaims seriously. Even when she is not trying, everything turns out to be a reference.
"That's not right! Those items could have been left by somebody that was in the room!" Renkou points out. "They could've hid in the room with how dark it is. Then, when Saitou had a light source, bam, shoot him! And then they could have gone through that room in the back to escape! Those were left when they avoided Emilynn, Ayumu, Sachiko, and Shiro!"
"That also makes sense," Natsuki says.
There is some logic to Renkou's theory, but there might be a chance that the flash of white was related to a person. If that is the case, then, somebody that was not Ayumu, Seina, Sachiko, and Ichiko was in the Labyrinth. And, if that person's intentions were pure, then they would have already revealed themselves.
"No, think about it more clearly. That theory makes no sense," Chika replies.
"They wouldn't do the same thing twice, would they?" Mei questions. She tilts her head to the side.
"Time for another new minigame. Why did they have to add so many more? At least I don't need to do those stupid five-minute things. That would be a pain to explain..." Mononeko stretches out her limbs.
"What do you mean? You should always prepare to give your players all the information they need." Seina twirls her staff around. Somehow she manages not to hit anybody else around her.
"I'm not built for this kind of thing. Whatever. There's a split opinion and you need to vote whichever side you agree with. Then you say stuff relating to your theory and another person counters it. Most of these are very similar."
"Why can't you just let us do practice rounds?" Mizore complains. "I get that you want us to die and all, but dying this early would be boring, don't you think?"
"Somebody is dead. Those aren't interesting. I'm too tired to explain anything else to you. Did they just have to kill somebody so late and when everything wore off? Ugh." Mononeko does not wait for anybody else to voice anything before summoning some sort of device in front of her.
The scenes in front of us change to two options: Choumi and Renkou. Although I do not appreciate her throwing suspicion at me, I have no choice but to choose Choumi.
RESULTS IN:
TEAM CHOUMI: CHOUMI, ASUKA, SHIRO, ROKURO, HANANE, JUN, ICHIKO, HIMURA, SUZUNAMI, MIZORE, SEINA, TAHLIA, CHIKA, AYUMU
TEAM RENKOU: RENKOU, ETSUKO, EMILYNN, SACHIKO, FUBUKI, MEI, YUU, YUKI, KITSU, NATSUKI, OSAMU, KAIMARU
"Usually people just go up against each other in all their teams, but there are way too many people. I told them having so many characters would be a bad decision, but, like usual, nobody listens to me. And I don't have the energy to file a complaint."
"How is this going to go then?" Natsuki asks. "If we can do voluntary drop-offs, I'll give up my place!"
"I'll take it for you! I don't know what I'm doing, but I'll gladly help you out!" Kitsu gives Natsuki an air hug.
"I'm going to do what I always do and leave your fate to a random generator." Mononeko pulls a phone out and starts clicking on the screen violently. How is her phone not broken? And how does that not take away her energy? You know what, I should spend less time questioning a robotic cat.
TEAM CHOUMI: CHOUMI, ROKURO, ICHIKO, SHIRO, TAHLIA, CHIKA, AYUMU
TEAM RENKOU: RENKOU, OSAMU, KAIMARU, ETSUKO, EMILYNN, SACHIKO, KITSU
"Finally, maybe you'll be well behaved and...wait, producers are bitching at me. Can't sleep. I just want this goddamn trial over already..." Mononeko relaxes into her chair. "It's gonna be at least another hour...ugh."
"Let's see who's better at this, Choumi." Renkou punches into the air.
"I already have a better track record than you." Choumi cracks her fingers.
"These are the two leading the trial...we're so dead." Mei huffs. Seina nods her head.
After that little exchange, Mononeko places a key in the object in front of her, and the podiums of the people chosen rise higher into the air. Although I am not uneasy about the whole setting, I cannot deny that the ordeal makes me a little dizzy.
SPILT OPINION
THE KILLER CREATED A TRAP VERSUS THE KILLER WAS THERE
SCRUM DEBATE START
"There was a broken wire at the crime scene and a possible stranger spotted by Shiro before the murder," Choumi starts.
"We can continue talking to figure out how the wire fits into all of this. Plus, it is not confirmed that whatever Shiro saw was a person. It could have even been Mononeko." Renkou does have a point. Even if the wire was used as the trap, what else was used to create it? You can't just have wire by itself.
"Barely anybody was alone during the murder. Plus, we spent all this time disproving the ones that could do it. Don't tell me you already forgot what Seina did to you, Renkou~" Rokuro winks at Renkou who takes a step back. Probably the only thing keeping the basketball player from falling is all of his athletic training.
"I shall show you the error of your ways! Almost everybody has an alibi for before the murder as well. Somebody could very easily pretend to be drunk and then slip away. Because all drunkards are bastards!" Osamu shouts.
"How about the star charm? Mononeko might have taken my notebooks with all the outfit descriptions..." Ichiko frowns.
"I didn't do such a thing!" the cat objects. Her face contorts to one of utter disgust.
"Aren't we supposed to be quiet...Oh sorry!" Sora blushes. I have not even been in a death game before, and I can tell that this is going worse than usual.
"Continue with the trial! And retract what you said about me or face the consequences!" Mononeko demands. Asuka shakes a little.
"There was a star charm..." Ichiko bites on her lip.
"That could easily be a frame job. But honestly, I prefer other types of jobs like han-"
"Don't finish that sentence, Kaimaru. You perv," Rokuro luckily interrupts him. Kaimaru makes a circle with his fingers on one hand and with the other hand has one finger slowly approaching it. "Don't do that either! This is a murder trial!"
"Thank you!" Emilynn beams. "I'm usually the jokester but guess what! Not anymore with you clowns!"
"Can people stop interrupting the trial please?" Mononeko groans. "Or else I'll start punishing you seriously. Starting with Asuka again." What did Asuka do?
"You started it," Aito pouts.
"Frame jobs. Got it. Not kinky enough to be into that. Or the killer could've just dropped it during the murder. Who would be stupid enough to leave that important of evidence at the crime scene? Even actual police officers have more brain cells," Kaimaru rewrites his statement.
My turn? Why did I have to go after Kaimaru of all people?
"It was dark so the killer most likely didn't know they lost it. As for your other points, wouldn't Emilynn and Saitou hear the killer? If they shot them from behind the wall, there was no way they could see. Except if you want to suggest that somebody here is good enough at shooting to fatally wound somebody without being able to see them?" That is actually a good point. I am proud of myself for now.
"Who knows there might be an Ultimate Hitman here~" Etsuko laughs. "It could've been a lucky shot. After all, whoever the killer is, they're nothing but a coward who hides behind a fake name and personality."
"That's highly unlikely. Even if it was a lucky shot, like I can very much do with my genius, how could somebody get to a supposedly hidden spot, shoot somebody, get out of that spot, and with everybody else without a few more slip-ups? The vents are already a proven non-option," Tahlia says.
"Saitou was acting weirdly. Maybe it's because he knew somebody was trying something? Why else would he stop all of us in that room? Except if he's being brainwashed and is an alien!" Emilynn is still Emilynn even when she is trying to be serious. Good to know.
"This isn't the time to talk about aliens? Why does everybody always talk about aliens?" Chika coughs a little and composes herself. "We can theorize what Saitou was planning but none of us really knew him all that well. There could have been another reason other than him somehow suspecting somebody was planning a murder there. If that's the case, wouldn't he warn people to stay away?"
Checking on why Chika has such a reaction with aliens, I look over to Sora. He is smiling for a moment before realizing what situation he is in yet again.
"If the killer wasn't there, then why did I sense a sudden evil aura?" Sachiko asks. Although I still do not fully believe in her powers, maybe Sachiko has good intuition taught to her by her years of dedication to religion. Wait, no, that's stupid.
"Your senses could have picked up the trap being triggered. You did say that your senses haven't gone away, so maybe it's something else you're picking up? Like somebody's intent?" Ayumu thinks.
"Wait, this doesn't answer anything. Couldn't the person just have been really quiet and took them both by surprise?" Kitsu scratches the top of his head.
"All of your reasoning is wrong! If the killer was in the room, then there wouldn't be a gunshot through the wall!" Choumi breaks through the statement.
"This is our answer!" Everybody on Choumi's side but me shouts. With possibly a little bit too much enthusiasm. There is no way I will ever join them in their childish behavior.
FULL COUNTER!
BREAK!
Right afterward, all the podiums are back to their normal positions. All of us have to take a second to breathe. I know that the people in charge generally do not care about human life, but they could make the experience a little less nauseating. Wouldn't this dizziness of ours mess with their plans somehow?
"Could this be related to the keyhole? Mononeko really didn't want me to access it," Suzunami says. Xe brings up a good point. If that does not reveal everything, why wouldn't Mononeko be so against people opening it?
"I'm not hiding anything!" Mononeko starts fanning her face, only for there to be more sweat. Why would anybody program a robot to be able to do that?
"Isn't the hallway supposed to be hidden too? Maybe the killer showed it to Saitou?" Natsuki tries to contribute to the conversation.
"So I was wrong. Fine." Renkou huffs. "How does knowing that it's a trap change anything? That could make it harder without knowing much of the alibis. Or even when somebody created it. How are we supposed to know how it works without being able to see the other room!?"
"Wait, I got an idea. Wouldn't the people in charge of planning the party be unable to commit the murder?" Jun asks. "Before the party, we were pretty much together most of the time. It wouldn't be enough to find the secret room, create a trap, and possibly a lure. And all of us have decent alibis for the party itself."
"Finally! We can lower the number of suspects!" Mei cheers. "No, I'm not just happy that this clears me! We all have each other's back. Except if you want to say we all did it or somebody managed to trick like ten other people for all that time!"
"They might be that good. After all, there's a mastermind among us~ Deceiving thirty people all at once is their specialty. But, then again, I highly doubt the mastermind would play their cards this early. And then eliminate somebody they had so much trouble putting in the game in the first place."
"An imposter! I vote it's Mei again-"
"Emilynn!" Mei puffs her cheeks.
"Wouldn't Ichiko be suspicious again? I knew my claim had some merit! She did just kinda disappear for like a couple of days until she strangely showed up again in the Labyrinth the day of the murder," Renkou says.
"Not again! Why does this always happen? This is what I get for always looking for the truth...oh no, I'm talking too much again!" Ichiko puts down her notebooks and begins to fiddle with her sleeves.
"Ichiko, you don't need to be scared. Tell us what you were doing before the party." Seina crunches down to Ichiko's level. Which will not do much considering they are not near each other.
"...I'm not a child, Seina," Ichiko responds.
Non-Stop Debate Commence!
"..." Ichiko is moved in the middle of the circle. She picks up one of her notebooks again to hide from all of the attention. Unfortunately, Mononeko is not one to listen to such desires.
"You know what, what were you doing? You left those concerning messages and that's it." Ayumu asks. It must be something relating to the group chat. Most likely not important to the murder though.
"Do you think perhaps the killer tricked Ichiko in some way? Or somebody else?" Leonie theorizes.
"I may think you're not the killer, but you have to tell us everything. There might be a piece of evidence relating to what you were doing," Hanane bluntly states.
"I was investigating the spaceship," Ichiko answers. That is clearly not everything.
"Tell us everything! It's clearly not just that!" Renkou is a little bit too determined to admit that he is wrong. Perhaps this stubbornness is why he is almost kicked out of the trial.
"Were you looking for the room that Saitou died in?" Emilynn is surprisingly smart for once.
"..." Ichiko takes a deep breath. "...Yes."
"Then how did Saitou find it before anybody else? Well, besides the killer." Kitsu taps on his forehead. "This place needs better security if people keep stumbling into forbidden rooms."
"Didn't Saitou say that he found this 'super cool place' while exploring? And then somehow figured out how to trigger the bookcase to reveal the secret room?" Ayumu rubs his eyes.
"I could not even figure out that room with my senses," Sachiko points out. "Sure, I felt the e-evil aura, but not where it was coming from. Only somewhere in that area. Sorry!"
"So we don't have any possible clues for who the culprit may be-" Choumi is still getting her words out when she is interrupted.
EVIDENCE: HALLWAY ALIBIS
"That's wrong and now you're going to be served!" Asuka shouts. Why is everybody being so melodramatic about contradicting people?
BREAK!
"There are four people that we can mainly focus on! Osamu, Hanane, Tahlia, and Etsuko!" Asuka says. "This is because they're the ones who were alone during and before the party!"
"Are you seriously kidding me!?" Hanane is immediately on the defensive. I thought somebody like her would be smarter than using her emotions.
"I wouldn't be dumb enough to commit a murder! What do you take me for? A puppet for the Committee? I would never! Fuck you!" Tahlia follows directly after.
"What? Are you suggesting that I purposefully left my duties and made sure that Sachiko could possibly die for my betterment?! I would rather die!" Osamu is no better. These three do not need anybody framing them to look suspicious, but the same could be said about everybody here beside me.
"Wow, I don't even need to do anything." Etsuko leans onto her podium. If she had any popcorn, she would be eating it.
"As entertaining as this is, my superiors are telling me we have to take a little break. Something about one of their daughters breaking her nose or something. We're in the middle of a murder trial! Nobody cares..." Mononeko groans. "Maybe this recess will give me some time to sleep."
"You can't just do that! Let me talk to one of your managers! This is insanity! I'm gonna prove my innocence in like three seconds, you dumb cat with horrible programming!" Tahlia shouts. "I can make a better one of you in a millisecond! In fact, I already have!"
"Sure, sure. Whatever. Here I have a commercial break while I finally get some shut-eye...for like five minutes. Ugh." Mononeko automatically goes to sleep.
Before any of us have the brilliant idea of escaping during a class trial (because nobody would be stupid enough to try that except if they're about to be killed), there are chains imprisoning us on our podiums.
"You haven't seen the last of me! The great Tahlia would like to file a complaint to your stupid manager!"
"Tahlia, I don't think that's how it works…" Mei says.
There is about to be yet another fight until a TV is summoned in the middle. It is unfortunate for people on the other side that they can not see whatever is on the screen. Luckily, though, everybody is now slightly quieter.
Please wait until we figure out how to solve this emergency.
In the meantime, please enjoy this video of a cat playing with a laser.
(I will never admit that it is cute)
I rise from the dead once again. Sadly my personal life has gone into even worse chaos so updates will still be sparse. So sorry this is a shorter chapter and took so long. I miss my frequent updates too RIP.
Also, I don't have a job anymore lmao (don't worry I quit because I moved but that's another situation not really appropriate for author's notes)
Once again, it's been like three years since I wrote a trial so if I got any of your characters wrong, just tell me. Or anything wrong in general. The entire I wrote this I was internally screaming. But then I remember I'm always like that writing CS.
Reviews~
AnonChan1-Things are aaaaaaaaaa but at least I haven't been in a car crash. I hope everything is good on your end. I may have become obsessed with diary entries in my writing help. There might be another Master. ;) Shiro: This is a perfectly fine thought process totally not created by years of psychological torment Ghost!Eimu glares at him in the distance. Casually gives all my characters including Ayumu eight billion death flags because I can. Shiro is in denial about literally everything. I'm just imagining Shiro with a therapist and the therapist just dying inside. "Shiro, you care about people." Leonie is just being mostly silent this trial thinking wtf. The world might have not advanced that much but at least fifty years gives them better headphones. I'm gonna be nice and give you a hint and say that isn't what it is. ;) I just needed more comedy in this part of the story because the next two chapters are what I would call a doozy. THE ANGST IS COMING. Tbh I keep almost accidentally writing Osamu's name as Dazai too many times. I've seen Bungou Stray Dogs too many times. Why did you do this to me, Commander? Mononeko is Mononeko and she's too lazy to try to break them apart. Way too much work. Yep, Hope is important to the plot and she's in LPoD. Shiro tries to pin the murder on Ayumu and tries to convince himself that his flimsy reasoning makes him a genius when all he has is severe attachment issues. Shiro I don't think you're gonna find murder clues if you look in the game room. Even trying to get him framed for murder won't stop Ayumu from becoming Shiro's friend. Shiro just wants to scream. I'm gonna foreshadow everybody's deaths and there's nothing anybody can do about it. Mizore is like: the damn evil ducks did this to me. No, Mizore, you just have bad parents. Shiro bringing a dog to BUN: So here's how dogs are better. The flash is me having a little bit too much fun being evil.
Chika, give us your memory. Suzunami needs a hug. Xe won't get a hug. Asuka and Seina have a goal to adopt everybody on this spaceship. Then Seina realizes she too has joined the Mom Squad. Mononeko will not listen. Suzunami passed out cold Shiro: this is daydreaming. Aito does whatever Aito does. Shiro, it's not logical wearing your binder all the time does it anyway Goddammit Shiro. Let's see how many times I can reference one story through this entire series sees I Have No Hope and I Must Live well then. Keiji and Sora have to deal with Aito the entire trial. I'm just imagining the three of them having their own non-canon adventure. Which would be Sora suffering but at least he got a dog now. Yes, it is the room that Saitou died in. How is this important? I'm not telling. ;) Everybody in this story but sus especially Shiro.
Here's more evidence! Have fun! Thanks so much this is genuinely one of my favorite trials of CS. Because of the other parts. ;) Everybody needs hugs and therapy I won't give them. NO NOT YOURS ETSUKO. Ramble all the time! :D Mononeko is gonna be so fun to write in other chapters. People just be screaming at her and she wants a break. The children are all in denial about Saitou actually being dead. I'm twenty-two and still don't understand how taxes work. Himura is a chocolate chip and raisin cookie. Shiro is not careful with anything. Everybody remembering one of my favorite FoD characters is Mirabilis Oh no. Just waiting for somebody to get the reference and go SHIRO NO. There's gonna be more names I say as somebody who forever struggled in name theatre games but winning sometimes because people just didn't pick me. Aito is Aito and his mindset makes sense later on I swear. The only way for Minato to help is if somebody joins the Afterlife Theatre. Minato is currently comforting Saitou and has room for one more this moment.
Give me the rambling it gives me the dopamine. Thinks about the last part of this trial Be prepared for the tears. Pon-chan was so tired of the screaming she peaced out. I need therapy laughs in like my seven mental illnesses. I think everybody, including Shiro, wants to be Ayumu's friend. Me with my three bunnies: One day I will have a Mochi for myself. Mononeko is friends with the Master and hates every moment of it. I will never give Emilynn a break she's my favorite. I'm a mad genius who probably should get some more therapy. Seina and Leonie refuse to die during chapter one. I WILL GIVE EVERYBODY TRUST ISSUES BY THE END OF DIOS. Knowing Mononeko, darts will probably not put her to sleep and just make her suffer. Ayumu here to take the hearts of everybody and then tear them out.
KananMari-Welcome back to the suffering and slow updates! We're gonna be here a decade at this rate lol. I'm hanging in there. I hope you're doing alright too! :D Ryusuke sulking in his corner being like "I wouldn't dishonor my mistress by killing the same person twice!" The Saitous: "We're not the same people." *casually gives Ayumu even more death flags* I will do this to every character. Enjoy the shipping! It will lead to suffering! Thanks, it's gonna be fun when we get to the part where it comes into play. Thanks so much, I love torturing Shiro. Part of the reason chapters takes so long is I can't control myself with how many characters I have. Thanks so much. BI is still a thing I'm just a little better at self-control now. I haven't heard from Rachelle in forever so KGS is probably dead. Though I will forever joke that it will update when I post the last chapter of this entire series lol. I really liked it too and I made it plot-important so yes if Rachelle doesn't come back, then well guess I have to do it myself~ Thanks very much. You stay safe as well!