As I'm thinking, another thought hit me. I take out my Monopad and go to the report card section. Yep, just as I thought. I'm still missing two people. But I've already been everywhere that's opened. How'd I miss them? I step out of the shrine area and begin scouting for the missing two. As I walk past the dormitory, I see the doors open and spot the missing two. One of them was the blonde girl with the ahoge from before. Kaede Akamatsu I think was her name. She had lilac eyes, white musical note hair pins, and an ahoge like me. She wore a white uniform with an orange tie. Over the uniform was a pink vest. Her pink skirt also had musical notes on it, and she also had a white backpack as well. The other person was the boy she was with earlier, the one with the black hat. He had dark navy blue hair, dark greyish goldish eyes, and pale skin. He wore an all black striped uniform as well. Shuichi Saihara. These two are the last two I need to talk to, so I better make a good first impression. I walk over to the two and wave. "Heya. Haven't met you two yet. I'm gonna take a wild guess and say you guys are Ultimates?" The girl smiled and clasped her hands together.
"Yeah! My name is Kaede Akamatsu, the Ultimate Pianist."
"I-I'm Shuichi Saihara." The nervous boys said. "I suppose I'm the Ultimate Detective…"
"Geez! You are the Ultimate Detective!" Kaede states, which causes Shuichi to pull his hat down, covering his eyes a bit more.
"A pianist and a detective, huh? That's an interesting pairing. Have you two been exploring the academy together?" I asked the pair.
"Yeah, but so far we haven't really come across any clues." Kaede responds with a sad look before it terms to a look of determination. "But don't worry! I'm sure we'll find a way out!"
"Well, aren't you an optimist? That's good. We could use people like you here, especially with the situation we're in." I say. "So, what's the story about you two? Everyone else has something amazing about them, and I'm sure you guys are any different."
"Well… ever since I was a child, I would play the piano whenever I got bored. There were even times I played the piano so much that I would forget to eat and sleep. Eventually, I won trophies from concerts. And people started praising me."
"So that's how you became the Ultimate Pianist? That's amazing!" I said.
"It's not a big deal, really. That's all I'm good for, really. My friends actually call me 'Piano Freak' because of it." Kaede said with a chuckle.
"Still, it takes a lot of dedication to play an instrument for that long, especially the piano. What about you, Shuichi? You must have done something just as amazing to become the Ultimate Detective."
"Well, I don't actually have the credentials to call myself a detective yet." Shuichi said with a slight bit of red coloring his cheeks. "I just...happened to solve a case that I came across and...now people call me that."
"But not just anyone can 'just happen' to solve a case. It usually takes a team of professionals to do that. You should be proud of yourself!" I said. He seems so timid and unsure of himself. I wonder why.
Shuichi solved a murder case, but the results left him scared of the truth. The murderer killed the victim because the victim led the culprit's relative to suicide due to abuse. The people who knew about the situation said the victim deserved it. Shuichi heard all of this, and the look of pure hatred he saw in the culprit's eyes left him scared of the truth. It's the reason he wears that hat: to hide from people's eyes.
I went a little pale at that. Oh my god. If that's true, that's horrible! He probably feels incredibly guilty over solving the case if that's what happened. "Hey, are you alright?" I hear Kaede ask me. I immediately put my reassuring smile back on and nodded.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about something." I say before turning to Shuichi. "By the way, mister detective, I could actually use your expertise right now."
"H-Huh? With what, exactly?" He asked, sweat lightly dropping from his face.
"Well… it's kind of a long and hard-to-believe story, but trust me, I'm not lying." I start off while rubbing my hand through my hair. God, I must sound like Rantaro with how suspicious I made that. "To be honest, I'm an amnesiac."
"Amnesiac?" Shuichi questions.
"Wait! You can't remember anything!?" Kaede asks with a panicked expression.
"That's right. I actually spent the first few minutes after I woke up trying to collect myself. I had some freak outs about it, panicking like crazy, but I'm good now." As I say this, I can see both Kaede and Shuichi's faces morph into ones filled with horror. I chuckle, trying to calm their nerves. "Hey, don't sweat it. It doesn't bother me that much anymore. I've actually managed to find out a bit about myself, but with how hazy my memories are, none of them feel real or concrete. I've actually been asking around to see if anyone's heard of me, with no luck at all."
"No one knows you?" Shuichi asked.
"Seems like it. That's what I meant when I needed a favor from you, Shuichi. I want to see if you can help me figure out who I'm supposed to be."
"Well… I'll try my best to help you." Shuichi responded. Kaede nodded enthusiastically as well.
"Yeah! We'll definitely find out who you are!"
"Thanks. Really, this means a lot to me." I say with a small smile. "Alright, let me tell you what I can recall. So far the only name I can think of that might be my name is Rin Wakuri. Does that ring any bells?"
"N-No… anything else?" Kaede asked.
"Well… I'm pretty sure I'm 20ish, I think. I'm probably a college student, if my memory is to be trusted. And… I'm pretty sure I'm not an Ultimate, though the Monokubs insist that I am for some reason."
"You're not an Ultimate?" Kaede asked.
"I don't think so. I know I said that I can't remember anything, but when the Monokubs were talking about Ultimates, the term didn't really resonate with me. And when I calmed down to try and think about myself, I managed to get some things, whether they're real or not is up for debate. But when it came to a possible talent I could have, I got nothing. My mind was completely blank. Besides, I can't really say I'm anything special compared to everyone else here. Everyone here is so incredible, it's a bit hard to believe. I don't think I could ever compare."
"Don't say that!" Kaede said as she puffed her cheeks. "Talent or not, that doesn't mean you're less special than the rest of us. And who knows? Maybe you have a talent that hasn't been noticed yet." I stare at Kaede for a bit. Kaede notices my prolonged gaze and gets a bit flustered. "Umm… I'm sorry. I was just trying to cheer you up."
"Oh no! That's not it at all. I was just… processing your words. I'm a little embarrassed now. I'm the older one and yet everyone else seems to be the ones cheering me up. You all are really too kind." I say while twirling my hair a bit. "Thanks really. It means a lot." Shuichi thinks for a moment before sighing.
"I am sorry, but I haven't heard of you before."
"It's fine. Guess it's fate that I be the group's resident mystery man, as Kokichi calls me. I'm sure I'll figure everything out, I'm sure." After I said that, a bell suddenly rang out. A monitor nearby flickered to life. On the monitor, the Monokubs appeared, sitting on a couch together, each holding a drink of some kind. Around the room they were in, there were puppets or dolls of everyone scattered around, either on the floor, the couch, or hanging on by a string. Something bothered me about them though, and that's when I realized there wasn't one for me. Makes sense, since I was a last minute appearance.
"Hiiii! Thanks for bear-ing with us!" Monophanie said.
"..." Monodam, even on camera, refused to say a thing.
"Kept you bastards waiting, huh!?" Monokid yelled.
"Everyone, make your way to the gym please." Monotaro stated.
"The opening ceremony can finally begin!" Monokid claimed happily.
"Phew! We finally finished our preparations!" Monotaro said while wiping sweat off his forehead.
"...You do realize you just read your lines backwards, don't you." Monosuke sighed.
"So long! Bear well!" And with that, the monitors shut off. An entrance ceremony? They really are going all out with the school ascetic. I turn to see Kaede and Shuichi talking to themselves about the announcement as well. Guess they must be a little on edge. That's stupid of me to think. Of course they are. We all were kidnapped after all. I tried to put on my best reassuring smile that I could and faced them. "We better head over to the gym. We shouldn't keep the others waiting."
"Yeah. Let's go. We can go together!" Kaede said as she nodded. She walked a little bit ahead as me and Shuichi trailed a little behind. I couldn't help but notice Shuichi looking at me from the corner of his eyes as we walked.
"Something on your mind, mister detective?" At my comment he sputtered for a bit before finally calming down.
"S-Sorry."
"Don't be. I'm guessing you must be a little suspicious of me. Don't really blame you. I'm starting to be suspicious of myself, actually."
"Th-That's not… sigh… sorry if I was coming off as suspicious of you." He said as he pulled his hat down a bit. "It's just… I was wondering why you didn't have a doll in the announcement like everyone else."
"Oh you noticed that too? It's most likely because they weren't expecting me to be here."
"They weren't expecting you?"
"Apparently not. They didn't have a room made for me either for the same reason, though they promised to make me one in a few days, which is something I guess."
"Hmm…" Shuichi thought about what I said as we made our way to the gym. When we did make it there, Kaede pushed open the door, revealing the other Ultimates already there. Here we go… hopefully nothing bad happens.
"All 17 of us have gathered…" Kirumi commented.
"Hmm, it's pretty spectacular seeing all 17 of us Ultimates gathered together." Kaito mentioned, which caused me to wince a bit.
"Umm… it's actually you 16 Ultimates gathered together, with me added to the side." I said dejectedly.
"C'mon Rin. Don't be like that." Kaede said, trying to cheer me up again.
"Kehehe… You may not be able to be so easygoing for much longer…" Kiyo said ominously.
"In this situation, it's no use thinking about things. So eventually, Tsumugi stopped thinking." Tsumugi said like a narrator, probably as a joke.
"Nyeeeh… What's gonna happen to us? I bet it'll be a big pain…" Himiko whined slowly. Oh she has no idea.
"Hmmmmm…" Tenko began to stare at Himiko, much to the magical girl's displeasure.
"What? What are you looking at?"
"Um… Himiko, you can use amazing powers, right!? Cuz you're a psychic and stuff, right?"
"I'm not a psychic… I'm a mage."
"Whoooa! That's amazing! I definitely wanna incorporate that into Neo-Aikido!" Tenko cheered. "Hey, what sorta training did you undergo to gain your awesome powers!?"
"Talking about it is too tiring…"
"You're pretty lazy." Kaede said while placing a hand on her head.
"Pardon me, but… we need to be on our guard. We do not know if and when danger will strike." Keebo said sternly.
"D-Don't say that… I'm so scared… I don't know what to do…" Kokichi said, water building up in his eyes.
"There is no need to worry. Atua will protect us." Angie states happily.
"Phew! That's a relief!" Kokichi said, any tears that might have been forming now sparkled with joy in his eyes. I, along with a few others, couldn't help but chuckle a bit at that.
"Is your brain full of weeds or something? I'll whack 'em outta that skull of yours!" Miu yelled, ruining the lightened mood that had formed.
"Geez. Just relax, Miu. Don't get mad at us just because you're scared." I said, causing Miu to freeze up a bit.
"Don't worry about it! Just leave it to me!" Kaito said as he gave us a thumbs up. "If those teddy bears show themselves again, I'll kick all their asses!"
"I highly doubt that." I mumbled under my breath.
"...Huh? What that?" Gonta asked. I was about to ask what he was talking about, but then I heard it. Mechanical stomps and whirls. And it's coming from…
"...!" I immediately tensed up. Oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no!
"Hm? What's wrong Gonta? And Rin, why are you staring at the ceiling?" Ryoma asked.
"Listen… Hear that?" Gonta stated as Ryoma followed my gaze upward, his eyes widening when he did.
"Ah, I think I hear it. It sounds like an engine from a robot anime-." Tsumugi tried to say. Before she could finish, all of the Exisals fell from the ceiling and immediately surrounded us.
"Yoo-hoo! Rise and shine, urshine!" The Monokubs cheered from inside their Exisals.
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaah!" Tsumugi screamed, along with a few others. I could only stare at the mechs with a stern glare.
"Everyone, behind Gonta!" Gonta commanded, rushing to the front to protect the group.
"Wh-What the heck are these...monsters!?" Tenko screamed as sweat poured out of her.
"Whooooooooooaaaaa! So coooool!" Kokichi called out, though to me it sounded a bit forced.
"They're Exisals-highly mobile, bipedal weapons platforms! They got lotsa hometown pride, too!" Monokid said.
"...I can't keep track of these backstories." Monosuke groaned.
"Wh-Whatever they are, they better kill off the uggos and save me for last!" Miu screamed.
"Run, Himiko!" Kokichi called out immediately after. I would have maybe laughed a bit if we weren't in a life and death situation.
"Why are you concerned about me all of a sudden?" Himiko asked nervously.
"He's being very rude right now. Don't worry about it. You'll be fine." I reassured her.
"Hm, didn't someone say they would 'kick all their asses'?" Maki questioned while giving Kaito a dirty glare. At that, I laughed a bit.
"Wh-What the hell!? Nobody told me about these!" Kaito said as he made a terrified expression.
"Alright, chill out, no need to panic… We're probably not in any danger." Rantaro said calmly. "If they wanted to kill us, they'd have done it by now."
"Agreed. Don't freak out, guys. I'll make sure you all stay safe." I added. With that, both me and Rantaro began to just walk up to the Exisals as casually as we could. He actually looked at me with a bit of concern, to which I just shrugged a bit at. He sighed as he turned to the Exisals.
"So… what do you want from us? You clearly want something, that's what the guns are for, right?"
"Yeah. You already gathered us all here. Might as well tell us what you have in store for us." I added. "Let me guess. If we don't do as you say, you'll hurt us, correct? Welp, we're all listening. I already have a few ideas, but what do you want from us?"
"Huh. Well aren't you both a couple of wiseguys?" Monosuke sighed.
"I'll start us off! Listen up! Here's what we want you punkasses to do." Monokid said excitedly. "… Hahhhhh! My heart's goin' 100 miles per hour! I'm gonna say! You ready!? Hell yeah! It's a-!"
"KILLING-GAME." Monodam interrupted.
"...What?" Kaede said quietly, trying to process the words.
"M-M-Monodam! How DARE you upstage me!" Monokid screamed angrily.
"W-Wait a second. What did you say?" Tenko asked, wanting to make sure she didn't hear that horrible phrase I know everyone heard clearly.
"I-If I heard him correctly-." Keebo began before Monodam repeated himself.
"KILLING-GAME."
"Oh! He said it again!" Monotaro chirped.
"Grrrrrrr! God damn it, Monodam! I'm gonna crush you with this here Exisal!" Monokid threatened.
"C'mon, we don't have time to fight amongst ourselves." Monophanie tried to break up the fight, but her efforts were in vain, as each of the Monokubs, save for Monodam, began threatening each other. I ignored their antics to check the others. Fear. That's the only way I can describe how they all looked. It's like they all were just told their loved ones only had a few hours left to live. It was a swirl of terror, confusion, and despair. And I knew. I somehow knew before any of us were told. Is that why I'm not freaking out, or is there another reason? This situation just feels… strangely familiar. An odd sense of loathing was bubbling up like an old memory. I hate this. I hate this so much, and I'm not even sure why. It's a deep, dark hatred. I'm only brought back to reality when I hear the stupid cubs calling each other "jabroni".
"S-Seriously!? Are they gonna get it on right in front of us!?" Miu asked. Must she make everything into an innuendo?
"Don't worry. Atua is watching over us." Angie said as she put her hands in a prayer pose.
"In a situation like this, is he just going to watch!?" Tsumugi asked.
"Either way, it's too dangerous! We need to get out of here or else we'll get caught in the crossfire!" Keebo yelled.
"Quick! Get to the door!" I yelled, pointing to the gym doors. We all rushed over, Kaito and Tenko trying to push the doors open, to no avail.
"Damn it! It's locked!" Kaito said.
"So we stuck!?" Gonta asked. I began to sweat a bit. How can we get out of here?
Kokichi can pick locks. He has tools on him.
...Wait what!? "Kokichi! Open the door!"
"What? What do you expect me to do?" He asked, as if he didn't know.
"You can pick locks, can't you?" I asked, not completely sure I'm right. "You also have tools on you, so hurry up!" Kokichi stared at me with an amused look as he pulled out a little piece of metal and began working on the lock.
"Wait! He can actually pick locks!? Kaede asked.
"Hurry up you shota bastard!" Miu yelled at Kokichi. After a few more moments, Kokichi took a few steps back.
"Well?" Keebo asked.
"No can do. The lock is apparently jammed, so there isn't much I can do about it." Kokichi waits a few seconds to look at the multiple terrified expressions of the group before pushing the gym doors open. "Just kidding!"
"Damn it, Kokichi!" Kaito said as we all made our way to pour out of the gym, but before a single person could exit, a new voice echoed across the gym.
"Now, now, now… You guys can't just leave in the middle of the ceremony like that."
"What?" I can't help but ask. Immediately, I began to get a horrible headache. What… is this!? This feeling… this pure terror. Something about this voice just embodies everything wrong about this whole situation. It makes my skin crawl without much effort.
"My cute little cubs… You gotta knock off this awful fighting…"
"Oh! That voice!" Monophanie cried out. The Monokubs immediately jumped out of their Exisals and rushed to the stage.
"Father!? Father, is that you!?" Monotaro asked.
"Papa kuma! Papa kumaaaaa!" Monokid cried out.
"Daddy!? Where are you daddy!?" Monophanie asked.
"D-Daddy!?" Kaede asked. At that moment, all the lights in the gym suddenly shut off, save for a few shining on the gym's stage. When we all looked at where the lights were shining, another larger bear with wings jumped up from behind the podium that was up there and floated down to take a seat in front of the microphone. As he sat down, the wings fell off him. This bear, immediately, was far different from the kubs. He was half white and half black, the white half cute like a normal teddy bear, while the black was sinister with a red lightning bolt eye and a sharp grin like the kubs' colored side. This bear, I can feel it. It enjoys our suffering and despair. It's malice is swirling around it like some kind of sinister aura. The others seemed to feel it as well, as they all are showing signs of fear, terror, and dread. Monokuma… that's the cursed thing's name.
"I am the god of this new world, and the headmaster of this academy! The one and only Monokuma! Nice to meetcha!" Monokuma shouted happily.
"Mono...kuma?" I asked. That sounds… awfully familiar. Wasn't that one of the names I remembered back when I first woke up? How do I know this thing's name? And why do I already hate it so much?
"Yayyyy! Father's here!" Monotaro cheered.
"Hell yeah! Another epic entrance from Papa Kuma!" Monokid cried out.
"Daddy is soooooo cool!" Monophanie swooned.
"..." Monodam stayed silent, but he also looked very pleased with his father's appearance.
"My cute cubs! You're all so freakin' cute!" Monokuma said as his face turned a shard of red due to what seemed like anger. "The only reason I tolerate your tiresome antics is cuz you're all so cute! Even when the prologue is going way too long, I'll allow it because you guys are cute. In fact, the very first prologue ever was only short cuz you cutie-patooties weren't there. "
"Pops… are you mad at us?" Monosuke asked nervously.
"Don't be an idiot! I would never get mad at my cute little cubs!" Monokuma shouted, obviously very angry despite his protests.
"Gahhhhh! He's mad!" Monokid shouted.
"But… Daddy is still cool even when he's mad." Monophanie beamed. The Monokubs then start talking about how Monokuma gets cooler the angrier he gets, which sounds vaguely familiar to something I watched before. Monokuma, again, denies his anger, and blasts the kubs with ki to shut them up. Seriously, what the hell is going on!?
"Anyway, I'm really not mad. In fact, I gotta admit that I'm actually proud of you guys. You kids stand out from the rest of the second-generation failures in the world." Monokuma claimed.
"Isn't that a little harsh? I'm sure there are some second-generation success stories…" Monophanie trailed off.
"I can't think of any, though-." Monosuke said. Monokuma then slapped all the kubs with a fiery paw.
"If you can't think of any, it's cuz there none worth remembering!" Monokuma yelled. The Monokubs again went on another tangent about how great their father is in the most mediocre ways. "Heehee! I love embracing my children! They're so cute! I just can't help myself! Usually, ratings will plummet when the mascots appear in sequels too much, but in this case, the ratings are through the roof! All thanks to the cute Monokubs." What is he talking about? Ratings? Prologues? He's acting like we're on a show or in a shitty fanfiction. Danganronpa. What? Why did that name pop up just now? It's at this moment the others in the gym finally start talking.
"Wh-What is this? What's going on?" Kaede asked with a petrified expression.
"Another teddy bear appeared…" Tsumugi stated.
"Yes, but that is no ordinary teddy bear." Kiyo explained with a dark look. "I can see it. The despair and madness swirling around that cursed thing…"
"Woah… first of all, I'm no teddy bear. I'm Monokuma. And show some respect! I'm the headmaster of the Ultimate Academy for Gifted Juveniles!" Monokuma said as he showed his claws.
"Headmaster?" Maki asked.
"It appears to be some sort of autonomous robot with a built-in A.I., like me…" Keebo explained, looking a little sad to have any kind of relationship with the bear.
"Dong dong dong!" Monotaro chirped, though I'm pretty sure he meant "ding ding ding".
"Exisals are different, though! They're brainless buckets of bolts!" Monosuke added.
"They're mindless pretty killing machines that can only be controlled by us, the Monokubs." Monophanie explained.
"Autonomous robots piloting weapons platforms… This is certainly turning into quite the story." Ryoma said as he pulled his hat down.
"Well that may be, but what I'm worried about is this 'killing game' you mentioned. What exactly does that mean?" Rantaro asked.
"Puhu… puhuhuhuhuhuhu…" Monokuma chuckled.
"What is so amusing?" Kirumi asked.
"It's just… when I said it before, I kinda just phoned it in and now I feel awkward." Monokuma explained before he gave a huge malicious grin. "I want you students with your Ultimate-level talents to participate in a killing game!"
