Author's Note: Happy New Year Everyone! I hope everyone is enjoying the start of the new year! I'm starting to get back into a grove with this story, so that's exciting. I'm really looking forward to the next few free time events actually. Also, funnily enough, January 1st is Rin's birthday. It's strange for me to think about how long it's been since I made Rin Wakuri, and it's even harder to believe that so many people like him in this little story of mine. I made me want to thank you all for following this story and commenting on it. This Arc is at it's halfway point now, so I hope you all enjoy the next few lighthearted chapters before shit starts to really hit the fan. I, for one, am really looking forward to it :)


For the first time in what might have actually been forever, I was genuinely excited for the start of this new day. I actually managed to get up before the morning announcement for once, and I didn't feel exhausted, so that was already a good sign. And just to make sure everything that had happened wasn't just some fever dream I had, I immediately got up and made my way to Kirumi's room. Of course, while I was happy about what had happened, now that I have cooled down a little, I was going to make sure I had a little insurance in place to make sure that this isn't actually a turn for the worst. After making sure to set up some safeguards for myself, I knocked on Kirumi's door and waited, but a feeling of dread came over me when no one came to the door after a minute or two. I began to knock again but more frequently, a sense of urgency starting to take over me as a few drops of sweat formed on my forehead. Just when I was starting to consider the worst case scenario, the door finally opened. "Rin? I apologize for keeping you waiting. I must have been more tired than I realized. I only just got up." Kirumi told me after she opened the door. As soon as I saw that she was fine, all the dread and fear disappeared and was replaced with relief and the excitement I had felt this morning.

"It's fine. I'm just glad you're okay. You made me a little worried there." I chuckled. "I came by to check up on you. How are you feeling?"

"I suppose I feel better." She told me. "Though in reality, I can't say I feel different from how I normally feel." She then flinched a little suddenly, which made me jump a bit.

"You sure you're okay?" I asked her.

"Yes, I'm fine." She quickly replied, quickly brushing her hand against her chest before putting her hands back down in front of her, holding them together as she usually did. "Did you need something? It's quite early. I don't recall you ever getting up before the morning announcement before."

"O-Oh, well…" I gave a nervous chuckle as a response. "Since you haven't gotten the chance yet, I was thinking about showing you around all the new areas that have been opened up. There are a lot of places, and since I doubt many people are awake right now, I figured that we wouldn't be disturbed while we walk around. Once everyone sees you at breakfast, I'm fairly confident they'll be quite shocked and want to ask us a bunch of questions."

"Yes, that is true. I've also been wanting to explore the new areas that have opened up while I was dead more thoroughly as well." Kirumi said while putting a hand to her chin, pondering a bit about what to do. "Very well. I would be pleased to have you show me around, Rin."

"Cool. Then let's head out." And with that, the two of us headed out of the dormitory, only to immediately run into someone unexpected as we did. As soon as we got to the middle of the courtyard in front of the academy's entrance, we heard a deep voice filled with confusion and shock.

"Rin? And…Kirumi!?" I turned around to see Ryoma with wide eyes. He looked like he didn't know what to do, his eyes bouncing between me and Kirumi. I can't really blame him for that reaction, considering Kirumi was dead the last time he saw her. His face of confusion then turned to me with a stern expression. "Rin, what in the hell is going on?"

"Umm… Surprise?" I shrugged with a dry chuckle. My reply didn't seem to amuse him, so I immediately started to backpedal. I sighed before giving him a real response. "I was hoping to save this for breakfast, but since you're here, you might as well be the first to know. We did the ritual last night, and to my surprise, it worked. So Ryoma, I hope you can give a warm welcome back to our dear friend here." I said as I gestured to the maid at my side. Ryoma's dumbfounded expression moved over to Kirumi, who only bowed to him as a polite formality.

"It is good to see you again, Ryoma. I trust you have been well while I was gone?" Ryoma was silent for a bit before a smile broke from face and he chuckled a little.

"Yeah. You could say that." He said with a relieved voice. "Glad to have you back, Kirumi. I'm surprised that the ritual actually worked, but crazy things that can't be explained happen all the time in the world, so I won't question it or complain. I'm sure the others will say the same thing when they see you're back. We've certainly missed you." Ryoma then looked back at me with a smirk. "I guess everyone owes you an apology for fighting so hard against you and your student council to not use that Necronomicon, including me since I was against performing the ritual too."

"No, you guys really don't have to apologize for anything. I need to apologize for my behavior as well." I told him with a small smile. "There's actually something I want to discuss with everyone when we all gather to have breakfast, along with letting them know of Kirumi's return."

"Is that so? Then you don't have to worry about me causing any problems. I'll keep this to myself until breakfast." Ryoma said. "This seems like something that will definitely lighten the mood that's been with us since the last class trial."

"By the way, I hope you don't mind me asking this, Ryoma, but why are you up so early?" Kirumi asked.

"Heh, this isn't early, not to me at least. In prison, we got up much earlier than this. We would always start at the crack of dawn."

"Oh wow, I could never do something like that. I'm the exact opposite of a morning person." I exclaimed.

"Yeah. In the day we'd do our work and eat at the same time. At night, all we could do was sleep." Ryoma explained. "Inside those prison walls…I lived a frighteningly disciplined life."

"That's quite understandable. Most prisons would be like that, I imagine." Kirumi noted.

"At least it sounds like a healthy life." I said with a nervous chuckle.

"Hmm… Healthy body, healthy mind? That's a bitter irony, considering where we are now." Ryoma replied with his own chuckle. "Anyway, I'll leave you two to do what you were doing before. I'll see you at breakfast." With that, Ryoma went on his way, leaving just me and Kirumi in the courtyard.

"Ryoma seems different from before. As if the burden that had been on his shoulders had been lifted a little." Kirumi noted that the Tennis Pro left.

"Yeah. You could say that he realized that even after everything that's happened, he still has a reason to believe there's something out there for him. At least, that's what I think has happened."

"You say that as if you helped him come to that epiphany."

"Not at all. I did my best to help him of course, just like the others, but this was something only Ryoma himself could realize. But let's leave it at that for now. Let's go out and check out those areas."

"Of course." Kirumi nodded with a smile. I began to show Kirumi around the new areas, starting with what was out in the courtyard with Keebo's and Tenko's labs, the pool, and the casino area, though I carefully avoided the hotel for obvious reasons. After that, I walked her to the new areas in the academy from the bottom floor to the top. There were a lot of areas to go through, and Kirumi seemed quite entranced by all the new research labs, though when she mentioned the new challenge cleaning would present, I couldn't help but feel worried for her. After paying our respects at Kiyo's lab, our final destination, we started making our way back down the academy. "There was a lot more to see than I anticipated. The academy is much more immersive now."

"Isn't it. There's more here now since our first few days." I nodded before frowning a bit. Larger though it may be, it still feels small when I remember three people are still dead.

"Oh? I don't believe we examined this room, have we?" Kirumi then said. I turned to where she was looking to see a door that we had missed on the second floor. It had fancy, elegant design, one that felt familiar, but I couldn't recall ever entering this particular room. "It looks like it's another Research Lab. Who does it belong to?"

"Research lab?" I asked before remembering. "Wait, this is your Research Lab!"

"Mine?"

"Yeah, that's right. I nearly forgot. We found this room after you had…Ahem, died, but we weren't allowed to enter. Monokuma told us that it's part of the rules that an Ultimate Research Lab remains locked if it's owner is dead prior to the lab opening up."

"So it has remained locked ever since you found it?" Kirumi asked with a tilted head. "Then is it still locked now that I am alive again?"

"I…don't know." I replied before walking towards the door. "Well, this is your lab, so why don't we find out." I grabbed the door handle and twisted it. My eyes' widened. It wasn't locked anymore. I quickly opened up the door, and upon looking at the contents of the room, it felt like I had traveled into a completely different location. "This is certainly different." I mentioned as I entered the room, with Kirumi close behind me. "Victorian, huh? Classy." I said. The walls had fancy green wallpaper with candles on candle stands on the walls as well, and the floor was a clean wooden one with a small carpet in the middle of the room. At the middle of the room was a fancy dining table that had mannequins that were dressed up sitting there as well. Above the table was a large chandelier, and on the table were many fancy plates, tea cups, utensils, and flowers that were decorating the table. Around the room was also fancy furniture like desks, chairs, and couches. In the back of the room were large windows that were adorned with hand-sewed curtains. There was also a large metal wall or door that blocked a back section of the room.

"Indeed. These decorations adorned the British Empire at the peak of Queen Victoria's reign." Kirumi stated. "With decor like this, there is no doubt that this lab belongs to me."

"The Victorian era was when the employment of maids and butler's really started happening, right? Servants like that were a symbol of being of a higher class."

"You are correct. Maids and butlers were employed in many areas in English society at the time. Even lower class families would employ even a single maid to keep up appearances."

"The Victorian era was full of growth and industrialism, making it a central point in British history, however, if you look deeper, it still had its own set of problems, whether political or societal, I suppose." I noted. "Speaking of that era and it's problems, one of those problems was a rise in organized and violent crimes. Jack the Ripper, the infamous serial killer, was from this time period after all."

"Ever knowledgeable, as always." Kirumi smiled as she nodded. "I'm surprised. You seem to know quite a bit about the Victorian era."

"Well, there's a lot of books, games, movies, and other forms of storytelling that are set in the Victorian era, so that's probably why. It is one of the most famous time periods in history after all. The Industrial Revolution was happening in America during that time too, so it was quite an important time period."

"You are correct. But what you said about Jack the Ripper and the problems of crime that the Victorian era had might have influenced the design of my lab."

"I wouldn't doubt it. Monokuma and the person/people controlling him are incredibly sick in the head." I sighed as I began to look around. I found myself walking over to the large metal door, curiosity coming over me as I stared at it.

"Well, no time like the present. Let's see what's behind door number one." I said as I opened up the large sliding door. Surprisingly easy to open, and behind the door were multiple sets of laundry machines, vacuums, pressure washers, an air pump, and even some towels and kitchen tools like frying pans.

"Wow, all of this stuff is really practical. You could probably clean the entire school with all of this stuff." I said. "What do you think, Kirumi? Isn't this cool or what?" I asked as I turned to the maid, but when I did, I noticed this gleam in her eyes, as if she had found something she had desperately needed.

"Yes…with this, I could perhaps clean the entire academy now." She mumbled as she put her hand to her chin in a thoughtful manner. I deadpanned as I watched her for a bit before shaking my head.

"Kirumi, stop. We do not expect you to clean this entire academy! In fact, I'm sure we all would much rather you not over exert yourself doing that. I know I for one would much rather you relax and take more breaks then engage in such trivial and, to be frank, painfully mundane work that the cubs themselves should be handling."

"But-"

"Nope! I'm not hearing any of it!" I told her. "I've told you before, remember. You might be the Ultimate Maid, but you're still just Kirumi Tojo. You're my friend and I won't stand to see you run yourself ragged in an attempt to serve others. You were just brought back to life. Cleaning really shouldn't be your top priority."

"But I do not mind. To serve others is a maid's duty. 'Selfless Devotion' is the principle by which I perform my responsibilities as a maid, if you recall. I can cast aside my personal feelings for the sake of serving everyone."

"Yes, and that's the sort of mentality that led to you gaining your Ultimate Title, I'm sure. Most people wouldn't work under a mentality like that." I sighed. "Still, as someone who's been trying to keep a mentality like that for the past few days, I know exactly how exhausting it is. To be constantly working for others, whether to serve them or in an attempt to protect them, takes a considerable toll after a while. And you, being a maid, have been living like that for so long, it makes me sad to think about it. But don't misunderstand. I'm not trying to give you pity or anything like that. Your life is yours to live, especially now that you have this second lease on life, but as your friend, I can't help but worry about your own health and needs when your maidly principle is one of self sacrifice."

"Rin…"

"Sorry if that offends you. It's just, you've done so much for me, I just want to make sure that I'm able to do the same thing for you." I told her before chuckling a little. "I honestly forgot how much you worried me back when we first came here. You and Angie told me there's a fine line between being humble and self-deprecating, so let me tell you that there's also a fine line between self-sacrifice and self-denial. I just want to make sure that you take your own needs and interests in account instead of solely focusing on what others want or need. Wanting to help others is nice, but after what happened last night, I've discovered how important it is to make sure you don't lose sight of yourself. You can't do anything for anyone if you neglect yourself to the point of burning out or collapsing, right? In hindsight, I was quite close to that myself before I took a much needed rest. I don't want you to get to that point like I was." Kirumi seemed surprised at my words. Just when I started thinking I had crossed a line or two with her, Kirumi gave a small smile.

"Alright then. I will try not to over exert myself. Though I am still the Ultimate Maid, so I will still do my best when serving others."

"Of course. I imagine you doing otherwise." I gave a small laugh. Kirumi then sat down at the large dining table that was in the room and gave me a smirk.

"Then perhaps I should take this opportunity and let myself be served by someone else. You said you wanted me to take it easy, so what do you think of switching roles just this once?" I found myself smiling as I returned a teasing smile.

"I would be honored, Madam Tojo." I replied in a formal voice as I gave a slight bow. "Allow me to prepare some tea for you then. I do believe I saw some quality tea leaves here."

"Then by all means, Mister Wakuri." Kirumi said with a playful smile of her own. After a few seconds, the two of us started laughing at ourselves.

"Okay, but for real, I'll go get some tea. We still have time before the morning announcement, and I doubt anyone will bother us here, so let's just hang out for a while."

"Yes, that would be quite enjoyable." Kirumi said happily. So, without wasting any time, I prepared some tea for us. After brewing it, I delivered Kirumi's cup to her and sat down with my own.

"It's been a long time since we've chatted, so I'm not sure where to even begin." I admitted nervously.

"Then if I may, I would like to hear more about you." Kirumi told me. "You briefly mentioned remembering things about your past, and I'm interested in hearing what things you might have remembered."

"O-Oh really? I guess I can indulge you with that. It's not much, nor is it particularly interesting, but I can share what I've learned about myself." I told her. "Well, the first and most important thing I've recalled is that I am most certainly an Ultimate. I've remembered being friends with many other Ultimates, and with my own memories supporting the claim now, it's safe to say that I am one. Though what my talent is is still a mystery."

"But simply having even that confirmed is progress towards remembering more. It's a good start." Kirumi told me. "And what of these other friends of yours? Do you remember a lot about them?"

"Bits and parts. There are certainly gaps, but I've started to remember more and more about them at a steady pace. Though, to be frank, remembering these memories hasn't exactly been pleasant."

"How come? You were excited at the prospect before."

"Yeah, but my enthusiasm will clearly diminish when many of the memories I recall are sad ones."

"Sad?"

"Most of them have been sad, yes. It's been…discouraging. Even when I remember a happy one, I'll then remember a sad memory to nullify that nostalgic feeling." I sighed a bit before putting a smile on my face. "But I guess I am happy to be recalling things at all. I'm quite lucky in that regard. Other people with amnesia might not have remembered even a single thing after this much time."

"Still, to remember numerous sad memories must be painful when you have yet to remember much else."

"Yeah, but there's nothing I can do about it. I've sort of gotten used to it." I explained. "Honestly, I might have been consumed by those sad memories if it weren't for these new memories I've made with everyone else here."

"Really?" Kirumi asked.

"Well yeah. Everyone here has helped me take a step towards tomorrow, if I'm honest. I would certainly not still be here if it weren't for them." I told her as my small smile grew more and more. "After you had died, I was at a loss. I blamed myself entirely for your death, and finding Tsumugi as the culprit didn't do anything to help. It only made it worse since she was swiftly executed. It was as if I had been thrown down a dark pit that I had dug myself. I was trapped, wallowing in guilt for what had happened. I had completely lost faith in myself. I was ready to just give up trying. But then, Kokichi suddenly came and dragged me out of hiding. Then, when I tried to run away again, Shuichi stopped me and convinced me to stay. Kaede and I comforted each other with our mistakes, and Kaito helped build up my confidence again. Miu, Korekiyo, Keebo, Rantaro, Ryoma, Gonta, Angie, Tenko, Himiko, Maki, everyone somehow gave me hope again. Even without my memories of my life before all of this, everything that's happened here really has saved me in the end. It's as they say, it's the little things in life that make it all worthwhile. And for that, I couldn't be more grateful." I said before turning to Kirumi. "You've done the same for me too, you know. The words you told me before you died helped push me to try harder. To make sure your sacrifice wouldn't be in vain. I guess that's the reason I've continued to wear your gloves. A reminder…of both the stakes here, and of the determination you and everyone had given me."

I then realized I had started monologuing and quickly felt my cheeks start to burn a little. "S-Sorry for talking your ears off. I haven't really talked about this with anyone, so I sort of just dumped this on you."

"No, there's no need to apologize. I'm happy you felt like you could share that with me. I'm also happy to know that I helped you gain more confidence in yourself and your abilities even after my death. I mentioned this before, but I see potential in you. I still do in fact, and I am happy to hear that even when I was unable to help you, you managed to finally be able to see it yourself with the help of the people around you." Kirumi smiled.

"Yeah. Like I said, I really am grateful for what everyone's done for me. I don't really feel like I deserve it." I told her. "Which is why I'm ready to try to be more willing to trust them as much as they deserve. Something I haven't been doing as of late. In hindsight, what I've done is probably an injustice towards them when I think about how much they've done for me."

"But you just wanted to help them, didn't you?"

"Doesn't mean I didn't betray their trust. With Kaito especially, I feel like I really hurt him." I sighed. "Man, what have I become. In my desperation to protect them, I did something I hate more than anything else: I betrayed the trust of the people that I care about." I sighed again as I continued. "That just means I've got to make it up to them this morning. And I think with what I have in mind, I'll be able to do just that." Kirumi then looked at me before placing a hand on her cheek.

"You really do look different today."

"Pardon?"

"Forgive me for saying that without thinking. It's just something I noticed." Kirumi told me. "Yesterday, I was a little surprised that it was really you, Rin. Not only did it look like you were completely exhausted, it was as if you had reached your wit's end. You were more agitative then how I remembered, and it seemed like you were more on edge. But speaking with you now, it feels like you have become more tranquil. You're more relaxed and look well rested today, and you genuinely seem happier than you were yesterday."

"And that's really all thanks to you and Angie." I told her. "You both gave me a much needed reminder that I'm only human and need to take breaks and rely on others more than I do now."

"Only human…" Kirumi repeated. "I suppose, when I take that into account along with what you said earlier, it makes me think that perhaps I should take more time for myself. To be quite frank, I quite dislike the idea of taking time off for myself, but if taking time to do something for myself and my own satisfaction, then perhaps I might be able to serve others better as the Ultimate Maid. A principle of Selfless Devotion that takes my own satisfaction into account. It had never even occurred to me before." She then got up from her seat and gave me a bow. "Thank you, Rin. Truly. Because of you, I was able to re-examine my principles and discover a healthier mindset to which I can serve others with. For that, I'm thankful."

"I'm glad I could help you. It's the least I can do to pay you back for all you've done to me."

Ding dong bing bong!

Once again, the monitors flickered to life at the sound of the academy's chime, and Monokuma stood there in the middle of the cub's room once again, still at a standstill. He said nothing before the monitors turned off. "...Has he…been like that for long?" Kirumi asked me. "He was like that during the nighttime announcement yesterday, and when compared to how animated he was before I died, I find it hard to believe he's really become docile."

"Those bears are strange. Even I can't tell what's going on with them most of the time. All I know is that the whole lot of them are just annoying with how they get in our way constantly." I admitted. "Well, now that the morning announcement has gone off, the others are probably gathering at the dining hall right now. We should head over there so we can give them the surprise of a lifetime."

"Quite. Though I fear that the sight of their dead classmate back from the grave might be too much for them."

"I'm sure they'll be fine. They're made of tough stuff. Hell, I bet some of them like Kaito will be thrilled that you're back and welcome you with open arms." With that in mind, we left Kirumi's lab and headed down to the dining hall. As soon as we approached the outside of the room, I could already hear the others inside. They were arguing just like yesterday. Then, my next action will be of the utmost importance. I need to fix things, or else we'll be stuck in this feud. Although, before that happens, I do think that we can have a little fun with this. "Kirumi. Wait out here for a bit until I call you inside." I told the maid with a mischievous smile. Kirumi tilted her head in confusion before nodding and standing to the side of the door. I held back my own giggles as I opened the door to the dining hall, a stupid smile stuck onto my face. "Good morning everyone!" I shouted happily, causing everyone to turn to face me.

"Rin?" Kaede questioned as I walked in.

"..." Shuichi looked at me with a raised eyebrow before speaking. "You look…different today."

"Do I? I suppose I feel a lot better today. I feel like things are a lot clearer for now." I said. "But that's not important yet. How are you guys today on this fine morning?"

"He is definitely acting strange today." Maki noted.

"Yeah, I didn't expect Rinny to be so cheery." Kokichi added.

"Enough about that!" Kaito shouted. "Rin! We've talked to Angie and your student council, and they've said you've already performed the ritual! What happened last night!?"

"Geez, calm down Kaito. I know this has been stressing everyone out, myself included, but there's no need to get so riled up. Not anymore anyway." I told him.

"Not anymore?" Rantaro asked.

"It's part of the reason why I'm a bit more giddy today in all honesty." I said. "There are a lot of things I would like to discuss with you all regarding everything that's happened in the past few days, but I think we should speak about the most important thing that's happened now."

"Most important thing?" Tenko asked.

"Hey! You can come in now!" I called out. As soon as I called for her, the dining room door opened once again, and Kirumi walked in.

"Wha-!?"

"Kirumi!?"

"What in the-!?"

"Hello, everyone. I am glad to be back." Kirumi bowed with a smile. "I do hope we can get along as we did before." At that, nearly everyone started to freak out. Everyone started shouting in surprise at Kirumi's sudden return, with the only exceptions being those who know about Kirumi already. Just when laughter was about to break through my smile, I noticed something wrong with Kaito. He already looked paler than usual, but now he looked like he was about to faint.

THUD!

"K-Kaito!?" I shouted. Correction. He did faint. Shuichi, Kaede, Maki, and I all rushed over to Kaito's side and helped sit him up in a chair while Kirumi got him some water. We were able to wake up Kaito, who now looked incredibly sick to his stomach.

"S-Sorry 'bout that." He managed to say. "It's just…this is too much for me."

"You're telling me! You fainted!" I exclaimed. "And now you look like you might hurl!"

"Yeah…about that…" Kaito began, but Maki cut him off.

"He's an idiot who's afraid of occult stuff." She told me.

"...What?" I deadpanned.

"Hey! I-It's not that I'm scared!" Kaito shouted through his feverish shivers. "It's just how my body is! I'm fine when it comes to cramped areas, space, and zero gravity, but…ghost stories. Since I was a kid, whenever I hear them…I start to feel sick…" Kaito became more pale the more he spoke. "Cuz of that…I haven't been able to eat or sleep since all this crap started…" I stared at the 'fearless' astronaut for a few minutes before I nearly fell over laughing.

"Hahahahahahaha! Th-That's why you've been acting weird this entire time! That's…hilarious!" I exclaimed through my laughter.

"Oh my god, Kaito, You're even more pathetically hopeless than I thought." Kokichi added with his own giggles. "To let simple ghost stories bring you to your knees…that's just…wow…"

"Sh-Shut up you two!" Kaito yelled.

"Right, right." I said as I managed to contain my laughter. "Anyway, back to what we were discussing, I would like you all to welcome back our dear friend Kirumi."

"Yes. It is good to see you again, Kirumi." Shuichi told the maid. "But, I must ask. How did this even happen? Is it because of the ritual?"

"Yep yep! It's all because of the ritual." Angie exclaimed happily.

"But how? I mean, Kirumi was dead!" Kaede shouted in confusion.

"Does that mean we were right to think she and the others weren't actually dead?" Himiko asked.

"No, I do believe I was truly dead before the ritual." Kirumi said. "The last thing I remember before the ritual occurred was being stabbed by Tsumugi in the girl's bathroom, just as you all discovered during the first class trial Rin told me about."

"You mean, you actually were dead? But you're clearly alive now, so how can that be?" Maki asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I do not know. All I know is that after Angie performed the ritual, I woke up in her Research Lab, unsure of what was happening until she and Rin explained things to me."

"Yes. None of us have any clue as to what caused this. Kirumi was undoubtedly dead before. She herself admits that much, but here she is alive. There's only one answer that can explain all of this." I said. "The ritual was genuine and worked just like how the cubs told us it would."

"But that's not possible, is it?" Shuichi asked.

"Normally, I'd be inclined to agree." I nodded. "But in this place, where teddy bears torment us and pilot giant weaponized mechs, buildings grow from the ground and fall from the sky for no reason, and where we have a robot who acts like a normal person among us, I'm starting to believe what we consider 'normal' or 'possible' might be a bit too linear for this place. And as someone who tends to overthink things and over complicated subjects to absurdity, I can't come up with any other explanation other than the ritual worked just as we were told. And perhaps, that's what we should believe. I mean, how it happened doesn't really matter, does it? Kirumi is back somehow, and that's all that matters."

"...Yeah. I can't help but agree." Kaede nodded as tears formed in her eyes. "I'm so glad. I'm so glad that Kirumi is back."

"Not to be offensive, but may I ask why you all choose to bring Kirumi back?" Rantaro asked. "Again, don't take that the wrong way. I'm just as happy as anyone else that Kirumi is back, safe and sound. It's just that I'm curious as to why she was chosen over the others who are dead."

"Well, it was simple." Angie began. "We obviously couldn't bring back convicted murders, so Tsumugi and Kiyo were taken off our selection, leaving Miu and Kirumi. After putting it to a vote, Kirumi was chosen, though it was close."

"Both Kirumi and Miu would have been helpful to have back, but Miu is…Miu." Himiko said.

"Yes. With the way Miu is, even if she could have been of help to us, made us fear that she would end up causing problems with her vulgar nature, as well as being more likely to be tempted with future motives for the killing game. But with Kirumi, that hardly felt like a possibility."

"I see. It's certainly hard to believe that Kirumi would ever try to kill someone in this killing game for selfish reasons." Rantaro nodded.

"...Rin." Maki began to say. "What about that potential risk with the ritual you mentioned last night?"

"Yes. I have considered it after I saw that the ritual worked." I told her.

"Risk?" Kirumi asked.

"I may have been overcome with emotion when I saw a dear friend of mine be brought back from the dead, but I didn't let that stop me from making sure there wasn't some trickery at play." I stated. "I spent time talking with Kirumi this morning by myself actually, and nothing suspicious happened during that time. In fact, I made sure to set it up in a way to best test it. I asked Keebo and Gonta to return to their rooms while Kirumi and I left to explore the academy, meaning that if that risk I mentioned was in effect, Kirumi would have tried something. But she never did. And after speaking to her, I am completely confident that Kirumi is still Kirumi. Nothing about her seems off, and she sounds and speaks just like she did before she died." I then gave Maki a smile. "Everything is fine. I'm sure of it, but if you don't believe me, you can speak with her yourself to check." Maki continued to stare at me for a while before she sighed.

"Don't worry. I believe you. You have no reason to lie after all, and your intuition does seem to be reliable from what I've seen at least. I guess I'm glad you won't be doing something stupid and reckless." She said.

"Yeah. Actually, I've realized that what I've been doing so far has been pretty reckless. And also inconsiderate." I said, which seemed to confuse everyone else.

"What do you mean, Rin?" Angie asked.

"Let me get to the point. After the last class trial, I've been…on edge. It wouldn't be wrong to say I'd become more desperate in my attempts to prevent a murder here. After what happened with Tsumugi and Kiyo, I guess I…lost a bit of trust in others. I felt like I had to make sure that nothing happened to myself. To guarantee that things would be okay with my own hands. No hidden plans or traps, and no beating around the bush. I was ready to do almost anything to make sure no more murders happened. And yet, whenever I tried to bring something up, or point out a much needed change in our daily lives, you all would deny it and shoot it down. It's was as if you all were blinded by the reality that another murder could happen at anytime. Frustrating is an understatement to how I was starting to feel. And that's when Angie decided to make the student council, and I found a way to enact the changes that were needed. I still believe that everything the student council has done was for the best and that our actions help discourage murder." I took a deep breath before continuing.

"However, the student council had one flaw that I couldn't see: it lacked trust in others. In forming the student council, we began to neglect everyone else and their opinion. We never even gave you a chance after we formed the council." I then sighed as I put a hand on my forehead. "I'll be honest, this situation has been gnawing away at me. I've lost a lot of sleep these past few days just trying to come up with surefire solutions to this killing game. That mixed with everything that's happened made me…easier to aggravate. But after having it explained to me by a few different people, and actually getting some rest, I think I've come to a solution." I then turned my head to Angie and the other members of the student council. "I'm the president, right? Does that mean that you all will at least consider ideas and plans I want to do?"

"Of course. We chose you to be the president of the student council after all. We trust you and your judgment!" Angie told me, with the other members nodding with her.

"Even if that means the student council's disbandment?" I asked.

"Huh?"

"Disbandment?" Himiko repeated in a confused voice.

"Wait! You're actually going to disband the student council?" Shuichi asked me.

"Perhaps…under one circumstance."

"Circumstance?" Kaede questioned.

"The reason why Angie wanted to form the student council, and the reason most of us joined it, was because we felt that if we didn't do anything, we would just fall victim to the pattern that the killing game had entrapped us in."

"That's right. Four people were dead, and no one was doing anything to try to stop it." Angie said. "That's why I felt that if we tried to get rid of reasons for us wanting to leave, no more murder would happen."

"But there was no reason to go to such extremes, was there?" Shuichi asked.

"Wouldn't you say that our situation is already an extreme one? It's either live or die within this academy. When people's lives are on the line, don't you think our actions were at least justified in some way?" I asked. "However, you all didn't like it because you felt like we were taking away your freedom. But I have to ask, what freedom do we really have here in this place where we are expected to kill? In this place, is having the freedom to do whatever we want really such a good idea? Isn't that how Kiyo was able to do what he did to Miu?" Everyone went silent at that. It seemed that perhaps they were finally thinking about everything, and considering what I was trying to tell them. "This reminds me. Miu told me something shortly before she died."

"Miu said something to you?" Keebo asked.

"Yes. She mentioned something relating to all of this. I believe her exact words were 'In this place, anyone could kill anyone else at any time. You'd have to be a moron like Kaito if you believe no one is gonna kill again'. After that, I told her she was right to believe that since she was completely right, but that wouldn't stop me from at least trying to be proactive in trying to prevent such a tragic event from happening again. And those words I told her, were exactly what she said to Kiyo before she died."


"If that's the case, if there's always someone who's gonna want to kill, then we have to be proactive, don't we? We need to make it impossible for people to do this shit again! We can't just trust each other, which is why I made this baby!" Miu said as she gestured with her gun. "If I really am the most useful person here like he said, then I can do something as simple as this. I'm Miu fuckin' Iruma! My inventions will send the world into a new golden era! So nobody, and I mean nobody, is gonna kill when I'm around!"


"She gave her life for that." I muttered sadly. "That's why, I won't let anyone end up like her ever again. But to do that, I need you all to understand that we can't just do nothing while we're here. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, so we shouldn't just sit idly by without doing anything, believing that if we trust each other blindly or we pray hard enough, that this time will be different and no one will kill. So, I'm willingly to disband the student council and stop trying to force change onto you all without your consideration, but only if you all agree to be more willing in trying to be more proactive with preventing murder. Those are my conditions. What do you say?" I waited for any of them to answer my proposal. After a bit of waiting, Kaito, who seemed to recover a bit of color in his face, stood up from his seat and walked over to me.

"I hate to admit it, but you do bring up a good point. And, Miu did die trying to stop a murder from happening, so ignoring reality and not trying to be proactive…It feels as if we're stomping over her dying wishes." Kaito said. "While I believe in everyone here, I can't deny that shouldn't stop us from at least trying to actively prevent a murder from happening again. And everything you've done has been for that purpose." Kaito then scratched the back of his neck. "What you're saying about disbanding the student council really is just saying you want to try working together to actively try to prevent future murders, right? You want all of us to be united for that purpose instead of only having the student council do that?"

"That's right. It was selfish of us to try to deal with that burden ourselves without involving you guys." I nodded. "So, I want us all to move forward by working together. Just like how Kaede wanted us to do during our first few days here."

"Haha! That's right! So much happened, I nearly forgot about all of that." Kaito said with a smile. "Then, I'd be happy to help. You guys agree too, right?"

"...Yeah. I'd be happy to help." Shuichi nodded.

"Of course. Just like we agreed before…working together to escape and become friends, that wish is still possible." Kaede said softly with a smile. Slowly but surely, after those three, the others began to nod and agree to the plan. Even Kokichi, surprisingly enough, though he wasn't exactly vocal about it, and his mischievous smirk does cause me a bit of concern. And so, with everyone in agreement, the student council was disbanded, and in its place came a more united group. For the first time since we all met our first day, it felt like we had become united completely again. It felt like we might finally be able to work towards a better tomorrow. Whether that be mere survival or even escape, I wasn't sure, but there's now hope in my heart that things are sure to get better