Class Trial Resume
"Jayden killed Helen." She said plainly.
I felt a cold wind smash into us as everyone shivered suddenly.
"No. No that can't be it! Jayden killed Helen? That's so... f-fucking wrong!" Brenda shouted.
"Yeah! He wanted to protect us all right? He swore to all of us! There's no way it's him." Tommy agreed with her.
"Just look at the facts. They were the only ones in the locked room and besides didn't he do something that gave him the chance to set up the trap?" Melinda asked coldly.
Brenda froze up. Luca looked at her concerned. "What? What is it Brenda?"
"M-Me, Mikayla, and Sienna all took Helen away after the motive videos. It was a few hours later and we were in the rec room when Jayden approached us. He asked for Helen's key because he said he wanted to protect her tonight after what happened today and he needed to ensure her room would be safe. So she gave him her key and he left... with a duffel bag."
I felt a gasp catch in my lungs as my breath couldn't escape. Melinda only chuckled. "A duffel bag huh? And what do you think was inside it? Maybe... perhaps... the weapons from the school store?"
Paul smirked at Melinda. "Impressive deduction Melinda. You're quite useful."
"No! I don't want to accept that! He was very kind and sweet! He was always thinking of our best interests just like Helen was! He would never kill Helen!" Shana shouted angrily.
"But I mean the facts don't lie right? It must be true." Evelyn replied.
"I think it's true." Ollie shrugged like it wasn't a big deal.
"I don't wanna believe that!" Sienna cried.
"Maybe it was full of his exercise equipment." Luca suggested. "I mean because after seeing him stand up for Helen I can't accept this either."
I groaned out in frustration. "Well what do we do now? It seems like we're split down the middle right now."
Monokuma suddenly froze up. "Split? Did somebody say split?" He then began laughing happily and manically. "This is actually happening! I am so excited! Attention everyone I am proud to introduce to you all the morphenomenal trail grounds!"
"The what now?" Willie looked at him confused. "Is morphenomenal even a word?"
"It is now! The trial grounds are gonna morph so get ready kids cause we're taking the trial to the next level! Literally!" He shouted at us. Suddenly a panel popped up in from of him as he pulled out a Monokuma shaped key. He inserted it into the panel and turned it as we saw it light up in front of Monokuma. Suddenly the whole place lit up as I felt my podium drop a bit and then suddenly began levitating up! But then I saw that everyone's was following after me in a stair like pattern with Sienna next to me and I saw that Brenda would be that last one floating up. Even Helen's and Jayden's podiums went up with us. Everyone looked completely horrified as we floated up and soon we began mixing around. Those of us who don't think Jayden killed Helen, which consisted of Brenda, Willie, Luca, Sienna, Mikayla, Damian, Shana, and Tommy, were on one side and the others who think he did kill her, Paul, Melinda, Ollie, Evelyn, Marcel and myself, were on the other side.
Debate Scrum!
"There's no way Jayden would kill Helen! He's not that kind of person!" Brenda shouted.
Paul took the chance to rebuttal. "Just because you think you know a person doesn't mean you know what he's capable of."
"He would never hurt anyone! It's his duty to protect others!" Willie shouted.
Ollie took the chance to counter. "But his duty may lie more so to the person in his motive video."
"He defended Helen from Melinda. We can't forget that!" Luca argued.
Marcel surprised us all when he took the stand. "He probably just defended her so we would trust him more easily."
"But he made a promise to protect us all!" Sienna cried out.
Evelyn was next up. "Just because he said he would doesn't mean he will uphold that promise."
"He was so kind and caring. Can we really think that he killed Helen?" Mikayla asked.
I was the one to take this one. "He may not have thought he could have killed her either until that moment."
"I don't know if I trust what Melinda says. She has been very tricky with us." Damian suggested.
Melinda took that one quite personally probably. "I may play this game but the true killer is just as tricky. It's obvious why."
"I refuse to accept this! His bag may have been carrying some personal belongings." Shana growled out.
Ollie took this argument. "But no one can say for sure what he was carrying with him since no one checked the duffel."
"Can we really believe Melinda of all people about this?" Tommy asked.
I took it upon myself to finish this. "If we can't believe in her then how can we find the truth and survive?"
We pushed back against them and soon the six of us pushed the other eight's statements, arguments, and theories back before me and the other looked to them and shouted.
"THIS IS WHAT WE DECIDED!"
Full Counter!
We soon found ourselves lowered back into our rightful places as our argument had ended. Melinda smiled mischievously before speaking up. "He most likely left to the school store, torn down the lock, which he would be capable of with his strength, took the weapons, deceive Helen to giving him her key, and set up the murder."
"He also most likely knew where the weapons were since he had to look around the school store for the lock and chain used on the doors." Ollie added.
Paul then jumped on in too. "Also let's address the situation of his talent. The Ultimate Bodyguard knows all seven self defense arts so taking him on is a death sentence for anyone who opposes him. Not to mention he was the strongest person here. After all he beat Luca and Willie in that arm wrestling contest single handedly and those two have shown impressive feats of strength with their talents."
"Hey I was there too!" Marcel complained.
"Yes but you were just collateral damage." Paul sneered at him.
Marcel slumped at his harsh words. "That's mean man."
"Shut up." Paul ordered.
Mikayla was looking down before she looked up. "Um... now that I'm thinking about this more clearly I think I have to agree."
Brenda looked at her shocked. "What? Why Mikayla? Don't you want to believe in Jayden?"
"Of course I do. It's just that I didn't think this was really necessary until now." She then touched her handbook and loaded a picture of Helen's hands. "Can anyone tell me what they see here?"
"Um... her hands?" Marcel answered unsure.
"Yes but what about them?" She asked again to progress us toward the answer she was looking for. Soon I spotted it. "On the tips of her fingernails. Is that... blood?"
"Yes it is." She answered.
Status of Helen's Body Updated
"You really do have incredible eyesight! It's barely noticeable until you take the picture and enlarge it." Luca said in bewilderment.
"I thought it was irrelevant at first but after thinking about how Jayden was the one that killed Helen it suddenly made it very real." Mikayla said sadly.
'What does she mean it made it very real? What has Mikayla figured out? I need to know!' I pondered.
Non-Stop Debate!
Truth Bullets Loaded: Status of Jayden's Body, Status of Helen's Body, Bloody Knife, and Knife in Pillow
"I finally understand how Jayden is the direct cause of Helen's death." Mikayla said, wiping tears away.
"You're talking about the blood on her fingertips right?" Evelyn asked.
"How do you think she got blood there?" Mikayla asked.
Shana raised her hand. "Maybe the blood from her head when she was pushed into the knife in the pillow."
"The blood would have soak more than the very ends of her fingertips." Paul grunted at her.
"T-Then maybe it was from the blade on the ground?" Sienna suggested.
"What if it came from her attacker?" Luca offered up.
Truth Bullet Fired: Status of Jayden's Body
"I BELIEVE YOU!"
Consent!
"I see now. It's just as Luca said. The blood on her fingertips came from the one who killed her." I said softly.
"Then if that's the case then I was right." Luca said also upset.
"W-What do you mean?" Tommy asked lightly trembling.
"In Jayden's Monokuma File it stated that there were small markings in his right arm. When I took a picture of his body I happen to get his right arm in the shot as well. Once you look at it it will become clear as day."
I uploaded the picture and soon everyone was gasping. "There are e-exactly ten t-t-t-tiny punctures in his arm-m." Sienna said shakily.
Damian pointed to the photo. "Not only that but with how they are spread out it looks like something gripped his arm."
Mikayla nodded. "That is how they can be tied together. The blood of Helen's fingers came from the wounds she accidentally gave Jayden. It would also explain how she got the bruises from him when he tackled her."
"Wait you said she gave those punctures accidentally? How can you be sure?" Evelyn asked confused.
Mikayla nodded her understanding as she began explaining. "Well if you had someone charging at you, even if it's someone you know, your hands would have instinctively gone up to defend yourself. When Jayden made contact with her he most likely used his arm to push her back and that's what she took grip of. However once he pushed Helen into the pillow and the knife she most likely tensed up immediately from experiencing such intense pain. So much that her body's muscles clenched up and her nails dug into his skin enough to slightly cut them but not enough for them to bleed out."
"S-So then... it's really true?" Brenda asked between sobs. "He... really *hic* killed Helen?"
"There is no other explanation. Which now brings us to the even bigger truth. Who killed Jayden?" Melinda asked.
At first no one said anything before my eyes widened. "Don't tell me."
She nodded once she knew I was on the right track. "That's right. Jayden killed himself."
Once again the room froze from the freezing atmosphere that blanketed over the room with its icy tingle at yet another horrifying truth.
"He killed Helen... then he committed suicide?" Willie asked looking completely mortified.
"But that can't be true. I mean think about it! The whole point of the motives was to make us kill so we can get out and discover the answer! Why would he commit suicide if he already killed Helen?" Shana asked with absolute fluster.
Melinda nodded. "I can see your point. Why do something so meaningless if it doesn't benefit you in the end right? Well think about it like this. His talent was the Ultimate Bodyguard and he is tasked to protect people. What greater dishonor is there than killing someone you're meant to protect. He probably realized what he did when he killed her and instantly regretted it. It's also possible he thought that if he did manage to escape and sacrifice us all to get out the outside world might discover how he escaped and why we all died. If that were to happen they would probably just kill him for killing all of us or worse discharge him and let him live his life as a failure and dishonorable traitor. He'd never be employed, never be able to do the thing he loves, and never be looked up to by others. Those thoughts must have plagued his mind the moment he killed the little Miss President and so he decided to take the easy way out by killing himself."
Marcel nodded. "That does make a lot of sense. So then the dude really did it huh."
"I guess so." Mikayla whispered through her tears.
"It may be horrible but quite possibly for the best. After all the blackened is dead and if the blackened is not here to be punished then that means we all live right?" Ollie asked looking over to Monokuma.
"Well it does suck since that means I don't have a punishment to use but when it comes to suicide I guess there's nothing even I could do about it. I can't punish a spotless in place of them as it would violate the rules so I guess a dummy or something would have to do instead." Monokuma replied.
"Then we have no reason to argue about this. Jayden killed Helen and then himself out of guilt. Simple and yet effective for a class trial I'd say." Paul chuckled.
'It seems everyone agrees now.' I thought, 'Everyone can come to the conclusion that Jayden committed suicide and no one has to die again. But... is this really for the best?'
...
...
...
"No. I can't accept this."
Paul looked to me in confusion as his eyes narrowed at me. "What?"
"I'm sorry everyone but I simply cannot accept that Jayden would kill Helen or himself!" I shouted angrily.
Melinda looked flabbergasted at first before glaring at me. "And why is that?"
"It's just that I can't believe that a person like Jayden is capable of doing this not only to an innocent woman like Helen but to himself!" I growled at her not caring who I pissed off.
"We already discussed this! Jayden killed Helen because of his motive video then committed suicide from the guilt of killing her! What's stopping you from believing?" She yelled back.
"It because of that reasoning that I refuse to believe it!" I snarled through clenched teeth and quivering fists.
"Tch." Melinda scoffed as she tensed up in anger and glared at me.
"After everyone was arguing when we watched our motives, Jayden spoke to me in private and what he said hasn't left my mind." I told them as I recalled what he had told me.
"You're right. There's no possible way for me to protect 15 others from dying. But even knowing that I won't give up. As long as I can help even one person escape and fail everyone else or die trying then I am more than okay with that. I have failed others besides Tweety but I haven't let that stop me before. If someone needs protecting, I will keep protecting until I die!"
"He told me that even if he were to fail us he wouldn't stop trying to protect others since there is always someone looking for help. It was clear to me that he had a very unique mindset. One so focused on what he was doing and how he was gonna help us over helping himself. If he really wanted to kill himself, he would have done so for our benefit and left a suicide note telling us so that way we wouldn't make a mistake at the class trial. That is why I can't see how he'd just have that drastic change of heart and why I refuse to acknowledge it!" I shouted pointing at Jayden's crossed-out portrait.
Paul and many of the others were simply staring me down. "You imbecile! You really think such weak reasoning will change our minds? You're foolish to believe a dead man's words."
I grimaced as I felt a pang slam into my skull as a headache began to form. "I'd rather believe the words I found to be spoken with true intention then believe the deduction that counters those words." I pressed my forehead against the railing of my podium and applied pressure to try and help squeeze the pain away.
Mikayla sniffled as she wiped the oozing mucus dripping from her nose on her sleeve. "I know how you feel, Kai. I want to believe those words too. But let's face the facts. Jayden was the strongest one here. No one is capable of forcing him to do this or anything, right?"
'Wait what?' Suddenly I felt like a flash dashed into my thoughts at that moment as I slowly lifted my head up. It was a revelation of sorts as something suddenly clicked in my mind and the gears began turning again. "That... has to be it." I whispered.
Mikayla looked at me confused. "Huh? What is? Was it is something I said?"
"I finally see. I completely understand what it was we were missing." I told them.
Damian blinked at me. "What are you saying Kai? You're not making sense man."
"Mikayla is right. Jayden was the strongest one here and no one is capable of forcing him to do this." I repeated almost mindlessly like a zombie.
"Um, I still don't get it." Damian muttered.
"I know. I know who the real killer is who got Helen and Jayden killed." I told everyone.
Paul sneered at me. "We know who it is! All the clues and evidence point to Jayden committing this crime! Don't you dare tell me you're going to deny the conclusion you helped bring us to!"
"No the evidence doesn't lie! But someone here does." I growled lowly.
"Kai? Are you saying you know who the culprit is? That... that it's not Jayden?" Luca asked nervously.
I closed my eyes. 'This is it. The moment of truth we've been searching for. If I go through with this I will be condemning that person. Sacrificing a friend, another human's life. But this is the only way. After all more people will die if the blackened gets away with what they've done. Besides I have to avenge the deaths of two people who's only goals were to help everyone around them after they were killed in cold blood.' I spoke up after I had thought that to myself. "The true blackened of this case..."
...
...
...
My eyes opened as I looked to my right, five seats down. "It's you, isn't it Evelyn?"
Everyone's eyes quickly darted over to the foxy girl as she stared blankly at me in return. There was brief moment where no one could say anything at first before,
"What?" Evelyn asked in surprise as she blinked at me like her brain just registered what was said.
"I said you're the true blackened, aren't you Evelyn?" I repeated myself as my glare remained glued to her.
There was another brief second of silence before Evelyn reacted. "Pfft! Bahahahaha! How hilarious of you Kai! Truly that was a stupendous joke. But we need you to be serious about this. Our lives are on the line. So who do you really think it is?" The only response I gave her was the unfaltering narrowed eyesight and serious frown directly on her. Her smile quickly vanished. "You must be joking. You cannot believe it was me can you?"
"I don't want to believe it but I don't have another choice but to believe it right now. Please tell me why I am wrong." I pleaded her.
"What I want to know is why you do think it was me?" Evelyn bounced the question back to me.
After a second I looked up at her and replied. "Because you're the Ultimate Hypnotist. You could easily force Jayden to commit this crime by using your talent over hypnotism."
Her eyes glared at me after I explained. "That's it? You're throwing away everything we have debated about so you can blame it on my talent? That's very low of you Kai." Evelyn spat at me.
Paul's arms were now folded as his menacing gaze hadn't left me this entire time. "That seems much too convenient of an answer to this trial. After all we already discussed that the most obvious suspect is never the culprit as we proved with Melinda."
Melinda nodded in agreement. "That's right. Beside even if hypnotism was involved there's no way in hell it can be proved it was used with the bodies in question are unable to move and show signs of it."
"Actually they can and they do." I retorted. Melinda gave me a bewlidered look as did everyone.
Evelyn seemed to tense up as she began lighty tremble in her podium. "You're lying. You are! Which must mean you're the real killer!"
"No. I'm not the lier here. That's you." I almost snarled at her.
"Then why don't you prove it! There's no possible way to prove my hypnotism was used!" Evelyn shouted angrily at me.
'No there is a way to prove it. I just need to show off that piece of evidence I found.' I thought as our next debate began.
Non-Stop Debate
Truth Bullets Loaded: Status of Helen's body, Status of Jayden's Body, Monokuma File #1, and Monokuma File #2
"You're just using my talent to your advantage to try and kill us!" Evelyn shouted accusingly as she pointed at me. "You're the killer, aren't you?"
"But there might be a good chance he's not lying. I bet he might even be on the right track." Luca defended.
"How can you believe such a baseless accusation?" Melinda growled at him. "Did we not already discuss that Jayden is the culprit?"
"Jayden had to have been the one to actually do the killing but if there's a chance that someone made him commit the crime then we shouldn't overlook it." Brenda replied.
"But Jayden couldn't be forced to do anything! He was the steongest person here! I am not capable of forcing him to do anything!" Evelyn argued. "Besides it's physically impossible to prove that my hypnotism was used!"
Truth Bullet Fired: Status of Jayden's Body
"YOU'VE GOT THAT WRONG!"
Counter!
"That's a very interesting way you summarized that Evelyn. That also is the reason why I know without a doubt you're lying right now." I told her.
"Huh?" Evelyn gasped in confusion.
"What are you babbling about? Stop beating around the bush and spit it out already!" Paul yelled out.
"In CSI and detective shows, it's a proven fact that a dead body is just as capable of telling a story as a living one can and Jayden's body has sung its song already." I quickly loaded up the picture and pointed out his eyes. "Notice how one of Jayden's eyes is shot wide open as if it suffered a massive deal of pain from dying but the other one is almost completely shut?"
"B-But isn't that just because... he was in p-p-pain?" Sienna asked.
I shook my head at Sienna. "That's the way it does look but there's more to it than we first thought. Evelyn remember what you told me about your hypnotism?"
"I did notice the man was still under my hypnotism since my methods seem to have rather unusual side effects." I looked down at her and blinked in shock. "Hypnotism can have side effects?" She shrugged at me. "Nothing bad like prescription medicines have with vomiting, diarrhea, or death, I mean more so physical things..."
"You told me that your hypnotism has a very unique side effect. Nothing like induced vomiting but physical ones. Would one of the more common ones be the twitching of an eye by any chance like the same eye twitching side effect Marcel had?" I asked her.
"Wait what?" Marcel looked susprised.
Damian looked at Marcel angrily. "You really are an idiot. You were hypnotized the first day. Why else were me and Sienna right there when you woke up?"
"But she said I won her bet." Marcel replied.
"S-She lied." Sienna told him plainly.
Marcel looked shocked as he gaped at Evelyn.
Ollie then joined in. "Yes I witnessed this myself when you chased those two down. I happened to notice Marcel's eye twitching like Kai said."
"I shall make you see what I see!" Evelyn bursted out.
"Fine yes my hypnotism can give people side effects physically but that doesn't prove that I killed them. Why do you hate me Kai? After all we've done for each other why are you being so persistent about this?" Evelyn cried out with what I knew were fake tears.
I shook my head. "We hadn't done anything for each other. So stop holding back and tell everyone how we can tell that your powers were used on Jayden!"
Her tears were suddenly transformed into anger as she glared. "I hate you! I will prove my innocence! You can't beat me traitor!"
Rebuttal Showdown
Truth Blades Prepared: School Store Weapons, Bloody Knife, Status of Jayden's Body, and Status of Helen's Body
"I'm telling you there is no way to prove how Jayden's eyes ==/== were positioned shows he was under my hypnotic suggestion. He very well could have been cringing from ==/== the pain of slicing his neck open!
"No there is a way to see if Jayden was hypnotized. All we have to do is see the difference between the bodies." I refuted.
"That doesn't change anything. It's obvious both victims were in pain. You can tell just ==/== by looking at them. So that's that. Your little charade is over now. You have no way to dispute me. Especially since there is no difference with ==/== the bodies!"
Truth Blade Used: Status of Helen's Body
"I'LL CUT YOU WORDS DOWN TO SIZE!"
Counter!
"No. You're wrong. There is a very notable difference between Helen's body and Jayden's body. I am of course referring to their eyes." I loaded up both pictures of them. "Helen does look like she was in pain with both eyes wide open but why is it that Jayden's eyes don't have the same consistency as Helen's? If they were both in shock from the pain of death then why isn't Jayden's eyes both wide open. They both could also be closed shut but the eyes are vastly different with their positioning. My only theory for that is because one is shot wide from the pain while the other twitched shut from your hypnotism."
"N-No that's wrong. That surely can't be enough to persuade anyone!" Evelyn shouted.
"If it's not enough then I believe I can help furthur Kai's theory with another inconsistency I discovered between the bodies." Mikayla suddenly popped in the conversation.
Evelyn's eyes widened at her. "M-Mikayla? You too?"
The Ultimate Veterinarian looked down from her. "I'm sorry Evelyn. Believe me no one wants this to happen but we don't want to die either." With that said she loaded up a picture of the stab wounds on each body. "When I saw Helen's head wound I noticed that the wound was perfect and how it was the only one on her. I now know that because of this Helen had died instantly. But look at the one Jayden has."
We looked at Jayden's cut and I noticed something very peculiar about the wound. "It's jagged on the left side of his Adam's apple but a smooth cut from that point on."
"Isn't that strange? Why do you think the left side of his neck is all cut up so badly yet turns into a clean cut the rest of the way?" She asked us.
We thought for a moment before I heard Luca speak up. "Well the only thing I could imagine is that the knife was shaking as it went across his throat. I mean the knife is consistent with the wound being one straight, connected line but the beginning of the wound still had more open wounds like it was trembling."
"That's because that is exactly what happened. I believe Jayden had begun slicing his neck while his arm trembled. Now why would his arm tremble?" Mikayla asked again.
"W-Well obviously because the big guy was scared." Evelyn answered.
"It is possible but most likely not the correct answer. If he was scared of dying he probably wouldn't have commited suicide and if he was scared and then just braced himself for the inevitable pain then why not just do the slice fast? Why prolong the suffering by going slow then fast and wouldn't his eyes be closed if he was bracing himself?" Mikayla told her.
"So you're saying there are too many inconsistencies for that to be the answer? Then what other possibility is there?" Paul asked.
After a second to think something came to mind. "What if he was resisting?"
"Huh? He was resisting?" Brenda asked surprised.
"That must be it and since we already discussed that no one could have been in the room besides the two victims and Helen was the first to die, then the only one Jayden could have been resisting was himself. And the only reason he was even fighting himself is because of the suggestion Evelyn put him under." I explained to them all as everyone's stares were not focused on me but on the suspect in question as Evelyn's podium became the new hot seat.
"Evelyn? Are you really responsible for two deaths of our friends?" Shana asked looking mortified.
"No..." Evelyn whispered.
"Why would you do this to them? Did you hate us all that much?" Marcel asked.
"No..." Evelyn repeated a bit louder.
"P-Please... tell us why you did this." Sienna begged.
"I... said... no... nononoNoNoNoNoNOOOOOOOOOO!" Evelyn suddenly began screaming as her eyes grew wide and the blood vessels were now very visible on them as she held her fists up at us.
"Gah!" Sienna cried out!
"No! I refuse this! I refuse everything you've said about me! I didn't kill them! It wasn't me!" She screamed like a psychotic patient at a mental hospital.
"Evelyn please. That's enough. Stop fighting us. You don't understand how painful this is for us." I pleaded her.
"How painful it is for you? What about me? How do you think I feel! I don't wanna die either! This world still needs me! Are you willing to try and sacrifice me for your own selfish purpose?" Evelyn asked very angrily.
"No of course not! No one wants this. No one wants to die but that didn't stop you from sacrificing not only Jayden but Helen too. Besides this is a trial where the criminal mastermind has to pay for their crimes. Unfortunately that means your time is up." I regretfully replied.
She shook her head at me. "My time is not up. It will never be up. It wasn't me! I couldn't have gotten them killed and I can prove it!"
Damian looked at her shocked. "Really? How?"
"Simple. In order for Jayden to have done what he did through my hypnotism, I had to give him orders in which to follow. However there is one thing I never even knew about that would prevent him from carrying out what he had done. That would be the school store and its contents. I had never been to the school store, none of you can prove that I was. Also I wasn't at that meeting you all had the first day you explored the school and discussed what you found. Therefore I wouldn't know that the school store was loaded with weapons. Weapons and items that Jayden grabbed and used for the murder. So I had no way of telling him to go get the weapons from the school store specifically, so that's why I can't be the culprit. It must be Jayden since he did set it up and carry out the murder. He already had knowledge of the school store." Evelyn lectured us.
"I'm sorry Evelyn but once again you're lying. I know it." I told her.
"No I am not lying!"
"You are!"
"Believe me!"
"I can't!"
"Why?!"
Truth Bullet Fired: Tommy's Account
"THIS IS MY ANSWER!"
Break!
"Because of what Tommy told me is why I can't trust you." I told Evelyn begrudgingly.
"Huh? Me?" Tommy asked confused.
"Don't you remember Tommy?" I asked but instead of waiting for him to answer I simply began playing the video of his testimony.
"Wait how do you know Jayden and Helen locked the school store? I was the only one who actually saw them." He chuckled at me before continuing. "Well it's because Jayden told me. Not just me he told everyone else about the school store being locked up. So those who were at our meeting and those who were not were all made aware that this dangerous place was inaccessible..."
"Oh that's right. I forgot I said that." Tommy said lightly blushing from embarrassment.
"You must be really bright. Well brighter than Marcel." Shana groaned.
"Hey!" Marcel shouted at her.
"Well at least it was a comment as much as an insult." Tommy shrugged.
"Hey!" Marcel shouted again even more annoyed.
"Tommy told me that Jayden had told everyone the school store was locked up. This included people who already knew about the school store and the weapons inside and those who didn't know. For those of you who weren't there can you tell me if what Tommy said is true for you?" I asked looking at Paul, Melinda, Ollie, and Sienna.
"Yes he did inform me the store was inaccessible." Paul answered.
Melinda nodded in agreement. "I was told the same thing."
"As was I." Ollie added.
Sienna only nodded as well with no verbal response.
I then turned back to Evelyn. "If those four heard that from Jayden it seems odd that you were the only one who didn't hear it from him. I would ask if you heard it from him but I know you'll just refuse it. But Tommy can prove that you know. Tommy care to explain how you know?"
Tommy nodded, fully understanding it was all on him now. "Yeah. You see Jayden made it clear I was the last person he told about the school store lock by saying that everyone else had already been informed. Which means that he had already told Evelyn about it before seeing me."
"Even though Evelyn might not have been outright told why the school store was locked, just being told that would indicate there was something dangerous in there we didn't want people getting to. Evelyn most likely put two and two together and that's how she would have been able to get Jayden to retrieve the weapons from the school store." Luca theorized.
"It should also be noted she may not have specified the exact weapons for Jayden to grab since she hasn't been inside. But because Jayden already knew what was inside the store after searching for the lock and chain in there, all she needed to do was give him a brief summary of the kinds of weapons and items to bring to Helen's room and he would have been able to grab those specific weapons on his own." I told them.
"T-There's a hole... in your argument. There has to be." Evelyn sounded defeated as she attempted to fight back.
"No there is no hole. All the gaps have been filled. I'll show you there isn't any chance for you to refute us any longer. I'm gonna go over your case from the beginning so you can just admit to what you've done." I said softly to her as I closed my eyes.
Closing Argument
Act 1
"Everything started yesterday after we were shown our motive videos. Everyone was freaked out and was pushed beyond emotional stability because of what we each witnessed. Because so many of us were on edge some of us began fighting amongst each other. However one of us was pushed so far they were willing to commit a murder. But they weren't planning on doing it themselves. After everyone had dissipated, our culprit began finalizing a plan most likely in the privacy of their room when someone knocked on the door. That person was Jayden who was going around to speak with everyone after he and I had our conversation. He had decided to pay our culprit a visit but that would be a poor choice for him because something would happen that he would not be prepared for. He was suddenly hypnotized and told to commit a murder. The target was Helen. Whether it was because he was told to specifically kill her or not is unknown right now."
Act 2
"Now under the culprit's hypnotic suggestion, the first thing he had to do was get the material needed for the murder. He went back to his room to grabbed a duffel bag and then made his way to the school store. Since we found no evidence as to what he used I can only assume he used his bare hands to break the doors open. After all he was very strong and with the doors being made of wood, it would provide little challenge for him to tear the handles, lock, and chain off with ease. Now having access to the store he quickly loaded up his bag with the crossbow, an arrow, and two of the knifes in the glass cabinet and a saw from somewhere else inside the school store. After retrieving those items there was just one last thing he needed. That was the key to Helen's room so he could set everything up."
Act 3
"After he got it from Helen and the others he went into her room and began setting up the murder. First he sawed out the hole in the wall and bookcase to create an opening between Helen's and Melinda's rooms. He then loaded the crossbow with the single arrow he brought and placed it in front of the hole and set up the books in front to hide it from plain sight. This was all set up to frame Melinda as the killer. But Jayden did one thing to it. He made sure the arrowhead was visible and I'll explain why later on. He then planted a knife into the pillow on the bed by stabbing it in the back but not all the way through. This was meant to hide the knife from sight and disguise the actual means he was going to use to kill Helen. He most likely took the duffel bag and saw and hid them in his room to hide the incriminating evidence. We might not know since we didn't think to investigate there."
Act 4
"Soon nighttime came along and Helen went back to her room with Jayden there as well. She didn't have any suspicions that he would harm her since he was the Ultimate Bodyguard but that belief is what got her killed. I believe at some point she had sat down on the bed and was preparing to go to sleep. However I bet she noticed the arrowhead sticking out of the books on her bookcase and Jayden used that as a trick to make her believe the arrow was about to be fired. He then charged at her to make it seem like he was trying to protect her. Helen did not dodge as she allowed herself to be tackled by Jayden which pushed her and Jayden up the bed. This over course is what killed her as Jayden shoved her head into the pillow... and the knife, killing her instantly. But not before her body stiffened and dug the small cuts into his arm leaving behind the connecting evidence that Jayden was indeed the one that killed Helen."
Act 5
"Soon Jayden stood up and began carrying out the final command of his hypnotized mind. He pulled out the extra knife he had taken and placed it against his throat. He was most likely suppose to kill himself instantly so that it would seem like he committed suicide but the culprit probably didn't realize something would go awry. Jayden somehow managed to take some control back but not all. As a result he was cutting his skin as his arm shook, trying to resist slicing his throat. However I guess the suggestion was still too powerful for even him to resist forever. As soon as the knife touched the center of his neck he lost his battle and sliced himself open the rest of the way, ending his life. But giving in to the hypnotism might have made his eye twitch and remain that way after his last breath leaked out his throat along with his blood, leaving behind the most incriminating clue yet. Yet our culprit believed their powers wouldn't have been resisted so they relaxed in their room, rest assured that their plan would go through without a hitch. Yet despite not having any physical influence with the crime, this person was the only one who forced Jayden to commit it for them. This person is the only one who could have forced Jayden to do this, the only one who could have done this without getting directly involved, and the only one who could have made such futile errors by not checking the crime scene for clues that could have pointed them out as the true killer."
"That is the truth behind this crime of yours. Isn't that right, Evelyn Sanford the Ultimate Hypnotist?" I asked after giving my closing argument.
Break!
"So how about it? Did I leave anything out?" I asked staring blankly yet sadly at Evelyn.
"..."
"..."
"...No."
Willie gasped as he covered his mouth. "Did you say no? Does that mean you admit it?"
Evelyn didn't respond as she looked away, angry and upset. Melinda chuckled. "Wow. Who would have thought she'd be so devilishly clever? She even had me on the ropes and I'm the one always dangling the prey off my rope traps."
"Just shut you're pie hole woman!" Willie shouted at her.
"So then this is where it ends. About time. I was getting bored with discussing this useless endeavor. Monokuma, I believe none of us have anything else to talk about anymore." Paul called over to him.
"Roger Dodger! Now then please look down at your screens and cast your vote! You only get one so make double sure you vote for who you wanna vote for. Also make sure you do vote before time runs out or you'll regret it in your next life!" Monokuma threatened us with as the screens in front of us lit up.
I saw sixteen buttons appear with each of our faces on them to the left and a thirty second timer on the top center of the screen. I quickly scanned the screen and soon found Evelyn's face as I tapped on her. Soon a picture of her appeared on the right and a confirmation appeared asking if I was sure I was casting my vote for her. Reluctantly I hit yes to confirm my vote. My timer stopped but the screen did not go away as I assumed everyone else was still voting. After a few seconds the screen flashed off. "Now then let's see the results!" Monokuma cheered.
Soon a big screen descended down from above and quickly turned on to show the caption "Voting Results!". It then showed all our names as thirteen marks appeared under Evelyn Sanford and one under Jayden Hutchinson as a picture of Evelyn appeared on the right with confetti flowing down, indicating she was the one who received the most votes. 'Guess Evelyn still had hope someone would vote with her.' I thought sadly as I looked down in shame, knowing full well what I've done to her.
"The blackened has been selected by majority vote. Did you make the right choice or the dreadfully wrong one? Let the unveiling of the blackened commence!" Monokuma gleefully called out as the lights went out. The next thing we saw was a lottery ball cage machine light up in front of us. The most notable thing about it was the fact it was called the Monokuma Vote which had a Monokuma dressed in a Statue of Liberty attire. A drum roll sounded and it began spinning as we heard plastic balls being thrown around inside. Soon it stopped as a purple ball fell out onto the metal rail underneath and slowly rolled down the track, stopping at the end to reveal a pixelated face of Evelyn on the ball. Suddenly the bottom of the machine popped open as a Monokuma holding American flags in each hand began waving them and coins with his face spilled out on the ground like we won the lottery. But none of us felt like we won anything.
Class Trial End
And there you have it folks. Evelyn has been convicted of the murder. Why do you think she did it? What could have persuaded her to commit such an act of treason against our heroes? Find out in the final part of the chapter and until then hope this despair fills you until that last part is posted because I sure will be! Puhuhuhu!