Hello everyone. I would just like to start this off with saying, welcome to this little project of mine. I've had this full idea in the back burner for months, but never really tried putting it together, until right now at least. I hope you guys will have as much reading this story as I will surely have with writing it. Just to note, I know at some points, I'm gonna make a mistake somewhere in this, and it could happen repeatedly. If it ever does fully come down to that, I would appreciate you all letting me know, just don't be rude about it. My goal for this is just to complete it to the fullest. Even if it doesn't become really well loved, it will still hold a special place in my heart to just have a completed project done, when it comes to writing, as I've never been the writing or story type before. Well anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this story, or at least the "prologue" of the game. I'll be leaving a link with the official art of all the characters (it's really a picture of all their pretrial faces, which will get updated with each chapter and trial). /02971pe0iv5x
Day: ?
Time: ?
Location: ?
POV: ?
Well this is an interesting way to tell off my story, huh? I guess for now this is just a blank void before I tell you exactly who I am. I'll get to that in a moment, but it's very important that we set the stage before the show actually begins. Let the curtain rise of a viewing of a school, the most powerful and elite school in all the world: Hope's Peak Academy. Unfortunately… that school has already been brought to ruin by an event known as the Tragedy, effectively shutting down the school and all it's major connections.
The tragedy claimed many lives throughout the years it was happening, tearing many people apart from the family and friends that they held dear to them. In all of that time, the world could only majorly be knowledgeable about one thing, the ideal that began the incident in the first place: despair. With the idea of despair in mind, people simply gave in and mass chaos spread across the entire world, essentially being a worldwide purge. As people know, all things come to an end, and as such, so did the tragedy. Many survived and tried their best to return to their normal lives. I was one of those survivors, but my life wouldn't stay safe and normal for long.
That should be enough of setting the stage to get to the introduction of my character, right? Very well then, without further delay, allow me to introduce my character to do. My name is Kenichi Seno, and if you couldn't tell already, I have a fondness for the theatrics and character play. There exist many people in the world that possess a talent that they keep close to their hearts which define them. As for me, I'm one of them, with my fondness of puppets and showtime, which got me my title of the Ultimate Puppetmaster. Whether it's with no strings or with them, puppets were my world and I devoted myself to them.
As for the story of this act, I will be giving an inside view of my perspective as i meet up with other teenagers my age and we find ourselves in a situation that we never thought we would find ourselves in. Of course, every now and again, the scene will change and I'll show you the perspective of my friends as they grow and progress as their own characters as well. This story will be more than just a simple telling of our lives, but a multi-perspective view, so you guys get to see how they feel during certain moments and learn their thought processes as well. With no further ado, let's start our story.
Day: 1
Time: 9:00 A.M.
Location: First Floor Classroom
POV: Kenichi
"Mmmmm…. N-nngh? H-huh? Wh-what happened?" I was asking myself as I found myself resting with my head on a desk. It appears that I was in a classroom and supposedly took a nap.
Though this was weird, because surely I remember, walking into school for my first day, though my vision was fading a bit before I even made it to a classroom. "Maybe someone brought me here as I passed out and left me to rest here. However… why would I be brought to a classroom and not where the infirmary should be?" With this thought in mind, I figured to look around the room a bit as well.
This was when I noticed something that really caught my eye, that being a note that was on the chalkboard in the front of the room.
"All students should walk around the first floor and introduce yourselves to each other. There are only sixteen of you in this class, so you shouldn't take too long."
I was reading the note to myself, as I figured a teacher or someone left it behind for all the students. "Once everyone has gotten familiar with one another, you are all to meet in the gym, so that you can get acquainted with your new headmaster."
Not thinking anything else about the note, I travelled outside of the room I was in to look for the other students in my class. Surely, I found one immediately. Although, by find, I mean I literally bumped into one as soon as I opened the door.
"O-ow… I'm sorry. Are you ok?" I asked the person before looking over at them. What I saw was a blue haired girl wearing a green school uniform with a yellow scarf.
"O-oh yes. I'm fine, please do not worry. More so I'm glad to see that you regained consciousness after I found you lying on the ground" the girl said to me. It seems that she was the one who brought me to this classroom.
That was when I realized that there was another girl standing next to her. This girl appeared to be taller than her, wearing a white tank top, purple sweatpants, boots and a silky blue bandana wrapped around her forehead.
"I just happened to be around at the time as she asked me to bring you here, while also trying to find a faculty member" the blonde girl with the bandana said. This brought on the question of why they weren't able to find any faculty members.
"Say, are you two both here for the freshman orientation?" I asked them both, getting a nod in response from the two girls.
"I think we're supposed to introduce ourselves to each other then. My name is Kenichi Seno, and I'm the Ultimate Puppetmaster." I introduced myself and smiled at the two of them, seeing the blue haired girl being more interested than the other one.
"Oh, I believe I have heard of you. You're regarded as the most riveting story teller with a mastery of the puppet arts. I was always very interested in seeing one of your shows, but I never got around to doing so." I was blushing a bit as she was clearly very interested in my own work, which was certainly nice to hear as she was very nice.
With the blush still present on my face, I couldn't help but to rub the back of my head in embarrassment as well. "W-well thanks. I've never had someone quite so interested and enthusiastic about my work before, so it's a bit of a surprise to hear such high praise from you."
The blue haired girl just gave me a soft smile while the other one didn't have much of a change in expression since we started talking.
"O-oh yea. I never really got your names yet either…" it was kinda obvious I was still a bit embarrassed but neither of them seemed to mind or care.
Seeing as the topic of discussion went back to our introductions with each other, the two girls gave a simple nod.
"That is correct, isn't it? Very well then, please allow me to be the first to introduce myself" the blue haired lass said as she boldly propped her hands to her hips, the gaze of her pink eyes focused squarely on me.
"If you're ever in the the need of someone quick to save your pet or you need to be rescued, you can count on me, Mihiro Kozuki, the Ultimate Rescuer!" The girl, now identified as Mihiro, gave a strong introduction, better than my simple one at least.
I can tell she's an enthusiastic and selfless individual from that alone.
The two of us had a light chuckle as we equally found her introduction a bit humorous, to say the least. After we had calmed down, I had turned my attention to the other girl in the room as she was about to introduce herself as well.
"I'm not too big on introductions or whatever… The name is Okano Miraki, and I'm called the Ultimate Bellydancer…" well she certainly was different, though with a tinge of disinterest in her words. "A bellydancer, huh? I've never actually seen one before, but I thought they usually wore…" I stopped myself before making them think I was some kind of pervert.
"Yea… well I chose to wear casual clothes, so as to not wear that kind of shit all the damn time. Besides I don't particularly care about my talent that much. So I'm a bellydancer, not like everyone needs to fucking know about it…" Hearing her talk about her talent like gives me the impression that she doesn't particularly like it.
"So, why keep the talent if it's not anything you are completely interested in?" I decided to ask her, just to see if I could maybe get some kind of answer from her. "That's not any of your damn business, pipsqueek…" That was the last thing she said to us before she walked out of the room.
"Well… that didn't seem to have lasted long.." Mihiro said as she was trying to lighten the mood a bit. "I'm sure she'll be fine, but let's give her some space, and try not to bring up belly dancing again, unless she's ok with it, alright?" she looked to me to make sure that I was understanding what she was saying, to which I gave her a simple nod.
"Now then, we should head out of this classroom and try to find our other classmates. We're supposed to meet the headmaster at the gym after we're done. We shouldn't keep them waiting, Kenichi." Mihiro began to walk out the room, to which I followed after her.
Day: 1
Time: 9:25 A.M.
Location: First Floor Hallway
Once the two of us walked out of the classroom, I was reunited with the grand hall that I saw before I had passed out earlier. Actually, my earlier question I was wondering why I wasn't taken to the infirmary came back up when I saw the infirmary very closeby to the room we were just in.
"I tried to bring you into the infirmary before, to have you lay down, but it was locked for some reason… I tried to call out to someone in there, like a nurse, but no one was answering me, which is strange." It seemed like that answers that, but it certainly was slightly strange… maybe the nurse was just to school, on the first day?
"I'll tell you what else is strange, the fact that there are no classes that are going on right now.." a new, deeper voice was heard by the two of us, causing both of us to shriek in surprise before turning around to see whom the voice belonged to.
The person behind us was a dark-skinned male, with a growing beard and goatee. that was a bit taller than Mihiro, probably about as tall as Okano. He wore a beanie that rocked the colors of dark gray and navy blue. As for his hoodie, it was an army based design with the name "Fort Jackson" on it. Was this guy some kind of hard core military affiliate?
"Are you two really that surprised to hear the voice of a classmate?" he asked as he rubbed the back of his head.
"O-oh I'm very sorry about that; you just surprised us, is all. My name is Mihiro Kozuki and this is Kenichi Seno" Mihiro informed the name male about who we were. "You can call me Michael Conley, and as for my talent, let it be known that I'm the Ultimate Historian." After he was done introducing himself, he yawned and put his hands inside his pockets.
"Oh yea… and if you couldn't tell, I'm an exchange student from the United States." It wouldn't be that hard to figure out, but it was still good to get confirmation about that from him.
So he's a history buff, huh? Based on his demeanor, he sounds like he studies as much as he can, even if it costs him some sleep.
"Wait a minute Michael." It would seem Mihiro wanted something that she wanted to confirm with the dark male. "Hm… what is it, Mihiro?" Oh yea, I think there was something that Michael said that was very curious as well. "You said that there weren't any classes going on right now?"
He nodded and began to speak again about his findings. "Yes, there wasn't anyone in the classrooms. No teachers, no students, not a single soul to be found. Intriguing, don't you think? A large and well known school such as this practically empty is not something you'd expect."
He did have a point. Why wasn't there anyone else here? "Anyways, I've still got to introduce myself to some of the others and then head to the gym. You two should hurry up as well." he said to us before he walked away, reading a book he pulled out from his pocket.
"So not only is the infirmary locked, but there aren't any classes going on, nor are there any teachers in sight. This truly is getting stranger by the minute, don't you think?" I asked MIhiro as I pushed my glasses back up. What was going on with this school, especially on the first day? "Well.. for now, I think we should continue finding the others, so we can hurry to the gym and ask the headmaster some questions."
Mihiro nodded and walked with me away from the infirmary as we looked for another classmate of ours. It wasn't long until we encountered a tall male with wild brown hair, a ripped up brown and yellow shirt, jeans and what appeared to be a clawmark scar across his left eye. "U-um… excuse me?" I couldn't help but to be a little intimidated by this guy.
This guy turned his attention to us and his intimidating stare was sending chills down my spine, and did he actually have fangs?! "You two, are you needing of something from me?" We heard him ask us a question, with a slight broken english grammar, and it sounded like he had a noticeable accent.
"You are classmates, yes? I assume you are wondering about who I am, correct? My name is Dmitri Bykov. The talent I've been given is the Ultimate Beast Wrestler, though, that is, how you say, exaggerated…" he said and chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head. "M-my name is Kenichi." I said to him before Mihiro introduced herself too.
"Say Dmitri, would you happen to be an exchange student from Russia? I'm just basing this from your name and your accent…" Mihiro explained herself as she asked for Dmitri's origin, to which he blushed a little and nodded, sounding a little shy towards her.
"Th-that is right. I am from Siberia, and was then brought to Japan to attend school here. I was recruited after the scout saw my performance in a circus show."
That certainly caught my attention, and I could certainly see Dmitri being part of a circus troupe; he just gave off that kind of vibe to me.
Though, hearing him talk about being recruited during a circus performance, made me think back to his talent. "Say, you said your talent was a bit exaggerated right. Are you simply an animal tamer?"
"Ah yes, that is more of the term that I would say describes my role in the troupe. Though I guess you could say my way of taming the wild beasts is quite simply wrestling them… but I never actually hurt them; I have a love for all animals and beasts. If anything, I'd want to protect them all."
Hearing this, I could see Mihiro getting really excited. I guess that's what happens when an extreme animal lover finds another extreme animal lover. Perhaps I should leave them alone to talk.
"Hey Mihiro, I'm gonna go on ahead and find some of the others" with a wave off, Mihiro stayed behind to talk more with Dmitri, the male blushing and looking nervous from being left alone with her.
Time: 9:57 A.M.
Location: Nearby Gym
"Let's see… out of all 15 of the classmates I'm supposed to have, I've met four of them so far, which means that I still have 11 more to find… This school is pretty big, so it really makes me wonder how long it'll take me to find all of them and then find my way to the gym…"
I was just talking out loud to myself as I was thinking of how to find the others I was supposed to meet. I sighed as this was gonna be a long search, no matter how fast I moved.
Although, with my small stature, I wouldn't be able to move as fast as many others anyway. I stopped when I came across a set of men's and women's bathrooms in the hallway. "There might be someone in there, so I might as well check.."
As soon as I was about to walk into the bathroom, another male walked out and I accidentally bumped into him. "Oh, I'm sorry about…." When I looked at him, I realized I was only at his chest level, which prompted me to look up and step back a bit, so that I could see his face.
This new person was quite big, even taller than Dmitri was, not to mention much bulkier as well. Even though he was dressed in an arrangement of black and white robes, which covered most of his body, except his left shoulder and arm, I couldn't help but think he could easily snap me in half.
Why were there so many intimidating looking people at this academy? "Oh, it's quite alright. I just hope that I didn't harm you in any way, small one. Are you ok is what I should be asking." Even though he looked very threatening, he actually sounded like a pretty nice guy.
"Oh… yea I'm fine, you don't need to worry about me." I said to the unnamed guy as he simply sighed, relieved, and smiled at me.
"That's good to hear. Given my large size, it would be quite easy for me to harm someone without me actually trying to or wanting that." Well I could certainly see that and believe that he didn't seem like the type that wanted to hurt others. "Well what's your name, because I assume we're classmates. I'm Kenichi Seno, the Ultimate Puppetmaster." I introduced myself to him as we were continuing with our light conversation.
"Oh right. I do apologize for the late introduction, Kenichi. My name is Kiyoshi Ryuuki, and you could make a guess from my appearance that I am referred to as the Ultimate Monk." I wasn't really making any guesses about what his talent was.
Besides, I just thought that he might just like wearing robes since they weren't really that restrictive on his large body. Either way, this makes 5 of the classmates that I've found.
"Kiyoshi, I have a question for you. Have you noticed anything particularly strange in the school? It's been pointed out to me already that there aren't many other students or teachers for that matter here at the moment.
The muscular monk put his finger to his chin as he began thinking to himself about anything strange that he might seen. "I can't particularly think of anything that could be considered out of the ordinary. Although, if we're supposed to have some orientation or anything in the gym, then it certainly isn't set up for the occasion, even vacant too…" he said as he was recalling what he saw in the gym.
"I haven't been to the gym yet, as I'm looking for all the others first, but from what you're saying, there isn't anyone inside the gym at all? Not even the headmaster or any staff?" The only answer I got was a simple shake of the head from Kiyoshi.
"If you'd like, I could accompany you in finding everyone else? The gym is actually quite nearby and there might be some there already." Well I suppose it would be better than going alone to find everyone.
So, the two of us set off towards the location of the gym, which actually was pretty close by. Honestly, it shouldn't be that surprising that a pair of bathrooms would be pretty close to the gym.
Although, what we found when we got there wasn't really what I was expecting, or more so who we found. In front of the gym entrance was two people sitting in front of each other while they had their eyes closed. "Um… what exactly are these two doing?"
I decided to ask Kiyoshi as I figured he might've had some sort of idea what they might've been up to right now.
I was looking at the two other students in front of me and was trying to get a read of what they might be like. The first one was a woman, wearing a traditional japanese archer attire, with purple hair that was tied back into a high ponytail that came down to her shoulders.
As for the other one was a male with white hair that was tied like one of those ancient japanese warriors. He had on a light blue jacket with a white stripe on both of his sleeves, with a white shirt underneath it as well. The male also seemed to have a tattered and frayed gray scarf and cloak hanging around him too.
"Hm… well if I had to guess, besides the possibility of them just meditating together, I'd say they're doing image training." Kiyoshi answered, but I had to look at him with a bewildered expression. "Image training? What exactly is that?"
"Well to put it simply, it's a form of training that one does in their own mind, or if two people are doing it together, their minds are linked. It's essentially training as normal, but without the physical assertion of it. It does also prove useful in keeping the mind sharp." As soon as Kiyoshi finished explaining it to me, both of them slowly opened their eyes.
That was when the girl began to speak first, being more straightforward and deadpan, compared to the other girls that I've met so far, even though it's only been three that I've seen now. "I can see that you really are as impressive as they say you are. It was a losing battle for me from the very beginning of our match." It seems that Kiyoshi might have been spot on with what they were doing.
"Hmph, You weren't that bad yourself. However, as you are right now, you are of no match against me where you have a slight chance to defeat me."
I decided to move closer and get their attention before they could get too focused on their own conversations. "Hello you two, I'm sorry to disturb you two with what you were doing, but I figured that since we were classmates, I'd come and introduce myself…" I was just met with blank stares from both of them as I tried to be friendly.
"W-well I'll j-just get right into then. My name is Kenichi Seno and this is our other classmate, Kiyoshi" the larger male just waves over at them as I had introduced him as well. "So uh… what might your names be, you guys…" all I got was more blank stares for a little bit. "Hehe…." Man this was really awkward for me right now.
"Sayua Yazaki, Ultimate Archer.." the girl with the purple hair spoke up first and told us who she was. Although I could've easily put together what her talent was based off her clothing. "Well it's very nice to meet you, Sayua. I've never met an archer before, so I think it's really cool that you are one." I smiled and tried to get her to talk more. "You're trying too much.." That was all she needed to say to make me stop talking for a moment.
"You try and get others to talk, but you don't think if the other has the interest in talking in the first place. Though with us being classmates, introductions are supposed to be in order. As for me, I am the Ultimate Samurai, Tetsuyama Ishiki…" The male started talking and I guess he does make a fair point…
"Sorry… the two of you are pretty intimidating individuals, so I couldn't help but try so much to get your attention and try to find something that we could talk about…" Actually there was something that I wanted to ask the two of them.
"Hey, have you two noticed anything strange about the academy so far? So far, there have been a few things that have seemed off regarding the situation of the academy." There has to be more things that were off about the academy besides the lack of people. "If you haven't noticed that besides the lack of people is the lack of windows around the building." Tetsuyama said as he was going back to meditating in front of us.
Wait… was he actually right about this? I never thought about it before, but thinking about it, he was right. I took a look around the hallways and think back to the classroom that I woke up and remember, there weren't any windows inside of that room either. What was going on with this academy? Why are there so many things that don't make any sense? But more importantly, what was going to become of me and the other people in the school right now.
"I think the only places that are unlocked in the school right now are the classrooms, gym, dining hall and the hallway to the dormitories. So if you're gonna go looking for clues, you might as well head there..." Sayua said as she was recalling the places she's been to so far. "Wait, dormitories? Why are there dorm rooms inside of the school….?"
"If you want answers, go and look for them yourself instead of expecting someone else to have them for you…" Sayua's answer was a bit harsh, but she did have a point about that. Once she responded to me, she went back to her meditation and image training with Tetsuyama. "Well let's just go ahead and search for the dormitories for more people." The monk nodded and we headed into the direction of where the dorms are.
Time: 10:16 A.M
Location: Dormitory
When we arrived at the red hallway, with all the student's room were, we saw two girls there, one with red hair, black hoodie and a black hat. The other girl was wearing traditional obi and hakama trousers too.
"Huh….? Who the fuck are you two?" The redhead looked at us and gave us an intimidating glare. It doesn't really seem to have much of an effect on Kiyoshi. He just continued to smile down at her as he walked closer to them.
"I am Kiyoshi and this is Kenichi. We're just looking around the school and trying to find some answers. We could use your help in uncovering those questions, but we'll also need to know your names first." I am really surprised with how calm he could completely be in any situation. The small girl with the hat just folded her arms and looked away from the rest of the people here.
"Not like I'm gonna talking with you dickheads, but you better remember my fucking name. Rin Kamiyama, the Ultimate Thug will claim your head if you dare fuck with me…" she said as she walked away from all of us and then out of sight.
"Well… she certainly knows how to make quite an introduction." She sounded tough and all, but I get the feeling that deep down, she's not as cold hearted as she appeared to be. Maybe it might take some time for her to warm up to everyone. For now, my attention turned to the girl in the obi, who had her hands together and her eyes closed. It seemed like she was in prayer, but I didn't really wanna disturb her yet.
"Dear lord, please let your holy light upon all of us and allow everyone to find their path to prosperity and happiness. Bless you, holy father." She chanted and hearing her kinda made me want to join in with her prayers. "Now then, I assume you two are wanting to know who this humble servant might be?" The girl slowly lowered her hands and opened her eyes to smile at both of us with a very radiant beauty. This one had a very innocent and charming appeal to her, not to make herself stand out, but at the same time, just knowing what to do and say.
"Yea, it would be really nice if you could tell us what your name is, and your talent as well, please. We should get to know each other since we're classmates and everything." I managed to get my message across to her without sounding like a complete idiot or make it seem like I was trying to advance on her. Good for me! She just giggled and began to speak.
"Very well, i shall reveal my name for you two to hear. I am a humble believer, Akito Miyashita. My high faith and compliance granted me the wonderful title of the Ultimate Shrine Maiden. I hope our future endeavors together are greatly blessed."
I am just fully impressed with her manner of speaking and couldn't help but feel entranced by her words, making me want to hear her talk more.
Kiyoshi on the other hand was more straight to the point and helpful to continuing with our research of the academy we're in. "Say you wouldn't happen to know anything about the dorms here would you?" He asked her as she put her finger to her chin as she began to think to herself.
"As to why there are dormitory rooms inside the school, I am afraid that I don't have the foggiest of clues…. Although there was something I found strange." I looked at her and prepared to hear what it was she had to say. "I came by here earlier and tried to enter the room that had my name on it, but the door was unfortunately locked. In fact, all of the rooms are locked, preventing anyone from getting in."
"I see… anyone would find that strange, but they'll just give us keys to unlock them." She quickly shook her head.
"That wasn't the part that was strange. When I was leaving, I definitely heard the sound of one of the doors opening, as if someone were already inside. However, when I turned around, all of the doors were closed, so I'm afraid I don't know which one was opened..."
That certainly did sound very important, but what would be the purpose of hiding from Akito when we're supposed to be just regular classmates with each other?
The number of mysteries about the school was increasing as more and more continued to surface as we go on. "Would the two of you like for me to accompany you as you search for the others? I believe I overheard that there were two that were hanging around at the main hall, checking things out there. Perhaps we can introduce ourselves to them, since we seem to be the only students inside the school at the moment now."
I had no issues with walking around her as she decided to hang out with, though I feel like the two of us didn't really have a chance to come up with a response.
"Alright then, Akito. Let's all go and check out what's going on in the main lobby. Maybe someone found something useful." I said as I tried to bring up morale sl that we all stayed motivated.
The way to the main entrance was a bit of a quiet one, as I didn't really have anything fun or witty to say to the two behind me. Although, with how similar they were in terms of talent, the more that he could sense the two of them are, in actuality, a good pair.
Time: 10:52 A.M.
Location: Main Hall
By the time we got to the main lobby of the school, it would seem that the two that Akito claimed to have heard about were still here and in the middle of conversing with the other.
"So what do you think this giant lock is meaning? Do you think it's possible that's it gonna happen again, even though she's supposed to be…?" There was a female student with white hair and white coat inquisitively dropping questions to a tanned male with long silver hair, which was tied back in a ponytail, and a black blazer.
"I do not know, since we will need a lot more evidence to fully make a case about this. Of course, it's highly unlikely that this is just a mere coincidence." The male responded back to her, not truly with an answer but more of a troubling thought, to which they simply nodded on before noting that we had arrived at the scene.
"Oh hello, you three. Are you classmates of ours, because if so, my name is Eri Takudo, the Ultimate Defense Attorney, and it's a pleasure to meet you." We were greeted by the white haired girl as we made our way over to her. She was pretty friendly and kind of us, and given that she was a lawyer, the way she was making inquisitive questions earlier would make sense.
"It's nice to meet you too, Eri. My name is Kenichi, and this is Kiyoshi and Akito" I introduced the others and Eri returned the introduction with a gentle smile. She looked to the male, who just seemed to be a bit lost in thought at the moment. "It's your turn to introduce yourself."
The tanned male turned back towards us and gave a bow, like you would see from a servant towards nobility. "My apologies for my late introduction. I am Takuma Matsuzaki, and known as the Ultimate Prosecutor. I'm not great with others, but I'll try to get along with everyone here." he had adverted his eyes from us and was back to thinking before turning back to us.
"Not like I'm expecting a useful answer for this, but would any of you three know anything about the situation we're in, or the giant lock on this door?" He asked this while before making us look towards the front exit of the school, which was encased in a giant metal lock.
While me and Akito were looking shocked and worried more about the situation that we might have been in, Kiyoshi seemed about as calm and collected as Takuma and Eri were at the moment. "Before you guys freak out," Eri interjected just before me and Akito could say anything "we are still trying to figure out what's going on, based on information we have.
Hopefully we can resolve this somehow and make sure that no one has any need to worry." I think if anything, Eri would like to avoid everyone panicking and causing more stress for everyone's minds. Though one thing was excruciatingly clear to us, we weren't in a normal school life anymore.
She was prioritizing everyone's mental health and safety, so that they can prevent someone from possibly doing any risky. "Eri, Takuma, how can the two of you be so calm even after realizing we appear to be potentially trapped inside of the school?" Akito asked the two lawyers as she was shaking a bit.
"The two of us have been in situations before that are just as taxing on the mind as the situation we appear in now. Even if we freak out, nothing will change, as it would only actually make things worse." Takuma said as he folded his arms and looked down at the ground.
"Life isn't always about the positives, as life will always find a way to send you to hell… Bah, I'm getting too disjointed. I'm going to the dining hall now. I assume the three haven't been there yet… If not, there are probably a few more that you haven't met yet…" Takuma put his hand on his head as he began to walk away towards the dining hall.
After seeing Takuma walk away, I looked over to Eri as she was gripping her left arm with her other hand. "Hey Eri, I'm guessing you two know each other well, but I'm sure asking you to tell me about what he's referring to would be too invasive…"
"Yea.. I'm sorry, but it's probably best that he probably tell you himself, if that ever comes.." she looked away a bit, but shook her head and tried to put on a smile now. "Well, we should probably catch up to him and head towards the dining hall as well. Let's go, guys" as soon as she said that, she headed off in the same direction as Takuma went. With no real other options at the moment, the rest of us followed behind her as we headed to the dining hall.
Time: 11:23 A.M.
Location: Dining Hall
Once we arrived at the cafeteria, we looked around as we saw it's what you would expect from a school as the old Hope's Peak Academy. There were elegant paintings and landscapes hanging on the walls, the tables and chairs made it look we were in some kind of fancy restaurant too.
There was even a grand piano in one section of the room as well. Looking around more, I began to notice the other people that had come to this room, some of which I've already seen, being Takuma and Rin, the latter of which I was surprised to see be here. Other than those two, there were four students in here, thankfully the last that I needed to find.
Out of those four, there was equal balance of genders, being two guys and two women. For the guys in particular, one was wearing a dress shirt with a black vest and a bit of styled olive colored hair. The male next to him had purple hair with a streak of black in it. Under his black jacket was a red shirt, as the jacket complimented the sunglasses he wore as well.
When I looked over at the girls there, I saw one of them had brown hair that covered one of her eyes, a pink hoodie that came up in a pink and white cat-eared hood. The other girl was the most unique looking of the group as she looked to be like a pirate with the according hat that rested on top of her white colored hair, stopping short over her piercing red eyes.
"Yo smallfry" the one with sunglasses called out to me. "Tell me, what's your game? Poker? Blackjack? Name it." I wasn't quite sure why he was talking to me about card games.
"Um.. I'm not really sure. I… don't really play cards…" He just chuckled when he heard my response. "So a complete newbie, eh? You really wouldn't be much fun beating at all then…" he sighed and shook his head and started messing around with a deck of cards. "Oh by the way, the name's Shoma Shiroyama, and I'm looking for someone who can strip me of my title of Ultimate Cardshark." He said as a snide smile appears on his face.
"Hold on… a moment ago, you just said I wouldn't be fun to beat, but you want someone to beat you?" His logic was contradictory to his own words. "Well yea, I still want to win, but it does get tiring winning all the time…. Well whatever. Hey butler, how about some drinks for me and the kid!"
When he called out to the other male I haven't met yet, I tried to but in. "Shoma, you shouldn't be so rude, since he's still our classmate!" I tried to lecture Shoma but it appears my efforts were just wasted on it.
"I assure you it is no issue at all. As I am a butler, I am here to serve, and complete whatever task is laid out before me. Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Hansuke Tojo, the Ultimate Butler. It is a pleasure to serve you and your needs."
Hansuke just bowed towards me as he made his introduction, not caring really that I tried to stand up for him. Yup, completely wasted effort.
Part of me just doesn't want to interact with Shoma, for the sake of wanting to still be a decent person. After I quickly exchanged an introduction to Hansuke, I moved over to talk to the two girls that I haven't met yet.
As I was going to speak with them, I noticed Kiyoshi and Akito stuck closer to Eri and Takuma, conversing with that pair more. Anyways, I walked over to the girl in the pink hoodie first.
"Hello there. My name is Kenichi Seno and it's really nice to meet you." I said and saw her smile as she looked up at me. That's right, there was actually someone nice here that's shorter than me. Rin was also short, even shorter than this girl, but I didn't really wanna talk with her right now.
"Oh I've heard a lot about you and I've always wanted to see one of your puppets up close, just so I could see the fine craftsmanship behind all of them. Hehe, oh yea, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Suki Umesawa, the Ultimate Doll Maker. I guess you could say we have similar talents."
Her voice was very soft and gentle and her smile was incredibly cute as well. "Wow, I guess we are pretty similar, and I think it's really cool that you can make dolls." I said as I find her talent interesting.
"Thanks. Not many people find it that incredible and they just say I'm still just a little girl for wanting to make dolls like I do…" "Well I don't think you should worry. You should just focus on what you like and not like anyone to stand in your way." She smiled and nodded a bit.
Then the two of us had our conversation interrupted by the pirate looking girl. "Ahoy there, doll! You look like a lovely lass to join me crew! What say you sail the seas with the Ultimate Pirate, Captain Whitelocks!"
Her proposal was met by silence from us and her whole demeanor dropped for a moment. "I'll settle with you being friends with Mamiko Mizushima" she said as she revealed her real name to us. "You're not actually a real pirate are ya? That honestly sounds a little too outrageous really."
Hearing me say that, I didn't know how much that set her off. "Of course I be a real pirate! With that level of insubordination, ye be walking the plank and sink to the bottom of the sea!" Her eyes seemed to pierce my soul and send shivers down my spine. "R-right… sorry."
Before she had a moment to yell at me even further for undermining her talent, everyone in the room suddenly heard an announcement starting up.
"Ahem, can you students hear me? This is your headmaster, letting you know that it appears everyone, for the most part, has become acquainted with everyone else. With that out of the way, everyone should report to the gym immediately for a bit of orientation."
After that, the voice cut off and the announcement was over. It played on a monitor that was in the room, but there was no video. Whoever the voice belonged to, it was worth noting that it sounded a bit low and gruff too. "Well I guess we should just head on over, huh?" I looked around at everyone in the dining hall with me.
Time: 11:34 A.M.
Location: Gymnasium
We all headed off to the gym together and once we arrived, the other 6 students who we all met earlier had gathered up as well.
"Kenichi, I see that you're alright." Mihiro said as she walked over towards me. Her smile radiated and made me blush a little as she looked at me. "Y-yea I'm fine, Mihiro. So… what did you end up talking with Dmitri about while I met up with everyone else?"
"Oh I just wanted to talk to him some more about animals and find anything that the two of us might have in common." She and I hear her giggle from my expression about being curious.
The rest of the group stood around in pretty much a remote silence before a brave voice broke the tension, that being Michael. While he never looked up from his book, he decided to address the group. "So… does anyone else also have a bad feeling as to what is about to happen with all of us? Because this seems like the set up for something major…"
Thinking upon what he's saying, things did feel a bit strange, like something was gonna pop up and attack all of us at once, like a monster or something. Maybe I'm just overreacting about this, hopefully…
Of course, that wishful thinking was shut down not even a minute after I said that. "Now then… it appears that everyone is here, so let's get down to business." That voice we all heard earlier talked again and we tried to follow where the voice came from, eventually looking towards the stage in the gym.
Suddenly, something popped up from behind the podium up there. It was… a stuffed monkey? It was a monkey that had it's right side white the left side was black and had a distinguishing red eye. "What… is going on?" I voiced my question out loud.
"What the hell is that thing?" Rin asked as she went over to the being and picked it up by it's head, squeezing it in her hand. "N-now student, this is no way to treat your headmaster!" The being said as most of us were now shocked at what it just said.
"A toy monkey… is headmaster?" Was the question that came from Dmitri, ushering the monkey to clear. "My name is Monosaru, and I'd appreciate you putting me down, Miss Kamiyama."
"What the…? How the fuck did you know my name, ya little shit!?" Monosaru simply clawed at her face, which prompted her to drop him before hopping off the stage.
"As I was saying, I am the headmaster of this newest Hope's Peak Academy. Throughout your time here, you will follow directions from me, got it? Of course I'll be lenient at times, but it's so we can build that strong relationship as headmaster and students. If anyone has any questions, do speak up about them, students."
Most of us were standing around and looking at one another, a bit afraid and unsure of what to ask. "What is your connection to Monokuma and the previous killing game?" Takuma asked him, which prompted him to tilt his head.
"What makes you think I have a connection to that cheap looking thing? I'm much more competent and fulfilling than he'll ever be. And, as a bonus to that, I've got opposable thumbs!" Monosaru said as he gave the prosecutor a thumbs up. Speaking of him, Shoma voiced out his own question to the prosecutor. "Yo black suit, what do you mean by previous killing game?"
"Ah it seems that you're pretty quick to catch on, Takuma. Allow me to explain everything to you clearly, everyone. So be sure you're listening closely." Monosaru was standing straight up with his hands behind him.
"I'm sure by now, you've all noticed that you're the only ones in this school. The reason for that is that you 16, the students of incredible ultimate talent, will be made to kill one another if you ever wish to escape from this academy! It doesn't matter how you do it, as long as you get the job done! Of course just killing someone won't be all that you need in order to leave."
"Let me guess, the killer also have to survive through a class trial, in addition to committing a murder?" Eri asked to confirm her suspicions.
"Ayy, you got that right, dollface" he replied with a thumbs up. "Either way, this game will continue until one of you is left standing! Alone, with everyone's blood on your hands!"
Monosaru began spiralling into a state of hysterical laughter. "If you think this game could end with two spotless, you better think again! Even if we do get down to that point, one of you still has to kill the other! Light the stage and prepare to amaze me, because it's time for the curtain call of our little game, and you chumps are the main act! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
As he continued laughing, we were all standing afraid and terrified of the dangers that were coming our way. This was the start of our new deadly school life.
Hey again everyone and welcome to the end of the first chapter. Be sure to let me know what you thought about the chapter and any possible feedback you may have about it. I don't know when I'll get the next chapter up, but I'll work as hard as I can on it to impress.
There is another matter that I wish to bring up, and that is the matter of bonding between the participants. The fun part about this is, you guys get some involvement in this. Instead of a normal danganronpa free time event system where only Kenichi gets to bond with everyone, now the others can bond with each other! Well.. each character have specific people they can bond with, but you get the point. You guys will be letting me know which pairs you'd like to see have an interaction and I'll make a few FTE chapters for them.
Note: If a FTE with Kenichi is chosen, that event will be the whole chapter, however if 2 pairs without Kenichi are pretty popular, then those two pairs would equally make up a Kenichi chapter. So 1 chapter = 1 Kenichi pair or 2 pairs without Kenichi. Here is the list of who can be paired with who, and I'll go ahead and say you guys can choose up to 3 pairs and I'll see which ones are really desired, by the time we can get to a FTE chapter. For now, I'll see you guys in the next chapter!
[ ] Kenichi: Everyone
[ ] Dmitri: Okano, Mamiko, Shoma, Tetsuyama, Mihiro, Akito, Eri
[ ] Takuma: Okano, Shoma, Kiyoshi, Eri, Tetsuyama, Hansuke, Rin
[ ] Kiyoshi: Suki, Takuma, Eri, Akito, Michael, Okano, Rin
[ ] Tetsuyama: Takuma, Dmitri, Mamiko, Eri, Sayua, Michael, Shoma
[ ] Michael: Akito, Tetsuyama, Shoma, Mamiko, Kiyoshi, Sayua, Okano
[ ] Shoma: Mamiko, Takuma, Dmitri, Hansuke, Sayua, Michael, Tetsuyama
[ ] Hansuke: Shoma, Takuma, Okano, Eri, Suki, Rin, Mihiro
[ ] Mihiro: Dmitri, Okano, Mamiko, Sayua, Rin, Akito, Hansuke, SukI
[ ] Sayua: Rin, Tetsuyama, Shoma, Mamiko, Mihiro, Michael, Akito
[ ] Okano: Takuma, Dmitri, Suki, Hansuke, Mihiro, Kiyoshi, Michael
[ ] Mamiko: Shoma, Dmitri, Suki, Tetsuyama, Mihiro, Sayua, Michael
[ ] Suki: Kiyoshi, Mamiko, Okano, Rin, Hansuke, Akito, Mihiro
[ ] Akito: Kiyoshi, Michael, Dmitri, Eri, Mihiro, Suki, Sayua
[ ] Eri: Takuma, Kiyoshi, Tetsuyama, Hansuke, Rin, Akito, Dmitri
[ ] Rin: Sayua, Takuma, Eri, Suki, Mihiro, Hansuke, Kiyoshi