"Hmm?" Kokichi leaned forward and hovered his hand behind his ear. "Do you mind repeating that, Kaede? I didn't catch that."

"I'm not the culprit!" Kaede spoke louder.

"K-Kaede?" Tsumugi looked concerned at her friend.

Tears still streamed from the pianist's eyes, but they weren't tears of sadness. Rather, they were tears of solace. "I take back my confession. I take back everything I've said because I don't believe I'm the culprit anymore!"

"YES!" Kaito shouted in triumphant relief.

The group that defended Kaede alongside me all made similar remarks of celebration.

"Hooray!" Angie cheered. "We did it!"

"Gonta did it…" The entomologist said to himself. "Gonta protected one of his friends…"

"Wait...what just happened?" Himiko looked around confused, having trouble keeping up with the events that unfolded.

Miu was having a similar experience. "Yeah, why the hell does Kaeidiot think she's innocent all of a sudden?"

"It must have something to do with Rantaro being struck on the back of the head rather than the top of his head." Keebo surmised, not quite sure of what was going on himself, but happy and relieved that Kaede considered herself to be innocent.

"That's right, Keebo." I confirmed. "Besides that it futher supports that Kaede's trap didn't work, what else would it suggest?"

"It would have to be the method of murder, correct?" The robot answered.

"All this time I was so sure that Rantaro died solely because of my trap." Kaede admitted. "But with the location of his wound, along with the photographs we received from the Monokubs, it doesn't add up. There's a possibility...that someone else had the chance to kill Rantaro when my deathtrap failed."

"Wonderful, Kaede." Kiyo praised. "Such display of resolve is a welcome contrast to the person who just moments ago resigned herself to her demise. As an added bonus, now the group that opposed us once before has lost a good portion of their credibility. Right, Tsumugi?"

The cosplayer quickly turned to the anthropologist in surprise. "Huh? Me..?"

"You deserve your fair share of recognition." The long-haired boy explained. "After all, you spent a good effort defending Kaede in her decisions. Now you get to do so with the ease of knowing that she herself believes in her innocence. Isn't that just ideal?"

Tsumugi gave Kiyo a warm smile. "Of course it is. I'm so relieved that your group was able to prove Kaede innocent."

Is that sarcasm I hear in your voice, Tsumugi? I thought.

"Kaede's innocence hasn't necessarily been proven without a doubt." Ryoma noted. "But, I can't in good faith, keep accusing her of being the blackened when she doesn't believe it herself anymore."

"Nyeh, I guess I'll keep going along with this trial, too." Himiko said.

"Himiko, I knew you'd come around eventually!" Tenko declared happily.

Miu sighed loudly. "Fiiiine, I guess I ain't gonna vote for Kaeidiot."

Maki remained silent and turned away in disinterest. "Do what you want."

"If this is the true desire of the group then I will cooperate as well." Kirumi said. "Shuichi, Sharla, allow me to apologize for not believing you."

"Ah, no that's quite alright." Shuichi said somewhat embarrassed.

"It's fine." I said.

"In any case, it's too early to celebrate." Kaito said. "We still need to get to the bottom of this whole thing."

"Kaito's right." Kaede agreed. "We're not in the clear just yet. Especially with Monokuma's time limit looming over our shoulders, we have to stay digilent."

"So what should we talk about now?" Gonta took it upon himself to ask the obvious question.

"Obviously the person who struck Rantaro in the back of the head!" Tenko said. "Alright, which one of you degenerates did it?"

"Hey!" Kaito shouted at the aikido master. "What makes you think it was a man who did this?"

"Hah!" The green-eyed girl scoffed. "Only a degenerate male would have the balls to frame Kaede for their murder."

Balls? I thought.

"Oh I getcha!" Miu said. "With this we're able to rule out half the suspects! Good job, Tencrotch! You made this a hundred times easier for us!"

Tenko's face scrunched up in disgust. "I'm...not sure how I feel about that compliment...or that degenerate-like nickname."

"Well get used to it, because that's what I'm calling ya from now on!" The inventor happily stated.

"What makes you think the culprit tried to frame Kaede in the first place?" Ryoma asked.

"So what, you think it was just a happy coincidence that the culprit and Kaede both tried to kill Rantaro at the same time?" Kaito retorted.

"I'm saying maybe they didn't intentionally try to frame her at first, but then they saw her trap didn't work and decided to take an opportunity." The tennis pro explained his point in more detail.

"Oh ho!" Kokichi responded. "So now the question becomes whether this murder was premeditated or not."

"If the shot put ball is still indeed the murder weapon, then it would had to have been." Kirumi said.

Shot put ball… I thought

"Unless that was just another 'happy coincidence'." Maki said sarcastically.

"But it just doesn't make sense…" Shuichi said aloud while deep in thought. "If the shot put ball was still the murder weapon, then the killer would've known about Kaede's plan from the start. They would've had to have been in close proximity in order to see that the trap didn't work and then kill Rantaro themselves."

Close proximity…

"Yeah, and unfortunately your cameras didn't really catch anything out of the ordinary other than Rantaro." Kaito pointed out.

"My cameras, first off." Miu said. "And may I remind you, they go off on a thirty second pause timer after each shot they take. So maybe it was during one of those times the killer made their move!"

"In that case, where the hell did the killer run off to?" Kaito genuinely asked. "Tenko and I were right outside the library when the whole thing happened."

"And the photos showed everyone running into the library when the body discovery announcement went off." Ryoma said. "So the killer didn't hide in there to begin with."

"So the cameras didn't show anyone exiting from either the front or rear entrances." Keebo thought aloud. "That would suggest that the only location the killer could've left the library from was-"

"The hidden door." I finished.

Shuichi looked at me with a surprised look on his face. "The hidden door?"

"We've already proved that the killer couldn't use any other entrance that lead in and out of the library." I explained. "So, using the process of elimination, the hidden door was the only way the killer could leave the library. There's also the missing shot put ball."

"Missing shot put ball?" Himiko repeated.

"Specifically my shot put ball." Kaede explained. "Shuichi, Sharla, and Keebo kept saying this whole time my shot put missed. If that's the case, then why did we discover a bloody shot put ball at the crime scene?"

"A fabrication created by the culprit." Kiyo surmised. "Are you suggesting the killer used their own shot put ball to kill Rantaro?"

"Or maybe they used a different weapon, and just smeared Kaede's shot put with blood to make it seem like it was the murder weapon!" Angie theorized.

"Either way, whether it was another shot put or a different weapon all together, the point is that item is missing from the crime scene." I explained further.

"I see." Kirumi said. "And the only way for the killer to remove said weapon from the crime scene was to use the room inside the hidden door, is that what you're saying?"

"Is that even possible, though?" Shuichi questioned. "The dust I left on the card reader suggested that it was unused before and after the crime occured."

"Shuichi... I'm gonna say something you might think is crazy." I warned. "What if the killer was already inside the hidden door when the murder happened?"

"Huh?" The detective was taken aback by my statement.

"Hmm." Kiyo said inquisitively. "An intresting point. If I may ask, what exactly are you basing this theory off of?"

"Other that it's the only explanation?" I said half-sarcastically, trying not to offend the anthropologist. "That's also a way for the killer to get the drop on Rantaro."

"Oh I see!" Angie said. "Rantaro was hit on the back of the head, so the killer must've sneaked up on him somehow."

"And like I said before, me and Tenko were right in front of the library, so no way did anyone enter or exit from there." Kaito added.

"But that begs the question." Kirumi said. "How did the killer get on the other side of the hidden door without entering it from the library?"

"I…" I tried to come up with an explanation, but couldn't find one and looked down dejectedly. "I don't know the answer to that…"

"I do." Shuichi suddenly said.

Everyone turned to the detective.

"And it's an answer that I can't believe I didn't consider until now." He continued.

"Hey, join the club." Kokichi said, looking just as dejected as I did a moment ago. "I can't believe I didn't think of that either, especially since I'm the Ultimate Supreme Leader."

"Huh?" Himiko wondered. "Are those two on some kind of magical wavelength?"

"Shuichi." Kaede said to the detective. "What's on your mind?"

"Based on what has been said in regards to that hidden door." The hatless boy began. "There's a high possibility that the library isn't the only entranceway to the hidden room."

"Huh?" Tenko questioned. "So you're saying there's more than one way to get into that room besides the door in the library?"

"Yes." The detective answered.

"Of course!" Kaede came to a realization herself. "This academy was constructed specifically for this killing game! It would only make sense for there to be more than one way to get to that hidden room. After all the mastermind would need to-"

"Mastermind?" Monokuma suddenly parroted. "Are you still going on about a 'mastermind'?"

"It's the only explanation!" The pianist argued. "The only explanation for why the true culprit knew about my trap, for them to use the hidden room to kill Rantaro and sneak out of the library undetected. These are the actions of someone who knows a little too much about the structure of this academy. In other words, they must be the mastermind!"

"Mastermind this, mastermind that!" The twisted bear taunted. "Are you sure you're the Ultimate Pianist, cause you're playing the same tune! It's getting awfully boring."

"B-Boring..?" Tsumugi said warily. "D-Does that mean-"

"Look alive, everyone, because we're back to seventy-five percent!" Monokuma shouted. "Maybe that was a poor choice of words…"

"Not good." Ryoma observed. "He added another ten percent out of a mere suggestion."

"That just means he's scared cause we're getting closer to the truth!" Kaito said confidently.

"That must be it!" I exclaimed. "Monokuma's only threatening us because we're getting closer to the mastermind's identity and therefore one of the traitors! In that case, I agree with Shuichi's theory that there's more than one way to the hidden room."

"I agree too!" Kaede agreed.

"Don't get me wrong, I agree with Shuichi, too." Keebo said. "But how are we supposed to find the location of these other hidden passageways?"

"The academy's super huge!" Angie added. "There could be passageways everywhere!"

"We're going about this the wrong way." Kirumi suggested. "Rather than going by the academy itself, there's an alternate method of determining where the other hidden entrance was used."

"I agree." Kiyo said. "We'll have a much easier time finding this other passageway if we simply analyze everyone's actions at the time of the murder."

"Oh I get it!" Kokichi remarked. "If we just go over everyone's alibis again, then we'll see who had a chance to use another hidden passageway to get to the library and kill Rantaro!"

"In that case, we should probably go over those who don't have airtight alibis." Tsumugi suggested.

"That would be Ryoma, Keebo, and Kokichi, right?" Tenko recalled.

"Uh-oh, Keeboy." The supreme leader said. "Looks like in our quest to prove Kaede's innocence, we ended up being suspicious!"

"No, that's wrong." Shuichi said. "The very fact that you two helped me and Sharla, supports that neither of you are the culprit."

"Otherwise, they would have just let me take the blame." Kaede finished.

"But didn't Kokichi try to lie his way out of proving Kaede's innocence?" Tsumugi questioned. "I remember he denied any testimony that said he helped Keebo, Shuichi, and Sharla."

Kokichi suddenly sniffled in sadness. "That's a little mean, Tsumugi...I already told you that I just didn't want to get bullied…"

"Even if Kokichi did lie about not helping the three of us." I explained. "It doesn't change the fact that he did end up helping us by rolling the shot put ball from Classroom A."

"He even seemed to go out of his way to further help in the experiment by bringing in multiple shot put balls." Kiyo observed.

"At any point, he could've just not followed Sharla's orders." Kirumi also added. "The fact that he cooperated with her and Shuichi in the end suggests that he was willing to find the truth as well."

"And those don't seem like the actions the true culprit would make." Kaede said. "If anything, they would go out of their way to hinder Shuichi and Sharla's test."

"So then, if culprit not Kokichi...and culprit not Keebo." Gonta put the pieces together in his head. "Then does that mean Ryoma is culprit?"

Ryoma's podium then positioned itself to the center of the circle as all eyes now gazed upon him.

"Huh, I suppose given my reputation, this was inevitable." The former convict said plainly.

Tenko took a defensive stance. "So, Ryoma, what do you have to say for yourself?"

"Hold on." I halted the discussion. "Are we sure Ryoma's capable of killing Rantaro?"

The aikido master looked confused at me. "What are you saying, Sharla? This degenerate went to jail for murder!"

"That's true but that's not what I meant." I explained. "Ryoma was supposed to be in his room at the time of the murder, right? If he really was the culprit, then there should be a hidden entrance in his room."

"Makes sense." Maki noted. "Want to have a passageway that leads all over the academy without anyone else knowing? Just put it in your room where no one but you can enter."

Shuichi saw the logic of the theory, but remained skeptical. "But even if there was a hidden entrance in his room, it would still be a considerable distance going from there all the way to the library."

"Ryoma's the Ultimate Tennis Pro, isn't he?" Angie pointed out. "I bet he would be able to run that distance quite easily if he wanted."

"Just because he's a tennis pro doesn't mean he's a professional sprinter!" Kaito replied. "Even if he can run fast it's just too great a distance to get from the dorms to the library and vice versa, secret passage or no!"

"Was Ryoma even in his room at the time of the murder?" Himiko asked.

"That's what he told me." Keebo answered. "But I will admit, that doesn't count for much as an alibi."

Ryoma chuckled.

"Something amusing, Ryoma?" Kiyo questioned.

The tennis pro shook his head. "I just find it funny how things seem to find a way of working themselves out."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Maki questioned as well.

"It just so happens I'm able to provide at least some evidence that I was in my room." Ryoma responded.

"You are?" Tsumugi asked.

"Indeed, Ryoma." Kirumi said with a smile. "Who would've thought that Shuichi and Sharla kicking us out of the library would become a blessing in disguise."

"Huh?" Shuichi reacted to his namedrop.

"Kirumi." Kaede turned to the maid. "Are you saying you're able to support Ryoma's alibi?"

"While I'm not certain if he was in his room at the time of the murder." The maid began. "I can certainly answer whether or not a secret passage was located in that area."

"Oh yeah?" Kaito questioned. "How so?"

"Because I cleaned it." Kirumi plainly stated.

"Hang on a minute!" Miu exclaimed. "Since when are you allowed in our rooms, Ms. Walking Fetish?"

"Normally never unless it's for a specific request." The maid explained. "But in this case, it was when I decided to check on Ryoma who went back to his room after he left the library during the investigation."

Ryoma nodded his head as if to corroborate her statement. "Since I wasn't allowed to investigate in the library anymore, I decided to check back in my room and see if I could find something in there that proves my alibi. It wasn't long after that that Kirumi knocked on my door."

"When I looked into his room, I saw that it was a complete mess." Kirumi added. "And I took it upon myself to clean the place up."

"Heh." The tennis pro gave a soft chuckle again. "Back in prison, I usually had to be so neat and tidy when it came to my cell, so here in this academy it was a breath of fresh air that I didn't have to worry about that stuff."

"OK, so you cleaned a messy room." Miu summarized. "How exactly does that prove there was no secret passage in there?"

"Do not underestimate my Ultimate talent." Kirumi stated calmly. "I am very thorough when it comes to my duty as a maid."

"You can say that again." Ryoma agreed. "She left no stone unturned when cleaning my room."

"Believe me, if there was a hidden passageway in Ryoma's room, I would've found it." The maid concluded.

"Okay, then maybe the hidden entrance was located somewhere outside the dorms." Tenko suggested. "Maybe even the lobby!"

"No way would the mastermind put a hidden entrance someplace so obvious!" Kaito countered. "They wouldn't risk the chance of other people accidentally stumbling across it!"

"So I guess that rules Ryoma out as a potential suspect…" Keebo stated.

The tennis pro stared wistfully off to the side. "Hmph, didn't expect luck to end up being on my side. It's a nice change of pace..."

"Welp, who's next?" Kokichi said nonchalantly.

"Won't be long now." Tenko started to pump herself up. "We're getting closer to the true culprit, I can feel it."

"Tenko's right." I acknowledged. "All that's needed now is going around this room and see whose alibi doesn't match up with the new information we gotten."

"Oh no…" Tsumugi audibly muttered.

The rest of the students slowly turned to the cosplayer who now had a rather distressed look on her face.

"No...oh no no no…" She continued to mutter.

"T...Tsumugi?" Kaede addressed her friend warily. "Are you...okay?"

The blue-haired cosplayer suddenly turned to the pianist, as if she was shocked by the girl talking to her. "Huh!? Oh! Oh it's nothing!"

"Nothing?" Kiyo repeated. "My poor dear, that look on your face displays the complete opposite of 'nothing'."

"I-I'm telling you it's nothing!" Tsumugi stuttered as she started to get more flustered.

"Hey, if ya got something to say then say it already!" Miu shouted at the blue-haired girl.

"C-C'mon, Tsumugi." Kaede said half-jokingly. "You're starting to scare me, here."

The cosplayer gave no reply to the pianist.

I remember now! Tsumugi is... Is she gonna..? If so, is she gonna accuse..? I thought in worry.

"Tsumugi Shirogane." Kiyo suddenly stated in a slow and ominous tone. "Unfortunately we are pressed for time in this class trial, so as much as we would love for you to cope with whatever's on your mind, I'm afraid we cannot allow that."

Tsumugi hesitantly turned to the anthropologist.

"Speak. Your. Mind." He slowly commanded.

"...Very well." The cosplayer spoke softly. "I suppose I couldn't keep this to myself for any longer..."

"Wait, Tsumugi." Kaede tried to process what was happening before her. "Y-You're not suggestinf that y-"

"Gonta." The blue-haired girl suddenly said. "Why do you look the most suspicious now?"

A silence filled the courtroom, not unlike the first time me and Shuichi first tried to prove Kaede's innocence. As if, once again, all of us needed time to process the words they just heard.

"Huh?" Gonta was understandably the first to react. "M-Me?"

"W-Wait!" Kaede shouted unintentionally. "Why do you suspect Gonta?!"

Kiyo, who before stared at the cosplayer with intensity, slowly returned to his calm normal demeanor. "Interesting. Please elaborate, if you would, Tsumugi."

"We're suspecting people who had a chance of using an alternate hidden passageway to get to the library, correct?" The cosplayer explained. "Gonta locked himself in the A/V room at the time of the murder."

"Ah!" Kirumi suddenly realized the blue-haired girl's point. "So you're saying that was when..?"

"What?" Gonta questioned. "What Tsumugi saying?! W-Why is Gonta being suspected again?!"

"Yeah!" Kaito supported. "I thought we ruled out Gonta couldn't have killed Rantaro from the A/V room!"

"From the A/V room, sure." Tsumugi answered. "But what if there's a hidden passageway in the A/V room?"

"I see." Maki replied. "The A/V room and library are next to each other, so it would allow easy access to and from both rooms."

"And since they're next to each other, it would allow Gonta to keep an eye on whatever's happening in the library!" Kokichi added.

"There's also the fact that Gonta locked the door to the A/V room." Himiko also added. "That's definitely suspicious…"

"Gonta only lock door because Gonta needed to focus!" The entomologist tried desperately to defend himself. "Gonta went to A/V room because Gonta needed to watch bug movie to fill Gonta with fight!"

"Gonta..." Tsumugi muttered. "That's not gonna work anymore."

"But it true!" The greenish-brown-haired boy shouted.

"Hold on a second, guys!" I tried to calm everyone of their suspicions. "It's too early to decide if Gonta is really the culprit!"

"Sharla, you have to admit that Gonta's looking pretty suspect right now, riiight?" Kokichi asked me. "Look, even Shuichi's having his doubts!"

I quickly turned to the detective noticed that he was looking at Gonta and I started to sweat with uncertainty.

"Shuichi." I said to him. "Do you really think..?"

The hatless boy looked back at me. "We... we can't ignore this information."

I looked around at the others and noticed their suspicions were growing as well.

"Sharla!" Gonta cried out to me.

"Huh?!" I responded in surprise.

"You no think Gonta is culprit, right?!" He spoke in desperation. "Gonta would never kill Rantaro! Gonta only want to protect friends!"

I was hesitant to answer the entomologist. If Kaede wasn't the true culprit of this case, that only means someone else had to be. Was Gonta's 'Gentle Giant' persona all an elaborate act and he was the mastermind? Besides, I have to confront the truth no matter how painful and frightening it was.

It can't be... Is Gonta really the true culprit? I thought.

Monokuma sighed. "We're suspecting Gonta again? Plus five percent for unoriginality."

Monokid gasped. "But that means we're already at one hundred percent!"

"Do you even know how math works!?" Monosuke shouted. "We're at eighty percent now!"

"Oh my." Monophanie said. "Everyone better hurry and find the blackened or else this trial room's going to be stained with everyone's blood. Just thinking about that makes me...makes me...BLRBLRBLRBLRBLRB!"

The pink bear proceeded to vomit where she was standing.

"Monokuma just changed the time limit again." Himiko said. "Does that mean we're right and Gonta's the mastermind?"

"G-Gonta no mastermind!" The newly accused denied.

"Don't lie to us." The mage pointed her finger at the entomologist. "Or else I'll use my magic to take away your muscles."

"Gonta no can be Skinny-Gonta! How else can Gonta use muscles to protect friends?"

"C'mon, let's just start the voting already!" Kokichi whined. "Gonta is definitely the most suspicious one right now, so he's gotta be the culprit, right?"

"Hold on." Kaede interjected. "First off, we don't have any proof that there is a passageway in the A/V room."

"Well you don't have any proof that there isn't one, do you?" Maki countered.

"Which leads me to my second point." The pianist said. "Me and Shuichi checked every inch of that room during the investigation, so the two of us would've found something related to a secret passageway."

"And not just them." Kaito added. "Me and Himiko were there too, so you had four set of eyes looking around in that room for anything suspicious."

"But Gonta was there too, wasn't he?" Himiko questioned. "Maybe he wanted to keep an eye on us in case we found the hidden passageway in that room?"

"He really didn't do anything to hinder our investigation, though." Kaede pointed out.

"Maybe it's because he knew you guys wouldn't find anything." Ryoma replied.

"Wouldn't find anything?" Kaito repeated. "We had the Ultimate Detective with us. I really doubt Shuichi of all people would've missed anything in the A/V room."

"That's right!" Kaede agreed. "Shuichi found the hidden door in the library, so of course he would've found a hidden passageway in the A/V room, if there was one."

"I guess Shuichi did also discover your trap and proved you were innocent." Tsumugi also pointed out. "Gee, Shuichi, you've become so reliable, I'm sure we'll discover the truth to this in no time."

Shuichi started to become nervous as the pressure seemed to get to him.

"Y...You all give me too much credit." The detective said.

"Huh?" I questioned.

"We-" The hatless boy stopped himself before continuing. "I can't be sure if I properly checked the A/V room for hidden passageways. There's a chance I could've missed something."

"Shuichi…" I lamented the detective's uncertainty.

"C'mon, Shuichi, don't be like that." Kaito tried his best to motivate him. "Kirumi's confident that there wasn't a hidden passageway in Ryoma's room, so you should have faith in yourself that you did all you could to search that A/V room."

"It's not that." Shuichi denied. "I don't want to make any promises I can't keep. If there's even a small chance that I missed the hidden passageway in that room, then I won't deny the possibility that there is one in there."

"Good for you, Shuichi!" Kokichi playfully encouraged. "Not leaving things to chance and using good ol' logic to solve this case. That's wayyyy better than just having some blind faith!"

"You tryin' to say something?" Kaito took offense to the supreme leader's words.

"It's OK, Kaito." I assured. "We'll prove Gonta innocent some other way."

Despite my words, I was worried. Time was running out and the entomologist was the closest thing we had for a suspect.

I listened to the non-stop debate and heard Tsumugi say the contradiction I was looking for.

"That means you all must've barely missed him as he re-entered the hidden door."

I hope Kaede knows what she's gonna do. I thought to myself. She'll turn this lie... into the truth!

"Gonta can't be the culprit!" Kaede spoke aloud.

"What?!" Tsumugi's voice nearly cracked. "I mean...what do you mean?"

"Because I saw him the A/V room before I rushed into the library!" The pianist revealed.

What happened afterwards caused an argument between Kaede and Kokichi. Eventually, we confirmed that Gonta was in the A/V room watching his bug movie. I found the fact that me, Shuichi, Kaede, Kaito, and Tenko charged through the front door in the library hilarious when Kokichi brought it up.

"Gah!" Kaito said in frustration in the aftermath of that conversation. "So I make one suggestion and suddenly I'm a big idiot? Let's see you guys come up with the hard decisions after this!"

Then again, this for the sake of Gonta's innocence so you're gonna have bear with it, Kaito. I thought.

"So did all that really happen?" Himiko asked.

"At this point, we should assume so." Kiyo said. "All four of them witnessed Gonta in the A/V room which means he wasn't in the library killing Rantaro."

"Maybe he already killed him by then?" Tsumugi suggested.

The anthropologist wagged his finger in disagreement. "There wouldn't have been enough time for him to murder Rantaro, organize the crime scene, and go back to the A/V room like nothing's happened."

"So then…that means Gonta isn't the culprit!" Angie concluded. "Good for you, Gonta!"

"Gonta happy friends manage to prove Gonta innocent again." The entomologist gave us a gentlemanly smile. "But...did Gonta really not notice when friends peeked into room?"

"Who cares about that?" Kokichi dismissed. "So who's next on the chopping block?"

"Whoever it is, it better be a good one!" Monokuma said. "Cause I'm at eighty-five perceeeeent!"

"E-Eighty-five percent, now!?" Tsumugi exclaimed.

"Then let's not delay." Kiyo advised. "If I may, I'd like to provide a suggestion on who to suspect next."

"Actually, Kiyo, if I may." I interrupted. "I have my own suggestion too."

The anthropologist looked at me and noticed my tense look. "Very well. I'll leave this to you."

I recapped the information in my mind. If it's not Gonta... if it's not Keebo, Ryoma, or Kokichi... then there's someone else here who had the chance to use a hidden passageway without anyone noticing. Also... they've been acting weird during this class trial and I can't just stand here and ignore that. I didn't want to suspect them... but I'm left with no choice now that I remember who they really are.

I spoke aloud. "I suspect-"

"Sharla." Tsumugi cut off me. "Might I say something real quick?"

"...What is it?" I asked.

"I just wanted to say..." The cosplayer began. "That I'm so glad you made it this far in the class trial."

I didn't say a thing.

"I was so worried that we would end up losing Kaede." The blue-haired girl continued as soft tears formed on the edges of her eyes. "I couldn't bear the thought of her dying, so... I'm really happy that you're here right now with all of us. Let's escape this killing game together, Sharla, and after that... we'll become friends. Maybe... maybe even best friends..."

A brief silence filled the room, but was then broken by the sound of laughter. It wasn't a loud laughter, however, it was quiet and dignified. It neither increased in volume nor did it quiet down in silence. Tsumugi looked to her right and noticed it was Kiyo who was the source of that laughter.

I looked at the anthropologist as he seemed to be beside himself. Though his mask covered most of his face, he still covered his mouth with his hand, as if he needed the extra support to contain his amused state.

To the others, this seemed like a uncharacteristic outburst from the usually stoic anthropologist.

To me, however, this was all the confirmation I needed.

"Tsumugi." I pointed at the blue-haired girl. "I suspect you."