Despite the nightmarish images flashing in my head from the previous night, I was able to fall asleep rather quickly. I chalked it up to just my exhaustion, as all of yesterday was just an emotional rollercoaster of epic proportions. Every time I closed my eyes, I could see Saeko's impaled corpse and Hikooki's drowning body. For a moment, I had forgotten that the two of them were dead. For a moment. We had all said that we wouldn't let something like this happen again, yet here we were anyway. Monokuma sure had this shocking way of forcing us to kill each other, even when we said we wouldn't.

"It is now 7 a.m.!" I heard Monokuma announce over the monitor. I cursed under my breath at Monokuma's smug, sadistic grin as the monitor shut off. Shaking my head, I changed into my clothes and listened to the train as it was going again. Where would we end up this time, I wondered?

Wasting no time, I headed out into the hallway to meet up with everybody else. Even though it seemed more and more pointless by the day, I still clung to that glimmer of hope that we would come together and defeat Monokuma, putting an end to this wretched game. It was a rather far-fetched idea, but somebody had to try it, right?

Right?

With a yawn, I headed toward the dining hall again. I saw Ryo in the hallway, standing by himself for whatever reason. He was looking down with his hands in his pockets, his face reading equal parts anxiety and disappointment.

"Ryo?" I called out, hoping he wasn't too upset.

"Oh, hey Kanon," He called back to me, waving his head. "Uh... so, about the other night," He whispered, looking to the side as his face flushed red.

I looked down and sighed. "Yeah..."

Ryo shook his head. "I think I should explain. I mean the other night, when we shared our secrets... You don't remember mine, do you?" He asked.

"That you're gay?" I asked him. His face reddened as he jumped, twiddling his thumbs after the initial shock.

"..." He took a deep breath and scratched the back of his head. "...Please... You don't think that's bad, right? I... I can't really talk about it around my team. They all like to talk about women and make fun of gay men, they don't suspect a thing about me because I'm so masculine," He whispered. "And like... I guess when Tame exposed my secret, I felt... outed,"

I went silent as well. While I guess my time hanging out with Ryo gave me the hint that he might have been, it wasn't something I might have guessed immediately. Regardless, it wasn't something I would ever hold against him. If anything, there was no reason he should hide it. It was just wrong to pick on somebody for their sexuality.

"...I... think that it's just fine for you to be gay," I replied to him with a smile. "You should follow your heart. Face the reality. Go after your dreams, like you go after the ball during a game," I told him.

Ryo smiled back at me. "Thanks, Kanon... I really appreciate that a lot,"

"Of course!" I replied to him. "And while we're on the subject of revealing sexuality, I'm into just about everyone. Men, women, non-binary and trans people... Isn't there a word for that? Like, pansexual or something?"

Ryo nodded. "Yeah, I'm fairly certain that's what it is. Although I think bisexual people can be into all those too... it just depends on what label resonates with you more, I guess. Sort of like picking out a Jersey size that fits,"

"Okay! Pansexual it is!" I replied to Ryo. "Anyway, our friends are probably waiting for us back in the dining hall. Want to get going?" I asked him.

"Of course," Ryo replied. "You gave me the confidence I needed to face everyone, thank you so much,"

Ryo and I walked together to the dining hall, where everyone else awaited us. Everyone was with their usual groups. Toko and Daquan were sitting together, both looking distraught and upset. Surprisingly, Rai didn't look too upset by comparison, once again running his mouth to Shiro and Aiko. What did catch my eye more than anything was Masaki sitting between Amy-chan and Azizah. Both of them seemed to be talking to him at different intervals, and he would occasionally turn to both of them and smile. Something about this irked me just a bit, though I wasn't quite sure what.

"Oh, Masaki!" I called out, sitting with him, Azizah, and Amy-chan. The two of them went silent as I sat down.

"Good morning, Kanon," Masaki greeted me with a smile. I couldn't help but smile back in his direction as he motioned for me to sit closer.

"Ohaiyo Gozaimasu!" Amy-chan greeted me in her typical overly-energetic fashion. "How was your sleep, Kanon-chan?"

I sighed and looked down. "I think I slept too long," I replied, rubbing my eyes. "I'm still exhausted. Yesterday seriously messed with me,"

Amy-chan puffed her cheeks out at me. "Aw! I hope you get better soon, Kanon-chan!"

Azizah put her hand on my shoulder. "It may not always be easy, but we must keep pushing through, no matter how difficult life may get. Even when it seems hopeless," She encouraged me.

"I agree with Azizah," Masaki stated, adjusting his position to sit up. "Anyway, I know that this went spectacularly the last time we tried this out, but why don't we try deciding on who should be our leader this time?" He suggested. "Just try to stay on-topic this time,"

"I still hold to the idea that it should be Miss Amari," Asa suggested. "After all, she carried us all in the last trial with such aplomb, it would be a shame not to elect her as the leader!"

"I have zero objections," Kenji muttered to himself. "In such a desperate situation, I no longer hold to the idea that we are capable of governing ourselves,"

Kaemon rolled his eyes. "Am I the only one here not really on board with this idea?" He asked. "I mean, Kanon's just so emotional and irrational, plus once a month she'll-"

"I'm gonna stop you right there," I replied, glaring right at him. "I'm learning to keep my emotions more in check, thank you very much,"

"Look, it's not because you're a woman, I just-" Before Kaemon could finish his sentence, Yuki raised her fist to him again. He kept quiet after that.

"Anyway... I appreciate the sentiment, but... I still don't know just how cut out for this I am," I replied. "After all, I'm still only learning,"

Azizah patted my back. "It's okay, Kanon. We all must start small at first,"

"Wait a minute," I began. "What about Azizah? She's cool and composed, and she's one of the smartest ones here!"

Masaki nodded back. "Could work. I can see it,"

"Yes, Miss Ali would be perfect!" Asa replied.

"Whoa!" Kaemon butted in again. "No way. I'd rather have Kanon than Azizah!"

Everyone stopped to turn toward Kaemon.

"Really?" Utamuro asked him. "What is it that you so irrationally hate about yourself that you project onto Azizah?"

Kaemon rolled his eyes. "Oh right, I never told you guys Azizah's secret the other night. I think it's for all your benefit to hear about it,"

Azizah gasped. "Kaemon, please, don't-"

"Dude, this is seriously uncalled for!" Tame called out.

Tomoe grinned. "Ah, guess we're getting some real drama here! Playing out just like a movie should,"

Before anyone else could say anything, Kaemon spoke up. "Azizah Ali is a practicing Muslim, and usually doesn't wear her hijab in public because she was attacked for it!"

Azizah instantly went silent, looking down and turning away from all of us. Everyone else fell silent as well, with Kaemon crossing his arms and grinning.

"There, now you all know,"

"Kaemon," began Daquan, glaring at him. "Get the fuck out of here before I kick your ass,"

"Pfft, why? Because you care so much about someone who would have you killed in an instant?" Kaemon asked him.

"That's enough of this!" Azizah cried out, wiping tears from her eyes. "Stop it! I would never kill anyone, it goes against my religion!"

Kaemon scoffed. "Didn't stop all those other guys, you know who I'm talking about-"

Before Kaemon could say anything, Ryo spoke up. "Kaemon Nakama is a virgin,"

Kaemon gasped and went silent, glaring at Ryo. "...Why the fuck would you just throw that in the open?"

Everyone glared at Kaemon as we all left the dining hall, not even getting a chance to finish our meeting. As we left, the train came to a stop as Monokuma appeared on the monitor again.

"Ahem. The Monokuma Express has arrived at its next stop. I recommend changing into your bathing suits for this one!" Monokuma announced before the monitor shut off.

Swimsuits, huh? Were we going to be on a beach for this one? It would be a stark contrast to our last stop.

I went back into my room and looked through my dresser. As expected, I found my old two-piece swimsuit, colored a pale yellow with a white stripe through the middle of both pieces. I quickly changed into my swimsuit, undoing my braids and my ponytail. It felt weird letting my hair hang down straight; I was worried I would look too different. I kept my glasses on as I was simply blind without them.

I walked out to the hallway, seeing that everybody else must have finished changing by now. I walked outside and instantly had to shield my eyes from the blinding sun, though my skin looked ridiculously pale as the sun's rays touched it. I felt the warm sand beneath my bare feet, enjoying the feeling as I looked out on the beach. It was completely empty save for the ocean in the distance, a small snack-shack, some empty lawn chairs and umbrellas, and a shower room/bathroom. It looked like one of those tourist traps, just without the tourists.

"Guess I was the first one out here," I muttered to myself as the second person walked out. It was Sen, clad only in a pair of cyan swimming trunks. He had a fairly slender build, not overly fit but definitely healthy. For some reason, he was still wearing his medical mask.

"Hello, Kanon!" Sen called out to me. "I see you're a quick changer. Is your swimsuit made out of the proper fabrics? If not, it can be damaging to your skin,"

I raised my eyebrow a bit, blushing a little as he made this remark. I imagined it was less awkward for him, being a doctor and all, but it was still weird hearing it from him. "I, uh... think?" I replied. "I've gone swimming once or twice before, and I've been fine each time,"

Sen nodded as the next two arrived - Guadalupe and Yuki. Guadalupe was dressed in a green bikini, and she looked exactly the way I thought she would - astoundingly toned figure and even a set of abs. Yuki was dressed in her regular clothes for some reason, though - and instantly began to sweat the moment she stepped out on the beach.

"Oh shit, it's hot out here!" Yuki called out, fanning herself off.

"Idiota! Monokuma told you to dress in a swimsuit!" Guadalupe scolded her.

"I just-" In a desperate move, Yuki tugged on the hem of her shirt, lifting upward. Instantly Guadalupe's face flushed a beet-red.

"Yuki, no! You're not wearing anything under that!"

Before anything past her stomach was exposed to the world, Yuki let go. "Oh shit, you're right! I, uh... might have a swimsuit, lemme go grab that," She then dashed off and back into the train as Kaemon walked out in a pair of beige swim trunks. Just as I expected, his body was fat and covered in blond hair.

"The fuck? Did she almost show her tits?" Kaemon asked us.

Sen shook his head. "Yuki might be suffering from heat exhaustion, it's probably best that we don't bring this up,"

"If you even think about sexually harassing Yuki, I will kick your ass!" Guadalupe threatened him.

"Geez, no need to get all pissy about it," Kaemon replied, crossing his arms.

Guadalupe scowled at him and sighed. "You're ''muy estúpido''," She told him.

"Hey, I don't even speak Spanish, and I know what that meant!" Kaemon shouted at Guadalupe, before Kenji walked out in an athletic men's swimsuit. Strangely enough, he was still wearing his mask over his face, and his sword and sheath were still on his waist. Just as before, I was standing in awe over his toned and muscular physique.

"Do you just take your sword and mask with you everywhere you go?" Kaemon asked him.

Kenji nodded. "A good swordsman doesn't leave his blade behind for anybody,"

"Ooooooh, you're so fit and athletic!" Guadalupe exclaimed. "You must work out every day!"

"Yes, I do," Kenji replied with a nod. "It is my personal code to always be of strong body and of stronger mind. Speaking of which, Tame was supposed to join me, but I'm not quite sure where she went..."

"A little help?" Tame called out, poking her head out from the train's door. Kenji walked back to the train as her face flushed a beet-red. "F-From a girl?"

"I've got it!" I replied, running back up to the train. Tame was standing by the door, in a purple bikini. It was one of those that had to be tied to be worn, and the top had to be tied at the front. The top was stretching itself to fit over her chest, and Tame didn't have a solid grip on the laces. Her face was flushed a beet-red as she struggled to keep her top up. "Do you need help tying this?"

Tame gave a nervous nod as I helped tie the laces behind her back. "H-Hey, that's really tight!" She called back to me, wincing in pain. "I feel like it's gonna fall off!" I tried tying it a little bit more loose, eventually getting a good angle as I tied her top on. "Hey, thanks, Kanon!" She told me. "Truth be told, I'm actually super self-conscious," Tame admitted to me, looking down and covering her chest with her arms. "I-I know I'm going to get lots of stares, and... I don't know if I can handle that..."

I nodded back at Tame and smiled back at her, making sure I wasn't staring myself. "I understand. Just sit in the shade and away from everybody else, or tell people not to stare. If they do, then we'll all know that those guys are trash anyway. Don't worry, I won't let anyone make you feel uncomfortable!" I told her. This was quite the surreal feeling, reassuring my idol, the artist of my favorite anime.

Tame smiled back, but then suddenly reclined as Daquan and Ryo entered the hallway, in their swim trunks. Daquan was wearing blueish-gray trunks while Ryo's were a dull red, and both were just as beefy and toned as I was expecting them to be.

"Hey, girls!" Daquan greeted us. "Y'all goin' swimming with us?"

Tame gave a faint nod in Daquan's direction.

"No need to be shy," Ryo told her. "Remember? I'm not into girls,"

Tame gulped, still trying to hide her chest. Meanwhile, I was caught up with Daquan and Ryo's figures, they were quite impressive.

The four of us went back outside, and Tame immediately dashed underneath the shade of an umbrella, sitting next to Kenji.

"Holy shit-" Kaemon muttered. "Tame's... well, you know... even bigger than I imagined-"

"I would advise that you shut your mouth at once," Kenji replied to him. "It would be within your best interest,"

The next ones to arrive out were Utamuro and Amy-chan. Utamuro was dressed in white swim trunks with a black diagonal stripe through the middle, and Amy-chan was in a pink bikini with blue frills that sparkled in the sunlight. It was strange seeing Amy-chan with her hair all the way down, reaching down to her waist. Seeing Utamuro standing side-by-side with Amy-chan really accentuated their height difference; I never really processed just how much she towered over him. Utamuro was predictably thin and underweight, no real fat or muscle to discern on his body. Amy-chan wasn't particularly toned or fit, but what was impressive about her was her sheer height.

"Oh, sugoi! I can't wait to have fun on the beach!" Amy-chan exclaimed, hugging Utamuro tightly.

"H-Hey, you can let go of me, you know!" Utamuro protested, trying to wriggle out of her grasp.

After a few seconds, Amy-chan let go of the Ultimate Clothing designer. "Hehe, gomen!"

I kept eyeing up Amy-chan, having to tilt my head up just to look at her. Man, I just wished she was less loud, then I'd definitely be into her.

"I'm probably just gonna sit in the shade," Utamuro whispered, sitting under one of the umbrellas. Amy-chan took a seat next to him as Tomoe was the next was step out, dressed in a gray recreational one-piece, not showing off too much of her body. Her sunglasses were resting atop her head, showing her gold-brown eyes that she never showed us before. Just like the rest of the girls, she was actually wearing her hair down this time.

"How's it going, everyone?" Tomoe asked, strutting toward Utamuro and Amy-chan. "Damn, this would be a nice place to shoot for a movie," She muttered as she took a seat and pulled her sunglasses over her face again.

"You're just gonna wear that old thing?" Utamuro asked her. "That's the kind of thing they would have us wearing back in school. Surely Cool Tomoe should wear something, I dunno, cooler?"

Tomoe shrugged and grabbed a glass of lemonade conveniently placed on a table next to her. "Look, I don't show off. I dunno if I'm ready to wear something flashy like Amy-chan here,"

Utamuro nodded. "I understand. Well, if you ever change your mind, there's tons of different types of swimsuits I can make for you, to fit your body shape,"

Amy-chan sat by Utamuro and Tomoe, the three of them talking among themselves. I smiled, watching the three of them enjoy the day. It was quite refreshing to see us having fun, even if just the day prior we witnessed two deaths.

Rai, Shiro, Yuki, and Aiko were the next to arrive on the beach. Rai was wearing a pair of baggy blue swim trunks with a cloud pattern on them, and for once wasn't wearing his glasses. He had a fairly average build, his stomach being on the pudgy side and his chest on the skinny side. Shiro was wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of light-gray swim trunks, not wearing their signature goggles this time. In its place as a seafoam-colored visor on their forehead, shielding their red eyes from the sun. Yuki was wearing a black bikini, and I couldn't help but gasp as I realized just how much she was hiding under her sweatshirt and sweatpants. She was rather fit, but not particularly toned or muscular above the waist. Her legs were significantly more toned and finely shaped, and she was fairly busty though not on the level of Tame. Aiko was dressed significantly more modestly than the others, in a black one-piece only exposing her shoulders, arms, and legs.

"Yuki!" Guadalupe called out, running up to her. "Hermosa! You look great in that!"

Yuki smiled back at her. "Hey, thanks! It's still kinda warm out here, but I do like to swim!"

"Huh, it's definitely going to be sunny for a long time..." Rai muttered to himself as he sat down on the sand. Shiro sat next to him, pulling the visor over their face and sitting beneath an umbrella.

"I'm still trying to develop a sunscreen that both shields the epidermis from UV light while also allowing optimal Vitamin D absorption," Shiro muttered. "It's difficult with my skin having no pigment, though,"

Yuki gave a chuckle. "Shiro, you're such a nerd!"

Shiro rolled their eyes in response and gave a sigh. "Yes, and you can thank nerds like me for every breakthrough in modern chemistry,"

Meanwhile, Aiko picked up a branch on the ground and began to draw a circle around Rai, Shiro, Guadalupe, Yuki, and I. Yuki and Guadalupe stepped outside of the circle as Aiko began to draw some straight lines through the circle as well as some strange symbols in the middle of the circle. When she finished, it resembled one of those magic circles seen in occult rituals.

"What's this?" Rai asked. "Are we going to sit here and chant more weird Latin phrases again?"

Shiro sighed. "No, this is a magic circle, as seen in alchemy. But alchemy is ridiculously outdated, no one actually believes it anymore. And if it weren't for anime, I don't think anyone would even care about alchemy in the first place,"

Aiko giggled at Shiro's comment. "Hehehe~ It's not an alchemy circle! It's for contacting the dark one, so that she may save us from this murder game!"

"Will this actually work?" Shiro asked.

"Probably not," I whispered into their ear. "I don't think it's any question that Aiko isn't... all there, so to say,"

Shiro shrugged. "She's weird, but I don't think there's anything too wrong with her,"

Aiko placed a few candles around the circle as she sat down with her legs crossed as she began to chant something indistinct.

"Why do you like her so much?" Shiro asked Rai. Rai shrugged in response.

"I'm not entirely sure, she's just cute, I guess," He replied. "Plus, she actually listens to me about the weather. Everyone else just kinda ignores me,"

Shiro nodded, staying in place and keeping a close watch on Aiko and Rai.

"Prepare yerselves, I'm comin' out, y'all!" A familiar voice shouted out. Toko burst out from the train, dressed in a pale lavender bikini, with their hair down and glasses off. They still wore their trademark lavender cowboy hat, and without their skirt and leggings on, one could see an automatic machine gun and a pistol strapped to their legs. Most of us stopped to look at them, surprised at their boldness.

"Is it... weird?" Tame asked them. "Being non-binary and wearing a bikini? I'd imagine you would be, I don't know..."

Toko sneered at Tame. "Where in the rules does it say that enbies can't wear bikinis?"

Tame sighed. "Damn... they're more confident than I am..."

"Is it uncomfortable? Wearing your guns around your legs?" Kenji asked.

Toko grinned at Kenji. "And yer one to talk, still carryin' yer sword with ya?"

Kenji shrugged and instantly went silent.

In the midst of Toko and Kenji's conversation, I felt someone tap on my shoulder. I gasped and turned around, seeing Hideki in deep blue swim trunks. He was lacking his signature hat, but still had his sunglasses on. Surprisingly, he wasn't super muscular, and was quite chubby, especially around the stomach.

"Oh, hello Kanon," Hideki greeted me, giving a smug grin in my direction and crossing his arms. "Don't think you're safe now, because Monokuma's still gonna try to make us kill each other,"

I sighed and puffed my cheeks out at Hideki. "Why can't you just let us have some fun for once?"

Hideki shrugged. "Monokuma doesn't take a day off, why should we?"

I didn't want to admit it, but Hideki was right. Anyone could kill anyone else at this point, and ignoring that possibility didn't make it go away.

"Also, that's quite the daring outfit you've got there," Hideki told me, looking me up and down. "You sure that's the right size? You don't really fill out the top too well,"

I instantly went beet-red, hoping nobody heard him. I covered my chest instantly, hoping no one was looking in my direction. At that moment, I looked over at all the other girls - Guadalupe, Tame, Amy-chan, Yuki, Aiko, Tomoe, they all had much different figures than I did. I didn't want to admit it, but every passing second was making me feel more and more self-conscious.

"C-Can you not say such things?" I asked Hideki.

Kaemon walked over to us and poked my stomach without any real warning. I flinched and backed away from him.

"Yeah, you have basically a loli build," Kaemon noted. "But don't worry too much about it, at least the Flat is Justice crowd would like you a lot!"

"Okay, you two, that's quite enough," I heard a familiar voice call out. Masaki walked out, dressed in a pair of gray-blue swim trunks. I gasped, staring at him up and down as I noted his incredible build. He was fit and athletic, but not overly muscular like Daquan and Ryo. I had to cover my mouth and not make it so obvious that I was staring at him.

"What, you gonna white knight her?" Kaemon asked with a laugh.

Masaki shrugged. "I dunno, I just don't think people like you should be quick to make such demeaning comments about others' figures,"

Kaemon glared at Masaki, going completely silent as the Ultimate Thief approached Hideki.

"Yeah? And what do you want with me, mister criminal?" Hideki asked him.

Masaki gave a grin. "And you? You're clearly much bigger and stronger than little Kanon here. Pick on somebody your own size,"

Hideki rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Okay, whatever you say," He then walked away before leaning toward my face and whispering something. "Just because he's sweet to you doesn't mean he cares about you at all. That man is nothing but trouble," Before I could say anything else to him, Hideki walked off.

I looked down and puffed my cheeks out again, upset with Kaemon and Hideki. Suddenly, I felt seriously uncomfortable around everyone, sort of like I'd been mentally violated. I wanted to shrink down and disappear from everyone else, and hide my shame from the others surrounding me. I covered my face with my hands, looking away from everybody else.

"Hey, Kanon?" Masaki began. I pulled my head from my hands and looked up at him as I was still shaking.

"Wh-what is it now?" I asked him.

He inhaled and looked up, then looked back at me with a smile. "You, uh... look nice in that,"

I suddenly felt a chill run down my spine as he said those words aloud. I felt a goofy, awkward smile spread across my face as I tugged on my hair a bit, suddenly feeling some combination of elation and nervousness. "Th-thanks..." I replied to him. "Y-You, uh... look really, uh... um..." The word I was looking for was very clearly "hot", but how could I say that?! He would definitely get ideas if I told him that. "You look... nice, as well,"

Masaki smiled back at me, moving his arms up and giving me a good look at his figure. I had to cover my mouth to hide my gasp as I looked him up and down. Good lord, he was hot! "Thanks," He replied. "I appreciate that,"

"Hello everyone, sorry I'm late!" Asa called out, clad in a beige bikini. She wore a large smile upon her face as she approached us, looking rather excited and confident. She was just so cute, being happy and cheery as well as her adorably plump self.

"Asa-chan!" Amy-chan called out, instantly running toward Asa. Kaemon, Tame, Yuki, Guadalupe, Sen, Daquan, Ryo, Masaki and I approached her as well.

"Oh my!" Asa called out with a smile. "I never expected to be this popular!"

"You're so kawaii, Asa-chan!" Amy-chan squealed. "Did you make anything?"

Yuki smiled at her as well. "Yeah, is there anything baking right now?"

"Oh, of course! You know there always is when I have the chance!" Asa replied to the two of them. "But Miss Sakura, Miss Hatano, you two must be patient. It is going to be a while before it's all finished, okay?"

Kaemon nodded back. "Man, I can't wait to dig into some of that sweet cake! There's just nothing like eating sweets and playing video games!"

Asa bowed toward Kaemon. "I am glad to hear that I may be of service to you, Mister Nakama,"

Suddenly I heard Tame shout, "Shut up!"

"Miss Maeda, what's wrong?" Asa asked her.

"This dickhead just said, 'Guess you're going to have to settle for second-biggest tits here!'" Tame replied, pointing at Kaemon.

"H-Hey, it's nothing personal!" Kaemon replied to her. "It's nothing but an observation!"

Ryo shook his head at Kaemon. "It's kind of weird to say things like that. You wouldn't go telling the same thing to myself or Daquan, would you?"

Asa gave a nervous chuckle as her face went red. "M-Mister Shinobu, please, it's... quite alright," Asa stammered. "I-I don't particularly mind offhand remarks about my, um... figure. I used to receive them quite frequently..."

Man, comparing my reaction to Kaemon's sexist comments and Asa's reaction, there was a noticeable difference. She had a lot more composure than I did, for sure. It was quite a wonder how Asa always managed to keep herself calm and collected.

"Moving on, it seems everybody is here except for Miss Ali," Asa pointed out. "Where could she be right now?"

I gasped, suddenly remembering our encounter with Azizah in the dining hall, and how Kaemon outed her in front of all of us. It was possible that she was feeling insecure around all of us thanks to him...

Just as Asa mentioned that, we saw Azizah slowly creeping out of the train. She was dressed in a dark yellow full-body wetsuit, with black stripes down the middle. Just like the others who wore glasses, she had them off this time. "H-Hello, everyone," Azizah greeted us all, approaching us but making sure not to look at Kaemon.

"Hey, Azizah!" Masaki called out to her with a wave. "Aren't you hot in that thing?"

Azizah shook her head. "It is not quite as hot as you might think," She replied with a nervous smile. "See, I am told to dress modestly, and so I do,"

Kaemon rolled his eyes. "Please, we all know it's because you're so oppresse-"

"No, that is not how it is either," Azizah replied to him. "It is just tradition. Personally, I feel more comfortable wearing this to begin with,"

"Yeah, that's exactly what you would say," Kaemon scoffed.

"Okay, you can stop being a dick now," Daquan told him.

"Would it be less of an issue if she were a Japanese woman who did not practice religion, wearing a wetsuit?" Kenji asked. "It appears as if this is just your bias showing,"

Before Kaemon could defend himself further, Monokuma suddenly appeared before each of us. This time, however, he was wearing palm tree-shaped sunglasses and a floral-patterned shirt. "Hello, class! I see you all made it to the beach in your swimwear today! Because you've all been so patient and cooperative, I'm going to allow everybody a fun beach day today! Play in the water, talk with your friends, soak in the sun! And most importantly, don't forget to have fun!" Monokuma told all of us as he grabbed a surfboard and jumped into the water.

It was a little strange, with Monokuma telling us to simply enjoy ourselves after witnessing a murder and an execution, but we certainly needed something to get our minds off of all this.

Everyone dispersed into their groups, but Masaki and Azizah stayed with me. Azizah kept looking down, being more quiet than usual.

"Azizah? You've been awfully quiet all day," Masaki told her.

"It's okay," Azizah replied to him with a smile. "You do not need to concern yourself with me, but I very much appreciate it,"

"Kaemon's just rude," I told her. "Don't listen to him, he's wrong about you,"

Azizah nodded and smiled back at me. "You are all getting so angry at him, but his heart is simply corrupted. With patience, he can be transformed into a kinder, more peaceful person,"

Masaki chuckled at Azizah. "You're too wide-eyed. I think Kaemon is just too far gone for any of us to reach at this point,"

"You all say that," She began. "But perhaps he has been misled. There is room for wisdom and instruction in him,"

What was Azizah planning? There was no way anyone could put up with Kaemon for so long. She definitely had some inhuman sense of patience if she was going to try to reach him.

"Well, in any case," Masaki began, "Isn't it weird that Monokuma would basically tell us to have fun right after a murder? I don't trust anything he says for a second,"

"Yes, it is strange," Azizah replied. "Usually he gives us a motive, so we should expect that soon,"

Masaki and Azizah had a point. It was weird that Monokuma was being so lax with us; he wasn't usually this way. I wasn't about to complain about some relief from the mutual killing.

After a few hours of all of us having fun on the beach, splashing each other with water and soaking in the sun, suddenly we heard a voice call out to us.

"Everyone, come my way," Kenji called out to us.

"Did you find anything of importance, Mister Yang?" Asa asked him with a tilt of her head.

Kenji nodded, crossing his arms. "There is something I wish for you all to see. I do hope that it is nothing terrible,"

Sen scratched his chin and looked around, then nodded. "It appears that we are all present, so we do not have to fear the possibility of one of us having been murdered just yet,"

"Kenji, could you at least tell us what it is?" Azizah asked him.

Kenji shook his head. "I... am not certain how I would describe it to you all. Please, the best way to learn of it is to follow me," He told us as he motioned for us to follow him. Each of us followed Kenji out of the water as he led us into the shack on the beach.

"The snack shack?" Tame asked him. "I mean, I do get hungry, but was it worth pulling us all away from the beach for?"

"Yeah, tell us what the hell is goin' on," Hideki said to him.

"Hmph," Kenji grunted, before opening up the door. The interior didn't seem to be too out of the ordinary, with various snacks and junk foods lining the shelves. There was one thing off about it, though - a strange crystal ball sitting on the counter, completely out of place. Thematically, it didn't match where we were at, and it didn't seem to have any real purpose.

"A fucking crystal ball?" Kaemon asked. "Some pseudoscience magic bullshit?"

"Don't be so quick to disregard it!" Aiko called back. "Crystal balls have historically had power to see what human beings cannot see! Before talented scientists like Rai existed, people would go to the crystal ball to see if it was going to rain on a certain day!"

"Well, um..." Rai wanted to say something, but his face went red and he kept stammering over his words. "Well, it's less about- and more- well-"

Shiro shook their head. "No, I think Kenji knows what he's talking about. A crystal ball doesn't particularly match a beach theme,"

"Not unless Monokuma was goin' for a haunted beach movie!" Tomoe replied with a grin. "'Course, it would probably suck, but maybe worth having a laugh over with your friends,"

Aiko grinned and reached out toward the crystal ball. "Shhh, I'm going to see if I can channel the energy from this crystal ball-"

Before Aiko could place her hand on the glass ball, Monokuma burst into the shack. "Why, hello students! I see you've found the rare, the elusive, the well sought-after Orb of Desire!"

The Orb of Desire?

...There was no way this could turn out well.