Notes: Hello, beloved readers! I apologize for the relative lateness of this chapter, as I have been balancing my wild theorizing and discussions about Danganronpa 3 with my productive life! May I just say that the real fool is me, for making my bold declaration regarding *that* character only to be proven dead (or, rather, alive?) wrong the following week? I still have much to learn from Kodaka-but that is in the past.

Addendum: To clarify, the events of this story take place around three years after the events of Danganronpa and (I want to say) two years after the events of Super Danganronpa 2. This will be important, so some additional context should help you out.

For the real interesting news, let's see which three of my OCs will have their Free-Time Events written!

Out of 11 votes:

Ahodori Kuroashi, Lemeza Go, and Asami Seishin won with two votes each!

I see you guys couldn't resist the magic of Asami! I can't wait to unearth some of Lemeza's quirks and history! No more will Ahodori be kept under bandages and wraps! We'll see what these three have in store next chapter. Enough of that, though:

Have you heard of Via Desperatio?

Makoto awoke from a dreamless sleep to the distant tolling of a bell. Lifting a hefty eyelid up, he looked at the dark ceiling and wondered what time it could be. A sloppy yawn escaped his lips as he rolled to his right, more interested in the thought of leaving his bed than actually doing it.

"Eww, Line-like Makoto, you have drool stains! XP"

Makoto found he had been persuaded to leave his bed. "What the?! H-how'd you get in here?!"

Makoto scraped his feet against the floor, causing a gooey sound to rip in the room. Looking down, he saw that a gelatinous substance was underneath him. It had a dull glimmer to it, and it stuck to the bottom of Makoto's bare feet without pull or feel.

"Upup! Did I drool too?! Oopsies! You are just so adorable when you sleep that I couldn't keep myself from watching my line-like guest during night time! :$"

Makoto gripped his head as he felt his cheeks grow red and pictured another emoticon burst through his cracked skull. "Damn it... How are you... doing this...?"

Squiddy rubbed one of its feeder tentacles on the bottom of its searing white 'face'. "We Antediluvians are complex friends, line-like Makoto. Our only way of expressing ourselves to you is... acting like line-like ones! And line-like ones use lots of body language to communicate, so we're doing the same thing. XD"

"Ante..." Another spike jabbed through his head, and with it came a shrill fit of laughter from Makoto, "... Aha––wh––haha––wha––ha––what?"

"Upupupu! I leaked a bit more than ink! I'm sorry, line-like Makoto, but you need to go outside and enjoy your town life without me! I have to do my job as your supervisor, first and foremost! :|" Makoto's blurry vision caught a glimpse of Squiddy's floating through the room and out the doorway to the exit. "Get a good breakfast, line-like Makoto! Be sure to check your suit for a coooooool gift from your mayor! :)"

With a groan, Makoto settled his mind and sat back down on his bed. He wondered whether his easy fall into sleep meant anything bad. Was he getting so used to his increasingly bizarre life that a day wherein he awoke in a foreboding town, met a mummy along with a new Hope's Peaks class, and forced into another killing game by Monokuma and a talking squid warranted soothe rest? He shook his throbbing head and idly dusted off his suit.

He stopped himself as he touched something hard inside his suit. Opening it up, he found a stuffed pocket. He rummaged through it. He pulled out a miniature tablet of familiar design––cool black, with a minimalistic design and a stainless glass screen. A chill crawled through his bones, and he hesitated for a moment before slowly tapping his finger on the glass screen. The screen glowed harsh whites and calming blues:

ELECTRONIC STUDENT E-HANDBOOK

e-Handbook model 2.0

It was everything he had expected. Flicking across the tiny screen led to a menu with the standard options: map, 'citizen' profiles, rules and regulations. The map revealed the general shape of the town to be a vaguely triangular area bordering a sea named 'Suijin's Sea' and a grayed out area titled 'The Expanse'; the map revealed the name of the town, too, above an abstract of the grand fountain, in stark letters: 'Enoshima'. Coldness dripped within the confines of his spirit, and he did not know whether he had willed himself to turn off the screen or if his mindless hands had just happened to deactivate it.

When the freeze subsided, he got up on his feet, dressed in a suit from the numerous collection in his closet, and exited the room. He whistled as he descended down the stairs in front of him, thinking of what he would feed himself with.

"You're up late." A calm voice slipped through from the right of the stairs, past the entrance to a guest room.

"I think I deserve some sleep after yesterday," Makoto replied. He yawned as he reached the first floor, rubbing a closed eye.

That closed eye shot right up after a second of thinking. "Wait, who's there?!" He ran to the right, stopping at the guest room's entrance, and poked his head out.

Kyoko sat on a wooden chair, a hand on a book resting on a table. Placed ahead of the book were six glittering spots of varying colors. Her eyes were affixed on the book's inside. "Good morning to you too, Makoto."

Makoto stepped into the guest room, breathing out. "Geez, you scared me." He moved to a chair facing Kyoko and sat on it. "How'd you even get inside here?"

"The front door." Kyoko flipped to the next page of the book.

"Well, duh. This house doesn't have any windows or other entrances."

"You forgot to lock your front door." Kyoko looked at him with a slight frown on her face. "A basic mistake like that could put you in big danger."

Makoto put a hand on his forehead. "... You're right. I totally didn't think of that!" He sunk into his seat. "But are you really worried someone's actually going to...?"

"Can't be too careful. Maybe no one is directly planning a kill, but it could be something as small as seeing an unlocked door that gets them to start thinking about it."

"I believe in these kids––they're better than that." Makoto smiled. "But thanks for looking out for me. I'll keep this place secured just so I don't have to deal with... unwanted guests."

"And I thought you liked me." A smirk emerged on Kyoko's face. "I'm hurt, but I understand. Your keys should be on your bed stand if every house is uniformed."

"W-what?! I didn't mean that... As a guest, I would totally want you!" Makoto felt his cheeks get a bit warm. "Wait, that came out wrong! I!... Ugh, did you not see, um, 'Squiddy' pass by?"

Kyoko narrowed her eyes. "I tried to ignore that thing. I could hear it... existing when I arrived here, and I heard your talk with it. It's best for my sanity to ignore it, since it seems to ignore me." She put a hand on the table, pointing to the gemstones. "I want to talk about something else. What do these things remind you of?"

Makoto picked up one of the gemstones and searched his memories. "These kinda look like the trinket you use to keep track of time, right?"

"Correct, because they're all part of my system. I found them when I went through my clothes." She glared at the center of one of the rocks. "Everything appears to be in order... and that's a problem."

"I see... If the clothing in your house follows the same pattern, then the mastermind must have known about it. If they did, they could have messed with the system––like by putting your original gem inside a different suit and changing you into that suit––to make it look like you were wearing the same clothes. That way, you'd really have no good way of guessing how accurate your memory was."

"Correct. I have also considered a scenario where whoever kidnapped us just took our clothing and possessions while we were unconscious and then arranged our housing without knowledge of my memory trick. I admit this explanation is weakened by their thorough removal of all electronics that could be used to contact the outside world, but it's a possibility nonetheless. In any case," Kyoko crossed her arms, "I'm right back to square one regarding how and when we arrived here."

"We'll find out what happened. With all of us working together, we'll even make sure this doesn't happen again."

"It never hurts to hope." Kyoko closed the book on the table and let out a smile. "Did you check on Lemeza and Yuta?"

"Yeah. Yuta seems to be careful with his steps, and he does seem to stop a lot. I didn't see anything special about Lemeza, though. He just seems... nervous." Makoto shrugged and looked at the book's cover. He could see some letters printed on its leather spine.

"..." Kyoko pocketed the gemstones and stood up. "You hungry? Let's get some breakfast."

"Uh, sure." Makoto stood up as well. "Where to, though? Nothing really stands out as a place to go eat."

"Did you not check your e-handbook? It's the tavern in the town's center. Follow me––we've got some more stuff to talk about." She exited the guest room. Before Makoto followed her, he took a look at the book one more time.

"Hope and the Infinite, huh..."

"I found it in your collection. You should read it yourself. Then we can talk about it."

Makoto and Kyoko's walk to the town center was uneventful. Their voices and footsteps moved freely down the lonely path, and the only thing they sighted of interest, a pile of tree trunks with black wood that hadn't been there yesterday, lay neatly arranged at the side of one house's walkway. They had reviewed each other's familiarity with the e-handbooks, and Makoto was somewhat relieved to learn that the rules and regulations were similar to before:

RULE 1: PLAYERS MAY SAFELY RESIDE IN AUTHORIZED AREAS. YOU ARE LIABLE FOR ALL ACTIONS DONE OUTSIDE THESE AUTHORIZED AREAS.

RULE 2: "NIGHTTIME" IS FROM 10PM TO 7AM. SOME AREAS BECOME UNAUTHORIZED AT NIGHT, SO PLEASE EXERCISE CAUTION.

RULE 3: WITH MINIMAL RESTRICTIONS, YOU ARE FREE TO SLEEP IN ANY AREA.

RULE 4: EXPLORATION OF ALL AUTHORIZED AREAS IS UNRESTRICTED.

RULE 5: VIOLENCE AGAINST THE GAME MASTER IS PROHIBITED, AS IS LITTERING OF SUIJIN'S SEA.

RULE 6: THE PLAYER WHO INTENTIONALLY KILLS ANOTHER PLAYER WILL BECOME THE "BLACKENED" AND WIN, UNLESS THEY ARE DISCOVERED.

RULE 7: ADDITIONAL SCHOOL RULES MAY BE ADDED IF NECESSARY

If anything, the rules seemed more lenient. Still, Makoto had to close his eyes and retreat his hands into his pockets.

"... Something's bothering you." Kyoko's voice reached his left ear. "'Enoshima'... I doubt it's a coincidence too."

Makoto flinched at that name. Slowly, he pulled a hand out from his pocket and rested it over his heart. "Junko... could it really be her? Or maybe a follower?"

"I can't say. We need more evidence before we can reach a conclusion." Kyoko paused. "Whatever we discover... stick through it."

"..." Makoto felt a spark of energy somewhere within himself and had to smile. He opened his eyes. "I will, for everyone's sake."

"...Hm," Kyoko let out. Makoto wondered what she was thinking until he heard a muffled chuckle escape her shaking lips.

Makoto, feeling that spark of energy fly away, sighed. "Oh god, what'd I do this time?"

"It's nothing." Kyoko restrained her chuckle with a slight smirk. "You just... remind me of someone."

Makoto looked to the sky. "Riiight..."

"I won't spoil the surprise," Kyoko said.

The pair arrived at the town center and headed right to the wood buildings with the balcony. Glancing at the ground level windows of the buildings allowed Makoto to see a comforting glow sparkle through. He had seen a billow of smoke ascend some distance away from his home, and, after observing some chopped logs resting on each building's side, concluded that a hot fireplace must be inside the building. He caught a whiff of cooked meat in the air as he imagined a warmth tingle his palms. This definitely was the tavern.

Leaning on a wall to the side of the farthest entrance to the tavern was Yuta. Makoto peeked at Kyoko and found that she had done the same. They approached him.

"Good morning, Yuta." Makoto attempted to give him a wave and a polite smile.

Yuta looked Makoto in the eye. Red lines marked his sclera, and what looked like a circle of black ink stained the bottoms of his eyes. "..."

Makoto frowned. "What happened, did you not sleep well last night? Need to talk about something?"

"... You two." Yuta slowly stood on his feet. "My class is waiting for you inside. We have information."

"We were going to get breakfast, anyway." Kyoko moved ahead of Makoto. "Let's see what they have to tell us." She disappeared through the entrance.

Makoto followed up until he was at the side parallel to Yuta's. "Did you volunteer to wait for us?"

"Do you like asking questions that don't contribute to anything?"

Makoto reeled back. "H-hey, I'm just curious! I just want to see how you're adjusting to the group dynamic."

Bloodshot eyes fell on Makoto once more. "Answering your questions may get you to be proactive. Yes: I did volunteer. No: I didn't sleep last night. Maybe: I'll talk to you if it's useful."

Makoto rubbed the back of his neck. "That was... one way to break the ice?" He thought. "How about I stop 'wasting time' and just see what's going on inside? Thanks for waiting for me, by the way."

"You're welcome, ..." Yuta mumbled something inaudible.

Makoto moved in closer, a bit surprised. "Huh?"

"Nothing." And Yuta spoke no more.

Makoto felt an inviting ambiance string him along the brown hallway past the entrance. Following the sounds of crackling wood, he passed through a mahogany double door and saw a hall stretch out before him. Numerous wooden tables furnished the hall, and a long sideboard to his left showcased a cornucopia of fruits, vegetables, and various meat dishes. He saw a flight of stairs lead up to a second floor he could only see the railings of. Somewhere, perhaps in the pocketed area some distance behind the sideboard, a lovely orange light seeped out to find a home in the hallway, filling it with the colors of a seaside sunset.

At a large round table sat the majority of the 79th class and Makoto's classmates. Aoi and Murasaki, both dressed in what looked like workout clothes, waved excitedly at Makoto as he picked through some food offerings. Daisuke was chomping down on his third (and soon to be empty) food plate while Lemeza desperately pleaded for Emilia to give his apple back to him, to which Emilia responded with a declaration that she was only protecting him from 'sinful temptation'. Masumi was humming some oddly energetic beat and repeatedly looked at the entrance but acknowledged Makoto with a smile. Kyoko sipped a cup of what Makoto presumed was coffee, and Takato sat with crossed arms next to Byakuya and a somewhat disheveled Toko, his eyes on Makoto throughout.

"Hi, everyone." Makoto sat down next to Kyoko. "Where are the rest of us?"

"Asami can always be relied on to sleep in, and I forgive Ahodori for taking some time to recover from... yesterday." Takato narrowed his eyes. "Hide apparently prefers starvation to disturbing his sleep cycle, so his presence wasn't expected."

"You missed out, Hina." Murasaki sighed. "With sensei, we'd really be pushed to our limits."

"I believe that!" Aoi exclaimed. "She scared me at first, but she's really just you guys' guardian angel! If you're wondering about Hiro, he's fine: we passed by him wandering around 'thinking about something important'."

Byakuya scoffed. "Ahodori isn't relevant to this meeting unless she needs to be. Takato, proceed."

Letting out a heavy breath, Takato took his glasses off and rested a hand on his head. "... Have you heard of Via Desperatio?"

"V-v-v-via––Vi-a..." Lemeza's eyes started watering. Emilia embraced him, her fangs pushing dangerously against her lips.

Daisuke grasped his leather collar. "T-Takato! This is a joke, right?! Right?!"

Masumi widened her eyes and nearly choked on her food. "Via Desperatio?!... Takato, do you really think––?"

"No," Kyoko answered before Makoto could even consider the question.

"... I see." Takato sighed. "Then we are parallels of each other."

Byakuya looked askance at Takato. "And what does that mean?"

"Via Desperatio is, in one sentence, history's most dangerous terrorist organization." The shadows residing on Takato's face obscured his eyes, and his still voice silenced the crackling fire.

"W-what?" Aoi patted a jittery hand on Murasaki's shaking back. "That's––that's not true. How can they be any worse than..."

"We clearly must be remembering different worlds." Takato pushed his empty plate away, resting his hands on the table. "Because, as we remember things, the Future Foundation's primary goal was to free the world from Via Desperatio."

"That's..." Makoto wondered if he was dreaming as he looked down to see his fists on his upper legs. "That's wrong. We're fighting against Ultimate Despair!"

"Ultimate Despair?" Masumi brushed a few fingers through her hair. "Are you, perhaps, mistaking Via Desperatio's name? It means, 'The Way to Despair', so, maybe..."

"Impossible." Byakuya's words slashed through his tight sneer. "Nothing compares to Ultimate Despair. When we said the world was almost destroyed, do you know who were the perpetrators of that disaster? It was Ultimate Despair, and they are far from defeated."

"Ah..." Takato shook his head. "So Ultimate Despair 'destroyed the world'? Interesting contrast, and a scenario I'd prefer."

"W-what?!" Toko spat out. "Y-y-you want Ultimate Despair?! Are you insane?!"

"... Is oblivion not preferable to unremitting, absolute enslavement?"

"Before we start comparing," Kyoko's said sternly, "why don't we start from the beginning? Tell us about Via Desperatio, and then we'll tell you about Ultimate Despair."

"... To think, not everyone solemnly acknowledged their existence." Takato chuckled quietly. "Via Desperatio origins are largely unknown, but it is commonly accepted that its earliest activities began roughly a decade ago. First came a manifesto: self-actualization can only be realized through the Way to Despair; the world had drunk the poison of hope, and the only way to resuscitate it and the individuals who live in it was to reject hope and longing for a 'shallow' future. From the manifesto birthed followers of the way, who took the message as an auger of a new age. Conquest, subjugation, and tyranny defined them and made them stronger. So, off these followers went––"

"––servile and made hollow by their 'edifying' leader, intent on grinding the world under its heel."

Makoto bolted around, shocked awake from the enthralling summary. Before him stood Yuta, his eyes like red discs within the orange hue of the tavern. "At their strongest, Via Desperatio converted half of the world's population to its cause."

Takato nodded. "Yes... Whether it was through subterfuge, ultimatums, or ruthless violence, many learned to follow the way. Perhaps, from an impartial standpoint, the Future Foundation could be argued to have been just as worthy as Via Desperatio to be called the world ender."

"World... ender." Makoto shivered as those words rang in his mind.

"The Future Foundation pushed them back, but the leader and other key figures of Via Desperatio disappeared. In all likelihood, they handed an illusory victory to the Future Foundation." Yuta moved to the table and sat down next to Masumi.

"... Interesting tale." Byakuya hid his eyes underneath the shine of his glasses. "But we have our own story." He turned to Makoto. "Why don't you tell them, Makoto?'

Makoto groaned in his head but kept his outward expression composed. If anything, the order agitated him enough to do something other than worry. "Ultimate Despair... everything you really need to know about it can be learned from its name. Their only purpose is to push the entire world into despair, and to do it, they'll commit the ultimate sacrifices on others, each other, and even themselves. It all began with..." Makoto tried to avert eye contact with the table. "Junko Enoshima. It was her insane obsession with despair that led to The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event in Human History."

"... What?" Yuta's thin face grew almost childishly plump when he raised his eyebrow.

Makoto stared at Yuta. "The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event in Human History."

"That is the most asinine title I have ever heard," Yuta said.

Makoto raised his hands up over his chest. "Hey! I didn't come up with the name! Blame Junko!"

Yuta scoffed. "This Junko is an idiot. I could have been a better orchestrator of... whatever jumble of synonyms you want to call it."

"Yuta!" Masumi yelled. "We need to learn more from them––and besides," Masumi rubbed her forehead, "that name is... too familiar."

Yuta leaned towards Makoto. "Continue."

"R-right." Makoto coughed. "Junko Enoshima was our... classmate. She worked in the shadows corrupting Hope's Peak Academy so that it would collapse. When she succeeded there, the despair of Hope's Peak spread throughout the world––a new type of war was born. It was a war fought not for ideologies, justice, power, or even self-preservation: the only thing that mattered was the perpetuation of ultimate despair. Even after her death, her despair threatened to consume the world and the people who lived in it." Makoto shook his head. "We thought we had finally pushed Ultimate Despair back with that last killing game, but now... I doubt it."

"It's safe to say that... 'Monokuma' was involved with the previous killing games and Ultimate Despair?" Takato asked.

"Yes, Junko controlled Monokuma in both killing games. That's why I know they have something to do with this game!"

"Hm..." Takato tapped the arms of his glasses. "Were I in your position, I would assume so, too." He took out his e-handbook from his suit. "The name of this town is a bit too coincidental, after all. But... Ultimate Despair emerged when you were still students of Hope's Peak. Via Desperatio, on the other hand, has ruled a significant portion of the world for over a decade. Can you explain this discrepancy?"

"That... uh..." Makoto ran his hand through his hair. "I... really don't know what's going on."

"Then let me ask a few questions," Byakuya said. "So this 'Via Desperatio' organization values despair, does it? But does it see despair as the end of the organization itself, or more of a tool?"

"It's more of the latter, I suppose: despair, to Via Desperatio, is the key to the future. They desire absolute power and control over the world, and they see despair as the greatest manifestation of power."

"So this organization wants control..." Byakuya nodded. "And you said the Future Foundation fought them back? When exactly did this occur?"

"From the start, the Future Foundation fought off Via Desperatio. Via Desperatio started getting pushed back... some five years ago."

Kyoko, who had been jotting down notes throughout the conversation, suddenly raised her head and looked at Byakuya. "Five years. Shouldn't something five years ago ring any bells?"

"...!" Byakuya nearly stood from his seat. "You're not suggesting there's a connection between our admittance into Hope's Peak and Via Desperatio?!"

"That's exactly what I'm suggesting." Kyoko crossed her arms. "There's something connecting Via Desperatio to Ultimate Despair, and it isn't just a fascination with despair. Maybe we forgot more than just our school memories––the 79th class have forgotten about Ultimate Despair, so why should we trust our memory of events?"

"T-that's, t-that's so absurd!" Toko slammed her hand down on the table. "Why not just erase all of our memories and turn us into blank slates, then?!"

"I'm not the mastermind," Kyoko said coolly. "But there has to be something hiding inside this mess. To find that something, we have to entertain every possibility."

"Including the possibility that Ultimate Despair is a false memory, implanted by Monokuma to disguise Via Desperatio?" Makoto gawked at Yuta, who had raised that question with such bitterness that Makoto had felt his blood cool inside his body.

"Are you suspecting me of something?" Kyoko glared back at Yuta.

"I'm entertaining every possibility," Yuta retorted. "Our memory of Via Desperatio could be fabricated to cause a schism between your class and our class. It's also possible both of our memories are mendacious or neither of our memories are suspect. Maybe we're all lying to you to get you to fall into despair, or maybe you're lying to us to better control us. We're in a situation where we can't even confirm that Monokuma and his 'supervisor' are our enemies."

Takato, glasses back on his face, glared at Yuta as well. "Yuta, what do we gain from antagonizing the Future Foundation?"

Byakuya raised an authoritative hand at Takato. "He's doing the smart thing. Like it or not, this revelation puts into question all of our presuppositions. Right now, we can't take anything for granted." He smirked. "Suppose I was trying to do you harm: would I prefer you to think of me as an enemy to be watched out for or as a friend to trust with your life? If I'm your enemy, I'd have to work very hard to get you to fall for a trap; if I'm your 'friend', all I'd have to do is politely ask you to walk into it."

Takato bit his lips. "T-that's... Well, um, I mean..."

"It's absolutely the case. Blind faith will only get you killed." Byakuya's smirk faded into what Makoto thought looked like a softer expression.

Kyoko watched the dialogue, and slowly nodded after its end. "He's right. Yuta, your concerns are understandable. I can't dissolve them just yet, and perhaps I shouldn't try to. This is a strange situation we're in, but we can find some common ground knowing that and work from there."

Yuta nodded. "Then we will work to whatever end shows itself."

"I... want to trust the Future Foundation." Masumi stood up. "I'll trust that they have answers to our puzzle." She held a hand out to Makoto. "I want you to trust us... about Via Desperatio. Together, we can see who's really behind this game."

Makoto also stood up. Glancing at Kyoko, Byakuya, and Yuta, he gave each of them something of a cheeky grin. He then took Masumi's hand and shook it. "I'll trust you guys. Whatever's up with our memories, we won't fall to despair––no matter what it calls itself."

Makoto unlocked his front door and stepped inside, wondering how he'd spend the rest of his long day. This dead time could be used to rest and contemplate on what had occurred in breakfast, he considered for a moment. That moment passed with a rejection of that option, as he was too energized to simply sleep off today's early drama. He already fled yesterday, after all.

The breakfast group departed shortly after Makoto's declaration of trust. They all went their separate ways, and Makoto did not pass by any of the missing members of the group during his trot back home. Perhaps he should search for Hide and inform him of the developments he had slept through? Maybe one of Hiro's completely off-the-wall ideas might produce in Makoto an answer to at least some of the questions left in the air? Hiro always said he knew everything about this insane theory or that crazy conspiracy.

"Oh, right! That reminds me," Makoto thought as he slipped into the guest room he met Kyoko in. He sat down and looked at the book from before––Hope and the Infinite. With idle hands, he opened the cover and flipped to the first printed page.

HOPE AND THE INFINITE

by

MONDAY'S HOPE