I woke up in the hospital the next day. The morning sun shone brightly through the blinds. I looked around to see Yuri sleeping on a chair next to my bed. If I remember correctly, we fell asleep after talking about various novels. It was weird that Monika never came back, well, to be honest, I didn't call her back. It slipped my mind. I tapped Yuri in her arm and gently woke her up. She shrugged and shook her head lightly. Her violet eyes stared at mine with a sleepy look. Her long, purple hair stuck out in some places and drool can be seen at the side of her mouth. After a brief moment, she immediately notices her appearance and quickly did something about them. Pulling out her handkerchief, she wiped away the dried up saliva on her mouth and rubbed her eyes.

" G-Good morning! Ah! Sorry for letting you s-see me like this..." She let out a nervous chuckle before standing up.

" Excuse me... I'll just use the bathroom." Yuri politely excused herself before using the bathroom in the corner of the room.

As I waited for Yuri, I pulled out my phone and went through my contacts. Huh? That's strange... Monika isn't here. Perhaps I deleted her number during our fight. I decided to call Sayori instead of Monika. After a moment, Sayori eventually picked up the phone. She sounded sleepy and tired.

" Hello...? Yoku? *Yaaawn~* Morning..." She mumbled out groggily.

" Good morning. Hey, could you do me a favor? Mind calling Monika for me? I seem to have forgotten her number." There was a short silence on the line. I could hear Sayori scratch her head in confusion.

" Huh? Who's that? A girlfriend of yours?" Sayori said jokingly. I let out a laugh too in response.

" Ahaha, yup! Perhaps the sweetest person I know, second only to you." We laughed together at this statement.

" Wow! I can't wait to meet her! Ahaha! Is she pretty?" Sayori asked teasingly.

" Very much so. I could worship her as a god, but I don't really believe in religion." We laughed once more. Our cheerful laughter filled the line before eventually fading.

" All right, all right... You had your fun, please stop now. Could you please give her a call? I haven't seen her at the hospital." I laughed at her in return, but I was only met with silence.

" W-Who's that? Yoku, I swear... I don't know who you're talking about. If this is some sort of joke, I don't like it. It's mean." Sayori said seriously, clearly irritated by the question she can't answer.

" Seriously?! Monika?! Club President?! The little devil that we've all come to know and love?! The perfect image of a student?! Doesn't ring a bell?!" I said angrily. Once again, I was met by a confused and baffled silence.

" Yoku... Are you sure you didn't hurt your head? Last time I checked, you are the club president... And we've never heard of this perfect student." Sayori had a worried tone. I could feel her sense of concern through the line.

" I... No... Are you sure? You don't remember a brunette girl that wears a big and puffy white bow all the time? With emerald green eyes?" I asked worriedly. Sayori paused for a moment before eventually answering.

" Sorry... No, I have no idea who she is. Look, Yoku, I'm sure you're still tired. It's still early so go get so-"

I hanged up on Sayori and drop my phone in frustration. It doesn't take a genius to put two on two together. I let out a low grumble before punching a pillow.

DDLC: Our Reality

Maido's POV

Sayori's house(Thursday Morning)

I enter Sayori's house carrying their breakfast. The small kitten known as NyanNyan meowed before jumping outside, what a cute little furball. The first thing I saw is Sayori scratching her head in confusion. She seems frustrated at something, something serious. I place down the tray on the table and sat beside her. Sayori paid little attention to me, her focus is set entirely on one thing.

" Mhmmmmmm... Is Yoku seeing someone?! No... It can't be..." Sayori muttered out.

" Hmm? Yoku two-timing? I'm sure someone is mad." I said out loud, grabbing her attention.

" Wha?! No! I... It's not my say who Yoku chooses... But..." I was caught off guard by Sayori's remarks.

" He should be with whoever he chooses! Besides, I'm sure he'd rather stay single to avoid anymore responsibilities." Sayori let out a sigh as she took a sad look at herself.

" Huh? But... Isn't Monika his girlfriend? Wait... do you even remember what happened yesterday?" I questioned her with a baffled tone. She was surprised by my question, her look says it all.

" Yesterday? Mmmmm... Yoku got in a bike accident and... well... uhhhh... I don't really remem- Huh?! Monika?! You know her too?!" Sayori exclaimed in shock before taking hold of my shoulders and shaking me lightly. I was stupefied by the answer I got.

" Yes! Hold on, do you not remember her?! Your best friend?!" I asked her. Confusion is written all over her face. This girl just keeps getting more confused by the minute.

" Wha?! No! I don't have a friend with that name. Did Yoku told you about her?!" Sayori asked with an offended look.

" What the fuck... Ok, Sayori. Could you turn around for a second?" I asked politely.

" Ok, but wh- Argh!" I landed a swift, horizontal knifehand strike on Sayori's carotid artery. I pulled back in order not to kill her accidentally.

" Sorry! But I need you to sleep for now. This might get ug-"

" Hey Maido, what's- OH MY FUCKING GOD WHAT HAPPENED?!" I looked up to see Natsuki staring at Sayori's limp body lying unconsciously on the sofa. She wore a terrified look on her face as she slowly backed away.

" I'm really sorry, but I can't allow you to do anything brash." I said as I stood up and rolled my sleeves up. Natsuki let out a shriek before running upstairs and locking her room.

DDLC: Our Reality

I was trying to wrap my head around what the hell is happening. I tried my best to remain calm, but the thought of Monika deleting herself brought a sour taste to my mouth. As I buried my head with these thoughts, I heard Yuri scuffle outside the bathroom. She straightened out her skirt before hurrying to my side and taking a seat on the chair next to my bed. She turned on the TV, blasting the opening theme of the Parfait Girl's anime. Yuri's eyes widened in surprise as she fumbled around to try and change the channel.

" Hehehe... I wonder who tuned in to the anime channel last night..." I let out a mischievous grin. A streak of red formed across Yuri's face.

" Ah... I... Uh... Well..."

" Don't worry, I won't tell Natsuki. But, I'm pretty sure she'd have a laugh about this." I teased Yuri, causing her to hide her face in her hands.

" You're so mean! I... I was... I was just curious..." Yuri murmured out, her eyes avoided my amused gaze.

" Hehehehe... Yeah right, I bet you enjoyed the part where-" I was interrupted by the loud buzzing of my phone. I picked it up and placed it beside my ear. I could hear Maido pant and drag something behind her.

" Hello, Yoku-"

" Yoku! This is an emergency. I've deemed this simulation as 'compromised'. I-" She was cut off by the someone kicking her leg.

" Argh! Let go of me! Yoku! Help us-" The phone was dropped to the floor, followed by the sound of Natsuki being muffled and silenced.

" Look, Yoku... I know you already know what's going on. If you want to see Monika again, please cooperate." Maido's tone is cold and grim. She was serious, seriously mad. I took a big gulp and stammered.

" Y-Yeah... What do y-you want me t-to do?" There was a pause on the line before Maido lets out a sigh.

" Take Yuri to the basement in our house. The one Akami-sama created. I'll prepare the the ritual." With that, the line abruptly ended. I was left confused and scared, nit knowing what happened to Sayori and Natsuki.

Yuri noticed my obvious distress. She turned off the TV and took out a bottle of water from her bag. She handed it to me and I happily accepted it. The room isn't hot or humid, in fact, the air-conditioning unit is blasting fresh, cool air constantly. Yet, I can't help but pour out bucketfuls if sweat. I turned to Yuri, and placed a shaky hand atop hers. She was caught off guard by this, by it didn't deter her.

" Yuri... Answer me... Do you know who is Monika?" I didn't lift my gaze from the bed. There was a short silence, but she eventually shook her head from side to side.

" S-Sorry... That name doesn't ring a bell." She lets out a dissapointed sigh.

" Uh-huh... Call the nurse. Tell her I'm going home." I gave her the call button before yanking out the needle that connected me to the IV bag.

DDLC: Our Reality

It took a while. Three hours, perhaps? But we eventually made it out of the hospital. The hospital was adamant that I should stay and rest for at least another day. They insisted that my body might not have fully recovered and has a risk of breaking down. I told them that I'm fine, and I am needed in my household. Though they resisted at first, they eventually gave in to my demands and let me leave. But not after being lectured by some doctors about how lucky I am with my injuries. Yuri called a cab and we immediately made our way to my house. We didn't talked to each other along the way, frankly, we couldn't. There was a tense atmosphere around us as we neared my home. We couldn't help but feel our stomachs tie itself into knots as we approached. When we finally got off and paid the driver, we rushed inside the house. I noticed that the blinds and curtains were down, and a heavy air loomed over my house. We looked at each other and nodded. We took a deep breath, and dashed inside the house.

It was a mistake. We nearly fell into the hole in the middle of the walkway. Thankfully, we managed to stop inches from the edge. We peered into the narrow chasm, seeing a dim light in the bottom. The damn thing is probably about 20 meters underground, and I wasn't too happy knowing that I nearly fell to my death in my own house. My left eye is still wrapped in a bandage, so my sense of depth is kinda... meh. I turned to Yuri to tell her to grab the rope in the kitchen, only to find her climbing down the ladder that lead downwards. I sighed heavily, and followed after her. But, just as I was about to take my first step downward, we heard a bloodcurdling scream from the bottom.

" AAAHHHHHHH!!! WHAT THE FUUUUUUCCCCCKKKK???!!!!"

We immediately quickened our pace, that voice could only belong to one person.

" Natsuki!!! I'm coming! Hold on!" Yuri shouted as she quickly descended the ladder.