Blade of the Immoral: Abnormal Days

As Ichijou continued to look over the ruined corpse, blood drained from his face, and the other Students could only stand in shocked silence. Ichijou in particular wanted nothing to do with it: he wanted to leave, and let everyone else handle it, but he knew he couldn't. Even though mostly through Kirigiri Kasumi's help he'd seen things this far, he had to continue to put his all into these cases. He really didn't have much choice: to do otherwise would be a disservice to Ganaha.

The surviving Students stood in silence, awaiting Monokuma's arrival. After a minute or so, Ishihara asked, "Should we get the body down?" Before anyone could answer, however, Monokuma loudly barged into the area, once again wearing a different outfit, a red cap on his head, a red and white suit, with fluffy white trim, and black boots, and an off white sack slung over his shoulder: a traditional Santa outfit. Monokuma laughed, "Oh my, oh my. It must be Christmas! I got what I wished for: a murder more brutal than the last! Who do I have to thank for this lovely, lovely gift...oops, no spoilers! Upupupu."

Twirling his sack off his shoulders, Monokuma continued, "Well, in exchange, I've got presents for all of you!" Ichijou didn't even blink as he reached inside the cloth bag, pulling out a copy of the small, white, Monokuma File 4. Handing it off to the nearest person, he began to pass them out, emptying the sack as the seven copies entered undesiring hands. Flipping the sack upside, naught but dust came out, so the bear rolled it up, throwing the bag into his gluttonous mouth, devouring it. No one was in the mood to even comment on the absurdity of the action. With a wave of his paw, he added, "For reference, Ganaha Eriko's Rest Marker is on the Third Level: she slept in the Ranger Station. The other Rest Markers have been replaced in their last known position showing time rested since being placed, stopping count past eight hours. You'll understand when you see one! But don't worry: by the time you come back from the Trial, your Lodges will be unlocked, and the Rest Markers and sleeping bags will be gone for good! If you get back that is, upupu." With that ominous message, Monokuma left the Students to their own.

After another moment of silence, Minami took a deep breath, beginning, "Alright, who wants to watch the body?"

Nagasaki shakily raised her hand, admitting, "Er, I can. Probably."

Ishihara nodded, "Thanks, Nagasaki-san. We'll do the investigation, this could be a tough one..."

Looking over at Minami, Ichijou asked, "So, earlier, how did you find the body?"

Minami took a breath, before beginning, "I set my rest marker towards the bottom of the slope, in the forest, out of sight. I was able to keep warm by building a fire. On my way to breakfast, I saw the corpse at a distance. I didn't recognize it until I got closer: it was just a blot of pink in the distance. When I saw that it was Ganaha, I got there as quickly as I could, but she had already passed, so I ran to fetch the rest of you."

Uzatei nodded, "I see, not that we can confirm or deny, but while we're on the subject, I'll ask: where did everyone place their Rest Markers? It could be important. To clarify, mine is on the First Level, in the bit of forest between the Courtroom Elevator and the rest of the Level." In response, the others shared their sleeping locations. Ichijou did his best to get a mental list, hoping to check them all out. When everyone had said their piece, Ichijou took a breath, looking over his Monokuma File before opening it. As he read, he couldn't help but cringe at the diagram: it was almost entirely blood colored. The description read:

The Victim, Ganaha Eriko was discovered at the lower Lift landing at 7:47 AM. They died at 4:43 AM.

The Victim is covered in countless wounds, including, but not limited to; blunt trauma, incisions, lacerations, and puncture wounds. There are traces of alcohol present in the body.

As Ichijou reread it, he couldn't help but grow a little frustrated: it said she was wounded, but didn't explain exactly how much. Not that Ichijou really wanted to know, but it seemed to omit so much information...

He wasn't the only one who noticed: Saruta stated, "Strange, the Monokuma File isn't as detailed this time around." Placing the booklet down, he reached into his lab coat pockets, withdrawing a pair of latex gloves. As he donned them, he stated, "Now, I'm only going to do this once, but I fear a thorough examination of the body is necessary. At the very least, a breakdown of her wounds." Reaching into his pocket again, he took out a white face mask, putting it on before approaching his body.

Ishihara asked, "Er, should we bring down the body?"

Hands at his sides, he began to look at the body closely, before saying, his voice lightly muffled, "It's been here for some time, and moving it in this state may also make something of a mess: she has too many wounds. I'd rather not disturb it any more than necessary. It will be whisked away by Monokuma regardless, however, so as much as I too would like to see the body I a less sorry state…it's a bit useless." Beginning his examination, Saruta moved around the body, occasionally touching it, moving clothes or hair aside to get a better look. Ichijou couldn't bear to watch, turning away, and he wasn't the only one either.

His gloves having been stained with a bit of blood, Saruta stepped back, beginning, "Hmm, well, as far as I can tell, her face and torso are bruised heavily. From a close examination, it seems to be the result of a fist, a little larger than average. Given the amount of blows, I imagine she was tied down like so or knocked unconscious. There's a lack of swelling, though I can only imagine that's due to the cold."

"Fair enough," Minami shrugged.

Continuing down to the left arm, he began, "Here, Ganaha is missing some skin on half of her arm, from the elbow to the wrist. Whatever was used to take it off must have been very sharp: the cut seems to be a bit uneven, but the skin can be quite the resilient organ. Where the removed skin was put or taken, however, I have no idea. It might turn up."

Furugori grimaced, a little green in the face, "I hope not..."

Ignoring the pudgy Computer Engineer, Saruta continued to the other arm, saying, "On her right, the arm looks to have been slashed up. One of the cuts, healed slightly, was from Nagasaki yesterday morning, but the bandage I applied is missing. Aside from the healing, it seems to be about the same shape, just shallower."

"Eh? But..." Nagasaki muttered, worried.

Ishihara suggested, "I'll check the knives again, but I'm pretty sure I remember they were all there last night."

Finishing, Saruta crouched down, gesturing to Ganaha's legs, "And here, we have a number of large lacerations. I believe the cause was something thicker than a knife, though the hatchets should be locked away in the Lodges, so I can't say what it's from. Any ideas?"

Uzatei wondered aloud, "The pickaxe maybe?"

Ishihara shook his head, "It's gone, actually. I slept in the Mines last night, and I didn't see it when I crossed the lower level of the area."

Uzatei shrugged, "Well, even so, the Gardening Shed may also be worth a look."

Removing his gloves, Saruta finished, "Aside from the chair corner against her back, there isn't anything obvious. However, as for the cause of death, I can't be too sure. The body has been hanging here for hours: it's starting to show signs of frostbite. I can't really tell when any of the injuries were inflicted relative to each other, excluding the cut from yesterday."

Rolling her shoulders, Minami sighed, "Very well. Let's begin. Uzatei, come with me."

With a nervous shrug, the Fashion Designer made to follow her hesitantly, perhaps too worried of the consequences should he deny her. As she left, Ichijou asked, "Ah! Wait, Minami-san, can I ask you something?" The Contractor stopped, looking over her shoulder as Ichijou asked, "The Lift, when was it stopped?"

Minami paused for a moment, before answering, "I believe it was moving when I came up here, both times, but it was stopped this morning. I'm afraid I know little." Ichijou nodded, understanding, and Minami continued on her way, Uzatei following.

As they walked off, Ichijou looked over at Ishihara, but he had already grouped with Furugori, and they began to head off, going the other direction.

Not minding, Ichijou went over to Saruta as the Surgical Assistant lowered his face mask. With a smile, the Luckster asked, "Wanna investigate together?"

Saruta nodded, "That would be acceptable. There are a number of things to find, so we should survey as wide an area as we can."

Ichijou nodded, wondering aloud, "I hope we have enough time."

Beginning his search, he did his best to look over the body once more. As he began to feel nauseous, he looked down, asking, "Er, did you find anything in her pockets?"

Saruta shook his head, "Nothing but her ElectroID."

As Ichijou's eyes were locked on the ground, he noticed something. Stepping back and looking away, he wondered, "Where's all the blood?" Pointing at the ground under Ganaha, there was only a small puddle of the liquid.

Realizing what he meant, Saruta nodded, "A good question. She should have bled far more, even in this cold. Her blood can't have simply vanished though..."

Nodding, Ichijou looked around a bit more, but the only thing he saw was Nagasaki. Wondering something, he asked, "So, Nagasaki-chan, anything in mind we should check out?"

Nagasaki pondered for a moment, before shaking her head. "Nothing no one else has said," Nagasaki muttered.

After a moment, Saruta asked, "Well, perhaps...may we briefly examine your knife?"

After blinking in hesitation for a moment, Nagasaki nodded, reaching into her pocket, withdrawing her blade. Keeping her grip on it, she held it up for Ichijou and Saruta to examine. The two leaned in, looking over it.

Spotting something, Saruta said, "There's a little blood, between the grip and the blade. It's dried, but did you clean it after yesterday?"

Bewildered, Nagasaki looked at her knife, before mumbling, "I thought I did..."

Saruta asked, "Well, please don't: it might be evidence."

As Nagasaki seemed to get a bit worried, Ichijou suggested, "Let's go look around. See you later, Nagasaki-chan." The Survivalist looked at them for a moment, before nodding in farewell. Finished there, the two stepped away from the Lift and onto the path.

They didn't need to go far before stopping again. As they walked up the path, intending to reach the Lift Store, Saruta stopped, pointing his finger, asking, "What's that now?" Looking over, Ichijou saw a brown lump in the snow, half buried next to the Lift landing, behind a wall.

Stepping over, Ichijou got closer, realizing that it was one of the objects they'd been missing when he got a better look: Ganaha's fur coat. Grabbing it, he lifted it up, some of the stuck snow falling off. There was a dull thump of something hitting the snow, and Ichijou grimaced as he looked down, seeing something white and bloody on the ground, having fallen from within the fur coat. As he got a closer look at the coat itself, he noticed the light colored insides were completely covered in blood. Grimacing, he tossed the coat aside, looking at his hands in panic and disgust.

At his side was the ever reliable Saruta, who withdrew a small blue bottle from his pocket, holding it near Ichijou. The Luckster cupped his hands underneath, and the Surgical Assistant tightened his fingers, a thick blue gel falling onto Ichijou's hands. Saruta explained, "Hand sanitizer. Rub until it coats both of your hands." Grateful, Ichijou complied, saturating his hands in the substance.

Crouching down, Saruta put on yet another pair of gloves, making Ichijou wonder if his labcoat had an inexhaustible supply of useful goods. Fanning out the fur coat, he laid it down, revealing the underside. It was almost coated in dried blood. Flipping it over, the outer side wasn't in nearly as bad shape. There was just some blood around the cut Nagasaki had made in it the other day, no different from before. Ichijou wondered aloud, "She couldn't have been wearing it, could she?"

Saruta shook his head as he set it aside, replying, "Unlikely..." Reaching his hand out, he picked up the object that had fallen out. Holding it up, Ichijou's eye's widened underneath his black hair as he saw the long, thick, white glove, which had a fair amount of blood on it as well, though not nearly as much as the fur coat. Seeing his reaction, Saruta asked, "Look familiar?"

Ichijou nodded, flabbergasted, "It looks like...Gold Dragon's."

Saruta's eyes glinted, and he nodded, "Another suspect. And with evidence like this left here...but could he have been so careless?" Ichijou wished he had an answer. Saruta had yet another question, wondering, "Do you think the size of the glove matches the bruises on Ganaha?"

Ichijou nodded, but he felt a need to check anyway. Taking the glove over, Saruta bent the fingers down, holding it near one particularly defined bruise on Ganaha's side, the shirt that had once been covering it slightly torn, showing the bruise. However, the glove seemed to be a bit smaller than the mark, prompting Ichijou to exclaim, "Eh?"

Coming to his aid, Saruta pointed out, "The impact was likely severe: bruises form when blood vessels break under your skin. Blood spreads under your skin as well it the trauma is severe enough. I think we have a match." Ichijou nodded, swallowing, satisfied by the discovery, but sickened by the implications.

Retuning the objects to the ground where they found them, the pair continued their ascent, heading up the path alongside the Lift. Reaching the top, they entered the Lift Store. Splitting up, they began to give the area a look. Ichijou noticed the Lift button was indeed colored red, reading 'Resume'. Ichijou dared not touch it, lest he disturb the scene. He continued along the wall, and after a moment, Saruta called him over, asking, "Did you see this?" Turning to check, Saruta stood above the ground near the landing under the lift. Pointing his finger, he indicated a bloodstain on the ground, shaped like a rough triangle.

Scratching his chin, Ichijou shook his head, unsure of what to make of it. There weren't any weapons here, were there? As he asked the question, Saruta brought up ice skates, and the pair looked, but nothing turned up. Empty handed, they returned to the outside. Ichijou was tempted to check the Observatory and Cabin, but they were a bit out of the way, so they instead headed back down.

As they passed by the halfway point of the path, Ichijou was stopped by Saruta, who had spotted something once again. Heading over to a tree, he pointed out a bloodied, white bandage at the base of a pine tree, the white contrasting the brown trunk and the blood contrasting the snow.

Realizing what was going on, Ichijou said, "That's Ganaha's isn't it? I can't see it being anything else."

Saruta nodded, "I assume, but its placement is also being called into question. I highly doubt Ganaha dropped it earlier." Once again, Ichijou didn't have an answer.

As they reached the bottom of the slope, they changed course to their last stop on the Level. Heading into the forests, they came across what they were told was Minami's resting spot. A small fire pit was in the center of a small clearing, nearby Minami's Rest Marker and sleeping bag. Quickly checking the Marker, Ichijou saw that it read 'Time Rested: 8 hrs, 0 mins', as usual.

Continuing downwards, the pair had two stops to make on the chilly Third Level. Firstly, Saruta insisted they headed to the Fort, halfway across the area. Reaching the courtyard, Saruta circled around to an area behind a large structure, where his Rest Marker and sleeping bag were. Crouching down, Ichijou looked at the Rest Marker, blinking at the number. It read: 'Time Rested: 5 hrs, 46 mins'. Standing properly, Ichijou gave Saruta a quizzical look, wordlessly inquiring as to what was up.

Saruta began, "I found sleep late last night. After trying and failing to get to sleep, I gave the nearby Shrine a look, finding nothing. After that, I was able to get to sleep until the morning announcement woke me." Ichijou studied him for a moment, before nodding. The Priest was an understandable presence to fear, though, so Ichijou didn't blame him. Still though, he was closest to Ganaha's resting spot, which was also the next destination.

Returning to the main path, Ichijou had no inclination to head to the Shrine, instead turning to the Ranger Station. After heading down the path, the two arrived. The first thing they spotted was the mess: the grill was rolled out, and the plates had all been stacked, still sullied with residue from the party several days ago, though partly wiped away by the rain from the other night. The food itself was gone, disposed of somehow, but there were still a few odd scents in the air, and a small number of buzzing flies. One thing that remained uniform was the jug of hard apple cider, some of the deep yellow liquid still left in the container.

Approaching, Saruta briefly pushed the tap, a splash of cider coming out and hitting the dirt, sinking into it. Nodding, the Surgical Assistant pointed out, "Given the description on the File, I would assume Ganaha had her share last night."

Ichijou nodded, "Yeah, I remember. That might have made it easier for the Culprit to grab her too..."

With a nod, Saruta suggested, "There may be more evidence inside." Concurring, Ichijou led the way, opening the door. The first room was empty, but the second had Ganaha's sleeping bag and Rest Marker. The trapdoor to the Mines was properly closed, but aside from the lopsided placement of the sleeping bag, there weren't any signs of a struggle. The phone and fridge were the same: untouched. Checking out the Rest Marker, Ichijou read 'Time Rested: 2 hrs, 1 min'. Realizing something, he pointed out, "Hey, we might be able to guess about when she was nabbed with this."

Saruta nodded, "Indeed. However, we should give the room another quick look." Complying, Ichijou and Saruta gave it another once over. Firstly, Ichijou looked out the window, seeing some strange stains run down the cliff off to the side. Given the flies, he imagined it to the leftover food, chucked away by Ganaha, or someone else, perhaps having been bothered during the search for the books. As he stepped away, however, Saruta stood, holding something in his hand: a cup, much like the ones they'd used earlier. As Ichijou approached, Saruta sniffed it, revealing, "If I'm not wrong, it indeed smells of the cider. It must have rolled under here." Pointing with his finger, he indicated the phone stand, a small space underneath it. Satisfied, Ichijou nodded, and Saruta placed the cup down next to the phone.

Moving on, they began to leave the area, when Saruta stopped, looking at the cider jug. Ichijou glanced between him and the liquor, before wondering, "You're not gonna..."

Saruta shook his head, "Not...now." Scratching his face sheepishly, he pointed out, "But it would be a shame for it to go to waste. Just a little? Breakfast is unlikely, after all." Ichijou simply let out an awkward laugh, though then again, he didn't try any last time. Taking that as a yes, Saruta cupped his hand, filling the palm and drinking a small bit, as Ichijou looked on, a bit disappointed in him.

Moving along, the two went the rest of the way down the Level, descending to the cool Second Level. Their destination known, they headed down the path near the lime green signpost, arriving at the Greenhouse. Checking the area behind it, they found Nagasaki's sleeping bag and rest marker, nestled in between some sparse trees. Ichijou spent a moment admiring the placement: from the way the sleeping bag was situated, Nagasaki could clearly see the entrance to the area: she'd placed her bag in an area where she could simultaneously see much of the area with few blind spots, while being slightly under cover herself, especially at night. He was also relieved to see that the jumpy girl had gotten a full night of rest, the Marker reading, 'Time Rested: 8 hrs, 0 mins'. Moving along, the two checked out the Gardening Shed, but despite being as thorough as they could, none of the objects here stuck out as something that could cause such damage to Ganaha's legs.

Continuing on, they returned to the main path, heading back down to the warm Ground Level. As the pair passed the Resort Restaurant, Ichijou recalled that they hadn't eaten, but at the same time, he knew they couldn't spare the time, with as much running around as they had to do. The Resort was no longer small enough to allow it. However, they stopped by regardless, checking the Kitchen. After a quick look around, they saw the half prepared breakfast Ishihara had been working on. Focusing, they took a look at the knife block, matching the empty slots with the knife on the counter Ishihara had been using and the missing one that had been in Nagasaki's possession, already examine. However, checking the other knives resulted in no findings: each of them were quite clean, cleaner than Nagasaki's, in fact.

Heading out, the two made a quick stop at the Storage Units, grabbing flashlights for later. As they stepped out of the metal container, Ichijou looked towards the forest, blocking the way to the Courtroom Elevator, but Saruta suggested from behind him, "I would like to stop by the Medical Building, if you would: one of Ganaha's wounds bothered me."

Unperturbed, Ichijou nodded, "Okay, let's go."

Heading over, Saruta led the way, but as Ichijou followed, he nearly ran into the Surgical Assistant, who'd stopped in the doorway. Stepping back, Ichijou wondered what was going on, looking over Saruta's shoulder as he crouched down, picking something up off the ground. Bewildered, he turned, and Ichijou got a look: it seemed to be something square, wrapped in a thick, white paper.

Curious, Ichijou asked, "What's that?"

Saruta shrugged, "I have no idea." Turning away from Ichijou, the Luckster could hear the sound of ripping paper as he tore at his package. When the sound stopped, Saruta froze still, staring at whatever was in his hands. Ichijou attempted to peek over his shoulder, but the boy sensed him. There was a clapping sound of wood against wood, and Saruta turned, a small, closed, wooden box in hand. Shaking his head, he insisted, "It's nothing relevant to the case, be assured. Some prank..." Pushing past Ichijou, he moved into the side closet near the door, shutting himself in the tiny room. After a few moments, he came out, his face a little pale and sweaty as he laughed awkwardly, saying, "Hah, it's quite hot in there. This summer weather." Pulling at the collar of his sweater, he sighed, "I really should have changed clothing."

Ichijou shrugged, still dressed in his hanten and tabi socks, noting, "Well, it's not too bad yet since it's still early, but yeah."

Finished with that little distraction, Saruta and Ichijou moved into the wider part of the Medical Building, Saruta heading over to one of the stands by the beds, opening it. Dissatisfied, he shut it, before moving on to the next. On the third one, he called Ichijou over, stating, "Ah, look here." As Ichijou approached, Saruta withdrew a scalpel from the drawer. Handing it to Ichijou pointing the blade away, he asked, "Do you notice anything in particular about this one?"

Blinking, Ichijou took it, flipping it in his hand and giving it a look. He tried to be as thorough as he could, even smelling it in an attempt to catch a whiff of blood. Not coming up with anything, he shook his head before handing it back. Saruta took it, before bringing it closer, his finger pointing at the blade. "Do you see here? These scalpel blades are particularly delicate, made for sensitive operations. However, the blade is worn down slightly, possessing two small nicks. Here, perhaps a comparison is in order..." Reaching into the drawer again, he withdrew another scalpel, handing both to Ichijou. Once again, Ichijou looked the over, and was able to confirm this time that Saruta's words rang true. Now that he knew what he was looking for, he was able to see the nicks, which meant one of them had been used.

Ichijou began to hand them back, but Saruta shook his head, asking, "Would you do me a favor and hold them? I would, but I fear their involvement in this Trial may call me into question, thus I feel leaving them in my hands is quite risky. Be mindful of their sharpness, I wouldn't want you to cut yourself...again." Ichijou let out an embarrassed laugh as he looked at his finger, the cut from the second Trial still visible, even if it had healed a while ago. Speaking of wounds, he took a moment to look at his other, lightly burned hand, which still stung on the occasion he twitched it wrong. Thinking about it, he had to admit he was lucky he didn't get hurt shattering that window, or falling of the Lift, or making Minami mad...why did it suddenly feel like nothing had gone right in days?

Pocketing the scalpels in his hanten, the two finished their check. Ichijou noticed one of the drawers was missing a scalpel, but Saruta said that it was fine. The last drawer Ichijou had checked was also missing one, so he said nothing. After their check, the two made their way out. Continuing their investigation, they did a scan of the sparse forest, finding Uzatei's campsite, where his sleeping bag and Rest Marker were. Checking the Marker as usual, Ichijou couldn't help but frown as he read 'Time Rested: 5 hrs, 15 mins'. Looking over to Saruta, he wondered aloud, "Why was he awake?" Saruta had no ideas, unfortunately, but neither of them suggested the worst case scenario, aloud, at least.

With only a few more stops to go, the pair continued past the forest, heading down the slope to the Ground Level. With nothing to see at the Ranger Station or Cabin, the two headed straight to the tunnel leading to the Auditorium. Reaching the area, Ichijou showed Saruta where he's woken this morning, the Surgical Assistant confirming Ichijou had indeed gotten a full night's rest. Moving along, the two took out their flashlights before heading through the metal door behind the Auditorium backrooms, taking out their flashlights to illuminate the way. Heading into the Mines, they came out on the lowest level of the Mines, where Ichijou remembered to be Side B. With nothing over here but the elevator, Ichijou and Saruta made their way across, keeping an eye out for any potential weapons. However, they came across nothing but a shovel, which they couldn't even remove from its position, pinned underneath a small boulder. Perhaps they might have been able if they'd spent more time on it, but they had other concerns. Continuing along, the reached Side A, where they took the path up to the middle level, the tunnel. About halfway across, they were able to find Ishihara's Rest Marker. Once again, concerned confusion made Ichijou furrow his brow as he read, 'Time Rested: 7 hrs, 32 mins'.

Sharing with Saruta, he could only shrug, replying, "It not impossible that he simply had more trouble finding rest. We shall ask when we get a chance at the Trial." Not disagreeing, Ichijou led the way to the upper level, where they continued their search for anything else out of the ordinary. The upper level was clearer than it had during the last investigation: the sledgehammer was gone, and the minecart had been put back in its original position. Being unable to find anything, they simply moved on to the metal door, entering the sprawling upper Mall. As the two ascended the spiral, they did a cursory search of each of the storefronts. As they searched the gutted cafés, empty restaurants, knick knack shops, and cookware stores, they did their best to quickly find any possible weapons they could. The only they close they could discover was the arrows in a Replica Archery Store, but none of them seemed to be missing.

About halfway up, in an electronics store, they came across the last Rest Marker, along with Furugori's sleeping bag, behind the counter. However, before Ichijou even saw the Rest Marker, the store had caught their eye: a number of electronic toys and appliances had been torn apart, filling up sections of the floor. As Ichijou got closer, however, he noticed that they were simply disassembled, quite cleanly, in fact. Many of them were taken apart completely, except one, which was either half put together or half taken apart, sitting atop the counter. Figuring he'd ask Furugori later, he checked the Rest Marker, which read, 'Time Rested: 5 hrs, 59 mins'. Ichijou groaned, "Why can't anyone get a good night's sleep around here! Making things trickier..."

Saruta frowned, "I'm quite sorry."

Looking over at him, Ichijou shook his head, insisting, "Er, I didn't mean it like that. But still, it feels like the investigation isn't done, even if we have nowhere to look..."

As if to shove hot wasabi in Ichijou's ears, a bugle began playing electronically, before Monokuma began his expected announcement, "Excuse me, your attention please! It is now time for the Class Trial. I hope you've studied! Please, make your way to the Courtroom Elevator Door on the First Level with haste. See you soon~"

Crossing his arms over his chest in a huff, Ichijou grumbled, "There're still more stores to check..."

Saruta shook his head, "I'm afraid we have to go, Ichijou-san."

Unable to argue, Ichijou followed Saruta as he headed out. Retracing their steps, they took the lengthy path back down to the Mines, through the Auditorium, up the slope from the Ground Level to the Courtroom Elevator Door. To their surprise, they were not the last ones there: Ishihara, Nagasaki, and Furugori were still missing. Minami grumbled, "I hope you had a satisfactory investigation, there were still things I wanted to check out."

Uzatei scratched his head sheepishly, "I said you didn't have to wait for me! But you know what they say: when you have to go, you have to go." Bringing a finger to his chin, he wondered, "Is that a rule? Or a general guideline?"

Before anyone could answer his question, Nagasaki arrived, interrupting the flow of conversation. She looked at Ichijou expectantly, but the Luckster could only say, "Well, I hope that between the six of us, we got all possible evidence..." Minami could only let out a worried sigh.

After a few more minutes, Ishihara and Furugori finally arrived, the former holding a few fruit in a few layers of paper towels, some already cut up. He held it out as the Elevator door closed, explaining, "This was going to be breakfast, but I figure it's best to get a little bit now..." There were zero complaints as everyone got a few bites, the food somehow putting them at ease for once, perhaps the only time today they'd felt this way as the elevator descended. Finishing his few bites, Ichijou wiped his mouth as he tried to get focused again, thinking back on the evidence, and the grisly state of the Victims corpse.

Ganaha Eriko: passionate about her work, being stripped of it left her high strung and irritable. Despite her attitude, however, her death was far from deserving, being too brutal for Ichijou to bear. Someone had snatched away her life, and now they descended into a Trial of Fact and Fiction, and Trial of Trust and Betrayal, a Trial of Hope and Despair.