EDIT 13/11/2022: Mayor polishing in grammar, typos and, structure.

A Class Trial on The First Day…Or Something Like That.

The tension in the air was almost palpable as everyone processed the information they have just been given; the absolute silence almost made it feel like the temperature in the gymnasium dropped by some degrees.

There were a few seconds of silence until everyone regained their voices.

"Ultimate…" Maizono trailed off with wide eyes.

"…Assassin?" And Naegi finished, with an expression no different from her.

"The Ultimate Assassin? I see, that's good!" Yamada calmly said with a smile on his face 'Oh? Out of everyone here, I didn't expect him of all people able to keep such a level of composure at a reveal like―' "Assassin!? Eeeeeeeeeeek!" Ah.

"Y-You can't be serious…"

"N-No way…"

"Th-This…this can't be!"

"Is he fucking serious!?"

"Oh my…so that was the mysterious talent he was keeping in secret…" Celeste said keeping a stoic face, and though she definitely was tense, just way more controlled than most people here, I could also see that the calculating look in her eyes hadn't faded.

Putting that last part aside…

I truly can't blame them. One moment they thought everything was a normal procedure of the school 'I am still kind of bothered that they didn't notice the red flags, but whatever…' and the next, our captor reveals that we were to live the rest of our lives inside this school, with the only way out is to kill someone.

And if things weren't already bad enough with such a reveal, then they took a turn for the worse when the bear revealed that one of us had killing people as a talent.

Myself, more specifically.

What a plot twist, huh?

"Upupupu I hope that this big reveal has raised the competitive spirit this school needs!" Unsurprisingly, Monokuma didn't wasted his chance to twist the knife in the metaphorical injury "With nothing else to say, I will not take more of your time guys, do what you think should do, see ya!"

That sudden comment of Monokuma brought a momentary stop at the rising panic of the moment 'More like froze them into stunning silence, I guess', but a few moments after he was gone, one person regained his voice at full power.

"W-Wait a moment, guys! Everything he said must be a lie! Yes! Everything he said is ridiculous" Taka nervously exclaimed before turning my way "Even that last part must be fake! A prestigious institution such as Hope's Peak would never bring into their halls someone with a talent involved with killing people! It would be outrageous, right, Shigaraki!?"

…

"…Y-Yeah! it would be absolutely crazy! R-Right?" Hina added.

That moment of uncertainty between believing if what the bear said was true or not, made everyone in the room turn to the only source that could confirm or deny his declaration.

Me.

"…"

"What are you waiting for, peasant? What Monokuma said is true? I demand you to spill it." Togami 'requested'.

I could lie, maybe say something like Everything that thing said is crap! The reason I didn't tell you guys is that I have amnesia and I don't remember what my talent is, he must know that and is using it against me! or something among the lines, but there was one problem…Celeste.

Not only was she known for being a good liar, but also for being even better at detecting when someone does lie. It was part of her skill set after all, and I have no doubt that she would use all of her abilities to detect if what I said was real or not. I was too risky to gamble on a bet of whether I could trick or not someone known as the Ultimate Gambler and the Queen of liars.

I looked at all of my…Classmates? 'I've been referring to them like that for a while, so, sure why not' to get a detailed sight of their faces.

Ogami didn't looked scared on the exterior, and probably she wasn't, but I could see the tension in her body language that said that a sudden move of my part was everything she needed to rush at me and subdue me.

So cool…

Owada looked like only opening my mouth was reason enough to beat the heck out of me.

Celeste, as expected, I had her full attention.

Hiro…he was being Hiro.

Enoshima looked…conflicted about something?

...Weird.

As for Togami, it seemed he was ready to snap at me if I didn't gave a response soon.

The only neutral person in all of this was Kirigiri, the slight moment of surprise from before already vanished from her features and right now it appeared she was thinking deeply about something.

As for the rest…They still looked scared, not as much as the moment when Monokuma did the 'Big reveal', but they had faces of anxious curiosity for my answer. That was probably what was keeping them from having a stronger reaction.

Curiosity.

…

…A physical confrontation wouldn't help, actually, it would be even more stupid of an idea than trying to lie to Celeste. Almost all of my classmates don't look like fighting material, and the ones who do, I feel confident I could defeat them 'That weird incident with Enoshima is still bothering me, though', the bomb fiasco helped in that…there was one exception though, and that single exception makes up for everyone in this place.

Ogami.

I don't have any weapons with me, we are in an open area, I don't have any idea about the structure of the place, it was unfamiliar territory, and it would be pretty obvious if I tried something. All the odds are against me except for maybe the territory part 'I could adapt faster than her in making use of the environment. As a Martial Artist, I highly doubt she has dealt with half the stuff I've seen', and most conditions favor Ogami, who already was superior to me, both in stamina and strength.

It would become a drawn-out battle of me evading her and her tiring and overpowering me, the result of that was obvious. At least, that was what I believe from what I found about her and, like Celeste, that was not something I wanted to make a bet to find out.

…

…Sigh.

There was only one option then.

"Your silence is only going to incriminate―"

"It is true" I said plainly.

For a few moments, it was as if I had spoken in a foreign language.

"W-What do you mean 'It is true'?" And it was again Taka who searched for any clarification, for him and almost everyone else, though with much less enthusiasm than his first declaration.

I almost consider the idea of maybe feeling bad for the guy.

Well, not really, but the proposal of such an idea it's counts…I think.

"…What Monokuma said is true…" Regardless, I decided to do 'him' a favor, and clarified in a way that there was no doubt, for anyone, of what I said "…My talent, it is the Ultimate Assassin"

I heard someone "Eeek!" at that, though I'm not sure whether it was Fukawa or Yamada, maybe both. Fujisaki seemed on the verge of having a panic attack, Hiro…he was playing with something in his hands but I couldn't see, and neither did care what it was. Be that as it may, if that wasn't enough, Celeste brought a question in a way that only complicated things further.

"So, it is true…If I may know, why did you keep it a secret? Maybe...could it be that you were planning to do something?"

The implications of what she was saying were clear to everyone, as it seemed that was the last straw needed for people to truly panic.

"AH! C-Could it be!? Master Shigaraki was planning a murder, using his talent since the beginning!?" Yamada's commentary didn't help at all.

"Shit!"

"Really!?"

"Wh-What are we going to do!?"

"No way!"

"Hahaha, hey, hey everyone, you shouldn't group up on poor Shigaraki-chi!" This comment went completely ignored by everyone else.

…And Shigaraki-chi? Where did that come from?

"I-It can't be…!"

"Hey, bastard! You have some goddamn fuckin' explaining to do! Otherwise―"

Before things turned to the point of no return, I interrupted Mondo and everyone else, otherwise, this might as well will turn into a witch hunt against me.

I just hope this didn't immediately come to bite me back.

"Otherwise, what?" Instead of the disinterested or neutral voice people got used to hearing from me, I talked with a dangerous edge, along with a death glare that, if it had any resemblance to Hers, almost looked like a shadow grew over my face, all the while releasing a killing intent befitting of someone with the title I hold.

Befitting of what Those bastards made of me since the age of 7.

I know I was risking it with this move, seeing as now moving any part of my body that wasn't my mouth was all Ogami was waiting for before rushing to crush me…but I had to do it, I needed their full attention to me, only without all the screaming and pointing fingers, and shouting in an attempt to do any kind of explanation would have complicated things, the same goes for a calm voice as it would've gotten overridden with those same yelling and screaming of just a moment ago. So, I used the only other method I knew that didn't involve hurting someone.

Intimidation.

Everyone was silent, I had their full attention and Ogami hadn't pulverized my skull. It worked, I guess.

Making use of this opportunity, I relaxed my face, and stopped releasing my killing intent "…Celeste, you want an explanation of why I did keep my talent a secret, correct?"

"That is indeed the case" She said with complete composure, if she felt intimidated in any way, she didn't show it.

She already recovered completely, compared to just a few moments ago, eh? She's pretty good at doing that, it seems, along with Kirigiri.

"Alright, I suppose that everyone is willing to hear it, right?" I asked.

Not everyone responded immediately, some taking more time to nod than others, but eventually, I got their permission.

"Okay…" I doubt I will get another chance like this one, better make use of it "…First of all, as I said when the bear announced that we were trapped inside the school. In my case, I suspected that we were kidnapped WAY before he announced it, not much after I woke up if I am honest"

"R-Right, I remember you made a comment about it back on the main hall…" Pointed out a wary Maizono "…B-But how did you know?"

Grateful that someone was beginning to pick up on this, I replied to the Idol "Well…the first sign was that I fell unconscious, it just doesn't make sense. I was well rested; I ate fine and I had absolutely no signs of a heatstroke or any sickness. How they did it, I don't know, but it became clear that someone knocked me out"

I gave a quick glance around, once I confirmed that I still had their attention, even if one still filled with suspicion, I continued "Then, everything became even more strange in the classroom where I woke up. The TV, the surveillance camera, and the metal plates. The TV and the camera I would put it as an extravagance of Hope's Peak if there was only that, but combined with the metal plates, it was clear that they wanted to track my movements and keep me trapped, and finally, it was the pamphlet that confirmed to me that it was indeed a kidnapping"

"H-Huh? What does that paper have to do with anything?" Asked Leon while frantically rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah, it was just an entrance ceremony announcement, right?" added Hina

"It was a threat" I corrected.

"A-A threat!?" Fukawa exclaimed as others widened their eyes at that declaration.

"Yes, at first glance it would seem like just a simple message badly written meant as a joke, but if you read between lines and take the context into account, you would understand not only that it was way too bizarre of a message, but that if you disobeyed what the message 'requested' of you, there would be consequences"

By the look on their faces, I could see that some people began to put the pieces together while understanding that, indeed, everything at the beginning was way too shady to be part of the school.

Well, everyone sans Hiro, the guy was looking at me as if I was telling a very interesting story.

Although before I could explain more, Togami interrupted "That's an interesting explanation of something we all have ALREADY experienced, but you haven't responded to the question made to you, don't try to avoid it!" He pointed at me accusingly.

And before he could begin another chain reaction of paranoia against me, I continued "The point I am trying to make, is that before meeting with everyone in the main hall, I already expected to be in a dangerous situation, and that brings the next point. Do you guys remember what was in the main hall?"

At my question, everyone began to think about the possible answer, though the face Kirigiri was making while looking at me made it obvious that she already knew what I was talking about. I don't know why she hadn't said anything, I can only theorize that she had her own reasons.

…I suppose I can work with her indifference. If most of them come to the correct answer by themselves, it would actually make things easier for me.

"Well…if I remember correctly, there is the giant metal hatch!" Right on cue, everyone began to give their own conclusions, with Taka answering as if it was a teacher who asked that question.

"It was also where we all introduced ourselves…" Hina added.

"There were also the multiple cameras with…with…Ah!" Naegi seemed to get my main point.

He seems to be smarter than what one can guess at first look.

"The mounted guns!" Finalized Maizono.

"HUH?!" Some of my classmates yelped at the implications of what Naegi and Maizono were referring to.

In any case, I nodded at the Idol's response "That is correct, when I stepped inside the main hall, the first thing I saw was a bunch of people right in the middle of a firing zone. By that point, I already knew I had been kidnapped and the moment I stepped inside the main hall, I was held at gunpoint along with everyone else"

"And what does that have anything to do with you not revealing your talent?" Asked Togami skeptically.

I resisted the urge to release an exasperated sigh as I finally was about to say what hopefully would shut their accusations against me "You and everyone else saw your own reactions at the revelation of my talent, so do the math: Everyone in the shooting range of military weapons starts panicking at the mention of my talent, panicking in the middle of a kidnapping, with captors we don't know anything about. What if they didn't have the patience to deal with scandalous people and they also were trigger-happy?"

It seems realization finally hit them, if their blanching faces and widened eyes were anything to go by.

"No…Fucking…Way…" Mondo replied.

"It…would be a massacre…" Ogami commented solemnly.

"H-Holy crap…" Leon added with complete nervousness.

I nodded in affirmation. While it was true that I didn't do it out of altruism, but because I wanted to avoid risking my own life at the possibility of hidden traps, it was a fact that I didn't talk about my talent to avoid a situation, so everything I said was true at the end of the day.

Once my explanation was done, everyone became contemplative, with a general acceptance of my explanation about why I didn't reveal my talent during the introductions.

…

…Actually…I may be wrong, but I think they became too contemplative with the long explanation, that they forgot a very important thing.

I think I was right because I could actually see some people relax…Until Kirigiri brought the other elephant in the room.

"It seems everyone finally calmed down. I believe it is time we summarize the other announcement Monokuma made" Kirigiri stated.

"The other announcement? What are you…AH!" Taka screamed.

Realization finally hit everyone as they remembered the first bombshell Monokuma threw at us.

…

Ah, they actually forgot about that, didn't they? That talent reveal shocked them that much, huh?

"Based on what Monokuma said we have two choices" Not like that deterred the silver-haired girl though "The number one is that we all stay here, living a 'communal life' together until the day we die. While on the other hand, our second choice is…" Kirigiri trailed off.

"If we want to get out of here alive, we have to kill someone, yes?" Celeste finished with a casual tone.

"K-K-Kill…to leave this place, t-that's…that's…" Fujisaki left 'her' comment hanging in the hair, too scared to finish that sentence.

"We were abducted out of nowhere and stuffed into this place meant to look like a school. And now we're supposed to start killing each other? This is…WHAT IS THIS!?" Yamada cried out.

"Dammit! I can't believe all of this is real!" Leon added.

"Right now, it doesn't really matter if we consider this as real or fake" Togami declared with narrowed eyes "What matters is…Is there anyone here who's seriously considering all this…?"

Once Togami ended that sentence, everyone froze in place, as once again, the reality of the threat within this place was presented to everyone.

If someone wants to leave this 'school', you need to murder another person.

Everyone looked at each other, searching for any signal that would confirm if the person in their sight would commit such an act…

…Which of course, meant that once anyone put their sight on me, they didn't move it anywhere else.

Eventually, all of my classmates had their eyes locked on me, just like at the beginning, they all were standing in place, gauging me, waiting for any reaction on my part…

…

…Tch.

It's for things like these that I don't interact with people my age unless it's Her. Not like I had the time…or the intent for it.

"Are you guys just going to stand there and watch me all day?" I finally asked…though some did flinched the moment my mouth moved.

"W-Well, it's just…just…" Hina tried to say.

"What the heck do you expect man!?" The Baseball Star snapped at me "Out of everyone here, you…you…!"

"You are someone who already has killed" Togami pointedly completed the sentence for the redhead.

"hey…"

Everyone turned to Togami once he said what I didn't doubt they all had in mind.

"Th-that's…" Fujisaki tried to say something but was interrupted by Togami.

"Completely true, he himself admitted it, not only he has done it before, but if it's literally part of his talent, that means he has no inconvenience doing it" Togami declared…

And it wasn't like I could say he was wrong.

Losing the capacity to feel anything about the people you kill is one of the first things They teach you.

"Kyaaaaah! I was trying hard not thinking about it!" Yamada screamed.

"Hey…"

"H-He's r-right! You are a danger to a-all of us!" Fukawa sneered while pointing a finger at me.

"M-Maybe we should r-restrain him? T-Tie him up?" Leon suggested.

"D-Do that to a classmate!? That's indecorous! "Taka declared, even if not so long after his indignation faltered "B-But...if this a matter of life and death…but…"

"Hey"

"I-It's a possibility…" Maizono mumbled

"Do we really have to do that, Sakura?" Hina questioned nervously.

"If there's no other choice…" Ogami added.

"H-Hurry u-up! B-Before he tries a-anything!" Fukawa yelped.

"Alright! We will keep the bastard from trying anything!" Owada began to approach me while cracking his knuckles.

That was my cue to narrow my eyes as I steeled myself for a confrontation.

So, in the end, it all comes to―

"HEY! LISTEN TO ME, DAMMIT!" A voice shouted so high, everyone stopped dead in their tracks to look at the origin of it.

It was a voice that hadn't spoken practically since Monokuma left.

It was…Enoshima.

Her?

"Huh? What's wrong, Junko?" Hina asked.

Now all eyes were on the Fashionista.

She seemed to be thinking about something, maybe how to best voice whatever she was thinking about saying if I had to take a guess.

What she said next caught everyone off guard, including me.

"Hrmmm…how do I put this…maybe we need to chill a bit? Aren't we, like, overreacting? Blowing it out of proportion or somethin'?" Enoshima tentatively stated.

A few seconds passed until someone found their voice.

"…Huh? Chick, are you out of your mind!? The guy is a fucking killer!" Owada half shouted half exclaimed.

And he wasn't the only one, everyone was looking at her like she had grown a second head.

Honestly…Owada had a point, what was she doing?

"I know! I know…but hasn't he been, like, super cooperative and totally helped us lotsa times already?" Enoshima said while playing with a strand of her 'hair'.

Huh?

"Huh? Miss Enoshima what are you talking about?" Yamada asked, with understandable confusion in his voice "Forgive me for saying this, but I find that hard to believe…"

"Y-Yeah! Are you crazy!?" Fukawa added.

"Wait a moment! Wh-What I mean is…" There were more people willing to point out their disagreement, but Enoshima quickly interrupted them "…When he told us about why he left his talent a secret and stuff, didn't he, like, did it to keep everyone safe? Something like that, right? He wouldn't do all that complicated junk, if he wanted to do any bad stuff to us, no?"

Eh?

I guess…some people can interpret it like that…

"Yeah...Yeah! That's right!" And 'some people' appeared, in the form of Makoto Naegi "He was the only one of us who took the threat of the weapons in the main hall as real and did it in a way he believed everyone would be safer!"

…No, not really.

"Could it be!?" Taka exclaimed.

"Eh? Is that really true?" Hina questioned.

"Hmph, what a delusional fool, that proves nothing about his intentions, that's just a convenient excuse he made at the moment, nothing else" Togami declared.

"Mmm…If I am honest, the way I interpreted it, was that he didn't do it out of his goodwill, but just seeking his own survival" Celeste commented…and like the Heir, she was right.

"I-I don't know what to believe, he became a bit scary during his introduction, but…" Maizono commented.

Girl, you were literally reading my mind during our brief talk, I would find it weird if someone found that stuff normal and didn't freak out.

"Yeah, I mean, don't get me wrong, it's good and all that it helped us in a way, but it doesn't fully convince me" Leon stated.

It seems that almost everyone was in a similar position as Leon, the extreme but kind of justified hostility against me wasn't as high as before, but it was nowhere low enough to abandon the idea of me becoming their prisoner.

That was the case, though, until Fujisaki brought up another point.

"W-What about the b-bomb?"

"Eh!? What bomb?" Owada exclaimed 'Ah, he forgot…'

"What!? A bomb!? Where!?" Hina yelped.

Before more people could panic about a non-existent bomb, Fujisaki elaborated "I-I mean about what happened with Monokuma when Owada grabbed him!"

Owada flinched at the mention of that.

"Yeah! That too!" For some reason, Enoshima seemed truly intended on using that to keep defending me "Shigaraki could have, I dunno, totally gotten outta the way or somethin', and only shout at Owada to throw it, but he pushed himself at the danger to save the guy, right?"

"…Holy shit! I forgot about that stuff!" Not that I blame the gang leader for that…I also kind of forgot that my act out of instinct saved his life.

…But that was what it was, an act out of instinct, I didn't get away because I didn't know how long it would take the bomb to finally detonate, neither I knew its range, and I didn't shout at him to get rid of the bomb for similar reasons. I didn't know how fast it was from detonating and I didn't trust Owada with something like following a warning for me, so I forced myself to get the job done…for me and only me.

But eventually more and more of my classmates joined the 'Save Shigaraki Campaign'.

"I believe Enoshima has a point! Maybe it's true that we don't know him that well" More like nothing at all "But everything he has done until now has been with the intention of helping us! It would be wrong of us to not consider that, right?" Naegi replied.

"…That is Indeed true, it was honorable of him to risk his life in an attempt to save a complete stranger" Ogami commented.

"Indeed! Putting his life for the sake of others is truly an admirable trait!" Taka shouted with recovered vigor.

I mean, I am about putting other people out of their lives rather than whatever Taka is announcing about me, but there isn't any reason to ruin his vigor.

"Ah! Now I understand! Master Shigaraki must be a vigilante of sorts! Working in the shadows to stop the evil of this world! Doing the dirty work others aren't willing to do!" Yamada added his own fantasy.

"I-I see, so that's the case!" With Fujisaki intended on believing it.

And in some kind of miracle, almost everyone moved from absolutely fearing me to getting on board with that distorted image of me. There were still people like Celeste and Togami who didn't buy it, but as long as I didn't act against that perception my classmates had of me, they wouldn't push the matter further.

Maybe.

Eventually, it seemed that everyone put down the idea of restraining me, or at least, they put it on hold until they had a reason to consider it again. With this whole ordeal done, I don't know why, but I felt like someone, somewhere else was saying something among the lines of…

Sasuga Shigaraki-Sama!

Weird.

…And even weirder was what Enoshima did. Don't get me wrong, I was grateful. If she hadn't interfered, things would have become a disaster.

…But why? Taking a discrete look at the Fashionista, she seemed…satisfied with the outcome of her actions, and when she saw how everyone stopped the hostilities at me, she even sighed in relief.

Maybe that was her plan, it was possible she anticipated the consequences of the confrontation that was about to happen…Even so, I honestly didn't expect anyone to come to my defense after Monokuma presented me in such a way.

But once again, like during the introductions, the Fashionista surprised me…she is something else, isn't she?

As things finally calmed down, hopefully not temporally this time, the serene but firm voice of our resident mysterious girl was heard.

"So, what are you going to do now? Keep wasting time in all this pointless bickering? I believe we have already wasted a lot of time as things stand" Kirigiri asked, her stoic eyes turning at every single one of us.

It snapped everyone out of their world and helped bring everyone back to reality.

"Right…She's right! Sometimes even if you're nervous or afraid, you just have to step forward! To forget such a simple fact and get consumed by my fears! How could I!?" Taka exclaimed on the verge of tears "I'm so ashamed of my conduct! Please, someone hit me! I can't forgive myself! Somebody hit me! Punish me!"

…

…So that was a thing, alright.

"Jesus. If you have time to yell about it, you have time to DO something about it!" Owada stated.

"Perhaps, but…what is our main quest, exactly?" Yamada asked.

"Idiot! To look for a way out, duh!" Leon replied.

"And we totally need to find whoever is controlling that stupid bear and beat the hell out of 'em" Enoshima pointed angrily, not that I can really blame her for it.

Although, I don't know if it was because I am used to highly stressful situations or because things were clearer than when I just woke up and the fake illusion of security finally disappeared…but I was not that emotionally engaged at the moment. Oh, I wouldn't have any problem with killing whoever trapped us here, just like any other obstacle that I have faced in any other mission of mine, but I was not feeling any extreme emotions, who knows, maybe I will have a mental breakdown at any moment for all I know…one thing was for sure: I have a lot to think about.

The shy voice of Fujisaki interrupted any other thought that I could have "…B-But before we do all that, maybe it would be best if we take a look at the handbook…"

Right, I forgot about that thing after I put it in the pocket of my jacket.

"It's probably best to check out the school regulations Monokuma mentioned before doing anything else" Fujisaki continued.

"True. If we stumble around with no clue about what the rules are, something like that might happen again…" Celeste added.

Just like Fujisaki, Celeste made a good point, maybe there was a rule as ridiculous as 'don't look at the lens of the cameras around the school', and if we take the incident that she was referring to into consideration, it would be clear what were the consequences of disobeying these rules.

"Shit…" Even Owada got the hint of what Celeste was talking about.

"Fine. Then let's hurry up and check out the stupid rules already" Enoshima commented.

When I took out my handbook from my pocket and turned it on, the first thing that greeted me was my name with the emblem of Hope's Peak in the background.

There was also the Main Menu icon in a corner, once I opened it, multiple other icons became available, one of them being for the school regulations, which I selected and after that, a list of the regulations of this place became visible, which were as followed:

1. Students may reside only within the school. Leaving the campus is an unacceptable use of time.

2. 'Nighttime' is from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. Some areas are off-limits at night, so please exercise caution.

3. Sleeping anywhere other than the dormitory will be seen as sleeping in class and punished accordingly.

4. With minimal restrictions, you are free to explore Hope's Peak Academy at your discretion.

5. Violence against Headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited, as is the destruction of surveillance cameras.

6. Anyone who kills a fellow student and becomes 'BLACKENED' will graduate, unless they are discovered.

7. Additional school regulations may be added as necessary.

This was…interesting and it tells a lot. For example, putting into consideration both rule two and three, it means that a place for us to sleep exist somewhere, and about the off-limit areas…it looks like something that I will have to discover later.

Rule four was weird, and if am honest, it rings a few warning bells for me, one thing was being confident in keeping us trapped, the little I have seen so far tells me that such confidence was warranted. But to encourage us to investigate? There must be something more to it.

Rule five was just as expected, attacking the bear will be received with a death penalty. If I was being honest, the only point of interest for me about this rule, was the fact that the only other thing that was forbidden from inflicting any damage were the cameras, which opens a few possibilities.

…And the most important of all rules, rule number six. In retrospect, it just looked like what Monokuma told us. Kill to gain your freedom, but…that extra part, unless they are discovered, sounds simple, but it was nagging me for some reason, like there was something between the lines in that little phrase.

Rule seven was a safeguard for our captor, in case someone finds a loophole that would actually cause trouble for the Mastermind, simple as that.

…

…Overall, it was not that bad, yeah, there were some fishy parts but they weren't oppressive 'By our current standards, of course', and neither an immediate threat, basically something nobody should really have that much of a problem with following 'Again, by the standards of our current situation'.

"This is bullshit! What the hell kinda rules are these!? I'm not gonna let them control ME!" And as if on cue, Owada proved me wrong with a roar.

It wasn't like he had an option on that, though. Something Celeste had no quarrels in pointing out.

"Well then, why don't you wander around the school without a care in the world and see the consequences of it?" Celeste said with a smile while hiding her mouth with a hand as small giggles left her lips "Personally, I would love to see what happens when someone breaks one of the rules"

"But if he gets punished like what we saw before, I don't think there'd be a respawn waiting for him…" Yamada pointed out nervously.

That seemed to do the trick for the biker as his expression changed from enraged to reflective "…I…ever since I was a kid, I grew up with my older brother pounding this into my head…when a man makes a promise, he has to keep it, even if it kills him."

…That was unexpectedly philosophical for him.

"…So what?" Enoshima said nonchalantly.

Ah.

"I've made a ton of promises that I still have to keep, that's 'so what'! I can't afford to die here!" Owada said almost growling.

"None of that made much sense to me, but you are saying you will follow the regulations, is that correct?" Celeste commented.

"Huh? Yeah, I guess you could say that…" Owada replied.

There was silence for a few seconds before Maizono brought up another important point.

"Hey, um…I have a question…for regulation number six…what do you guys think it means exactly?" Maizono asked.

"Ah! You're talking about the second half, right? When it says 'unless they are discovered'? I was wondering about that myself…" Naegi chimed in.

"It's saying that if you want to graduate, you have to kill someone without anyone finding out it was you" Togami replied as if the answer was obvious.

And it admittedly sounded obvious…but that was the thing, while it sounds like that, it also seems way too ambiguous. Was it really just that? If that were the case, it would be…too simple and that was very contradictory to someone as eccentric as Monokuma.

No matter how I pondered about it, it didn't make any sense. There was no way that was the case. You would expect him to make things more 'interesting', with a challenge of sorts in-between, there was also the fact that as pointed out before, it was way too ambiguous, there were multiple ways to interpret 'Unless you are discovered' and the rules didn't specify on how that would be judged. What if the person who becomes 'blackened' acted in the way they and they only interpreted it, only for Monokuma―

! ! !

THAT'S IT!

That…that clever piece of shit!

If it really was what I think, then…

As of right now, I have to think of the sixth rule as a trap that will kill you with a one hundred percent guarantee.

"B-But why…? Why do we h-have to do that?" Bringing myself out of my thoughts, I heard Fukawa ask.

"I don't see any reason to worry about it" Oh, there was a reason to worry about it "Just focus on following the rules as they've been explained to us. Frankly, I don't want to hear anything from someone who waits for others to decide what to do for them" Togami stated condescendingly.

"D-Don't j-jab at me…" Fukawa said…and was that her blushing?

Seriously, what's up with her?

"More like a full-on stab…" Leon added.

"Well, for now, let's forget all that silly junk about, murderers, assassins, or whatever!" Hina exclaimed 'Hey, you made it sound like I'm not here, you know?' "Now that we know the rules, we can begin to explore the school!"

"True! We need to find out where exactly we are, is there any way out? What about food and supplies? There are tons of questions we need to answer!" Taka added.

Inner voice problems aside, he was right, I had a lot of things that I needed to see for myself.

"Damn straight!" It seems Leon was beginning to get pumped up about this "Okay, then let's all start looking around!"

Along with Leon, almost everyone began to act with renewed energy as they seemed ready to form groups to explore different areas. I was ready to let them do their thing and get on my way. But before I could do that, someone else beat me to the punch.

"…I'll be going alone" Togami stated.

"What!? Why? That's a pretty stupid idea, don't you think?" Enoshima exclaimed…and she was kind of right.

Now, before I get claimed as a hypocrite, there was a difference between my case and the Heir. The only person here whom I see as a threat to my life was Ogami, and from what I have seen so far, there was no way she was going alone without Hina they bonded incredibly fast to the point that even if I'm not the best person at understanding these kinds of things, I can see they act as if they had been the best of friends for years.

Most of the enthusiastic chatter at the introductions came from those two, and she was stuck like glue to the Martial Artist since Monokuma's appearance up to now.

Besides, I just can't see Ogami trying to pull a move on me with the risk of compromising the swimmer, or at the very least, not this soon.

Togami, on the other hand, would be completely vulnerable to most of the people here by going alone, his skill set comes in the intellectual side, not the physical one. He wasn't weak by any means, but his strength was far from enough to get safely independent around here.

Maybe he could take Fukawa with him? She seems harmless and even with his attitude and her low esteem, she has shown to be on good terms with him, which would also get the group off him.

"Someone here might already have started thinking of murdering one of us" Of course, Togami can't read my mind, and even if he could, I highly doubt he would've accepted such a suggestion "Are you saying we should stand around with them in our midst and make it that much easier for them?"

Honestly…that was another point of why I didn't feel that worried about going alone, if anyone here were to try to kill someone this early, it would definitely be an act of BLOODLUST rather than the desperation to get out.

If there was one thing I can assure myself of, was my ability to detect murder intent, it was an extremely important and necessary skill to have, especially when my jobs involve urban areas with dense populations. If I were incapable of detecting it, it would have left me exposed…and dead long ago.

And as far as I remember there hadn't been anyone showing any kind of―

Wait.

…Actually, during my introduction with Ogami…I felt somebody showing something like that, I didn't saw who it was and I was almost sure it wasn't directed at me, but it was not something I should ignore…I will have to keep my eyes open; I can't afford to miss who was that person again.

"W-Wait, hold on a second. That would never―!" Maizono began to argue but was interrupted.

"Don't bother saying it couldn't happen. You can't deny the possibility. That's why almost all of you seized up with fear when that graduation rule was made clear to you…The only exception is the assassin over there, and that's even more reason for me to get away from him. You may believe that excuse of a story about him not having any ill intention, but I'm not a fool like the rest of you to stick around and have any faith in that" Togami said in a condescending tone.

Nobody could protest that, while it was true that they didn't saw me as they did at the beginning, it was another whole deal to have absolute trust in me, after all, if they can't trust normal teenagers 'By Ultimate Standards' right now, then there was no way someone with the title of Ultimate Assassin could be in a better position than the rest of them.

"I'm only simply acting in accordance with what I believe is best for me" Togami added.

But it seemed that even with that, Owada couldn't leave it like that.

"Hold on! Like hell I'm gonna let ya run off and do whatever ya want!" Owada shouted while cracking his knuckles.

"Out of my way, plankton" Togami demanded.

…

"Wh-!? The fuck's that supposed to mean!?" I could that a vein was popping out on the Biker's head.

"One tiny bit of plankton, drifting across the sea. So minuscule, so insignificant, they couldn't possibly have any kind of influence on the boundless ocean"

…As expected of a Togami, they may be geniuses in a lot of areas like business and administrative tasks, but they have the self-awareness of a sponge.

"I'm gonna kick your ass!" Owada said as he prepared to beat the heck out of Togami.

Though it seems the heir got lucky, as another person prepared to intervene.

"S-Stop it! We shouldn't fight!" Naegi cried out.

In exchange, it seems Naegi was the one who turned out unlucky.

"The fuck you just say!? You some kind goody-goody little bitch!?" Owada was completely enraged at this point "Who do you think you are!? Talkin' to me like that, you think your my fuckin' dad or somethin'!?"

"N-No, I wasn't―!" Naegi tried to placate him.

"Fuck you!" But that was a mistake.

The slamming sound of flesh crashing against flesh was the last thing Naegi heard before he was thrown in the air, and no, that wasn't me exaggerating, the guy flew a few meters before crashing hard into the ground with a sounding thud.

"Naegi!?" Maizono cried out.

She wasn't the only one, almost everyone was screaming in surprise and horror…

But that was it.

Nobody moved a single muscle to approach the still form of Makoto Naegi. Everyone had different dumbfounded faces, even Togami seemed surprised by this turn of events…and Owada…

I almost consider the idea of possibly laughing, really.

In the entire interaction between the two, Owada not even once showed the intent to kill the ahoge boy, what happened was simply…rage, gigantic and unfiltered rage that he channeled on the first thing he could release it…in this case, it was the person who tried to stop him from committing a mistake.

Another point in favor of that theory was that once he woke up out of his frenzy, his face right now showed nothing more but absolute regret at what he just did.

I knew Owada had anger issues, the signs were there, but on this scale…he really could become a problem.

Or not, nobody had put the effort to check if Naegi was alive or not, and even I from this distance, couldn't determine which was the case 'He's either incredibly light or Owada is stronger than I suspected to throw him this far, maybe a bit of both thanks to his anger', and if he was indeed dead…well, I might have an idea of what comes next for our biker, and while I take no joy out of this, it could work as a sacrifice to see what was the truth with the sixth rule.

Seeing that nobody was going to do anything but stare I 'took one for the team' and approached the bod―I mean, boy.

The moment I did that, some people flinched and yelped, I had the fight the urge to roll my eyes, what do they think I was gonna do to a possibly already dead person?

The next thing I did was to crouch next to Naegi and I simply put my index and middle finger of my right hand on his neck, and I put my other hand close to his nose.

A few seconds was all I needed to know the results.

"…He's alive, just unconscious, will probably wake up in a few hours" Either that or he fell into a coma, I don't have a way to check his pupil reaction, but there weren't either injuries or any sign of blood around his head, so the chances are abysmally low, I guess he got Lucky.

…

…He wasn't lying about having bad luck most of the time, I can see now.

My words seemed to have broken some kind of spell, as everyone at that moment recovered the capacity to move and speak.

"Naegi!" Maizono immediately rushed to the 'Lucky' student.

Do they know each other from before all of this?

…

…I guess it doesn't hurt to share that piece of info.

"Based on what rules two and three say, I believe there must be some kind of resting place for all of us, I also think it's in this 'Despair Hotel' that was located around the classrooms. Someone should go and put him to rest there…" I commented.

"M-Master Sh-Shigaraki, the way you worded it sounds as if you think he's dead…" Yamada sweatdropped.

I just shrugged at that.

"I will do it!" Maizono also seemed intent on ignoring Yamada's exclamation as she turned in my direction.

"Sure, but can you carry him?" I asked.

"Ah, I will help, wanna make sure the dude doesn't get worse on the way there" Leon volunteered.

And with that Leon carried Naegi on his back while Maizono led the way.

It seems Togami also saw this as an opportunity to make more enemies, because the more, the better, am I right?

"Hmph, so he lived, what a waste of time. Seeing as there's no more drama left to distract me, I shall take my leave" With those 'encouraging' words Togami left.

It looked like Owada wanted to replay the previous incident, but in the end, he managed to reign his fury, probably because the fiasco with Naegi was still fresh on his mind.

"Geez, what a jerk…" Hina said while pouting.

"I will leave too, just not for the same reasons as him" Kirigiri commented before getting out of the gym.

I, too, prepared to leave when…

"Shigaraki, WAIT!" Taka shouted.

Sigh.

"What is it?" I asked in the most neutral tone I could muster…but it didn't show signs of working if the flinching and tensed-up faces of almost everyone in the room were anything to go by.

I'm not used to dealing with this stuff…

"W-W-Well, while I and surely, the rest of our classmates, are grateful for your actions so far…I-I believe that you o-out of everyone here, you…s-shouldn't be allowed to travel a-alone…" Taka stated in a shaking tone.

"…"

"Y-yeah, just…in case, y'know?" Hina commented.

"I would definitely feel much safer, knowing that someone talented in the act of killing isn't walking alone around the halls" Celeste added with a smile.

Owada didn't say anything, but he was glaring at me.

"…" Fujisaki just looked away.

…

I should have guessed it was going to come to this, that vigilante fantasy Yamada made out didn't stick around that much, it seems.

Before this would get worse, I gave my response "…Fine, who's going to come with me then?" I questioned.

It seems that was a harder task than requesting something from me. Everyone was looking at each other, asking that question, wondering 'Who's going to take the risk?'. More time passed, and nobody had a response, until…

Ogami took a step forward "…I suppose it falls on―"

"Eh, I don't have a problem doing it" Only to be interrupted by someone's else cheery voice.

All of us turned to the source of the voice.

And it was…Enoshima, again.

Eh?

"Enoshima!? W-Wha…" Taka trailed off, unable to understand why someone would volunteer with that enthusiasm.

Not that I or anyone else could blame him for that, really.

"Miss Enoshima! Are you sure? Selecting such party member could be…" Yamada nervously trailed off.

"It's okay! It's okay! There's, like, nothin' to worry about!" The fashionista said with a grin and a peace sign.

"But…but…It could be dangerous Junko! Right? Being alone with…" Hina briefly glanced at me "Who knows what he could try to do at you!" Oi! That makes it sound like I'm some kind of pervert…

"What do you mean exactly by 'trying to do something at her'? Could it be that Master Shigaraki is that kind of―Eeeeek! Forget I said anything!" An annoyed look from me was enough to shut Yamada before he completed that sentence.

While personality-wise Enoshima and I were different from what I have seen so far 'Not clashing, just different…', it looks like it wouldn't be a problem or a reason for conflict in the future. It helped a lot that every single time, she had vouched for me and I don't think I have seen her scared of me, not even once…

Which is weird, suspicious, and weird. A lot of things are like that with her if I stop and think about it. I wouldn't describe it as a threat per se, at least I don't feel any of that with her, but there's just something...strange with her.

Like that moment during the introductions. What did that mean?

…Regardless, it was either her or the rest of my classmates, who would probably become an inconvenience along the way. Meanwhile, having her closer would also help me in getting to know her better.

…

"…I don't have a problem with her being the one accompanying me and it should be fine, so you guys don't have to worry about me 'trying something on her'" I commented, but everyone sans Enoshima was skeptical about it.

"A-As if! It's o-obvious the moment she lets her guard down, you…you will kill her!" Fukawa aggressively pointed at me.

"I concur, you would have to forgive me for not believing that last part" Celeste added with a deceptive smile.

Before a more intense discussion could begin, I cut everyone off to add my own argument.

"I completely understand that using my goodwill as an argument will not convince any of you" I mean, does someone like me still has any goodwill left? 'Maybe when it comes to Her, and even in that, there's room for debate, but...not the moment...' "Instead, I will explain why attacking her, would be illogical and something stupid on my part"

"Oh? Is that really the case?" The not-so-hidden amused voice of Celeste made it clear she was skeptical about my possible argument "Then please do tell"

Nevertheless, I wasn't going to let that deter me "Sure. First of all, it would trouble rather than benefit me that whoever accompanies me dies, if anything, making sure Enoshima stays alive would be a priority of mine, considering that if something were to happen to her, I would be immediately 'discovered', that means, I would be breaking rule number six, the part about without being discovered more specifically, and I think everyone here understands what happens to 'Rule-Breakers', right?"

The winces they made told me that everyone seemed to understand my point.

"Yep! Like he said!" Enoshima added.

Seriously, what was up with her?

While still confused at Enoshima's antics, I continued "And…if I'm allowed to give my own opinion on the matter, it's too early for anyone to even consider the idea of killing someone to escape this place, we haven't been here for more than two hours at most and considering that we have an entire school to explore, there's the possibility of an escape route somewhere" I explained.

Not that I believe that, the part about the escape route. Everything seems way too well prepared to even conceive the idea of finding a security breach this early, but that's something I can't mention. There's also the thing about the trap in the sixth rule. Until that gets clarified, anyone who tries something will meet its end, that includes me…

Fortunately, the group didn't take in being done musing over my argument "Hmmm, I…I suppose if you put it like that…then I can't argue against it!" Taka exclaimed.

"Maybe, but still…if there's as much as a fucking scratch on the girl, you will pay! Understand!?" Owada announced with renewed vigor.

I simply nodded, I don't have the need or the desire to start something.

It seemed that was enough to satisfy Taka "Alright! Shigaraki! Enoshima! You both have my blessing to venture into this school, good luck!"

So dramatic…

"Alrighty! See ya guys, will catch with ya later!" Enoshima said with a wave.

And with that, the two of us finally left the gym to begin our search in the nothing but ordinary Hope's Peak…or what it was supposed to be, that is.

I'm still not sure if this is truly the school or not…

In any case, we might find out during our investigation.