"Hope!" Normal Speech

'Despair!' People's thoughts

"Truth!" Flashbacks

Disclaimer: I have as much ownership of the Danganronpa series as you do dear reader.

AN: Thanks to both RWBYJNPR and Zephyrius29 for beta-reading this chapter.

AN2: Other tags for this story (since only gives you 2): Mystery/Friendship/Drama

Chapter 2

Don't Deal With The Ultimates

"…what?"

People sometimes gave things for granted.

It was a fact that he knew by heart by now. He was definitely guilty of doing so after all, even if he hadn't realized it until much later.

Peaceful, silent walks were things that he had surprisingly come to miss after a while of not being allowed one of those, normally because of outside interference.

He could be talking with one of his friends while on the road and five minutes later it would turn into a shouting match between two, or sometimes even more, of his friends.

He could be buying some things at a nearby convenience shop just to get whisked away without even realizing it.

But none of that could compare to what walking towards Hope's Peak could sometimes unleash.

He was skeptical of how practical it was for some of the Ultimates to leave the school, go to his house just to then walk back with him to the institution, but any attempts he had of stopping that habit had fallen on deaf ears.

Those that didn't live inside the Academy weren't any better on that aspect, mind you. The fact that some of them lived quite far but still decided to come get him instead of directly going to Hope's Peak was simply overwhelming.

But it was simply another thing that he had learned to handle. Questioning every single thing his friends did would only give him a headache. It was simply part of the course of being an Ultimate, he guessed, something that was normally followed by thoughts of himself probably being the less extravagant out of everyone holding the title of Ultimate at Hope's Peak.

Then again he was a time-traveler, so maybe his days of being your typical run-of-the-mill student had truly ended a long time ago.

Today it had been different though.

No surprise encounters, no weird happenings, no shouting match between Ultimates, nothing. His walk had been rather normal, almost to the point of being boring.

Heck, the only thing that had made it fairly interesting was the fact that he had not been walking alone. The Ultimate Maid herself had followed him to the school after all, and he was definitely glad for the soothing company that the younger Ultimate was able to provide.

Sayaka and Miu had not been able to come with them though, mostly because of his mother. Not that they hadn't tried, but it was hard to say no to the woman. No one in the Naegi household was able to do it after all, and as far as he knew not even those with the title of Ultimates were immune to his mother's…convincing smile.

He could only hope that his house would remain intact by the time he got back.

However, he should have seen this coming as soon as nothing had happened. He didn't know if it was to bring some sort of weird balance to the world or something like that, but by now he was really starting to believe it.

Maybe he should start looking more on that whole equivalent exchange thing he had seen in anime, after all, what his eyes were seeing could only be described as the payment he had to give for having a normal walk once in a while.

The other reason he chose to describe it like that was because he couldn't think of any other way to actually explain what his eyes were seeing, and he could only imagine the expression on his face.

Shocked bewilderment could probably describe that one, but then again of all the things he could have imagined seeing in the clearing between Hope's Peak entrance and the door to the main building, this had definitely not been one of them.

Not that the things he could hear were making it any easier to understand either.

"My flames will finish you once and for all, you witch!"

"D-don't underestimate my magic!"

"Show that degenerate male that he's no match for you, Yumeno-san!"

And then the elephant made a loud sound as it raised its trunkaccordingly.

Makoto had to honestly control the urge of cleaning his eyes with his hands just to make sure he wasn't seeing things. He ended up doing it anyway once the elephant slammed its foot on the ground, but even then the mighty animal still stood proudly in its place, right behind one of the many Ultimates that he knew.

Then again, considering the identity of said Ultimate maybe he shouldn't be this surprised.

This was the first time he ever saw Tanaka Gundham, the Ultimate Breeder, handling such a big animal outside of his own Research Lab, but considering his title he guessed it was only natural. Even so, the massive animal behind the Ultimate was still quite the sight.

There were other factors that made the Breeder stand out. Even if you ignored the four hamsters that were resting on different parts of his body, the fact that there was a strange purple light coming from below Gundham, or to be more precise from some sort of circle that had been drawn on that space, only increased the surreal factor that the onlookers were experiencing.

And while curiosity burned inside Makoto's head, his instincts told him to never ask how Gundham managed to make that circle actually light up. Mostly for the sake of his own sanity, he concluded.

That was on the right side of the clearing though. The left side, while definitely less impressive, still raised more than a few questions for the Luckster.

If one side had the Ultimate Breeder and his small group of animals, then the other had a duo of Ultimates, with both of them being younger than Makoto himself, while also belonging to the same class as the silver-haired girl that had followed the Luckster.

The first one that got his attention from the duo was the small red-head of said class, Yumeno Himiko, also better known as the Ultimate Magician. Then again he also knew that if you called her that you would get nothing but a glare back considering how she preferred to go by the title of Ultimate Mage.

Her looks contrasted with the Breeder quite a lot. While Gundham looked as confident as ever, with the elephant behind him and light shining below him giving him an even more intimidating vibe, Himiko herself looked more than a little insecure about what was about to happen if her obvious shaking was any indication.

Even so, the firm determination in her eyes could not be mistaken for anything else.

If one looked like a man ready to face the world and win while the other looked like a scared rabbit that refused to give away her carrot, then the third Ultimate of the group looked like what he could only describe as an excited fan.

He was sure there were even stars in her eyes!

Then again it wasn't particularly rare to see Chabashira Tenko, the Ultimate Aikido Master, in such a state whenever Himiko was involved. It was also honestly a sight that he preferred to the other common alternative that he normally saw, which was the girl glaring at every male she saw in the area.

His hazel eyes kept moving between the two groups, back and forth almost as if he would get the answer if he repeated the action enough times. No such answer ever came however, and the increasing comments of hostility coming from Gundham, alongside the loud cheering of Tenko weren't really helping as much as he would have wanted.

He had a feeling though, that this was his fault somehow. He had no idea how it could be, but he had learned by now to trust that feeling. He doubted he would have survived this long if he hadn't.

He needed answers then, especially since it seemed things were just going to get worse. His own ahoge even twitched slightly every time the massive animal behind Gundham released a sound.

First things first though.

"Tojo-san…" He said slowly while his eyes refused to move, thinking that he would miss something if he even just blinked. "Could you do me a favor?"

"Of course," Befitting of someone with the title of Ultimate Maid, any evidence of surprise was quickly washed away from Kirumi's face as a firm expression appeared instead.

And while he had worded it as nothing but a favor, he was more than aware that the younger Ultimate was probably going to take it as an order. Trying to convince her otherwise would only fall on deaf ears though, that much he also knew for certain.

One step at a time, he convinced himself, and dealing with what was in front of him definitely took priority.

"Could you go and check on Oma-kun? He should be in his room, resting…" Of course he trusted the Ultimate Soldier, and he was more than sure that the girl had dropped the younger boy in his room as he had asked her to do, but even so, he couldn't help but want to make sure he was alright.

Kokichi's current condition was, after all, technically his fault in the first place.

"Very well." And without even asking for a reason Kirumi accepted the request wholeheartedly. It wasn't like she was going to miss this chance in the first place considering just how rare it was to get requests from the brown-haired teen.

"Please be careful in my absence." She followed swiftly, her eyes going to the Ultimates that were looking ready to duke it out before moving once again towards the time-travel, who could only give her a doubtful nod in response.

Of course he would try, but he never knew when his so-called luck would decide to act up.

Finding that answer to be sufficient, Kirumi was quick to move through the clearing with such composure that Makoto sometimes forgot she was the younger one of the two. She didn't even bat an eyelash after moving in front of the trio of Ultimates and the tusked animal, her body disappearing from Makoto's sight as soon as she went through the doors of the massive main building.

"Eh? Tojo-san?"

"Nyeh?"

"Who dares to interrupt?!"

Of course, her presence had not been ignored by the three students still standing in the middle of the courtyard. In fact not only did their gazes focus on the silver-haired girl until she left, but they then moved their gazes towards the spot from where she had moved.

Suffice to say, their eyes landed on a certain Luckster quite quickly.

He could only wave slowly in response, not knowing a better way of greeting them in such a situation just as an awkward smile appeared on his lips.

They, however, were quite more outspoken in their greetings.

"Eh, Naegi-senpai?

"N-Naegi-senpai?!"

"Partner!"

And the elephant followed along with another strong sound from its trunk.

Well, he supposed the issue of getting their attention got fixed by itself. The trio was even moving towards him now, almost as if their previous position had been nothing to feel weird about.

He would have to disagree with that notion.

The first one that reached him was Gundham himself with an obvious smirk plastered on the pale teen's face. Thankfully the elephant had decided to stay in its place, although the fact that Gundham had actually domesticated such an animal like that really brought home just how much he deserved his title.

"Good, now you will be able to watch as I show the witch the consequences of her insolence!" If it wasn't because he knew how Gundham liked to act he would truly think that the older Ultimate was being purposely uninformative just to confuse him even more.

Luckily he understood by now that it was just Gundham being, well, Gundham. It made the fact that he was called something like partner of all things by the Breeder even more significant to him, if he had to be honest.

He didn't know if feeling happy about such a thing was good or not, but even he couldn't deny the small surge of pride that had appeared on his chest the day he had been promoted from Servant to Familiar, as Gundham liked to put it.

He could have lived without his sister teasing him about his new status though.

"Stop calling me that! The only one here that uses dark magic is you!" The next one was Himiko herself, although Tenko was quick to follow her.

"If you annoy Yumeno-san again I'll be sure to throw you this time!" The glare that Tenko sported was easily matched by Gundham however, and if the young man was intimidated by such a threat then he definitely didn't show it.

"Now now," Now truly knowing that if he let things go by it would only end in something going wrong, and in a call from the Headmaster with any luck from his own part, Makoto was quick to move between Gundham and the pair from class 79, his hands raised in a vain attempt to calm the trio of Ultimates. "Why don't you explain it to me first? I'm feeling kind of lost here."

Although he felt like even if they did explain he still wouldn't be able to understand as much as he would like, he still needed to try.

"The witch here," It was Gundham the one that spoke first, arms crossed over his chest as he went from glaring to the younger girls to a softer gaze aimed at the Luckster. "Dared to insult our contract forged in the flames of Hell itself!"

"Naegi-senpai," Himiko followed just as the grab she had on the wand on her hand became tighter, while she used her other hand to readjust the hat that rested on top of her head. "I don't know what kind of foul magic he has cast on you, but I promise to break it somehow. My master trained for moments just like this!"

"You…!"

Keeping a hand on both Himiko's and Gundham's shoulder to make sure they didn't start butting heads or something, Makoto sent a request of help towards the last Ultimate of the group in the form of a questioning gaze.

A huff and a glare was the response he got from the Aikido Master, however it wasn't a reaction that honestly surprised him. He knew how she was around vile males as she liked to put it, and by now he was just glad that the younger girl had stopped throwing him around just for being close to their red-headed friend.

The fact that he could touch Himiko's shoulder without being sent on a one-way ticket to the infirmary already spoke volumes to him in that regard.

"Yumeno-san heard Tanaka-senpai speak something about a life contract between him and you." But even with her apparent dislike for the ahoge-haired boy she still decided to answer, while Makoto paid her as much attention as he could while still keeping the Himiko and Gundham in check.

"And she decided to beak the dark magic with her own, which got Tanaka-senpai angry. He ended up challenging Yumeno-san to a duel," The girl continued, with her glare then becoming fiercer just as she even gritted her teeth in apparent frustration. "The fact that she's willing to go this far for someone like you…gah!"

"You're being too nosy again, Tenko" It was Himiko herself the one that beat him to the punch when it came to answering the girl's sudden outburst, and if the tired sigh that the red-head released was any indication she really wasn't fond of such actions coming from the Aikido Master.

But for his part Makoto just felt glad that he sort of, kind of understood what was going on, albeit barely. Sure, he knew how over the top Gundham could be, but he could have never imagined that it would be Himiko of all people that would follow him up in that regard.

She wasn't the most…motivated of his friends, after all, but then again he also knew how sensitive the subject of magic could be for her, especially considering what she believed had happened to her master.

And he just didn't have the heart to try and convince her otherwise when it came to that. Besides even if the situation itself was as weird as it could get, just the fact that she had gone out of his way to interact with someone outside of her class could only be considered good in his opinion.

Now he would just have to find a way to stop them from actually having a duel, if he could even call it that, and maybe patch things up so that they could be friends! Sure, that last one was a stretch, even he knew that, but he didn't lose anything by trying, right?

There was still one remaining question plaguing his mind though.

"Tanaka-senpai," The brown-haired teen regarded the pale Ultimate with a questioning glance. "What about the elephant?"

"Through our connection, Belphegor knew about my confrontation today," The Ultimate Breeder explained as if it was a normal occurrence, however going by the looks he was receiving from Tenko and even Himiko they were just as lost as anyone would be. "Of course I was more than ready to face my enemy with only the power of my Four Devas of Destruction by my side, but I couldn't deny the earnest request of a servant of mine!"

It took the Ultimate Lucky Student just a second to understand that the elephant's name was, in fact, Belphegor.

'One step at a time, Makoto, one step at a time.' He released a sigh while having such thoughts, his eyes then moving towards the smallest Ultimate while a small smile appeared on his lips.

"Yumeno-san, I appreciate that you wanted to help," He started in a kind tone, his words simply getting the Ultimate Magician to fidget a bit on her spot. "But I can assure that Tanaka-senpai meant nothing bad with what he said. It's really not what you think it is…"

"B-but!" The girl was about to respond, but she wasn't the only one. Gundham himself looked more than ready to voice his thoughts, but a squeeze on the shoulder from the brown-haired teen was enough to stop him just as he moved his eyes from the younger to the older Ultimate.

"Tanaka-senpai, I understand that her words might have offended you, but please let me handle this by myself." The Breeder himself still didn't look convinced, but knowing him by now Makoto knew exactly what to say in this situation.

"Isn't it a Familiar's job to help his Master? If you don't let me handle this then even my pride as your friend will be hurt!"

It was almost as if a lightning bolt had struck Gundham with the way he even gave a step back while his face showed nothing but shock. He even trembled just a bit before burying his face in his scarf.

"Very well, I understand…"

"Thank you." And the honest and grateful smile Gundham received from the Luckster only made his blush of embarrassment a bit stronger. Luckily enough for him, his scarf hid that fact from the world around him.

Moving his focus once again to the two younger Ultimates on the other side, although by the looks of it they had not liked being ignored by him even if it had been for just a moment.

Well, Himiko looked a bit angry, while Tenko just looked mostly disgusted.

"Makoto-dono!"

The looks on their faces actually became somehow worse as soon as the high-pitched scream filled their ears. Even Gundham could only look towards the source of the noise with nothing but obvious annoyance, although the only expression present on Makoto's face was one of surprise.

"Yamada-kun?" The last name of the one responsible for the yell left his lips without even realizing it.

Truly, seeing the Ultimate Doujin Author actually running from the door of the building towards them as if his life depended on it, could be quite the experience that, at least to Makoto, meant that something important must have happened.

He was proven true as soon as Hifumi finally reached the group.

"M-Makoto-dono," The glass-wearing Ultimate wheezed out tiredly before moving behind the Luckster and pushing him forcefully to the front, catching Makoto by surprise. "The Headmaster is looking for you, we need to make haste!"

"W-wait, Yamada-kun! The Headmaster?" Makoto tried to voice his confusion while a frown appeared on his brow. He hadn't even entered the building yet and he was already being called?! Even for him, this had to be a new record.

While for their part the words of protests that had formed in both Gundham's and Himiko's lips died as soon as the Principal of Hope's Peak Academy was brought into the subject. Not even they could make Makoto ignore a call from the man himself that, much they knew.

"I'm sorry, everyone!" Makoto managed to call out while still being pushed by the Doujin Author, honest regret sipping in his voice. "I'll make it up to you, I promise!"

And he almost regretted saying those words as soon as he did, after all even after gaining some distance he was still able to detect a familiar glint appearing on both the Magician's and Breeder's eyes, something that made a small shiver go down his spine.

And why was even Tenko giving him such a conflicted glance?!

Maybe he really was throwing out way too many promises left and right.

The last thing he heard before opening the doors to Hope's Peak south andmain building was a last, loud sound coming from Belphegor of all beings, one that could only be translated as a goodbye.

It took him exactly five minutes to finally bring it out.

"The Headmaster didn't call me, did he? Yamada-kun?"

"Eh…? Eh!"

His casual way of revealing the truth ended up catching the overweight Ultimate by absolute surprise, to the point of almost choking on air just as the two stopped their journey through the halls of Hope's Peak Academy.

"So I was right." The Luckster continued, although if he was upset by being lied to he didn't show it at all.

"H-How did you know, Makoto-dono?" Not even trying to hide it by now Hifumi raised a shaky finger towards the smaller teen. "Could it be that…your rank as an Esper has finally increased from level 0?!"

"I don't think that's even possible." While scratching his cheek and chuckling a bit, Makoto continued in a friendly tone, his finger then pointing behind him. "It's just that the Headmaster's office is in the opposite direction."

And if there was something that the Ultimate Lucky Student of class 78 knew, it was that the older Kirigiri was at his office around this time of the day.

"I see…Sorry for lying to you, Makoto-dono." The regret in Hifumi's voice was more than obvious for the time-traveler, but a wave from his hand told the artist that his classmate was far from angry at him.

"If you wanted my help with something you just had to ask, Yamada-kun." Makoto wasn't one to get angry for stuff like this, especially considering how he was hiding stuff from pretty much everyone he knew. He had learned to deal with the guilt of that aspect already, mostly by convincing himself that it was a necessary thing.

"I know that, but…" Hifumi for his part seemed to struggle with his words to the point that he even broke out in a cold sweat, causing Makoto to start worrying about his classmate. There was obviously more to it than just a lie, and such a suspicion was proved correct by Hifumi's next outburst.

"I'm sorry but she insisted I had to do anything necessary to bring you along!" And with no other words, the Ultimate Doujin Author simply kept pushing Makoto through the halls, not even waiting for an answer.

An awkward smile made its way into Makoto's lips just as he started putting two and two together. Considering just how scared out of his wits Hifumi looked, combined by the route they were taking right now there was only one place they could be going to if he had to take a guess.

Hope's Peak Academy was certainly a massive place, that much no one could deny. Even just the massive building they currently found themselves in was just one part of the whole institution, although by now he had gotten quite used to traversing through the halls of the school.

If he was glad about something, though, it had to be the fact that he didn't have to walk through the exact same halls as those of the old school building.

He had missed a lot of things, but being trapped in those walls was not one of them. Just looking at the building was enough to make him shiver, and he could swear he could still hear that same deranged laugh belonging to a certain bear just whenever his eyes even looked at that damn place.

Compared to that, the new building they were currently walking through was almost like a second home to him by now. Not only was the whole thing extremely big, but it held so many things that he still found it hard to believe that it was just one building.

From the classrooms to the dormitories to even the headmaster's office at the top floor. Others aspects of the building went from some more common things that a high school had, like a cafeteria, nurse's office and school store among others, to some other very specific rooms that almost looked as if they were from another world.

They were, as those affiliated with Hope's Peak liked to call them, Research Labs made so that the Ultimates could keep developing their own respective talents to the best of their abilities.

And while most of them were located in different floors or even completely different buildings beside this one, with the route they were currently taking Makoto was getting surer by the second that he knew where Hifumi was going to drop him off.

And sure enough, once again his prediction was proven correct once they stopped in front of a black door, which by now Makoto knew very well. An almost timid knock on the door from Hifumi's part even confirmed the identity of the girl he had mentioned before.

And to be completely honest, he couldn't blame Hifumi for shaking like a leaf.

"Come in." It was a melodious voice, soft and mysterious to the ear that answered back to them. Makoto gave another look to Hifumi, who was pretty much urging him to answer back with exaggerated movements of his hands.

And with a shrug, he did so by opening the door slowly right before first sticking his head in with a curiosity-filled expression, although a small, almost nervous smile sure appeared on his lips as soon as his eyes focused on the middle of the room.

"I'm glad you were able to join me, Naegi-kun."

For there she was, the one tilted as Queen of Liars in the underworld, while also sporting the title of Ultimate Gambler here in Hope's Peak. Celestia Ludenberg was sitting by herself in a small table right in the middle of the room, her red eyes showing nothing but barely concealed amusement while the corner of her lips moved slightly upwards.

It didn't matter how many times he was in rooms like this, he still found it amazing just how oddly fitting the place was to not only Celestia's talent but even to her own personal style.

From the outright Victorian feeling that the room left off to the multiple tables filling the room, each with the obvious objective of being used for particular types of games, Makoto could truly say that this room was meant for one Celestia Ludenberg and no one else.

"Please, join me." The girl continued in a smooth tone while signaling to the chair on the opposite side of the small table with her free hand since the other was holding a small cup filled with what he could only guess was tea. "You're always welcome inside this walls, after all."

It sounded like just a friendly saying, but to him he knew that it meant a lot more. Celeste was kind of overprotective of the room after all; to the point that only those that she found worthy of her standards were able to set a foot inside, at least without angering the Gambler.

And as far as he was aware, ignoring himself, only two others had gained that privilege.

Funnily enough, he had walked to the school with one of them just earlier today.

He entered the room slowly while a small feeling of apprehension wormed its way into his heart. It wasn't like he was scared of the girl or anything, but even he couldn't ignore the feeling of being caught in the spider's web just by walking into Celestia's territory.

It was only once he reached the chair that he realized he had not been followed by the one that had brought him here in the first place. He turned his head around to regard the Ultimate Doujin Author, but the only thing he found was a closed door looking back at him.

"Don't let yourself worry about meaningless things; Naegi-kun." Almost as if reading his mind the black-haired girl was quick to speak. "Yamada-kun is just going to… walk a few laps around the school."

"I see…" He could only answer with that just as he took a seat, his hand unconsciously moving to scratch the back of his head. "I think you should treat him a bit more fairly, Celes-san. I know Yamada-kun can be… strange sometimes but he only means well."

"I'm afraid to say this, Naegi-kun," The girl shot back easily, a small glint of displeasure appearing on her red eyes. "But by now I believe that Yamada-kun enjoys being treated harshly far more than what you would call normal."

Chuckling awkwardly in response, there wasn't much Makoto could say about that. Sure, defending his friend came to the forefront of his mind, but even he couldn't deny such a thing with the way Hifumi acted around Celestia.

"But like I said, you don't need to worry about trivial matters here, Naegi-kun," Celestia continued just as took a sip of her drink, a content sigh leaving her lips right after that. "Especially when we have more important matters to attend to."

"We do?" With confusion, more than obvious in both his voice and face, Makoto could only tilt his head to the side. Sure, he had been wondering why Celestia had called him here, even going as far as to make Hifumi lie just to get him, but he couldn't remember anything important that he had to discuss with the girl in front of him.

"Of course we do." She smiled sweetly at him, almost too sweetly if he had to be honest, and her action was followed by her removing something from under the table and putting it on it for Makoto to see.

And sure enough now he understood just what she meant, and if his expression wasn't enough to tell anyone seeing just how nervous he was, then his ahoge twitching certainly did.

People really wanted to play card games with him today, didn't they?

However, unlike with a certain Ultimate Supreme Leader whose games were inoffensive, most of the time at least, he knew that playing with someone like Celeste meant a lot more than just getting your ass handed back to you.

"I'm sure you will have no issues with our…usual agreement?" The pale girl continued just as her hands moved swiftly through the cards, almost as if the act of shuffling them was second nature to her by now.

Each movement of her hands just made Makoto more nervous though, after all he certainly knew what she meant by usual agreement.

If there was one thing that he knew he couldn't handle properly, it was how to say no to people. He simply found it way too hard, one of the reasons for some like Byakuya to call him a pushover, he guessed.

In his defense though, his own dad could never say no to neither his mom nor his little sister, so maybe it ran in the guys' side of the family?

It was because of his inability to deny even the craziest things from his friends that he sometimes found himself facing someone like Celestia this way, all so that she could conquest what she apparently considered her greatest challenge to date.

Which just so happened to be him, according to her own words.

Maybe accepting to becoming her personal knight, as she liked to put it, if she managed to beat him in any one on one game had not been the best idea in retrospective, but outright refusing her had just been impossible!

Although by now the Luckster knew that this had become mostly a matter of pride for the Ultimate Gambler, after all even after a year of studying together the black-haired girl was still unable to beat him in, well, anything.

Not for a lack of trying, mind you.

And definitely not because he was so good that he was able to fend her off.

No, but the reason was rather simple in the end.

After all, there was a reason he held the title of Ultimate Lucky Student. Sure, said luck was as unpredictable as it could get, and he knew for certain it was not near the same level as certain older Ultimate Lucky Student, but when it came to matters like these his luck actually never failed him.

Because in the year he had been Celeste's classmate, not once had they been able to actually finish a game before something interrupted them.

Sometimes, or rather most of the time, it was one of his friends the one that did it, either by simply dragging him somewhere without even waiting for the game to finish or by messing with it so much that continuing was out of the question.

So by now, it wasn't a matter of if, but rather one of when.

And this time around, said when just so happened to be right at the moment Celestia finished shuffling the cards.

For as soon as she did, the door of the Research Lab was thrown open with incredible force, more than enough to announce to the two Ultimates inside about the presence of a newcomer.

The first thing Makoto saw since he was standing with his back to the door, was Celestia suddenly raising from her chair with a look of annoyance that she didn't even try to hide. Considering how much he knew of the girl, it certainly showed just how unhappy she was with the sudden invasion of her sanctuary.

The next thing he did was to turn around his head while still sitting to look properly at whoever had decided to enter the spider's web, with his eyes involuntarily widening as soon as he caught the site of the intruder.

It was the second pair of red eyes he saw in the last ten minutes, however, this time they were present in a face that showed nothing but seriousness while being hidden behind glasses.

He was used to imposing presences, but he had to admit that with the way those eyes narrowed, Pekoyama Peko, the Ultimate Swordswoman, could certainly be a scary sight for those that didn't know her properly.

The fact that you could see her sword's sheath tucked into her back just made her stand out even more, and Makoto could only be glad to not be the one who was being pierced by Peko's glare.

That honor belonged exclusively to Celestia herself.

After all, while Makoto was busy looking at the silver-haired young woman, both Peko and Celeste were having what could only be described as a staring match, with red meeting red just as the two refused to back down or even blink.

They didn't say a word to each other, for there was no need to. Celeste was already more than clearly aware of Peko's intentions, and the silver-haired Ultimate was not even going to bother to hide them or make an excuse.

She was on a mission, and she wasn't going to fail.

Celeste's eyes narrowed as soon as she saw Peko's hand twitch just a bit. She sent the older Ultimate one last warning glance, almost as if daring her to do what she wanted in her presence and on her own territory no less.

However, Peko was one to not care for such things, after all she wouldn't have survived this long if she had.

So with a movement almost too fast for the human eye to see Peko finally acted.

And then something that could only be described as a strangled squeak left Makoto's lips just as Celeste's eyes widened at the woman's sheer audacity.

She was, after all, now carrying Makoto on her arms just like how a groom would carry his wife after the wedding.

And with one last respectful nod, although the Ultimate Gambler found it more mocking than anything else, Peko was gone from the room in a flash almost as fast as she had appeared, with a blushing Makoto in her arms.

Everything happened in less than a minute, with the result being a very displeased Celeste alone in the room, her eyes still focused on the open door and on the hallway that she could see from there, although by now she couldn't even see the Swordswoman's back.

Taking a deep, slow breath just for then to release it just as slowly, Celeste's face showed no emotion whatsoever, her red eyes moving slowly from looking at the empty hall to the lower side of the still open door.

It was there that she could see a pointy strand of hair almost quivering.

"Yamada-kun." She called in an emotionless tone with her hands folded in her lap, her words getting a shaky response in the form of the owner of said strand of hair slowly sticking his head into the room.

"Y-yes, Celestia-sama?" The fear in Hifumi's voice could not be mistaken for anything else, but if Celeste cared even a bit about it she certainly didn't show it.

"Did you…" She continued as slowly as ever, each word making Hifumi sweat with even more intensity. "Reveal to Pekoyama-senpai that Naegi-kun was here with me?"

As soon as he heard those words Hifumi's mouth flapped just like a fish, but no words left him except an almost pitiful grunt, one that told Celestia everything she needed to know.

In his defense though, while Celestia's cold look was enough to make his blood freeze, the threat of a sword to his neck was still scarier!

"Get in and close the door." The commanding tone that the red-eyed girl used only made worse to Hifumi, could only nod timidly in response.

"W-what are y-you going to d-do, Celestia-sama?" He still had enough sense to ask such a question though, but considering the response he got maybe it would have been better if he had not asked her that.

"I'm going to rip it off, of course." The nonchalant tone she used only made it worse.

"R-rip what o-off?"

"Everything."

The frightened screams that left the Research Lab could be heard all the way to the Principal's office.

"P-Pekoyama-senpai…this is embarrassing."

"Don't worry, Naegi-kun, I'm not embarrassed at all."

"T-that's not what I meant!"

Any complains that he had about the fact that he was being carried by his silver-haired senpai simply fell on deaf ears.

In fact his own embarrassment, which the reddening of his cheeks clearly showed, was the only thing that stopped him from being amazed by the speed with which the Ultimate Swordswoman moved through the hallways of Hope's Peak Academy.

Her agility could truly be denied by no one, although the Luckster would have certainly preferred to not experience such a thing under his current circumstances.

It spoke volumes about the young woman's abilities once they found themselves on the second floor of the building in such a small amount of time that Makoto wasn't even able to register it.

He only caught on the fact that they had arrived on the dorm rooms area once Peko herself had actually stopped her mad dash through the building, with the feeling of relief Makoto had for that only being rivaled by how dizzy he was at the moment.

At least he was now allowed to stand by himself, although the amount of carefulness his senpai showed to him while putting him down didn't exactly help his already nervous state.

"Uhm, Pekoyama-senpai?" He asked with uncertainty, honestly not knowing just what had incited such a behavior from the girl. Sure, most of the time his friends didn't have a particular reason besides just wanting to spend time with him, but he honestly would like to believe that the red-eyed young woman had to have a reason for what he was sure some would consider kidnapping.

His questions, however, were slightly answered once his gaze caught on the nameplate attached to the door that they were both standing in front of.

He wasn't surprised at all by the name the door displayed, even if it wasn't Peko's name in the first place. Having a feeling that his answers would come if he was patient enough, Makoto decided to simply stay in silence while Peko knocked on the door in a careful way, almost as if following a specific pattern or rhythm.

Knowing who was probably waiting for them at the other side of the door, Makoto wouldn't be surprised if that was the case.

"Get in."

Unlike with Celeste before, this voice came out in a harsh, authoritarian tone, one that could simply not be ignored even if you tried.

If it wasn't because he knew who that voice belonged to, Makoto was sure he would have gotten a bit nervous by now.

Without waiting for anything else, Peko was quick to open the door and with a wave of her hand she instructed the time-traveler to enter first, something that he did with an understanding nod of his head.

"Took you long enough, I was about to go get you myself."

And sure enough, just like how the nameplate had indicated it the one waiting inside was none other than Kuzuryu Fuyuhiko, the Ultimate Yakuza, whose voice was followed by the sound of the door behind Makoto closing, with the one responsible of that, Peko herself, then moving swiftly to take her place right to the blonde's right.

And for his own part Makoto had to control the urge to simply look around in curiosity, after all it didn't matter how many times he entered in a room such like this, he was still amazed by how much stuff some of his friends had in their room.

He knew it would be rude though, and considering what he knew about Fuyuhiko's short temper the last thing he wanted to do was to anger him. He made sure to keep his eyes focused on his front, right where the Ultimate Yakuza sat behind a pretty big wooden desk.

The room itself was big enough so that something like that didn't really eat that much space. As far as he knew every room looked pretty much the same, besides whatever the owner of said room decided to bring along, alongside being equipped with the same bed and bathroom.

He had his own room somewhere on the 2nd floor too, but he had never actually used it since he lived with his parents. The place was always ready for him to use it though, or at least that's what the older Kirigiri of the school had told him a while ago.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Take a seat, Makoto." With a movement of his head, the smaller Ultimate pointed at the chair resting on the opposite of the desk. Having a weird sense of déjà vu, the Luckster decided to simply do as he was told, while also wondering why he had been dragged here in such a way.

"Kuzuryu-senpai…" He started with obvious doubt while his questioning glance moved between the Yakuza to the Swordswoman. "Did something happen?"

"First, Fuyuhiko is fine, how many times do I have to tell you that?" The golden-eyed Ultimate growled out slightly, almost as if already used to such a start of the conversation. "Second, I just need a moment of your time, you're free to leave after we're done."

That answer made him release a sigh of relief, his shoulders slumping now that he knew nothing was wrong. Maybe he was being too paranoid sometimes, but he just couldn't help it.

Still wondering what his friend wanted, Makoto watched silently as the older Ultimate received what looked like a set of papers from Peko herself. Flipping through the information in his hands, Fuyuhiko simply nodded in acceptance as he made sure that everything was in order.

He then handed the papers to a clueless Makoto, who could only receive them with a face of confusion. He grabbed them carefully, but as soon as the papers went from the blonde's hand to his own he was also offered with a pen from Fuyuhiko, something that he also accepted, albeit with doubt.

"I just need you to sign that, easy enough if you ask me." The Ultimate Yakuza explained stoically, almost as if it really didn't matter at all, and in any other situation, Makoto would have probably believed such a thing.

However, there was something in not only Fuyuhiko's but also Peko's eyes that told him something was amiss. Maybe he could call it his survival instinct, fitting enough considering he felt like a piece of meat that was being watched by a pair of lions.

"And…what am I signing exactly?" He asked as he read through the papers in his hand, trying to find an answer to his own question.

Said answer ended up coming from the Yakuza himself, who simply waved his hand lazily in front of him, almost as if bored.

"Nothing much, really," He said while tapping the desk with his fingers. "Just a marriage contract between you and my sister."

And just with those words alone, Makoto's expression froze into a shaky smile, with his eyes that had been moving through the papers now being pretty much paralyzed, and even a bead of cold sweat ended up dripping from his forehead.

Surely, he heard that one wrong…right?

"Sorry, could you repeat that one again?" With a smile frozen on his lips he asked once again, thinking that his hearing was starting to go bad or something like that.

"What? Did I stutter?" Slight annoyance slipped through Fuyuhiko's voice before he released a calming sigh. "Like I said, it's a marriage contract between you and my little sister. She already signed it and everything. We only really need your signature now."

Now knowing that he had not, in fact, heard wrong Makoto could only nod in understanding while smiling, his eyes moving from the paper to Fuyuhiko to Peko and then back again in a weird triangle fashion.

It didn't take long for his brain to finally catch up with what was happening.

And as soon as that happened he honestly had to control every nerve in his hand to not just throw the papers as far away as he could, almost as if just touching them would make him catch on fire.

What he was not able to stop though, was the sputtering mess that his mouth released as he tried, and failed, to form a coherent answer to the older Ultimate's words.

What the hell did he mean by marriage?!

"What the fuck got you that worked up?" Fuyuhiko said with a frown, not getting just why his younger friend was doing his best attempt at imitating a fish. A flash of understanding appeared in his eyes just a second later though, followed by a nod from his head. "If you're worried about the money for the wedding then don't, I'll handle that personally."

'That's not the issue here!' Makoto screamed in his head, now wanting to know just what kind of logic the Yakuza was using.

His right eye was almost twitching just at the incredulity of the situation.

He decided to ignore the part in which the younger Kuzuryu had already signed it if her brother's words were true. One step at a time, he told himself if he wanted to fix this, one step at a time.

But for his part, the Ultimate Yakuza simply saw this as the best plan he ever came up with. Not only was it as simple as it could get, but everyone gained something from it!

His sister would get the guy she wanted and stop pestering him about bringing the ahoge-haired boy to their house each day since, obviously, Makoto would be moving in with them after the wedding.

He could reward Peko's loyalty since now she would be able to play with Makoto as much as she wanted.

While he himself would finally have Makoto as a part of the clan and as a brother in everything but blood.

And Makoto would even get to marry the best little sister that anyone could ask for.

Truly, a perfect idea, that much no one could deny.

He could even feel Peko behind him nodding confidently, almost as if she was reading his mind.

Heck, they could even invite all the other idiots studying at this school if they felt like it.

Now if only Makoto stopped acting like an idiot and signed the damn thing.

Of course, the reason said Luckster had not signed the piece of paper was because of the small breakdown his mind was having as soon as the word marriage had popped out of Fuyuhiko's mouth.

He was only 17 for heaven's sake!... Well technically he was 24, just not in body, but that was not the point!

He needed a way to get out of this situation without insulting the Yakuza in front of him. Something told him that just rejecting the offer would end badly for him, even if Fuyuhiko was his friend.

Did he feel flattered by the offer? Sure, but by now he was truly starting to question the common sense some of his friends have.

Not knowing what to say though, at least not without making the blonde angry, one Naegi Makoto simply found himself praying to anyone that could hear him out there, even his own so-called luck.

If there was a moment to validate his title as an Ultimate, then it was certainly this one.

Heck, he would even accept it if Junko herself appeared out of nowhere and whisked him away to who knows where right now!

…No, wait, maybe not that, he wasn't that desperate yet. Maybe in five minutes though, if the increasingly impatient looks he was getting from the Yakuza worked as any indication.

Said frustrated look though, ended up moving from him to the door behind him once the sound of someone knocking at the door was heard by everyone in the room.

"Get lost, we're busy here!" Fuyuhiko pretty much growled out to whoever was standing behind the door, truly swearing inside that if it was someone from his class, or any class for that matter, just wanting to play idiot with his future brother-in-law he would get them killed on the spot.

His warning tone seemed to be ignored though, since the sound of a fist hitting the door could be heard once again.

With a small snarl and a movement of his hand, the Yakuza send the Swordswoman to his side to check who dared to interrupt them, while Makoto himself could only release a shaky breath as he both thanked, and prayed for whoever was on the other side of that door.

Then again, once Peko opened said door with a glare firmly set on her face, the surprise on the faces of the 3 Ultimates inside could not be hidden even if they tried.

"Headmaster?" It was Makoto the one that spoke first in a whisper, now not knowing if to feel relieved that someone had interrupted the whole thing or worried that the headmaster himself had decided to come here.

"Headmaster Kirigiri," Even Fuyuhiko showed respect in his voice and actions by quickly standing up, with Peko herself giving a nod of respect to the man before moving to the side to allow him entrance to the room. "What brings you here?"

"Don't worry," Kirigiri Jin spoke in a calm voice, with a small smile present on his lips as he moved his body further into the room. "I just came here to get Makoto-kun. There are some things we need to discuss, you see."

"I…see." The blonde Ultimate seemed to struggle with his words. After all, the last thing he wanted was for Makoto to leave without signing the papers first, but it wasn't like he could just go and refuse the headmaster. He didn't even have to ask how the older man knew Makoto would be here. After all, everyone knew that if something happened inside the walls of Hope's Peak Academy, it would be Kirigiri Jin who knew about it first.

"Let us take our leave then, Makoto-kun. You can spend time with your friends after we're done." And with no other words and a small nudge on Makoto's shoulder, the man himself was quick to leave the room with a last, firm nod, leaving a Makoto, who was still trying to figure out what just happened, scrambling to follow the man.

"Kuzu-, I mean, Fuyuhiko-kun," The Luckster backpedaled as soon as he saw the glare of the blonde. "Can we… Can we talk about this later? I mean…" The last thing he wanted to do was to leave such a crazy thing unattended, but he did need time to find what to even say in the first place.

"Sure, whatever," The Yakuza answered as he looked with frustration at the papers left on his desk right before picking them up. "Sooner or later I'll get your signature here anyway."

Ignoring the shiver that went down his spine at the confident tone Fuyuhiko used, Makoto gave a slight bow to both him and the red-eyed Ultimate Swordswoman that had returned to Kuzuryu's side by now before exiting the room and closing the door behind him, leaving the two Ultimates of class 77 by themselves.

"Tch." The Yakuza wasn't able to hide his annoyance and clicked his tongue before falling into his seat once more with one of his hands rubbing on his face as his gaze made a hole on the door of his room.

That is until a sudden frown of confusion appeared on his brow.

"Hey, Peko…" He said in a low tone while blinking owlishly at the door.

"Yes, Young Master?" The young woman in question answered swiftly, with her own eyes also focused on the closed door.

"Is it just me or…" Licking his lips while trying to find the correct words, the Yakuza simply kept looking at the door. "Did the headmaster gain a few pounds…?"

A moment of silence fell on the two after his question, almost as if Peko didn't know what to answer, but her calm voice was quick to fill the golden-eyed Ultimate's ears.

"I think it's more than just a few, Young Master…"

"I see…"

It would take them weeks to figure out exactly what had happened that day.

And once they did a certain classmate of theirs would be, without question, added to their personal blacklist.

"Is there something wrong, Makoto-kun?" The Kirigiri to his side asked him with a small frown, noticing just how quiet the Luckster had been ever since they left the room.

"No, just…" He answered with a shake of his head, his brown eyes then looking up at the purple eyes of the headmaster.

His next question brought the two of them to a sudden stop.

"What's the password?"

A weird, tense silence fell on the two, with their gazes locked onto one another and no one but them on the empty hallway of the school, with doors leading to different classroom surrounding them.

The raised eyebrow Jin gave the brown-haired Ultimate was met with a serious stare, one that made the man release a quiet sigh before opening his mouth to answer.

"Kirigiri Kyoko." The dark purple-haired man responded with confidence, however instead of the nod of acceptance he had expected from Makoto the only thing he got was an indulgent smile.

"I thought you had decided to stop pretending to be others." Those words struck deep into the so-called headmaster, whose eyes widened in surprise for just a second before a sad, understanding smile appeared on his face.

"So I wasn't able to fool you, huh?" He whispered in a soft tone. "I guess it would be too much if I asked what the real password is? Even if I don't mind much if it is you, it still hurts my pride a bit to be found out so easily."

"Sorry, I promised not to tell." The Ultimate Lucky Student answered with a kind tone right before patting the older man's back. "And you did fool me, that's why we have a password in the first place…But why do this though?" He ended with a frown, gaining a small chuckle from the Ultimate to his side.

"I saw Pekoyama-san dragging you and I just thought you could use some help." If someone knew how over the top the students of class 77 were, then it was definitely him, after all wasn't he one of the students in that same classroom? He was a man with a title just like them after all, the one sporting the title of Ultimate Imposter.

"You were right about that one, to be honest…Thank you for that." Makoto said with honest gratitude dripping from his words. While he did feel slightly bad from ditching the Ultimate Yakuza and Swordswoman, he knew it was a necessity right now.

Surely this was all a misunderstanding that he would be able to fix if talked things properly, right? It wasn't like Fuyuhiko's little sister actually wanted to marry him in the first place.

…Right?

With a shake of his head, the time-traveler simply decided to leave those worries for the Makoto of the future and focus on his friend by his side. He was more than grateful towards the Ultimate Imposter for helping him, but even he knew that pretending to be Kirigiri Jin could bring a lot of problematic issues.

That was the reason the real Headmaster and he even had a password in the first place. You never knew who could be listening after all, and the last thing they wanted was for some of the more…sensitive information to be leaked out.

Luckily for him, it seemed that not even someone like the Ultimate Imposter knew about the password. The older Ultimate had done a good guess though, since that had been one of the options the real headmaster had offered as the password a long time ago.

He could only imagine the reaction a certain Ultimate Detective would have if she knew that.

Fortunately, the only way someone would know the real password would be if that person knew him from the future.

So suffice to say, no one besides Kirigiri Jin himself and him should be able to figure that one out.

But even if that was the case, Makoto still knew that imitating the Headmaster could be a troublesome ordeal, not because of the man himself, after all as long as it was done for the sake of an Ultimate's talent he doubted the man would care, but rather because…

"Ah, Headmaster!"

"Headmaster Kirigiri is here?!"

"Please take a look at this, Headmaster!"

"Headmaster, about the proposal…"

And sure enough, just like how Makoto had feared as soon as one of the teachers caught a glimpse of the older Kirigiri, or rather the older Ultimate disguised as the man, he was swarmed by hungry-looking members of the Hope's Peak staff.

Getting a private meeting with the Headmaster was not an easy thing to do after all, and from what he had been told by the man himself the faculty members tended to go a bit…crazy if they were able to get his attention at their issues.

Then again, Jin's own words had been quite literally that, for him walking through the hallways felt like being inside a jungle filled with hungry predators, each aiming for a piece of him.

And right now, the Ultimate Imposter was experiencing such a thing first hand, and it was not a pretty sight.

"Wait, everyone…" The fake Jin tried to calm the hoard of man and woman that were coming to him by the second, but his attempts at anything were only met with complains, request and odds propositions to the point that every voice melded together into his ears.

As a last ditch attempt he gave a gaze that pretty much screamed help to a certain Ultimate Lucky Student, who was looking at the spectacle with an awkward smile present on his lips, but before Makoto was able to do anything an arm ended up draping itself on the Luckster's shoulders, with a rather carefree voice coming from the owner of said arm, who was right beside the brown-haired time-traveler.

"Don't worry, Jin. I'll be sure to keep Makoto here some company while you do your job!"

"Eh? Kizakura-sensei?" Makoto called out in surprise, but before he was able to do anything else he was pretty much lead by the shoulder away from the scene, courtesy of Kizakura Koichi, one of the teachers of Hope's Peak Academy and, back in his time, former leader of the 3rd Division of Future Foundation.

"Let's go, Makoto. Leave the adults to do adult things while we relax a bit." The man himself simply chuckled with a lazy smile on his face.

"Aren't you an adult too?" He questioned as he gave one glance full of pity to the Ultimate Imposter, who was still being swarmed by the faculty members of the Academy to the point that he couldn't even see the older Ultimate by now, although the screams and complaints certainly met his ears.

And with that scene burned into his mind, suddenly having Luck as his talent didn't sound so bad to the time-traveler.

"You should relax a bit, Makoto. You look so stressed lately that I think you'll get white hairs before I do!"

'I think you're way too relaxed, Kizakura-sensei…' The Luckster thought with a deadpan as he watched the man take a sip from a metallic container he had hidden in his suit, and knowing the man he had an idea as to just what kind of liquid he was keeping inside that thing.

He wondered if that was the reason the older man had brought them to an empty classroom, after all, he couldn't imagine drinking like that in plain view, let alone considering how early it was, would be considered an acceptable thing for someone that was supposed to not only teach, but to also recruit students for Hope's Peak.

Then again, not even the end of the world had made the man change that much, so maybe getting used to his personality was the only thing someone like him could do. At least he had gotten used to the man's attitude by now, something that he guessed came with being a lot closer to him than in his times in Future Foundation.

That had been one of his greatest regrets if he had to be honest, after all while he knew that he was probably just overthinking things, a part of him still felt like he could have done something, anything to help the members of Future Foundation, to find a way to stop the Last Killing Game from ever happening in the first place.

He didn't regret helping the Remnants of Despair even if it had been against the organization's wishes, but didn't mean he didn't want for all of them to be able to work together for a better future.

Luckily for him, even if the Future Foundation didn't exist here he was still able to interact with the leaders of each division with a lot more ease than what he could have ever imagined. Maybe it was because the world around them wasn't falling apart, but he had a surprisingly friendly relationship with most of them, like with the man in front of him.

"Hmm?" Said man finally caught on the fact that the Ultimate was looking at him with quite the weird expression, almost as if he was remembering something painful.

"I mean it though, you really should relax a bit, kiddo, or else you'll end up just collapsing." Koichi advised with a friendly smile, with a frown from Makoto being the response he got.

Surely, he wasn't looking that bad, now was he?

"It really is nothing, Kizakura-sensei, just… I guess things here are a bit harder than I thought." The ahoge-haired boy ended up throwing out an excuse, more than aware that he couldn't mention anything related to the future to the older man.

"I know high school can be a pain, especially this one," The blue-eyed man said in a relaxed tone with his small contained raised to be right below his chin. "But don't go blaming on me if Yukizome does something crazy just to cheer you up, we both know how much that woman likes to take care of her students, especially you."

Makoto could only chuckle in response just as his cheeks gained a bit of a rosy color. He definitely couldn't deny that one.

"Here," The blonde man continued as he pushed the metallic container towards the Luckster. "Why don't you take a small sip? It might help you."

"I don't think you should be offering alcohol to one of your students." Already used to the man's nonchalant attitude, Makoto was quick to deny the offer, but a laugh from the older man told him that this time he would need to do better than that.

"Oh c'mon," Koichi complained as he walked closer to his student, and then draping an arm around his neck. "It will be our little secret, and I promise not to tell if you don't!"

Not even giving time for the Luckster to complain as to just how utterly wrong that sentence sounded, the teacher was quick to bring the tip of the container right into Makoto's lips, catching the Ultimate by surprise.

Without enough time to react Makoto felt the liquid burning his throat as he was forced to gulp it down. Luckily for him, he was released after a couple of seconds, leaving him coughing his lungs out while an amused Koichi simply watched with a smile.

"See? Now that wasn't so bad." The blonde man said, already expecting some sort of complaint from the Luckster.

It would at least take the Ultimate's mind from whatever was upsetting him though, or at least that what he wanted to believe.

No one could say he didn't care about his students, he even shared some of his drink with him!

The response he got, though…

"Oh boy…"

Was for Makoto to suddenly fall face first right into the classroom's floor with a mighty thud, his body so unresponsive that it could be easily be mistaken for a mannequin.

Watching the downed teen while blinking owlishly, the teacher was then quick to poke him with his fingers just as he squatted beside the Luckster, a small humming sound then leaving his lips.

"Huh, I guess Jin wasn't kidding," He spoke as he rubbed his chin. "You really are a whole new type of lightweight, aren't you?"

A small snore was the only answer he got.

The more you know, he guessed.

First of all, proper thanks to both RWBYJNPR and Zephyrius29 for helping me with this chapter!

That was a long one, and here I was thinking that chapters wouldn't go past the 10k words mark.

This one took more time, and I apologize for that. I ended up getting side-tracked with some card games on Steam. Always loved those.

With this chapter, we hit Hope's Peak, and even though it is a free day (or maybe because of that) Makoto won't have time to rest. Not only have more Ultimates appeared, but even a bit of other characters was hinted here.

I'm glad I was able to keep the character's personality intact in the previous chapter, and I hope I'll be able to keep that one up for the future. Some of them can be a lot harder than others, especially with the whole point of the fic, but the best I can say is that I'll try my best.

Since a lot of the time will be spent inside of Hope's Peak Academy itself, this chapter also hints a few of the changes done to the institution itself. More details will be shown later of course, for right now we still have more Ultimates that want a piece of poor Makoto.

What characters will appear next? Maybe they will be your favorite, who knows? They will all appear in this first batch of chapters though, so worry not if your favorite character from any of the three main games takes their time to appear, I won't forget about him/her.

Truly, thank you all for reading this far and for the support you've shown for the story. Your reviews help a lot and with all the favs/follows this is getting I'm glad so many are enjoying this little story. See you all next time.

Next Chapter: Should infirmary rooms be this noisy?