Lies are a remarkable thing. That was the one truth that Kokichi Oma would accept.
Lies were his passion. His essence. His being. All he needed were lies.
But why? Why would a person surround themselves with nothing but lies?
Because lies are freedom. A freedom that no truth could offer. The truth is restricting. There's only one truth, and it stifles everything else in being that single truth. But lies are endless. They're boundless and cannot be restrained. Anything can come from a lie, and a lie can be anything.
Lies can hurt others, but they can also heal. Lies are meant to deceive people, but they can trick people for right and wrong reasons. Fiction is a lie, but the greatest creations tend to be fictional. Lies can be whatever you make of them.
So if the truth is cruel, single-minded, and narrow, then lies must be the opposite. Lies must be kind, boundless, and open to anything.
That's why Kokichi loved lies. He loved enshrouding himself in them and using them to create worlds and stories and scenarios in life that would not be possible without his precious lies. The world suddenly would become something new and exciting with his lies. Why accept the only truth when you can create a multitude of lies that can be anything? He could be anything with lies.
And so he became a dictator. An oppressive, cruel, twisted, playful, mischievous Supreme Leader of Evil, the leader of an endless group following his lead. He was a kid, after all, so he wanted to act his age. So while heroes were fun and all, Kokichi thought the villains in a story were more interesting. If he wanted an exciting life full of thrills and turns, he'd have to play the part of the villain, right?
So he did, and it was the most fun he had, even if he was only playing pretend. Even if he wasn't truly evil, it was fun to play the part.
It was all a lie, of course. That was the beauty of lies and fiction, but who really cared? It really only mattered to Kokichi how he felt on the matter, so since it was fun, he kept going. Gaining followers was never his intention, but if a few saw him and wanted to truly follow him as a loyal minion, he wasn't going to stop them. Especially not if they wanted to live life like he was. If they were willing to drench themselves in the open, free, creative world of lies, Kokichi would welcome them happily into his kingdom.
So, without warning, one became a large group, with Kokichi at the head. His ten loyal friends and followers were his only friends and family, not because he had none before them, but because they were the only people who accepted and wanted to be a part of the world Kokichi envisioned and saw.
He was their Supreme Leader of Evil, even if it was a lie.
Kokichi Oma loved those lies, but he also hated them. He hated when people abused his precious lies. Lies were meant to be free and open, able to create and be anything. How dare someone try to wrangle his lies to be like the narrow truth. How dare someone use lies to commit atrocities like murder. Why would they ruin it for everybody? But that was the thing about lies. They could be anything and do anything, whether good or evil, and Kokichi knew this.
He supposed that was the reason others despised how he and his gang of misfits lived. People saw them living in this world of lies and assumed they were using lies for those same nefarious purposes. To hurt others for some goal, when in reality they just wanted to have fun in this free world born of lies. Though...they were committing crimes, but only small ones revolving around elaborate pranks! That's not real crime!
So no matter what people told them, they weren't going to stop. How could they? Those lies were everything to them. It was their whole world. If they went back to the world of the truth, life wouldn't be nearly as much fun.
In the end, their lies got the attention of some bigwigs, and Kokichi ended up with an Ultimate Talent. The Ultimate Supreme Leader, a title he himself requested if he were to be a real Ultimate. If he were to be an Ultimate, then it should be just like him. A lie. Or at least, a partial lie. He was a leader now, just not the Ultimate Supreme Leader of an evil organization of 10,000 members.
But hey! He had the title, so who would doubt him when he told them that? So take that, 'truth'!
But all good things must come to an end, and it most certainly did when Kokichi suddenly found himself within the walls of the Ultimate Academy of Gifted Juveniles.
Kokichi didn't know how he had gotten there or why, but the moment that damn bear showed up and told them what was going to be happening there, the Supreme Leader knew that he was now stuck in a new, horrifying hell.
A game where people were forced to play? That wasn't a game. How could anything like that be fun?
And to force the players to kill each other? It'd be one thing if they had agreed to play, but they weren't. They were being forced, their arms being twisted into doing so with the introduction of motives.
So obviously, Kokichi was angry and terrified. Angry at the shits forcing him and others to endure this awful game, if it could even be called that, but terrified by the very real possibility that he could die there alone without any of his friends. He'd die there surrounded by strangers, people who didn't care about him, which they definitely didn't. They all made their thoughts about him and his lies quite clear.
Well…all but one.
Rin Wakuri. Now there was an oddball in this little clusterfuck of a group. How did he fit in? Everything about him screamed 'suspicious' with big, neon letters. He claimed he had amnesia, which Kokichi doubted. He claimed he wasn't an Ultimate, which just seemed unlikely considering the rest of them were. Why would a single normal person be kidnapped with a bunch of Ultimates? Then there was the fact that he was a few years older than the rest of them, which was just…odd. And the most suspicious thing was how Rin seemed to know what DICE was already, despite Kokichi only just now meeting him and no one outside of DICE themselves knowing their name.
But at the same time…he seemed to be the only person who was okay with Kokichi's lies. He didn't seem to care either way, which was…well, it wasn't new, per se. All the other members of DICE were like that, but Kokichi wasn't expecting anyone at the Ultimate Academy to think like that, or at least be more open-minded than the rest.
Rin was still suspicious…but now he was bumped up to 'interesting' as well. Rin…No. Rinny would be fun to mess with. Perhaps by poking and prodding him enough, he'd reveal more things Kokichi could use, and Kokichi was sure to make use of whatever he could get his hands on.
He refused to die a pointless death because of these people.
So he began to observe the others along with Rinny. Shuichi? The detective was going to be a powerful player in the game, but only if he managed to grow a spine before anything happens. As of now, he'd be more likely to tilt his hat down and look away from a suspect just because they gave him a dirty look. Still, he was interesting. Let's see…Shuichi will be…Shumai now!
Kaede? A strong leader, one Kokichi could actually respect despite having just met her. She managed to wrangle everyone together easily despite only being a pianist, and she brought a sense of unity within minutes of the announcement of the killing game. Kokichi almost started to look up to her like the rest, but that sense of admiration soon died as her fatal flaw soon reared its ugly head, and boy was it ugly. She had a strong personality. Too strong. Strong enough to strong-arm everyone into following her lead no matter how reckless or stupid it was. She almost dragged everyone past the level of exhaustion before Kokichi finally had enough of her crap. At this rate, she was either going to end up dead by being an obvious target, or she'd get someone killed with her recklessness. Still, she was interesting. Kaeyayday was going to be fun to befriend (i.e. pull pranks on).
Kaito was beyond frustrating. Stupid, stubborn, and brash, all mixed together with the charisma of a leader. If Kaeyayday wasn't going to be the one to drive the group into the ground, it'd be the self-proclaimed astronaut. Still, at least he had drive, which was more than Kokichi could say about others trapped with him. But as a self-proclaimed hero, Kokichi knew Kaito was to be his mortal enemy. He was the villain, after all! No matter what, Kokichi had to defeat the Space Idiot in battle soon, or else his heroics would infect everyone and make them stupid! It was his duty as the villain to knock Kaito down a few pegs when he got the chance. After all, what kind of hero wouldn't rise to the occasion to face their villain?
Rantaro? Suspicious, but too suspicious. An easy victim, but could prove useful with the hints he seemed to be dropping.
Maki? An obvious liar. Kokichi would bet his left kidney that she was anything but a caregiver of any kind. He'd figure out what she was hiding soon enough.
Gonta? Stupid, but naive. No way that was a lie, no matter how much Kokichi loathed the thought of someone being so…socially inept. But Gonta was strong and easy to manipulate. He'd make a great ally in this game. All Kokichi needed was a few choice words to lead him along the path he wanted.
Miu? A dumb bitch obsessed with sex who acted high and mighty but was actually a massive masochist. Despite that, she was easily the most useful since she was an inventor. If Kokichi could convince her to work with him, he might be able to do more than he ever thought possible.
Keebo? A disappointment. At least…at first. Don't misunderstand that. The robot was still a massive disappointment, but after some thought, Kokichi just found his involvement in the killing game bewildering. Far more so than Rinny or Avataro. Who puts a robot in a killing game with humans? It made no sense. The most likely answer? Keebo was a pawn, whether willingly or unwillingly. Either way, he was weird and Kokichi didn't like that! There was only one solution. Mess with the robot until the truth is revealed!
Kokichi continued observing the other students as the days went by, forming his own opinions and thoughts about them all, mentally putting them in either the 'interesting' category or 'annoying' category. Most of them went to the latter.
Still…he never thought that the one he deemed 'boring' would be the mastermind. Tsumugi's case was completely out of left field.
The death of Kirumi Tojo shocked Kokichi. He figured a murder was going to happen because of the time limit motive, but for the victim to be Kirumi? Why? And the reveals that happened right after finding the body made Kokichi's mind twist from how overwhelming it was. Hidden doors in libraries? Plots to capture the mastermind? Kokichi was ignorant of any of it.
And that pissed him off.
He had no part in discovering the mastermind's identity. That was all thanks to Rinny and Shuichi. In hindsight, it was obvious it was Tsumugi Shirogane. She was far too plain for an Ultimate. Almost purposely so. But that plain disposition disappeared when she started cosplaying to break Rin mentally. Shuichi put a stop to that, but that didn't stop Kokichi's mind from theorizing about what the cosplayer had told them.
And then the execution happened. Just…what the fuck even was that…? That was…inhumane. Brutal didn't do it justice, and the fact it all seemed to be purposely set up like it was some kind of sick form of entertainment only further disgusted Kokichi.
And so…it was only after the end of the first trial and witnessing what was going to keep happening if nothing changed that Kokichi finally decided what he had to do.
He had to do what he did best. Lie.
He'd lie and lie and lie, until the game was so entrenched in lies it couldn't continue anymore. And if everything worked out, he'd survive, and maybe some of the others would too. He couldn't guarantee that, considering he had no idea how long it'd take to set everything up, and it'd need a lot of luck, too. He'd have to be constantly on guard. If he died, it'd all be pointless.
That's what really mattered in the end. As long as he survived, it wouldn't matter what else happened. It didn't matter who else died. He wanted to live, so he would.
So, as he finally managed to drag his new whiteboard into his room, Kokichi smirked as he put up pictures of Kirumi and Tsumugi. Yes. This would do nicely.
Thus began the beginnings of Kokichi's plans. The first of which was the Insect Meet and Greet. Kokichi thought it was so brilliant when he came up with it, and everything seemed to be going perfectly. Gonta was more than happy to help if it meant showing everyone the 'wonders of bug friends'. And with Ryoma having to help out too if he wanted the motive video Kokichi just so happened to get, Kokichi found himself with another helping hand in bringing people to the meet and greet.
And then Rin willingly offers to help? It was better than anything Kokichi could have hoped for. It was perfect. Too perfect. In fact, it was shocking how easily Rin agreed to help with the plan. Kokichi was grateful, but he had to wonder if Rin was sane when he so easily agreed to help him lure the others into watching videos meant to get them to kill. That wasn't the point of the meet and greet, but that's the lie he told Rinny.
Still, he wanted to help. He even saw through the lies, and instead of getting angry, he just nodded along and went with Kokichi. It was strange. Very strange. It was almost as if he really was a new member of DICE like Kokichi was saying whenever he teased the amnesiac. Kokichi was even starting to like the idea.
But then everything blew up in their face and they were punished by Gonta and the bugs. And right after, Miu died. Kokichi…was beyond shock. He had just recently gained the investor's aid in making the tools he would need to end the killing game, and Kokichi really enjoyed their banter. Never before had he enjoyed insulting a person so much. Miu made it so easy to do so. Kokichi wouldn't say they were friends (as if he'd be friends with that whore), but Kokichi enjoyed teasing and messing with her.
But she was gone now…and Kokichi had to somehow reset his conflicted emotions again before someone noticed. His mask slipped a bit, but it didn't seem like anyone noticed. At least no one was willing to point it out.
It pissed the small dictator off. Why did Miu's death affect him so much? He didn't care at all. He didn't really know her. They only knew each other for a few days. She was just a means to an end like Kokichi said before. She was a tool at best. So why did it hurt so much?
This was going to be harder than he thought, wasn't it?
The trial was a mess at the end. Korekiyo's motive was…beyond understanding. And the reveal of Maki's talent was…well, it was a bit reckless of Kokichi considering she almost choked him out for doing so. But it was worth it. There was no way he was going to let a literal assassin walk around freely. Once everyone knew what she was, there was no way they'd–and they're deciding to trust her thanks to Kaito and Rinny.
Sigh… Back to the drawing board.
Kokichi sat there in his room as he fiddled with his whiteboard, surrounded by the evidence he had stolen from the scenes. He stuck Miu and Kiyo's photos onto the board right under Kirumi and Tsumugi's. In between the first pair's pictures was a drawing of a knife and Monokuma's emblem, and now he was drawing a sickle and raygun in between the reason pair of deceased players.
Kokichi then looked over to the other side of his board, where the 'suspects' were. Rantaro, Kaede, Angie, Tenko, Himiko, Gonta, Ryoma, Kaito, Keebo, and Maki. All of them were suspicious and could be the potential 'real' mastermind, although Keebo was probably just a pawn of some kind of camera to monitor them, so he was dubbed 'weird'.
And right beside the suspects were the Monokubs. Kokichi snarled as he looked at the pictures of the obnoxious bears. 'Annoying' was an understatement. Hopefully, they'd kill each other off so the Exisals weren't an issue anymore. That'd make Kokichi's life far easier when he initiates his plan. It'd also save him the constant headaches they caused.
Then there were the two who weren't immediately suspicious. Shuichi and Rin, both in their own category.
Kokichi stared at Shuichi's picture for a good long while before finally sighing and marking the photo with the phrase 'trustworthy?' Shuichi was proving himself to be a necessary part of overcoming the trials with his detective talent finally showing more and more, but Kokichi couldn't get a read on the guy.
One moment he's all about logic and reasoning before switching to forming his argument purely on belief and emotions. Kokichi couldn't use that. He needed an ally who could use his head, not his heart. Shuichi was getting too involved with the likes of Kaito, and the astronaut was even taking in Kaede and Maki. The astronaut was proving to be far more dangerous with that ideal mentality.
And then there are the moments when Kokichi tries to figure Shuichi out by playing games with him. He tried to get Shuichi to slip and reveal something or to just see how the detective would act, but no matter what Kokichi did, he couldn't predict how Shuichi would act. That made the detective even more interesting, but also even more of a wild card. Perhaps Kokichi could trust him, but perhaps he was deluding himself.
It would make for a good twist if the detective was behind this game, after all.
However, that left the last person on Kokichi's board. Rin Wakuri. Kokichi didn't even hesitate when he marked the photo of the enigmatic college student with the word 'trustworthy' without a question mark like Shuichi. That was just a fact at this point. Rin could not be the mastermind. If he was, why would he reveal Tsumugi? Why would he be so helpful in the trials? Why would he help Kokichi with the Insect Meet and Greet? Why was he so adamant about stopping the killing game and then try doing something to stop it?
Rin wasn't just hot air like Kaito. He was proactive. It wasn't just an act. And he could see through some of Kokichi's lies, and yet still chose to trust him. Rin still chose to see Kokichi as a friend despite the lies. Out of everyone, Rin was the one he could trust the most.
But…should he? Even if he was trustworthy, was it better to keep him at arm's length? Rin did say he would be willing to help again, but would he help if he knew what Kokichi's end game was? Would Rin help if he realized Kokichi wasn't the good person he seemed to want to believe him to be?
And even more than that, did Kokichi really want to start caring about Rin like a true friend? If he decided to really trust Rin, that would end up happening. But if Kokichi did start really caring for Rinny like a friend, or like a member of DICE, that would just lead to more pain if Rinny died or, even worse, if Rinny became disgusted by Kokichi's true self. That's not to mention the possibility that Rin's just faking it all to get Kokichi's trust right before stabbing him in the back.
If any of that happened, it'd be a repeat of Miu's death. It'd give Kokichi a weakness.
He could not accept that. That couldn't be allowed to happen. If Kokichi was going to end the killing game…if he was going to go up against Monokuma and the mastermind, he could not allow any signs of weakness. It would take only a single mistake for everything to fall apart.
But still…the thought of having someone outside of DICE who was trustworthy was nice.
So, after adding 'only involve if necessary', Kokichi tossed his marker off to the side as he flopped back down onto his bed. He stared up at the ceiling as he raised an arm above his head.
"...This is fine. I'm a villain, after all. The Supreme Leader of Evil. So something like this is easy. It's meant to be like this." He muttered as he let his hand fall back down to his side.
It was only then he noticed something slid from under his door. Getting up with a raised eyebrow, Kokichi got off his bed and moved over to the note before picking it up.
"Some of your inventions Miu was making were completed before she died. They're in a box hidden in the back of her research lab."
Kokichi tilted his head at the message. It was good news, but who would know about the inventions he asked Miu to make?
"...Rinny," Kokichi concluded while shaking his head.
It had to be him. After all, Kokichi knew he had also asked Miu for some kind of device since she was working on it the last time he saw Miu alive and working. He was also the only person who would tell him about it. Kokichi doubted anyone else would be so courteous.
Of course, this note might be a lie and it could be a trap to kill him.
Pfft! As if something like this would end in his death. He was far too smart to get caught up in a poorly-made trap like this. He'd be cautious when retrieving his tools if they really were completed.
Still, if this wasn't a trap and Rin was willing to go out of his way to help Kokichi without any provocation, that was just further proof of his trustworthiness.
"...I'm going to have to fix that, aren't I?" Kokichi frowned.
With a sigh, Kokichi plopped back down into his bed as he began to plan a way to get Rin to stop being so friendly. It'd take a few lies and maybe a threat. That's all it would take, he thought.
He was quite wrong in that regard, and it confused the Supreme Leader to no end.
The following day was strange. Everyone had agreed to let Maki be, which only further frustrated Kokichi. And then the kubs took over, which only confused Kokichi. Then he made his move to get Rin to understand what kind of person he truly was. Kokichi couldn't help but smirk when he saw the shock and hurt on the amnesiac's face when he pulled out the knife and threatened him. Hopefully, Rinny would get a clue. Then there was the magic show, which was a welcome break from everything. It was something Kokichi could say he actually enjoyed, yet he knew it was only a temporary thing. Things were only going to go downhill from there.
And considering what Angie did the next day, he could proudly say he was right. Kokichi could understand the idea of the Student Council, and he could even respect Angie for trying to proactively fight against the killing game as well. But it was flawed from the start. If the way you try to beat the killing game is to make your situation more comfortable, then you're just giving Monokuma ammunition to use as new motives. Angie was a fool for not realizing this, and she was even stupider for thinking he'd help with such a foolish plan.
But what really surprised him was Rin agreeing to it. Not only had his actions made Angie think he was a good person at heart (ick, ew, no.), but now he was leading a group of students that would listen to his every command. It was admittedly concerning, seeing a cult form within the academy, although it was hard to call it that since it didn't seem every member believed Angie's religious crap.
He was starting to think he'd have to figure out a solution to the cult problem himself, but then it managed to solve itself nicely. All because a certain maid came back to life.
How the hell did that work!? Kirumi Tojo was dead. Kokichi saw her body himself. She was deader than dead, and that was a real corpse. And even if he couldn't tell, Maki and Shuichi would definitely have noticed. So how did Kirumi come back as if nothing had happened?
Kokichi stood in his room chewing his thumb nervously as he wrote down numerous guesses under a second photo of Kirumi he had placed over to its own corner he had labeled 'WTF'. There were multiple ways to explain this mystery.
The existence of a twin was the most likely answer if the twin was either working for the mastermind or had their memory altered. He also had other ideas that were pulled from every sci-fi and fictional story he could remember. Was this Kirumi a robot? Is someone wearing a really convincing disguise? Were they all in a virtual world, making this Kirumi some kind of ai?
These ideas all fell apart at the lack of proof, though. Kirumi never mentioned having a twin before she died, and even then they wouldn't look exactly the same. There'd be some kind of difference in their physical difference like height. If she were a robot, there'd be some evidence for that, yet there was none. She was a flesh and blood person. That was a fact. She was nothing like Keebo. No disguise could perfectly replicate someone's appearance, too. No matter what anyone did, there'd be some discrepancies between the two people, whether it be the shape of the face, the body type, or some other factor that couldn't be altered.
No matter what Kokichi thought up, nothing seemed to stick.
Could it be…Kirumi really was revived? Was this really some kind of magic?
Kokichi shook his head while clicking his tongue. How stupid of him to think that. No, there had to be something sketchy about this, he just hadn't figured it out yet. But he would. Nothing could hide from him forever. So, after systematically crossing out all the theories he had made to explain Kirumi's situation, he eventually erased the 'WTF' and replaced it with 'Do not trust'.
"Well, things can't get weirder, right?" Kokichi chuckled to himself as he went to bed.
The next day, he was kicking himself for thinking that as he stared at the monochrome bangle now stuck to his arm.
Out of all the Forbidden Actions he could have gotten, Kokichi had to get the one preventing him from lying. That was the biggest kick in the face. Now he had to dodge everyone to avoid getting asked a question that would reveal his plans. At least the student council wasn't a huge problem anymore, but now he had an even worse problem that he had no idea how to solve.
And then the virtual world happened. Kokichi had so many suspicions about the program, but he didn't really have a choice. He needed more information if he wanted his grand master plan to work. Too bad that led to two more deaths. And the culprit this time around was so shocking Kokichi had a hard time keeping his mask on.
He let out an exhausted, lifeless breath as he moved the three deceased student's pictures over to his spot for the third case. Ryoma and Angie were now right beside Himiko with drawings of a shovel, a rock, and a VR headset in between the three.
Kokichi then turned to look at the doodle of himself that he had drawn near the bottom of the whiteboard, the chibi version of himself smiling cheerfully as it flashed himself a peace sign.
Yeah…He could do this. It was almost time. The message in the courtyard was almost finished, and there was only one Monokub left to deal with. Things were going smoothly. He just needed a bit more information to play around with in order to fully convince the others. Once he got that and Monodam was gone, he'd be able to finally start the beginning of the end.
Yes…things were going all according to plan.
"It'll all be over soon," Kokichi smirked.
…
…
…He was wrong. He was so, so wrong. Nothing he could have come up with could have prepared him for what he saw.
As he lay on the ground of his room, surrounded by evidence and trash he had picked up over the days, he found himself staring at the Tsumugi wax figure he had dragged into his room that was hanging from the ceiling by some rope. There was another mystery he couldn't figure out, and he cursed the figure every time he tried to tackle it.
Just what did you want from this? Why would you agree to work with whoever was running this game, or why did you set it all up if you were the one solely responsible? Why do any of it…if the world was already gone?
Kokichi's mind burned with the memories of the flames he saw. The destruction he witnessed as soon as Rin opened that vault door. All he could think about was how he could go back to the lies he believed before then. This truth was too cruel for him. He wished he could delve back into the lies. At least then, DICE would still be around and fine.
He turned his head back to the Kubs Pad he still had, the one he traded with Ryoma. The one he had been rewatching for hours now. It was his own video that he kept after he, Ryoma, Rin, and Rantaro watched the videos together. His precious gang…He was fine when it showed them in danger. He could keep going even then because once he ended the killing game and got out, he'd be able to find them. Everything would go back to normal then. But now, he knew that would never happen. They were gone, just like the lies he adored so much.
He loved lies, but he hated them, too. They were so fragile that anything could destroy them. And when presented with the truth, lies could only fade. Now there were no lies left to hide behind. There was just the truth, and it was terrible.
…Just what was the point in doing any of this? What was the point of his lies and plans? None of it mattered? Everything was gone or destroyed. What could he do now? Why would he do anything?
…But was that really true?
Once the initial shock had worn off, Kokichi couldn't help but wonder about the small contradictions the reveal of the outside world brought to his mind. If everything was gone, then what was the point of the killing game itself? Who was running it? And why did Tsumugi say it was for 'everyone' before she died?
'Everyone'. That implied other people were still alive, but where? And how?
And then there was Monokuma. This calls all of the bear's actions to question. Why was Monokuma so insistent on making the game interesting? What was the point of the rules? Why was everything about the killing game formatted like some kind of show? That had to be what was happening. There'd be no need to be such a stickler about rules or regulations otherwise if the point was just to kill them all.
And more than that, why would Monokuma manipulate Angie into starting up the killing game? Why would he tempt her by making a deal with her? With the motive, someone would have attempted a murder if he just waited a bit, so why rush things like that?
"...A deal, huh?" Kokichi muttered to himself before suddenly sitting, life returning to his violet eyes once an idea began to form in his twisted mind. "I wonder…"
He felt a smirk begin to form as he came up with his new scheme, and it only got bigger when Monokuma agreed to it. They had made a deal. Kokichi would get a new flashback light filled with the memory of the outside world in exchange for showing it to someone to 'liven up the game'.
This proved everything to Kokichi. The outside world he saw must have been a lie in some way, because the only reason Monokuma would have to make the killing game more interesting would be if it was been shown to someone. There was more to this killing game, and Kokichi was getting closer to the answer.
But now he was stuck in a predicament. What to do about the flashback light? He trusted the thing about as far as he could throw Gonta. It was way too sketchy and sci-fi to really be some memory-restoring MacGuffin. But that didn't matter. Because of the deal he had just made, he had to show it to someone now that he made that deal with the bear, and if he didn't, Kokichi was sure he'd face some punishment. He had gotten the information he wanted, but now he was stuck in a tricky position.
He had no choice. He had to initiate a murder, even if he didn't do it himself.
Thoughts of how DICE would react ran through his mind as Kokichi began thinking up a plan. He wondered how they would react if they knew what he was willing to do in order to guarantee his own survival. Would they hate him for going against their moral code? He might not be planning on killing someone himself, but it wouldn't change the fact that two people would die thanks to his actions.
But it was necessary for his own survival. Two more deaths wouldn't matter in the end. Six people were already dead. Seven if you count Kirumi. What was adding two more? It was all for the greater good. It was all so Kokichi could end the game. This sort of scheme was just what he needed to push everyone to the edge and get them to fall for his tricks.
It was necessary, right?
Of course, that was just a lie. It disgusted Kokichi to no end. He was crossing a line he never thought he would. And to make matters worse was just who he was dragging down with him.
Gonta agreed immediately after Kokichi flashed him with the flashback light. The way he cried and screamed in despair tore at Kokichi's mind and soul, and Kokichi's mask cracked slightly when Gonta looked at him with a dead, hopeless expression after he had run out of tears.
It was necessary, Kokichi kept telling himself. This was for the best.
And so, their murder scheme as the Killing Game Busters began. They would win this killing game to end this killing game, or so Kokichi told Gonta. Of course, the true plan was never to have Gonta win the class trial. Kokichi was always going to betray him. Although, there was a small part of him that really, really didn't want to. That small part kept tempting Kokichi to just let it happen and let Gonta win. But Kokichi managed to stomp those thoughts down as they set everything up.
At least the would-be victim didn't leave him with such conflicting feelings. Kaito would be the perfect victim. His death along with Gonta's would put Kokichi in the perfect place for his Mastermind plan. All that had to be done now was have Gonta kill the astronaut and then backstab him in the trial.
It was all necessary. All for the greater good. All for his survival.
Those thoughts kept ringing in Kokichi's ears as he screamed in despair and agony as he watched Gonta be murdered right in front of his eyes, the only thing separating them being a thick layer of glass from the rover Gonta had put him in. Kokichi desperately wanted to get out and save the large, naive fool who had risked everything just to save a person like him, but if Kokichi got out, he would die by Maki's hand. Everything would have been for nothing, both Kaito's death and Gonta's.
He saw the way Maki stared at the rover, too. She wanted to kill him more than anything, but was unable to thanks to the rover's lock.
It made Kokichi livid. This was all her fault. She ruined everything! Nothing went as it should have! Kaito had an illness, Maki appeared and attacked them as Kaito lay there choking on his own blood. And then there was Gonta…
Why did he save Kokichi? Why do that even when he knew Kokichi was just using him?
And so, when Maki finally left and Kokichi was able to get out of the rover, he made a decision. As he clutched his injured arm and approached Gonta's fallen body, tears freely falling from his stone-like face, Kokichi knew what he was going to do.
This was no longer about what was necessary or logical or whatever.
He was going to get back at the murderous bitch for what she did. He was going to make her pay.
"Don't worry, Gonta," Kokichi muttered as he dipped a finger into the fallen student's blood and began writing Maki's name beside the body. "I won't let your death be in vain. After this, I'll end it all."
Yeah. That'll be how he atones.
He would RUIN this killing game. For himself, and for those that had died.
He promised.
And so, Maki's crime was revealed, and she was executed. Good riddance. Kokichi only felt slight sorrow for the death of the murderer. But aside from that, the death was just a stepping stone. It was everything he needed to finally get things started.
And so, Kokichi went all out with his villainous persona. He made the biggest, cruelest, more twisted smile he could make as he let out the evilest things he could think of.
That's right. Hate him. Loathe him! Think of him as the devil! The more you do, the more the plan will work! He was the Supreme Leader of Evil! So suffer and squirm until you finally–!
WHAM!
Kokichi had to take a few steps back as his mask faded and his real shock appeared on his face. As he raised a hand to the cheek that was hit, he found himself staring at the one who hit him with disbelieving eyes.
Malice. That's all Kokichi saw. Pure, unadulterated malice, anger, and hatred.
Oh…So this was what Rinny looked when he finally snapped. Kokichi should have probably expected something like this.
What he couldn't have expected was Rin pinning him down and attempting to choke him to death. Kokichi quickly realized what was happening and began to panic as Rin's hands began to grip tightly around his small throat. But no matter what he did, he couldn't fight against someone larger and stronger than him when they were on top of him like this. He couldn't do anything, and for the first time, Kokichi was absolutely horrified.
Just as his vision began to become spotty, Keebo and Rantaro finally managed to pull Rin off his now trembling body. Kokichi began coughing painfully as air was finally allowed to enter his lungs again. When his vision cleared and his breathing had gotten a bit better, he turned to Rin, a storm of conflicting emotions now spiraling inside the dictator.
"W-What? You think…that…scares me?" Kokichi asked, nervousness still apparent despite his attempts to hide it and his coughs. "Look at you, Rin. You…look totally pathetic now. What happened…to that cool…calm demeanor you…always had?"
And then, Rin's snarl got worse as he said something Kokichi wouldn't forget any time soon.
"Where do you get off on calling me pathetic? Take a close look at yourself and those around you, Oma!" Rin screamed. "I just tried to kill you, yet no one is stepping up to help you! No one cares if you're hurt or not! They only care if I become the blackened! No one is willing to stand by your side now after this! You're alone, Oma. And you always will be!"
Kokichi couldn't help but flinch at the harsh words spat out at him, but soon enough, he managed to get a hold of his mask again and laugh it off. He tried to make a counterstatement, but found that words seemed to escape him. For the first time, he couldn't come up with anything in response, not even lies.
So he left, the blank look of his mask still on his face as he did.
This was fine. It was bound to happen, and it was what Kokichi wanted anyway. So what did it matter if Rin hated him? It just further helped with his plan.
"You're alone, Oma. And you always will be!"
Who cares whether people liked him or not? He didn't need anyone. He was Kokichi Oma, the Ultimate Supreme Leader. All he needed was an absolute victory in what he set out to do. It didn't matter what happened before that.
"You're alone, Oma. And you always will be!"
It didn't matter how many people died for him to get this far. It didn't matter who died for his plans to work. It didn't matter if Gonta gave his life for Kokichi because all that mattered was that Kokichi survived in the end. It didn't matter if he had irreparably broken Rin's trust and his view of him, because Rin didn't matter. They were all just distractions. Pawns in his game. He didn't need any of them, and he didn't care if they lived or died, or if they liked or hated him.
It didn't matter. It didn't matter at all.
"YOU'RE ALONE, OMA! AND YOU ALWAYS WILL BE!"
Kokichi finally stopped as he noticed something strange. As he slowly raised a hand, he placed his fingers on his cheek. Wet. He blinked a few times and he pulled his hand back to look at his now wet fingers.
He was crying.
"Idiot…" He scolded himself as he wiped his damp eyes.
It didn't hurt, he told himself repeatedly. It was what he wanted. It was what he needed. So why was he crying like a weakling? Was he seriously crying over losing people like Kaito, Gonta, and Maki? Was he really crying because of what happened with Rin?
Pathetic. Get your act together.
And so, he fixed the cracked mask he was wearing as he forced a cruel, wide smile back onto his face.
"It's almost time," He smirked as he continued walking to the courtyard message he needed to finish. "Yeah, it's almost time. This should be enough… I'll end it."
"Now is the time… I'll end this killing game."
And thus began the final act of his plan. At the end of the next day, he grabbed the tools Miu had made for him and headed off to kick things off.
"Hey~! Monokuma~!" Kokichi called as he let the Electrohammer he held rest upon his shoulder. His lips were curved up in a smile. A genuine one, this time.
It didn't take long for the bear to appear.
"You rang, Kokichi?" Monokuma asked as he hopped in from outta nowhere. Kokichi would never understand how that was possible. "Oh? What's that you got there? Is that one of those inventions he had Miu make before she died?"
"Yep, yep! That's right!" Kokichi nodded happily. "I just wanted to let you know I have another amazing plan that'll make the killing game much more exciting! And I'll be needing this baby to do it!"
"Oh? Really now?" Monokuma asked as he tilted his head. "And I'm guessing you want to make another deal like before?"
"That's right."
"Hmm… Okay. I'll hear you out. What's your plan this time?" Monokuma asked, curious as to the little gremlin's plans.
"Oh, it's nothing too complicated," Kokichi replied before quickly smacking Monokuma across the face with the Electrohammer.
The bear soared a good few feet after the device struck it, and he landed back on the ground without a peep. Kokichi skipped over to the monochrome bear and looked him over. Considering Monokuma wasn't moving anymore and his lightning eye wasn't shining anymore, Kokichi took that to mean that the Electrohammer succeeded in disabling Monokuma. At least temporarily.
"I just wanted you to take a nap for a bit so I can set everything up. You know how it is." Kokichi cackled as he grabbed the bear and began taking him to what would become the bear's prison. "All's fair in love and war, right?"
Now that he had disabled Monokuma, Kokichi had to work fast. If Monokuma woke up before he had finished setting everything up, Kokichi was as good as dead. If that Monokuma-making device managed to activate and make a new Monokuma, he was dead. Even with the Monokubs gone, leaving no one to pilot the Exisals, Monokuma himself was still highly dangerous. Enough to kill Kokichi himself if needed.
So, picking up the pace, Kokichi ran throughout the night to finish his preparations, praying that no one was taking a midnight stroll as he did. After dumping Monokuma in the large wide-open part of the cyber courtyard, Kokichi hurriedly ran to the Exisal hangar. Once inside, he slapped on the wireless receivers Miu made him on each of the Exisals before yanking the remote control for them out of his pocket.
With a press of a button, all five of the Exisals came to life, obeying all of Kokichi's commands much to his delight. He now held all the power within the academy, and he was going to make use of all of it.
And so, he had the Exisals surround Monokuma and watch him just in case the bear woke up as Kokichi took off to finish with the plan. He returned to his dorm room and smiled as he looked back at the whiteboard. He smiled as he took out his marker and wrote one final message onto it.
'Checkmate'.
Once it turned to morning, Kokichi was finally nearing the end of the plan, and everything was going smoothly. He had successfully lured the others to the underground passage's exit and he had managed to get the drop over Rinny to keep him from causing trouble. Knowing the new personality the enigmatic man now had, that was a very real possibility that Kokichi just couldn't take. After making sure Monokuma was once again disabled and incapable of acting during the finale of the plan, Kokichi happily headed to the 'exit' where the others were surely waiting for him.
Once he got there, he put on a performance that would make actors weep in jealousy. He could have totally won an Oscar for the grand finale he showed everyone. The cruel villainous performance, the way they all cowered and stared at him in absolute horror, the reveal of the Exisals, and the reveal of Rin's unconscious body–All of it led to a spectacular show.
A show worthy of ending this worthless killing game.
And so, the game truly ended. Kokichi knew that to be a fact. It only took one look at the faces of the remaining students to know that no one was planning on doing anything. They looked like they didn't have the will to do anything now, let alone go along with Monokuma's killing game.
Well, now it was Kokichi's killing game, and he was going to treat it with all the respect it desired: none.
With the killing game functionally dismantled, that left Kokichi with a final question.
What did he do now? He had ended the killing game, but now what?
He sat in on the steps leading to the hydraulic press's controls as he pondered the questions a couple of days after it all happened. This plan wasn't foolproof. He knew that. Now that he had taken over the game, he was forcing the Mastermind, the real Mastermind, to take action against him. They had to, or else their killing game would remain stagnant.
Of course, even with his actions, he doubted the stagnation would last forever. Depression, hopelessness, and despair would only last so long. Hope had a pesky way of coming around to revive the fallen. And there were still some dangerous players left remaining, specifically Rantaro, who was apparently an Ultimate Survivor (that alone brought way too many questions to Kokichi's mind), Keebo, who was still probably a pawn for the real Mastermind, and, the most dangerous player, Kirumi.
He saw how she glared at him when he revealed everything and when he showed off Rin's limp body. If she could have wrung out his neck, she would have without hesitation. That had to be dealt with sooner rather than later.
But before that, Kokichi knew what he had to do. He had to find a way to permanently take out the real Mastermind or some way to permanently end the game. The best way to do that was the find a real way out of the academy grounds. But where could he start with his search?
"Hmm…Maybe it's time to visit the library again. Maybe the Exisals could bust open that hidden door or something." Kokichi muttered to himself as he got up from his seat. "Before that, I better check up on Mister broody-moody."
Kokichi smirked as he cheerfully headed over to the hangar's bathroom and knocked loudly on the door.
"Yoo-hoo! Rinny! You still alive in there?" Kokichi called out cheerfully. "If you want, I could go get you some din-din if you're hungry."
Kokichi waited for a response of some kind, whether it be dull and uncaring or angry and vindictive. However, there was no response whatsoever. All he got was silence.
"Rinny? Are you sleeping in there?" Kokichi asked again as he knocked again. Again, he got nothing. Now Kokichi was getting slightly nervous. "Okay, I'm coming in. Make sure you're decent!"
Kokichi slowly opened the door and began looking around. Now his worries were proven true, considering he didn't see anyone in the bathroom.
"What in the–?"
"AAH!"
"Uh–?"
That was until Rin leaped out from behind the restroom door armed with a knife that he thrust toward the shocked Kokichi. The blade hit its mark, stabbing into Kokichi's arm, causing the dictator to let out a loud cry of pain, but Rin didn't give the gremlin time to recover. Rin grabbed the knife and tore it out of Kokichi's arm before tossing it to the side and tackling Kokichi out of the bathroom.
It only took a second for Kokichi to recover mentally and realize what was going on and what was about to happen, and he refused to let his plan fall apart like this. So, Kokichi did the first thing he could think of in response to getting attacked.
He slugged Rin right across the face.
Rin finally let go of Kokichi as he staggered back from the blow, but he shook his head before glaring back at the supreme leader.
"Damn…that was a good right hook," Rin muttered as he rubbed his now-red cheek. "I thought you couldn't fight."
"I'm full of surprises, Rinny. You should know that already." Kokichi smirked as he moved his uninjured hand to the pocket he was keeping the Exisals' remote.
"Oh no you don't!" Rin yelled as he rushed Kokichi and threw another punch.
Kokichi quickly dodged out of the way of the punch, but he didn't see Rin prepare a kick that landed right on Kokichi's stab wound, causing the evil grape to hold back a scream. The pain left him open for Rin to land another punch to his face. Kokichi stumbled, but managed to avoid another tackle attempt by Rin by kicking him right in the gut. Unfortunately, Rin grabbed the leg that kicked him, causing him to smirk.
Kokichi gasped as Rin pulled Kokichi toward himself into a wound-up punch, knocking Kokichi to the ground. Rin was about to pin him to the ground, but Kokichi managed to lift his legs and hit both of Rin's knees, causing Rin's legs to buckle a little. That let Kokichi get back up and lunge at the larger man, nearly knocking him over. However, Rin managed to catch him and stay on his feet.
The two would have kept going as they struggled within each other's grasp, clawing at the other's face, before the hangar's shudder began to open, stopping both young men in their tracks. And then, the one who had opened the shudder walked in.
"What the–!?" Rin muttered as Kokichi gasped at the sight of the unwelcomed green Exisal.
And then, the Exisal's hatch opened, revealing a very confused Kirumi.
"Kirumi!?" Both guys shouted upon seeing the maid.
While the maid stared at the two, trying to figure out what was going on, Kokichi decided now wasn't the time to stand there agape doing nothing. So, he began to pull out the Exisal remote as he ran away from the potentially dangerous maid, but before he had a chance to press a single button, he felt a new stabbing pain in his back. He screamed as he toppled down to the ground.
As he held back moans of pain, he finally turned around and looked up to see Kirumi aiming a blade at him. She was staring back down at him with a glare, though it wasn't one filled only with anger and hatred. There was a shred of concern, though it was small.
"Kokichi…" Kirumi began before she stopped, took a breath, and then hardened her face into a deep glare. "You are going to answer my questions. If you don't, you will die here. Understood?"
"Wh-Wha–?"
"Tell me why you did all of this?" Kirumi cut him off in a stern voice. "Are you the only Remnant of Despair here? Are you being forced into doing all of this? What else are you hiding from us?"
"Tojo, what are you doing?" Rin shouted as he began getting closer to the maid. "Just what–?"
"Stay back, Rin. Don't get too close." Kirumi warned as she kept her eyes on the downed Kokichi. "You don't know what he might be capable of doing. Now, tell me everything, Kokichi, or die right here, right now."
Kokichi's mind began to spin as confusion and terror began to clutch his being. There was no mask to put on at that point. Kokichi was too shaken up to even begin forming any lies, so…he did his best to tell her the truth.
"Wh-What are you…talking about…?" Kokichi asked weakly. "R-Remnants of Despair…? What's…that…?"
"Stop lying. You told us yourself that you were the leader of a cult, so do not try to pretend you have forgotten that cult's name." Kirumi sternly spoke as she kept her weapon trained on the fallen dictator. "Just tell me the truth, and this will all be over."
"I-I…don't understand…anything…you're saying…" Kokichi continued as he took panicked breath after panicked breath.
"...Are you truly going to keep saying that?" Kirumi asked, her lips twitching in agitation as she spoke. "Then…you truly are the mastermind? You truly did this simply to torture us? To get some sick sense of entertainment out of us? Did nothing here matter to you at all?"
"I-I…I-I-I…" Kokichi trailed off as he averted his eyes. His body kept trembling as he gulped loudly, but he managed to return his frightened and confused gaze at Kirumi as he spoke up. "D-Does that matter? What I w-want to know is…why a-are you…starting up the k-killing game…when it should've ended. Y-You already…know…it's a-all…meaningless…and th-that…I'm the mastermind. S-So why…? W-Were…you always like this?"
"Be quiet." Kirumi snapped, her eyes hardening when she heard that last bit. Her gaze caused the small teen to flinch hard as he seemed to shrink back into himself in slight terror. "...If that's all you have to say, then so be it. I have to believe you when you say you're the real mastermind. And so…all that leaves now is to end this. You leave me no choice. I wish it did not have to be like this, but you leave me no other choice."
And so, the maid aimed the blade at Kokichi and readied the throw, his eyes widening as he knew she wasn't bluffing. He was going to die, and everything he did would be for nothing. The killing game would start back up, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
Kokichi was more scared than he had been his entire life.
"Goodbye, Kokichi Oma. May you find peace wherever you end up after this life." Kirumi muttered before throwing the blade. Kokichi closed his eyes, bracing himself for the cold grasp of death.
But then–
"STOP!" Rin suddenly shouted as he dove in front of Kokichi, spreading his arm out as the knife flew right at him. And then…it hit. "Grk!"
Rin hit the ground, gritting his teeth as he held the arm the knife had stabbed. Kokichi stared at Rin in utter shock, the question of why resounding in his head as Rin growled in pain. That's when he caught sight of Kirumi, who now looked like she was on the verge of a panic attack.
"No…" She muttered before panic fully seized her heart. "No no no no no no no NO!"
She dashed toward Rin, not giving Kokichi any attention as she ran, Kokichi took that opportunity to quietly move away from the two, his breathing ragged and his heart pounding in his ears. And then, he caught sight of the bottle Kirumi had pulled out of her pocket. He paled when he saw it, and his entire body froze up when his eyes landed on the bottle's label.
It was the antidote for poison. That meant Rin had been poisoned by Kirumi's blade. That meant Kokichi had been poisoned, too. And since there was only one antidote per poison in Shuichi's lab, now that Kirumi was handing it to Rin, there was no longer any hope for Kokichi to survive this encounter. He wanted to let out a shout, but his voice died when Rin took the bottle and pressed it to his lips.
It was over. It was all over. Kokichi had lost, and he was going to die because of it.
"...Fine then," Kokichi growled quietly as he looked at the remote control that was still in his hand and tightened his grip on it. "If that's how it is, I'll be petty about it. I won't go down without a fight!"
His anger took over and he slammed down on one of the buttons, activating the red Exisal that was still in the hangar and sending it over to where Kirumi was. Once it had smacked her aside, rendering her unconscious, Kokichi was ready to have the Exisal crush her under its foot. How dare this bitch ruin his plans! How dare she do all of this! And for what!? What was the point in any of it!?
Well, it didn't matter anymore. He was going to die, but he'd take her out with him. It was petty and evil, but he didn't care. He was just angry.
But right before he had the Exisal do just that, he heard a strange noise.
Laughter. And it wasn't his own.
"Hehehe…" Rin began to chuckle as he held his face, a shockingly wide grin appearing on his face before he tilted his head back and started laughing like a maniac. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"What the–" Kokichi began to say, but Rin stopped him.
"Be quiet, Oma," Rin told him as he shoved his hand into one of his jacket pockets and pulled out his own device. He turned the nod before dramatically raising a finger above the device's button. "Now then. Time to win."
"Wha–?"
Rin then pressed the button, causing a loud hum to come from it. Kokichi stared in confusion before he realized what Rin was holding. Kokichi quickly pressed the buttons on his own remote, but nothing happened. None of the Exisals moved at all.
"Damn it! So that's the Electro Radar!" Kokichi screamed as he tossed the Exisal remote away in anger before plopping down to the ground. "Fine! You win! Is that what you want? I'm gonna die because of that stupid maid, so now it's all over! You beat the big bad Mastermind! Are you happy?"
"Oh, don't be like that. It's not very sporting of you." Rin smiled as he got up and tossed the device in his hand away. A few seconds later, it blew up with a loud BANG! Kokichi flinched at the loud noise, but turned back to see a now smoldering pile of scrap metal lying where the radar used to be. "Huh… So it did explode when using it at full power. Spooky." Rin shrugged before he began walking over to where Kokichi was. "Anyway, where was I? Right. So…I know you aren't the Mastermind."
"...Eh?"
"Oh, please." Rin rolled his eyes. "Did you think you were clever? Or even the first person to try this?" Rin then paused before sighing. "Okay, actually, you were the first person to usurp the Mastermind like this, so…be proud of that, I guess. I gotta admit it, you played the part very convincingly. Too bad it was never going to work on me. Not now, anyway."
"What do you mean by that?" Kokichi questioned with a suspicious glare.
"I thought it would be obvious by now." Rin laughed as he finally made it to Kokichi and crouched down to his level. "I remember everything, so I know who the real mastermind is."
"...What?" Kokichi muttered in confusion. "You…know?"
"Yep. It's not you, and it definitely wasn't Tsumugi." Rin sighed as he shook his head. "But that hardly matters right now. What matters now is what's going to happen."
"What do you mean?"
"This," Rin said as he held the bottle of antidote in front of Kokichi. "Drink this."
"...Eh?" Kokichi tilted his head in confusion. "What do you mean? Didn't you drink that?"
"Hmm…How to explain this…" Rin hummed as he tapped his chin before snapping. "Oh, I know." Rin then turned back to the supreme leader and flashed him a mocking smile. "How does it go again? Oh, yeah. It was a lie." He then shook the closed bottle to prove his point. "See? You can hear the liquid still in the glass."
"But…why?" Kokichi couldn't help but ask.
"Because I'd rather not drink it," Rin told him. "Now come on. Stop wasting time. Who knows how long the Electro Radar's effect will last. The hidden cameras won't be able to see what we're doing, so you have to drink it now."
"...No," Kokichi muttered. "I refuse."
"What? Why?" Rin asked in an annoyed tone.
"Because I don't want to owe you anything!" Kokichi shouted back. "Like I need you to save me!"
"Oh, I beg to differ, asshole," Rin growled. "Now drink the damn antidote."
"No!"
"Don't be a stubborn brat!"
"Hey, Pot! Mister Kettle called! He says your black!"
"Grrrrr! That's it!" Rin shouted as he grabbed Kokichi's head. "If you're gonna act like baby, I'm gonna treat you like one!"
Before Kokichi could protest, Rin then forced his mouth open and pressed the antidote's bottle onto his mouth, tipping the bottle over to force the contents into Kokichi's mouth. Kokichi tried to struggle, but considering his injuries and Rin's tight grip over him, Kokichi couldn't do anything but sit there as the antidote was forced down his throat.
Once he had drunk it all, Rin let go and removed the glass from Kokichi's lips, causing the young leader to start coughing.
"There. Now we can get started." Rin noted as he got up.
"Y-You idiot!" Kokichi yelled as he rubbed his throat. "Do you know what's going to happen now? You're gonna die! The poison is gonna kill you!"
"Oh, is that concern I hear in your voice?" Rin asked in another mocking tone. "Oh, I'm touched. Really. If you were a cute girl, I might have swooned a little. Too bad you're an ugly little sociopath. You're the kind of person people could only like in a sitcom."
"You…! Why are you nonchalant about this?!"
"Because I really don't care," Rin answered seriously as he stared at Kokichi. "Now, here's what's going to happen. You and I are going to work together, and I don't care how you feel about it. I already hate having to do this, but we don't have much of a choice, now do we?"
"And why should I help you?" Kokichi asked with a raised eyebrow, to which Rin smirked.
"You want to win, don't you?" Rin asked confidently. "Well so do I, so that's what we're going to do. We're going to win."
"Win? Why do you care about winning?" Kokichi asked. "And what do you mean when you say 'win', anyway? Are you planning on winning a trial or something?"
"Oh, nothing like that. That's not truly winning." Rin explained. "No, you know what I mean. Winning to me is the same as winning for you. We're going to pick a fight with Monokuma and the Mastermind."
Kokichi's eyes widened a bit when he heard that, but he quickly recovered, putting his mask back on as he spoke again.
"And why do you think I want that?"
"What other reason would you have for usurping the Mastermind's role and ending the killing game?" Rin asked with a smile. "Honestly, out of everyone here aside from me, you've done the most to stop the game in your own way. No matter how I might feel about you as a person, I can at least respect that much. That's why I'm willing to work with you one last time."
"Again, I ask why I should help you?" Kokichi spat out.
"Well…okay. I'll tell you a little secret of mine that I'm sure will convince you." Rin said.
"A secret?"
"Yep." Rin nodded. "So…"
Kokichi listened as Rin spoke, and his eyes soon began to bulge out of his head once he heard the 'secret'. Once Rin was done speaking, he smiled once again before offering his hand.
"So…what do you say?" He asked with a confident smile. "Do you accept my proposal for a temporary alliance?"
"..." Kokichi stared at Rin's hand before his own twisted grin appeared right before he took the hand. "Sure! Why not? After all, we're partners, riiiiiight~?"
"Yeah, yeah. Sure. Whatever makes you happy." Rin rolled his eyes again. "So, ready to get started?"
"Yuppers! I already got a plan in mind!" Kokichi cheered with childish joy.
"What do you know? So do I." Rin replied with a chuckle before looking back to Kokichi with, surprisingly, a genuinely happy smile. "I hope you know what you're getting into. It's not gonna be pretty for either of us."
"Oh, please. As if that would stop me." Kokichi laughed as he skipped over to Rin's side. "What's not to be happy about? We haven't worked together like this since the Insect Meet and Greet! I'm getting all nostalgic!"
"Don't remind me of that. I still have nightmares of that." Rin grumbled before he shivered. "But I guess you're right. It has been a while, huh?"
"Uh-huh! That's why we should be excited!" Kokichi exclaimed before a solemn look appeared on his face. "This will be the last time we work together like this, won't it?"
"...Yeah. It will be. We won't have another chance at something like this." Rin let out a tense breath. "So let's make it count, yeah?"
"Yeah. Let's do it." Kokichi gave him a small smile. "It certainly…won't be boring."
"Oh yeah. This definitely wasn't boring." Kokichi muttered, letting out a nervous breath as he sat within the tight Exisal, watching the end of the trial go down as he did. "But really…Shuichi is something else, huh?"
Who would have thought that detective could figure out everything? Kokichi was impressed. Truly. He knew he should have tried hard in convincing Shuichi over to his side. Maybe then things wouldn't have turned out as they had. Or maybe he should have let himself trust Rin sooner than he had.
Oh well. He couldn't change it now. He just had to deal with it.
Good thing he didn't feel any regret anymore. He had done what he set out to do. The voting was already over, and now everyone was demanding that he come out of the Exisal. Kokichi took another shaky breath before nodding.
There was nothing else he could do. It was time to end this.
"...Welp, this was bound to happen," Kokichi said as he spoke through the Exisal's speaker, turning off the Exisal's voice changer as he did. "That's just what I get for trying to go up against the Ultimate Detective. Oh well. Guess it's time to explain things."
And so, Kokichi pressed one last button inside the Exisal and slowly opened the hatch. Once the hatch was opened, Kokichi fully stood up so that the others could see him from the top of the very tall Exisal.
"You were right. I am the culprit who killed Rin Wakuri." Kokichi confessed calmly, revealing a sorrowful look as he reflected on his acts with regret.
"Kokichi…" Shuichi frowned as he looked at the ground in frustration before looking back up to the little gremlin. "Why? Why did you–?"
"Kch!" Kokichi couldn't hold it in anymore, though. His mask broke as snickers started to leave his lips, before eventually he gave up on holding it all back and let himself break out into uncontrollable laughter. He stood there, laughing his ass off as the students and Monokuma looked at him in confusion.
"...Why are you laughing?" Kirumi asked with a deadly tone. "Do you have any idea what you've done?"
"Oh yeah. I know exactly what I did." Kokichi laughed as he wiped the tears from his eyes. "I just won."
"Won?" Kaede repeated.
"Yep." Kokichi smiled innocently as he leaned forward toward the group. "I'd say the killing game is over now."
"What do you mean?" Tenko asked, tilting her head in confusion as she did.
"He means the killing game has just been ruined." Another voice suddenly said. "Seriously, though. I can't even express how glad that this ordeal is over. Do you have any idea how cramped it was in this thing with two people inside?"
Everyone froze when they heard the second voice, disbelief plastered on all their faces as they stared at Kokichi, who was giving them the biggest shit-eating grin he had shown them.
"What…was that?" Rantaro asked.
"Geez, you don't recognize my voice? Even though you heard it for most of the trial? I'm hurt. Really." The voice said before a second pair of hands came out of the Exisal and grabbed the sides of the cockpit. "Geez, you all are really slow, aren't you?"
The owner of the second voice then got up and revealed himself, causing everyone to gasp and gape at what they were seeing. No one could form a single reply as they stared at the two who had just come out of the Exisal.
"Woah. Look at that. They're shocked speechless." Rin noted with a whistle as he crossed his arms. "We must have really fooled them, huh?"
"Definitely! But I mean, it was sooooooo obvious! At least it was to us!" Kokichi smiled as he confidently replied.
"You…You…!" Monokuma growled as he shook in fury. "Do you have any idea what you've just done!?"
"I thought Kokichi already told Kirumi the answer to that." Rin smiled without a care in the world as Kokichi repeated what he had said.
"We just won. The killing game is now over."
A/N: I got you all, didn't I? How many of you were so sad about Rin's 'death', only to be shocked speechless at this chapter? Or did you manage to predict this? I know some of you did. If that was you, good job! If you didn't, thank you for leaving comments that made me smile because of what I was going to do in this chapter.
Anyway, this chapter was something I was always planning on doing, and honestly, it still kind of scares me. Not because it was hard to write, but because of who I was writing about. Kokichi is my favorite character in all of Danganronpa, beating out Kaito by a hair, so I knew I wanted a chapter that delves a bit further into his character. However, since Kokichi is...well, Kokichi, it's hard to write my interpretation of his character knowing others will have a different one and might not like how I portray the character. He was easy to write from another character's perspective, but from his own, he is far more complex, so I hope I did Kokichi justice with this chapter, and I hope you all still enjoyed this chapter, even if you have your own personal headcanons about Kokichi that differ from mine.
