Masashi took one last look at all the evidence that he had found. It was tough to remember every witness account amid all the physical evidence, but hopefully, he could root out the culprit with it.
List of Truth Bullets
Monokuma File #3 - This time, there are two victims: Murphy O'Hagan and Hikari Shinto. Murphy O'Hagan's cause of death was a single blow to the back of the head. The victim survived for some time after the attack. No other injuries have been found. Hikari Shinto's cause of death were several shots to the back with metallic arrows. The victim appears to have died instantly. No other injuries have been found.
Metallic Arrows - These metallic arrows are available in the arcade gift shop. The killer must have substituted them for the paper arrows that the shooter usually shoots out. From the position of the arrows on the wall, it seems impossible to jump over the arrows or crawl underneath them while the shooter shoots them out.
Mannequins - Many mannequins are set up on both sides of the shooter. It is easy to knock them over with the slightest touch. The mannequins have apparently been in the shooter room for a while now. None of them had fallen when the lights turned back on.
Music Player - Tanjiro found it lying in the Shooter Room around 7:00 PM and took it with him to the staff lounge. But around 7:45 PM, Murphy came in and told him to get out. Before he did so, Tanjiro put it in the staff lounge's closet. For some reason, when discovered in the shooter room during the investigation, it has its volume set to maximum. Upon being touched on any of its sides, it plays music automatically. It also has a function to give off a dim light.
Tanjiro's Account - He and Sister Hikari entered the shooter room and saw a light coming from the music player. As they investigated it, Sister Hikari touched two sides of the music player, which made it play a very loud piano tune. Afterwards, once Tanjiro turned off the music player's light, the shooter was activated, and Sister Hikari was slain by its arrows, which made Tanjiro scream.
Body Discovery - After Sister Hikari died, the piano tune from the music player stopped. Sorao then opened the door and saw the whole scene while standing at the doorway. At that time, Tanjiro was standing by the right wall. A few seconds later, the shooter stopped shooting arrows. When Maiha and Kasumi arrived, the body discovery announcement played.
Faye's Account - Around 7:30 PM, Faye, Maiha, and Hikari went to the Pirates' Rest Spot. Around 7:55 PM, Faye sent Hikari out to the main deck to give Arashi some snacks and to go get some sugar from the first ship, and she came back at 8:05 PM. During the blackout, Faye went to the woodland kingdom to check up on the missing persons' rooms.
Hikari's Activities - Around 8:10 PM, Hikari left the Pirates' Rest Spot and stayed outside the room. Around 8:15 PM, Arashi then arrived, looking around for his missing fireworks. They searched the two storage rooms together, but found nothing.
Haruyuki's Account - Haruyuki went to the arcade around 8:15 PM, seeing no one along the way. After playing a game for a short while, he headed up to the water slide room to contemplate and stayed there even after the blackout happened. Masashi, Mari, and Arashi found him there after they had heard him trip over a chest.
Arashi's Account - After looking around the storage rooms with Hikari, Arashi went down to the lower third deck by himself. He saw that the boat as part of the ride was gone.
Maiha's Account - After she and Kasumi arrived at the lower second deck's hallway, they saw Sorao walk into the shooter room. They then followed him and entered the shooter room.
Murphy's Last Words - Murphy was playing one of the arcade games as part of a special event. At some point, he left to go to the restroom. Also, at no point did he think that there was someone else in the room, nor did he see anyone come in. Just as Murphy began the next level of his game, he was attacked, and the killer fled the room.
Event Pamphlet - This pamphlet advertises a special event for the game Battle on Blue Earth. It says: "From 8:00 PM to 9:00 PM, there will be a special event in which you can earn THRICE the usual number of tokens! Entry to the game will be forbidden after the event starts, so be sure to arrive early and choose a difficulty mode before 8:00 PM!"
Game Modes - There are four modes: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Extra Hard. Only on the first mode is each level three minutes long; as for the others, the length of each level is five minutes instead. The respective level orders are GFBSGS, DFSGFB, SBDGSV, and FBGDSV. The level key is: G - Grassland, B - Beach, F - Forest, D - Desert, S - Snow, V - Volcano.
Score Screen - The screen shows the score that Murphy got when his character had been killed. His score, after calculation, was 110,370. The background shows the level in which his character was killed. In this case, it shows a desert.
Metallic Bat - A bloodied metallic bat was found by a bloodied arcade machine during the investigation. The bat appears to have been taken out of the closet next to the staff lounge.
Hikari's Account - After Arashi left her, Hikari stayed outside the Pirates' Rest Spot. She later went to the shooter room, but right when she went in, the blackout happened. She saw a dim light on top of a stack of boxes that lay opposite to the doorway.
Kasumi's Account - Right before 8:00 PM, arriving at the arcade, Kasumi heard a piano tune coming from the staff lounge. She looked at the hallway, but saw no one leave the staff lounge. Afterwards, Murphy rushed out of the men's restroom and hurried to the staff lounge. Sometime later, standing in the power room, Kasumi heard a creak and rushing footsteps coming from downstairs. She went down to the deck below and tried to open the staff lounge's door, but it would not budge. Afterwards, she bought a can of soda in the arcade and went back to the power room upstairs, and Masashi then saw her.
Disabled Button - In the power room, the Empty Supply button, the one for emptying the supply of arrows, no longer works. But the only button that is not supposed to work is the Emergency Shooter button, the button for activating the shooter, and Arashi cut that button's wires this morning, as witnessed by Sayua and Sister Hikari.
Employee ID - A keycard that allows one to access Manual Mode for the boat in the lower third deck. According to Monokuma, the culprit borrowed it from him last night, and when the investigation began, it had already been returned to Monokuma.
Kumi's Account - After leaving Mari in the woodland kingdom, Kumi went to the arcade, seeing no one there. Shortly afterwards, he headed to the men's restroom in the arcade, but then the lights turned off. Frightened, he stayed in the restroom, and even after the lights came back on, he waited a while before leaving. He then stumbled upon Masashi and company after they had discovered Murphy's body.
Boat - The boat that is part of the ride in the lower third deck is the only way to go through the river, as it is forbidden to swim in the river. The boat automatically stops if it detects that no one is aboard.
Sayua's Account - Around 8:05 PM, Sayua left her room and headed all the way to the lower third deck, seeing no one along the way. She rode the boat ride a few times, but in the middle of her ride, the blackout happened, which left her stranded. Rather than try to escape, she waited until the lights came back on, at which point the boat moved again.
Supply Room - In the supply room is a container in which the shooter's supply of arrows is stored. Some of Sister Hikari's blood has dripped down through the gaps in the shooter room's floorboards. The only other noteworthy thing in the room is a group of long thin poles placed under a stack of blue tarps.
Shooter Warning - If the button in the shooter room is activated, and there is something other than paper arrows in the shooter's supply, then an alarm will be activated. The alarm is turned off either if fifteen seconds pass or if the button is pressed again.
"Let's begin with a basic explanation of the class trial!" Monokuma began. "During the class trial, you are to present your arguments for who you think the killer is, and in the end, you will vote for 'whodunnit'. If you vote correctly, only the blackened will be punished. But if you vote incorrectly… only the blackened will live, and that person will be free to leave the amusement park!"
"According to the rules, in the case of two killings, only the one who killed earlier is deemed the blackened," Mari said. "We know for certain that Sister Hikari was killed before Murphy."
Masashi nodded. "That's why at the very least, we need to find the one responsible for Sister Hikari's killing—"
"Why…? Why was Sister Hikari killed?"
The whimpering voice was none other than Kumi's, who looked down at his podium while holding onto his teddy bear as if for dear life.
"She… She was always so kind to us all…" he continued, a few tears in his eyes. "She'd never lay a hand or hurt anyone..."
He then slammed his hand onto the podium, which made many of the others jolt back in surprise.
"Then who?!" he said, his voice getting louder and louder. "Who was it that took her away?!"
The storyteller's outburst silenced the mumbling among the others, who looked at one another with bemused and uncertain gazes as they appeared to struggle to answer him. Even Masashi had found himself in unbelief for a moment at the anger and confusion growing in the storyteller's heart.
"Oh, poor thing…" Faye said. "It's horrible, unbelievable, and dreadful! What kind of person would do such a thing?"
"Well, that's what we plan to find out!" Kasumi said, her smile somewhat forced. "Sooner or later, the killer's identity shall be exposed!"
"Th-That's right!" Arashi added, trying to put on a brave face. "J-Justice... Justice shall soon be delivered! I'll make sure of that!"
Despite their reassuring tones, however, Kumi's countenance grew no better, as his lips stayed trembling.
Sorao sighed as he rubbed his head. "Well, let's not delay things any longer than we already have. No offense, but we're not here to hear that poor little guy weep over what's happened, are we, guys?"
Haruyuki nodded as he smiled and opened up his arms. "I agree. We are here to ascertain the truth behind tonight's events. In fact, that there are two killings has made me more interested than usual."
"What do you plan to do, then?" Mari said, looking curiously at him.
The art critic let out a short chuckle as he tugged on his gray scarf. "At the very least, two killings may have complicated our efforts to uncover the blackened. Hence, I may think to devote more effort to the trial."
"Wow, pretty interesting to hear that from you, man," Sorao said relaxedly.
"Enough of that. Let us not dilly-dally anymore," Maiha said, making a quick waving gesture with her hand. "To begin with, tonight, originally, we were to set off fireworks as part of our attempt to reach out to the outside world."
"Unfortunately, they were stolen while I was gone to the restroom in the arcade!" Arashi said. "And on top of that, a blackout soon happened, and when we all met up at the main deck, we found that Murphy, Haruyuki, Kumi, and Sayua had gone missing as well!"
"As part of the search for the fireworks, we split off into two groups," Mari said. "Masashi, Arashi, and I headed off to the upper decks to restore the ship's power. Shortly thereafter, we found Haruyuki in the water slide room in the upper third deck, and Kumi in the arcade once we had discovered Murphy's body in the staff lounge."
"Meanwhile, Kasumi, Maiha, Sister Hikari, Tanjiro, and I were at the lower decks," Sorao said. "By my suggestion, we split up again. Sister Hikari and Tanjiro went to check out the two storage rooms by themselves. I checked out the Pirates' Rest Spot, and Kasumi and Maiha the lower third deck. Unbeknown to us, Sayua was trapped in the boat ride on that deck at the time."
"And don't forget me!" Faye said, raising a hand. "I was off to check out the missing persons' rooms in the woodland kingdom, while Hikari stayed on the main deck of the pirates' cove."
"That all sounds about right…" Tanjiro said, his face turning a little pale. "After we split up again, Sister Hikari and I looked through the storage room with all those boxes in it, but didn't find anything. So we headed over to the other room, the shooter room..."
"And afterwards... Sister Hikari was killed," Masashi finished, finishing his sentence with a hint of frustration that he had failed to prevent this.
"According to the Monokuma File, Sister Hikari was killed from being pierced by several metallic arrows from behind," Mari said. "There's absolutely no doubt the shooter in the same room was responsible for it."
"Yeah, I can't imagine anyone running over to her and stabbing her with them one by one!" Kasumi said. "But, you know, now that I think about it… Maybe Sister Hikari accidentally pressed the button or something! Maybe the whole thing was an accident!"
Haruyuki shook his head firmly, however. "An accident? I'm afraid not. There's evidence that shows that the shooter was tampered with. Would you mind telling us, Masashi?"
Why are you asking me? Weren't you going to devote more effort to the trial? Masashi thought, slightly bemused. Oh well... At least this one's easy to answer.
"The proof is the shooter's arrows," he answered. "It's true that pressing the button causes it to shoot out its arrows… but it's supposed to shoot out paper arrows, not metallic ones!"
"Oh!" Arashi exclaimed as he slammed a fist onto his palm. "Then if it'd been a mere accident, then all it would've shot out would have been paper arrows!"
"But instead, the arrows were metallic, and they felled Sister Hikari…" Mari said. "Hence, the killer must have replaced the paper arrows beforehand."
"And the metallic arrows themselves came from the arcade's gift shop," Masashi said. "There's no doubt about it. I saw them there last night."
Faye, however, still looked puzzled as she set a hand on her cheek. "Uh, there's one thing that I don't quite understand: how were the metallic arrows put into the shooter in the first place, if they weren't always there?"
"The supply of arrows is actually in a room right below the shooter room," Masashi explained. "To get to that room, the killer needed to use the boat in the lower third deck. It's connected to a door in the middle of the ride."
"Wh-What? A door?" Faye replied, her eyes showing befuddlement.
"I believe I saw a door the last time I rode in it," Haruyuki said. "But is not the ride automatic? It would be impossible to get to the door, then."
"Normally, yes," Mari added, "but the boat has a special feature called Manual Mode. With it, one can drive the boat and reach the door."
"And to access Manual Mode, the killer had to ask Monokuma for an employee ID," Masashi said as he took out the ID.
"What?! Is that true?" Faye said, gaping.
"Well, since the cat's out of the bag... yep, it's 100% true," Monokuma answered, raising a paw. "The killer suddenly called for me while I was watching a show, though, so I was a bit irritated at first from being interrupted. It was the latest episode of Midnight Star Wonder, and in the crucial moment—"
"Wait, no! Stooooooooooop!" Kasumi cried out, covering her eyes. "It's cruel enough that you've trapped me here, but at the very least, you shouldn't spoil me on what I've missed out on so far!"
"Indeed... It's unfortunate whenever someone drops a spoiler like that," Haruyuki said, frowning as he crossed his arms. "To spoil critical details is to ruin the experience and the authenticity of the audience's emotional reactions. In fact, a long time ago, in my blog—"
"Ah, I've just remembered something else!" Arashi said, looking rather keen to stop the man from rambling. "The killer also made sure that the shooter's supply couldn't be accidentally emptied! We found something in the power room that proves it!"
"Something in the power room?" Maiha said, narrowing her eyes on him. "That's rather vague. Speak in more detail, commoner."
The thing that we found in the power room… Masashi thought. There can only be one thing he's referring to!
"Arashi's talking about the Empty Supply button," Masashi answered. "When we investigated the power room, we found that that emergency button's wires were cut off, for some reason."
"Yeah, that's right!" Arashi added. "This morning, I asked Sister Hikari and Sayua to go with me to the power room! I needed some help to make sure the button wouldn't work!"
"I see… But let me confirm this: you did not touch the Empty Supply button at all, yes?" Haruyuki asked, having quickly recovered from being interrupted in his speech.
"That's right! And neither did Sister Hikari and Sayua, as far as I could tell!" Arashi answered. "I didn't check the other buttons, though, so I don't know whether the killer had already disabled it by then!"
"It doesn't particularly matter, I suppose," Maiha said. "All it matters is that it is beyond clear that this was no accident. The replacement of the arrows… The disabling of the emergency Empty Supply button… They were both done by the killer as part of preparations for the murder."
"More importantly... during the investigation, was there anything else in the power room that struck you as odd?" Mari asked.
Arashi scratched his cheek. "N-No… Kasumi and I even combed over the room a few times, but we didn't find anything suspicious other than the broken buttons."
"That's right! Nothing hidden at all!" Kasumi answered at once, appearing to carry a look of disappointment, though her eyes were hidden. "I even thought that there might be something secret written on the back of the emergency buttons' labels, so imagine my disappointment when I took them off and found nothing—"
"Uh, Kasumi, but maybe you should stop now!" Arashi said as he looked uneasily at the others. "I don't think the others would like it too much if you kept on rambling!"
"I agree as well!" Monokuma said, setting his paws on his throne. "Where are the exciting, thrilling, and interactive moments?! This isn't the kind of stuff I'm paying you guys for!"
"But... you're not paying us in the first place," Mari pointed out.
"As if any price could make me bear to stand in this wretched courtroom with that wretched thief, anyway," Maiha remarked, rolling her eyes. "And I suppose I ought to thank the hotheaded commoner for putting an end to her nettlesome rambling. Had he not stepped in, I should've had to do so myself."
"All right, then!" Sorao said, flashing a smile. "Let's go over what the killer did before the murder! Maybe we can narrow down our list of suspects that way."
Nonstop Debate
"The killer cut off the wires for the Empty Supply button and supplied the shooter with metallic arrows," Sorao began.
"If I recall correctly, the arcade's gift shop had those kinds of arrows for sale," Mari said.
"And the killer asked Monokuma for the employee ID!" Arashi added. "Otherwise, it would've been impossible to access the supply room!"
"The killer rode to the supply room with the metallic arrows," Tanjiro said, "and replaced the paper arrows."
"And there's a button in that room to empty the supply," Mari said, "so replacing them must not have taken long."
"Afterwards, the killer must have gone to the power room," Faye said. "That's when they started the blackout!"
"Th-That makes sense to me," Hikari said.
"From the sound of it," Maiha said, "anyone who rode the boat before the blackout must be a suspect."
Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Employee ID
No, that's wrong!
"Wait, hang on, that's not quite right," Masashi said. "The blackout didn't necessarily happen right after the killer filled in the arrows."
"Wh-What?" Faye said. "How can you be so certain of that?"
"For one, you assumed that the killer must have replaced the arrows tonight," he explained. "But I don't think that's the case. After all, the killer asked Monokuma for the ID last night."
"Last night?" Faye replied. "What, really…? I suppose that changes things a bit."
"If that's the case, then it's far likelier that the killer went to the supply room last night to replace the paper arrows," Mari said. "At nighttime, the chances of being spotted are far lower."
"Hmm… I suppose so," Maiha said. "Then we cannot try to narrow our suspects on the basis of whether they had just ridden the boat right before the blackout."
Faye heaved a sigh as she lowered her shoulders. "If only one of us had been up that night, then that person could've stopped the killer..."
"Yeah... Too bad no one else was up at that time..." Sorao said as he glanced to the side, his tone growing a bit quiet.
"So, uh, what now?" Kasumi said. "We know that the killer could've replaced the arrows last night, but that doesn't help us a whole lot, don't you think?"
"There is one more thing that I believe needs to be addressed," Mari said. "It's about the weird music that we heard."
"Weird music?" Faye said. "Oh, you're talking about the piano thing I heard about during the investigation… I didn't hear anything like that when I was in the woodland kingdom."
"Yes, I believe the noise didn't reach you," Haruyuki answered. "But the music was so loud that it even reached us who were on the upper third deck."
"I-I heard the same thing as well…" Hikari said, nodding slowly as she frowned.
"It's clear now that it reached every deck on the pirates' cove," Maiha answered. "But the question is: from what did the piano tune come? I don't recall seeing a piano anywhere on the ship."
The piano tune… I can answer that, Masashi thought.
"In the shooter room, we found a certain box that can play music upon being touched," Masashi answered. "Not only does it play piano music, but the volume was set to maximum."
"Th-Then where did that music player come from?" Hikari asked, looking rather shaken.
"I believe it's a prize from the arcade," Mari answered. "And if I remember correctly, it's a one-of-a-kind prize."
"That's right! I offered only one in the gift shop!" Monokuma said, raising a paw in affirmation. "There was one other music player, but I'd taken it days ago. It's by far the better one, since it can play four music tracks at the same time. Now I don't have to choose between classical, rock, pop, jazz, and whatnot!"
"That... is a rather questionable way to enjoy music, if you ask me," Tanjiro remarked, looking greatly bothered.
"Well, at the very least," Mari said, "we can safely say that only one music player is involved in the case."
"But that raises another question," Faye said. "Why was the volume like that?"
Nonstop Debate
"It's clear why the killer asked Monokuma for the employee ID," Faye began, "but what about the music player?"
"Yeah… Sister Hikari and I lifted it, only for it to play loud music all of a sudden," Tanjiro said.
"It was triggered by your touching it, it seems," Maiha said. "And the music was unusually loud."
"It was set up that way by the killer," Sorao said, "so it must've had a purpose."
"M-Maybe it was to shock the victim long enough?" Hikari suggested.
"Or maybe it was meant to cover up an important sound or something!" Arashi said.
"Or maybe the killer didn't want their movements to be heard!" Kasumi said.
"Or perhaps the piano itself had a certain significance to the killer," Haruyuki said.
"What kind of lameass significance could that be?" Sayua retorted.
Truth Bullet Chosen (Agree): Shooter Warning
I agree with that!
"Arashi, I think you're right on the mark," Masashi said. "The shooter actually has an alarm for when the button is clicked."
"It does?" Faye said.
"Yep. The warning notice we saw in the supply room explained it," Mari answered. "According to it, a program that's part of the shooter first analyzes its supply. If it detects anything other than paper arrows, it plays an alarm as a warning."
"And if the button is pressed again, the alarm goes away, but the shooter shoots out whatever is in its supply," Masashi said.
"Ah! I get it now!" Arashi said, laying his hands on the podium. "The music must've been used to mask the sound! If the killer hadn't used any music, then Sister Hikari and Tanjiro would've heard the alarm!"
"And we might have stepped out of the way if we had heard it," Tanjiro replied as he furrowed his brow. "So that explains why the music was that loud."
"Given the arrangement of the boxes, the killer was sure that the music player would be touched," Maiha said, setting two fingers on her forehead. "That was how the killer managed to pull off their scheme without a problem."
"Hmm… I believe the purpose of the music player is now fully explained," Haruyuki said. "There's nothing else about it to speak of, yes?"
"Actually… there is one thing that bothers me," Tanjiro said. "The music player was in the room when Sister Hikari and I went in… but long before the blackout, I'd already taken the music player out of the room. So it shouldn't have been there during the blackout…"
"Oh, is that so?" Haruyuki said, covering his mouth with his hand. "That's rather... intriguing to hear."
Masashi tried to visualize what exactly had happened in that very room. If he had it right, Tanjiro and Sister Hikari had entered the room, the only door being on the room's right side. The stack of boxes and the music player lay by the opposite wall and were right in the shooter's line of fire. To the left of the boxes were the button to activate the shooter and a small window that one could fit through. And standing on both sides of the shooter were mannequins, none of which had fallen ever since they had been set there.
Tanjiro and Sister Hikari then saw the glowing music player, and Sister Hikari touched it, which triggered the music... Masashi thought. Then she handed the player over to Tanjiro, who then moved to the right side and managed to turn off the player's glowing light. And it was then that the shooter was activated...
"Then it's all clear who the culprit is, isn't it?"
It was Sorao, who looked not at all contemplative and showed no signs of being shaken upon attracting the others' attention.
"H-Huh?" Tanjiro said. "Sorao… you know who it is?"
"Come on, do I truly need to spell it out?" Sorao replied, looking lazily at him. "Isn't it natural to think that you're the killer all along?"
The whole class gasped and looked at the accused, who too was bewildered by his sudden attention.
Ah...! I should've known that suspicion would naturally fall on Tanjiro... Masashi thought, shocked to hear the accusation come so smoothly from Sorao's lips.
"H-Hang on! Are you serious right now?" Tanjiro asked, stuttering as the astonishment in his eyes waxed. "I-I'm the killer?"
"Yeah, what the hell are you saying?!" Sayua added, her eyebrows narrowed on him. "What makes you think he did it?!"
The musician smirked, opening up his arms. "It's simple, really. To activate the shooter, the killer had to press either the button in the shooter room or the emergency Shooter Button in the power room. But Arashi, with Sayua's and Sister Hikari's help, had already disabled the button in the power room this morning, so it couldn't have been used."
"Hence, the killer needed to be in the shooter room," Haruyuki continued, looking not at all bothered or shocked by this turn of events. "And so it's only natural to believe that the killer was someone who was with Sister Hikari... That's what you mean to say, yes?"
"Well... Much as I don't want to think such a thing," Faye said, sighing once more, "I certainly find it hard to disagree with it."
"I-It certainly makes sense," Hikari murmured.
"Indeed… It's only natural to suspect the one who was with the victim during the attack," Maiha said.
Yeah... On first glance, I can't really find anything to disagree with, Masashi thought as he glanced down at his podium. Still... there's something odd about all this...
Masashi glanced at Sorao, the accuser, and for a split second, he could swear that he had spotted an ever so small smile on the musician's face, the others seeming to be too focused on Tanjiro right now. The very next second, however, Sorao turned his eyes slightly toward him, after which the smile disappeared at once, having been replaced with such a grim frown as one might expect to see in this situation.
"So… it was you… you were the one that killed Sister Hikari…"
It was Kumi, who had not spoken since his outburst earlier. He leered at the writer, clutching his teddy bear protectively, and though quiet and shaky, his voice had an all too telling trace of anger.
"N-No! No, no, no!" Tanjiro said, his voice full of panic as he raised his hands defensively. "I-I'm no murderer, I assure you!"
"Yeah, don't you think of saying stupid things more than you already do!" Sayua added as she wagged her finger at Kumi.
Sorao sighed as he shook his head. "Come on, Sayua, don't you know? Tanjiro brought up the suggestion of checking out the shooter room in the first place, and he asked Sister Hikari to go with him. Pretty shady, don't you think?"
"Th-That doesn't mean anything!" Sayua replied, irked.
"But moreover, Tanjiro was by himself at certain times," Haruyuki added, "and so he could have stolen the fireworks and started the blackout. That ought to raise our level of skepticism toward him, yes?"
"I-I admit, I asked Sister Hikari to accompany, and I don't have an alibi at those times, but..." the writer said weakly.
The others spoke among themselves, and it became clear that most now suspected him, the writer stumbling on his words as he tried to defend himself. Masashi had to admit that it was pretty sensible to think that Tanjiro could have easily done it. Still, he had a feeling that it was too easy to draw a conclusion already.
Hmm… Whatever flaws can there be in the argument against him? Masashi thought. I should think this one through.
Nonstop Debate
"Tanjiro was with Sister Hikari during the blackout," Sorao began, his voice full of energy. "And they headed into the shooter room together."
"And he could've told her to stand in a certain spot…" Faye added. "A spot that was in the shooter's line of fire."
"Then it is possible that he went to the button, which is on the left side of the room," Haruyuki said, "and pressed it afterwards."
"Poor Sister Hikari… she didn't know what hit her!" Arashi said.
"And afterwards, Tanjiro screamed as part of his act," Maiha said, "and he waited for someone to come."
"Yeah, I heard it and rushed over there at once," Sorao said. "I can't believe that Tanjiro pulled it all off."
"N-No… No, I assure you, it's not true!" Tanjiro said. "Everyone, please, believe me!"
Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Body Discovery
No, that's wrong!
"Wait, I don't think that's right!" Masashi said. "I don't think Tanjiro waited for someone to come."
"Huh? But Tanjiro undoubtedly screamed," Sorao said. "There's no doubt about that."
"I don't doubt that you heard Tanjiro," Masashi replied, "but the problem is… where you saw him."
"Wh-Where Sir Sorao saw him?" Kumi said, still sounding bitter. "I don't get it at all! What does that have to do with anything, Sir Masashi?!"
"I'll, uh, explain," Masashi said, briefly stricken with surprise by Kumi's tone. "Sorao, which side of the room was Tanjiro standing in?"
Sorao paused for a moment. "Well… I'm pretty sure he was standing with his back on the right wall."
"Wait a minute… That makes no sense," Maiha said, frowning. "The button, as Haruyuki said earlier, is on the left side of the room."
Arashi gasped as he flinched back. "Th-That's right! I-I didn't notice that!"
"B-But what's the problem?" Kumi asked, frowning. "Tanjiro simply walked over to that side before he screamed!"
"Y-Yeah... what you've brought up is a minor correction at best," Hikari said.
Wait… but if that's true… Masashi thought. Then a new problem arises. He couldn't have simply "walked" over there!
He then shook his head. "He couldn't have done that, though. I looked at the arrows that were stuck onto the wall after hitting them."
Faye set a finger on her chin. "Hmm? What about them? All they show is how the arrows were fired from the shooter."
"But that's the thing," Masashi replied. "From what I can tell of their positioning, it's impossible to crawl under them or jump over them. And I doubt the killer would risk their own life to attempt such a feat."
"No one could slip through the arrows… except maybe Kasumi," Mari said as she eyed the phantom thief.
"Hey, now, don't try to shine the spotlight on me! I'm totally innocent!" Kasumi said. "After all, I have an alibi during the murder!"
Maiha let out a disgruntled sigh. "Unfortunately, I must agree with the wretched thief, for she was with me. Both she and I have solid alibis, so neither of us can be the killer."
"Then it's decided: jumping over the arrows was definitely not an option," Masashi replied. "And Sorao, when you entered the room, was the shooter still shooting the arrows?"
Sorao gasped as he widened his eyes. "N-No doubt about that, dude... The shooter was still letting it all out."
"So there's no way that Tanjiro could have gone from one side of the room to the other!" Sayua said as she sneered. "You see? Pretty stupid to suspect him, don't you think?"
"Why, you're awfully defensive of him," Haruyuki said, chuckling amusedly. "Could it be that you've grown a certain... attachment to him?"
"Sh-Shut up!" she said, scowling. "All I'm saying is that you've gotten the wrong man. You oughta think twice with that mind of yours if you think you're oh-so-smart."
"Uh, thanks, I suppose," Tanjiro said, looking slightly befuddled at his defense. "So... you guys believe I'm not the culprit, right?"
"Well, there's a pretty solid case in your defense, I guess," Sorao said. "Guess that puts the kibosh on my theory."
"Whoa, you're giving up already?!" Kasumi said, gaping.
Sorao shrugged his shoulders as he showed a small smirk. "Well, why would I keep going on, when the evidence says otherwise?"
"Hmm... Still, I thought you'd put up more of a fight than one simple counterargument," Mari replied.
Sorao put up his hands defensively as he widened his eyes in surprise. "Hey, now, I'm not so stubborn as to deny the truth. I gave it my best shot, and in the end, it was a dud. No need to go through a bout of anguish and whatnot."
Sorao's giving up already, it seems... Masashi thought as he looked askance at him. The way he's dismissing it, it's like he never even believed in his theory in the first place...
"So we can all agree that Tanjiro's not the culprit, right?" Sayua said. "About time. Obviously, the killer—"
"Now, hang on a second."
It was Haruyuki, who raised a finger with a concerned look.
"Huh?!" Sayua said, leaning forth as she gave him a dirty look. "What, you've got something to say?"
"As I have said to many a person on many a message board, indeed, I do," Haruyuki answered half-amusedly. "I don't dispute the fact that Tanjiro couldn't have walked to the other side seems true, but that does not necessarily mean he's innocent."
"I-It doesn't?" Faye said.
"S-Sir Haruyuki!" Kumi said, looking at him with beseeching eyes. "Please, tell us what you're thinking!"
The art critic nodded ever so calmly. "You may think that because of the line of arrows, there was essentially no safe spot for Tanjiro to cross. But there's one place that you've critically missed, I'm afraid."
Nonstop Debate
"The one place that was safe to cross," Haruyuki said, pausing for dramatic effect, "was the shooter itself."
"Hmm? The shooter, you say?" Maiha said.
"Well, I suppose it's the one spot that wouldn't get you killed if you were on it…" Faye said.
"Now that I think about it... the shooter could be climbed on from that side!" Kasumi said.
"And there were no obstacles in the way!" Arashi said.
"Y-Yeah, it was completely doable for him, even though he's not athletic..." Hikari added, raising one hand.
"D-Did you really have to add that part?" Tanjiro said, looking more and more dismayed.
"She's not wrong, though…" Sorao commented carefreely.
"S-So that's how...!" Kumi cried out. "That's how Tanjiro could've gone back to the right side!"
Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Mannequins
No, that's wrong!
"No, Arashi, I'm afraid you've forgotten one thing," Masashi began. "There were obstacles in the way. Specifically, the mannequins."
"Huh?! Mannequins?!" Arashi said before he widened his eyes. "Are you talking about those things on both sides of the shooter?!"
Masashi nodded. "The mannequins on the left side were all gathered right next to the shooter. There's practically no space for anyone to even stand next to it."
"Ah… They are so clustered that I should imagine it is impossible to slip through them!" Faye said, raising a hand slightly.
Mari nodded. "Then Tanjiro couldn't have climbed over the shooter, I suppose."
"Are you sure about that, though?!" Kasumi asked. "Maybe Tanjiro jumped onto the mannequins and made it to the top of the shooter!"
"I don't think so. If he had tried to climb them," Mari replied, "the crime scene would have looked different. You get it, right, Masashi?"
Um, I think so… maybe… he thought. All right, let's see… What's special about the mannequins, and how is that related to why Tanjiro couldn't have climbed them…? Ah!
"When I investigated the crime scene earlier, I examined the mannequins," Masashi answered. "I found it to be pretty easy to knock any of them down."
"Yeah, I remember that…" Faye said. "From the looks of it, if Tanjiro had tried to climb on them, they certainly would have fallen."
"But when we arrived at the scene, all the mannequins were still standing," Maiha added. "Obviously, he could not have made them upright from the other side."
"Is that so?" Haruyuki said, looking less displeased from being gainsaid than Masashi would imagine. "I must admit, I noticed the mannequins... and yet, it somehow slipped my mind that they would have posed an obstacle..."
"It's clear that Tanjiro couldn't have climbed over the shooter to reach back to the other side," Masashi said, "so we can all agree that he couldn't have done it—"
"You've gotten the wrong ending!"
Surprisingly, the one who objected was none other than Kumi, who looked at Masashi with a somewhat grim and pleading expression.
"Sir Masashi… I'm afraid that you haven't seen through Tanjiro's trick!" Kumi said, pointing at Masashi.
"Wh-What?" he said, gaping. "You still think he's guilty?"
"But he has to be the one!" Kumi said, quivering as the agony on his face grew and grew. "There's no one else but him! He took Sister Hikari away from me!"
"But…!" Tanjiro said, panic growing in his face. "I-I swear, I'd never do such a thing!"
"That's a lie!" the storyteller replied, his voice now showing a hint of anger and bitterness. "You thought in the first class trial that I'd killed Sir Atsushi… You're friends with that awful cheerleader troll… And you helped her steal Sir Teddybane from me that one time… How could you say you'd never do something so awful?!"
Oh… Oh no, Masashi thought. Kumi has disliked Tanjiro ever since the first class trial... and from Sister Hikari's death, he's now distraught and letting his emotions get the best of him!
"My, my, it seems the attempt to prove Tanjiro's guilt has passed down to our storytelling friend," Haruyuki said, smirking as if this were some interesting exhibit at a museum.
Sayua sighed an annoyed sigh. "Someone shut him up! His stupidity's too much for me to handle!"
"Yeah, that's clearly your true reason for not actually bothering to rebut him..." Sorao remarked cheekily.
"Kumi, please calm down," Masashi said, looking at him with eyes full of concern. "You're not thinking clearly—"
"Wh-Why are you taking his side?!" Kumi replied wrathfully, his cheeks reddening. "He's the villain behind all this!"
Rebuttal Showdown: Takumi Takamitsu
"Tanjiro didn't need to be in front of the button to press it!" Kumi argued.
"He could have pressed it by using a projectile!
"He must've hidden it in the room beforehand...
"Then when he had Sister Hikari stand where he wanted her to stand…
"He threw the item at the button!
"And the projectile was small enough to fall through the holes in the floor!
"That's how he tried to trick us all into thinking it was impossible for him!"
"But, Kumi, when we searched the supply room earlier, we didn't find anything of that description," Masashi said. "All we found were paper arrows and a bunch of thin long poles."
"Th-Then he could've used one of the poles!" Kumi said back.
"The pole must've been long enough to reach the button!
"So he hid the pole somewhere beforehand...
"And after he took the pole with him into the room, he pressed the button with it...
"Then he simply slipped the pole down through the holes!
"That explains why he didn't have the pole on him afterwards!
"Now do you believe me, Sir Masashi?! He has to be the one!"
Truth Bullet Chosen: Supply Room
I'll cut through your words!
"Sorry, Kumi, but what you suggest simply isn't possible," Masashi said. "It's true that he could have slipped the pole down into the supply room… but then that'd lead to a contradiction."
"A-A what?" Kumi said, looking rather shaken. "I-I don't get it! Wh-What are you talking about?!"
"I guess it's my fault for not being specific, but there's one particular thing about the poles that proves you wrong," Masashi answered. "You see… when we found the poles, they were all under layers of tarp."
"T-Tarp…? So what?" the storyteller said, cocking his head to the side as confusion grew and began to take his anger's stead.
Maiha sighed. "What he means, you fool, is that if Tanjiro had dropped it, it would've been impossible for it to be under the tarps."
"Indeed. It would have been over the tarps instead," Mari added. "Or at least beside them. Either way, it would've been impossible for it to somehow get under the tarps."
"O-Oh, yeah, that's what I would've say!" Sayua said, looking somewhat flustered. "That totally shows how stupid your argument was in the first place, you idiot!"
"But… but…!"
Kumi, grinding his teeth, tried to say something, but he choked on his voice. All he did instead was grimace at Tanjiro and Sayua, both of whom stood next to each other, before hanging his head down, as if ashamed.
"Well, I guess it's now indisputable that Tanjiro isn't the culprit," Mari said. "There was no way that he could've pressed the button and be found on the right side of the room."
"Hmm... I suppose so," Maiha answered, sounding neither happy nor angry.
"I'm so sorry for suspecting you, Tanjiro..." Faye said, clasping her hands together with apologetic eyes.
"N-No need to worry about it," the writer said after a few more others answered likewise. "I'm simply glad that you now believe in my innocence."
Kumi looked up at the other students. "B-But if he's not the killer… then who is?"
"Well, Sister Hikari and I were searching the other storage room earlier," Tanjiro added, gaining confidence as he looked less uneasy. "I suppose it's possible that someone sneaked into the room during then and hid on the side of the buttons."
"Hmm… I can't see anything wrong with that!" Kasumi said. "So I guess it must've been someone who was alone at the time of the blackout!"
"Let's see… The ones who fit that description are…" Mari said, counting on her fingers. "Sorao, Hikari, Faye, Sayua, Kumi, Murphy, and Haruyuki. Since Masashi, Arashi, and I were together, we all have an alibi. The same goes for Kasumi and Maiha."
"Count me out as well. I can be eliminated as a suspect," Faye said, her voice full of confidence. "After all, I was in the woodland kingdom after we split up. To get to the lower second deck of the pirates' cove, I should've had to pass by the main deck. But Hikari was there at the time."
"Y-Yeah… I didn't see Faye at all," Hikari said. "A-And as far as I know, there's no other way to get into the inside of the pirates' cove."
"We can exclude Murphy as well," Mari said. "It's pretty clear from the crime scene that he was playing his game at the time, so I highly doubt he went back to his game after killing Sister Hikari."
"I wish to be excluded as well," Haruyuki added, opening up his arms. "I have no alibi for much of the blackout, but I was in the water slide room when Masashi and company found me. And it'd have been impossible for me to get from the lower second deck to the upper third deck quickly."
"Yeah, you're certainly not the quickest of guys!" Kasumi said. "In fact, I bet if you'd tried to run down the stairs, I can't help but think you would've become tired after a few steps!"
Haruyuki gasped as he covered his mouth with his hand. "Is that... your impression of me? I can't but feel bemused to hear such a description..."
"If Haruyuki's out, then those who are left are…!"
Arashi let out a great gasp as he counted on his fingers. "Hikari, Kumi, Sorao, and Sayua!"
Upon hearing that conclusion, those who had been cleared of suspicion turned their heads toward the remaining suspects.
Hikari shuddered as she covered her mouth with her hand and her white kimono's sleeves. "Y-You all suspect me...? D-Don't be stupid... I'm no murderer..."
Kumi let out a short gasp and held onto his teddy bear as if it were a shield, whimpering. "Wh-Why are you guys looking at me like that? I-I'd never kill Sister Hikari! She was so kind and caring that I'd never lay a hand on her!"
"Neither would I!" Sorao said, raising his hands while gaping. "This is bogus, man!"
"Yeah... No reason to suspect me."
Surprisingly enough, Sayua showed little anger at the accusation, instead looking at most annoyed as if it had been a mere insult. Masashi had expected her to be angry, but instead, she seemed to be thinking hard about something.
"If you ask me, out of those four," Mari said, raising an index finger, "Sorao's the most suspicious."
"Whoa, there, girl! You're talking about me?" Sorao said, pointing at himself, his expression growing bemused as the others looked at him. "I admit, I was alone in the Pirates' Rest Spot at the time of the blackout, but that doesn't mean I did it, you know."
"Still, I can't but have a few misgivings about what you've done," Mari replied. "You were the one who suggested that we separate into two groups. And from what I've heard, you separated yourself from your own group afterwards, and as a result, you were alone during the blackout."
"Oh, yeah, that's right!" Arashi said, his raised fist shaking. "N-Now that I think back on it... you totally are pretty suspicious!"
"I agree. Something about you strikes me as... odd," Maiha added, staring daggers at Sorao.
Sorao raised his eyes as the bewilderment on his face grew. "Well, yeah, that's all true, but it was all a coincidence that I happened to suggest splitting up. If I hadn't, someone else would've done the same thing, don't you think?"
"But surely you cannot deny the possibility that you sneaked into the room and pressed the button," Haruyuki said, looking at him coldly.
Clicking his tongue, Sorao then flicked a fringe of his red hair as coolness returned to his face. "That's true... but I've just realized that there's a huge problem with your accusation. You get it, don't you, Masashi?"
"Huh? Well, um…" Masashi said as he envisioned how things must have played out if Sorao had been the culprit.
Let's see... Was there anyone who could account for Sorao's whereabouts? Masashi thought. Yeah, there was... That person saw him, after all.
"Tanjiro, after you screamed, you saw Sorao enter the room, right?" Masashi said.
Tanjiro nodded. "When I heard the door open, I saw him standing at the doorway, that's for sure."
"But that's the problem, isn't it?" Faye said. "It's the same issue as we brought up when Tanjiro was still our main suspect: how would he have gotten back to the other side if he had stood by the button?"
"Oh, good point, Miss Nirigiri!" Arashi said. "Because of the mannequins, it would've been impossible for him to climb onto the shooter!"
"Hence, we can safely assume that Sorao is not the culprit," Maiha concluded.
Sorao let out a sigh of relief as he wiped some sweat off his forehead. "You see? Totally innocent, as I said. I hope you guys are more considerate of the evidence and won't suspect me next time."
"Ooh, brave of you to assume that you'll still be here for another trial!" Monokuma said. "You seem pretty confident that you won't be going away any time soon!"
Sorao chuckled as he shrugged with a grin. "Well, what can I say? Even if I'm not wanted, I'll still be around."
"All right… what now?" Kasumi said, tilting her head to the side. "If Sorao's not the killer, then which suspect should we look into?"
"Rather than try to scrutinize their accounts, I suggest that we talk more about something else," Mari said. "There is one thing in particular that bothers me."
"And that is?" Maiha asked.
"How exactly the killer left the room," she answered. "Had any of the remaining suspects tried to press the button, the mannequins would've posed a problem to the killer's escape. And it has already been established that it was impossible for the killer to jump over the shooter to reach the doorway."
"Wait a minute... I've got an idea!"
It was Arashi, who slammed his fist onto his other hand's palm, as if he had come up with some groundbreaking theory.
"Wh-What is it, Arashi?" Faye said.
"Well, before I answer that, I need to confirm something!" the pyrotechnician answered. "Sorao, after you discovered the body, did you move away from the doorway at any point?!"
"Well… yeah, after I recovered from my shock," Sorao answered. "I wanted to take a closer look at the body."
Arashi then smiled as he chuckled. "Aha! Then it's settled! There was a way for the killer to escape the room!"
Nonstop Debate
"The killer's solution was very simple!" Arashi began. "It was to wait for the shooter to stop shooting!"
"And Tanjiro mentioned in his account that after Sorao arrived," Mari said, "the shooter stopped shooting arrows."
"Then going to the door wouldn't be impossible anymore!" Arashi replied. "The killer simply needed to wait for Sorao to move out of the way!"
"And once he did that, the killer slipped through the door..." Tanjiro said. "It was still dark because of the blackout, and so neither Sorao nor I saw the killer."
"And then the killer stole through the hallway and hid elsewhere!" Kasumi said.
"Are you sure about that, though?" Faye said. "Don't you think the killer would've been seen if they'd tried to leave through the hallway?"
"Perhaps the killer slipped into the other storage room to avoid detection if need were," Haruyuki replied. "There was nothing blocking access to that room, yes?"
Truth Bullet Chosen (Agree): Maiha's Account
I agree with that!
"Faye, I think you're right about that," Masashi said. "If the killer had slipped through the door, they would have been seen. After all, at that point, Maiha and Kasumi were rushing to the scene."
"That's right," Maiha said. "When we arrived at the lower second deck, we saw someone walk into the shooter room. Undoubtedly, it was Sorao."
"And since we had our eye on the door all along, there's no way anyone could've left the room without being seen by us!" Kasumi added. "And there's no way that the killer could've slipped after we entered the room as well!"
"If that's the case, we must conclude that Arashi's theory has to be wrong," Haruyuki said.
Arashi lurched back as he clutched the sides of his head. "Oh… Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! I can't believe I forgot all about that! Damn it!"
"Aw, don't worry so much about it, Arashi!" Kasumi said. "You had a good idea, but it just so happened things didn't work out that way! I know that feeling all too well!"
"Yeah, it's all right," Sorao added. "In the end, what's most important is that you tried."
"Coming from you, that sounds... less encouraging, actually," Tanjiro mumbled.
"B-But... if the door's out, what's left?" Hikari asked.
"Well, lucky for you, I have the answer to that!"
The one who had said that was none other than Sayua, who, unlike the others, had a confident and knowing face. She stood upright, arms on her hips, in contrast to Tanjiro, who let out a small groan as he glanced away, as if he already knew what she was about to say.
Haruyuki covered his mouth with his hand as he raised his brow. "Why, what's this, now? Do you truly know the answer to this puzzle?"
Sayua scoffed as she widened her smirk. "You bet your ass I do! Tanjiro and I figured it out during the investigation, you see!"
"Yeah… though you can figure out what proportion of the work we each did," Tanjiro murmured.
"In that case, why didn't you tell us in the very beginning?" Mari asked.
"Well, you guys kept going on and on about the killer hiding in the room the whole time, so I was waiting to see whether you might be right about that," Sayua answered. "But now that it's clear that your theorizing was all a giant waste of time, it's about time the answer were shown!"
As she made that declaration with great certainty, the whole class quieted itself, waiting with bated breath for the answer that she had hyped up.
"To begin with, the door wasn't the only way to access the room!" Sayua said, sounding, incredibly enough, even haughtier than before. "You see... there was another way in!"
Another way… in? Masashi thought as most of the others murmured to one another in surprise and confusion over her words. But… the only thing I can think of is…
"Sayua… you're not referring to the window, are you?" Masashi asked.
"Bingo!" Sayua said, raising her hands in a gesture to show affirmation. "The window's large enough to fit a person in, I reckon. So the killer could have gone through the window without a hitch!"
"B-But… there's nothing outside the window," Hikari said, staring coldly at the cheerleader. "Th-There's nothing out but the wide open sea… Anyone who tries to escape through the window would only fall and sink into the depths below."
"And climbing the ship's sides is definitely not an option," Faye added. "So it seems impossible, if you ask me."
"Not if the killer had prepared a rope!"
Sayua sneered once more as she pointed her index finger at the others.
"A rope…?" Masashi said, he and the others looking at her with great astonishment.
"Oh... I believe I know what she is talking about," Maiha said, among the few who showed little to no surprise at Sayua's revelation. "She and Tanjiro were investigating the main deck, and I saw them perform a certain experiment. They simply—"
"Hey, hey, I'm the one explaining things here, not you!" Sayua replied while wagging a finger at her.
"Wh-What? How dare you speak to me like that?" Maiha said, wincing in shock for a moment before she looked daggers at Sayua.
"Now, now, let's all calm down here..." Mari said half-enthusiastically. "This isn't the time for squabbling. Sayua, please go on."
Sayua took in a breath of air before beginning. "It's all simple, you see. All the killer had to do was attach a rope to the main deck and climb down to the window. Then once the killer did all that bloody work and whatnot, the bastard simply climbed up the rope!"
"Wait, hold on a second!" Faye said, raising her hands. "You keep talking about a rope, but are you saying that the killer took the rope out of the storage rooms in the woodland kingdom? You know, just like what Haruka did in the first killing?"
"Nah, no need to!" the cheerleader answered confidently. "After all, there was already some rope available in the main deck."
It was then that Masashi recalled what the main deck looked like and gasped.
Masashi looked around the main deck. First, he walked to the ship's bow, focusing on the mast that was part of the ship's decoration. The mast itself had a pirate flag hoisted at the very top, and there was even a long coil of rope tied around the mast as part of the decoration.
Maiha glanced down at the rope. "Hmm… I wonder…"
"Huh? What is it, Maiha?" Masashi asked.
She looked at him with a somewhat cold expression. "I'd rather not tell you."
"The main mast… it had a rope tied around it!" Masashi said. "But I thought that was only part of the decoration!"
"It was, but that doesn't mean it can't be used for other things!" Monokuma commented. "Learning how to use things in a way they aren't intended for is a vital part of many activities like exploring and escaping prison. Trust me, I know."
"Interesting... While investigating, I had a similar theory with regard to the rope," Maiha said, having looked unfazed since Sayua had introduced her theory. "I didn't expect that the foolhardy woman managed to come up with such an idea, however."
"Well, to be fair, it's not a wholly original idea of hers," Tanjiro pointed out. "I'm pretty sure Sayua simply remembered the trick that Haruka had used as part of her scheme."
"Original or not, though, it's all about success!" Kasumi remarked. "A good trick's a good trick, even if it's been used before!"
"The killer could have just thrown the rope out while it was still attached to the mast," Haruyuki said. "I presume you saw that it was long enough to reach all the way down to the window, then?"
"That's right!" Sayua said, looking extremely proud of herself. "It definitely reached down to the window. Tanjiro can back me up!"
"Well... that certainly changes things," Mari said, looking slightly amazed. "Tanjiro, did you see anything outside the window when you and Sister Hikari entered the room?"
Unfortunately, the writer shook his head. "I… wasn't really paying attention to the window. And even if I had, I doubt I would've seen anything out of place, given how dark it was. So I suppose it's possible that there was a rope hanging down from the main deck."
"I-It's rather crazy to think that the killer could've climbed down the side of the ship!" Faye added, noticeably trying to suppress her nervousness. "If the killer had slipped, they would've plunged into the sea below!"
"I find the theory that the killer used the rope to be plausible, however," Haruyuki said. "It neatly answers the question of how the killer had fled from the crime scene after pressing the button. Now the question is: who was the one that did it?"
Arashi gasped, wide-eyed. "It... It must've been someone who was on the main deck after we split up to look for the others!"
"Wait… but that means…" Masashi said.
There was only one person who fit that description, and even then, Masashi felt a great deal of uncertainty about his answer. Still, Sayua had already given her theory, and if he wanted to move nearer to the truth, he had to test the theory.
"The one who was on the deck at the time… Wasn't that you, Hikari?"
Many of the others quickly turned their eyes toward Hikari, whose face seemed to grow paler.
"Aha! I knew it was you!" Sayua said keenly. "You're the one who did it!"
"Wh-What? N-No, I'm not…" Hikari said, but she said so weakly and pathetically that doubt must grow in anyone's heart who listened to her. "I-I was on the main deck, b-but… I didn't do anything. A-All I did was stand there."
"Sure, but can you prove it?" the cheerleader replied sharply. "Not only do you have no alibi, but you also wanted to be by yourself, I heard!"
"Yeah, you didn't want to go investigate the decks with us!" Kasumi added. "I didn't think it unusual, since you're usually like that, but maybe climbing down the rope was your plan all along!"
"And now that I think about it..." Sorao said, rubbing his chin. "Hikari mentioned that she'd gone to the shooter room right before the blackout. She claimed she'd only been wandering around, but what if... she was actually making sure that the scene was ready?"
"Making sure? Wh-What do you mean, Sir Sorao?" Kumi asked.
Mari sighed as she lowered her head a little. "I believe what Sorao's saying is that she needed to set up the music player on the boxes. And she needed to open up the window, since she couldn't have very well tried to unlock it from the outside."
"So it was indeed possible for her to pull off the window trick," Maiha said before she faced Hikari. "How suspicious... If there is a reason to believe in your innocence, you had better say it now."
"W-Well… I-I…"
But the others murmured to one another with growing skepticism toward her, and the murmurs led to no greater defense from her, as she simply hung her head down as if already overcome by her gainsayers.
"I too find that there is good reason to suspect Hikari," Haruyuki added, looking unbothered by the spirit medium's plight. "Arashi, you said that Hikari gave you some treats, yes?"
"Th-That's right! She gave me snacks that Miss Nirigiri had cooked for me!" Arashi answered, clenching a fist. "After she left, I suddenly got a stomachache and so rushed off to the restroom!"
"And in the timespan in which you were gone... the fireworks went missing," Haruyuki said, lowering his eyes while raising a finger. "That's rather curious, isn't it? Or perhaps... it had been orchestrated all along."
"Wh-What are you saying?" Hikari said, leering at him. "W-Wasn't that just some convenient coincidence for the killer?"
Haruyuki shook his head, however. "If the suspect were any other person, I should be inclined to think so... but... since it was you that gave him the snacks, perhaps it wasn't a coincidence. I heard something rather interesting during the investigation."
Masashi inspected the arrows, and if the bloody sight were not enough, the touch would make it clear that these were not props. "Wait a minute… I remember seeing these arrows in the arcade gift counter."
"Then it's all clear..." Haruyuki said, calmly looking down at the grisly sight. "The killer must have bought them and replaced the paper arrows before the murder."
"It's rather weird that things like this are even sold in the gift shop in the first place," Tanjiro remarked. "It even sells such things as self-help handbooks and bottles of laxatives."
"The gift shop's choice of prizes is odd, puzzling, and questionable, to say the least," Faye said.
"W-Wait a minute...!" Arashi said, grinding his teeth as he pumped his fist. "Are you saying... my food had laxatives in it?!"
"I've no evidence to back me up, of course," Haruyuki answered. "If it were any other suspect, I might think your stomachache to be but a convenient coincidence... but given the timing and how unusually long Hikari took to finish her task... I feel inclined to believe that it was she that had caused your sudden need to relieve yourself."
"Ah... That's right!" Faye said, sounding startled. "I can't believe it... but Hikari was by herself for most of the time, so I suppose she could've done it..."
"Um... I mean no offense, Faye, but..." Tanjiro said meekly. "Since it was you that cooked the food, isn't it possible that you could've put laxatives in it?"
Faye gasped. "Why, I'd never put laxatives in my food! It'd be dishonorable, disgraceful, and despicable for me to even do such a thing! And besides, even if I had done it... I wouldn't have been able to steal the fireworks while Arashi was away in the restroom! I have an alibi the whole time."
Maiha nodded. "I can attest to it. Up until the blackout, I was in the Pirates' Rest Spot with the chef, so neither of us could've stolen the fireworks."
"So Miss Nirigiri can't be the culprit!" Arashi added with great delight in his voice and his smile.
Upon seeing Tanjiro's objection be shut down, the others looked askance at Hikari, who scowled as she shrank back.
"D-Don't tell me you actually believe all that..." Hikari replied. "I-I never put laxatives in the food... A-All I did was hand it over to that hothead. I-I've done nothing wrong..."
"Yeah, yeah, that's what the culprit always says!" Sayua said, waving her hand dismissively. "Honestly, it'd be refreshing to have someone who outright admits it!"
"Sayua, you seem rather… excited about all this," Sorao remarked, smiling as if this were one of the less intense parts of the class trial.
Sayua sneered. "Of course I am! We've just figured out who the killer is, and I'm ready to get the hell out of here!"
"Y-You... I-I figured you'd never believe me..." Hikari mumbled as she wiped a tear from her eye. "I-It's always like this... People like you pick on those they know to be weaker..."
"Yeah, yeah, whine about your persecution complex for all I care! The proof's on my side!" Sayua said.
Tanjiro sighed as he hung his head down a bit. "I get the sentiment behind your words, Sayua, but I really, really wish you had worded that better."
"Wh-Why…?" Kumi said, looking at Hikari sorrowfully. "Why did you do it, Lady Hikari?"
Meanwhile, Haruyuki shook his head in disapproval. "What a boring reaction to see from the accused… I was hoping to hear an argument, but if that is how things have turned out, then I suppose we shall have to summarize what she did."
Nonstop Debate
"First of all, Hikari stole the fireworks after Arashi left to go to the restroom!" Sayua began. "She was all by herself around 8:00 PM!"
"Yeah, that was when I left to go to the restroom!" Arashi added. "She must've put laxatives in my food!"
"And then she had to set up the scene for the murder…" Maiha said.
"She did after Arashi had gone to the shooter room to look for his fireworks," Haruyuki said.
"Then once the coast was clear, she retrieved the music player, which she had hidden somewhere in advance," Sorao said. "Then she put it in the shooter room."
"She also opened the window so that she might pull off the trick later," Maiha added.
"Afterwards, she went to the power room and started the blackout!" Sayua said. "She used the rope trick to sneak into the shooter room!"
"N-No… That's not it at all…" Hikari mumbled, frowning grimly.
Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Music Player
No, that's wrong!
"Wait, hang on, Sorao. I think you're wrong about one thing," Masashi said. "You may not know this, but Hikari couldn't have hidden the music player somewhere."
Sorao furrowed his brow. "Huh? What are you talking about, dude?"
"We talked about the music player earlier?" Masashi answered. "There was one particular thing that Tanjiro mentioned."
"Hmm… I believe the purpose of the music player is now fully explained," Haruyuki said. "There's nothing else about it to speak of, yes?"
"Actually… there is one thing that bothers me." It was Tanjiro. "The music player was in the room when Sister Hikari and I went in… but long before the blackout, I'd already taken the music player out of the room. So it shouldn't have been there during the blackout…"
"Oh, is that so?" Haruyuki said, covering his mouth with his hand. "That's rather intriguing to hear."
"Oh, right, that part… It slipped my mind," Sorao said.
"We now know that Tanjiro's innocent, so we can trust that his account is true," Masashi said. "Tanjiro, you went to the shooter room around 7:00 PM. You found the music player there and took it out of the room, right?"
Tanjiro nodded. "I took it to the staff lounge by the arcade, since I thought the tune was so soothing that it might be used as inspiration for my writing."
"And you... left the music player there?" Faye asked.
"Not quite…" he answered. "Murphy came into the room around 7:45 PM and asked me to get out. Before I did, though, I put the music player in the staff lounge's closet."
"Ah, so Hikari couldn't have hidden the music player beforehand!" Kasumi said. "Ever so sly and sneaky, Tanjiro had already gotten his hands on it and put it elsewhere!"
Tanjiro winced before looking back at the phantom thief with mild bemusement. "Um... I'd rather that you didn't call me sly and sneaky. It doesn't really fit me, if you ask me..."
"Well, whatever!" Sayua said dismissively. "What's the problem? Even if the music player was elsewhere, all Hikari needed to do was go to the staff lounge and get it back! Duh!"
"But if that's the case, then Murphy must've been involved," Maiha said. "He was there in the lounge, yes? And since Tanjiro had left the music player in the staff lounge's closet, the music player was essentially with Murphy afterwards."
Haruyuki widened his eyes as he set a finger on his chin. "Well, now… I think we've reached the point where we can see how Murphy's murder may tie into all this."
"Yeah, I agree," Mari added, nodding along. "It's nearly certain that the blackened had gone there at some point."
"Then... Hikari could've killed Murphy as well," Sorao said plainly while frowning.
The others gasped as they glared at Hikari once more.
"I-I can't believe it... I can't believe Lady Hikari would do such a thing!" Kumi said.
"I can't believe it as well!" Arashi said, clutching his head. "I mean, I already find it hard to believe that Hikari would kill anyone... but to kill another as well?! That's totally unlike the Hikari we all know!"
"Still... you can't really deny the possibility, can you?" Sorao said, raising his head a tad bit. "And besides... who's to say Hikari wouldn't go to such lengths? We hardly know anything about her, after all."
Many of the others looked astoundedly at one another for a few seconds as they began to talk about Murphy and the possibility that the same killer had taken his life as well. Judging by their voices, Masashi sensed that nearly everyone was seriously thinking about Hikari as a suspect of his murder. The only ones who seemed skeptical of this were Mari, Faye, and Tanjiro, the last of whom, however, seemed more focused on Sayua, who looked as haughty as usual.
"H-How could you... How could you say such a thing..."
Though Hikari sounded shaken and nervous as usual, there was also a mix of shock and sorrow in her voice, her eyes welling with tears.
"I-I'd never lay a hand on Murphy... He was one of the few who understood me..." Hikari said, choking up. "He never judged me for who I was... He simply saw me as someone like him... I didn't know him all too well, yet I... I wanted to learn more about him. It was the first time that I had felt such a feeling... It's the same feeling that you guys feel whenever you have someone you hold dear... isn't it?"
It was then that more than a few tears began to fall from her eyes.
"And now... he's gone from this world..." she continued as she wiped the tears away with her kimono's sleeves. "I'll never have the chance to look him in the face and talk with him once more..."
"Hikari..." Masashi said as he and a few others looked at her with sorrowful gazes. "I... I'm sorry that we're all in this situation now. If I'd been more diligent, then Murphy wouldn't have died..."
"Yeah... It's difficult to lose someone dear to you," Tanjiro said, his tone much softer than usual. "I understand how difficult it must be for you now..."
"All right, all right, I get it... It's tough, I know," Sorao said, now showing a more sorrowful look in his face as he put his hands in his pockets. "Sorry for putting it that way... but I was only looking at the facts, you know. I couldn't help but raise the possibility."
"Well, you shouldn't get carried away, Sorao!" Faye said, raising her hand in objection. "I can see why Sister Hikari's killer must've gone to the staff lounge at some point, but it doesn't necessarily mean that the same person killed Murphy!"
"So you're saying it was only a coincidence that Murphy was killed?" Sayua snorted. "If you ask me, Murphy's killer and the nun's killer are one and the same!"
"Oh? And what grounds do you make that claim?" Haruyuki asked, staring rather intensely at the cheerleader. "Do you, perhaps, have another piece of evidence that you have kept hidden from us?"
Sayua scoffed as she raised her head. "Nah, nothing like that. It's only what my gut feeling says, that's all!"
"I see..." Haruyuki said with a more subdued tone, though his glare was no less cold. "What a rather... rudimentary response..."
Hmm? Why does he sound rather... displeased? Masashi thought. Was he expecting to hear something else?
"Anyway, the question is: when did the killer go to the lounge?" Mari asked. "Once we resolve this, we can see whether Murphy's murder is truly related to this."
Nonstop Debate
"It's reasonable to think that the killer took the music player before Murphy's attack," Maiha began.
"Well, it explains why Hikari would have continued her plan after Murphy had been attacked," Sorao said. "She simply didn't know that someone else had attacked him afterwards."
"She certainly had an opportunity to steal the music player," Haruyuki said. "Isn't that right, Faye?"
"Yeah, when I told her to go out to give Arashi some snacks and get some sugar from the kitchen…" Faye said reluctantly. "She was all by herself for a while."
"Then Hikari entered the lounge while Murphy was playing his game, I suppose..." Tanjiro said, sounding greatly unsure of himself.
"And she found the music player in the closet and took it out," Maiha said.
"That sounds about right," Sorao said.
Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Murphy's Last Words
No, that's wrong!
"No, I don't think Hikari entered the lounge at that time," Masashi said. "After all, Murphy himself said so."
"H-He did? He truly said such a thing?" Hikari asked, eyeing him with astonishment.
"Yeah… Before he passed away from us, he managed to tell us a few details about what he saw," Masashi answered. "According to him, he didn't see anyone enter the lounge while he was in the lounge."
"I-I… I was only playing my game… as part of the special event..." Murphy said, his voice choking. "Then just as the next level started… I… was hit… from behind."
"Do you know who did it?" Mari asked, looking at him with a grave expression.
"N-No… The attacker… left as soon as they attacked me," he answered. "But… it doesn't make sense… no one entered the room… Then… maybe… was it when I left to go to the restroom? But… still… why... why me?"
"Then… Hikari couldn't have gone to the closet and taken the music player!" Tanjiro said, wide-eyed.
"Yeah, that's what it looks like to me!" Kasumi added.
"A-At least you have some sense, despite your awful profession..." Hikari mumbled.
"Hmph. Wretched thief, don't be so quick to dismiss her as the main suspect," Maiha said. "In light of this, we must ask ourselves: how did the killer get into the closet in the first place?"
"Shall we not go with a simple answer?" Haruyuki added, sounding more skeptical than usual. "Is it not at all possible that Hikari simply sneaked into the room without Murphy's noticing? It's not as if he had kept constant watch on the door, yes? He was busy playing his game."
"Oh, that's right!" Arashi said. "Now that I think about it, the possibility doesn't sound unlikely at all!"
"Yeah, even a twerp like her can open a door quietly and tiptoe her way through!" Sayua added.
"L-Like I said… I did no such thing," Hikari said weakly.
"Hikari... I think you should speak more loudly if you want us to believe you," Mari said. "It's hard for us to believe in you if you don't even appear to believe in yourself."
"B-But... I..."
Hikari hung her head down, murmuring the rest of her words.
I really wish I could take the time to cheer Hikari up... but right now, I need to think things through once more! Masashi thought. Come on, Masashi, think! Is there a flaw in Haruyuki's theory? What would have stopped the killer from sneaking in and out of the room?
Hangman's Gambit
Question: What would have given the killer away in an attempt to sneak out of the room with the music player?
?-?-?-? ?-?-?-?-?
Murphy was sitting at his machine, playing his game, so his gaze wouldn't be on the door or the closet.
D-?-?-? ?-?-?-?-?
The killer definitely had to go through the door to get to the lounge. There are no hidden doors involved.
D-O-?-? ?-?-?-?-?
Wait… maybe Murphy would've noticed it if the killer had opened the door.
D-O-O-R ?-?-?-?-?
Then maybe the door had a certain aspect that would've made Murphy turn his head and notice the killer.
D-O-O-R C-R-?-?-?
That's right! The door to the staff lounge always lets out a loud creak whenever it's opened!
D-O-O-R C-R-E-A-K
And I'm pretty sure there's no way Murphy wouldn't have heard the sound, even though he was so focused on his game!
DOOR CREAK
"That's it!" Masashi cried out, which got everyone to look at him with astounded eyes. "I'm sure that the killer couldn't have sneaked in and out of the room! After all, the lounge's door would've given them away!"
"What…? The door?" Haruyuki said, looking more astonished. "Whatever do you mean?"
"There's one particular aspect about the door, and I'd noticed it a few times before," Masashi answered. "Whenever I open the door, it lets out a loud creak."
"Oh! I get what you're saying!" Sayua replied. "I remember that one time when you came into the room while I was playing my game! You definitely made me look at you with that annoying noise!"
"Then there's no doubt that Murphy must have heard that same sound if the killer had entered through the door," Mari said, raising a finger. "However loud the sound from Murphy's game might be, he still would've heard it."
"Then… no matter how quiet the killer might have been," Kumi added, his voice shaky, "the sound would've destroyed their chances of not being noticed… right?"
"Hmph. I'm glad to see that even a fool like you can understand it," Maiha said, giving him a condescending look.
"Oh… I suppose my theory was incorrect all along," Haruyuki said, his voice growing quieter.
Sorao smiled cheekily as he glanced at the man. "Why, that's not like you, Haruyuki. You're a pretty smart guy, no doubt about that, so I simply can't believe you've messed up on the killer's movements not once but twice!"
"Eh, you can hardly blame him!" Kasumi added. "I mean, there are so many details in this case, if you ask me! So it wasn't too surprising that he should be a little confused in his reasoning!"
Haruyuki then let out a slightly wide smile as he nodded his head once. "Yes... it was but a mere lapse in reasoning. I've seldom gone to the staff lounge, so I neglected to account for the noise produced by the door."
"In any case, I think we can all agree that the killer couldn't have sneaked into the room at any time!" Arashi said. "Murphy would've noticed it if someone had opened the door!"
"Actually… there was one opportunity when the killer could have gone into the lounge without his noticing," Mari said. "Murphy's last words have proven to be much more helpful than he intended them to be. I believe he mentioned having gone to the restroom at one point."
"If that's the case, then there must've been a small timespan in which the killer could've sneaked into the lounge!" Faye said.
"Well, it's not so much sneaking as it was openly walking into an empty room, Miss Nirigiri!" Arashi said, brimming with confidence.
"Either way, it perfectly explains Murphy's statement of having never seen anyone enter the room," Sorao said.
"All right then... so what?"
It was Sayua, who looked bored as she let out a small yawn and covered her mouth with her hand.
"What?" Masashi said. "What do you mean?"
"All you've proven is that the twerp didn't go into the room while Murphy was playing his game," she answered haughtily as she raised her finger. "And what if she didn't? All it means is that she went into the lounge while Murphy was in the restroom!"
Arashi gasped as he lurched back. "Th-That's right! In that short timespan, Hikari simply headed to the lounge, found the music player in the closet, and strode out of there!"
"And… Hikari was alone for quite a while," Faye added, grimacing.
Haruyuki chuckled as he opened up his arms. "In the end… we arrive at the same conclusion: no one else but Hikari could be the blackened."
"N-No… That's not true…" Hikari mumbled. "B-But… you're never going to believe whatever I say, anyway…"
But as the others murmured in agreement of her guilt, Masashi stayed silent, wondering whether the class had missed something. He admitted that the arguments against Hikari looked persuasive, but much as he wanted things to be over already, he would not want to rush off toward his demise in haste.
Is there anything that shows that the killer, whoever it may be, couldn't have left the lounge before Murphy had gone back there? Masashi thought. Is there anything at all?
Hello, everyone, and Happy New Year! I can't believe it's now 2021! It almost feels as if I had only started this story a short while ago! Can you believe we're already at this part of the story? We sure have come a long way since this began, haven't we? To think, there are now only twelve survivors remaining, and who knows how many more will have been killed off by the end?
Anyway, what are your guys' theories on what happened in this case? Which character do you think is the blackened? I'm looking forward to hearing your guys' thoughts!
