Before Masashi ended the meeting, he remembered what Monokuma had mentioned to him yesterday. Besides all the talk about Mari and destiny, Monokuma had mentioned a new fact about this killing game. Wondering about the others' speculation, he mentioned it to them.
"How intriguing…" Maiha said. "So this 'Project Shining Morrow', of which we apparently are participants… it is about creating an ideal world?"
"That certainly sounds ominous," Haruyuki said. "As we said a while ago, it certainly sounds as if this project is not done out of pure sadism. Instead, it seems to be a horrible attempt at realizing a visionary's ideals."
"Not to mention that a bunch of elites are funding this, apparently," Faye said.
"Ah, yes, that's right," Sorao said. "Elites… Someone like you, yes, Maiha?"
Maiha shot him a glare. "Now I remember. After you discovered that document about the mastermind, you tried to accuse me of being the mastermind! And you had the audacity to suggest that I be locked up!"
Sorao chuckled as he shrugged. "Since we're on the subject, I guess there's no point in hiding it any further. If truth be told... I never actually thought for sure that you were the mastermind."
"Is that so?" Maiha said crossly, the wrath in her voice growing. "Then what made you entertain the idea of imprisoning me?!"
"See, I wanted to find a way to get rid of you," he answered glibly. "I figured that if the others thought that you were the mastermind, they would lock you up. Even if you were not the mastermind, I figured that the real mastermind would choose not to do anything. That way, the paranoia among us would rise, and they would soon reason: nothing has happened ever since we locked her up, so she must be the mastermind! What do you think would have happened next?"
"I imagine that the most paranoid of us," Haruyuki answered, "would have reasoned that to end the killing game, one must simply kill Maiha, the supposed mastermind."
"Exactly!" Sorao answered. "Maiha would have been killed. If she had been the real mastermind, then the game would have ended. And if she had not been so, then that would've been one less nuisance and fewer obstacles to take care of. Either way, that would've been the end of her."
"You wretched rogue!" Maiha scowled at the man. "You dared to plot my demise! Why, if I had a staff with me, I'd beat you so many times that you would not even be able to cry for mercy!"
"But you remember the new rule, yes? We are allowed to lock up those who prove to be a physical threat," Haruyuki calmly reminded her.
"It's such a shame… That would've been an interesting scenario, would it not?" Sorao continued. "Too bad Masashi shot down my idea of locking her up, and things ended up this way."
I can't believe it… Masashi thought. Even a few minutes after reading that document, Sorao had already come up with a scheme to advance the killing game…
Masashi then remembered that it had been Mari who had come up with the idea of approaching Maiha to get her cooperation. He had thought it to be a good idea at the time, finding it tiresome to deal with Maiha. And now, with the revelation that Sorao's idea would have led to Maiha's death, he could hardly believe that he had unwittingly averted another deadly outcome.
"By the way," Sorao said, "even though my accusation toward Maiha was nothing more than an attempt to have her killed… it doesn't really prove me wrong."
"Huh?" Kasumi said.
"It's never been proven that she's not the mastermind. For all we know… maybe she is the one behind it all, and my accusation would've been accidentally correct."
Maiha deepened her scowl. "It's ridiculous that I must say it once more, but I have nothing to do with Brightmere Research."
"Of course, of course, I won't say any more on the matter," Sorao said as he smiled snidely. "Still… it's something that I suggest that you guys should think about: which one of us is the mastermind? The killing game is still going on, so the mastermind must be alive. Someone here is lying."
His statement made a few of the others look at one another with some skepticism and fear. Loath as Masashi was to admit it, for once, Sorao's lips had uttered no untruths.
"Well, I'll leave the identity of the mastermind for you to uncover. It's not something that particularly concerns me right now," Sorao said. "Now, let's move on already. I'm sure you don't want to spend the rest of the day conversing with me, yes?"
"You've got that right!" Sayua said. "I can't believe it… You… Why are you still alive, when Tanjiro had to die?!"
Sayua then stormed off to the passageway leading up to the main deck.
"Sheesh, that's what I call a shrew," Sorao remarked casually. "Since she's out, which of you wants to watch over me?"
"I will," Masashi answered at once.
Sorao let out a small gasp with widened eyes. "Why, now, I'm surprised. I thought for sure you want to stay away from me after everything that's happened."
"Are you sure about this, Masashi?" Kasumi asked. "I mean, I can do it if you want!"
"As will I. He shall not misbehave under my watch," Maiha said with a stern frown.
"I'm sure," Masashi said. He had his own reasons for wanting to talk with him. "I can switch with someone later if it's needed."
"What about Takumi?" Maiha asked. "Shall someone watch him?"
"I shall, if I may," Haruyuki said, raising a hand.
"Wow, really?" Kasumi asked.
He nodded. "I figure that I shall be called upon sooner or later, so I may as well get it out of the way."
Maiha narrowed her eyes on him. "You realize that this is not a one-off commitment, yes? You will be called upon more than once."
"I beg your pardon?" Haruyuki said, suddenly looking more hesitant.
"Were each of us to do it only once, we should soon run out of people to watch him, of course."
"Hmm, knowing that, I believe it changes the circumstances a little, so—"
"Too late, man!" Sorao answered mirthfully. "Or do you want the ladies to think you can't uphold your word? I can assure you, women don't like that kind of thing."
"You're in no position to say what women like," Faye said sharply.
Sorao clicked his tongue. "My many fangirls would say otherwise."
Haruyuki let out a small annoyed groan. "I... suppose that I've already given my word, so I'll stick to this responsibility, however tiresome it may be."
No one raised any objections to these arrangements, and in a few seconds, the others hurried out of the dining room, clearly not wanting to do anything more with the wretch whom Masashi had to deal with.
"Say, Masashi," Sorao said, "could we go out that way?"
He pointed to the dining room's other passageway, which led to the lower decks and the participants' living quarters.
"There's something I want to check out," he explained. "Don't worry, it's nothing nefarious, I assure you. Not that I could do anything even if I wanted."
Masashi reluctantly agreed to the request, wondering what he was going on about. The two left through the door, and just as they reached the staircase heading down to the lower decks, Sorao walked past it and headed to the end of the hallway instead. At the end was a great door that was bound by a great golden lock. Masashi had to recall what he knew about the door; sometime after the second class trial, Kasumi had shown him the door, telling him her suspicion that if they found a way to open the door, their chances of escape would rise.
"You've not found a way to open the door, have you?" Sorao asked, tapping the lock. He opened the slot on the lock in which the hidden keypad was located.
"No," Masashi answered. "Don't tell me you know the password."
"Either answer would make you angry, so… yes, I do," Sorao said. "But in all seriousness, I don't know a thing about it."
Masashi looked into Sorao's eyes. Surprisingly, he found nothing untruthful. Could he be telling the truth, or was he getting better at lying?
"Monokuma wouldn't tell me a thing about it," Sorao continued. "I don't think I need to say that whatever is behind the door may very well be important. It's too bad that not even I can get Monokuma to reveal it.
"Enough talk about the door, though," Sorao said as he set his hands on his hips. "Go ahead and ask."
"Ask what?"
"You were very keen to watch over me like a hawk. I'm sure that you're dying to ask me a thing or two," he said, unperturbed by Masashi's stare as he leaned closer to Masashi. "Well, go on. Get it out of the way."
Sorao was right. That was the reason why he had volunteered in the first place. But if truth were told, now that the chance had presented itself, he could not find the words to utter. There was simply so much to say that he did not know where to begin. But eventually, one question sprang into mind. It was the one question that was the root of it all.
"Why…? Why do you… lie?"
Sorao said nothing for a few seconds.
"When we first met," he asked, "what was I to you?"
"You... You seemed kind," Masashi answered. "You even complimented me on my 'talent' of being the Ultimate Lucky Student. And later on, you tried to be helpful, even if you came off as off at times. You'd have made a good friend."
Sorao chuckled. "Did I come off that to you, really? I'm flattered, really. In fact, that's what most people think of me after a while. But what about now?"
Masashi glared at him. "You're awful."
"That's a clear enough answer," Sorao said, snapping his fingers. "Evidently, you liked the persona that I presented beforehand. It was the persona that made you happy… and most people as well. There is one key thing about the world, Masashi, and it is something to heed: it is the surface appearance that people care about most."
"Surface appearance?"
"Yes. Whenever people see something bad happening between two people, they immediately lay blame on the one who appears to be the wrongdoer," Sorao said. "It's only natural. We humans have survived by following our instincts. If we see something dangerous, we assume that it is dangerous, even if it is not.
"Likewise, what's most important in an action is the effect, not the intention," he continued. "That's because the effect is most apparent, for we cannot read minds. So the same act done by two people has the same effect on people, even if the two are radically different. It does not matter if the one who does something is a 'villain'. Good deeds are good deeds, and bad deeds are bad deeds, regardless of who does them.
"And that's why I constructed this persona in the first place. People do not particularly care to see me like this. They just want a pretty face with a wonderful and winsome personality. All I'm doing is using my persona, my 'mask', to give the people what they want."
"But that's... I can't believe it... Lying this much about yourself for others' benefit.. Why do you have to lie in the first place? Why can't your true self just be… like what you pretended to be?"
Sorao glanced to the side for a second. This moment of doubt was quite unlike him, so Masashi saw it as a genuine showing of uncertainty.
"If truth be told, even I'm not quite sure why things have to be this way. Is there something inborn that makes me this way?" He shrugged his shoulders. "And more importantly… does it matter? Either way, I'll gladly act the same way. I will continue to lie to those empty human beings."
"'Empty'?"
"'Empty' is the best label that I can give them. I have found that most people have hardly any original thoughts or ambitions, and they simply yearn to live life as it is, not wanting to rock the boat. They yearn for peace first and foremost. Because of this, they have rather simplistic personalities and average intelligence. They're what you may call 'normal', but they're all mindless sheep."
Masashi could not believe what he was hearing. Despite having been delivered with a blithe tone, his words were filled with so much arrogance toward the normal folk.
"Then why?" he asked. "Why do you want to be around people you hate?"
"'Hate'? You're sorely mistaken," he said, smirking. "I don't hate empty human beings. In fact, I'm fond of them, even."
"I don't understand."
"They may be stupid, but even stupid people deserve happiness," he replied laxly. "They think that I am special for my good deeds. So they love me for what I do for them… and I love them for what they do for me. That's a healthy relationship. Understand now?"
"Just what do you do in the first place to 'help'?"
"Well, the usual, of course: offering to take over duties, offering my assistance to my classmates, being ever so friendly with my teachers," Sorao answered. "But of course, what sets me apart from all the other golden boys is that I am the Ultimate Celesta Player. You may find it hard to believe, but my musical pieces have sold splendidly and uplifted millions of people who have had the pleasure to listen to it."
"I... I don't believe you."
"You can ask my manager, then," Sorao said haughtily. "In any case, people love me, and I love them in return. That's why I work for happiness of the many."
Masashi had nothing to say to him. Though every word of his reasoning could be understood, yet when Masashi put it all together, he found it oddly warped. It was not clear evil, the kind that he might expect a traditional villain in some classical story would spout; indeed, it perturbed him more that it bore the guise of good. And from Sorao's tone, it seemed that he truly believed that what he had done was for 'happiness' of the many.
"And I guess that you're not so helpful toward those who… threaten you."
Sorao scoffed, looking down at his right hand. "I don't care much about the other golden boys as long as they don't threaten me. But those who get in my way shall get what they deserve. Tanjiro was one of them. He was always so persistent about my having done something wrong. He was an annoyance back then, but once it became apparent that this killing game was real, he became a threat! He knew one too many of my secrets! That's why he had to be eliminated sooner or later."
"You... You're an awful human being," Masashi responded, though knowing that his words fell upon deaf ears. "You care about your persona most of all... you'd hurt anyone to maintain your image."
"Oh, come now, I'm no monster that kills indiscriminately," Sorao responded, waving dismissively at him. "Take my dear mother, for example... I dread to think what would happen, were she to discover this. She's my family, my irreplacable family. I don't think I would have it in me to kill her... and I wouldn't know what to think of myself if I were to do anything cruel to her."
"So one limit to your cruelty is family?"
"I suppose so, though I've only had my mother as family," he answered. "To kill one's own flesh and blood... it's an evil that even I cannot bear."
"You shouldn't even bear taking a life in the first place."
"And as I have said already: what you think of me means nothing," Sorao responded haughtily. "Now, are we through? I'm tired of talking about this."
"Yeah... No more questions."
Masashi saw no more purpose in talking with Sorao. He had already heard enough from him.
Until the sun set, Sorao and Masashi spent the day wandering around the amusement park and doing nothing insightful in particular. Even when Masashi agreed to waste his time playing some games in the arcade with Sorao, he felt nothing, not even from his victories. By the time evening came, Masashi had grown tired in more ways than one.
"What a day," Sorao said plainly as they made their way to the cafeteria in the space station. "Are you not tired of this whole routine of watching me?"
Masashi gave no answer.
"Hmph, the silent treatment, I see," he replied. "How rude. You were more talkative beforehand. What happened to you?"
He ignored the question. There was no need to give him an answer.
When the two entered the Mars Cafeteria, all the others, who had already come, grew silent, their expressions sullen upon Sorao's presence, who responded back with a small grin. The two sat at a separate table, and not long after, dinner was served, and very little chatter broke out among the remaining participants. Masashi found it unsurprising that dining alongside a killer and an attempted killer would dampen the mood. The only notable thing that Masashi noticed was that Takumi kept looking back and forth with a sullen expression, and Sayua was glaring at Takumi and Sorao.
After everyone was done with dinner, Maiha stood up from her seat.
"I think it's about time that the ones watching the two cretins had a little spell," she said. "For tonight, I wish to volunteer to be Sorao Mineta's guard."
Sorao smirked. "You plan to watch over me as I sleep, then?"
"If I must," she replied, shooting him an unfriendly glare. "You cannot be trusted to be by yourself, even at night. The same goes for Takumi Takumitsu, of course."
"And why the sudden interest?"
"Because someone has to do it, and it's quite too much to expect Masashi to watch over you the whole time," she answered. "And I'm more than willing to act as the guard."
"Ooh, then let me guard Kumi tonight!" Kasumi said. "In fact, I'm more than willing to take over night duty from now on!"
"Are you sure about that, Kasumi?" Haruyuki asked with some concern.
"Don't worry about it! I'm pretty used to staying up late at night, so I don't mind it at all."
Maiha waved her hand dismissively. "Yes, yes, go ahead and look after the pitiful fool, so that I may not have to."
"Well, what now?" Faye said. "What are we going to do now?"
"Whatever do you mean?"
"I mean our situation," she answered. "We're still stuck out here, trapped in this killing game. Any ideas, anyone?"
"We still have some of Arashi's fireworks, I believe," Haruyuki said. "Do you plan to continue lighting them so that a nearby ship may notice them?"
"Perhaps, but…" Maiha clicked her tongue, lowering her eyes. "I must admit, the more time passes, the less faith I have in it."
"It's pretty striking that even after this long in the killing game, no one's noticed us, it looks like," Sorao remarked. "If you ask me, Brightmere Research has probably done something to make sure this killing game shouldn't be interrupted."
"L-Like what?" Takumi asked.
"Who knows? But if Brightmere Research could somehow kidnap eighteen of us, there's no telling what resources it may have at hand," Sorao answered. "The only way for this killing game to end for certain is…"
"By killing. The very same thing you tried to do!" Maiha finished for him.
"Yeah, yeah, done pointing that out already? Who does not know it at this point?" Sorao said. "But hear me out on this, will you? I've been wondering about something. According to what Monokuma told Masashi, the purpose of Project Shining Morrow is to create an ideal world. But think about it: how exactly does this killing game help with that?"
"Indeed, it is a mystery," Haruyuki said contemplatively. "It would be one thing if this were meant to be twisted entertainment full of bloodshed. That would mean that the main purpose of the killing game would be observing the violence."
"But that doesn't align at all with what I think of when I hear 'ideal world'," Faye said. "I think of things like peace and harmony and lack of violence."
"Exactly. The killing appears to be against what an 'ideal world' features," Haruyuki replied. "Thus, another possibility has risen in my mind: what if we are the purpose behind this?"
For a brief moment, no one said a word, as if taking in the possibility. Quickly, however, Sorao broke the silence.
"Huh… Intriguing," he said. "So we're what Brightmere Research wants? Care to explain?"
"I believe that the violence of this killing game is only a means, not the end," Haruyuki explained. "Brightmere Research wants the ones who will have survived the killing game. In other words, it has plans for the fortunate few who survive."
"So to put it simply… we're the product of some scheme?" Faye said, grimacing.
"That's so unbelievable!" Takumi said, looking a bit pale as he hugged his teddy bear pathetically. "It's so hard to accept... Just why?"
"Well, maybe the survivors will play some role in this 'ideal world'," Sorao suggested, also looking quite uneasy.
"Possibly. But I don't see how killing was felt to be necessary as part of the process," Maiha said.
"This is all speculation in the end, anyway, right?" Kasumi said. "We don't even have any proof that Monokuma is telling us the truth about this whole Project Shining Morrow thing, do we?"
"True… I suppose this whole discussion is merely moot," Maiha said, sounding frustrated.
"In the end, even if we know the reason behind this," Sorao said, "what can we even do about it? Nothing, that's what. In the end, the killing will continue, and you know it."
Discussion about the purposes of the killing game went nowhere, so everyone grew tired and agreed to stop. All departed from the Mars Cafeteria, and Masashi wandered around the space station. Though he was no longer burdened with the duty to look after Sorao, he felt no desire to do anything, even with the many options of entertainment offered in this strange amusement park.
After a while, he decided to go to the Neptune Clubroom at the uppermost deck. After climbing a long flight of stairs, he opened the door and saw three people standing at the opposite side of the room, on which side there was a telescope beside the window.
"Ah, Masashi." It was Haruyuki, who was alongside Kasumi and Takumi. "I did not expect to see you so soon. Is there something that you wish to inquire about?"
"No, not really," he answered. "I just wanted to see what everyone was up to."
"Well, we're stargazing!" Kasumi answered, who was leaning by the telescope. "I've spotted a few constellations."
"Um, Lady Kasumi?" Takumi asked softly. "M-May I see?"
"Oh, sure, go ahead!" she answered as she moved out of the way. Takumi then peered through the telescope.
"Ah… I think I see… something," he said. "It looks like… a group of bright blue stars. What's it called?"
"I'm pretty sure it's the Southern Pleiades! See any more?"
"Mmm… not really." Takumi then backed off from the telescope. "Those stars… They were pretty to look at. Thank you, Lady Kasumi."
"Ah, no need for thanks! Not like I'm the one who put those stars there," she replied.
"Say, Kasumi, there's been one thing that I've been wondering about," Haruyuki said. "You seem… not at all hostile toward Takumi, unlike the others. Is there a reason for that?"
Kasumi paused for a few seconds, looking a bit pensive. "Well… it's just that… when I first heard about why Kumi tricked Hikari into signing his contract and tried to kill Sorao… I couldn't help but feel disgusted. He wanted Hikari in order to see his two 'special darlings'... But afterwards, I realized who they were."
It was then that Takumi's face grew pale. After all, she had figured out his secret.
"L-Lady Kasumi…" he mumbled. "You… You know?"
"Yeah. Pretty sure I've figured it out," she answered. "You don't mind if I share it, right?"
For a few seconds, Takumi stayed silent, looking quite hesitant. But in the end, he gave a small nod. "I guess if you're the one saying it… it's okay."
"Glad to hear that," she replied. "So, um… Kumi… you lost your parents, didn't you?"
"Th-That's right… My mother and father… they're… gone."
Though letting out a small gasp, Haruyuki looked little surprised. "I see…"
"But why does that make you feel sorry for him?" Masashi asked quietly.
Kasumi paused for a second. "Let's just say… I can relate with him."
This time, Haruyuki turned more surprised. "Then I take it that you've also lost your mother and father?"
She nodded. "It was a long time ago… I don't remember much of them, but I remember that my mother worked as a stage magician, and my father as a sailor. And it was her who taught me a few sleights of hand and how to keep a straight face during performances. My parents, my newborn little brother, and I… we were a simple family."
"Interesting…" Haruyuki said. "What caused you to part from them?"
"Well… from what I can recall, my family went sailing, and one night, I found it hard to fall asleep. So I thought of going outside to stare at nearby fish, and I leaned on the railing." It was then that her face grew quite gloomy. "But I was careless... I slipped and fell into the sea, and the waves quickly separated me from the boat. I even screamed out for help, but since the sea happened to grow louder, my parents couldn't hear me! The boat was moving away from me, and with no one to help me, I nearly drowned!"
"Oh my…" Haruyuki said, his mouth hung open. "I… I can't imagine it was pleasant for you to remember all that."
"But, Lady Kasumi, what happened next?" Takumi asked. "You're still alive, so someone must've rescued you, right?"
She nodded. "It was a miracle, really. A certain man was sailing through. He was a thief making a getaway on a boat, and he rescued me without a moment's hesitation."
"A… thief?" Takumi said. "Wait… is that why you're…?"
"Pretty much. In the end, it was that man who led me on this path of being the Ultimate Phantom Thief," she answered. "After he rescued me, he took me in as if I were his own daughter and taught me even more tricks of the trade."
"But what about your parents?"
She sighed with a perturbed expression. "It's the oddest thing, really. My parents and my younger brother… after that fateful day, they suddenly… disappeared. No one's seen a trace of them since then. And even with his connections, my adoptive father couldn't find them. It's as if they'd been whisked away from the earth."
"I… see…" Haruyuki said. "I suppose… that you miss them, yes?"
"Of course I do," she answered. "In fact, it's been my goal all these years to look for them. Their disappearance can't have been natural. Something must've happened to them. That's why I sometimes go out and snoop around for any possible information."
"Oh… Lady Kasumi, I can't believe that happened to you!" Takumi said. "It really must be sad to be without your family!"
"Well… I have my adoptive father and his son, my adoptive little brother, as my family now. And yet…" Kasumi said, her lips quivering. "Even they've been captured by Brightmere Research somehow… They're the ones who were on my video as part of the first motive."
Takumi whimpered. "That's pretty unlucky of you… It'd be really sad if you lost them as well. I… I don't like the feeling of having no family as well. I have my pals back at the orphanage, but even then, it's just not the same…"
"Aw… Kumi, that's so sad…" Kasumi said.
For a few seconds, neither of them said anything, as if silently grieving together over their misfortunes. Masashi dared not to say anything as well, and meanwhile, Haruyuki watched them with a gripped and slightly moved expression. Eventually, Takumi broke the silence.
"Well, Lady Kasumi… um… thank you."
"Huh? For what?"
"Um, for… opening up like that. I know it must've been hard for you to talk about your past like that. To remember the feeling of having no family… I'm sorry if it caused you any pain."
"Oh, no, no, please don't think that! Sad as it was, those are simply memories that drive me. They can't actually hurt me, so don't worry about it!"
"It is good to hear that," Haruyuki said. "I must say, I did not expect you to talk about your past, but it is a good thing that you did."
"You really think so?"
"Quite. I'm... glad that you've opened up," he answered softly. "You feel the same way, yes, Masashi?"
"Oh, right… yes."
As Masashi watched the three of them talk more, his mind was filled with thoughts of his own family. He had memories of them, but the more the killing game had gone on, the fainter they had grown. It had been quite a while since he had last thought long and hard about them.
He recalled one memory in which his mother and his father had taken him and Keiko during summer break, a few weeks before Keiko's sixth birthday. The great lake was clean and still, as if it had been undisturbed by mankind all these centuries, but such an illusion was broken once groups of people sailed out through the lake in their rented rowboats. He and his family, too, were one of them, and as they sailed through the lake, Masashi trembled a bit, staying close to his mother. For some reason, he had no confidence in the boat's steadfastness and so feared that it might tip over, and when he saw some fish swimming by, he yelped, thinking that they might hit the boat. In the end, nothing bad had happened, and his father merrily chuckled at his needless fright on the way back home.
It had been a silly experience, but one in which peace ultimately won the day. He had felt not at all bitter but glad about that time with his kin.
Mother… Father…
Where were they? Had Brightmere Research taken them as well? On the one hand, they had not appeared in his motive video, which had shown Keiko only, but on the other hand…
No…
Something bad had happened to them.
If Brightmere Research had managed to abduct his younger sister, then the safety of his parents could not be assumed.
He had no reason to hope otherwise.
The more the truth rang its bells in his mind, the more the image of his normal life fleeted away from him. However much he reached out to it, it escaped him. Eventually, he saw no point in chasing it any further. It was pointless to chase after it.
"Uh, Masashi?" Kasumi said. "Are you all right?"
"Huh?" he said.
"You've been staring off at the distance for quite a while," Haruyuki said. "What are you thinking about?"
"Oh, nothing in particular…" he answered half-heartedly. "I… I need some fresh air."
He bade the three a hasty goodbye and left the clubroom, ignoring their bemusement. He headed downstairs to the theater room, wondering whether there might be anything being shown.
When he stepped inside, he saw three figures standing in the lobby by the door to the auditorium. It was Maiha, Faye, and Sorao.
"Masashi? Is something the matter?" Maiha asked.
"Why do you ask?" he said.
"You appear somewhat fatigued," she answered.
"He didn't really enjoy spending time with me, I bet," Sorao answered haughtily. "Well, it's not my fault that he couldn't find any enjoyment from my company."
"Can't blame him for that," Faye said bitterly. "I should've known… I should've known from the start that you're an evil, wretched, and loathsome man."
Sorao sneered. "Coming from you, that's rich. After all, despite how friendly you may try to come off as, you're no better than I."
"What?!"
"Remember, it was I who tricked stupid old Takumi to criticize your cooking," he bragged. "And it was I who had sent you that note about Takumi's secret… the truth behind his hallucination. His sleep disorder."
Faye grimaced, clearly looking ashamed.
"I knew that you would use that secret against him," he continued smarmily. "That's because despite what you may want us to think… you're nothing more than a little insecure woman."
"B-Be quiet!"
"Deep down, you think of yourself as an imposter," he said. "You know full well that you're undeserving of the title of Ultimate Patissier. That's why Takumi's comment hurt so much, didn't it?"
Faye said nothing, but the trembling of her lips answered in her stead.
Sorao scoffed. "I knew it. I sensed that aura of insecurity from you… which is why I thought to use it against you. And my, oh my, did it shock that idiot enough to make him want to get out of this killing game! For someone with the title of Ultimate Patissier, you are nothing but an utter disappointment—"
"Enough."
Sorao stopped at once upon hearing that bidding voice, which came from Maiha.
"You shall be silent," she said. "I've grown quite tired of hearing your mindless blathering."
"Maiha?" Faye said.
"Oh, what's this now?" Sorao replied, looking somewhat annoyed. "Are you saying that I'm wrong about her? You saw it for yourself! How insecure she was!"
"That may be, but…" Maiha continued. "I truly think that she is mistaken in thinking that way."
Sorao said nothing, but frowned a small and annoyed frown.
"Not living up to the expectations of the Ultimate Patissier… that is nothing more than your opinion," she explained. "I believe that she's proven herself to be worthy of the title, which she has demonstrated several times with her cooking during our time here."
"Tch!" Sorao said, scowling. "Can you even hear yourself? You sound like a lame self-help book when you spew that kind of feel-good crap."
"All I'll say is that you've only sullied yourself with your foul speech," Maiha replied. "I'll not brook any more nonsense from you, so I bid you to silence yourself."
Staring at her in amazement for a few seconds, Sorao eventually sighed. "Looks like you won't listen to reason, then. Very well, then. I'll go on to the auditorium."
"For what?" Masashi asked.
"What, you don't know? Monokuma's begun showing a variety of movies every day at certain times. Tonight, he'll show Men in Black. Have you ever watched it? No? Well, I'm going on ahead for the previews. I'm sure they'll be better than this super sentimental schlock I'm suffering under."
Sorao then turned around and entered the auditorium, leaving the three of them alone.
"Maiha… Thank you," Faye said, still sounding incredulous as if doubting what she had just heard with her own ears. "I… I didn't expect you to stand up for me."
Maiha glanced to the side for a few seconds. "If truth be told… I too am surprised by this. I remember that when this killing game began, I saw you and most of the others as nothing more than fools. But as time went on, the more I partook of your meals, the more I began to see why the title of Ultimate Patissier was bestowed upon you in the first place. Thus, to hear that man slander you and your title… it was a good enough reason for objection, yes?"
Huh… so that's the reason, Masashi thought, observing how Maiha sounded quite a bit warm-hearted now, though somewhat stiff in her speech.
Faye smiled. "Well, I'm glad that you spoke against that awful man. Honestly, I don't know how I would've reacted if you hadn't been here."
Maiha smiled back. "It was nothing, I assure you."
Well… all's well that ends well, Masashi thought.
"Oh, yes… Masashi? Is there something that you want?" Maiha asked. "I've yet to hear the reason for your coming here."
"Ah… nothing, really," he answered. "I just wanted to see what you were up to, that's all."
"Rest assured, I will keep a close eye on Sorao. Even though he is in the auditorium by himself right now, the room is closed off, so he has nowhere to flee to," she replied.
"Good to hear, then."
Feeling a little tired, Masashi bade the two women goodbye and then left the theater room. Though thinking that he ought to go to bed, he felt like wandering around the amusement park some more and thus did so for a while, going back and forth between the five ships. Despite the varying imagery that the ships had, Masashi felt as if they all had been woven from the same tiresome tapestry, so he felt as if he had been wandering in circles instead.
Eventually, wishing to escape from all this, he headed to the woodland kingdom and walked all the way down to the living quarters. As soon as he arrived at the floor, however, he saw one particular person by the garden in the middle of the floor.
"Ah… Sayua."
Indeed, there she was, looking down at the flowers. But as Masashi approached her, he could see hardly any life in her eyes. Furthermore, she looked quite tired, as if she had struggled with sleeping, and her overall posture was somewhat slack.
"Oh… just you," she muttered after she turned her head toward him. "What d'ya want?"
If truth were told, Masashi had no idea on what to say to her. He had not seen her at all when he had been watching Sorao, whom he was sure that Sayua had been avoiding all day. And even during dinner, she had not said a word.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked.
"Nothing."
"Really?"
"What, you think I'm lying?"
"Does it matter what my answer is?"
Sayua frowned. "Whatever I'm thinking of is none of your business. That's my answer."
"Well, then…" Masashi stopped for a second. "What you're thinking about is... Tanjiro, isn't it?"
She said nothing, but now some life was returning to her eyes. For a second, Masashi had the thought to say something more. He wanted to know more about what she was feeling, even though he had a fairly good idea. But once that second passed, the idea came off as a waste of time.
"It's so sad, isn't it? So sad to have all those regrets!"
Monokuma popped up from underneath, which hardly made Masashi stir.
"Honestly, it's such a shame that youths like you have to die!" Monokuma continued, feigning sniffing. "Without you, who would fund my retirement? It's things like this that make me wonder whether this whole killing game was a good idea to begin with."
"Get out of here," Sayua said roughly, though her voice still lacked energy.
"Aww, don't be like that," he responded. "It's rude to be dismissive toward bears who bear gifts."
"What? 'Gift'?"
"Yes, usually, we clean out the rooms of the dead and move the belongings to one of our storage areas. It's all part of our efforts to go green since burning them would be bad for the environment or whatever," he explained. "We have already done the same for Tanjiro's room… but he left behind something that you may be interested in."
"What?" Sayua widened her eyes. "What is it? Give it to me!"
Monokuma then opened up the compartment in his chest and took out a small black book.
"As it turns out, throughout the killing game, in his private moments, Tanjiro would write in this little diary of his!" Monokuma said. "He got this from the shop, saying that it'd be good to keep a record in case it might prove useful."
"He never told me about that…" she replied.
"Well, duh, who wants to tell others about writing a diary? People just blog about their petty as hell problems nowadays," Monokuma answered mockingly. "Anyway… it began more or less as a boring record of what happened. The early entries were filled with his nauseating assurances that this killing game would end soon! Guess he also found it tiring since that went away as time went on."
"So the later entries changed in tone?" Masashi asked.
"Let's just say that he must've wised up, since after Arashi's execution, he realized that this killing game showed no signs of stopping," Monokuma said. "He began to write more and more introspective stuff. Lots of it is slop, to put my two cents in, but that's not the only thing he wrote."
"Huh?"
"He wrote quite a few things about his life such as his family," Monokuma said. "Really, if you think about it, it's a sloppy, incomplete summary of his life. Figured it'd go in the trash, but… it was decided that it'd be better to give it to you."
What? 'Was decided'? Masashi thought. What does that mean…?
Without saying a word, Sayua snatched the diary from Monokuma's paws.
"Take your time with it," Monokuma advised. "It's boring at first, but then it gets good around the end… Hmm, now that I think about it, who would want to read a book like that? If I had to try to sell this thing, I'd tell the buyer to read it in case he had insomnia."
"Whatever…" Sayua said, looking entranced at the book. "I'll… take a good look through it…"
She then turned around and walked to her door. As soon as she departed inside, Masashi thought to speak now.
"Monokuma… I have one question," he said.
"Oh? What is it? You wanna borrow some money or something?"
"No, nothing like that…" he replied. "I only want to know… whether Mari left anything behind."
"What, you expecting a diary or something from her as well?" Monokuma responded. "Well, tough luck, kiddo! There was nothing like that in her room! Nothing at all!"
"Oh…"
"Now are we done?" Monokuma said. "Don't think that I have all the time in the world to talk with you!"
"Yeah… I'm done."
Monokuma sank back into the ground, and so Masashi was left alone in the garden.
Nothing… She's left behind nothing… She's gone...
He glanced down at the garden with sunken eyes. All the blossoms were perfectly still, not stirring as if they had been frozen in time while the rest of the world moved on. He imagined that the blossoms and all the little critters that lived among them were in perfect harmony, and that was how this small world could run while keeping its beauty.
It was such a beautiful thing, that frozenness.
A small wind swept by, brushing some of the blossoms and disturbing the harmony. Feeling chilly, Masashi walked to his door and entered his room. He took a quick shower and then lay still in his bed, his head turned to the window, through which dim moonlight broke the darkness.
Hello, everyone! Sorry for the long wait, but I've been busy with other things in my life, and now, I've managed to finish this part!
Anyway, not too much happens in this chapter since it's meant to be build-up and set a few things up. It's mainly about Masashi learning more about Sorao and his worldview, as well as Masashi's current state of mind. Given this, I've found this chapter to be quite… gloomy. How long it will last remains to be seen...
Next time, a bit more exciting stuff will happen! I hope to see you soon!