Danganronpa: Corrupted Hope (SYOC)

by SilverMark16

Sixteen people wake up and find themselves in a large, abandoned prison facility with no answers as to why they're there. Instead, they're forced to play a dangerous game of Life and Death. A game known only as a Killing Game, hosted by a sinister man calling himself White Collar and his pet snake, Monohebi.

33. Sins of the Forsaken (Part 4)

Chapter 4: Sins of the Forsaken (Daily Life #4)

---

Warning: This fic contains intense violence, lots of cursing, character death, gore and blood, sexual innuendos (thanks Maggi- Wait. You're dead now. Meaning there are no sexual innuendos!... Maybe! Hooray!), and possible spoilers for the Danganronpa series, most notably the first one. But hey, everyone lurking in this fandom has at least played the first Danganronpa so no need to worry much there!

With that said, please enjoy!

---

"Hello?"

"Jesus Christ, Arthur! I've been calling you for days now! Where the hell are you?!"

"Ah, if it isn't my adopted sister, Louise."

Arthur Kingston stifled a chuckle as he heard his adopted sister yelling at him through his phone. He felt the winter breeze as he admired the sights and sounds of Hokkaido. He tasted his delicious Japanese beverage as he sipped his straw, making sure to slurp loudly for his sister to hear on the other end of the phone.

It had been ten days since he last took whatever he needed from the Kingston Mansion and ran off to Japan. At the moment, he was currently settling in Hokkaido. He heard that winter here was perfect for any foreigners and judging by the breeze and how relaxed he felt, that couldn't have been truer.

Unfortunately, good moments like these weren't permanent when you still had family popping into your fantastical thought bubbles.

"D-Don't patronize me, Arthur! This is serious! Where are you right now?!"

"If you'd bother to listen, you will remember that I told you, I was taking a long and permanent vacation," Arthur scoffed as he placed the newspaper he had been reading onto his lap.

(In case anyone did question, Arthur could indeed read some aspects of Japanese whether it be Romaji or Kanji, but to speak it was something else entirely)

"W-What? You were serious about that?!"

"Of course I was," Arthur shook his head. "Why wouldn't I be? Where I'm at right now, I'm actually happy and free from that place you so desperately cling onto called a home."

"Arthur! You don't understand! Listen to me! Father is freaking out right now! Get home as soon as possible because he's going to call for a nationwide search party just to track you down!"

Arthur couldn't help but laugh to himself about that. Alexander Kingston didn't truly want him back because he was his son. He wanted him back because he was going to be his replacement. He gripped his phone tightly as frustration seeped through his otherwise lax behavior.

"Then it's a good thing I'm halfway around the world," Arthur smirked. He sipped his drink once again. "The world is too big for even Alexander Kingston to find one man."

Arthur held up his drink as if he were toasting to such an occasion.

"I… I don't understand you, Arthur. Why would you run away from this life?! You have everything you want in the world! You have a family, money, power! What more do you even need?!"

"And once again, my dear adopted sister," Arthur set his drink on the floor before his face went dark. "You're still as naive and greedy since the last time we've talked."

"A-Arthur! H-How could you say that?!"

"You're just like the rest of them," Arthur shook his head. "All of you care nothing more than about your own well-being rather than what I want. The only reason Father wants me back anyway is just so I can fill in his shoes when he retires. That is not the life I want."

"...Y-You're a goddamn hypocrite, Arthur. Please tell me you can at least see that you're just as selfish as Father and Mother are!"

Arthur remained silent upon hearing this. His face was still cold, and it was starting to get grimmer based on how irritating his adopted sister's scoldings were.

"Tell me this, brother! Is this new life you escaped to really worth betraying your own family like this?!"

Arthur's cold expression turned colder.

"Do me a favor, Louise," Arthur felt his eye twitch. "Don't ever call me again. If you can even contact me from now on…"

"W-Wait! A-Arthur! I didn't mean–"

"Goodbye," Arthur hung up immediately and smashed his phone against the bench, shattering it into pieces.

What was left of his phone was nothing more than bits and pieces of technology and a shattered phone screen. Then, rolling his eyes, he tossed both his drink and his broken phone into the trash can. With the money he'd packed, he should have enough to purchase a new phone anyway…

He sighed.

He glanced around the breezy and beautiful skies of Hokkaido. He tried to regain that relaxing feeling he had felt before his adopted sister had so rudely interrupted it. To think that he had also invited her to join him on his great escape. And yet, of course she sides with Father…

Father.

That greedy prick…

He glanced back down to the newspaper he had kept on his lap all this time. His cold expression started to fade and this time, he looked rather hopeful for what was to come. Because based on the Japanese characters he was able to read on the newspaper, he saw it:

Opportunity.

Hope's Peak International:

Headmaster Jin Kirigiri and Head Psychologist Zuno Noshino Announce Plan to Open Hope's Peak Academies Around the World!

A chance at a new life...

---

(Cafeteria)

"Crap! What time is it?!"

Zuri barged into the Cafeteria with a noticeably frantic look on her face. The only ones in the Cafeteria at the time however were: Holland, Ina, Jared, and Mimi. Cassandra was obviously off being Cassandra. Arthur was somehow not with his half-sister today. And we all know where Haruto and Abigail could be.

But right now, all focus was shifted on Zuri. And no one's focus was more direct than Jared's who shook his head.

"It's almost noon," Jared shook his head. "Don't tell me you slept past your security duties, again."

"I… I um…" Zuri looked away, embarrassed.

"...From the looks of it, I think she came here directly from the Mineshaft in order to make it to the Morning Meeting," Holland tried to cover for her.

"Are you serious?" Jared raised an eyebrow toward Holland. "I know you're trying to cover because you and her are pretty close but come on, I'm not stupid."

"...I mean, I saw her–" Holland was about to argue before Zuri jumped in.

"There's no need to protect me like that, Holland," Zuri smiled appreciatively toward him before looking down disappointed. "I appreciate it but as a leader, I have to take responsibility for my own actions. Right?"

"I… Mmmm…" Holland hummed. She wasn't wrong about that.

"At least you got something right," Jared sighed, tipping his hat down. "You know, you're kind of bad at this leadership surveillance duty. Should've just left everything to me. I mean, you missed both of your shifts?"

"I– I– I'm sorry," Zuri looked ashamed. "I didn't mean to! I just found myself so much more tired than usual!"

"Do we really have to start out every Morning with some sort of disagreement between you two?" Ina asked from the sideline, folding her arms to express just how tired she was.

"Yeah, this routine is getting tiring," Mimi pouted. Though, it was clear she had other matters on her mind at the moment. "Can't you two just get along?"

"...I think that should be more directed toward Jared," Holland stared at Jared with an expressionless yet cold gaze. "After all, he's the one who keeps bullying Zuri for absolutely no reason."

"For no reason?" Jared deadpanned. "You guys can't be serious right?"

Jared turned to his peers with a dark gaze.

"When you become a leader, there are certain liabilities and responsibilities you have to abide by," Jared explained. "And if you ended up causing a whole series of chaos, then why should I have any faith in someone like that to lead us?"

"...And you're a better choice?" Holland sighed. "Mister 'two people died under my watch'?"

Back to this conversation again.

"Hey, at least I know when I'm not the right person for the task," Jared lowered his hat. "Similarly, that's how I know when others aren't the right people for the task."

"...Alright, then why don't you just give her a chance to prove herself," Holland frowned.

"She already did," Jared retorted. "And she failed that chance."

"But–" Holland was about to say before he was once again cut off by Zuri.

"Holland," Zuri looked at Holland and Jared seriously. "It's alright. I appreciate you trying to fight for me but Jared's right. I lost my chance the moment Cassandra killed Maggie or even when Carter took the Cell #66 key to enact his own plan."

That seemed to be exactly what Jared wanted to hear.

"At the same time, I think you also lost your chance to be leader when Mayu and Yuumi died under your watch and especially after the crazy stuff you did," Zuri stated.

That was not something Jared wanted to hear.

"But at the same time, I think what's important to note is that both of us messed up," Zuri seriously stated, looking down.

Jared fixed his police hat.

"So what, you're suggesting we elect someone else?" he asked.

"No, we both lost chances because of our mistakes," Zuri looked down before looking slightly hopeful. "But that doesn't mean we should lose those chances forever, right?"

Jared blinked.

"How about we put aside our differences and accept the fact that we both messed up as leaders," Zuri tried to compromise. "And instead of arguing with each other and hating each other, let's just… Just work together as co-leaders."

Zuri glanced up toward Jared.

And for a moment, it just felt like it was the two of them alone in one single room. After all, Holland, Ina, and Mimi bore witness to a moment where Jared and Zuri can finally settle their differences.

Holland seemed proud of the decision that Zuri had come up with. Ina and Mimi held their breath to see what Jared would say. Zuri herself was hopeful by this outcome. But Jared…

…

Jared was a different story.

He seemed conflicted.

Unsure about all this.

He lowered his hat over his eyes.

He most certainly didn't expect the idea of them being co-leaders. And he wasn't so keen on trusting that proposition firsthand. But after yesterday's Minigame, he knew Zuri was someone who would still have his back if it meant stopping a conflict to go after White Collar.

Zuri was…

"C-Co-leaders huh?" Jared glanced away.

"Jared, everyone's made mistakes here," Zuri looked down. "Look at Ina and Holland. They were given second chances for attempting to kill someone and I'm offering one to you now."

Zuri glanced back up, slightly pleading.

"Do you really want to keep fighting like this?" she asked. "And risk killing more people because of our rivalry?"

Jared glanced away.

She was hitting all the right points here.

Could it be? Was this conflict finally going to resolve?

"...I…" Jared sighed. "I have a lot to think about here. Just quit being late to your shifts next time."

Jared fixed his hat and left the Cafeteria in a hurry. He clearly had a lot to think about after that rousing speech Zuri had made. And frankly, no one was more impressed than Holl–

"Wow Zuri!" Mimi beamed. "That was amazing! I think you really did to that crabby Jared! Maybe the nicer and better Jared will be back soon enough!"

Mimi.

And frankly, no one was more impressed than Mimi.

"Second chances," Holland nodded toward Zuri. "Zuri is great at giving people second chances."

"Which means–" Ina turned to Mimi.

"Nope," Mimi folded her arms.

Well.

It was worth a shot.

…

Shortly after Mimi rejected whatever Ina was about to say, the Morning Meeting would come to a close as there was really nothing much to discuss. Mimi had already hurried off because of that troubling thing on her mind, leaving Ina behind with nothing to do.

And once she left, well… It just left Holland and Zuri alone.

"W-Well, that went a lot smoother than I would've thought," Zuri sighed in relief.

She felt Holland rest his head against hers.

"H-Holland?" Zuri widened her eyes as her face brightened up,

"...You did good," Holland complimented with that same stoic expression on his face.

And even though he had little emotion, it was clear that he was proud of her. And Zuri couldn't help but smile as she felt his warm presence that has done nothing but support for all this time.

---

"Okay, let's try this again. Big Bro Haruto, during the Minigame I… I didn't do a good job. I couldn't protect Abigail's vote and now because of me, Arthur managed to take advantage of her and I'm so so sorry. Please don't hate me."

No.

That didn't work. That didn't even sound half as sincere as she would have made it out to be. If she apologized like that, Haruto would probably be hella mad about what she failed to do.

It most certainly didn't help with what Haruto had told her yesterday, prior to her arriving at the Minigame…

---

"...I want you to go to the Auditorium, I want you to play the game, and I want you to pick Abigail and me as your opponent," Haruto told her. "Alright?"

"O-Okay," Mimi seemed a little unsure about this. "But… are you sure?"

"Yeah, of course!" Haruto smiled appreciatively before giving her a thumbs-up. "I trust you!"

---

How could he trust someone like her to pull something like this off so easily?

Mimi could only look down, ashamed about the outcome that she just couldn't prevent from happening. She had been wandering the facility hallways for a good while, trying to come up with the perfect apology for Haruto to hopefully forgive her without much of a problem.

And seeing how he wasn't in his room today, there was only one place that she could wander to as slowly as she could. The slower the better.

Especially since she hadn't rehearsed her apology to an acceptable degree and especially since he's going to find out sooner or later what had happened…

Mimi gulped.

This sucked.

---

(Infirmary)

Mimi opened the door to the Infirmary.

"H-Haruto!" Mimi exclaimed. "I'm so sorry about what happened! I didn't mean for it to–"

She cut herself off for many reasons.

For one, that apology was way too forward. Big Bro Haruto would think she was annoying if she kept it up. Two, Big Bro Haruto and Sleeping Beauty Abigail were in a rather peculiar sight that even Mimi needed a moment to comprehend. And once her mind finally registered what she was seeing, her face turned into a red shade of embarrassment.

"I– B-Big Bro Haruto?" Mimi slightly gulped.

"Oi… keep it down," Haruto mumbled. "Sleeping here."

Oh yeah.

Haruto and Abigail were sleeping in the same Infirmary bed. Haruto had his arm wrapped around Abigail, who seemed to be sleeping much more comfortably than she normally had been since well… ever. In fact, she was so comfortable, she was even cuddled up against the former basketball player's chest.

"Five more minutes," Abigail mumbled with a cozy smile on her sleeping face.

"Er, um, hmm…" Mimi scratched the bottom part of her chin.

This certainly threw a wrench in her plans. She was ready to go in, tears-blazing and the will to beg for forgiveness. Instead, now she was stuck in a stalemate. What should she do? Just ruin their moment and break the news that Abigail had a million dollar bounty on her head now? Or just take that secret with her to the grave and hope Haruto never asks her anything about it…

Choices.

Decisions…

"Er, Big Bro Haruto?" Mimi tried to slowly wake them up. "A-Abigail?"

It didn't take too long for both of them to slowly open their eyes and realize what exactly was going on. Haruto opened his eyes to see a very embarrassed Mimi, trying hard to not smile like a total idiot at the scene she will forever engrave into her mind. And Abigail opened her eyes to see Haruto's face.

Then, that same face made direct eye contact with hers.

Then they realized just how close they were to each other.

"A-Ah…" Abigail widened her eyes.

"U-Um…" Haruto gulped.

"AGHHHHHHH!"

…

Abigail got out of her bed, feeling much more refreshed than she normally was.

"Idiot!" Abigail blushed, turning her face away from even looking at Haruto. "W-What were you thinking getting super close to me like that? D-Did you take advantage of me while I was sleeping? I d-didn't take you for that kind of guy, Haruto!"

"The fuck?!" Haruto had turned away from her also. Obviously, he was blushing as well. "I did nothing! You were the one who suggested I get in the same bed with you! And last I checked; you were the one cuddling up to me!"

"N-No need to say it out loud," Abigail stuttered slightly. "I– Um… I–"

"Like him?" Mimi suggested, with a happy, joyous smile.

"H-Huh?" Abigail covered her face. "Wh-What? What gave you that idea? I mean… Haruto's… He's um…"

"I'm what…?" Haruto asked. He was both curious and messing with her at the same time. After all, seeing her this flustered was so fucking cute.

"D-Don't play along and help me out here!" Abigail exclaimed, with a slight pout.

"I could, but nah," Haruto folded his arms with faintly pink cheeks. "I think it's more fun seeing you like this."

"H-Haruto, y-you–" Abigail covered her face once again. "P-Please believe me when I say that nothing happened Mimi! We were just sleeping! Together. In the same bed… Closely…"

"Uh huh, I get it!" Mimi giggled. Suddenly, she had forgotten the biggest thing on her mind and went to concern number two: the fun concerning matter at hand. "Your Prince Charming arrived, kissed you, Sleeping Beauty, on the lips, and now you're living Happily Ever After!"

"Y-You what?" Abigail turned to Haruto immediately.

"Okay, I kissed nobody on the lips," Haruto pointed a finger toward Mimi. "I don't do shit like that. Abigail's right. The only thing that had happened was that we slept together last night."

"D-Does that mean you two…" Mimi glanced down at her hands and tapped the tips of her index fingers together.

"The fuck?!" Haruto cleared his throat, his face even redder than before. "N-No! Not like that! We just slept in the same bed! That's all!"

"Uh huh," Mimi seemed relatively unconvinced.

"W-We're being for real here!" Haruto exclaimed.

"O-Okay, okay, l-let's just stop talking about this," Abigail cleared her throat. "Mimi. P-Please forget everything you ever saw in here, alright?"

Abigail glanced toward Mimi, who looked like she was daydreaming a fantasy about Haruto and Abigail's love story and in which there would probably be a timeline where they can live Happily Ever After. If things go well, it could be this timeline!

If not, well…

"H-Hey, snap out of it Mimi!" Abigail pleaded.

…

Once the three got their bearings together… or at least tried to, since Mimi was still looking quite bashful over their situation, Haruto cleared his throat.

"A-Anyway, is it time for the Morning Meeting or something?" Haruto asked. "Th-That must be why you woke us up, right?"

Mimi blinked.

Why exactly did she want to– Oh right!

Bashful, playful time over.

It was time for a serious talk. And since Haruto and Abigail had just woken up, she knew they didn't know the results of the Minigame had come out earlier. Not only that, but even though they were already up, no doubt, they were about to be in for an even ruder awakening.

"...Um, no," Mimi shook her head. Her expression looked ashamed. "I… Actually, can I talk to you privately, Haruto?"

Confused, Haruto looked at Abigail. His expression was clearly asking if she would be fine alone. Abigail, being the smart girl that she was and able to read such expressions, Abigail gave him a nod of approval. Then, getting up from the Infirmary bed, he nodded toward Mimi.

"Sure thing," Haruto scratched the back of his neck.

---

"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" was the first thing Haruto asked when they decided to have their private conversation right outside the Infirmary. Of course, they had this private conversation by the not-so-private window, where Abigail could see that they were indeed talking about something. But whatever it was, she wouldn't be able to hear.

And with bated breath, Mimi began.

"I'm sorry Haruto," she started, nervously. "You trusted me with something, and I couldn't even live up to it."

Haruto was confused.

Clearly, he forgot what Mimi was talking about.

"What did I trust you with again?" Haruto asked.

Mimi glanced away. It didn't take long for Haruto to realize what exactly she was talking about. Instantly, he took out his eHandbook and began to scan through what the Minigame Application would've told him about his most recent opponent: Mimi.

"...You Trusted me," Haruto noted. "But what about–"

"That's what I was going to try to say," Mimi frowned as she looked away. "I got there a little too late. Arthur decided to go against Abigail."

"What?!" As expected, Haruto did not look happy at all once he figured it out based on Mimi's expressions and words. "What did that bastard do?!"

Mimi timidly looked away.

"P-Please don't be mad at me," Mimi softly stated. "But he... picked Distrust..."

---

(Infirmary)

When Mimi returned to the Infirmary, Abigail was confused. From her angle, what she was able to see was Mimi and Haruto talking about something and then Haruto storming off much angrier than he usually was. She would be lying if she didn't say that she wasn't curious to know what made him storm off like that. So, without much hesitation, she glanced toward Mimi.

"Where's Haruto going?" she asked, blinking. "Did something happen?"

"Um, well..." Mimi held onto her witch's hat. She was glad Haruto wasn't mad at her but to try to tell him was a little nerve-racking. She definitely didn't want to go through that again. After all, it clearly didn't feel as good as telling Cassandra off. "He just had to do something, but he'll be right back!"

Abigail didn't seem too convinced by that response.

But it was Haruto so...

"I see," Abigail folded her arms, glancing at the spot where she had cuddled up toward Haruto. Her face flushed with warmth at the thought.

"Ah, I'm sorry to interrupt your sleep," Mimi looked down. "I just thought that Big Bro should know something. But I hope you two had a nice time."

"Well, aside from some trauma dump, we had an amazing t-" Abigail caught herself and blushed. "H-Hey wait a minute. D-Don't trick me into saying something like that! I... I... Um..."

"Hehe," Mimi giggled to herself. "You like him, don't you?"

"I... As a f-friend, yes," Abigail tried to cover her face but everything had already been implanted inside Mimi's visuals.

In fact, everything Abigail tried to do to hide the truth was purely unconvincing to Mimi, who had long figured that the two really liked each other than way since... well, three days ago. But still! The feelings were there longer and based on how often these chapters updates, it feels like weeks and sometimes days!

"Hmhm, if you say so!" Mimi teased slightly.

"Grr... k-knock it off Mimi," Abigail continued to bury her face into her blankets.

Mimi giggled slightly. She had to admit that she could see exactly what Haruto saw in her. After all, her reaction to her own feelings was undoubtedly cute. And currently, the doubts, conflicts, and stress were slowly subsiding until it was at the back of her mind. But alongside all the doubts, conflicts, and stress in the back of her mind rested that question of Haruto...

He left quickly and angrily.

What exactly was he going to do?

And... should be satisfied that Arthur Kingston was going to get what was coming to him in that regard?

---

(Auditorium)

Speaking of Arthur, the Ultimate Snowboarder himself was currently tending to some peculiarities on his mind. Of course, what else would it be but his eHandbook status. No need for a flashback, because everyone should remember that he was currently some sort of glitched out combo between Innocent and Traitor. However, just yesterday…

---

"...I think I see what is going on here," Ina sighed. "Look, half-brother, just because you are a Traitor does not mean I am planning on killing you. I have already made that attempt once and it turned out to be my biggest mistake in this game. I have no intention of making that same mistake again, so please be rest assured."

"T-Traitor?" Arthur blinked. So that was his real status was it?

"Yes, Traitor," Ina folded her arms. "Was the reason for asking not because you were scared I was going to try to kill you again? Please, half-brother, I have moved past that."

---

Yeah. We'll have a flashback for that.

Because Ina confirmed that he was a Traitor. And he himself confirmed that she was Innocent. So if that was the case, then why was his eHandbook glitching out?

In order to figure that out, Arthur needed to ask the source of the Minigame.

…

"So, you had a question about your status?" Monohebi stayed coiled as she stared straight up toward the snowboarder. Despite being a relatively big snake, she was still short and only reached Arthur's waist.

Also didn't help that Arthur was 6'6 but–

"Yes," Arthur nodded. "My eHandbook seems to have some trouble showcasing my status."

"What do you mean?" Monohebi asked.

"Well, I can't quite tell what my status is…" Arthur gestured his eHandbook to Monohebi, as if he were asking if he could show his eHandbook to her. "I've asked but I'm not sure if it's the truth or not…"

"I am not a participant in the Minigame, Mister Kingston," Monohebi shook her head. "If you wish to show me something, please show me."

Arthur nodded before showing Monohebi his eHandbook. Of course, the screen was still glitching out between Innocent and Traitor. He waited patiently for Monohebi to make some sort of response to what was happening. Anything. From maybe troubleshooting possibilities to… well, any confirmations of anything…

As for Monohebi herself, she watched the screen intently before sighing and shaking her head.

"This better be some kind of joke, Mister Kingston," Monohebi said.

"H-Huh?" Arthur blinked.

"Your eHandbook is just fine," Monohebi merely shrugged off Arthur's confusion. "It says Innocent. See?"

Arthur glanced toward his eHandbook.

It was still glitching out.

What on Earth was this snake talking about? Could she not see how badly it's glitching out? And what did she just say? He was… Innocent?

"Please don't waste my time again with unnecessary questions…" Monohebi shook her head before she prepared to slither off.

"W-Wait, can you really not see how badly my status is broken?" Arthur frowned.

"Please, Mister Kingston," Monohebi paused, tilting her head back. "None of the apps can be broken, only the eHandbook itself. But of course, that's against the rules to do so."

"Y-You can't seriously suggest that even you can't see the problem–" Arthur was about to complain before Monohebi slithered off.

"Goodbye Mister Kingston," she hissed.

And with that she was gone.

Arthur placed a hand over his forehead.

What was going on?!

Ina had said he was a Traitor yesterday. Monohebi just now said he was an Innocent. Was… Was Monohebi lying? Was Ina lying? No. Ina wouldn't lie like that and he had her status confirmed too! Unless that was fake too!

There was a mental crisis going on here.

And Arthur had no idea what he could do with this…

---

(Ultimate Bassist's Cell)

Zuri plucked the strings of the green bass guitar she held. Her mind wandered back to what she had said to Jared back at the Cafeteria.

And if you're a reader who forgets information easily, do not fret!

Here's a flashback!

---

"So, what, you're suggesting we elect someone else?" he asked.

"No, we both lost chances because of our mistakes," Zuri looked down before looking slightly hopeful. "But that doesn't mean we should lose those chances forever, right?"

Jared blinked.

"How about we put aside our differences and accept the fact that we both messed up as leaders," Zuri tried to compromise. "And instead of arguing with each other and hating each other, let's just… Just work together as co-leaders."

---

I'm such a generous writer!

But yes, she wandered back to that specific moment in time as she continued to practice hand placements on the bass guitar. As she did so, she hummed a familiar tune. A tune that she had in her mind for a long, long time now.

"Hm hm hmmm hm… hm hmmmmm hm hmm… hm hm hmmmm hm hmmm hm hm…"

She closed her eyes as she began to play chords, memorizing her hand placements, plucking and holding certain strings till it made the notes that felt just right.

"That's a nice tune."

Zuri gasped and stopped, opening her eyes and turning around.

She had hoped that it wasn't Holland stumbling onto her practicing. She wasn't ready to show him anything just yet. But then, she also remembered that he was on camera duty so he wouldn't have been able to hear so he only left…

"O-Oh, Jared," Zuri blinked. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was going to go prepare for my next shift but then I heard something coming from here so I thought I would investigate," Jared scratched the back of his neck.

That felt off.

Zuri pressed X to doubt.

"But your shift isn't till another three hours," Zuri folded her arms after setting her bass guitar on the ground gently. "Why are you really here?"

Jared was taken aback slightly before he cleared his throat.

"D-Damn, you caught me," Jared frowned. "Look. I just wanted to… talk to you."

Zuri blinked.

Was this about the Cafeteria incident? Well, of course it had to be about that! Why else would he want to talk to her without any hinted levels of passive-aggressiveness?

"Okay," Zuri nodded as she picked up the bass guitar and set it on the side.

"...Look, about the past few days," Jared sighed, placing hands on his hips. "I… I was… I couldn't… I couldn't bring myself to see you as the leader."

Zuri blinked.

An apology?

"W-Why couldn't you?" Zuri asked, carefully.

"Because honestly, I didn't think you had it in you," Jared folded his arms. "I didn't believe you were the type of person to be able to take up a huge responsibility like keeping watch over other people's lives. And I sure as hell didn't believe you would make a big speech like that back there…"

Jared sighed again.

"I guess the reason why I kept being such an ass to you was because I was angry…" Jared frowned.

"Well, I figured that much," Zuri looked down. "You were angry that people were dying under my watch. That… so much happened and I wasn't able to contain it."

"...That's only part of it," Jared stated.

"H-Huh?" Zuri blinked.

"...I was angry because despite everything that happened under your watch," Jared grimaced. "You still wanted to be the leader. You still acted like you were the leader. Why?"

Jared glanced toward the bassist, as if he was desperately digging for an answer to her resolve.

"...Because I had someone who believed in me," Zuri rubbed her arms as her cheeks lightly blushed at the thought of Holland. "Someone who believed that I could improve despite how badly I started things. So… I kept going. Because he believed in me."

Zuri slowly smiled at him.

Jared took off his badge and glanced at it.

"This place," Jared clenched his fist as he stared at the ground, hatefully. "This Killing Game. White Collar. All of it brings out the worst in people. I've trained my entire life to become an upholder of justice."

Jared used his other hand to clench the badge tightly.

"...Despite letting three people die, you still never gave up the position of leader," Jared frowned. "No matter how hard I tried to get you to relinquish your title."

"Hey, it's alright," Zuri gave him a small assuring smile. "I mean. Since you're a police officer, you probably wanted the title back to protect me from stress and all that stuff right?"

"Who do you think I am?" Jared raised an eyebrow. "I'm a cop. I don't do stuff like that. I just wanted to be the leader again. Mainly because… I guess you kinda showed me that giving up wasn't really the way to go."

"So does that mean you want to be co-leaders with me?" Zuri perked her head.

"Heh, far from it actually," Jared shook his head. "There can't be two leaders. What all this really means is that I'm going to try harder to reinstate myself as a leader."

There was a newer form of slight respect in his words. Still selfish and a little demeaning, but a little respectful. As if they were now friendly rivals rather than actual enemies.

"But in the end, the goal still remains the same," Jared fixed his hat and placed his badge back onto where it originally was on his chest. "I'm still going to find a way to get as many people out as I can. Even if it costs me my life."

"And I'll still tell you that you don't need to go that far to save lives," Zuri told him.

"...Then maybe it's the police officer in me," Jared tilted his hat down to cover his eyes.

There was a brief silence before Zuri slowly asked him a more personal question.

"H-Hey Jared," Zuri looked down.

Jared glanced at her.

"...W-What was police work like where you were from?" she asked.

Jared grimaced slightly as he looked away. It seemed like a touchy subject he didn't want to answer. But most likely, it was a touchy subject that would explain just why he often took things to the extreme as a police officer.

"...Just don't be late for tomorrow's morning shift, again," Jared slightly berated her. "I'll talk to you later."

Then the police officer left, leaving behind a very curious Zuri. After all this time, she's seen a Jared that tried to keep the peace and tried to be a stable leader… And then she saw a Jared that would desperately do anything he could to save lives, including killing the Overseer of this Killing Game.

And despite seeing two sides of Jared, Zuri still realized that she still knew so little of him. Who was he anyway?

---

(Cafeteria)

Arthur wandered into the Cafeteria with only confusion on his mind.

His status was giving him the biggest mind trip of the century. He had to ask himself many questions such as:

Did anyone else have this same issue?

If not, then why on Earth was it only him that had the issue?

Could this issue be resolved?

Was he really a Traitor? Or could his half-sister be lying to him? No. She couldn't be. She seemed dead serious, and it didn't seem like she was lying.

What about Monohebi? Could she be lying about him being Innocent? Probably. But for what reason would she have to lie about that?

...

"Oi, you piece of shit, bastard. Let's have a long, chat, yeah?"

Arthur immediately turned, widening his eyes.

---

When Jared left the Ultimate Bassist's Cell in thought about everything he said to Zuri, he couldn't help but let out another sigh. He hadn't really expected himself to be honest about this stuff to Zuri like this. Not especially after berating her decisions as leader for so long. He folded his arms.

Honestly, he felt like an idiot.

To hold such a petty grudge like that…

Jared clenched his fist and paused. One simple glance down at his badge and he immediately imagined that his badge was stained with blood. His blood. Nizens'...

God.

He had to stop letting his guilt eat him like this.

But how could he?

It was that incident that started his sorry life as a so-called cop. He lowered his hat down, slightly ashamed before something caught his eye.

Something so serious that he was going to have to look into right away!

---

(Cassandra's Room)

"Okay, you can do this… you can do this…"

Cassandra had been staring at her reflection in the mirror for a relatively long time. She was currently having a small little crisis of her own and it shows. Slightly messy black hair. Her face noticeably stressed. Her breathing hitched. Inhale. Exhale.

The past few days of the Killing Game have seriously gotten to her.

It was much unlike the previous rounds of the Game where bodies kept dropping one after the other. Cassandra felt nothing. All she felt was her own selfish desire to survive. After all, she was a survivor. Surviving was what she was good at. Especially since she's been forced to take care of herself for a long time.

But Round 4 of the Killing Game was when things got real.

She has her deal with White Collar. Her dad was in the hospital. And she's had the urge to just get it over with and kill Arthur Kingston. But she couldn't.

She was hesitating.

Why?

She was committed to the cause when killing Maggie right? She wanted that cash… She wanted to make that deal with White Collar… and yet, every time she got what she wanted, it never felt like it was what she really wanted.

That was until… He came along.

Her chat with Jared Caertas yesterday unlocked something she never thought she would ever feel about anyone in this damn Killing Game. After all, they were all supposed to be destined to lose just as she was supposed to be destined to win right?

But it never feels that way for Cassandra Mura.

It's never been that way for Cassandra Mura.

And now, she found herself at a crossroad.

A moment in time in which she had come to terms with a big resolve she was going to do.

…She was going to tell Jared about her deal with White Collar. She was going to reveal it all to him. She had to. She couldn't keep lying to him anymore. She couldn't keep hiding the facts from him. This was something that had to be done.

She glanced back at her reflection.

…

All she saw was two-faced scumbag staring right back at her.

---

The moment Cassandra exited her room, she bumped into someone. Instantly, all that crisis she was having turned to pure irritation as she glared at who she bumped into–

"Hey watch it bast– Oh–" Cassandra's expression quickly changed to surprise.

It was Jared.

Just the guy she wanted to see.

"Ah, J-Jared," Cassandra blinked. "Um, look, I need to tell you something…"

"Sorry," Jared sighed before turning away to his room. "But can it wait? I… I have to examine something…"

Jared was definitely in a hurry but he had the generosity to stop what he was doing the moment she had turned to berate him. And what was extremely peculiar was the fact that he was holding something in his arms. That something was something she recognized all too well.

"Is that–?" Cassandra blinked.

Jared said nothing for a while.

Needless to say, Cassandra had caught him at a bad time.

---

(Jared's Room)

"Where did you find this?"

That was the first thing Cassandra had asked as Jared had set the box on his table. It was yet another evidence box. And with another evidence box, this could only mean one thing. It would have information pertaining to yet another victim of that Tragedy five years ago. '

"Where do you think?" Jared responded to Cassandra with a slight frown.

It didn't take Cassandra too long to figure out.

"Let me guess," Cassandra folded her arms with a sigh. "Some place that has to do with one Arthur Kingston?"

"Right outside of his Ultimate Cell in fact," Jared nodded. "Didn't even notice it was there until after I left to talk to Zuri about something."

"And what on Earth did you have to talk to her about anything?" Cassandra raised an eyebrow.

"That's not important," Jared shook his head. "What's important is the fact that we need to see what's in store for us this time."

The first thing Jared took out was of course the file of a past victim that every one of these Evidence Boxes would have. First was the file on Sayaka Maizono. Then the file on Chihiro Fujisaki. Then two files on both Hifumi Yamada and Kiyotaka Ishimaru. And this time…

Name: Sakura Ogami

Gender: Female

Ultimate Talent: Ultimate Martial Artist

Birth Date: September 13

Height: 6'4

Weight: 218 lbs

Blood Type: A

Status: Deceased

"Yeah, another victim of the Tragedy," Jared frowned.

How many more were they going to get? And not only that, but why? Why do they keep getting these boxes filled with evidence? What exactly was White Collar trying to tell them about all of this anyway?

"What else is in there?" Cassandra began to dig through the evidence before taking out three items.

The first item was a bottle with a King chess piece inside that was hugged by some sort of strange teddy bear looking thing. This teddy bear looking thing definitely had the same coloration and jagged eye as White Collar and Monohebi.

"The fuck is this?" Cassandra deadpanned at the first item she took out.

"Not even sure what this is supposed to be but it doesn't look broken," Jared tilted his hat down. "Maybe it's some sort of shabby decor…"

Cassandra then revealed the second item at hand.

The second item was another bottle. This time, it was a brown bottle of some substance. But just based on the name that was labeled on the bottle, it was clear what this bottle was.

"Chem C-9," Jared grimaced. "Is this… a bottle of poison?"

"Must have been how this big ogre-looking person probably died," Cassandra folded her arms. "After all, that was the pattern with the previous ones."

"Stabbed by the kitchen knife, blunt force trauma from a dumbbell, and two more of those from hammers…" Jared recalled. "Are we expecting someone to get poisoned this time around?"

"Not if someone's an idiot and doesn't watch what they eat," Cassandra glanced away.

Jared set the bottle of poison down, uneasily. He could honestly just lock it away right now, but after the many times the Evidence Room was used for some murder plot, Jared couldn't even think his own Ultimate Cell would be secure enough for anything. He sighed as Cassandra took out the third item…

And from the looks of the third item, it certainly didn't feel like it belonged to or relate to Sakura Ogami's Evidence Box at hand…

Because the third item itself was a tape recorder. There was no blood on it. It also looked relatively new compared to the dust that was being collected from the other items. So most likely, this was added in as a bonus item.

But… why?

"A tape recorder, huh?" Cassandra blinked. "So, is it going to play Sakura's last will and testament or something?"

"Doubt it," Jared shook his head. "This tape recorder looks new. So… I guess the only reasonable thing to do is have a listen…"

Then, without a further ado, Jared pressed play…

…

"This is Dr. Terra Pisch. The date is November 25, 2010. Time: 6:05 PM. Setting: St. Esther's Institution. I was originally ordered to stay home today because of an incident at that school. They're not telling me anything, but my work cannot go unfinished. Today, I'm with Patient #66, again."

"...What happened...?"

"Oh, didn't you hear what I said? I don't really know myself. I wasn't allowed to know any information. I tried to call Headmaster Kirigiri about it but he hasn't picked up."

"...Headmaster Kirigiri…?"

"Oh right, you've never met him, have you? He's a really cool guy! A little intimidating when you first see him, though. I mean, he is the Headmaster, but he's also pretty nice and chill. Doctor Noshino says he's terrible at mahjong! So that's a riot!"

"...No… I feel like I have met him before… Doctor Noshino… that name is also… familiar…"

"Oh dear, it's happening again, isn't it?"

"Agh… M-My head…"

"Whoa whoa, hey. Rest your head here, okay? Massage it. I can't even imagine the pain you must be going through but it won't do both of us any good if your headaches worsen."

"...G-God, it hurts… Doc. I can't control it. There's just way too many sounds in my head. Too many sounds. God damn it… Get out. Get out. Get out. Get out."

"Hey, hey, don't strain your brain like that. It'll only make things worse, okay? Just sit down and talk to me. What do you hear?"

"...Music."

"Is it that waltz again?"

"Mephisto's Waltz. By Franz Liszt. I can't… g-get it out of my h-head… It's just the same section again. Un poco meno mosso... Guh... Guh... "

"..."

"D-Doc… am I crazy?"

"..."

"D-Doc?"

"Haha. God. You're cute, #66. How many times do I have to tell you? You're not crazy. You're perfect. You're a new kind of Hope to the next generation after all…"

…

Jared and Cassandra remained silent after the tape recording ended. They finally had voices to the names they've heard before. The voice of #66 and the voice of Dr. Terra Pisch, who had only been briefly mentioned up to this point.

"So that was #66?" Cassandra blinked. "Sounded like a real psychopath, alright."

Jared was still quiet. He played the tape again, constantly rewinding to every time #66 spoke. With every rewind, Cassandra got a little more curious and a little irritated by how much he had to do it.

"Hey, it works alright?" Cassandra frowned. "So quit playing with it…"

Jared paused the tape recorder for a moment before frowning.

"Sorry," Jared rubbed his chin.

"...What is it?" Cassandra could easily tell something was on his mind.

"...That voice," Jared tilted his hat back up. "#66's I mean. It sounds… familiar. Like I've… met him somewhere before."

"Please," Cassandra scoffed. "When would you have met a deranged psychopath from five years ago? Unless… you were the one who arrested him and locked him up in the first place."

"...Maybe," Jared rubbed his chin. "Assuming St. Esther's is located within my jurisdiction… But…"

That's right. None of them even knew where St. Esther's was located. So without that in mind, that theory, although plausible, couldn't be explored upon more.

"My question is, why is this even here?" Cassandra folded her arms, gesturing to the box. "I mean, this is Sakura Ogre-Ami's box isn't it? What does something that has to do with Dr. Therapist girl and #66 have to do with anything about her death…?"

Jared thought back to the tape recording at hand before realizing something.

"Dr. Pisch mentioned a date," Jared explained. "November 25, 2010. She also mentioned that something happened at a school…"

"Oh, I see," Cassandra understood. "The school she was talking about. It could be Hope's Peak Academy, right? And the date... that could also be the date that the Tragedy occurred. Where an entire class of Ultimate students went missing… The same one that this Ogre was a part of?"

"I think it would be better if you stopped calling a deceased person an ogre," Jared deadpanned before nodding his head. "But yeah. I think this was taken directly after the students went missing so no doubt, maybe that was why it was in this box."

November 25, 2010.

The date of the Tragedy.

And now they not only have the file on yet another one of those missing students, but also a tape recording featuring #66 and Terra Pisch's voice. Without much else to do, Jared picked up the box and prepared to head to the Cafeteria.

"Hey, where are you going?" Cassandra asked, not being able to read the paragraph above.

"The Cafeteria," Jared stated with a confident smile toward Cassandra. "Gotta report our findings."

"W-Wait, before you go, there's still that thing I wanted to tell you–" Cassandra was about to say before she was met with Jared's look of determination.

"Don't worry about that," Jared nodded toward her. "This is more important anyway."

Jared opened his door, even though the box didn't make things easier, and prepared to head out.

"You coming or what?" he asked.

"Um…" Cassandra blinked, before looking down. Guess telling him about her deal was going to have to wait. She merely nodded. "Y-Yeah… sure. Whatever…"

And without much else to occur, the two immediately headed straight toward the Cafeteria, with the Evidence Box in hand.

---

(Cafeteria)

As Jared carried the evidence box into the Cafeteria with Cassandra behind him, nothing could have prepared him for the commotion that was occurring there during his little examination of the evidence. Nothing could prepare him… for what he was going to see.

…

Haruto had Arthur locked in his grasp, hand directly on his black collar and white tie. The snowboarder looked a little tattered but didn't seem to have any major injuries. At least… not yet.

"So, does this make you feel better?" Arthur coldly stared at him. Though, it was clear that he was trying to put on a brave face. Thing is, he kind of saw this coming, but at the same time he didn't. After all, he didn't think Haruto would actually confront him physically like this. "Knowing that you have me right where you want me…"

"You shut the fuck up and explain your sorry ass," Haruto growled. "What the fuck did you do at yesterday's Minigame?"

"...I know this isn't the appropriate time to be picky," Arthur tried to cross his arms but found it difficult with Haruto raising him up in the air as if he wasn't taller than the basketball player. "But you just told me to be quiet and explain. I can't do both. It's one over the other."

"Oh, so you like playing games, huh?" Haruto looked irritated. "How about I show you how much I like games… by caving your damn skull in!"

"What the hell is going on here?" Jared glared at Haruto as he set the Evidence Box on a nearby Cafeteria table. "Let go of him, Haruto!

"Shut the fuck up Jared!" Haruto roared. "What gives you the right to boss me around?! Last I checked, you abandoned that right!"

"I… hm, you aren't wrong there," Jared lowered his hat.

"Was that seriously all it took to give up on that thought?" Cassandra blankly looked at Jared. "You want to be a leader? Go and fucking do something about this!"

"Ha, Cassandra Mura trying to save me," Arthur seemed amused. "I'm touched."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever asshole," Cassandra shook her head. If anyone was going to kill him, it was going to be her. But not anytime soon. And if it's not anytime soon, then she has to make sure no one else kills him as well.

Which honestly really sucked.

"Look, I get you're pissed off," Jared folded his arms. "You probably found out about him betraying Abigail in the Minigame and now you're wanting some sweet revenge. But is it really worth taking his life over it?"

"...Don't get me wrong," Haruto glowered up toward the snowboarder. "I am pissed off, but taking his life? Nah. I'll beat him up so good that he'll wish I did…"

"There's never a moment of peace in this damn place, is there?" Cassandra groaned.

"Haruto," Jared folded his arms. "Listen to me. As much as he's a prick for what he did, you need to stand down and focus on the bigger objective at hand… Taking down White Collar."

"Man, it's always about taking down White Collar for you, isn't it Jared?" Haruto turned to Jared with a growl. "So much so that you went crazy enough to threaten all of us with a fucking loaded gun!"

"Ngh…" Jared grimaced slightly.

"You don't give a damn about how messed up this guy is!" Haruto growled before turning back to Arthur. "Abigail could've been dead and you decided to go and use her life to your fucking advantage! What the fuck is wrong with you?!"

"H-Have you forgotten?" Arthur darkly stared at the basketball player. "You yourself told us she was going to be fine. You're just letting your feelings get to your head. I mean, the only harm I did was pass my entire bounty on her."

"And that's gonna set her up as the fucking victim you piece of shit!" Haruto yelled.

…

"What is going on here?"

Ina's voice was accompanied by the appearance of the Ultimate Revolutionary herself, Abigail feeling much better, Mimi who was helping her, and Zuri, who had walked in, curious over the commotion. However, the moment the girls saw what was happening…

"A-Ah, half-brother?" Ina widened her eyes.

"H-Haruto!" Zuri covered her mouth. "What are you doing?!"

"Oh great, a fucking audience," Haruto grumbled. "What does it look like I'm fucking doing? I'm giving this piece of shit a piece of my mind!"

"B-But, this isn't the way to handle things–" Zuri exclaimed before Abigail rushed toward Haruto's side with a glare.

"Let him go, Haruto," Abigail frowned. It was clear that she was hella disappointed by his behavior.

"W-What?" Haruto felt himself blink as his grip on Arthur started to waver.

"I said, let him go," Abigail adamantly stated.

"W-Why?" Haruto frowned. "You know why I'm doing this, don't you?! You know that what he did to you was fucking messed up! So, I'm doing this because…"

"Because of me, or because you just like making up some excuse to beat people up?" Abigail folded her arms with narrowed eyes.

"I…" Haruto's hand started to shake.

It didn't take long for Haruto to suddenly drop Arthur on the ground in frustration. After all, Abigail's words would undoubtedly have an effect on him at this point.

"...I thought… I just…" Haruto stared at Arthur hatefully.

The snowboarder looked more or less annoyed that this was happening to him, especially when he had other things on his mind. He slowly stood up and patted himself on the back as Ina rushed to his side.

"A-Are you okay, half-brother?" Ina blinked.

"Hmph, there isn't much of a scratch on me," Arthur stated. "So no need to worry about me, dear sister."

And as Ina tended to Arthur's side, Abigail placed a hand on Haruto's shoulder with a sigh.

"W-Why'd you stop me?" Haruto frowned. "I… I was gonna do everyone here a favor and finally beat this bastard off his high horse."

"Technically, you stopped yourself from doing something you might've regretted," Abigail sighed. "I just told you to stop."

Abigail slowly gave him a small smile of assurance.

"I… found out why you suddenly stormed off earlier," Abigail told him. "Had I known sooner, I would've told you not to beat this guy to a pulp. Glad I managed to get here in time before that actually happened."

"Y-You serious?" Haruto blinked. "H-How the fuck are you not angry? You have a million dollar bounty on your head."

"Oh yeah, that reminds me," Abigail hummed for a moment before turning toward a very relieved Arthur. "Hey…"

Abigail took a step forward and…

SLAP!

Arthur felt the equestrian's heated palm of her hand strike across his cheek. He flinched as Ina rushed to his side and gave Abigail a slightly disapproving gaze.

"That was for the million dollar bounty," Abigail glared at Arthur. "Thanks for that, by the way."

"I think that was a well deserved form of payback, half-brother," Ina sighed, disapprovingly.

"Pft, it wasn't like it was the Loved One Disadvantage," Arthur grimaced.

Family or not, Ina couldn't blame Abigail for that one, even though seeing someone hurt her half-brother like that wasn't a comfortable sight to see. As for Abigail, she turned back to Haruto and gave him a look.

"See?" Abigail shrugged. "I can handle myself. So stop playing hero for me because what you're really doing is…"

Abigail glanced away, her face slightly tinted pink.

"...being stupid," she finished her statement as she folded her arms.

Haruto stared at her for a moment. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. If Abigail hadn't gotten here in time, what would he have done to Arthur?

…

After the commotion had settled down, the current eight in the Cafeteria sat amongst each other at a nearby Cafeteria table. Though, only Holland was missing, which actually wasn't strange because the guy was currently on Security Camera duty in Cell Block S. Guess he really wanted the 120.50 weekly pay.

"Whew," Zuri sighed in relief. "Glad things didn't escalate."

"Yeah, at least you girls came in just in time," Jared nodded, although a little disappointed in his own failed attempt. "I wasn't able to do squat."

"It's actually thanks to Beauty Abigail!" Mimi beamed. "She went into the castle and tamed Big Beast Haruto! Just like in Beauty and the Beast!"

"Glad this idiot even listened to me," Abigail folded her arms.

"Yeah yeah," Haruto rolled his eyes before glaring at Arthur. "Oi. You were lucky Abby got here before I could pummel you to the ground. If she wasn't here, I would've gone and shoved a snowboard up your sorry ass!"

"Haruto…" Abigail sternly stated.

"Aw come on, are verbal threats not allowed?" Haruto folded his arms and grumbled like a child.

"Hmph, so it really did seem like the Beast has been tamed," Arthur folded his arms. "But as for you Abigail, I will say that it was no offense. I just found an opportunity to get rid of a hindrance and I decided to act upon it. If our roles were reversed, you would've at least been tempted to do the same, yes?"

"Yeah… whatever," Abigail rolled her eyes. "Just know that if you're pairing up with me again, I'm voting Distrust. No questions asked."

"Speaking of questions," Jared stood up. "The reason I came in here before I stumbled onto the scene was because I found another one…"

"Another one?" Mimi blinked.

"Ah!" Zuri gasped. "You don't mean!"

Jared didn't respond. He merely nodded and with Cassandra's help, he had set the Evidence Box on the table for everyone to review the file and the three items that were inside.

…

"Sakura Ogami," Arthur rubbed his forehead.

"Another victim of the Tragedy," Zuri looked down. "And she also looked really strong too."

Just the mention of strength forced Mimi to think of Barracuda. According to her file, she was the Ultimate Martial Artist. So just the thought of someone as strong and incredibly fit as Barracuda to have been easily killed with such a harmless item… Even the strongest weren't safe from a Killing Game.

"Okay, but what about this tape recording?" Cassandra flipped the tape recording with #66 and Terra Pisch's voices on them, looking slightly bored. Clearly, she was more focused on another agenda which required her and Jared to be alone. "Anyone got any clue? Maybe you've heard their voices somewhere before because apparently the cop here has…"

"So far, no," Ina shook her head. "But at the same time, it is hard to tell based on a tape recording. Perhaps maybe a few more replays and I could identify something."

"Maybe," Jared rubbed his chin. "I'm just stuck on why this would be found in Sakura's Evidence Box."

"Maybe White Collar's trying to send a message?" Abigail asked. "Or maybe he's trying to hint at something? I don't know but we also know that guy to be incredibly cryptic with some things."

"Yeah, so it might be some piece of a larger puzzle," Haruto nodded.

The mystery of #66. The mystery of the Tragedy. What exactly was White Collar trying to tell them? What was the purpose of showing them evidence like this?

No one had a clue.

And no one had time to come up with any more theories.

"Attention all prisoners," came the sound of Monohebi's voice to hide what Mimi had just said. "It is time for the next round of Prisoner's Dilemma: Guess Who. If you wish to participate, please report to the Auditorium immediately to choose your opponent. But as a reminder, whoever does not participate will default to Trust. You have ten minutes to do so. That is all."

"The Minigame…" Arthur hummed.

"Well, I doubt any of us here are going to sit out," Jared noted. "Especially what happened yesterday."

"Yeah, don't remind me," Haruto grumbled.

Arthur folded his arms and said nothing.

Regardless of what was to happen, it seemed like today's Minigame was probably going to be a full game… assuming Holland comes, that is!

---

(Auditorium)

Hey! Holland came!

Holland had decided to head toward the Auditorium in preparation for the Minigame. He figured he could participate. After all, his shift was due to end and Jared would have to pick up where he left off. Though, for Holland, hardly anything eventful happened in Cell Block S.

Mostly because all the drama was at the Cafeteria.

Speaking of the drama, Holland had a feeling he definitely missed something big. Especially since he was the last one to make it to the Auditorium and was probably really late as well.

He paused as he stoically stared at the eight prisoners.

"...Uhhh, did I miss something?" Holland blinked.

"A lot of things in fact," Zuri sighed before smiling. "But I'm glad you could make it, Holland!"

"...Of course," Holland nodded. "I just got surprised by everyone's presence though… I… didn't miss the Pairing Assignment Period did I…?"

"Um…" Zuri trailed off.

"Attention all prisoners," Monohebi's voice rang out. "The Pairing Assignment Period has ended. Anyone who has not yet been matched with anyone will randomly be matched. Anyone who is late will not be able to participate in today's proceedings. That is all."

Well, there was his answer.

Holland blankly stared at Monohebi. White Collar wasn't on stage today however, which meant he either didn't care enough to attend today's proceedings or was busy with something else. But even with Monohebi on the stage, that didn't stop these proceedings from being any less stressful than it already was.

"...Well, that answers that," Holland noted before turning to Zuri. "So, who did I get paired up with?"

…

Holland stared at the results above the projector of today's pairings. Today, they were as follows:

"Pair A: Abigail and Haruto vs. Jared

Pair B: Arthur vs. Cassandra

Pair C: Holland vs. Ina

Pair D: Mimi vs. Zuri"

"You all know how the rest of this works now," Monohebi nodded before giving her one of her many signature announcements:

"Ten minutes until Prisoner's Dilemma: Guess Who begins…"

---

Holland stoically stared at Ina, who was looking a little hopeless at the moment. It wasn't hard for Holland to figure out why or how he ended up being paired up with her.

"...So, let me guess," Holland tucked a piece of his hair behind his ear. "You tried to pair up with Mimi. She rejected you and picked Zuri. And now you're stuck with me…"

"That was just a guess?" Ina seemed rather impressed before she sighed once again.

"...It wasn't hard to figure out," Holland shrugged.

Ina folded her arms. She leaned against the nearest Voting Chamber and frowned slightly. She watched Mimi and Zuri converse with one another and couldn't help but feel slightly miserable about this.

"...You alright?" Holland asked, curiously.

"I am unsure on what to do," Ina bitterly stated.

"...Well, for starters," Holland gestured to the projector. "Pick Trust and I'll pick Trust."

"About Mimi, I mean," Ina shook her head. "No matter how hard I try to get closer to her, she always finds a way to avoid me. I have not been able to get a moment alone with her to try to ask for forgiveness. I just… I am unsure on how to even approach her without scaring her off."

Holland was unsure about this too.

After all, he was really damn lucky. For him, it was the opposite. He avoided people and yet he had someone who kept approaching him for a conversation and now…

"Well… wasn't it the same with you?" Holland perked his head.

"What do you mean?" Ina blinked.

"You avoided speaking with Arthur a lot and yet here you are," Holland fixed his hoodie. "Why did that change?"

"...I suppose it was because Arthur proved to me how much he truly did care about me," Ina surmised.

"...Then that's exactly what you need to do with Mimi," Holland theorized. "Or at least, I hope. After all, Mimi still blames you for everything that happened to Yuumi. So I guess you have to prove to her that you're someone worth forgiving…?"

Holland rubbed his chin in thought.

"If that makes sense?" Holland wasn't even sure if that was good advice.

"...What if she never forgives me?" Ina asked.

"...Is that what you're scared of?" Holland tilted his head.

Ina merely nodded.

Holland sighed.

"I suppose you'll have to figure that out on your own when you reach that road…" Holland had no idea. "Because I don't think I have an answer to that…"

Ina watched Mimi from afar before nodding toward Holland.

"Then I guess I will have to give it my all to prove to her that I am truly sorry for what happened to Yuumi," Ina nodded. "Thank you Holland…"

"...Of course," Holland replied before stoically gesturing to the projector. "Now, you're going to vote Trust, right?"

…

While Holland and Ina had their conversation, Mimi and Zuri had a relatively similar conversation. In fact, one could say it was a direct parallel to the conversation that Holland and Ina were having, especially when Mimi snuck glances at Ina once in a while.

"I just don't get it," Mimi pouted. "Why does she think she has any right to try to ask me for forgiveness? She knows what she did wrong and she knows I'll never forgive her!"

"Well, I guess that's true but I can tell she's trying super hard to make amends with you," Zuri noted.

Zuri didn't know how this happened. She was originally going to choose Arthur as an opponent but instead, she found herself dragged into a Minigame against Mimi. The witch girl was so desperate to get away from Ina that she literally stole Zuri. And now she was stuck in what seemed to be some sort of therapeutic session.

She sighed to herself.

Anything involving the Kingstons had to be a therapeutic session for Zuri. (If confused, this is a direct reference to Chapter 3 where Zuri had to pretty much play as Arthur's therapist for his sibling issues).

"Well, I don't care," Mimi pouted. "I meant what I said! I will never forgive her!"

"And that's fine," Zuri nodded. "But knowing Ina, she isn't going to give up until you do. At some point, you'll have to consider it."

"Y-You don't understand," Mimi frowned. "She and Arthur are the reason why Yuumi died! And I just forgive either of them for that!"

"I mean, I kind of do," Zuri pointed out. "I felt hurt when Holland used me to attempt murder but I was willing to forgive him."

"But that's different!" Mimi exclaimed. "You like Holland! I don't like Ina!"

"A-Agh," Zuri blushed. She looked down, bashfully. "W-Well, either case, what me and Holland have only became stronger because I chose to forgive him. Maybe it'll be the same for you and Ina."

Mimi looked down as she folded her arms.

"She wishes," she stubbornly stated.

Zuri groaned to herself.

What Mimi felt was way different than what she felt with Holland. There was no helping it. Only time would tell if Mimi would ever forgive Ina.

"Anyway, you're picking Trust, right?" Zuri switched topics.

…

Arthur had no idea how he ended up with Cassandra of all people. Actually, he did. Ina wanted to be with Mimi so he was going to accept Zuri's request of being opponents. However, Mimi went ahead and stole Zuri. Abigail and Haruto had already teamed up and taken Jared. Which left Holland, Cassandra, and his sister.

And since no one could trust Cassandra and him to be with someone who had yet to arrive, Ina went ahead and took Holland.

So now he was left with a rather simple choice…

"Distrust?" Cassandra boredly asked.

"Of course," Arthur folded his arms.

Moving on!

…

How the hell does Jared always get the hardest opponents?

First, it was Cassandra.

Then, it was Holland and Zuri with their little 50/50 deal.

And now Abigail and Haruto.

Would this be yet another 50/50 deal?

"Alright," Jared sighed. He was going to have to do some more convincing here. "Look. I know we've had some differences. But you saw my results. I trusted Cassandra and I trusted Holland and Zuri. So, you can obviously Trust me…"

"Dude, we weren't even here at yesterday's proceedings," Abigail deadpanned.

"Yeah, so how the fuck do we know you're even telling the truth?" Haruto glared at Jared. "For all we know, you could pull an Arthur and pick Distrust! And then we'll both get Disadvantages! Which is something Abby here doesn't need on her plate!"

"And that's exactly it," Jared shook his head. Though, he did do a double-take after remembering that they were in fact unavailable for yesterday's game. "You know my goal is to stop White Collar. And giving you two Disadvantages is only going to help him in the long run. Why would I want to do something that helps him?"

"Alright, then you pick Distrust, and we pick Distrust," Haruto folded his arms. "There. Problem solved."

"Well, I would prefer it if both sides chose Trust," Jared noted. "The more we Trust, the more we can show White Collar that we aren't going to play his game anymore… It's a way to show that we have the power over his game."

"Yeah, but that's way too much of a risk with someone like you," Haruto grumbled.

Jared groaned inwardly. Of all the opponents he always had to be with, it had to be the most untrustworthy people in the game or a team of two. Why couldn't these choices be easy…?

"Haruto, I think we might need to think about this a bit," Abigail folded her arms, examining Jared closely. "Can we talk privately?"

"Huh?" Haruto blinked before grumbling. "Uh, yeah, sure."

Just like Zuri and Holland, Abigail and Haruto walked a few distances away from Jared to talk about their strategy here. Well, not a strategy but more of a considerable agreement.

"I think we should take him up on his offer," Abigail firmly stated.

"The fuck?" Haruto blinked. "It's fucking Jared!"

"I know, but Jared makes a good point," Abigail stated. "The more times we Trust each other, the more we can finally get an upper hand over White Collar. And besides…"

Abigail's mind trailed to her one-million-dollar bounty.

"...Aren't you getting sick of all these Disadvantages?" Abigail folded her arms.

Haruto considered her words for a moment. Then with a sigh, the two walked back to Jared, who expected a probable agreement to his proposition.

"Yeah, we'll Trust," Abigail stated as a matter-of-factly.

"But that doesn't mean we have to like it!" Haruto added unnecessarily.

"Fine with me," Jared nodded, tilting his hat down.

And now all that was left to do was pray that both sides would stick to their word. But it was Abigail and Haruto vs. Jared. So, anything could probably happen… Probably.

...

"Ten minutes have passed," came the voice of Monohebi. "The Minigame: Prisoner's Dilemma: Guess Who will begin now. Please step inside the Voting Chambers within the next two minutes. Anyone who is not inside the Voting Chambers within the next two minutes will be unable to participate in the Minigame and thus, their vote will automatically be set to Trust by default. That is all. As a reminder, please step inside the Voting Chambers within the next two minutes."

Hearing Monohebi's announcement, the prisoners hurried to snag a Voting Chamber.

Everyone had scanned their eHandbooks over the Handbook readers, letting the red lights flash green and waiting for the doors to open. Once the doors opened up, they hurried in.

...

Two minutes passed and everyone was already inside their respective Voting Chambers.

...

The door closed. Everyone made it inside the Voting Chambers. Two simple options once again on that Voting Tablet: Trust or Distrust.

…

…

…

…

…

Once the votes had been cast, the Voting Chambers opened back up for the prisoners. One by one, they exited as a projector was turned on. The fourth round of the Minigame had been completed. More will come. Now, it was time for the results.

"Here are the results for the Minigame: Prisoner's Dilemma," Monohebi announced. "Results have been accumulated thanks to the votes submitted by our participants. Thank you for playing the Minigame and good luck."

---

"Pair A: Abigail and Haruto [TRUST] vs. Jared [TRUST]

Pair B: Arthur [DISTRUST] vs. Cassandra [DISTRUST]

Pair C: Holland [TRUST] vs. Ina [TRUST]

Pair D: Mimi [TRUST] vs. Zuri [TRUST]"

---

Arthur and Cassandra glanced at one another.

"Oh look, who could've seen this coming?" Cassandra boredly commented. She was getting really bored from these Minigames. In fact, she's the only person in this entire cast that has yet to vote Trust for anything.

"The one time I say I would Trust, and I get you," Arthur muttered. "Better luck next time for me, I suppose…"

"Are you just talking to yourself?" Cassandra stared at him weirdly.

Nothing interesting with these two's results.

So, let's move on!

...

Holland glanced at the screen as he noted the results of his and Ina's game. Guess that means they were going to share statuses. Not that it would matter too much for Holland… He sighed as he folded his arms.

"Well, we Trusted," Holland nodded.

"Of course we did," Ina nodded in return.

There was a silence between the two before Holland gave the revolutionary a look.

"...I may not have been much help about what's going on with you and Mimi…" Holland began. "But just hang in there and try your best. Eventually, she'll acknowledge your apology… Things like this just take time. I know it did for me…"

"Of course," Ina nodded in agreement before she glanced at Mimi.

She let out a breath of uncertainty. What exactly was she going to do?

...

Similarly, Zuri also seemed relieved that Mimi and she had Trusted each other. Of course, they would Trust! Why wouldn't they? It was Mimi! And Mimi would only literally Distrust Arthur, Cassandra, Ina, and maybe even Jared!

"Thank goodness," Zuri breathed out. "Thank you for choosing Trust!"

"I mean, of course," Mimi nodded. "I trust you. In fact, you're one of the people I can really trust and count on. The ones I don't trust are those meanies!"

"Ah… no need to list them out," Zuri noted. "I already know who you might be referring to anyway."

Zuri looked slightly sheepish as she rubbed the back of her neck. Mimi looked down slightly.

"Zuri, do you think I'm being too rash here?" Mimi folded her arms with a slight frown. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to…"

"...Honestly Mimi," Zuri blinked. "A little bit."

Mimi folded her arms and looked down.

"But, hey don't be sad about that," Zuri told her. "It's normal to be angry. But sometimes, you just need to have the courage to give them a second chance…"

Mimi seemed like she was considering this.

Great.

Zuri was finally getting to her.

All it took was… well… something.

"You don't have to give them a second chance if you don't want to but just hear them out," Zuri told her. "Maybe you'll feel compelled to later on."

"...Is that what happened between you and Holland?" Mimi asked.

Zuri's face slightly blushed at his name.

"...I guess you can say that," Zuri noted.

Mimi paused in consideration.

"Then I'll think about it," Mimi timidly noted. "Thank you, Zuri."

"Of course, any time," Zuri smiled at her.

She was glad that Mimi wasn't as stubborn as she was before. She supposed a trip to the Voting Chamber had her considering her options…

…

"I'll be honest," Jared sighed in absolute relief when he saw the results. "I did not think you guys were going to vote Trust. But I'm glad you guys did."

"Oh, believe me," Haruto grumbled. "I heavily considered voting Distrust."

Abigail elbowed him in the gut. With a grunt, Haruto covered his stomach.

"We're also glad you held up your end of the deal," Abigail noted. "Frankly, if you didn't, I would've slapped you a little harder than I did with Arthur."

"And I would've pummeled your ass," Haruto cracked his knuckles.

"Haruto…" Abigail stared at Haruto, sternly.

"Aw come on, Abby," Haruto grumbled. "I wasn't too serious about that. I was just saying shit."

"Well, whatever the case is," Jared shook his head. "None of you two would have to do with me. And today's results looked far better than they did yesterday. So, it's thanks to you two that it happened this way."

"Of course," Abigail nodded with a smile of content.

"We still don't have to like you, y'know!" Haruto exclaimed.

Jared shook his head, though in light amusement. He was glad that he was finally getting into these Minigames and actively being Trusted. Honestly, it felt good. And it also made him regret his options back in the previous Minigames.

Finally, felt like the cards were in his favor…

…

With the results being much better than it was yesterday, Monohebi seemed more or less disappointed. If Master White Collar was here, he would probably be disappointed as well. Unfortunately…

"So, what do you think about the results this time, Monohebi?" Jared turned to the snake with a more determined look of success.

"...Master White Collar would not be happy with these results," Monohebi shook her head.

"Where is that bastard anyway?" Haruto growled.

"Perhaps he knew the results would come out this way and is in hiding so as to not show his disappointment?" Ina suggested.

"Master White Collar had to attend to other matters today," Monohebi stated. "He would have loved to be here today. Fortunately, he isn't… because he would not like what he would be seeing."

White Collar had to attend to other matters today? What other matters could those be? Whatever the answer was, there was no way Monohebi was going to specify anything. Instead, all she did was flick her tongue out.

"Perhaps the results will be better tomorrow when Master White Collar returns," Monohebi stated. "Until then, I shall now conclude these proceedings today. May tomorrow's Minigame be a little more interesting than today's. You may all leave."

With the proceedings finished, there was nothing else anyone else wanted to do in the Auditorium. Not even Arthur. After all, he already had his conundrum answered earlier. Not like it was a good answer, anyway. However, as each person began to leave the Cafeteria, Monohebi slithered down the stage and tapped Cassandra on the ankle before she could even begin to move.

"Miss Mura," Monohebi began. "May I speak to you for a moment? Privately…"

Cassandra blinked, glancing down at the snake.

Ballsy of the snake to ask her this in front of a leaving crowd. But regardless, she nodded. And unbeknownst to her, someone had watched her interact and follow behind the snake…

---

(Ultimate Scam Artist's Cell)

The Ultimate Scam Artist Cell was still left in that state of disarray. Clearly, White Collar and Monohebi couldn't be bothered cleaning up stuff anyway so, this was kind of the norm for them at this point. But for Cassandra, this brought back uneasy feelings that she desperately suppressed down by feigning total ignorance.

"So, what was so important that you had to call me at the scene of my own crimes?" Cassandra folded her arms, trying not to glance at the spot where she killed Maggie.

Of course, Cassandra had directed this conversation toward Monohebi, who remained coiled and was noticeably a little irritated that she had to speak to this bitch one-on-one.

"I'm sure you already know what it is," Monohebi stated.

"If it's about Arthur again," Cassandra sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "You tell that impatient, religious asshole of a zealot that it's not easy to go and just kill someone like that. There has to be a set-up and everything! So go and tell his lazy ass to wait patiently when he comes back!"

Monohebi hissed. This bitch really insulted her Master again…

"Miss Mura," Monohebi began.

She tried to remain calm. But boy does being near this bitch make her blood boil. Except, she probably didn't have blood, so some other fluid boiled. Whatever the case was, Monohebi wasn't happy. She flicked her tongue as she uncoiled herself and tried to loom over her. However, Monohebi was still not as large as she would like to hope.

"I do not approve of the deal that you and Master White Collar have made," Monohebi told her. "It heavily goes against the rules of this Killing Game. And I insist that you decline your deal and stay away from having one-on-one with Master White Collar at all costs."

"What?" Cassandra glared at Monohebi. "Your Master was the one who made a big deal out of this agreement in the first place."

"Yes, but technically, it was your original intention in the first place," Monohebi stated.

"But what about the fake execution?" Cassandra frowned. "What about that entire plan to kill Arthur Kingston and leave? I killed Maggie and got away with it. And he said it himself. I'm not even a participant of the Killing Game anymore."

"Do you truly believe those words?" Monohebi perked her head. "Because as far as I'm concerned, you still are a participant…"

Cassandra folded her arms.

She already knew that. After all, it was clear based on what White Collar had told her…

---

"You know," Cassandra started to laugh as she lowered the knife once more. "For a guy who's always such a stickler for rules, you're clearly breaking your own rules. I mean, blackmailing a player into killing someone just to give them and only them a chance to leave? You say you're a man of your word but this is a whole level of cheating I don't want to deal with."

"What do you mean Miss Mura?" White Collar rubbed his throat as his mask grinned. "As far as I'm concerned, you're no longer a participant in the Killing Game."

"...W-What do you mean?" Cassandra blinked, widening her eyes slightly.

"Have you already forgotten?" White Collar's mask grinned. "You were the blackened of Miss LaDroubi's murder. And you… got away with it. Getting away with murder was the number one requirement of winning a Killing Game. And you did just that. At least, that's the story we'll go with."

White Collar held up a finger toward his mask. Maybe at a second glance, it also kinda looked like he was winking.

"But don't tell anyone..." White Collar grinned before holding out a hand for Cassandra to shake. "It's our little secret. Do we have a deal?"

---

He wanted that part to be kept as a kind of alibi. A secret. But a secret to who? Who else but whoever was secretly running this game behind the scenes. Heh. Even White Collar had rules he had to follow. No doubt that was why he wasn't available today.

"Of course, I am," Cassandra mumbled. "And what about it? Why do you even care about this deal anyway? It has nothing to do with you–"

"It has everything to do with me!" Monohebi hissed.

She hated this stubborn skank's attitude. She hated this skank more and more…

"My ultimate goal in this world is to always protect my Master," Monohebi bared her fangs. "I was created from scraps and remains for the sole purpose of living for my Master. I obey his every command. I serve his every whim. Your deal with my Master ruins all of that!"

Cassandra was slightly taken aback by how angry this snake was. How…

"Obsessed much?" Cassandra retorted. "I'm not trying to steal him away from you or anything."

"And yet, it is your deal that is going to take him away from me," Monohebi stated. "There are rules that even Master White Collar has to follow. Messing with the flow of the Killing Game by making a deal with you is against the rules that have been set."

"So, you're telling me to just give up on everything?" Cassandra frowned. "All that uneasiness I had to feel. All of that stress I had to experience over what to do. All of that guilt. All for nothing."

"If you won't do something about it," Monohebi flicked her tongue. "Then I will. And you will not like it if I force my hand."

"...Yeah, well who the fuck cares what you think," Cassandra hatefully stared at the snake. "I was promised a fucking way out of this Killing Game to see my dad in the hospital. You seriously think I'm going to pass up that opportunity because a little pet told me not to?"

"Miss Mura…" Monohebi's eyes glinted dangerously.

"No, don't 'Miss Mura' me!" Cassandra argued. "I have a fucking deal with White Collar. I'm going to kill Arthur Kingston, leave this Killing Game, and go back to my lesser shitty life!"

"You... selfish skank…" Monohebi hissed. "You will regret this…"

Monohebi seemed to have noticed something behind her. Or rather… someone… Flicking her tongue, it almost seemed like her mouth widened into a smile.

"Hmph, that is all I have to say to you, Miss Mura," Monohebi stated. "Have a good night… And good luck for what's to come..."

"Oh, I will, you fucker," Cassandra glared at her.

The snake quickly slithered off almost rather quickly, leaving behind a relatively pissed Cassandra.

Fuck!

That was it! She… She was going to have to get out of here! Her time was running out, wasn't it?! So… Tomorrow… She was going to have to do it. She was going to have to kill Arthur Kingston. But will she? Could she? Fuck! What the fuck was causing her to stall so badly?!

Cassandra's answer would come in physical form.

…

"So that's what you wanted to tell me earlier, huh?"

Cassandra widened her eyes.

Of all the people to find out…

Cassandra turned around.

…why did it have to be you?

And she saw Jared, leaning against the wall of the Ultimate Scam Artist's Cell. He had his arms folded. His expression was noticeably hurt. And his hat was tipped up, just to show her how betrayed he felt by everything.

"J-Jared," Cassandra turned to him. "W-Wait, the truth is…"

"That your Plan B was making a deal with White Collar so you can save your sorry hide?" Jared deduced, glancing away. "You know I heard everything right? Tch, I shouldn't even be surprised but somehow, I still am. Should've expected that you would pull something like this. Don't even know why I even thought to trust you in the first place."

"Look, I was going to tell you the truth!" Cassandra tried to say. She cursed under her breath. That was why Monohebi had slithered off so quickly. She already knew that Jared was listening in. That fucking snake… was ruining everything on purpose. That's what she meant by good luck... wasn't it? "I swear!"

She witnessed Jared's face darkened.

"Then, tell me," Jared glared at Cassandra. "Tell me what the fuck you did…"

---

DANGANRONPA: CORRUPTED HOPE

---

Well then, here is Daily Life 4! Chapter 4 is definitely the most dramatic chapter yet, I feel :0 Especially with 9 characters that everyone knows and love too! :D

I swear to you, this Daily Life had to be the most edited Daily Life so far XE I even had to rewrite the last scene because I wasn't too happy with it. Also, if the structure of this chapter seems a little sloppy, I do apologize! I literally had to struggle to come up with how this chapter would be structured, XD But I hope you guys enjoy it nonetheless!

Trial Part 2 has been started but it's not even close to done. Hopefully it'll be halfway done by the time I finish with Daily Life 5!

As for this chapter itself, a lot has happened. Y'all got some more lore stuff! Monohebi is preparing to take action against Cassandra! And now Jared knows about Cassandra's little secret :D What will happen? Who knows but me!

I don't really have much to say except the usual. Did you like the chapter? How am I doing? What did you not like? Like. Subscribe. Only 5% of people who read my stories are subscribed, so if you end up liking the chapter, please subscribe. It's free and you can always unsubscribe in the future. Also, we are getting closer to the Deadly Life with every chapter ;-;

So, see you all in Daily Life 5!

---

Prisoners Remaining: 9

---

Abigail Ellsworth - The Ultimate Equestrian (oddlyillregular) [1,000,000]

Arthur Kingston - The Ultimate Snowboarder (SinWriter7) [0]

Cassandra Mura - The Ultimate Scam Artist (ExtraMeme) [500,000]

Haruto Walker - The Ultimate Former Basketball Player (theotakureader101) [0]

Holland Delaney - The Ultimate Game Designer (Sempi) [1,000,000]

Ina (Hamamura) Kingston - The Ultimate Revolutionary (VividIsSleeping) [0]

Jared Ceartas - The Ultimate Police Officer (Otterplay) [500,000]

Mimi Kazoo - The Ultimate Fairytale Writer (Idraegan) [0]

Zuri Auraline - The Ultimate Bassist (CandleFire45) [1,000,000]