Chapter 5: Saviour of the Damned (Deadly Life #2)
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!
The black and white helicopter began to ascend.
The rotor spun, allowing the helicopter to take off.
The ride wasn't going to take too long. But even then, they hoped that they would make it in time. He's gone too far. They knew it was a bad idea when he granted him permission to take on this task. But did he listen?
No.
No he didn't.
And as such, it was up to them to clean up this little mess. They kept their weapon in their arms as they felt themselves take off. They watched as they flew directly toward the blood-red horizon. Blood.
Blood will be shed.
They glanced down at their glimmering blade, breathing heavily behind their helmet. And as the helicopter continued to fly to their destination, the blood red sunset reflected off of their body, with the only color matching this coloration and tint being their trident-shaped jagged visor, glowing to reflect their frustration…
Time's up…
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White Collar...
TRIAL COMMENCE
"Allow me to remind everyone the rules of this Prison Trial," Monohebi began, coiled up on the large throne that oversaw the 16 podiums. Given the fact that half of her face and some parts of her body had exposed her internal robotic mechanisms, it definitely was a much more intimidating sight. Nevertheless, occupying Kane's, Titus', Yuumi's, Mayu's, Maggie's, Carter's, Barracuda's, Jared's, Zuri's, Ina's, and Cassandra's podiums were their respective mugshots with two X's crudely drawn over their eyes and scribbles to represent fire that possibly hinted at the fact that they were burning in Hell. "There is a blackened among you. Your job is to argue amongst yourselves to ultimately come to a conclusion on who you think the blackened is. Once you have come to an agreement, you will be permitted to vote on who you think the blackened is. If you vote correctly, only the blackened shall receive punishment. But if you vote incorrectly, then everyone besides the blackened will be punished and the blackened will be able to escape the facility. Now, today's Trial is more of a special case."
"Because we're looking at yet another Double Murder Trial," Abigail grimaced, uncomfortably. How could two people have ended up dead again?
"That is correct," Monohebi nodded her head. "As such, it is also important for me to go over the rules regarding Double Murder Trials before we begin with the usual questions. The rules of the Double Murder Case are as follows: Your goal is to figure out who killed the first victim of this case. The second victim is entirely optional and up to you to solve if you feel like it. But please, don't waste too much time figuring out who the killer for the second victim is. Killers of any secondary victim will not be executed in these Trials."
"And only the victim who was discovered first, matters, right?" Mimi questioned.
"Correct, again," Monohebi nodded. She seemed rather content with herself, not just because that skank, Cassandra Mura, was dead but also because things were going quite smoothly for this Trial so far, even though they literally just started. "Now then, since you all seem very knowledgeable about–"
"It was Cassandra, wasn't it?" Arthur suddenly spoke, his eyes cold, dark, and absolutely deranged. "She killed my sister, didn't she?"
Monohebi turned to Arthur, perking her head and allowing that forever glowing red eye to glance at the snowboarder curiously. She flicked out her tongue, but kept it out, allowing it to feel the exposed metal.
"Answer me!" Arthur pounded his fist onto the podium, a dangerous chill raising up his body, and that wasn't the decor of the Trial Grounds speaking this time around. "Tell me I'm right! Tell me it was Cassandra who did this to her!"
"Mister Kingston…" Monohebi narrowed her only jagged eye at this point. "I do hope you remember how these Trials work. I cannot just go ahead and give you the–"
"Oh, shut it you pile of scraps!" Arthur gritted his teeth. "We know who did it! It had to have been Cassandra! All of this bombing situation was her plan! She has killed once before! She instigated everything! All in a monstrous attempt to kill me! How could it not be her?!"
"...Arthur," Mimi looked down.
She may not have liked Arthur that much but at the moment, she knew how he felt. Trial 2 and Trial 3… it was her in that same position. That same stubborn position… That position that made her avoid seeking out the truth to the case.
"Who else would do this?!" Arthur turned to his peers in desperation.
Arthur began to shake.
His eyes began to unravel with small tears.
"Arthur, enough," this time, it was Abigail's turn to speak up. "We know how you feel. All of us, at some point in our lives, know how it feels to lose someone or something close to you like this."
She grimaced as she glanced toward the others, who could only watch as Arthur couldn't maintain his sanity. Out of everyone who lost someone or something, Arthur was the one who handled it the worst. Even Mimi, the one who lost way too many people, was able to carry that burden of survivor's guilt on her shoulders.
"Mimi lost a lot of people," Abigail grimaced. "Holland lost Zuri. Haruto lost his future. I… I lost my sister too. If there's anyone who knows what you're going through, it's us. So, please get your shit together. We have to figure out who really killed Ina and Cassandra…"
"H-Ha…" Arthur clutched his head with a cold laugh. "H-Ha… Y-You really think that it could be one of us again? One of us who killed Ina?"
Arthur pounded his fist on the podium once again.
"Look around!" Arthur yelled, angrily. "Look at who's left! Do you really think any of us would want to kill my sister?! Even Mimi, who hated her guts, wouldn't do something like that!"
"Hey, Kingston," Haruto glared at him. "I know you're pissed… I fucking am too, but don't take that fucking tone with her. She's just trying to get you to clear your head."
"No, Haruto, it's fine," Abigail frowned. "He's right. I don't want to believe it's any of us after everything we've been through. The fact is, he might be right. Maybe Cassandra really did kill Ina. But then, that leaves more questions."
"...If Cassandra killed Ina, then who killed Cassandra?" Holland nodded.
"Not only that, but we don't know for sure that Cassandra really did kill Ina…" Mimi looked down.
"So, please, Arthur," Abigail tried to reason with him. "I'm begging you. Once again, get your shit together. Ina… Ina would want you to reach the truth over what happened to her."
Arthur held onto his podium for dear life. His emotions were running wild, like a winter breeze in a terrible snowstorm. He gritted his teeth as he felt his forehead erupt into a minor headache.
"Grk…" Arthur grumbled to himself as his eyes became teary-eyed.
They were right.
He had to get his shit together. The justice needed for Ina was required for that. He glanced up toward Abigail and merely nodded, trying hard to keep his emotions under wraps. It was hard for him to do so. Hard for him to return to that cold Arthur Kingston everyone hated to be around…
"Now then," Monohebi nodded her head, her left eye glowing and sparking slightly. "With Mister Kingston having calmed down, I believe we can start with a few questions, and since this is a Double Murder Trial: Who is the decisive victim in this case? Is it Cassandra Mura or Ina "Hamamura" Kingston? And more importantly, who killed the first one discovered?"
…
"Well, we know for a fact that the first discovered was Ina, right?" Mimi blinked. "Holland, Arthur, and I found her body first."
"Yeah, I agree with that," Abigail nodded with a small smile toward the witch girl. "This fact has to be proven because the Body Discovery Announcement played for her first."
...
"Attention all prisoners," Monohebi's voice echoed throughout the facility. "A body has been discovered. After a certain amount of time has passed, the Prison Trial will begin. That is all."
…
Abigail stopped dead in her tracks as she heard the announcement. Her eyes widened as she tried to process what she had just heard. It was a declaration she hated to admit that she had grown accustomed to in an environment like this. But to hear it now of all times…
"Haruto!" Abigail called out desperately. "D-Did you hear that?!"
"Yeah, for sure," Haruto nodded. "Which means that whoever killed Ina, is the person we're looking for… But it's like Arthur said. Honestly can't imagine it to be any of us. I mean, none of us would've killed her, right?"
"Yeah, I… I would never kill anyone, even if it was Ina," Mimi nodded, somberly. "That would just make me a hypocrite…"
"So… I guess maybe it really is Cassandra," Abigail noted.
Arthur scoffed to himself as he gritted his teeth.
"That… blasted dumb broad…" Arthur cursed under his breath.
"...Still, even if it is Cassandra, there's still something off regarding Ina's body that still needs to be checked out," Holland began.
"And what would that be?" Arthur questioned, folding his arms.
Already, Arthur needed an answer to get them to look into this matter further. There was a lot of things they had to look into but there was one thing regarding Ina's body that raises a few discussions. And it was definitely not a topic they could talk about now given that they have no leads on the matter. With my obsessive hints toward this topic, Holland began to tell Arthur what exactly that matter was.
"...Simple," Holland nodded. "It's...
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...the puncture wounds on Ina's body."
"...Th-The puncture wounds?" Arthur blinked.
"Yeah, that's right!" Mimi joined in as she took out her eHandbook. "According to Ina's Autopsy Report, the Time of Death was 4 PM! She died due to impalement and there are two puncture wounds in her abdominal area."
"...Exactly," Holland nodded. "We know what caused one puncture wound..."
This one was a simple one.
There was only one thing that could've caused one puncture wound.
"...That would've been..." Holland began. "...
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...the chandelier."
Mimi had stepped to the side as Holland and Arthur crouched down and slowly lifted the chandelier off of Ina's body. Just to note, the chandelier was a little lighter than they had realized. Perhaps as a result of most of its decor shattered on the ground. Another thing to note that the only trouble they had when removing the chandelier was when–
Squirt!
–When the pointy tip of the chandelier had been dislodged from Ina's stomach. The moment that happened was when Holland felt the blood splatter against his hoodie, staining the image of Kirby on his shirt. Widening his eyes, he let go of the chandelier.
"Yeah, the chandelier had a pointy tip that was lodged inside Ina's stomach by the time it was removed," Mimi nodded in agreement.
"...But while the chandelier created one puncture wound, we still don't know what created the other," Holland explained. "For all we know, that could've been the true cause of death..."
Arthur considered what Holland had said and merely folded his arms in thought. He had to admit that the game designer made a compelling point. Ina's Autopsy Report specifically mentioned her abdominal area having two puncture wounds. The only problem was they knew of one thing that caused it. The other... Who knows!
"...It's as Abigail said," Holland nodded. "We still need to try to reach the whole truth of the case. We can't let things just go unsolved like this. For all we know, there could be more to this than we actually know about..."
Abigail simply nodded toward Holland.
"Tch, I suppose if you want to waste a little time, then perhaps I'll allow you to do so," Arthur grimaced as he glanced away. "Since we know the information to my sister's Autopsy Report, what about Cassandra's Autopsy Report?"
"Well, according to Cassandra's Autopsy Report…" Haruto began to read. "There's no Cause of Death or Time of Death. Makes sense cause when I found her body, it was… in better terms, completely fucked up."
He remembered the gruesome sight he and Abigail were forced to investigate.
"However, the moment he stepped in, the smell of ash and smoke became a little too musky to bear. But he pushed through, taking note of the mess the White Room was in. No longer were the old blood spatters in the room now the main contention of the pigsty it once was, now there was something else.
There was debris spattered all over the ground.
There was… a room behind the White Room?
And yet, most perplexing of all was the fucked up mess that made Haruto feel sick to his stomach. This fucked up mess was charred, heavily taken apart as if it had been ripped apart by a tornado, and its messy stains of red was either burnt or added to the old stains of the previous historical prisoners that suffered in this room.
"So, in other words, we don't know whether Cassandra might've died before or after Ina," Mimi pointed out.
"No, we don't," Abigail shook her head. "But I think it should be easy for us to at least know what might've killed Cassandra…"
"Eh?" Mimi blinked. "I-It is?"
There was only one thing that they know for sure could've killed Cassandra, and it had to be that very thing that caused her entire body to get ripped apart and flung all over the White Room. Jesus, when I say it like that, it's almost like her body wasn't even a body anymore.
"Yeah, for sure," Haruto nodded in agreement as he folded his arms. "The murder weapon that was probably used to kill Cassandra was…
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…a bomb."
"Exactly," Abigail nodded in agreement. "I don't think any of you actually checked out the White Room crime scene, but if you did, you'd see exactly where we're getting at. Cassandra's body was all over the place and well... there was even some ash and soot as well. So, naturally we can come to that bomb conclusion."
"And if that ain't obvious enough, but I'm sure you all heard and felt it as clearly as Abigail and I did when we were making our way toward Cell Block E," Haruto rubbed the back of his neck. "Tch..."
…
BOOM!
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Another tremor from the ceiling.
Haruto and Abigail had just made it to the intersection between Cell Block S and Cell Block E and already a series of shit had already happened for them to notice. And it was just like Haruto to try to get his curiosity in check.
"W-What the fuck was– Was that–" Haruto glanced up. He released himself from Abigail's clutches and started to limp up the stairs.
"H-Haruto?!" Abigail exclaimed. "W-What the hell are you doing?! Y-Your leg!"
"Y-You didn't hear that?!" Haruto turned back as he got ready to climb the stairs. "Th-That sound came from upstairs!"
"B-But everyone should be downstairs!" Abigail widened her eyes.
"N-No the fire is," Haruto clenched his fist. "B-But upstairs… Sh-Shit! W-We have to go now Abby! W-We need to see what the hell that was…"
"Fucking irony at its finest," Haruto grumbled. "In the end, the bitch died to her own plans..."
Haruto was right. This was truly irony at its finest. Cassandra Mura, dying to the very bombs she had planted throughout the facility. Cruel… fucking… irony.
Though, a certain snake couldn't be bothered to care about that at the moment.
"I am a little confused by how you are approaching this case," Monohebi perked her head, her exposed eye flashing. "Did you all not conclude that Miss Hamamura was the one discovered first?"
"...We did," Holland nodded. "But the only reason she ended up dead was because of Cassandra's plot. Ina's death has to be connected to it somehow. Otherwise, nothing will make sense…"
Monohebi pondered Holland's thought process for a moment before nodding her head.
"Very well then," she began. "To keep with tradition, I will simply ask a question since you all seem to agree that Miss Hamamura was discovered first. So, if that is the case, then I ask you: Who killed Ina Hamamura?"
…
"You ask that and yet we're here talking about Cassandra dying to her own bomb," Arthur frowned. "You say they are connected and yet all I'm seeing is that we are wasting time on someone who could very well be the culprit to Ina's murder! How does this come even close to figuring out the truth over what happened to my sister?!"
"...Again, your half-sister died because of Cassandra's plot," Holland pointed out. "If Cassandra is the killer, we need to know Ina's movements. Especially since she's not alive to tell us anything…"
He also noticeably corrected the surviving Kingston. Ina would have been proud.
"Grk," Arthur frustratedly scoffed.
"But all we know now is that Cassandra died from a bomb," Mimi frowned. "And even so... that just... makes figuring out her Time of Death so much harder!"
"I think a place we should start are the bombs in general," Abigail pointed out. "If I'm not mistaken, the bomb that killed Cassandra should be a bomb that we can easily figure out, right?"
"Yeah, you got a point there Abby," Haruto rubbed the back of his neck. "From the Mukuro Ikusaba Evidence Box, there were…"
Arthur had pulled out five small, yet very heavy-duty looking sticky bombs. Each bomb, although they looked exactly the same from each other, had only one difference in the form of labels: #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5, respectively.
"...Five…" Haruto counted. "There were five bombs inside. Now, were all five of them used in this damn case?"
Were five bombs used in this case? Another easy question to answer. Especially for Holland, who merely nodded his head and took charge.
"...Let's count it off then," Holland began. "We know there are five bombs in total. Each bomb is labeled with a corresponding number."
"Yeah," Abigail nodded her head. "The #1 Bomb was attached to…
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…the door to the Dungeon."
"Yeah, that was the first ever bomb that blew up!" Mimi nodded.
"Take a closer look," Cassandra continued.
Once again, as if under her command, the group of six did as they were told and froze. Because now the talking bitch from behind the monitor started to look a little serious and intimidating. On the door leading to the Dungeon was a sticky bomb: Bomb #1. And even worse, given the fact that the bombs seemed to be lit up, it seemed like the bomb itself was activated and ready to blow.
"N-No!" Mimi gasped.
"H-Holy shit!" Haruto exclaimed.
"At the very least, it blew open the Dungeon room but..." Haruto sighed to himself.
"...Next is the #2 Bomb," Holland began.
"Yeah," Mimi was next to report on that. "That bomb was located…
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…at my Cell, the Ultimate Fairytale Writer's Cell, on the tree!"
Because the moment the two walked across the bridge arching over the miniature looping river stream, a sticky bomb, Bomb #2, was attached neatly against the door to the tree. Clearly, this was why God kicked out humans from the Garden of Eden.
"N-Noooo!" Mimi widened her eyes in distress. "N-Not the tree!"
Holland took a step forward and examined the bomb carefully. He felt his legs shake, probably a sign of nervousness that the bomb was just going to blow up, especially since neither of them had the eHandbook with Cassandra's little live feed on it. But upon closer inspection, there was no timer to let them know how much time they had left.
"It blew up too," Mimi looked down. "And it also… ruined my tree…"
Hurts to have something terrible happen in her own Ultimate Cell. Especially when it was a bomb capable of knocking that giant tree down. Again, clear this was why God kicked out Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden…
"...Next, the #3 Bomb," Holland continued.
"The #3 Bomb…" Arthur was next to speak, folding his arms uncomfortably. "That was located in…
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…the Laboratory."
While Abigail and Haruto ran off toward the Mineshaft, Arthur, Ina, and Monohebi, as mentioned before, were in the Laboratory. Almost all too quickly, they had located Bomb #3 and it was definitely in a spot that Monohebi was not very happy with.
Bomb #3 was attached to the glass paned window of the Laboratory that allowed them to look inside the Testing Grounds.
Hissing and allowing her eyes to glow spitefully, Monohebi flicked her tongue in frustration.
"Indeed, it was attached to the left window of the Testing Grounds," Monohebi added, looking pissed. "It was the very bomb that blew half of my face off… Ohhh, my poor Master. He will have to live with this ungodly sight of me until I get a new facejob…"
Monohebi sounded sad but due to that 'ungodly sight of her', she failed to express such an emotion.
"Yeah yeah, we get it," Abigail sighed. "You're salty that a bomb blew up in your face. I'd be mad too…"
"...It was around that time that I noticed Ina was missing," Arthur glanced away. "If only I had been a better brother. Perhaps I would've…"
Holland sympathized with Arthur slightly before moving on.
"#4 Bomb?" he questioned.
"...Easy," Haruto folded his arms as he prepared to reveal where they had found it. "The #4 Bomb was attached...
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...to the Grinder of the Mineshaft," Haruto revealed.
Sure enough, when Haruto and Abigail had reached the Mineshaft, there was a sticky bomb placed directly on the Grinder: Bomb #4.
And for the few minutes they were inside, the two were on a heated time crunch to figure out how to deactivate the bombs. Because as far as we're concerned, Abigail and Haruto may be smart in certain places, but when it came to bombs, they didn't know shit.
As expected of the clearly Ultimate Equestrian and Former Ultimate Basketball Player.
"Fuck, there really is a bomb here," Haruto grumbled.
"Yeah, after trying to find Cassandra came up as a bust, Haruto and I moved on to check Mineshaft," Abigail nodded. "We found Bomb #4 attached to the Grinder so, what now? Guess that leaves us with Bomb #5?"
"...Which can only be in one place," Holland nodded. "The #5 Bomb has to be in...
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…the White Room. In other words, Bomb #5 was what killed Cassandra..."
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BOOM!
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Another tremor from the ceiling.
Haruto and Abigail had just made it to the intersection between Cell Block S and Cell Block E and already a series of shit had already happened for them to notice. And it was just like Haruto to try to get his curiosity in check.
"W-What the fuck was– Was that–" Haruto glanced up. He released himself from Abigail's clutches and started to limp up the stairs.
"H-Haruto?!" Abigail exclaimed. "W-What the hell are you doing?! Y-Your leg!"
"Y-You didn't hear that?!" Haruto turned back as he got ready to climb the stairs. "Th-That sound came from upstairs!"
"B-But everyone should be downstairs!" Abigail widened her eyes.
"N-No the fire is," Haruto clenched his fist. "B-But upstairs… Sh-Shit! W-We have to go now Abby! W-We need to see what the hell that was…"
"Okay, so, Cassandra died to the #5 Bomb," Haruto nodded. "That's great and all but where the fuck do we go from there? All we really concluded is what should've been obvious based on process of elimination..."
"I have to agree with Haruto here," Abigail nodded. "Haruto and I both know she died to a bomb. What does knowing which numbered bomb it was have to do with anything?"
Abigail made a valid point.
Was there really a need to go through each bomb individually? Holland sure thought so. Even though he never did investigate Cassandra's crime scene, he was sure that there was something relatively strange about Bomb #5's existence. Nodding his head, Holland began to state his case.
"...Don't you guys find it odd that Bomb #5 was with Cassandra of all places?" Holland questioned.
"What do you mean?" Abigail asked.
"...Think back to her live feed," Holland rubbed his chin.
Yes.
This part was especially strange...
Much to everyone's surprise, or at least those who were watching, the wall behind her began to change.
No longer was she in the Security Office, now she was in the Ultimate Fairytale Writer's Cell…?
Then her background switched again.
No longer was she in Mimi's Cell, now she was in the Laboratory…?
Then her background switched another time.
No longer was she in the Laboratory, now she was in Mineshaft…?
The background switched one more time.
No longer was she in the Mineshaft, she was in the Ultimate Revolutionary Cell…?
"...In her live feed, Cassandra gave us hints to each location where she hid the bombs," Holland rubbed his chin. "The Ultimate Fairytale Writer's Cell. Laboratory. And Mineshaft. So far, each location fits all of the bombs that she showed us."
"Oh, I see," Mimi widened her eyes. "But then there was her supposedly putting the bomb in the Ultimate Revolutionary's Cell!"
"...Exactly," Holland nodded. "If she was originally supposed to place the bomb in the Ultimate Revolutionary's Cell, then why was she in the White Room in the first place?"
"Well, the answer is obvious, isn't it?" Abigail frowned. "Cassandra is the Ultimate Scam Artist, meaning she's a natural-born liar. She probably showed us that hint just to avoid anyone finding Bomb #5."
"...But why?" Holland narrowed his eyes, confused.
Why would Cassandra be in the White Room instead of the Ultimate Revolutionary's Cell? Well, Abigail suggested it was to keep anyone from finding Bomb #5. But what was so special about Bomb #5 that Cassandra would be in the White Room instead...?
"...Well, if there's anything I can think of at the moment, it probably has to do with that..." Haruto cryptically stated.
"W-What do you mean, Big Bro?" Mimi blinked.
"I think Cassandra had a very good reason to be in the White Room," Haruto noted. "That reason is...
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...the hidden room in the back wall of the White Room!"
"...Th-The what?" Holland was taken aback by this piece of information. After all, he didn't go to Cassandra's crime scene, so he didn't know about some secret hidden room!
However, the moment he stepped in, the smell of ash and smoke became a little too musky to bear. But he pushed through, taking note of the mess the White Room was in. No longer were the old blood spatters in the room now the main contention of the pigsty it once was, now there was something else.
There was debris spattered all over the ground.
There was… a room behind the White Room?
And yet, most perplexing of all was the fucked up mess that made Haruto feel sick to his stomach. This fucked up mess was charred, heavily taken apart as if it had been ripped apart by a tornado, and its messy stains of red was either burnt or added to the old stains of the previous historical prisoners that suffered in this room.
"There was a hidden room behind the White Room...?" Arthur folded his arms, contributing to the conversation after allowing everyone to say their piece.
"Yeah," Abigail nodded. "I'm... not sure how it came about but when we found Cassandra's body, the hidden room was already revealed to us. Not entirely sure how it connects to what Haruto is saying, though."
"Isn't it obvious?" Haruto smirked to himself. "It's the reason why Cassandra needed everyone away from the White Room!"
"Because of that hidden room?" Mimi blinked.
"Think about it this way," Haruto noted. "If you were off planting bombs, you obviously don't want anyone catching you planting bombs, right? So, what did Cassandra do? She gave us a false hint by suggesting it was the Ultimate Revolutionary's Cell. By doing that, she was able to create a distraction, hoping that everyone was going to go flock to Ina's Cell and instead plant a bomb on the White Room."
"...Okay, but why the White Room?" Holland raised an eyebrow.
"Why else?" Haruto leaned against his podium. "To reveal the Hidden Room! Somehow, she found out about it and decided to use Bomb #5 to blow a hole in the wall!"
Holland had to admit.
This was certainly a plausible theory. Attempting to distract everyone from searching Ina's Cell for the bomb to get as many people as possible away from the White Room so she could do her thing. However, there was of course a flaw in Haruto's scenario.
"...No, I don't think that could be it," Holland shook his head.
"Huh?" Haruto blinked. "The fuck you mean?"
"...Well, I won't pretend that I know what the hidden room looks like," Holland stated. "But as far as I'm concerned, based on the facts we know, it's impossible that the bomb was used to reveal the hidden room."
"And why the fuck not?!" Haruto growled.
The answer to that was simple.
If Cassandra's intention was to blow up the White Room to reveal the Hidden Room, then what was wrong with the situation that Abigail and Haruto had come across? What did they literally just establish?
"...The reason why this is impossible..." Holland began. "...It's because...
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...Cassandra died to Bomb #5.
"A-Agh!" Haruto gritted his teeth.
"Yeah, we already said that Cassandra died to Bomb #5!" Mimi nodded in agreement. "Therefore, if she used the bomb to actually blow up a wall to reveal the Hidden Room, then you're also saying that she caught herself in the middle of the bomb's blast radius!"
Mimi blinked and widened her eyes.
Wow! She just sounded really smart right there!
"W-Well, maybe that's exactly what she did," Haruto grimaced. "Maybe her entire plot to reveal the Hidden Room was just that! One big suicide attempt!"
"H-Haruto, I think you're giving her a little too much credit where she actually deserves it," Abigail grimaced. "Cassandra isn't someone who would do that to herself. I mean, she always goes all around rambling about how much she's going to survive this Killing Game!"
"Y-Yeah, but her killing herself is the only way her blowing up the White Room wall and herself makes sense!" Haruto complained.
Abigail merely shook her head.
"No, I don't think so," Abigail stated. "In fact, I think you forgot something important."
"H-Huh?" Haruto widened his eyes.
Did he make a complete fool of himself?
Short answer.
Yes.
Yes, he did.
And there was one way to prove it. One way to prove why Cassandra just could not have killed herself, besides the fact that Cassandra was a selfish bitch who cared about no one but herself!
"This is why Cassandra couldn't have killed herself!" Abigail declared. "Because of...
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…the missing trigger!"
"O-Oh fuck!" Haruto mentally slapped himself for forgetting such an important detail.
"Monohebi has a point," Abigail blinked. "Cassandra had the trigger last time. But…"
She took another look at the gore of a crime scene they were currently standing in. Although both Haruto and Abigail took an extensive look at the crime scene despite how squeamish they would have been, none of them had managed to find the trigger.
"There is no trigger here," Haruto rubbed the back of his neck.
"W-What?" Monohebi blinked. "But that's…"
"...Missing trigger?" Holland blinked.
"One of the things we noticed, or at least, I noticed and remembered," Abigail jokingly jabbed toward Haruto who looked away, embarrassedly. "...Is that there was no sign of the trigger anywhere."
"But didn't she have it last?" Mimi blinked. "If that's the case, then..."
"...Then it proves my case," Holland nodded. "In order to blow up the bombs, you need a trigger. And if the trigger was missing, then it renders it impossible for Cassandra to have possibly blown herself up along with the bomb just to reveal the Hidden Room!"
"Now that's a chilling thought," surprisingly, Arthur interjected with a cold glare and a point of his index finger. He wasn't happy. Of course, that fact should've been obvious at the mere mention of a cold glare.
"Eh?" Holland blinked. "Arthur?"
"Again, why does it matter?!" Arthur held onto his podium, seething in anger. "Missing trigger! Distractions! Hidden Room! We're supposed to solve my sister's murder are we not?! Why does any of this even matter?!"
"Well, it has to matter," Abigail pointed out. "Again, Arthur. We know you're upset but think about this reasonably. Holland is right. The fact that Cassandra doesn't have the trigger is super strange!"
"And how so?!" Arthur exclaimed.
"...Well, for starters," Holland sighed. "If I were the one who planted the bombs, I'd keep the trigger by my side. But when Abigail and Haruto found Cassandra's body, there was no trigger to be found. I mean, it's obvious if you think about it."
"And I'm going to say that this line of questioning is meaningless," Arthur glared at his peers. "The answer is simple and a waste of time!"
"Simple?" Mimi blinked. "You mean, you already figured out why the trigger is missing?"
"Of course, I did!" Arthur declared. "There's only one reason why the trigger would be missing. Simply put, could it not be possible that it was simply blown up alongside the bomb?!"
"Huh?!" Mimi was dumbfounded by what Arthur deduced.
"H-Hey wait a minute, that's what I suggested during the Investigation..." Haruto blinked.
"Think about it like this," Arthur folded his arms. "Cassandra carried both the bomb and the trigger. She ignited the bomb and blew herself and the trigger up against the White Room's wall..."
"...Well, do you have any evidence supporting your claim?" Holland questioned.
"Unfortunately, I too did not check out Cassandra's crime scene," Arthur frowned. "However, I do expect someone who did to back me up here."
"Yeah, yeah," Haruto sighed, knowing all too well that it was going to be him regardless. "Well, as far as I'm concerned, the room was completed covered in debris and soot. It's entirely possible some of that debris could belong to the trigger..."
However, the moment he stepped in, the smell of ash and smoke became a little too musky to bear. But he pushed through, taking note of the mess the White Room was in. No longer were the old blood spatters in the room now the main contention of the pigsty it once was, now there was something else.
There was debris spattered all over the ground.
There was… a room behind the White Room?
And yet, most perplexing of all was the fucked up mess that made Haruto feel sick to his stomach. This fucked up mess was charred, heavily taken apart as if it had been ripped apart by a tornado, and its messy stains of red was either burnt or added to the old stains of the previous historical prisoners that suffered in this room.
"Precisely," Arthur nodded in agreement. "The trigger should've blown into pieces and gotten itself scattered and mixed with the debris of her deed."
Arthur slammed his fist onto his podium.
"That is why you can't find the trigger," Arthur declared. "Because it's been blown to pieces! Can we move on to something more important now?!"
"...So, then you really think that Cassandra's death was an accidental suicide?" Holland pointed out.
"What else could it be?!" Arthur glared at Holland. "There's no other piece of evidence that proves otherwise! So, let's stop wasting time and figure out who is the true culprit behind my sister's murder!"
Holland raised an eyebrow toward Arthur's insistence on moving on. There was a tone of desperation that he detected. It seemed as if he desperately wanted everyone to move away from this line of questioning... Didn't he care about the entire truth?
"No, just a moment," Abigail shook her head toward the rather impatient snowboarder. "There is something wrong with your theory, Arthur."
There was indeed something very wrong with what Arthur had said.
Arthur deduced that perhaps that whatever was left of the trigger would've meshed in with the debris. But was that really the case? Abigail was there. She saw the scene. She knew why this couldn't be possible! So did you, the reader!
"Oh, really?" Arthur frowned, folding his arms. "I accept your challenge. What is it? Out of with it!"
"Simple," Abigail similarly folded her own arms. "It's because...
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...we didn't find any of the trigger parts at the scene of the crime!"
"Y-You what?" Arthur turned to Haruto, as if asking him if this was true.
"W-Well, now that I think about it..." Haruto started to recollect his thoughts.
"Now, as for my earlier question," Monohebi slithered up toward the basketball player and equestrian. Both of them backed away slightly. "What have you found thus far?"
"Pretty much nothing," Abigail shrugged. She gestured to the total disarray of the room. "I mean, what you see here is everything we've already checked. Cassandra's body is all over the place. The room is covered in her blood, ash, and soot. And there are even some pieces of a bomb that blew up in here…"
"Th-That's all?" Monohebi blinked.
"...W-We never did find any parts of the trigger inside the White Room," Haruto grumbled.
"W-Well, perhaps you all didn't look hard enough!" Arthur slammed his fist on the podium.
"Dude," Abigail sighed. "It just her body parts and parts of the actual bomb that killed her. What more did you want us to do in that scene? Literally search through her bones?"
"G-Grah!" Arthur tightened his fist.
The more they talked about this, the more they wasted time talking about the real star of this Trial... His sister. He wanted them to get to her. Not dabble on the mystery of the missing bomb trigger! This entire debacle was ridiculous!
"...So, we can safely conclude that the theory that Cassandra blew herself up in the White Room in an attempt to expose the Hidden Room is unlikely," Holland declared. "Because as long as the trigger remains missing, Cassandra killing herself is off the table."
"Um..." Mimi spoke up.
Mimi slowly raised her hand.
It seemed like realization had hit her and it was a big shock to her for many reasons. Normally, she'd be the one asking the questions, never the one suggesting and deducing things herself. But at the moment, she had an idea. Whether it was good or not, was to be determined.
"What is it, Mimi?" Haruto asked.
"I... actually want to go back to an earlier point Arthur made," Mimi noted with uncertainty. "If Cassandra didn't kill herself, accidentally nor intentionally, then could it be murder instead?"
"Oh really?" Arthur stepped up to challenge this thought, giving her an intimidating cold stare. "And what evidence do you have that proves this could have been a murder?"
Mimi widened her eyes.
Maybe that's why she stuck to asking good questions instead of answering them.
Nevertheless, she thought back to what Arthur had proclaimed. The idea that there was no other evidence that could prove that Cassandra's death can't be anything other than an accidental suicide. She thought of one possibility, but she also found herself lost in her thoughts. Lost enough for Arthur to scoff and look toward the others...
"As I thought, you don't have evi-" Arthur shook his head before getting interrupted.
"No, there is a piece of evidence that proves Cassandra had to have been murdered!" Mimi exclaimed, pumping her fists in determination. "You have to remember Arthur! You were there! It was…
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…the mace in Mayu's Ultimate Cell!"
"G-Grk!" Arthur felt a winter wind blow against his body, pushing him back slightly as he desperately tried to cover himself with his arms. He made sure to clench his teeth as he did so as well.
"What's this about a mace?" Haruto blinked.
Guess they were going to have to look for a mace no–
"Hey, I found the mace!"
Mimi was definitely on a roll with this Investigation period. As Arthur turned back to his sister's corpse, Holland rushed over to where Mimi had found the suit of armor's missing weapon of choice. She was standing by the red curtain, but Mimi's face looked a little aghast for some strange reason.
It didn't take long for Holland to find out why:
Directly behind the curtain was the mace and a small pool of drying blood.
"When Holland and I investigated Mayu's Ultimate Cell, we found a mace that had blood with a small pool of drying blood near it!" Mimi explained. "It was hidden directly behind the curtain of the Cell too!"
"...Ah, good catch Mimi," Holland nodded toward her appreciatively. "...And if we remember correctly, Ina's Autopsy Report never mentioned anything about being hit with something like a mace."
"A mace would classify as either blunt force or bludgeoning, right?" Abigail asked.
"...Yeah," Holland agreed. "That's what I think. The Autopsy Report never mentioned any of that, and Ina also didn't have any head wounds…"
"I see, then the person who got hit on the head has to be Cassandra!" Haruto exclaimed. "Which also means that Arthur's shit theory about her death being an accidental suicide is completely wrong!"
"G-Grk…" Arthur clenched his teeth. "It was partly your theory too, you blubbering buffoon!"
"I... I made a suggestion!" Haruto countered. "You full on sent it!"
"Just admit you're both wrong and move on," Abigail sighed. "In the end, this will be the only reason we're going to waste time…"
"Not yet," Arthur declared. "Because now you're suggesting the impossible! The mace was used to kill Cassandra? If that's the case, then you're also suggesting that she was killed in Ultimate Heiress's Cell! And yet where did you two find her?"
"The White Room," Abigail simply answered.
"Precisely!" Arthur exclaimed. "Therefore, Cassandra being killed with the mace is impossible!"
There it was again. Arthur's desperate attempt to deny their deductions. Holland knew for a fact what Mimi suggested made sense. And Arthur was one of their smartest... So why was he denying this? Before anyone could figure out whether to agree or disagree with the snowboarder, Holland spoke up, looking serious and flipping his hoodie over his head again.
"...Why, Arthur?" Holland began.
"Grm…" Arthur looked away. "W-Why what?"
"...Why are you trying so hard?" Holland frowned. "Why are you trying so hard to deny everything we're saying? What are you scared of? What are you hiding?"
Arthur said nothing.
He merely looked away; his face slightly blue as he refused to answer. Oh yes. He was definitely hiding something. It was the only explanation for his outbursts… To how he was acting… To… everything. But what was it? What was the secret he was harboring to keep for himself?
"...Well, whatever you're trying to pull Arthur," Mimi pouted before pointing her finger toward him. "I have to say that you're the one who's wrong! Because there's clear evidence that proves killing Cassandra in Mayu's Cell is possible!"
Arthur gritted his teeth.
This was an easy one if Mimi could figure it out. No offense. Love her. There was one thing that proves that someone had to have died by the mace in Mayu's Cell. It had to be that...!
"The evidence that proves that Cassandra died from the mace in Mayu's Cell..." Mimi began. "...It's...
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...what I mentioned before! The small pool of drying blood by the mace!"
No need for a flashback, you all should remember it just fine!
"Grk!" Arthur felt a wintery wind push him back. Proof that even the snowboarder remembered this tidbit.
"That small pool of drying blood had to have come somewhere!" Mimi deduced. "And none of us are suffering from head trauma or anything, last I checked. So, obviously the only person unaccounted for has to be Cassandra herself!"
"Not bad, Mimi," Abigail gave the fairytale writer a supportive smile.
Mimi blinked before smiling to herself. For once in these accursed Trials, she was pulling more of her own weight when it came to these deductions. So, this must be how Holland felt whenever he figured something out. But of course, she realized too late she was about to feel what it felt like to be struck with a super difficult question directly after...
"Hmph, I would say your logic is sound..." Arthur frowned. "But there's one simple problem with your deduction."
"H-Huh?" Mimi blinked.
"...If Cassandra truly died in the Ultimate Heiress's Cell..." Arthur began before flashing his cold gaze toward the writer. "Then, how on Earth did she end up in the White Room?"
"Ah..." Mimi blankly stared at Arthur before feeling a gust of wind blow against her. "A-Aghhhhhhhh!"
"...That... is a problem," Holland rubbed his chin. He knew Mimi was onto something when it came to the mace. But now, they had a new problem on their hands. If Cassandra had died in Mayu's Ultimate Cell, then how the living fuck did she end up in the White Room?
"Well, maybe the killer had the balls to carry her to the White Room?" Haruto suggested, lamely.
"Okay, but who here would actually have the balls to do that?" Abigail flatly asked. "The White Room is literally two floors above Mayu's Cell. If they wanted to move Cassandra's body, they'd have to run through Cell Block E, go up the stairs, and run through Cell Block C. That's..."
"Implausible in many different ways," Arthur nodded. "Do you see why this doesn't work? There is no way Cassandra could've been killed in Mayu's Cell if her body was in the White Room!"
Everyone was making good points throughout this entire Trial. Mimi pointed out the possibility that Cassandra was killed in Mayu's Cell. But with no actual way for Cassandra to actually move to the White Room for her body to be found, then that possibility must be thrown out the window. Holland knew Mimi was on point with this! It just came down to a matter of trying to prove it...
"Well, maybe the killer used a shortcut!" Mimi raised her hand as a suggestion.
"What shortcut?" Abigail blinked. "I'm sorry Mimi but I'm pretty sure Cell Block E leads to nothing but Ultimate Cells and dead ends. Same with Cell Block C. I really don't see any way the killer used a shortcut to move the body."
"But we just proved that there is a big chance Cassandra was killed in Mayu's Cell!" Mimi pouted. "Th-There has to be another route the killer took to carry the body, right?!"
...Was there an alternative route that could be taken for the killer to move Cassandra's body?
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"...Wait a fucking minute," Haruto widened his eyes slowly. "I think I got it."
The basketball player had been so engrossed in this conundrum that he tried to put his brain to good use. He knew for a fact that Mimi was right! There had to be an alternative route that could help mesh the pieces together perfectly. And Haruto had a thought on what that alternative route could be...
"...Huh?" Holland blinked. "You do?"
"Yeah, now that I think about it, I think there really was a shorter route the killer could've taken…" Haruto folded his arms.
"W-What?!" Arthur gritted his teeth. "Th-That's impossible! There is only one way through both Cell Block E and Cell Block C! Each way is long and arduous and meaningless for anyone to move a body!"
"...Nah, there is one route that I could think of," Haruto nodded, thinking about this carefully, glancing toward Abigail who also seemed to understand as well. "And that route might be…
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…the hidden room behind the White Room!"
"W-Wha–" Arthur was taken aback by that answer. His eyes widened in shock.
"H-Huh?" Abigail glanced at Haruto, slightly surprised by this answer. "W-Why the room?"
"Because," Haruto folded his arms as he thought about this. "The White Room's hidden room had a selection of buttons on them, remember. And in order to press the buttons, you need a key as well."
"But how could the hidden room be the alternative route to the White Room?" Mimi blinked.
Yes.
How could it be an alternative route, indeed?
Thinking about it now, it was so obvious! He thought back to the arrangement of the buttons. And if he thought of how it was arranged accordingly, it was easy for him to figure what exactly the hidden room truly was...!
"Because…" Haruto began as he recalled what he and Abigail had found. "I think the hidden room behind the White Room is actually…
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…a makeshift elevator!"
"A-An elevator?!" Arthur widened his eyes.
"How did you come to that conclusion?" Holland asked.
"Well…" Haruto began.
Glancing at the side, Haruto noticed a panel with a sequence of buttons in a strange yet small upside-down T shaped pattern, each of them numbered as #1, #2, #3, and #4. For a more visual look, it looked something like this:
#1
#2, #3, #4
And underneath this pattern of buttons was a keyhole. Only problem was there were no keys so…
"What the fuck are these buttons?" Haruto raised an eyebrow as he pressed Button #1.
"...the arrangement of the buttons tells a story," Haruto stated. "When we investigated the hidden room, the buttons were arranged in a peculiar manner. All buttons were labeled #1, #2, #3, and #4. The #1 button was directly above the #3 buttons."
"A-Ah, I see," Holland blinked.
That wasn't confusing at all.
Luckily, Holland wasn't the type to be easily confused unless he was directly off the mark about something. He imagined closely and nodded.
"...I think I get it now…" Holland nodded.
"Huh?" Mimi blinked. "B-But I don't see how the arrangement of the buttons can tell us how it works…"
"...It'll be easy to understand…" Holland assured her. "Because all you need in order to understand how it works is…
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…to look at the map of Cell Block E."
"E-Eh?!" Mimi widened her eyes.
"Yeah, I get it too," Abigail nodded. "We need to think back to how exactly Cell Block E is structured."
(Of course, this would be easy with the map! And also of course, this is definitely much easier to see than that darn Mineshaft thing! :D)
But anyway, for people with no access the map, here's some flashbacks!
As the trio had just left the Laboratory, Arthur had walked with Ina straight to the room that was at the end of the hall. They passed straight through the intersection until they reached the red eHandbook reader. Ina slightly gulped. She was a little nervous to what she would see.
Haruto had followed behind Cassandra who followed behind Holland in order to see what exactly caught the game designer's interest. Though, it really should've been obvious what that was if they had just decided to take one solid look at the map. Once Holland had reached that intersecting path, he went to the left and headed straight down. From there, the only path left to take was right, which would lead the three right toward...
Once Arthur and Ina had left the Ultimate Heiress Cell, they immediately turned left to head to the right side of the Cell Block E's intersection. This led them down another hallway before finally it turned left to reach another locked room. Once they reached this red eHandbook reader, Ina didn't need to waste any breath on hesitating to open it. She took out her eHandbook and pressed it against the reader.
"They are… aligned together like how Haruto described the alignment of Buttons #2, #3, and #4!" Mimi gasped.
"Bingo!" Haruto nodded.
"...B-But… th-that doesn't mean…" Arthur grumbled. "I… Y-You can't… W-What about Button #1?! H-How on Earth can that connect to the White Room?!"
"Well, that's an easy thing to explain," Haruto answered. "Never thought I'd have to explain it to you but if you compare the maps of Cell Block E to Cell Block C and think about it in 3D, you should be able to see why…"
Mimi did as Haruto suggested.
(Again, this is an easier solution to determine when it comes to the map! Just need to compare the map of the Basement Floor to the 2nd Floor, specifically Cell Block E to Cell Block C and then you should see why ;D)
For those with no access the map (thanks Nathan), here's a flashback.
Similar to Cell Block B, Cell Block C opened up to a hallway, only it was much longer than Cell Block B's. And however, instead of leading up to a large grassy terrain like Cell Block B did, the end of Cell Block C's hallway led to a single door with no eHandbook reader.
This… was definitely not what they expected.
The room at the end of the long hallway of Cell Block C that Arthur, Barracuda, and Carter had ventured into couldn't have taken them more by surprise. As soon as they opened that door, they were met with a very typical White Room. Or… at least what was supposed to be a very typical White Room.
Mimi gasped upon closer inspection of the maps.
"A-Ah, I see!" Mimi widened her eyes. "Cell Block E and Cell Block C… The White Room and… Mayu's Ultimate Cell…
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…they're directly on top of each other! That's how the elevator connects to the White Room and Mayu's Cell!"
"...Meaning, the killer would have had a much shorter route to go and kill Cassandra," Holland concluded. "Because all the killer had to do was go through the Ultimate Heiress's Cell, find the elevator, and go directly up toward the White Room!"
"N-No… I-Impossible…" Arthur muttered, his eyes widening. He felt his fist tighten. This was unfair. This was untrue. "I refuse to believe this… I… I… Gahhhhhh…"
He clutched his head in agony.
This couldn't be true.
This just couldn't…
…be true…
He was reacting a little strangely. And at this point, it wasn't just Holland that noticed. Everyone noticed that there was something off about Arthur right about now. Shaking his head, Holland looked a little more confident, despite Arthur relentless denial of their deductions.
"...So, in other words..." Holland began to announce. "...Mimi's deduction of Cassandra actually dying in Mayu's Cell is still valid! Do you agree, Arthur?"
Arthur grimaced slightly.
"If you wish for me to agree," Arthur began to say. "Then you will tell me everything about this so-called elevator. Because a secret elevator beyond the walls of Cell Block C's White Room and Cell Block E's Ultimate Cells…? That's an idea that I can truly laugh at…"
He wasn't agreeing with everything just yet.
There was much to explain after all.
There was much to go through.
And Holland knew that much.
"Well, if that's all it takes for you to finally agree with where we're going with this, then we need to go over some basics about this elevator," Abigail noted. "For example, do we even know where this elevator originated from?"
"What do you mean?" Mimi perked her head, curiously.
"Like, someone had to have found that elevator at some point," Abigail pointed out. "And we already denied the idea that it was revealed thanks to Cassandra's suicide bomb. Meaning, it had to have appeared at some point for someone to find... right?"
Abigail had a point. The sudden appearance of the elevator was strange, meaning it had to have some starting point. An original location on where someone would've most likely found it. But where…?
"...Ah, so that's why..." Holland widened his eyes in realization. "I think I figured out where you can originally access the elevator…"
"Go and say it," Abigail gave him a supportive smile.
"...The elevator…" Holland began. "It had to have originally come from…
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"A-Ah, of course!" Mimi agreed with that statement. "The Ultimate Game Designer's Cell! The door in the back!"
"...I deduced last time that once we beat the game, that door over there…" Holland pointed to the metal door in the back. "...would open up for us."
They stood still for a moment as Holland continued to point at the door.
"...Any minute now," Holland stated.
The door remained shut.
"...A-Any minute now…" Holland grimaced slightly.
The door was still closed.
"Um, are you sure?" Mimi blinked. She looked close to crying. "Holland. Please don't tell us that we went through all of that for nothing…"
"...N-No, I'm pretty sure the door should open…" Holland stated.
He quickly walked up to the metal door and pulled on it as hard as he could. Unfortunately, the door never opened. Oh God. Oh no. Did they really just waste their entire Investigation period playing a stupid game in his stupid Cell?
"Th… W-Why isn't the door opening?" Holland widened his eyes.
"...That must've been why the back door to my Cell never opened," Holland deduced. "Because the elevator was already in use."
"Or… maybe it was because the key was missing," Abigail noted. "Because the buttons only work if the key is inserted in but if the key was gone…"
"The elevator wouldn't move," Mimi understood what Abigail was saying.
"Whatever the case is, we now know that it's entirely possible that the reward to your Cell's game is access to the elevator," Haruto noted. "And for a Killing Game…? That's a pretty dangerous reward…"
"Because it gives you access to four different places, undetected, right?" Mimi blinked.
"That's right," Haruto nodded. "Which means, our killer had to have full access to the elevator if they were in charge of moving Cassandra's body from Mayu's Cell to the White Room!"
The killer had to have access to the elevator to move the body. The killer had to have been in Mayu's Cell in order to wield the mace that killed her. The killer also had to have been someone who was oddly missing throughout everything. That was the criteria.
And at the moment, some people were beginning to realize who fulfilled these criteria.
"W-Wait a minute," Mimi widened her eyes. "Th-Then…"
"H-Hold your tongue, witch," Arthur began, his gaze colder than ice itself. "Don't even think about it. Don't say it!"
Holland finally realized it too. This possibility. The reason why Arthur was acting so desperate. The secret that Arthur was so desperately trying to hide. The reason why Arthur was trying so hard to attack every statement they made. Why he tried to deny everything. Why he didn't even want to go through with Cassandra's case…
He already had it all figured out… didn't he?
"...I see," Holland frowned. "So, that's why you were trying so hard to make up excuses for theories. That's why… You knew all along, didn't you…?"
"What?" Abigail blinked. "What did he know?!"
"Fucking hell, he knows who killed Cassandra," Haruto gritted his teeth. "And the fucker was going to hide it from us."
"B-Because there is no need for you to know who killed her!" Arthur exclaimed. "There is no need for you to know who killed Cassandra! Because Cassandra's murder does not matter! It may have been the catalyst of the entire case, but her murderer is not the one we seek! We are wasting time! I'm telling you time and time again; you are all wasting precious time!"
"...Holland," Abigail turned to Holland. "You know the answer, right? Who killed Cassandra?"
Holland closed his eyes.
"N-No!" Arthur clutched his head. "N-No! D-Don't! S-Stop!"
Holland opened his eyes after careful consideration.
"...Yeah, I think I do," he nodded toward Abigail. "...I'm sorry Arthur. But at the moment, all we can really conclude is…"
"...I… I won't believe this," Arthur gritted his teeth. "I… I can't believe this… C-Cease at once!"
"...The killer…" Holland frowned. "The one who killed Cassandra. It could very well have been…
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"G-G-GAHHHHHHH!" Arthur felt a blast of a chilly wind hit him hard as if a bunch of snowballs were being pelted at him, all at once.
"R-Really?" Abigail widened her eyes. "Ina killed Cassandra? But didn't we think that it was the other way around? I mean, didn't Cassandra kill Ina?"
"Currently, where things stand, the evidence we have say that this is the only way everything could make sense," Holland rubbed his chin. "Because the only person who could've figuratively gone to the Ultimate Heiress's Cell and be missing was Ina..."
"...W-Where's Haruto, Abigail, and White Collar?" Holland glanced around. "And w-where's Ina?"
"I… do not know," Arthur gritted his teeth.
"That is what we would want to know…" Monohebi stated.
"If she was just gone..." Haruto blinked, following along. "Then this could very well be proof that Ina was off on a little killing spree to put an end to Cassandra's fucking bombings, right?"
"But would the timing on this even work out?" Mimi blinked.
"It might be tight, but I imagine it would, based on what Monohebi told Haruto and me..." Abigail explained as she recalled what Monohebi indeed told them.
"...You would be correct, Mister Walker," Monohebi nodded her head. "When Bomb #3 blew up, I was knocked out. When I came to, Mister Kingston was already awake by my side and Miss Hamamura was missing. Shortly after that, we met up with Mister Delaney and Miss De La Vega and the rest is history."
"You guys found Ina," Abigail summarized.
"Yeah," Haruto nodded. "Monohebi was knocked out. And if Ina was missing by the time she and Arthur woke up, then we don't got a time frame for how long they were knocked out."
"...Meaning, Ina could've had hours to kill, play a game, move the body, and die," Holland nodded.
"Let it go!" Arthur interjected, his dark blue hair flowing, his index finger pointed, and his cold eyes glaring at Holland and his silly deductions. "Let your barbaric, obscene, circumstantial accusations go! I will not let you defile my sister's name and dub her a murderer!"
"...But this could be the truth we're looking for," Holland tried to argue.
"N-No, it's not a truth that I can agree with," Arthur folded his arms. "My sister is no murderer! She would never kill anyone!"
"Umm…" Mimi flatly looked at him.
"Y-Yeah, about that," Abigail crossed her arms.
"...Wut?" Haruto blankly stared at the surviving Kingston.
"S-She would attempt a murder, yes," Arthur had to reiterate. "B-But actually murder? N-No! N-Never!"
Holland figured that Arthur must've already realized this possibility. That was why he tried to delay everyone's conclusions. But Arthur's reaction was still just a piece of the overall puzzle. How did this really fit into everything.
"...Y-You also have to understand that all of this is just a theory, right now," Holland frowned. "In fact, it's the only theory we have to move forward with this Trial."
"And it won't be a theory that I will accept to allow us to move forward!" Arthur exclaimed. "I will not stand here and listen to you defile my sister's good name!"
"...So, what do you want then?" Holland frowned. "Evidence? Proof?"
"P-Precisely!" Arthur folded his arms. "W-What was it that made you think you could indict her in the first place? Oh yes. The fact that she had access to the elevator."
"...That's right," Holland nodded.
"But if the elevator was used," Arthur frowned. "Then you're also saying that Ina was able to beat your insane game and gain access to the elevator! The game itself isn't easy! Even if she had all the time of the world, there was no guarantee that she would be able to beat the game quickly! She most likely would've taken a while to beat the game and even then, that's already a big enough risk! Why risk wasting even more time?!"
Holland tapped his cheek.
Arthur had a point there. Holland and Mimi had a struggle when trying to beat the game for Investigation purposes and they were also two-players. There was no way Ina would have beaten the game quickly…
Holland was stuck for a moment.
Was there any way for Ina to be able to beat the game quickly?
"Well, maybe Ina already played it before!" Mimi suggested. "So, she should already know all the answers beforehand, right?"
"Ha, impossible!" Arthur shook his head. "Ina was with me during these past few days. She had no time to go and play the game."
"Well, maybe she did it at night," Abigail suggested. "Ever think of that?"
"Also impossible," Arthur folded his arms. "We all agreed to not venture out at night due to how vulnerable we may be. My sister would never go back on that promise."
"And yet, she committed murder," Haruto sighed.
"Y-You don't know that for sure yet!" Arthur grimaced. "I still believe in my sister! She didn't do it!"
While everyone would argue amongst themselves, Holland knew he had to think of something. A piece of evidence that could help prove how exactly Ina might've gotten to the elevator relatively quickly. How did Ina do it? And how could he prove it?
Hey! That sorta rhymed!
Nevertheless, after careful thought, Holland knew there was one piece of evidence that might just answer Arthur's question. He flipped his hoodie over his head and nodded to himself.
"There is one way for her to beat the game quickly…" Holland rubbed his chin.
"W-What?" Arthur glared at him. "W-Where's your evidence?!"
"...My evidence?" Holland folded his arms. "I have it… The evidence that proves that Ina could've beaten the game quickly is…
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…the message from Ina!"
"The message from Ina?" Arthur blinked. "W-What message...?"
The second of the pieces of paper was… a mess. Covered in blood, whatever had been written on it was clearly handwritten. In fact, a majority of the paper was coated in blood, making most of the writing illegible. However, there was one important and simple piece of information that they could read! It was a message. And this message was so important because it told Holland and Mimi to do one simple thing…
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"Pick the Flowers"
…
"...What?" Holland reread the piece of paper again.
"P-Pick the flowers?" Mimi blinked. "W-What does that even mean?"
"I…" Holland blinked. "...I don't know."
"Ah, of course!" Mimi slammed her fist onto the palm of her hand. "Arthur left early to investigate something! That's why he didn't know about the message!"
"...Yeah, Ina had a message that had three simple words," Holland began. "'Pick the Flowers.'"
"A-And what does that message have to do with how Ina could beat the game easily?!" Arthur glared at Holland. "It's just some message, isn't it? To pick flowers from… from Mimi's Ultimate Cell…?"
"...No, the message wasn't telling Ina to pick the flowers from Mimi's Cell," Holland shook his head. "It was telling Ina to pick flowers from my Cell! Because if you don't remember how my Cell worked..."
Holland thought back to what Mimi and him first did when they investigated his Cell.
"So, we're supposed to 'Pick the Flowers', but how exactly do we do that?" Mimi eyed one of the different flowers that had sprouted. "Do I just…"
She pretended to pick one of the flowers on the wall by placing her hand on the flower's wall and dragging it up.
She widened her eyes.
It worked.
The flower was removed.
"W-Wow!" Mimi clapped her hands. "I-It worked! S-So does that mean?!"
"...Ina's note was most definitely referring to my Cell," Holland nodded his head. "...Meaning, if we follow in her footsteps, we should be able to beat the game!"
"Oh yeah," Haruto folded his arms, nonchalantly. "The game that you would have to play was to do a bunch of stupid shit just to beat 6 Levels, right?"
"Exactly!" Mimi beamed. "And we did all sorts of things. But it's like Holland said! In order to get to Level 2, we had to… pick the flowers."
"W-What?!" Arthur felt a blast of that chilly wind hit him straight in the chin. He tried to block but it definitely gusted his dark blue hair back for a brief moment.
"I see," Abigail realized. "Then, if Ina had a note that explicitly told her the answer to the game. Then, we can clearly conclude that the message Ina had was a cheat sheet to the game in Holland's Cell! And if she had that on her…"
"...Then going through the game would've taken no time at all," Holland nodded. "Ina used the cheat sheet to go through all 6 levels of the game and gain access to the elevator. I imagined she probably killed Cassandra, played the game, gained access to the elevator, and used it to bring Cassandra up to the White Room."
"And thanks to the elevator…" Mimi started to deduce. "All of that would've taken half the time it would normally take for her to just take the long route!"
"...And that should be proof enough that Ina could be our possible culprit for Cassandra's murder!" Holland nodded.
Arthur gritted his teeth, leaning against the podium. His eyes didn't dare match those of his peers. He glanced at the ground, shaking. There was no way his sister could be the murderer in this case. Or rather, he refused to believe that as fact. He refused to believe that his sister could be responsible for...
"Unfortunately, there is still something wrong with your argument," Arthur folded his arms with an icy stare.
"Th-There still is?" Haruto widened his eyes before glaring at the snowboarder. "What the fuck are you talking about?! How can you not think the fuckery we deduced makes total sense?!"
"Because you've forgotten one thing," Arthur smirked. "I'll concede with the notion that the elevator has to have come from Holland's Cell. I'll concede that Cassandra was murdered in Mayu's Cell. And I'll concede that Cassandra was moved to the White Room using the elevator. However, if you claim my sister used the elevator to move the body, then why was the elevator still at the White Room?"
"A-Ah!" Abigail widened her eyes in bewilderment.
"O-Oh what?!" Haruto was taken aback by what Arthur had stated.
"...Agh..." Holland looked pained.
That... was a good point.
"Let's think back to what you have all deduced so far," Arthur coldly began to explain. "My sister killed Cassandra in Mayu's Cell. Then, playing the game using her cheat sheet, she prepared the reward: the elevator. After that, she moved Cassandra's body from the Ultimate Heiress's Cell to the White Room. But if that's the case, then how did my sister end up dead in Mayu's Cell?"
"What do you mean?" Mimi pouted. "After moving Cassandra's body to the White Room, she went back down to Mayu's Cell and was killed! Simple!"
Mimi paused.
"...Wait," Mimi realized what she had just said.
"Do you see the problem with your logic now?" Arthur smirked. "Remember, my sister was killed in Mayu's Cell, where a chandelier had fallen directly on top of her! If she really was the one who killed her and moved the body, then obviously she would've taken the elevator back down to Mayu's Cell."
"Yeah..." Abigail frowned. "If that was the case, you guys would've been the ones to find the elevator. But instead, it was us. And in the White Room no less..."
"Well, maybe Ina decided to take the longer route?" Mimi blinked.
"...No, that wouldn't make any sense," Holland grimaced. "...We wouldn't know why she would do such a thing..."
"Precisely!" Arthur looked relieved. "This is a conundrum that cannot be solved! Therefore, my sister is not the murderer and not the one who moved the body! Your entire argument up till now has been quashed!"
Leave it to the Kingstons to always make these Trials much harder than they needed to be.
Holland had to think about the facts again.
For a fact, Cassandra had to have been killed in the Ultimate Heiress's Cell by Ina. For a fact, the elevator had to have been used to move Cassandra after killing her. For an absolute fact, the elevator was still in the White Room. So, how exactly did Ina pull this off? How did she kill Cassandra, move her up to the White Room, and then get down without using the elevator…?
Holland bit his lip.
What was the right question to ask here?
He knew they were on the right track, but something was missing. And for once, he wasn't entirely sure what was missing. That one missing piece that could tie everything together neatly. Ina had to have been in Mayu's Cell just to die. The elevator had to have been in the White Room for Abigail and Haruto to discover. These facts were solidified based on their discovery.
So, what was missing?
Was it... even possible for Ina to pull this off?
To move the body, and come back down without using the elevator?
There was only one answer.
"I think, how Ina really pulled this off…" he began. "The answer is…
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…she didn't."
Holland shook his head with a frown.
"I... don't think Ina would've been the one to move the body..." Holland concluded.
"What?" Haruto clenched his fist and glared at Holland. "But Ina was the one who killed her, wasn't she?! So, naturally, it should make sense that she should have been the one who moved Cassandra's body up to the White Room!"
"And yet, the elevator was still in the White Room when we all found her body!" Arthur declared. "How could my sister have gone back down to get killed if she didn't take the elevator?!"
"Damn it," Abigail bit her lip. "What the hell is going on here?"
Holland considered his answer.
This was the only plausible conclusion. Maybe they were wrong. Maybe Ina wasn't the one who actually moved the body. After all, if she was, that would also mean that she took the long way around. That kind of action just didn't make any sense. It's for certain that Cassandra had to have been killed in Mayu's Cell and moved but if it wasn't Ina then... who did it?
"...If Ina wasn't the one who moved Cassandra up to the White Room, then who else could it be?" Holland frowned, speaking to no one in particular.
Who else could it be? Who else could have moved the body? Holland had to think broadly first. Could it be Ina? Maybe Cassandra herself? ...What?
"If it wasn't Ina and we're saying that someone had to have moved Cassandra's body..." Mimi chipped in with her own thoughts on the matter. "Then wouldn't that mean that the person who moved the body would have been...
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…a third party."
"A third party?" Abigail blinked. "Um... are you sure?"
"...Mimi makes a solid point about it," Holland had to agree with Mimi's answer there. "It's the only answer that figuratively makes sense. It couldn't have been Cassandra, and if it was Ina, it'd make no sense why she never took the elevator back down. The fact that her body is in Mayu's Cell is proof that she couldn't have taken the long route..."
"So, I guess it does make more sense if there was a third party involved," Haruto rubbed the back of his neck.
"Okay, let's say a third party did move Cassandra's body," Abigail began before questioning with skepticism. "Why on Earth would they do that?"
"...Could it be because they wanted to hide Cassandra's body?" Mimi suggested.
"Or, maybe to hide who really killed Cassandra…" Haruto realized.
"E-Eh?!" Mimi widened her eyes.
"Haruto," Abigail blinked. "You sound like you know who was the one who might have been the third party in this case… Is that right?"
Haruto folded his arms.
Oh yeah.
He had a good idea. It would make sense with everything that was going on in this Trial. Make sense with… everything. Yes. It had to be this person! Right?!
"Yeah, I think I know who the third party is," Haruto nodded. "The third party is…
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…Arthur. Was it you?"
"A-Arthur?!" Mimi gasped.
"H-Him?!" Abigail was flabbergasted.
"...G-Grk…" Arthur stepped back. No blast of wind was pushing him this time. This was all him. He widened his eyes as he tried his best to not lose his composure. But, let's face it… all he had done throughout this entire Trial was lose his composure. "I…"
"B-But why Arthur?" Mimi looked toward Haruto frantically.
"...Because it makes sense now," Haruto frowned. "Arthur is the only one who could've been the third party."
"Whoa, hang on there!" Abigail shook her head. "Not going to outright diss this theory but how can you come to that conclusion so easily? I mean, wasn't he knocked out with Monohebi at the Laboratory?"
"Can we really say that for sure?" Haruto pressed. "Sure, he and Monohebi were at the Laboratory when everything blew up. But you know who else was there? Ina! And she was able to go around and get herself killed. Who's to say Arthur couldn't have woken up sooner and gone around to do his shit too?"
"P-Preposterous," Arthur folded his arms, his cold gaze wavering.
"...Let's put that theory to the test," Holland suggested before turning to the snake of mention. "Monohebi, can you confirm that Arthur really was knocked out when you came to...?"
Monohebi remained silent for a few moments. She pondered this question before flicking out her half-charred tongue as she recalled how it happened.
...
...
...
"M-Monohebi…?"
Monohebi slowly opened her eyes.
She felt… different.
She felt…
She glanced around, noting the surprised yet messed up look of Arthur Kingston. The snowboarder's usually neat dark blue hair was now a little unkempt. His fancy clothes were ruffled up thanks to the blast wind and there were some cuts, here or there, most definitely sustained from the broken glass shards on the floor.
Bomb #3 was strong enough to open up the Testing Grounds for anyone to check out now, but at the moment, that was the least of Arthur's concerns. Because he was looking at Monohebi with slight discomfort.
"You are correct Mister Walker," she spoke as her exposed eye glinted horrifically. "I cannot confirm that Arthur truly was knocked out as I was knocked out as well. But when I came to, Mister Kingston was already awake."
"I see," Abigail realized. "Arthur may have claimed to have been knocked out, but we don't actually know if he was. Meaning, Arthur could've had ample time to move the body up to the White Room and then come back to the Laboratory before Monohebi woke up."
"But wouldn't Arthur have needed to use the elevator to go back down, anyway?" Mimi perked her head, curiously. "We'd be stuck with the same problem as Ina's situation. The elevator was still in the White Room after all!"
"...True, but I think with Arthur, we have an easier explanation for why he didn't take the elevator in the White Room to go back to the Laboratory," Holland stated.
The pieces were starting to fall into place now.
Yes!
This made much more sense now!
"Huh, you do?" Mimi blinked. "Then... tell me! Why didn't Arthur just take the shorter route?"
Yes. Why couldn't Arthur have just used the elevator? He wouldn't have to worry about distance. And it would greatly contrast if Ina had used the elevator instead, too! For every question, there was an answer. And for this question, there was only one answer as to why Arthur didn't take the shorter route…
"...Arthur didn't take the shorter route…" Holland began to say. "Because…
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…there was a fire blocking the entrance to Mayu's Cell."
"F-Fire?" Abigail blinked. "W-What fire?"
"O-Oh!" Mimi gasped. "Th-That's right!"
"A-Agh!" Mimi yelped once more. "Th-There's…"
Due to how distracted they were at trying to recuperate from everything that had happened to them thus far, none noted the obvious bright light emitting from straight ahead the excessively long hallway toward the Ultimate Heiress's Cell. Not only that, but they also should've noted the smell as well.
"...Th-There's a fire!" Mimi exclaimed.
"W-What?" Arthur turned to the notable flames the notable flames burning directly on the path between the three different cells of Cell Block E.
"...Could it have been thanks to the bombs?" Holland breathlessly questioned as the three prisoners and the snake walked up toward the flames.
"You and Big Bro Haruto weren't there for it but there was a fire that blocked off the entrance to all of the Cells!" Mimi exclaimed.
"Huh, I see," Abigail began to understand. "And because the fire blocked off the entrance to those Cells, Arthur was forced to take the longer route. It does sound like a risk, but at the same time, it was the only way he could return!"
"...That is also why it would have been impossible for Ina to have moved Cassandra's body as well," Holland frowned as he added his tidbit. "Because if there was a fire, there would be no way for her back into Mayu's Ultimate Cell for her body to be found. The elevator being found in the White Room is evidence that she didn't take it back down."
"A-Agh… A-Agh…" Arthur started to sweat. He never sweats. He cold sweats… but he never outright sweats like…
"So, is this really true?" Mimi looked unsurprised. Of course, a Kingston would pull something like this. Even… a Kingston that she actually felt bad for. "You were the one who moved Cassandra's body back up to the White Room?"
"...So, all this time," Holland frowned, looking down. And to think, he thought Arthur just didn't want to believe his sister was capable of murder. No, it was something else entirely. "...This was the real reason why you tried to push for us to solve Ina's murder…"
"You just wanted to hide the fact that you tampered with the crime scene!" Abigail glared. "Are you kidding us right now?!"
"I… I…" Arthur struggled to speak up.
"Waste of time my ass," Haruto glared at him. "Why the fuck would you go and move the body like that?! Are you trying to get us all killed?!"
"I… I…" Arthur started to hiss.
"Th-There's only five of us left!" Mimi frowned. "Why would you go and do something so stupid and horrible now?!"
"Enough!" Arthur coldly stated, his yellow eyes glowing, and his expression darkening.
He wasn't happy.
He was not happy at all.
"Enough with your insolent, idle chatter!" Arthur coldly glared at his fellow peers. "You all seem to think that I was the third party who moved Cassandra's body! But all you have backing your claim is the doubt that I was in the Laboratory and was knocked out by the bomb alongside Monohebi! Show me concrete evidence and then we will talk because I will not allow you to slander my name like this!"
"...I think you slandered your name since Chapter 1," Mimi pointed out with a pout.
"What?" Haruto glanced toward Mimi with a raised eyebrow.
"If you truly think that I was the one who moved Cassandra's body, then there is a problem with your assessment," Arthur pointed his finger, pompously towards his peers.
"What problem?" Abigail frowned.
"Well, let's go through it slowly, together, shall we," Arthur spoke, condescendingly. "First and foremost, what would I have needed for my grand 'moving the body' scheme that you claimed I did…?"
That was an easy question, despite it being asked by Arthur who was getting on everyone's nerves here, especially after the reveal of what he definitely had done.
"In order to move Cassandra's body," Mimi decided to answer this easy question. "You would've needed…
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…the elevator."
"Precisely," Arthur nodded. "And in order to access the elevator, you would need to do what?"
"Stop treating us like fucking babies!" Haruto yelled. "In order to access the elevator, you need…
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…to complete Holland's stupid fucking game!"
"H-Hey…" Holland took offense to that.
"Er, no offense," Haruto shared an apologetic glance to Holland.
"...None taken," Holland forgave him.
"Y-You forgave him quickly!" Mimi pointed out with a gasp.
"Indeed," Arthur folded his arms, his eyes twitching. "You have to complete the simulation in Holland's Cell in order to even gain access to the elevator. However, if it was not Ina who used the elevator, but rather me, then how could I have gone through the game so easily?"
"Well, with the cheat sheet, right?" Mimi blinked.
"Incorrect!" Arthur declared. "There was no way I could have done so because the cheat sheet was with Ina at the time!"
"...He isn't wrong," Holland noted. "The cheat sheet was still with Ina when we last saw it. Ina's blood completely covered up the rest of the answers so there was no way Arthur could've had his hand on it nor would've been able to beat the game quickly."
"But Arthur is smart, isn't he?" Mimi blinked. "He should be able to beat the game, no problem at all!"
"...Yeah, but speedrun it?" Holland asked. "Unlikely. You remember how absurd some of the answers were, right?"
Mimi thought back to some specific things they had to do...
The floating cube was mostly covered in green.
With only one more side that was coated red, Holland and Mimi found themselves growing slightly tired. Running around a room trying to catch fish, swing on vines, and dig for corpses was definitely taking a toll on them. In fact, it's taking a toll on me, the writer, for having come up with something so convoluted and deranged that I just can't be bothered to write out all 6 different levels–
Level 6.
"Precisely!" Arthur declared. "Since I did not play the game, I could not have accessed the elevator! Therefore, I could not have moved Cassandra's body up to the White Room!"
That was a good point.
If Ina still had the cheat sheet, there was no way Arthur could have played the game in order to access the elevator. But at the same time, the elevator had to have been used by Arthur. After all, it couldn't have been Ina and it couldn't have been Cassandra. It just had to be Arthur! So… How…?
How could the elevator have still been used by Arthur despite him not playing the game…?
"...Perhaps…" Holland had an idea, but it was an idea that raised more questions than answers. "Perhaps…
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…the elevator was already there."
"Huh?" Mimi looked surprised by that answer.
"The elevator… was already there?" Haruto blinked. "W-Well how the fuck did that happen?"
"...I'm… not too sure," Holland muttered, rubbing his chin in thought. "But it's the only way Arthur would've been able to gain access to the elevator in order to move Cassandra's body. Judging by what Haruto said about the elevator, it seems generally easy to figure out what it was and all Arthur really needed to do was carry Cassandra inside and go to the White Room."
"S-So… you're just saying that I found an elevator in there and used it to move Cassandra's body?" Arthur tried to mockingly laugh at that notion. "Inconceivable! Impossible! How would I even find it?! It was hidden behind the curtain wasn't it?!"
"Yeah, but Cassandra's body was by the curtain," Haruto pointed out. "You would've found it regardless!"
"And yet… why on Earth would I even bother to hide Cassandra's body in the first place?" Arthur glared at his peers. "It'd be less of a hassle if I had just left her there, yes? There would be no reason for me to bother doing something like that in the first place!"
Would there really be no reason for Arthur to move Cassandra's body? After everything they had talked about to get this far, there had to be a reason. Arthur didn't play the game but the elevator was just there. Cassandra was dead. There was a factor that made Arthur want to move the body.
What was that factor…?
Holland examined Arthur closely. So far, their battle has pitted them time and time against Arthur. It was time to start kicking him off of his high horse… or snowboard. Arthur had to have done it for a reason.
And Holland knew what that reason was…
"No…" Holland shook his head. "There was a reason as to why you would move the body. It ties into your actions. Everything. I know what that reason is…"
"Strong words!" Arthur coldly glanced at Holland. "Very well then! What is the reason you believe you know? Why did I bother moving Cassandra's body even though I didn't have to?!"
"The reason should be obvious," Holland frowned. "You made it apparent yourself. The reason you moved the body is…
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…Ina!"
"G-G-G-G-GRK?!" Arthur felt that blast of wind returns once again, nearly knocking him to the floor as he widened his eyes. "Y-You… I-Ina…"
"Huh, that does make a lot of sense," Abigail had to agree with Holland's conclusion.
"...Of course, because it explains his actions, his motives, and even the way Arthur is acting right now," Holland declared. "All of this was to protect Ina!"
"Actually, how does this protect Ina?" Mimi asked. "Ina still… you know… died, didn't she?"
"She did," Haruto nodded his head. "But I think Holland has a point. What if we put it into a different perspective?"
"A different perspective?" Mimi blinked.
"If Ina killed Cassandra, Arthur wouldn't have wanted any of us to find out that it was her that did it," Haruto began to explain. "That's why he moved the body and that's why he kept trying to hide everything from us. And the only way he would want that to happen...
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...is if Ina was still alive at the time."
"Ina was... still alive?!" Abigail looked flabbergasted. "But then..."
"...Yeah, Haruto's got it... My guess is that Arthur probably stumbled upon the crime scene…" Holland noted. "If Ina had slipped away to find Cassandra, they would've found each other in Mayu's Cell and fought each other… And after that…"
"After that…" Mimi pondered before realizing what Holland was getting at. "Ina would've killed Cassandra and..."
"Cassandra would've probably wounded Ina," Holland nodded.
"So, in reality, Cassandra and Ina killed each other," Haruto began. "And then Arthur comes along, sees the mess that happened, and seeing that Ina was still alive, moves Cassandra up to the White Room, just to hide her crime."
The former basketball player let out a sigh.
"Jesus Christ, really dude?" he frowned.
"Grk…" Arthur held his fist tightly. "S-Stop…"
"...Based on Arthur's perspective of what he found…" Holland began. "It would've been easy for him to figure out what had happened. I wouldn't put it past him to just do that."
"But then everything would come crashing down literally," Abigail grimaced. "Because of the chandelier that killed her in the end."
"S-Stop…" Arthur continued to say.
"...So then, Arthur really did do it…" Mimi frowned. "And for what reason? Just to make us think Ina was still a good person despite everything?! Was it really worth getting us all killed over someone who's already dead?!"
"I said… Stop!" Arthur exclaimed. "Or did you not hear me?!"
Arthur's expression was cold and unforgiving. Seriously, what the hell was going on with this case? Why the hell was Arthur still holding on? Why the hell was he still trying to fight this? He was doing this for his sister wasn't he? So… Why?
"...All you've been doing is soil the name of my sister," Arthur declared. "She is no murderer. I won't believe that she is! She would never murder anyone! I know there is something off about this case and yet you are all quick to judge my sister as the killer of Cassandra!"
"...How can you still defend her?" Holland frowned. "I get she's your sister, but Cassandra's blood was found at her crime scene. There was blood on the mace. Ina… she died in the room too. The only way this incident played out is if they killed each other."
"...Besides, Ina probably killed Cassandra to try to stop her ass from bombing more shit, right?" Haruto questioned. "And Cassandra fought back. I get you want to not soil her good name but she's already a hero if she stopped a fucking person trying to bomb us sky high!"
Arthur grimaced.
Despite everything they had said, he was still going to fight. It was so odd. Why on Earth was he still fighting? What else could he hide? What else was he not telling any of them?
"...You still have more to explain," he coldly stated.
"W-What?" Mimi groaned. "Even more? Give up already, Arthur! You're just trying to get us to reach the 15K word count!"
"A-Again, what?" Haruto glanced at Mimi in bewilderment.
"What do we have to explain?" Abigail frowned. "We already explained the elevator. We explained where the elevator would've been. We explained you bringing Cassandra up to the White Room. But what else is there…?"
Arthur's gaze darkened.
Could he really still not accept the fact that his sister killed Cassandra… Or could he really not accept that his sister was dead… Or was it both.
Arthur let his eyes trail toward every single one of his peers…
…As he folded his arms, looking damn serious.
"The trigger," he stated.
"The trigger?" Holland blinked.
"If I recall…" Arthur began.
The more they talked about this, the more they wasted time talking about the real star of this Trial... His sister. He wanted them to get to her. Not dabble on the mystery of the missing bomb trigger! This entire debacle was ridiculous!
"...So, we can safely conclude that the theory that Cassandra blew herself up in the White Room in an attempt to expose the Hidden Room is unlikely," Holland declared. "Because as long as the trigger remains missing, Cassandra killing herself is off the table."
"The trigger is still missing," Arthur recalled. "No one has apparently been able to find it. And if Cassandra did not blow up alongside the trigger, then that must mean her killer must've been the one who pulled the trigger to blow up her body, yes?"
Arthur slammed his fist onto his podium.
"And yet, Holland and Mimi," the snowboarder narrowed his eyes. "When you checked her body, did you find a trigger of any sort on her personage?"
"...No," Holland simply answered.
"Exactly," Arthur declared. "And therefore, if Ina was the culprit, she would have had the trigger on her! Oh, and also don't forget..."
His eyes twitched.
"But there is the matter of the key for the elevator as well!" Arthur continued. "Think back to what we said about that!"
"...That must've been why the back door to my Cell never opened," Holland nodded. "Because the elevator was already in use."
"Or… maybe it was because the key was missing," Abigail noted. "Because the buttons only work if the key is inserted in but if the key was gone…"
"The elevator wouldn't move," Mimi understood what Abigail was saying.
"But in other words, the reward to your Cell's game is access to the elevator," Haruto noted. "And for a Killing Game…? That's a pretty dangerous reward…"
"The key was gone…" Abigail realized.
"Precisely, and how do you think the key would've gotten missing in the first place?" Arthur smirked.
"Well, someone had to take it!" Mimi noted. "Maybe the same person who took the trigger!"
"Precisely, and who would that be?" Arthur questioned. "Who would've taken the key and the trigger?!"
This… was an easy question to answer.
There was really only one person who it could be.
It had to be! It just had to be!
Holland narrowed his eyes.
It was way too easy.
But this time, he had a suspicion on why this question was so easy to answer. Could it be? Was he finally relenting? Was he finally going to accept their deductions? Holland didn't know but there was one way to find out.
He sighed.
"...The only person who could've taken the trigger and the key was the person who took Cassandra up to the White Room," Holland declared. "That person…
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…has to be you! Arthur Kingston!"
Arthur kept his arms folded as he shook his head and chuckled to himself. Holland maintained his pose as he didn't dare back down from his accusation. But he was confused. Why was he laughing?
Was this… funny to him?
What was going on?
"Oi, something funny… fucker?" Haruto glared at Arthur.
Arthur hid his face as he laughed. He laughed painfully as he avoided looking at his peers. He placed his hands on the side of the podium. It was clear that despite how much he was trying to hide the truth, the truth was already clear. These were the tears of a man who had lost the game. These were tears of desperation. Tears that begged them to not pull the finishing blow...
"...Please," Arthur felt his own tears trail down his eyes. "I... do not have the trigger. I do not have the key. It's not true. Ina didn't kill anybody. If you want to blame somebody, blame me! I killed Cassandra!"
The room was quiet as they watched the usually proud and boastful Arthur dwindle down into a pathetic shell of who he once was. He hugged his podium closely as he let his tears flow out of his eyes. And that's when Holland understood all too well his predicament.
Arthur just couldn't accept it.
No matter what.
He never thought he would ever feel sorry for someone like him. But here he was closing his eyes and sighing bitterly to himself as he deeply considered his position here. This was the truth, wasn't it? Ina killed Cassandra. Arthur stumbled on the scene. Ina would've had to have been still alive at the time so Arthur did what he could to save his half-sister. Unfortunately, she succumbed to her wounds.
That was the truth, was it?
"...I do not have the trigger," Arthur repeated. "I do not have the key. Please... you guys. There is no need to uncover this truth. No need to uncover anything..."
"Arthur, you idiot," Abigail grimaced.
Mimi said nothing. All she felt was pity.
Holland glanced up toward Arthur with a slight frown.
"We're sorry Arthur," Holland sighed. "But we're tired of all of this. In this Killing Game, it's our life over the dead. All we can really do is live on for their memory..."
Arthur said nothing as he glanced down on the ground.
"...So please," Holland tightened his fist. "Let's end this, alright?"
Arthur couldn't even muster up a response. But even if he did, all he would really say would be the same thing he had been saying for quite a while now. He didn't have the trigger. He didn't have the key. There was no reason to uncover this truth.
Then, Holland turned to Haruto.
"...Haruto..." he began.
"...Yeah?" Haruto kept his arms folded.
"...Do the honors," Holland closed his eyes. "Search him."
Haruto made no verbal response to that. Instead, the former basketball player glanced over to Monohebi, who simply gave a nod, allowing him to do as Holland had requested. With every step the basketball player took to get closer to the broken pompous snowboarder, the more he felt bad for the bastard. Once he reached him, he noticed Arthur slowly hold his hands up, allowing him to search freely.
…
It didn't take long for Haruto to come up with the evidence that they were looking for. The trigger and the key were happily tucked away in Arthur's pockets, so it was an easy confiscation process.
But that didn't mean the basketball player had to feel good about it.
Once he had returned to his podium, he held up the trigger and key for all to see. All five buttons of the trigger had been pressed and the key itself was practically glittering in this otherwise, very blue room. With a heavy sigh however, he placed the trigger and key onto his podium as Mimi looked down in disappointment.
"No more lying Arthur," Mimi frowned. "What happened? Tell us the truth. What really happened?"
Arthur slowly looked up with solemness in his eyes. That solemness replaced the otherwise cold look he would be giving right about now. In fact, it almost made him stand on their level now as someone who has lost so much.
"...It's as you deduced," Arthur softly spoke as he looked down with regret. "I stumbled onto the crime scene. The original crime scene at the Ultimate Heiress's Cell. Cassandra was dead on the floor. And Ina... she was hurt. She had fallen over the dining table and the wound she had... It looked fatal, but she was still alive."
He grimaced to himself.
"Because of that, I knew that if she survived her wounds..." Arthur felt a tear trail down his eye. "She would have been the blackened of the case. So, I did what I could. As you also deduced, conveniently, there was an elevator behind the curtains. In fact, that was where Cassandra's body was. So, I carried her and went up to the White Room. Once there, I simply dropped Cassandra off and took the key with me."
"...You tried to slow us down by doing that," Holland nodded.
"Yes, I did," Arthur frowned. "As for the bomb exploding... I pulled the trigger around the time when we spotted the fire. I suppose I knew no one would suspect me of being the one to own the trigger..."
It didn't take long for the sprinklers to start activating, effectively yet slowly putting out the fire. And just like Abigail and Haruto, they too heard that loud noise and even noticed the tremors on the ceiling. For a moment, everyone had tensed up, fearful that the entire ceiling was going to cave away and crush them all.
"W-What was that?" Mimi asked precariously.
"I… I don't know," Arthur took out his hands from his pants pockets and rubbed the side of his chest. He turned to Monohebi. "H-How much longer till…"
"...But as I expected, the truth came to light eventually," Arthur's face twitched.
He pounded his fist onto his own podium.
"Ina was right," he frowned bitterly. "I am selfish. All the Kingstons ever do is care about themselves. When I stumbled onto the scene, it was easy to deduce what had happened. Ina killed Cassandra to stop her from planting another bomb. And yet, I still remained as selfish as she said I was. I cared only to save her life and reputation. I cared for her so much that I was willing to go so far as to make sure her reputation remained clean as I damned all of us to death."
"That's crazy," Abigail didn't really appreciate that.
"Crazy?" Arthur blinked before he forcefully chortled. "You're right about that. It is crazy. Perhaps wherever Ina is, she could see how much she really did mean to me. How much she belonged to the f-"
"Oh, shut up Arthur!" Mimi yelled her face angry. "Do you really think this is what Ina would've wanted?! Do you really think this is why Ina even bothered to kill Cassandra?! You said it yourself! Ina killed Cassandra to stop her from placing more bombs. Do you think someone who killed someone like that would've wanted you to sacrifice yourself and all of us to death?!"
"M-Mimi?" Haruto blinked, surprised at her reaction.
"I may have never forgiven her for what she did to Yuumi," Mimi pressed. "But I know Ina! I know that Ina was a strong person who cared about making sure all of us lived! Even if that meant having to take the life of someone who was trying to kill us all, then so be it! Ina was a hero! She saved us! And you were about to put all her hard work to naught!"
Arthur was taken aback by what Mimi was saying. He never expected to hear those words from her. She had never forgiven Ina when she was alive, but now that she was dead, here she was, standing by, defending her and berating him for sullying her good name.
And honestly, she had every right to do that because she was absolutely correct.
"So, shut up about how much you cared about her!" Mimi yelled. "If she really did mean something to you, then you wouldn't have done what you did! She would've never wanted you to do that!"
Arthur let her words reach him.
Abigail, Haruto, and Holland stood by in silence. They gave the former witch girl her moment. And slowly, their eyes trailed toward Arthur, who could only place a hand over his face as he slowly dropped down to his knees with that forced smile of his.
"Ha..." Arthur started to chuckle. "I never thought I would hear you of all people say that about my sister..."
Arthur felt tears swell up and fall all too quickly.
"You're so right... You are so right..." he muttered to himself before slowly weeping. "I'm sorry... I truly am..."
Abigail looked away.
Haruto sighed to himself.
Holland closed his eyes.
Mimi felt her anger soften into slight anguish as she heard Arthur apologize over and over again. After all this time, it took the revolutionary's death to finally force her to say the words that she had been meaning to say for a while too.
"I'm sorry Ina..." she heard Arthur say.
Then, it was her turn.
"...I'm sorry, too... I'm sorry Ina..." she slowly whispered to herself.
DANGANRONPA: CORRUPTED HOPE
And here it is, Trial Part 1!
I... have to say. This Trial Part went through so much editing hell, it's literally insane XE I had to move around specific discussion topics. I had to change up who said what. I had to rewrite scenes. It was just so God-awful. My sleep schedule is broken. Er... still broken. But goddamnit, I really hope the end product turns out well because after all that editing, my confidence in this Trial has gone down XD
Not that it was high to begin with hahahaha XD
Either case, we've had some closure with this Trial part and Trial Part 2 is where things seriously get fun :D But seriously, hope the logic and flow of this Trial is passable XE
As always, let me know what you thought and who you think did the heinous deed! Liked the chapter? Didn't like the chapter? Opinions? Criticisms? Let me know and I'll get to it!
Until then, Trial Part 2 soon to come hopefully sometime in the next two days? :D
Prisoners Remaining: 5
Abigail Ellsworth - The Ultimate Equestrian (oddlyillregular) [1,000,000]
Arthur Kingston - The Ultimate Snowboarder (SinWriter7) [0]
Haruto Walker - The Ultimate Former Basketball Player (theotakureader101) [0]
Holland Delaney - The Ultimate Game Designer (Sempi) [1,000,000]
Mimi Kazoo - The Ultimate Fairytale Writer (Idraegan) [0]