Prologue Chapter 2
Makoto Naegi dreamed of hellfire.
The Lucky Student looked at his surroundings, wreathed in pale flames and crumbled buildings. The tattered emblem of Hope's Peak Academy laid in the midst of the rubble, burnt to a crisp.
The sun glowed an eerie red in the sky, glaring down menacingly like the baleful glare of a giant.
Corpses laid strewn across the ruins.
Makoto's breath hitched when he saw a familiar blue haired girl laying down motionlessly, her blue eyes once so vibrant of life staring motionlessly at him. A large bear trap was closed around her waist, its metal teeth piercing her gut.
It wasn't just Sayaka who he found on those burnt grounds.
Every student from Class 78, the ones that he had met and got to know during those first days of school.
Togami. Fukawa. Fujisaki. Asahina. Oogami. Owada. Kuwata. Enoshima. Ikusaba. Ludensberg. Yamada. Celestia. Hagakure. Kirigiri.
All of them, dead.
He could see the signs of a brutal death, Kuwata bruised with baseballs covered in blood around him, Ludensberg burnt to death, Hagakure trapped under a door with his blood surrounding him, and Kirigiri crushed in an unshaped mess with bits of her hair lying in a pool of blood.
It wasn't just Class 78.
His parents, Mr. Kirigiri, Class 77, and so many other people he didn't know of laid scattered around him.
As the realization dawned upon him, the young man's legs buckled and he collapsed on his knees.
"W-What is this?!" Makoto said, trying to keep the contents of his stomach from coming out.
His heart lept into his throat when he found his own sister Komaru amidst the corpses, her body charred to a crisp and her face forever etched with an expression of terror.
"No...no...!"
His breathing became erratic and his whole body trembled.
"This can't be real..."
A crunching noise reached his ears and Makoto slowly turned around to see...
"W-Wha...!"
He found himself standing face-to-face with a creature that was a horrifying fusion of a human and a dragon. It had metallic coating across its breast, limbs, and back, and it had a large tail and a pair of horns jutting out from its forehead in the shape of a gun. Roaring, the monster lifted up its leg and began stomping on the floor where cockroaches began sprawling out in a desperate attempt to escape.
In frustration, the beast pointed its arms and head at the cockroaches and began shooting with bullets coming out from its arms, horn, and back.
The bullets were pink, the color of blood, and it wasn't until he looked down and saw splatters that Makoto realized that the monster was releasing bullets made of blood.
The beast's roar sounded so familiar, and the moment the sound reached his ears Makoto's head started aching.
The horrifying gun-dragon-man continued its assault and the young man could do nothing but watch in muted horror as he clutched his head
Suddenly, his hand grabbed something.
"What...?"
Makoto's eyes widened in shock when he saw a strange gun-shaped weapon in his hand.
"Why do I have this?!"
A deafening roar snapped him out of his thoughts and Makoto watched in abject horror as the creature approached him.
With each step it took, Makoto's head began throbbing, his mind wracked with intense pain as his life flashed before his eyes.
He saw his birth, his childhood memories, his experiences during middle school, his entrance exam, his meeting with Masashi, his first week in Hope's Peak Academy...
When he came to, the monster gripped his hands tightly and as its green eyes glared into Makoto's own terrified pupils.
"Hope springs eternal," rasped the creature. "Even when Prometheus's blaze runs rampant. The flames of Hope are needed to slay the Demon."
The creature let out a howl and its entire body burst into flames.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Makoto's agonizing scream echoed throughout the realm of his subconscious as the creature looked at him one last time before pointing a finger at him like a gun and firing.
Bang!
"H-Hurgh! Urgh!"
Makoto gasped and shot up into a sitting position.
His body was drenched with sweat and he panted heavily, his eyes wide and his whole body shaking.
"I-I...I was dreaming."
It was just a dream.
Just a bad dream.
A dream where everyone was dead.
Makoto clutched his chest, his heart beating rapidly.
"I...I-I..."
He didn't realize he was crying until a small drop of water fell onto his palm.
A-Am I...crying?
Makoto quickly wiped his tears away and glanced at the clock.
3:30.
"It's so early," muttered Makoto. "I have to sleep."
He tried going back to sleep but the image of that nightmare refused to leave him alone.
After tossing and turning for several minutes, Makoto gave up and decided to take a shower.
Once he was done, Makoto sat down at the table and drank some orange juice.
"It was just a nightmare," said Makoto, trying to convince himself. "Nothing more, nothing less."
Still, the dream refused to leave him alone. He could still feel the sensation of the blood bursting from the monster and splashing onto him.
Why am I so scared? That thing doesn't even exist. Makoto thought to himself.
After drinking his orange juice, Makoto went to the sink and washed the cup.
"It was just a nightmare. No one's going to die." he said out loud, as if declaring it will make him feel better.
Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that it meant something.
He thought back to the monster's words.
What does that mean? wondered Makoto. Prometheus? The Demon?
Makoto sighed.
"It's too early for this."
He tried to get the nightmare out of his mind, but the images of the flaming school, massacre, and metal monster played around in his head for the rest of the night.
Kyoko Kirigiri was a woman of logic. Trained since she was very young by her grandfather, Fuhito Kirigiri, about their family's tradition as detectives and the importance of solving cases, the lavender haired woman had been brought up in a way that emphasized the use of deductive reasoning and careful investigation.
To become a detective, you must be logical and practical. Always approach the case with a cool head and never let your emotions get the best of you.
That had been her grandfather's teachings to her, and it was a lesson Kyoko always carried with her.
However, she was having trouble keeping those emotions in check when it came to her father, the Headmaster of her own school.
Jin Kirigiri never cared much for the Kirigiri family tradition and after her mother passed away, abandoned the family altogether...including his own daughter.
Ever since that day, Kyoko had not spoken to her father. She was furious at him for his abandonment and climbed her way above the ranks to become the resilient woman she is today.
Now, finally here at Hope's Peak Academy, she plans on cutting ties with him for good.
Unfortunately, because of her father's duties as Headmaster, she's never able to speak with him in person, and even when he appears free, he avoids her as much as possible, which was why Kyoko had been frustrated at the fact she couldn't speak to him despite him being a teacher at the school.
"Psst."
She turned around to find Asahina, or Hina, as the Ultimate Swimmer prefers, trying to get her attention. Hina sat at the desk right behind Kyoko and the two were in the middle of a lesson together with the rest of Class 78.
"Makoto looks kinda pale," whispered the swimmer. "Do you think he's okay?"
Kyoko glanced at Makoto Naegi. Like Hina had said, he looked quite pale, almost like he'd seen a ghost. His face was sweating, his breathing was a bit erratic, and he was shaking.
"It's not our business to interfere," whispered Kyoko. "Besides, I don't have any interest in him."
"B-But," started Hina.
"Pay attention to the lesson."
"Alright, alright."
While Hina went back to the lesson, Kyoko glanced at Makoto.
The Ultimate Lucky Student. Out of all the students who made it to Hope's Peak Academy, it was only him who had been accepted into the school due to winning a lottery.
So he got into this school purely by chance. thought Kyoko. I'll have to keep an eye on him.
She heard rumors about his strange bouts of luck which led to a series of misfortunes befalling the ones around him. Kyoko heard about her senpai from Class 77-B having an almost supernatural cycle of good and bad luck. Maybe Naegi's is the same.
A part of her felt resentment towards the short boy that he only managed to get in through luck while she spent her entire life training to become the Ultimate Detective.
He's nothing special. Kyoko said to herself. All he got here was by luck, not through any skill or hard work.
Yet, another part of her pitied him. Unlike most students here who were talented, Makoto was the only one whose entry was through a simple lottery. There will be those who look down on him for being "average" and may see the idea of someone getting here by luck an insult to those who worked hard to reach the academy.
The Kirigiris pride themselves on using logic. thought Kyoko. That's the sole reason why we've had so many successful detectives. If the Kirigiris ever found out that their current heir got into the school through chance instead of hard work, I can already imagine the shame they'd feel.
Technically speaking, there is no such thing as luck or "fate", as Yasuhiro "Hiro" Hagakure likes to say, or that everything is the result of chance.
Kyoko had believed that since she was young, so when she heard about the so-called "Ultimate Lucky Student" who won a lottery to get in, she had dismissed the very idea and thought the title itself was a joke.
How does one even be lucky or unlucky? It's a ridiculous notion.
Kyoko was honestly more concerned about Byakuya Togami, Junko Enoshima, and Mukuro Ikusaba.
Out of everyone in Class 78, the three of them were the ones who caught her attention the most.
Byakuya is the Ultimate Affluent Progeny and the head of the Togami Conglomerate, a worldwide corporation, and the heir to the Togami Corporation, the one with the highest economic influence in Japan. However, there are rumors of unscrupulous activity that the corporation has been involved in and she'll have to investigate that herself. Togami himself is a very smart but very unpleasant individual. He has an air of arrogance and haughtiness around him and is known for his condescending and superiority complex.
Junko Enoshima, the Ultimate Fashionista, and has been on the cover of many fashion magazines thanks to her astounding beauty. Despite not having a talent considered threatening, something about Enoshima rubbed Kyoko despite no evidence of her doing anything wrong. Maybe it's just her gut.
And lastly, Mukuro Ikusaba, the Ultimate Soldier. From what Kyoko had read in her profile, Ikusaba comes from the mercenary group Fenrir. Kyoko had read about their exploits in the military world and had been impressed by their prowess. Their greatest soldier, it was said that Ikusaba can go into battle and never get a scratch.
The Ultimate Soldier...
The lavender haired girl remembered the strange way Mukuro Ikusaba behaved whenever she was around her sister, the Ultimate Fashionista.
I wonder what kind of relationship those two have.
The rest of Class 78 seemed relatively nonthreatening, even Sakura who possibly is the strongest person on the planet, aside from Chihiro Fujisaki. The petite Ultimate Programmer was a shy individual who Kyoko suspects may be a boy, but she decideds that it was Fujisaki's secret to tell. The Programmer may be timid, but Chihiro's expert use of programming gives the student more credit than due.
The class is made up of interesting characters. thought Kyoko. "Togami, Enoshima, Ikusaba, and Fujisaki are the ones that catch my attention the most."
Kyoko turned her attention back to the teacher.
I should focus on the lesson. I'll deal with them later.
Mukuro stared stoically at her sister as she went over the plan again.
"You see this dipshit here." she said pointing towards an image of their classmate, Makoto Naegi.
The older twin looked at the image of the Ultimate Lucky Student.
"His name's Makoto Naegi," explained Junko. "He's an average guy. People like him can be found anywhere around the world. But, his shitty, hopeful smile gets on my nerves."
The blond grinned, a grin that was both sinister and terrifying.
"So I'm going to crush that hope right then and there."
Mukuro stared at the image, her eyes scanning the young man.
"Makoto Naegi. Why do you care about him?" wondered Mukuro. "There are much more bigger threats in our class."
"Mikaboshi wanted him gone," said Junko. "He didn't give a specific reason but his Hopeful eyes wanna make me barf, so I get it."
Mukuro's face soured when she heard that name.
"Your...acquaintance..."
Junko grinned and put a hand on her sister's shoulder.
"Oh, don't look at me like that," said the strawberry-colored blond. "Mikaboshi-kun isn't going to replace you. You too tough to kill, you could just snap his spine in half with your own hands."
"I'm not worried about that," said Mukuro.
Junko frowned and puffed her cheeks.
"Then what's wrong?"
Mukuro took out her combat knife and began cleaning it. She fell asleep when the gray haired man entered the Despair Sister's room. He pulled out a music box and she was out like a light before she could do anything. She still felt bad about her moment of weakness leaving Junko to fend for herself.
Not that Junko wasn't capable of defending herself. In fact, in any normal situation, she would be more worried about the aggressor than for Junko as the Ultimate Fashionista, or rather truly, the Ultimate Despair would have left them begging.
But it was not a normal situation. Junko told her that Mikaboshi was not the man but the man communicating through the music box and proposed an alliance. To her surprise, Junko took it instead of sicking Mukuro after them.
Still, Mukuro couldn't help but feel ashamed and disappointed in herself.
"I failed my duty as a soldier," thought Mukuro. "If I were to die now, I would gladly accept that punishment."
"Hey."
Junko snapped her fingers in front of her, pulling her out of her thoughts.
"Did you hear what I just said?"
Mukuro blinked and shook her head.
"No."
Junko huffed.
"Useless sister. I told you Mikaboshi-kun approved of the Student Council killing game and the meeting with Kamukara. He's also approved the plan I had about the 77th Class."
Mukuro looked at her.
"That's...good."
"Yeah, it's great," agreed Junko.
Mukuro stayed quiet for a moment.
"Ikusaba-san?"
Mukuro looked up at her sister.
"What do you think of our class?" asked Junko.
"You already know my answer."
"But I wanna hear your thoughts!"
"Why? I'll only answer the same thing as before."
"Oh, come on! Tell me!"
Mukuro sighed.
"If it's necessary, I won't hesitate."
Junko smiled.
"Really? You won't even hesitate a little?"
"No."
Junko looked pleased.
"You really are hopeless. No hesitation, huh? Not even a single drop of guilt or regret. You really are a demon, aren't ya?"
Mukuro stared blankly at her.
"If it's for you, I won't hesitate."
Junko smirked.
"Well, aren't you a good sister."
Mukuro felt the urge to smile at her sister's compliment but kept her usual emotionless expression.
"Thanks."
"Amatsu-Mikaboshi is the name of the god of stars in Japanese mythology," said Junko.
"The god of the starry sky and darkness," noted Mukuro. "Fitting for a man who hides in the shadows."
"It's just that I never heard the name before," admitted Mukuro. In all of her career in Fenrir, not a single word or peep came from a man or woman named Amatsu Mikaboshi. She was also sure that it wasn't some criminal syndicate either. "Are you sure you can trust him?"
"Of course not Muku. But where's the despair in playing it safe and predictable? We've already agreed to his conditions and he hasn't done anything yet."
"I don't like it," said Mukuro. "He's dangerous. We should kill him before he betrays us."
Junko merely laughed. "It always ends the same. I'm the Ultimate Analyst. I'll see it a mile away so there's no way some bastard who thinks he's a hotshot can fool me."
"You're right."
Junko smiled at her sister.
"Now get going," she said, "You have a luckster to kill."
Mukuro nodded.
"Understood."
Mukuro put on a pair of gloves and went to the door.
"Oh, and before you go," Junko called out to her, "You always have been such a good sister, Mukuro."
Mukuro smiled back.
"Thanks, Junko."
She closed the door and Junko's face grew into an evil smirk as her eyes swirled.
"I wonder how much despair I will feel when I kill you."
Makoto was feeling a bit better after the nightmare, but he still felt tense.
It was still only the first week of school and he was already stressed.
"Maybe it's nothing."
The Ultimate Lucky Student was walking in the hallways, trying to calm his mind.
"Hey, Naegi-chi!"
Makoto turned around to find Hiro approaching him.
"Hagakure-san," said Makoto.
Yasuhiro "Hiro" Hagakure is a tall young man with brown skin, dreadlocks, and a goatee. Makoto read about how Hagakure was a fortune-teller, but Makoto didn't necessarily believed in that stuff. He was also a ditz.
"What's up, Naegi-chi?"
"I'm okay," said Makoto. "Just had a nightmare."
"Nightmares are bad," said Hiro. "I once had a dream where I was eating a tuna sandwich, and I was like, 'Hey, this isn't so bad. Tuna's good for you.' And then I was like, 'Wait a minute, this is a dream. I don't even like tuna.' Then the tuna got real mad and attacked me."
"That's not really a nightmare," said Makoto.
"Yeah, whatever."
"I was just taking a walk," explained Makoto.
"Same, Naegi-chi!" Hagakure stated, walking at Makoto's place.
"Do you need your organs?" asked Hiro.
"Huh?"
"I read that organs are worth a lot of money," explained Hiro. "I need to pay off a debt."
Makoto was thrown back.
"What did you do?"
Hiro waved it off. "Nothing too serious. I was offering a girl a crystal ball 'owned'," he put emphasis on the word, "by Napoleon and George Washington. We were about to make the deal when her brother went up and punched me in the face. Then he gave me a debt because it turns out the two were yakuza."
Makoto sweat-dropped and decided to ask Hiro something. "How much did the ball cost?"
"100 million yen. I was generous enough to half the price down. Funnily enough, the debt was the same amount of money that the girl was about to buy."
The luckster stared at the clairvoyant for a moment. No wonder he punched you.
"Ever since, I've been hiding away at Hope's Peak Academy." Hiro said.
Makoto knew that Hiro looked older than the other students for some reason, but now that he found the reason why, he couldn't help but feel that Hiro deserved what happened to him.
"Do you want me to tell you your fortune, Naegi-chi?" Hiro asked. The ahoge boy didn't like the look in Hiro's eyes.
"I'm good."
"But it has a 33% chance of coming true." whined the older student.
"Maybe later."
"Fine." Then Hiro pulled out a badly-drawn card and shoved it into the hooded boy's hands. "But here is my contact number. If you ever want to visit, just make the call."
He ran off, sandals slapping on the ground as Makoto sweat dropped.
Sighing, he put the card into his back pocket. He doubted he would ever need it, but it would feel rude to just throw it away.
He looked away and began walking across the hallways again, not noticing a certain Ultimate Soldier narrowing her eyes at his unguarded back.