Chapter 4: Secrets Revealed
Twice the Pain
"And, Kyoko?" Phoenix said before he hung up the phone. He had several things he wanted to say— but right now wasn't the time. Instead, he just finished with: "I trust you."
He placed the receiver back on the base, hanging up the phone. He knew the three girls in the Prosecutor House were quite capable, but he was concerned that they simply wouldn't be able to cover everything in time.
Even worse, the fact that the elevator was destroyed on this side pointed towards one of the five boys in the Lawyer House being responsible for murdering Chihiro.
"What do we do now, Mr. Wright?" Apollo asked solemnly. "We can't get to the scene of the crime."
Phoenix breathed slowly. "We need to do what we can. Does anyone here feel confident enough to fix the elevator button?"
"I believe I may have an idea," Klavier offered. "I can't guarantee it will work; however."
"Get started," Phoenix commanded.
Klavier nodded and began walking away. Before he could, though, the sound of a certain bear's arrival made them all freeze in place.
"Poor you!" Monokuma taunted. "Stuck behind a little bitty elevator with no hope of fixing it!"
"Wir werden sehen," Klavier challenged, turning on his heel to face the bear. Phoenix was pretty sure the rockstar had said "We will see," but he wasn't sure.
"Ja?" Monokuma responded. "Bist du sicher?"
"Um… Could you speak in English?" Makoto requested.
Monokuma shook his paw. "I enrich my students' lives by speaking their language of choice! Don't stifle meeeeee!"
"Why are you here?" Apollo demanded.
"Well, even though you can't reach the lil' programmer's body, you still need something. And here it is!"
Four chimes dinged from the four students' handbooks, tucked into their various pockets.
"It's… The Monokuma File!"
Wait… four chimes?
Phoenix whirled around, craning his neck to scan the area. A certain luckster was no longer with their group.
"Where's Nagito?!" Phoenix exclaimed.
"Huh," Monokuma chuckled. "I guess he's gone off on his own. Well, that's his problem! He doesn't get the Monokuma File— I've already handed it out to two groups! No way am I handing it out a third time! Now, get going!"
Monokuma vanished with his traditional squeal, leaving four, not five, boys standing by the phone contemplating their next move.
"What now?" Apollo asked, seemingly shaken. "Do we find Nagito? He can't have gone far."
"Let's read the file first," Phoenix decided.
The group pulled out their student handbooks and tapped the screen, revealing the autopsy report for Chihiro's murder. Apparently, the programmer had been strangled at 1 AM, and the wounds on her neck were the only external injuries. Not much to go on, but the mental image of such a gentle person being forcefully strangled made Phoenix's blood boil.
"She didn't deserve this…" Apollo clenched his fist.
Klavier grimly patted Apollo's shoulder. "Now is not the time to mourn. We must act."
Apollo scoffed.
"Klavier, get to work on the elevator," Phoenix took charge of the situation. "Apollo, see if you can find Nagito. Makoto, you and I will investigate."
Klavier nodded and began jogging across the pyramid's floor to the elevator. Apollo clenched his jaw before setting off to search for the missing luckster.
"Phoenix…" Makoto said uncertainly. "Where should we start?"
"Let's go check out the doors to the Outer Hall," Phoenix decided. "We should see if it's actually locked."
The lawyer and the luckster walked solemnly to the other side of the pyramid from the phone and ascended the staircase.
"Makoto, why don't you tell me your interpretation of this case so far?" Phoenix prompted as they reached the last step.
"Huh?" Makoto seemed surprised to be put on the spot. "Why now?"
"Just bear with me," Phoenix insisted. "We might as well discuss the possibilities."
Makoto blew air from his cheeks as they walked down the hallway to the set of double-doors. "I think the killer has to be one of us in the Lawyer House," he reasoned.
Phoenix nodded as he tried the handles to the Outer Hall. Sure enough, they wouldn't budge, and he heard the rattling of chains on the other side.
"Looks like the door is indeed chained up," Phoenix confirmed. "Why do you think it's one of us?" He pressed.
"Well, the elevator button is broken," Makoto elaborated, "meaning there's no way for the killer to have escaped to the Prosecutor House."
Phoenix nodded. "That was my impression, too. But, I think we might be able to rule that possibility out now."
"Why?"
Phoenix looked at Makoto with raised eyebrows, wanting him to come to the realization on his own. A part of him understood why Kyoko seemed to enjoy guiding others to conclusions— it was a rewarding experience.
"Oh," Makoto smacked his forehead. "Because Nagito has gone missing."
"He might still turn up somewhere in the Lawyer House, but if he doesn't, that means that there are some secrets we have yet to uncover, and it also means we can't rule out any suspects. What do you say we get started?" Phoenix held out his hand, which Makoto grasped briefly.
"If the Outer Hall is out of the question, where else should we go?" Makoto pondered.
"I guess we should start with our dorm rooms," Phoenix proposed. "Unless you have another idea?"
"Works for me."
The pair of investigators began their search of all six dorm rooms in the blue pyramid. They started with Nagito's room, where they ran into Apollo, who grimly reported that the albino was not hiding in his dorm room or the kitchen.
"Next is the other dorm rooms, I suppose," Apollo grumbled. "But, Mr. Wright… I really don't think he's here."
"I think you're right, Apollo," Phoenix agreed reluctantly. "Want to join us?"
"Thanks, but I think I'm going to help Klavier instead," Apollo declined.
"Good luck!" Makoto encouraged. Apollo didn't respond.
Phoenix respected the red lawyer's tenacity— he was able to keep powering through after so much trauma. Still, part of him had to wonder how he was dealing with Chihiro's death, especially after literally begging to use the programmer's creation just a few days earlier. Just last night, he was desperate enough to want to attempt the deadly gauntlet.
Phoenix decided against further analysis of Apollo and focused on the investigation of the dorm rooms. Aside from an uncannily tidy room that Phoenix wouldn't have really expected from Nagito, they found nothing out of the ordinary in his room. A search of Makoto and Phoenix's rooms revealed they had been left exactly as they were— Phoenix noticed that Makoto had put on his new set of clothes before emerging and realized that he, Phoenix, was still wearing his outfit from yesterday. Part of him wanted to change, but he decided it wasn't worth the time. They left both Apollo and Klavier's rooms empty-handed. The first unused room was also unremarkable, but the final room they checked revealed something interesting.
Immediately upon walking into the room, it was apparent something was different about the room. The blue sheets were quite apparently displaced by a lump of some kind tossed hastily under the covers. Phoenix and Makoto approached the object cautiously, unsure of what it was.
However, when Phoenix quickly pulled the covers back, it became immediately apparent.
"...A sledgehammer?" Makoto questioned aloud. Sure enough, lying under the covers was a single sledgehammer, its oblong steel head attached to an oak handle. A small white powder lightly coated one side of the head.
"Well, I guess that explains how the killer destroyed the elevator button," Phoenix shrugged. "It seems very hastily hidden, though."
"Where did they even get a sledgehammer?" Makoto pondered. "There definitely weren't any just lying around, and it wouldn't have been easy to smuggle one in from the village."
"There can only be one possible location," Phoenix told Makoto. "Any ideas?"
The brunet sighed. "The First Life Room."
Phoenix nodded. "I'm almost certain that is the case."
"So the killer is someone who cleared the First Life Room," Makoto reasoned.
"Indeed. I would also wager whoever cleared the First Life Room would learn about secret passages through the houses that we wouldn't know about."
Makoto's eyes widened. "Are you saying… Nagito is the killer?"
Phoenix sighed. "I never know what to make of him. Honestly, no, I don't think he is the killer. Did he clear the First Life Room? Almost certainly. But someone like him would never commit a murder so easily solvable. Him disappearing only further implicates him, which he wouldn't want."
Makoto nodded slowly as he took in Phoenix's reasoning.
"Then again, we won't know for sure until the class trial," Phoenix shrugged. "Maybe it really was him."
The truth was, he had no idea who else it could be. None of the remaining students aside from Nagito seemed likely to commit murder.
No, he cut off his train of thought before it continued. You've been down this road before, and you've been wrong every time. The truth was, it would be foolish to rule anyone out based on their personality. Even so, he couldn't help but feel that, with Peko's death, all of the more hot-headed or violent students had already been eliminated.
He clenched his jaw. Was he already so numb to the fact that half of his class was dead, that he could think of them so casually? How much more death would they be put through before the game ended?
"Phoenix, are you alright?"
Makoto's voice interrupted his internal dialogue.
"Uh, yeah… I'm fine," Phoenix said unconvincingly.
"You don't have to lie."
Phoenix inhaled slowly. "Really, I'll be okay. It's nothing that can't wait until after the trial."
Makoto shrewdly analyzed Phoenix's expression. "If you're sure… Remember you can talk to me. I don't like my friends to bottle things up."
"Thanks, Makoto. I appreciate it. But, really, we should keep focusing on the investigation."
The luckster sighed. "Alright, if that's what you want."
Phoenix blanched for a moment. Makoto's wording was quite similar to what he had said to Kyoko just last morning regarding Apollo's plan to attempt the First life Room. She had taken it far worse than he had expected— and they had yet to reconcile. Would that happen after the trial?
"Let's check out the extraneous rooms," Phoenix decided, leading Makoto out of the final dorm room.
The search of the kitchen and recreation room led to no notable discoveries. Makoto even dug through some of the bags of oats, looking for anything hidden, but found nothing. As they left the kitchen; however, they were greeted with Apollo and Klavier running up to them.
"Did you fix it?!" Makoto exclaimed.
"We did," Klavier nodded, seeming quite proud of himself.
"Nicely done," Phoenix applauded. "Should we get going?"
Klavier held a finger up. "Is there anything else to investigate on this side?"
"We've checked all the rooms," Phoenix assured him. "Our time would be much better spent in the pyramid above us."
"Very well," Klavier nodded. "Then, let us commence."
The quartet jogged to the elevator. Phoenix wasn't sure exactly what had changed, but Klavier appeared to have rearranged the wires and attached bits of metal to them.
Apollo, Makoto, and Phoenix waited by the door while Klavier peered closely at the panel. He gently grasped two wires and touched them together, and the effect was immediate— the elevator doors opened with a chime. Klavier pumped his fist and Makoto applauded quietly.
"Hopefully we're not too late," Apollo said grimly as they boarded the lift.
The ride to the Prosecutor House was dead silent. Phoenix hoped against hope that they would be able to contribute something to the investigation— he was surprised Monokuma hadn't called for the trial yet. Maybe the bear really did want to see them succeed, so he lengthened the investigation?
The doors opened, and they were greeted with the familiar red walls of the Prosecutor House, something he'd never thought he'd miss. As they exited the lift, Phoenix peered over the balcony, looking for any of the girls (or Nagito). Unfortunately, the lobby seemed empty for now.
"Where to now, Herr Wright?"
Phoenix guided the group down to the lobby. As they descended the final stair, he saw movement which caught his eye. From the recreation room emerged two individuals with different styles of messy, pale hair— Kyoko and Nagito.
Well, that confirms where Nagito has been, Phoenix thought.
As they approached, Phoenix overheard part of their conversation.
"I'm surprised Monokuma hasn't called us to the class trial yet," Nagito commented.
Kyoko responded, "Maybe he's waiting on something. On what, though, I'm not sure."
"Hopefully there's still enough time for us to help out a little bit," Phoenix interrupted, announcing their arrival.
Kyoko turned around and Nagito's gaze shifted to the four boys. After a moment of apparent surprise from both of them, Kyoko gave a small smile, while Nagito chuckled softly.
"And so you arrive," Nagito applauded.
"You left us trapped in the Lawyer House!" Apollo thundered, stepping forward aggressively.
Nagito sighed. "Are you going to whine at me or actually contribute to the investigation?"
Phoenix narrowed his eyes. Nagito had never taken that tone with an Ultimate before. Even when he had been outing Peko as the killer— arguably the time which he had backtalked the most— he had maintained some respect for those he saw as talented.
Apollo clenched his teeth. "What have you found?"
Kyoko caught the group up on the discoveries she and the others had made. It didn't seem like much of anything had been discovered— a disheartening prospect.
"I'd like to go to the scene of the murder," Phoenix told Kyoko.
She nodded. "Follow me."
Kyoko and Nagito led Makoto and Phoenix to the hallway under the stairwell to the second floor while Apollo and Klavier elected to investigate elsewhere. When they entered the Outer Hall, Phoenix involuntarily clenched his stomach.
Chihiro was lying on her back, an expression of anguish on her now-lifeless face. Her arms were by her side, with her legs facing the door with Monokuma's face painted on it— the door to the First Life Room. A thick chain lay to the side of her body, though Phoenix suspected it had been wrapped around her neck.
He swallowed thickly.
"Did you check behind the door?" He managed to say as they approached the body.
Kyoko remained silent for a moment. He braced himself for a verbal berating.
"No," she admitted, much to his surprise. "I suppose I did not see a need to."
Phoenix was shocked she hadn't considered it, but he knew he was treading on eggshells while speaking to Kyoko. He'd let his actions speak for him instead. He walked forward, carefully avoiding stepping on Chihiro's limbs. He gingerly reached for the handle to the First Life Room. The feeling of the cold metal made him jolt slightly as his hand rested on the vertical handle, then he slowly pulled the right door (the side displaying Monokuma's black half) open.
He wasn't sure what he expected, but a plain purple hallway with no immediate threat was certainly not it. He pulled the door further open, which barely grazed against Chihiro's foot. As he did so, he noticed something odd on the floor.
A long length of rope was curled up just inside the hallway.
"Do you think it's safe to step in?" Phoenix asked aloud.
"I have no idea," Kyoko responded coolly.
"Be careful, Phoenix!" Makoto cautioned.
Phoenix took a step forward, crossing the threshold into the First Life Room. He made sure to hold the door open as he bent down, grasping for the rope.
Fortunately, nothing of note happened. The door didn't slam shut, the floor didn't give way, and he was able to step out of the room just as easily as he had entered. He slung the rope through his arm and over his shoulder as he began closing the door, revealing Monokuma's whole face again.
Before he could, however, Makoto's voice interjected. "Hang on, Phoenix— what's going on with the handles?"
Kyoko and Phoenix peered at the handles on Monokuma's face, but, as far as he could tell, neither of them saw anything out of the ordinary.
"Sorry, not those handles," Makoto elaborated, "the ones on the other side of the door."
Phoenix tugged the door open again, cringing as the door once again bumped into Chihiro's shoe. A part of him still couldn't believe he was standing over his friend's corpse and was more focused on a door.
When he investigated the horizontal handlebars on the inside of the doors, though, he saw what Makoto was talking about. The sides closest to the door had been noticeably bent upwards, as though something had pried them from their original position.
"I suppose this explains what the rope was doing," Phoenix commented.
"Tying the door handle shut?" Makoto asked.
"It looks that way." Phoenix closed the doors and stepped away, rejoining the group. Kyoko was observing him with muted interest, while Nagito seemed entirely bored.
"Check the rope for frays," Kyoko commanded as he stepped back.
Nagito perked up at this statement from Kyoko. "Perhaps Makoto and Phoenix should hold it end to end while you analyze it," he suggested.
Phoenix made eye contact with the luckster. Once again, Nagito was behaving very contrary to his normal self— Phoenix would have expected him to trip over his own feet in an attempt to hold the rope out for the investigation.
Nagito stared at Phoenix, contempt visible on his face. Whatever had happened to him in between yesterday and today was clearly massive.
Their staring contest was broken by Makoto tugging at the rope slung around Phoenix's shoulder. Phoenix sighed and grabbed the other end. The pair unrolled the rope, walking backwards in equal steps until both of them were nearly at the wall.
"This has to be at least 35 feet long," Makoto called from the far side of the room.
"Indeed," Kyoko confirmed as she slowly walked down the length of the rope, her pale eyes carefully analyzing every inch. By the time she got to Makoto's side, Phoenix was tired of holding the rope taut.
"There's a noticeable section of frays about two feet from the right side of the rope," Kyoko said aloud as she began writing in her notepad, "one small fray approximately four feet to the right of that, and the rest of the rope is normal."
"What does that mean?" Makoto pondered.
"You can't even figure that out?" Nagito groaned, rubbing his forehead. "You're worse than I thought…"
"H-hey!" the smaller luckster protested. "We have a whole class trial to figure this case out!"
Nagito merely looked to the side.
Phoenix tried to interject, but before he could, a loud static noise filled the room before the familiar voice of Monokuma blasted over the intercom.
"Alright, let's get going! Enter the elevator via the Prosecutor House and we'll start this class trial!"
Phoenix clenched his teeth. In two days they had lost four people to two class trials, and they were about to lose a fifth. When would it end?
He exchanged a glance with Kyoko, who met his gaze with a calm resolution on her face. He wasn't sure if she was no longer mad with him or was merely pushing her disdain aside, but regardless, he appreciated that they could cooperate.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Nagito taunted. Phoenix turned to see him standing by the doors out of the Outer Hall. "Let's go!"
The three other students followed the taller luckster out of the purple cylinder and into the red pyramid. They ascended the staircase to see the other students waiting for them. Even though he knew they were fine, he still breathed easier seeing Maya and Chiaki standing there unharmed.
Maya ran up to Phoenix and briefly hugged him. He stood in shock for a moment, and she ended the embrace before he could respond.
"Um, good to see you," he said awkwardly.
"I'm glad you're okay," she whispered in response.
He shook his head grimly. "Let's wait until after the trial is done to call ourselves 'okay.'"
She emitted a noise somewhere between a laugh and a sob. "Fair enough."
"Now that we are all here, shall we enter the lift?" Klavier proposed, his finger hovering over the call button.
"Did your group find anything noteworthy?" Phoenix interrupted as the rockstar's finger grew closer to the button.
Klavier looked at Apollo, who looked at Chiaki. The gamer was resting her head on her shoulders, eyes drooping. After a moment and a poke from Maya, she realized everyone was looking at her.
"Oh… The room next to Chihiro's was missing a chair… And we found a small key stuffed in between the fitted sheets and the mattress in her room…"
Apollo produced a small golden key and held it aloft for the group to see.
"What does that go to?" Makoto questioned.
"We aren't sure," Klavier sighed. "There are no keyholes that we could find anywhere in this place. Perhaps it goes to something within the First Life Room, but I feel that is unlikely."
Monokuma's voice blared through the building again. "Stop discussing things you should be discussing at the trial! Get on the elevator!"
A few students flinched, and Klavier hurriedly jammed the button shaped like an attorney's badge. The doors immediately opened.
The eight students crammed themselves into the elevator, though with one fewer body than last time they had all entered it, there was more room to breathe. No one even bothered to question how the elevator would transport them to the trial grounds instead of the Lawyer House— questioning Monokuma's construction was simply not worth it.
The doors closed, and Phoenix said goodbye to the psychedelic pyramids, presumably for the last time. He certainly wouldn't miss the gently floating badges or constantly glowing walls.
As opposed to their previous descents into the trial ground on a shaky industrial elevator, this ride was entirely smooth. Phoenix couldn't tell if they were going up, down, or not moving at all. Eventually, however, the elevator chimed and the doors opened, revealing the all-too-familiar courtroom as everyone braced themselves for the next class trial.